Jewish community awed by messages of support

Mysterious cards left on gates, in post boxes, and taped to the intercoms of homes of local Jews around 7 October warmed the hearts of recipients, but left them curious as to who had sent them.

The cards came in envelopes marked with the words, “Let my people go”, with a yellow ribbon, which is a call to bring home the remaining hostages from Gaza. Inside the cards, there were caring, handwritten messages showing encouragement and support. Each card was signed, “Your Christian friend.” The cards were accompanied by beaded bracelets showing the colours of Israel and the Magen David.

Those who received these cards went to social media to try and figure out who these Good Samaritans were so that they could thank them for bringing hope over the 7 October period.

“In the cynical and antisemitic world that we find ourselves in, reading the simple and supportive message in the card brought me feelings of gratitude and delight. It was a real gift of support,” said Zahava Lipschitz, one of the recipients. “I was overwhelmed that someone out there had taken the time and made the effort to reach out in such a touching way.”

Lipschitz wrote to the SA Jewish Report about the card she had received, expressing awe at the kind gesture. She wrote, “Heartfelt letters were delivered to houses on Study Road and Corbel Crescent yesterday in a statement of unity and support with the Jewish community and Israel.”

She said she wasn’t sure whether other streets had received the bracelets and cards, but said the gesture had touched the hearts of her entire street group who wanted to express their gratitude. “Unfortunately, we don’t know who was responsible for this kind gesture to thank them.”

She said following the arrival and receipt of the cards, messages were exchanged on street WhatsApp groups. “A number of people responded with photos of their individualised letters.” Though they still had to find out who had posted the cards, one of the people on the WhatsApp group wrote, “I saw a Christian gentleman with his son and daughter walking down Study Road just after 14:00 putting envelopes in people’s post boxes or sticking them on their intercoms.”

Lindi Katzoff, the office manager for Bikkur Cholim, a Jewish society which visits the sick, received one of the cards. As with Penn, she said this “phenomenal gesture” was initially met with suspicion as she wasn’t sure who the cards were from. However, on reading her card, which was from “Howard and Bron, your Christian friends” she was deeply grateful and moved.

“October 7 was a deeply sad time for us as a community,” said Katzoff, who said that despite this, she had witnessed the Jewish community stand alongside one another, for example at the October 7 Square at Great Park Synagogue in Houghton. “Not only did Jewish residents stand together on the day, but Christian residents and other non-Jewish community members stood alongside us, and this was a beautiful thing to experience, even during the immense pain and heartache.”Members of the Facebook group Joburg Jewish Mommies shared that they had received the supportive cards. Each message in the cards received was different.

All the cards, it seemed, were signed with a name, without a surname, and as in the case of Katzoff’s message, the words, “Your Christian friend.”

Simone Penn was first made aware of the kind-hearted gesture towards her family when her daughter came running to her with the card and bracelet and said, “Mommy, your friend dropped off a gift!” She told the SA Jewish Report that on receiving the card and beaded bangle, she was initially concerned. “I was worried that this was a plot to see whose homes are owned by Jews, and an element of fear and suspicion crept in, which I have felt since 7 October,” she said.

On reading the card, her heart was touched by the personalised message, which she emphasised was handwritten. She said she recently sent cards to her friends for Rosh Hashanah, and those were not as beautifully written and with such care as the card she had received from an anonymous stranger.

“October 7 rattled me completely,” she said. “I saw a photo on social media about a child taken hostage, and I felt like this was my loss, which is how it is with the Jewish community.”

She said the love shown through the card was healing and restorative as it was affirmation that the Jewish community wasn’t alone in its grief. “My nine-year-old son is convinced a non-Jewish woman in the printing department of his school sent it. Still, whoever it’s from, the whole concept is stellar, and unquantifiable in words.”

It was Penn who eventually discovered the identity of the card givers, when seeing a group of Jehovah’s Witnesses walking down her road. She asked them whether they had given the cards and bangles, and was told they had done so as a gesture to encourage hope and faith.

“The messages should give the Jewish community hope, as they are a reminder we have Christian friends and there are many Christian groups from different denominations throughout the country who would have willingly posted the cards, who support Israel.”

At a time when many Jewish residents feel alone in their heartache about what happened on 7 October and since then, the cards are a reminder that many stand alongside the Jewish community.