MUNCIE, Ind.--- On Oct. 12, a vigil was held at the Edmund F. and Virginia B. Ball Honors house to pray for the conflict in Israel.
“I started seeing a little more stuff and a little more stuff, and by midday, I got the magnitude of the event and what happened...and the worst thing is to be away,” sophomore Eyal Rawitz said. “I mean, when your home is being attacked, you just want to be there for life or death, to help.”
According to Rawitz, he was contacted by associate teaching professor Galit Gertsenzon to help spread the word regarding the event. Both Rawitz and Gertsenzon have ties to Israel.
“I was born and raised in Israel, I left Israel at the age of 25 to study here in the United States,” Gertsenzon said. “I live here, and I have my family here, but my family members, my immediate ones, are back at home in Israel.”
Gertsenzon said she held the vigil to help those who are hurting due to the impact of the war.
“I basically just wanted to have people come together and support each other,” Gertsenzon said. “Through prayer, conversation, through a bit of singing.”
Rawitz said he spent hours scrolling through social media after he heard the news about what happened when Hamas surprise-attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
“I’m hoping that this vigil will bring light to the war crimes and the devastating things Hamas is doing right now...and to raise awareness that they do not represent Islam or Palestine,” Rawitz said.
Gertsenzon said she asks people not to take a side, and instead, asks people to see that this is an issue about humans hurting humans.
Contact Emma Matlock with comments at emma.matlock@bsu.edu.
