JUNE 30 • 2022 | 9
essay
Herzl’s Yahrzeit Is Coming Up
O
n July 3, it is Herzl’s
yahrzeit. Truly, a sad
day for the Jewish
people at the time in 1904 and
now, an important and inspira-
tional day on the
Zionist calendar.
Herzl was
buried in Vienna,
Austria, in 1904.
However, he was
so confident that
a Jewish state
would one day be
established that he requested in
his will to be buried in a metal
coffin so that it would be easy to
transport his body to Israel.
There were attempts to
move Herzl’s remains right
away. However, the outbreak of
WWI and then WWII halted
the mission. Hitler’s rise to
power in Germany and then
the annexation of Austria made
it difficult for the thousands of
Austrian and European Jews to
continue their annual pilgrim-
age to Herzl’s grave in Vienna
on his yahrzeit. Nevertheless,
the custom continued in secret,
including memorials and pro-
cessions in the cemetery.
Forty-four years after his
death, in 1948, his dream for
a Jewish state was realized
and one year later, in 1949, his
request was finally fulfilled.
Herzl’s final journey from
Vienna to Jerusalem was
planned to the tee. In a com-
plex operation, Herzl’s grave
was opened in Vienna and his
remains, as well as his family
members, were transferred to
Israel. Military planes accom-
panied the El Al plane that
transported the coffin to the
shores of Israel. The burial pro-
cession began in Ben Gurion
Airport, passed through Tel
Aviv and then reached its final
destination on Mount Herzl in
Jerusalem on Aug. 17, 1949.
About 250,000 people
participated in the various
events, a fifth of the Israeli
population at the time. In
Haifa, white doves were
released when the planes
passed over the city. In Tel
Aviv, rabbis remained near
the coffin throughout the
night and recited parts of the
Mishnah and Psalms; their
prayers were broadcasted on
loudspeakers. Upon entering
Jerusalem, the casket passed
under an honorary arch
bearing the biblical verse
from Ezekiel the Prophet: “I
will lift you from your graves.
My people, I bring you to the
Land of Israel.” This quote also
adorned his coffin drape along
with a quote from Psalms,
“Those who sow in tears, will
reap with joy,” symbolizing
Herzl’s personal sacrifice for
the Jewish people.
At last, on Mount Herzl, his
casket was buried under soil
brought in white silk bags from
all over Israel to metaphorically
bury him in and with every
part of Israel. The citizens
present at the gravesite then
pledged “If I forget Jerusalem,
let my right hand whither.” A
line which originated from
the Jewish people during
the Babylonian Exile, which
went on to become a famous
motif in the diaspora: a quote
even Herzl recited during
the Uganda Crisis at the 6th
Zionist Congress.
July 3 is fast approach-
ing. Services are held yearly
at his grave sight on Mount
Herzl and are attended by the
Israeli prime minister and
president. There, they will
commemorate a revolutionary
person, who dared to do the
unimaginable.
Miri Weissman is originally from New
Jersey and made aliyah in 2020. For
her national service, she worked as a
tour guide at Mount Herzl and a social
media manager for The Herzl Center.
This was first published on the Times
of Israel blog.
year are:
• Expand JFS’ strong
suicide-prevention program
across the region, including
enhancing training and
development.
• Analyze employment,
pay and benefit structures
to ensure competitive
employment packages across
the agency.
• Explore and implement
policy changes based on
agency-wide DEI learnings
and discussion.
• Perform a comprehensive
program assessment to
optimize operational and
financial performance while
meeting community needs.
There’s nothing out of
the ordinary here. We’re
not opening a taco stand
nor moving to the Upper
Peninsula. We’re charting a
course to know where we are
heading and to ask you to
help us get there and to help
keep us accountable.
Since 1928, Jewish
Family Service has helped
the community. First, the
Jewish community and
now the Jewish and broader
communities. And we are
planning on being here long
after our 100th birthday.
We help our neighbors
who can’t make ends meet.
We help people struggling
with mental health problems.
We help bubbies and
zaydies to age in place.
Thousands of people a year,
one at a time, as the heart of a
stronger community.
Perry Ohren is a social worker and
has been Jewish Family Service’s
CEO since 2011. He is a past chair
of the Board of Directors of the
international Network of Jewish
Human Service Agencies and serves
on the Board of Directors of NEW
(Nonprofit Enterprise at Work).
Miri
Weissman
WIKIMEDIA
Herzl’s Coffin in
Tel Aviv in 1949
“IF YOU WILL IT, IT IS NO DREAM.”
— THEODOR HERZL