As young Jews around the world face unprecedented challenges and isolation, 1,200 young Jewish professionals from 30 countries paused their busy lifestyles to take part in the largest international gathering of young Jewish professionals in the world. The Chabad Young Professionals Encounter weekend featured workshops addressing pressing topics facing young Jews, the world-record Met@Chabad speed-dating event, Chabad’s response to the Bondi massacre: the launch of fifteen new Chabad centers Leilui Nishmas the Kedoshim.

For 72 hours, young Jews from 100 cities across the globe, some of whom are the only Jews in their workplace or social circles, experienced inspiring workshops, an uplifting Shabbos in Crown Heights, meaningful connections, and a sense of community critically needed in these uniquely challenging times.

On Friday afternoon, before Shabbos began, attendees heard from Eliya Cohen, who spent 505 days as a hostage in Gaza after being kidnapped on October 7, 2023. Cohen spoke about resilience, faith, and maintaining hope under extreme conditions, themes that resonated deeply with an audience grappling with their own, less extreme, challenges.

The weekend also featured the world’s largest in-person speed-dating event, and Jewish industry leaders who spoke about navigating professional life while maintaining Jewish values, and workshops addressing mental health, dating, and confronting antisemitism in the workplace.

For Lucretia Kleiman, 24, a pharmaceutical coordinator from New Jersey, the weekend represents a continuation of a journey that began in high school. Raised in a Conservative Jewish household, she became deeply involved in CTeen (Chabad Teen) and later founded the Chabad at her college. Last month, she helped launch a Chabad Young Professionals chapter in Fair Lawn, New Jersey.

“The Lubavitcher Rebbe always said, ‘A little bit of light dispels a lot of darkness,'” she said. “With so much darkness in the world, I think bringing that light back to my community, more events, more classes, is what we need.”

On Motzai Shabbos, they gathered for Havdala, standing shoulder to shoulder, candles flickering in their hands, followed by an emotional rendition of Ani Maamin, bonding them with their brethren 10,000 miles across the globe.

A live video feed connected the group to hundreds more gathered in Bondi Beach, Australia, a community still reeling from the Chanukah terrorist attack that killed 15 people, including two local Chabad rabbis who organized the event. Chants of “We love you Sydney!” echoed off the walls.

Rabbi Mendy Ulman, director of Chabad Young Professionals in Bondi and brother-in-law of Rabbi Eli Schlanger, who was murdered in the attack, addressed both crowds simultaneously on the importance of seeing the divine light and positivity in the world.

“This live stream coming from New York to Bondi and back has been immense for our community,” Rabbi Ulman said. “It has given us strength beyond words. In the past, our young community might have felt a little far away because of the physical distance. But this moment we shared is so powerful, we feel closer than ever.”

For Jacob Kasper, a 27-year-old from Estonia, the moment resonated deeply. His older brother lives in Australia and attends Chabad events there. When news of the Bondi attack first broke, fear was his immediate reaction.

“When we saw the Australian young Jews together with us through the livestream, mourning yet still celebrating their Jewishness, it reminded me that we have to keep adding goodness to the world,” Jacob said.

“Each one of you is a light and a leader. I’m inspired by your unwavering commitment to stand proudly wherever you are and uplift and include those around you,” said Rabbi Mendy Kotlarsky, Chairman of Chabad’s Global Networks, opening the evening.

“Look around this room,” Igor Tulchinsky, the billionaire founder of quantitative hedge fund WorldQuant, told the crowd Saturday evening. “A thousand young Jews in Crown Heights on a Saturday night. This is not normal. This is not accidental. This is Jewish history in motion.”

In a powerful response to the Bondi tragedy, Rabbi Kotlarsky announced the establishment of fifteen new CYP Lounges for the world’s largest young Jewish professional community. The lounges will serve as spaces where young Jewish professionals can network, study, celebrate their heritage, and launch new initiatives for their communities.

“When they try to extinguish our light, our response is to increase it,” declared Rabbi Kotlarsky.

For Jacob, the announcement hit home. “As a member of a very small Jewish community, it’s so important to be part of something bigger,” he said. “We can’t wait to have such spaces in Estonia.”

Jacob’s journey to the CYP Encounter underscores what draws young Jews from around the globe to CYP Encounter. Seven years ago, while researching his family tree, he discovered an unexpected truth: he was Jewish. He contacted his local Chabad rabbi, and a new chapter began.

“In Estonia, you’re always explaining what it means to be a Jew; nobody really knows,” he said. “Sometimes you need a place to recharge. This weekend recharged me physically and spiritually.”

On Sunday morning, after an uplifting farbrengen and concert to set the tone, participants visited the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s Ohel. Representing the 325 communities in the world’s largest young Jewish professionals network, the young leaders requested berachos and recorded the kabalos they were taking upon themselves.

For Evan Gravitt, a young professional from Whitefish, Montana, the moment at the Ohel was unlike anything he had experienced.

“I walked in, read my note, said the Shema, tore it up, and threw it,” he recalled. “And there was a moment where all time stopped. I felt heard. I felt seen. It was very emotional.”

Evan described the Jewish community in Montana as small, “we know each other like a family,” and said he plans to bring the weekend’s inspiration back with him.

“I’m going to keep pressing,” he said. “I see young Jews everywhere I go, friends of mine, and I invite them to Shabbat, to candlelightings. They don’t always come. But I’m going to keep encouraging them. I want them to feel welcome. I want them to feel like they’re part of something.”

He paused. “Until I found Chabad, I never felt comfortable and accepted. And as an adult, it means so much to have a community thousands of miles away from home.”

These scenes unfolded at CYP Encounter, the four-day summit that has become the largest international gathering of young Jewish professionals in the world. But this year’s event carried an added urgency, reflecting a generational turning point for young Jews turning to authentic Torah and Mitzvos while navigating careers, relationships, and identity amid a global surge in antisemitism.

“In my city, wearing a kippah has become an act of courage,” said Jonathan Pachter, 29, a finance professional from Paris. “But seeing fellow young Jewish professionals here living proudly gives us strength.”