Jewish community and nation mourn lives lost at Bondi Beach
Jewish communities worldwide will celebrate the triumph of light over forces of darkness during Hanukkah festivities this week and despite our nation’s shock and grief, may peace and love prevail
READING LEVEL: RED
It is with sincere heartache that Kids News must report that Australia is in a state of shock and national mourning, following the Sunday evening terrorist* attack at Sydney’s beloved Bondi Beach. A globally recognised stretch of surf and sand, for many of us Bondi Beach symbolises everything we love best about our country, most especially our treasured peace, freedom and the fellowship* of our secular* society.
The beach on a hot summer’s day is a place for all Australians and visitors to our shores to enjoy.
So the nation’s heart broke when NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon confirmed at the first press conference on Sunday night, also attended by NSW Premier Chris Minns, that the December 14 mass shooting event was a planned act of terror, targeting the Jewish community at the annual Chanukah* by the Sea event.
The popular free family event was billed as a celebration of Jewish life by the Chabad* of Bondi, “lighting up the iconic Bondi Beach”, featuring a giant Menorah* light, free doughnuts, delicious Kosher* food, a petting farm, face-painting, Chanukah crafts and more.
But as the sea air cooled and the sun began to set in spectacular fashion, a picture-perfect dusk turned to one of the darkest days in Australia’s history.
At the time of writing, 15 innocent people have died and another 42 remain in hospital with a range of injuries, including two police officers. The attack has been condemned by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Mr Minns and leaders from around the world.
Several Sydney schools have closed as a precaution, with no confirmed date for reopening.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS
- Bondi Beach Public School – Bondi
INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS
- Emanuel School – Randwick
- Moriah College – Queens Park
- Mount Sinai college – Maroubra
- Masada College – St Ives
- Kesser Torah College – Dover Heights
To honour those whose lives were lost, including the youngest victim, 10-year-old Matilda, Kids News will turn to the spirit of Hanukkah at this time.
As with the glorious Hindu festival Diwali, Hanukkah is known as the Festival of Lights. It celebrates the power of light over darkness and the triumph of good over evil.
Let’s discover more about Hanukkah and the Jewish diaspora* in Bondi and around Australia.
HAPPY HANUKKAH
Hanukkah is a joyful celebration lasting eight days, commemorating a 2000-year-old miracle.
In 175BC, King Antiochus, whose ancient kingdom included Judea (in present-day Israel), made it illegal for people who lived there to practice their religion, called Judaism.
Instead, he wanted Jews to worship Greek gods. When they refused, he ordered his troops to destroy the Temple of Jerusalem, an important place of worship for Jews. He replaced the Jewish symbols with an altar dedicated to Zeus, the king of the Greek gods.
According to a story by Laura Goertzel on National Geographic Kids, Judah the Maccabee then led a rebellion against King Antiochus.
“Many historians believe that they battled for about three years to become an independent region so they could practice their religion,” it reads.
King Antiochus and his troops were defeated around 164BC. When the victorious Maccabees returned to their ransacked* temple, they found a single jar of oil that allowed them to light the temple’s candles for one day. But according to the Talmud (one of Judaism’s holy texts), the oil miraculously burned for eight days.
Because the Hebrew calendar follows the lunar cycle, Hanukkah dates change each year. In 2025, Hanukkah started on the evening of December 14 and it will end on Monday 22 December.
Today, to celebrate the ancient miracle of the oil burning a candle for eight nights, Jews light a candleholder called a Menorah for the eight nights of Hanukkah. The Menorah holds nine candles: one for each night plus a candle called the “shamash” used to light the other candles.
On the first night, one candle is added to the menorah and lit. Each night for another seven nights, another candle is added and lit. During this ritual, people recite special blessings and prayers, sing songs and give gifts.
JEWISH MIGRATION TO AUSTRALIA
Australia is currently home to about 120,000 Jews, with most settling in Sydney or Melbourne.
When European settlement in Australia began with the 1788 arrival of the British First Fleet, a small number of Jewish convicts were shipped here. The Sydney Jewish Museum estimates just 800 of around 151,000 total transports were Jewish.
Once the colony was established and against all expectation began to thrive, Australia began welcoming waves of free settlers.
According to the Sydney Jewish Museum, from around 1830, small Jewish congregations and synagogues were established in Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart and Launceston, later in Adelaide and other places, including a few rural areas.
Bondi Stories cites the NSW Calendar of 1833, which mentions “bushroad, leading to a hill on which stands Levey’s tower, an octagonal obelisk*, commanding an excessive view”, and “a quarter of a mile further we come to Waverley House, built by Mr Barnett Levey”.
Levey, an Englishman, may have been the first Jewish free settler of Bondi.
