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El Malé Raħamim, the Prayer for the Dead, is recited in the Yizkor service on special days of the year. The prayer has been adapted for various groups on these and other memorial days, notably for victims of the Holocaust. This adaptation commemorates victims of lethal hate-crimes against Transgender people. This version was originally written for Queer Jews at Brandeis’s Transgender Day of Remembrance Services on 20 November 2024.
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| Source (Hebrew) | Translation (English) |
|---|---|
אֵל מָלֵא רַחֲמִים, שׁוֹכֵן בַּמְּרוֹמִים, הַמְצֵא מְנוּחָה נְכוֹנָה עַל כַּנְפֵי־הַשְּׁכִינָה, בְּמַעֲלוֹת קְדוֹשִׁים וּטְהוֹרִים כְּזוֹהַר הָרָקִֽיעַ מַזְהִירִים, אֶת נְשָׁמוֹת־כׇּל־אֲחֵֽינוּ טְרַנְסְגֶ׳נְדֵּרִיִּים שֶׁנֶּהֶרְגוּ בִּגְלַל שֶׁחָיוּ כִּרְצוֹן־יהוה, שֶׁהָלְכָוּ לְעוֹלָמֵיהֶם, בַּעֲבוּר שֶׁנָדְבוּ צְדָקָה בְּעַד הַזְכָּרַת נִשְׁמוֹתֵיהֶם, בְּגַן־עֵֽדֶן תְּהֵא מְנוּחוֹתֵיהֶם. |
God full of mercy, dweller on high, bring sure rest on the wings of the Presence among the celestial and pure who shine brightly as the sky, to the souls of all our transgender siblings who were killed for living according to the will of haShem, and who have gone on to their eternities. For the sake of the righteousness done for the remembrance of their soul, may their rest be in the Garden of Eden. |
לָכֵן בַּֽעַל הָרַחֲמִים יַסְתִּירֵם בְּסֵֽתֶר כְּנָפָיו לְעוֹלָמִים, וְיִצְרֹר בִּצְרוֹר הַחַיִּים אֶת נִשְׁמוֹתֵיהֶם. יהוה הוּא נַחֲלַתָם, וְיָנֽוּחוּ בְּשָׁלוֹם עַל מִשְׁכָּבֵיהֶם, וְנֹאמַר אָמֵן׃ |
Therefore, Master of Mercy, shelter them in the hiding place of Your wings forever, and gather their soul in the bundle of life. The Lord is their legacy, and they will rest in peace on their beds. And we say Amen. |
This adaptation of El Malé Raḥamim for Transgender Day of Remembrance was prepared by Nathaniel Jacobs for Queer Jews at Brandeis‘s Transgender Day of Remembrance Services on 20 November 2024.
“אֵל מָלֵא רַחֲמִים לְיוֹם־הַזִּכָּרוֹן־הַטְּרַנְסְגֶ׳נְדֵּרִי | El Malé Raḥamim for Transgender Day of Remembrance, by Nathaniel Jacobs” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication 1.0 Universal license.
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Associated Image:
Transgender Day of Remembrance Yahrzeit Candle (Keshet 2024)
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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו "May the pleasantness of אדֹני our elo’ah be upon us; may our handiwork be established for us — our handiwork, may it be established." –Psalms 90:17
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