https://opensiddur.org/?p=4477שריך לינקאלען | Memorial Prayer for Abraham Lincoln, by Isaac Goldstein haLevi (1865)2012-02-11 14:01:56Exalted are you Lincoln. Who is like you!
You were highly respected among Kings and Princes.
All that you accomplished you did with a humble spirit.
You are singular and cannot be compared to anyone else.
Who among the great are like Lincoln? Who can be praised like you?Textthe Open Siddur ProjectIsaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut)Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut)Aharon N. Varady (transcription)Abe Katz (translation)Isaac Goldsteinhttps://opensiddur.org/copyright-policy/Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut)https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/Lincoln's Birthday (February 12th)acrosticPresidents DayEmancipationקינות Ḳinnotcivil rights57th century A.M.Memorial prayersAbraham LincolnassassinationAmerican Jewry of the United StatesPrayers for leadersSlaveholders' Rebellion (1861-1865)elegiesAssassination of Abraham Lincoln19th century C.E.United States
The following acrostic authored by Isaac Goldstein haLevi was published in The Jewish Messenger on May 25, 1865 under the title, “ACROSTIC on ABRAHAM LINCOLN, Assassinated Nisan 18th, 5625” and prefaced by Psalms 45:2.
Exalted are you Lincoln. Who is like you! You were highly respected among Kings and Princes. All that you accomplished you did with a humble spirit. You are singular and cannot be compared to anyone else. Who among the great are like Lincoln? Who can be praised like you?
You have earned a name among the Great. Your right hand exhibited its prowess. Against your enemies, you extended a sword of death; Your bow you directed night and day. You declared that our Father in Heaven created all men equally.[2] cf. Malachi 2:10. Therefore you and you followers fought for freedom in your land. Through your efforts the Kushim[3]The Jewish Messenger translates the Kushim (הכושים) as “the blacks.” Abe Katz translates to “African Americans.” We have kept the original.[–Aharon Varady] were led to freedom. They will praise and bless your name forever.
Who among princes is equal to you, Lincoln,
and who can be praised like you?
אַייזֶק גּאָלְדְשְׁטֵיין הַלֵּוִי
Isaac Goldstein haLevi
Abe Katz’s transcription of this elegy for Abraham Lincoln was first included in his sourcesheet, “Prayers for George Washington and Abraham Lincoln“; we have retranscribed the text in Unicode Hebrew [–Aharon Varady].
My heart overflows with a good speech. I address my work unto a king. Psalms, 45:2.[sic]
I.
Happy art thou, Lincoln, Who is like unto thee!
Among kings and princes thou art exalted.
Much thou did’st with an humble spirit.
Thou art like a unique person in the land.
Who among princes is like Lincoln?
Who shall be praised like him?
II.
Thou hast also a name among heroes!
Thy right hand has achieved prowess against them.
Thou hast girded on the sword of the slain.
Thou hast drawn the bow by night and by day.
One Father has created us, thou hast said;
Therefore thou hast proclaimed Freedom in thy land.
The black people thou hast redeemed into Freedom:
Forever they will praise and bless thy name.
Source
Isaac Goldstein’s Memorial Prayer for Abraham Lincoln. Arnold and Deanne Kaplan Collection of Early American Judaica at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries, on loan to the National Museum of American Jewish History
The Jewish Messenger translates the Kushim (הכושים) as “the blacks.” Abe Katz translates to “African Americans.” We have kept the original.[–Aharon Varady]
From a family of musicians, Isaac Gantwerk Mayer believes that creative art is one of the most powerful ways to get in touch with the divine. He composes music and poetry in Hebrew and English. (He also translates and authors his own original works.) Isaac runs a Jewish music transcription service, which will transcribe and set any Jewish music in any language, recorded or written. Contact his service on Facebook or via his music blog.
Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer transcriber for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his transcriptions, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot naqeniשְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also translates prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes of the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)
Abe Katz is the director of the Burei HaTefila Institute.
The Beurei Hatefila Institute was established in order to encourage the study of the words of the Siddur as a Jewish text in Jewish schools. To assist educators developing courses on Tefila, the Institute publishes a weekly e-mail newsletter in which it traces the sources for the words and structure of the prayers within the Siddur. These and other resources can be downloaded on PDF from the Burei HaTefila Institute website.
Mr. Katz is also available to teach courses on Tefila at your synagogue or Jewish Community Center and as a scholar-in-residence. He is available to meet with school administrators to assist them in establishing a course in Beurei Hatefila at their schools and to train teachers on using Hebrew-English word processing and Judaic libraries on CD-ROM.
Isaac Goldstein (19th century) was an American Jewish novelist. Very little is known concerning him aside that he lived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and in New York before returning to central Europe. In 1866, he published Jesus of Nazareth: An Authentic Ancient Tale (Yeshu ha-notsri), one of the first modern Jewish interpretations of Jesus. He is also known as the author of a short Hebrew poem (1865) celebrating the memory of Abraham Lincoln, which he signed Isaac Goldstein the Levite. For more, see Kabakoff, Jacob. "Isaac Goldstein - pioneer Hebrew merchant - author" in Hebrew Studies 17 (1976) p.118-125.
Interesting Jewish response to Lincoln’s assassination. The most famous, of course, was Whitman’s Oh Captain, My Captain.
Now available in Hebrew and Yiddish (1, 2).
wonderful! I was looking for a picture to attach to my poem. Peace to you and thank you.
Mr. Lincoln,
You called us to pray as a nation.
I think we should do it again.
For the economy and education,
Our freedoms, and enemies to befriend
We have ‘nowhere else to go’
But directly to our knees
Under much weight we groan
Still, we trust God knows our needs