Denver rabbi headed to Israel on mission to help

The senior rabbi at Temple Emanuel in Denver, Joseph Black, is going to Israel this week on a mission to help the people of that country.

While on his trip, he is hopeful there will be a true ceasefire telling CBS News Colorado.

"If there is any way to stop the violence, if there is any free of the captives, I am in favor of it," he said.

He and other rabbis plan to meet with the families of those who have been held as hostages in Gaza. Black knows it will be difficult. 

"l can't even begin to wrap my head around the horror, the fear, the terror they are experiencing," he said.

On the other side, Black says, he sees the destruction in Gaza from the Israeli attacks. 

"My heart breaks to see the devastation in Gaza. Nobody wants to see tragic loss of life. Nobody wants to see innocent people killed and I put the blame squarely on Hamas," he said. 

It was Oct. 7 when Israel was stunned by the incursion, in which Hamas killed some 1,400 people and took more than 200 hostages in Israel. 

"We pray for the speedy into this war and four, and for their family and relatives to be returned home safely," he said. 

Black plans to be in Israel for a week to meet with hostage families. He says his job will not be to talk, but to listen. 

He plans to give his congregation a full report when he returns to Denver.