While the Israel Defense Forces has its mission to protect Jewish life on the homefront, Jewish Americans are on the fertility frontlines with their own mission: bring more Jewish babies into the world.
Women who thought their childbearing days were over, now see reconsidering their family size as the Jewish way to rebuild after loss.
“It’s crazy how instantly after hearing about the terror, I just thought about more babies, like a spark in my soul to have more,” said one New Jersey-based mother of four, including a 3-month-old, who thought she was done with the sleepless nights and nonstop crying.
“I definitely was done having kids, but now I can’t imagine not having at least one more.”
Even with the rigors of in vitro fertilization to conceive three of her children, she told The Post she’s willing to undergo more treatments if it doesn’t happen naturally.
“The greatest revenge is life.”
After some 1,400 Israelis were murdered and 3,000 left in the hospital, the Jewish community’s answer to the staggering loss feels self-evident.
“The horrific events just reaffirmed my decision” to try for more children, said Jessica, a Long Island mom of three, ages 2, 8, and 10, with one on the way.
And she has no intention of stopping.
The decision was driven by her “strong sense of Jewish identity,” coupled with the close relationship with her grandmother, a child during the Holocaust who hid in the woods with her family to survive, after losing her own father and brothers.
“She always regretted not having more children,” said Jessica, 36, adding that she wants to preempt any future regret. “I will never regret having another child,” she added, noting the “effort to replace the Jewish lives that have been lost.”
It’s a sentiment shared by fellow Long Island Arielle Mogil, who has three children.
“As a mother, I want more children. I look at the children who are buried and held hostage, and my heart is cracked into a million pieces” the 37-year-old said. “If I could just bring another child into the world, it’s not to replace them, but in honor of them.”
Her husband, Max, 36, who works in high-tech software, said it’s a matter not of quantity, but of quality.
“My wife and I knocked out three kids in six years. Financially, the cost of children is what’s holding us back from having more. But for the kids we do have, it’s about instilling core Jewish values from an early age, both at school and home. That’s how we’re trying to continue this.
“Whether we have one kid or 10 kids, they all have to have that education” to embody a strong Jewish connection.
For Leat Corinne, she believes “1,000%” that the Jewish people’s secret weapon now is the womb.
“Before this, my husband said ‘absolutely not,’” said the Cresskill, New Jersey, mom of two girls, ages 5 and 3. “Now, I informed him we’re having kids, and he said, ‘OK.’ He had no objection.”
The Columbia University grad, who has disavowed her former school for its shameful cowardice toward on-campus hate groups, said, “While we’re still living safe in America, we need to add to the amount of people who we’ve lost just in this war, forget about the generations before.”
Of the unconscionable massacres on children and babies at the hands of Hamas, she looked to the future: “Their soul will live on with our future babies. One of them will be my child with my husband.”
The 36-year-old even enlisted friends to join the reproductive mandate.
“I got two friends to join me – we have a pregnancy pact now,” she said, adding, “But their husbands don’t know yet.”
And it’s not just moms who feel the imperative, but singles — and men — as well.
“There’s more urgency now,” said New York City-based matchmaker, Bonnie Winston. “Before this, clients always wanted to meet their bashert [soulmate], but now they say they want to bring Jewish kids into the world. Even male clients – young guys in their 20s and 30s – said, ‘More than ever, this is the time.’”
Earlier this week, Winston attended an “emergency” Zoom session with fellow Jewish matchmakers from around the world.
“We have to work harder than ever to match our clients to have more Jewish babies come into this world,” she said. “It’s something we can do” to combat the evil perpetuated on her brothers and sisters in Israel.
Los Angeles-based Joseph Yomtoubian is “more focused than ever on finding someone.”
“I want kids as soon as possible, to support our people, who are such a small percentage of the world,” said the 37-year-old, who works in real estate and social media.
“I always wanted kids, but the question is ‘how many’ and I definitely want more as a result of this.”
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