After emerging from last week’s 8.9-magnitude earthquake and resultant tsunami largely unharmed, Japan’s Jewish community turned to relief efforts Monday, dispatching truckloads of supplies to one of the hardest-hit cities.
Japanese Jewish Community Launches Sendai Relief Effort
After emerging from last week’s 8.9-magnitude earthquake and resultant tsunami largely unharmed, Japan’s Jewish community turned to relief efforts Monday, dispatching truckloads of supplies to one of the hardest-hit cities.
A mere 80 kilometers from Friday’s epicenter, Sendai saw some of the worst of the destruction when the monster wave slammed into the northern coastal port, inundating homes, industrial areas, even its airport. Led by the Tokyo-based Chabad-Lubavitch of Japan and the Hong Kong-based Chabad-Lubavitch of Asia, the Jewish community response to the tragedy includes shipments of tons of bread, rice, noodles, soups, canned foods, flour and oil.
According to Rabbi Mordechai Avtzon, director of Chabad-Lubavitch of Asia, with death tolls expected to climb past 10,000 lives lost all across the country, the Japanese people need all the help they can get. Close to 400,000 people are without food and shelter, some of them the 200,000 people evacuated from an ever-growing circle around the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant where emergency crews are battling possible meltdowns at up to three reactors.
“In the immediate aftermath, the Chabad House has become a nerve and community center for many people, Jewish and non-Jewish,” said Avtzon. “Trucks have already left from there bound for Sendai, and more will be coming.”
Chabad-Lubavitch of Japan director Rabbi Mendy Sudakevich saw off his wife and six children when they evacuated to stay with family in Israel.
He then commissioned a bakery in Sendai in order to give out free bread; the business will also serve as the Jewish response’s command center.
“We’ve organized 50,000 ready-to-eat food rations to be flown in from the United States,” reported Sudakevich.
Avtzon said that the effort will not be cheap, and urged people to donate to the project through its website, JapanJewishRelief.com.
“This operation could end up costing upwards of $25,000 a day for a month so that the people of Sendai get help,” said the rabbi. “In addition to our prayers, all of Japan needs assistance.”
To donate to Chabad-Lubavitch of Japan’s relief effort in Sendai, click here.
meir rhodes- bat ayin israel
in all due respect , too hell with the japs. we in yesha need help desparately. passover is coming. there are many families that don’t have their basic needs met for the up coming holidays.contact rabbi danny cohen or reb meir rhodes if you wish to help. all preceeds will go to needed families.
Caller
Just spoke to someone who left Tokyo this morning and he told me that Rabbi Sudekevitch left this morning. Also spoke to the travel agent who got him his ticket.
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wow, crazy! it rlly shows whe Hashem wants something to happen it happens!
no one special
The first comment, about Jews needing help, is very sobering. Did anyone ask a Rov or paskin what the appropriate response is in this situation; Jews in need vs.other in need?
ColelChabadNeedsHelp
I hope they are not using money donated to Colel chabad!
We have 100’s of thousands of our own suffering.
It seems that Hashem didn’t forget Pearl Harbor, after all…
Michali
Is this the new shlichus of shluchim? Is it right for them to raise $25,000 a day of Jewish Tzedaka for a relief effort in Japan?
There are tens of governments sending aid. There are Hundreds of non-Jewish charities like the Red Cross and the Salvation Army sending aid. There are even Jewish organizations who raise funds for non-sectarian causes like the Joint and American Jewish Committee. Do they really need Chabad’s tons of rice?!
Most importantly, does this the distract the shliach from helping and being committed to HIS constituents?
I really wonder, who the esteemed Rabbi Avtzon and Sudakevitch consulted with.
We cannot be heartless
We are lights unto the nations and will help humans in need. These are G-d’s creatures, and to say that we should not help them is a huge chillul hashem, and quite frankly makes me not want to be associated with anyone who would tell people not to help others in dire need of many essentials such as food, shelter and medicinal care. If we truly want to bring Moshiach, and to uplift this world and make it a better place, we have to treat everyone with respect, because as we all know- you cannot give respect unless it is given to you. The nations will not want to listen to anything that we have to say if we treat them like garbage. The Rebbe stressed the importance of the need to spread the teachings of the Seven Noachide Laws to the nations, so that we can achieve our goal in this world. We should want the best for everybody, Jewish or non-Jewish. Obviously, this is not meant towards people who are mentally ill and want nothing but death and destruction for this world- I am not saying that we should help terrorist groups because they are human. I am saying that we should help Japan because as a nation, they are not trying to kill us, and we would expect help from the other nations if G-d forbid something similar happened to us.
Avrohom
yea meir you gonna teach me how to make money…
Avrohom
When distributing tzedakah funds to out-of-town people, those who live in Eretz Yisroel should be given more than those from Chutz La’Aretz (Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 251:3; see Shach).
Wait a minute, before sending money to jp, how much did I send to my brothers in Israel?
to #7
“ Japan because as a nation, they are not trying to kill us”
They actually did duering WWII, and they deserved our help not less than germans natzim y”svz?
To #7
You very cleverly injected “the Rebbe” in your comment, as if the Rebbe would endorse this campaign. I am not so sure. The premise that we should promote the mitzvos of bnei noach has nothing to do with where our charity should go, and whether our “shlichus” as Chabad chasidim and shluchim of the Rebbe includes fundraising and relief efforts. These efforts were NEVER associated with Chabad.
And if mentioning the Rebbe is the thing “to do” — well, the Rebbe would often deflect certain communal matters to other organizations, since it was their area of operation. Chabad’s stated goal is hafotzas hayahadus v’chasidus and bringing Moshiach thorugh these efforts. Add to that the spreading of 7 mitzvos of bnei Noach (of which the Rebbe NEVER made an actual mivtzah.
Remember also that charity has an order of preference. First family, than the “poor of your city,” than the poor of nearby city etc. Jews in Israel are on top of the list (see Tanya). The halacha that non-Jews are fed together with Jews is somewhere own the list.
Priorities, people, priorities.
And, like someone wrote already, Japan doesn’t really need our donations. With that money we could be feeding plenty of our brethern for Pesach.
Don-t forget ITAMAR
Perhaps we should have started a campaign to help the Fogel family and strengthen the community of Itamar. Nothing against the people of Japan.
no one special
The Rebbe told me “In America, everyone wants to do the sensational”. His tone & facial expression did not indicate his support for the sensational. A gesture of help may be politically (& financially) sensational for Lubavitch, but it is our obligation to help our own and forget about the headlines.