JPOST
The surge of October 8 Jews and the new wave of Jewish reconnection
Zvika Klein
October 24, 2024

…That all changed on October 7, 2023. Like so many Jews around the world, he was shaken by the brutal attack on Israel, but for him, the impact was especially personal. “It was like a switch flipped,” he said. “Suddenly, I wasn’t just watching events unfold from afar – I felt connected to them in a way I never had before. I realized how distant I’d been, not just from Israel, but from my own Jewish identity.” He now calls himself an “October 8th Jew” – someone who, after years of living disconnected from Jewish life, suddenly found himself thrust back into the community. “It’s like I woke up on October 8 and realized I had been living in a bubble. Now, I have to learn how to be Jewish again,” he said, his voice full of a mix of confusion and determination. “I feel like a teenager raised by wolves, who suddenly needs to re-learn how to be human – or in this case, how to be a Jew.” He’s not alone. READ MORE