Thoughts and prayers are appropriate – but they’re not sufficient. If the world tuts and looks away then humanity has learned nothing from yet another horrific hate crime. This might have happened half-way across the world, but mosque worshippers have been murdered in Cape Town and KwaZulu-Natal last year and we are not doing enough to stop this happening again.

I say clearly to the Muslim community in Cape Town that when any person is attacked for their belief, all humanity is attacked. We, the Jewish people, are sadly no strangers to prejudice, and we stand with you and all people who value the Constitution of this country that enshrines the right to practise your faith without fear or prejudice. Chapter two states in our Bill of Rights that everyone has the right to freedom of religion, belief and opinion.

I want to invite any Muslim in Cape Town or beyond to join our synagogue for our Ifthar Shabbat on Friday night, 31 May during the holy month of Ramadan. For the past three years it has become an annual tradition to invite our Muslim neighbours to come and break your fast with us at our shul. We will make a space available in the centre of our sanctuary for you to pray Maghrib and we will provide Halaal food for you to break your fast with our community as we welcome our Sabbath together.

Some people of faith, and certainly those critical of religion, might be tempted to ask how a G-d of mercy and compassion can allow something like this to happen. The answer must be that G-d seeks the best from humanity and is devastated by their moral failures. That any concept of a deity that would want its followers to walk into a house of worship and kill must be an idol of human creation. I have to believe that the G-d of all creation is crying today. May we respond with compassion and kindness to make this world a world that will never allow this to happen again. DM

Rabbi Greg Alexander is rabbi at the Cape Town Progressive Jewish Congregation, the biggest Progressive synagogue on the African continent