12/13 June 2026

First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me

I have thought about this poem a great deal since watching the violent vigilante mob marauding the streets of Belfast in response to Hadi Alodid’s horrific attack on Stephen Ogilvie. There is much understandable anger and fear, but this pogrom-like violence is terrifying to watch. It is equally devastating to read about the fear of those from immigrant backgrounds currently living in Belfast, who are too terrified to leave their homes.

Living with difference and dissent is the moral of this week’s Parashat Korach. For ever more, Korach and his followers are remembered for instigating a challenge and disagreement that had no constructive basis or holy purpose.

Pastor Martin Niemöller was a complicated man. Initially an anti-semitic Nazi sympathiser, he later underwent a profound shift in his perspective and outlook, which these famous words capture so well. His message makes it clear that looking out for others is akin to looking out for ourselves and vice versa. As Jews, we choose to recognise this profound interdependence: our safety is inextricably bound up with the safety of others. We believe that our commitment to working with refugees and asylum seekers makes us safer, not less so, because the more connections we build, the more human we all become.

Pirkei Avot reminds us of this through the enduring words of Hillel:

אִם אֵין אֲנִי לִי, מִי לִי. וּכְשֶׁאֲנִי לְעַצְמִי, מָה אֲנִי. וְאִם לֹא עַכְשָׁיו, אֵימָתַי

“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? And when I am for myself alone, what am I? And if not now, when?”

This Shabbat and next Tuesday evening, we celebrate being designated as the very first Synagogue of Sanctuary in the United Kingdom. It is a milestone that truly lives out these words.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rebecca