Bondi Stories suggests Levey was a natural businessman even as a young man of 19. Anticipating Sydney’s enduring real estate obsession and today’s breathtaking property values in Bondi, he was also an early property developer. The 1833 calendar mentions not just his grand residence Waverley House but a range of cottages he was building along the adjacent Waverley Crescent.
NEW HOPE AFTER WWII HORROR
More generally, the largest waves of Jewish migration to Australia can be dated before and after World War II (1939-1945), after the rise and eventual defeat of Nazi Germany under Adolf Hitler.
The genocide* of European Jews claimed the lives of six million innocent people.
WWII was the deadliest conflict in human history – the total number of casualties is unknown but the lowest estimate according to the City of Parramatta Research and Collections is 40 million dead, with the highest estimate three times greater at 120 million. America’s National WWII Museum in New Orleans estimates the death toll at 60 million people.
The first Holocaust* survivors came to Australia from the Displaced Person Camps set up in Germany, Austria and Italy.
Other survivors followed soon after. The Sydney Jewish Museum estimates that altogether more than 31,000 Holocaust survivors rebuilt their lives in Australia. In proportional terms, Australia welcomed one of the largest numbers of Holocaust victims.
Since European settlement in Australia, Jewish people originating from many foreign countries – together known as the Jewish diaspora* – including the tens of thousands of Holocaust survivors, have continually contributed to Australia’s emerging identity as one of the great success stories among the world’s Western liberal democracies*. Jewish culture and community have long played a significant role along Australia’s path to becoming a peaceful multicultural society.
IF THIS STORY HAS AFFECTED YOU, PLEASE LET SOMEONE KNOW
Your family, school and loved ones are often the best place to start if you are feeling sad or worried, but sometimes it can be easier talking to someone else. Here are some organisations in Australia where you will find support:
- Kids Helpline: 1800 551 800
- Lifeline: 13 1114
- Beyond Blue: 1300 22 4636
- ReachOut: au.reachout.com
- Dolly’s Dream Support Line: 0488 881 033
POLL
GLOSSARY
- terrorist attack: a violent event carried out against civilians by people with political, religious or ideological aims
- fellowship: friendly association, community
- secular: not defined by a single religion and when the state is not controlled by religion
- Chanukah: also Hanukkah, a major Jewish holiday marking the victory of light over darkness
- Chabad: Hasidic movement’s system of Jewish religious philosophy
- Menorah: nine-branched candelabra used to celebrate Hanukkah
- Kosher: describes foods, packaging, storage and vendor facilities prepared and kept in conditions that follow the rules of Jewish law
- obelisk: tall, stone column with four sloping sides and a pointed top, made in honour of an important person or event
- genocide: deliberate murder that attempts to destroy a whole community or race
- the Holocaust: the systematic, state-sanctioned genocide of six million European Jews by the Nazis in World War II
- diaspora: a group of people who spread from one original country to other countries
- Western liberal democracy: a system of government based on the belief that freedom and equality between people should be protected, and in which power is limited and people choose their rulers by voting for them in elections
EXTRA READING
Investigators shine new light on Anne Frank mystery
World leaders remember Holocaust
Questions I am asked about the Holocaust
QUICK QUIZ
- How many transported convicts are thought to have been Jewish, according to the Sydney Jewish Museum?
- How many Jewish people died in the Holocaust during World War II?
- How many Holocaust survivors rebuilt their lives in Australia?
- Why is Hanukkah known as the Festival of Lights?
- What is the ancient miracle on which Hanukkah is based?
LISTEN TO THIS STORY
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Feelings chart
Write or draw what you feel about the events in Bondi on Sunday. You can start with sentence starters such as “I feel … because …”
**Teachers – be sure to check in with students emotionally and allow them the space to share their feelings if they wish.
Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
2. Extension
Create a list of calming strategies when you feel overwhelmed or sad. Some examples could be breathing exercises, drawing, talking to a trusted adult etc.
Share your toolbox with a classmate you feel comfortable with.
Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
VCOP ACTIVITY
Conjunctions
Conjunctions are important in connecting ideas in a text and improving its flow. They help to join sentences, clauses or phrases to create a coherent and meaningful text.
Coordinating conjunctions are used to connect equal ideas or phrases – for example: and, but, or, so, yet, nor.
Subordinating conjunctions are connecting words or phrases that join a subordinating clause to the main idea. They provide additional information about the main idea – for example: because, although, while, when, if, since, until.
Complete at least two activities from the choices below:
Read the news article carefully and highlight all the conjunctions used in the text.
Write down the conjunctions you found and the words or phrases they connect.
Identify the type of conjunction used (coordinating conjunctions or subordinating conjunctions).
Explain the role of conjunctions in connecting ideas and improving the flow of a text.
Write a short paragraph about something you found interesting in the article. Challenge yourself to re-use three conjunctions from the text. Can you up-level them to a higher level conjunction? Does it make the sentence better or harder to read? (Sometimes, the basic conjunction is the best choice).