When Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Michigan was attacked in March 2026, the chaos, fear, and pain there is unimaginable. A pizzeria called the Soul Café decided that they would give what they had – pizza, chocolate chip cookies, bottled drinks. They knew parents were terrified waiting to reunite with their children, emergency responders and police were hard at work. Everyone would be hungry. The staff at the pizzeria said they didn’t even really talk about doing it. They just kind of started cooking all at once.
A local rabbi helped deliver the food. In the anger and uncertainty, Rabbi Greenwald said that he saw “only one direction – goodness and kindness.” Investigators and the justice system and politicians would do their part, but he figured that for everybody else it’s our job to “add goodness and kindness to everything we do.” He said: “we’re resilient and we’re loving… ultimately love is our faith. A little light dispels the darkness.”
We can’t bring down the great evils of the world in the blink of an eye or make a wicked leader good by force of will. But even though feeding the hungry and loving their community won’t fix everything, those pizzas and cookies are still a balm to that community. They are a little light dispelling the darkness. Living as children of the light no matter what tragedy we face… that’s a holy thing, indeed.
