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One of the most solemn and moving parts of the Yom Kippur services is “Eileh Ezkerah – These I shall recall.” It is a poetic depiction of the Ten Martyrs, all great rabbis, including the legendary Rabbi Akiva, who at different times were brutally executed by the barbaric Roman occupiers during and after the time of the fall of the Second Temple.

Many Jewish and non-Jewish pundits are headlining the fact that Donald Trump last week in Washington told his Jewish audience that the Jews will be to blame if he does not win election. It may be true, but no one in the audience took it as an insult or a threat to the Jewish people. We took it as a sad reality from a politician who is not good at word salads and actually says what’s on his mind, to a fault.

Rosh HaShanah was surely an exceptionally emotional one for most Jews this year. We reflected upon the most difficult year for Jews worldwide, beginning with October 7 and continuing now. With the abandoning of Jews by our supposed “friends,” especially in the West, we increasingly realize Bilaam’s assessment (BaMidbar 23:9): “Behold it is a nation that will dwell in solitude and not be reckoned among the nations.”

October 7. A date which will live in infamy. On our family chat recently, my son, Rabbi Ari Schonfeld, principal of Yeshiva Ketana of Manhattan, posted that he is on a chat with fellow mechanchim (yeshivah educators) who were debating if and how to commemorate the horrors that befell our people in Israel on that awful day last year.

I have always wondered why S’lichos, which we say before and after Rosh HaShanah each morning, has very little to do with asking for forgiveness. It has more to do with expressing our anguish at being oppressed by non-Jews over the centuries. I do not have a great explanation, but I think it is reasonable to say that if we realize how uniquely we are treated in this world, it will inspire us to a certain closeness to Hashem, which is what these Days of Awe are all about.

It might surprise you, but I do not believe rabbis belong in politics. I am sure you are wondering how that can be. After all, so many of my articles for the Queens Jewish Link involve my assessment of the current political situation. I am quite definitely conservative in my political views and make no secret of being a strong critic of the Democratic Party. During my tenure, I was the only pulpit rabbi on the local Jewish political action committee, known as the Queens Jewish Alliance. To the chagrin of many on the QJA, I still am an active participant on their chat. So, how can I maintain that rabbis do not belong in politics?