A violent incident at a Michigan synagogue intensifies security concerns for Jewish communities nationwide.
DALLAS — A violent incident at a synagogue outside Detroit, Michigan is renewing security concerns for Jewish communities across the country, including in North Texas.
For Rabbi David Stern, the senior rabbi at Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, the news struck close to home.
“A number of members of that clergy team are friends of mine, I know the community…and it’s something that goes to the heart of all of us,” Stern said.
The attack has reverberated through synagogues nationwide, where many congregations already operate under heightened security due to rising antisemitism and global tensions since last October.
“An attack on any synagogue feels like an attack on all of us,” Stern said.
Security experts say those concerns have led more synagogues to take safety planning seriously. Rabbi Raziel Cohen, a New Jersey-based security trainer often known as the “Tactical Rabbi,” works with congregations around the country to develop emergency response plans and security protocols.
“I have seen such a massive uptick of people getting much more serious about training,” Cohen said.
His work includes helping synagogues organize trained security teams and preparing congregants for potential threats.
“There is a difference between a guy with a gun and a team with guys with guns,” Cohen said.
Cohen estimates roughly seven out of ten synagogues in the United States now have active security plans in place. For those that do not, he says the risks are becoming harder to ignore.
“They’re accepting of the fears they wish they didn’t have as opposed to preparing for the reality of what life is,” he said.
Temple Emanu-El in Dallas has its own security plan, which Stern says has become a routine part of synagogue life.
“They are now part of our everyday rhythm. It is an ethical obligation,” Stern said.
While Stern emphasized there are currently no immediate or credible threats to the Dallas area, he said incidents like the one in Michigan still create anxiety within the community.
“I think it also causes us to double down on our will to resist- the importance of fighting against antisemitism,” Stern said. “We have plenty of differences. Those differences fade away when one of us is under attack.”
As congregants gather for Friday services in Dallas, Stern says the events in Michigan — and violence targeting Jewish communities around the world — will be part of what people carry with them into prayer.
“Just remember where we all are, what we are all coping with and to give us another dose of compassion and empathy for the other.”