Mitzvah Day in Budapest

We, the Jewish people, are obliged to follow all the 613 mitzvot from the Torah. Many of us are trying, but few of us are able to go one step further – to create the possibility for others to fulfill mitzvot.

This is what happens on "Mitzvah Day" in Budapest every November. This amazing day is organized by two committed women who want to bring joy to those who are desperate as well as fulfillment to those that want to volunteer. More than 400 people are part of this initiative; half of them are volunteers and the other half recipients. All were players in this day and all felt part of this warm Budapest Jewish community.

This was not a typical sad day where volunteers visited needed people. This was a day of shared happiness and joy, a celebration which has occurred in this community for the past four years. So, on a sunny Sunday in November, 200 volunteers met at the JDC-sponsored Jewish Community Center ready to fulfill their mitzvah for the day. They went to visit Jewish hospitals, the Hospice program, old age homes and made home visits. The impact of this event can only be explained but can be felt from the words of one high school girl who together with her classmates was part of the home visit program:

"We went to a home visit in a very small family. It consisted of only two women. The mother, a 90 year old woman had to take care of her 40 year old daughter due to a severe disease. They were so grateful for our visit that we could feel the warmth in their hearts. We felt responsible and committed and decided to continue the Mitzvah Day through the year by adopting this family of two!"

What everybody shared after the day was a collective sadness – that "Mitzvah Day" is only once in the year. They all promised themselves to continue this mitzvah every possible day.

All existing Jewish organizations took a role in this event. In the evening all volunteers were recognized in a charming ceremony where people of the fulfilled mitzvah felt like one large warm Jewish community.