Potomac, MD—The Hare Krishna Temple in Potomac, Maryland, joins hands with other religious and civic leaders in our region in condemning the vandalizing and desecration of the Shaare Torah Synagogue in Gaithersburg.
We are abhorred that such an attack against our Jewish friends would occur in Montgomery County. Historically, across the globe the Jewish community has borne great suffering due to acts of violence perpetrated against them. Such violent acts, which are seeded by prejudice and bigotry, should not be tolerated.
The Krishna community has always enjoyed warm and friendly relationships with our Jewish neighbors. In recent years, the broader Hindu community in the Washington metropolitan region, including our ISKCON Temple, has enjoyed many exchanges with our Jewish friends to promote common understanding and respect.
Sadly, antagonism against religious communities is on the rise worldwide. However, in the United States, and especially in Maryland and Montgomery County, it is important we stand together with our Jewish neighbors and against the ignorance and bigotry that leads to such disgraceful attacks.
We wish the entire Jewish community well. We pray that despite this sad event, the Passover Celebration they observed this week provided solace and shelter.
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), popularly known as the Hare Krishna Society, is a monotheistic Vaishnava Hindu tradition. ISKCON’s main temple is located on Oaklyn Drive in Potomac, Maryland.