Jewish life in America today unfolds behind thick, bulletproof glass.

The doors of synagogues and day schools are reinforced. Cameras rest above the entrances. Armed security guards stand in front of metal detectors offering smiles before pressing buzzers that release the secure locks on thick, reinforced double doors. The process so synchronous, one might forget they were entering a fortress.

Inside, Jewish life continues in its own magical rhythm as it has carried on for centuries. A bar mitzvah student stands at the lectern. Down the hall, younger children practice for a first siddur ceremony. In a classroom nearby, older students argue over the weekly Torah portion. Elsewhere in the same building, a newborn is welcomed into the covenant of a bris. Or perhaps mourners sit together during shiva. A civilization thousands of years old continues even if the glass separating it from the outside world has been forced to be built stronger.

Last Thursday in West Bloomfield, Michigan, that fortress was tested. A man drove a truck filled with explosives and ammunition into Temple Israel with the intent to murder Jews. No children or school staff were physically harmed because the synagogue’s trained security confronted........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)