The annual “class picture” of Chabad rabbis took place Sunday morning at the 41st annual International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries (Kinus Hashluchim).

The photo, taken under the iconic gables of 770 Eastern Parkway, Chabad headquarters in Brooklyn, N.Y., features thousands of black-hatted rabbis and represents not just an annual conference tradition—it has been captured since 1984—but also the many faces of Chabad rabbis who bring Judaism to the world. Rabbis from war-torn Ukraine to ones stationed in the towns along Israel’s hostile borders; rabbis serving college campuses across the United States to those bringing Judaism to communities that have sprung up in the Southwest. All posed in a portrait of Jewish pride and unity.

This year, however, there was a noticeable absentee. Rabbi Zvi Kogan, the 28-year-old emissary who was murdered by terrorists in Dubai last week, may not have been there in person, but he was high on the minds of all those posing in the picture.

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“Our job has never been clearer,” declared Rabbi Levi Duchman, director of Chabad of the UAE and chief rabbi of the Emirates, at Kogan’s funeral on Nov. 25 in Israel. “To remind every Jew who they are and why they are here. The world needs to hear our voices. Do more, stand prouder, fight harder, reach further. This … is about us and our people. We are not just here to survive. We are here to transform the world.”

The Kinus, the largest rabbinic gathering in the world, runs from Nov. 27 through Dec. 2. It features four days of workshops, a spiritually uplifting Shabbat and a visit to the Ohel in Queens, N.Y. The conference concludes with the gala banquet on Sunday night, which brings all of the Chabad rabbis and their guests together in a giant conference center in New Jersey.

Against the backdrop of rising global antisemitism and continued concerns in Israel, this year’s gathering carries profound significance as veteran Chabad rabbis of more than 50 years connect with those from new outposts established this year like Andorra, Martinique, Trois-Rivières and Surprise, Ariz.