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As a member of Hatzoloh, I responded to the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11, 2001. Given the notable Jewish dimension to this human tragedy, I was motivated to compose an Azkarah, a memorial poem, for all its victims and heroes.
| Source (Hebrew) | Translation (English) |
|---|---|
אֲדוֹן עוֹלָם אֲשֶר כָּל יְצִיר נִבְרָא בִּדְמוּתוֹ וּבְצַלְמוֹ. אָבִינוּ שֶבַּשָּׁמַיִּם הַפּוֹצֶה אֶת עֲבָדָיו מֵחֶרֶב רָעָה. אֵל נְקָמוֹת פְּקוֹד־נָא בְּקִנְאָתְךָ אֲנָשִים, נָשִים, וָטַף אֲשֶר נִסְפּוּ בְּהִתְרַסֵּק הַמַּטּוֹסִים הַחֲטוּפִים בִּידֵי בְלִיַּעַל, אֲנְשֵי מִרְמָה וְדָמִים. |
Master of the Universe, by Whom all creations were fashioned in God’s image and likeness;[1] Find Genesis 1:27 Father in Heaven who saves His servant from the evil sword; God of Vengeance, remember with your zeal men, women and children who were killed when the airplanes hijacked by men of ill repute, evil and bloody, crashed.[2] We invoke God as the universal Creator of all mankind, and as the particular God of Israel, Who protects His servants from evil. |
זְכוֹר־נָא, בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים, אֶת אֲלְפֵי חֲלְלֵי הַפִּיגוּעִים בִּשְנֵי בִנְיָנִים מְגַרְדֵי הַשְחָקִים. שֶנֶּהֶרְגוּ, וְנֶחְנְקוּ, וְנִשְׂרְפוּ חַיִּים אוֹ הִפִּילוּ עַצְמָם מֵרֹאשׁ צוּקִים לִמְצוּלַת תּהוֹם, לְעֵין צוֹפִים. |
Remember in Your great mercy the thousands who were murdered in the two buildings which scraped the sky;[3] We ask Him to take account, with a vengeance, of all those who were killed as a result of the deliberate crashing of the hijacked planes by the terrorists. who were murdered, suffocated, burned or who jumped from the heights to the depths where they could not be found.[4] We beseech Him, in His infinite compassion, to recall the thousands in the two skyscrapers who were killed outright, suffocated, burned or jumped to their deaths. |
זְכוֹר־נָא, בְּחֲסָדֶיךָ, אֶת גִּבּוֹרֵי הַתְּאוֹמִים אֲשֶר שָׂמוּ בְךָ שִׂבְרָם וּמִבְטַחָם. וְטִפְּסוּ לִמְרוֹמֵי בִירָה לְכַבּוֹת שְׂרֵיפוֹת ומוֹקְדִים, לִפְשׁוֹט יַד עֱזְרָה וָסַעַד לְנִפְגָּעִים וּפְצוּעִים, וּלְחַלְּצָם מִצָּר וְצוּקָה. יַעַן חֵרְפוּ לַמָּוֶת נַפְשָׁם לְקַיֵּים, וְלוּ לְרֶגַע קַט, נְפָשוֹת אֲחָדוֹת וְעוֹלָמוֹת מְלֵאִים. |
Remember in Your mercy the heroes of the Twin Towers who placed in You their trust and climbed up the towers to put out fires, and to give a helping hand to the hurt and injured to save them from pitfalls and distress.[5] We further beseech Him, in His infinite grace, to take note of the heroes who climbed the twin towers to bring relief and succor to those who were trapped. By sacrificing their lives, they sustained, sometimes for just a moment, souls of individuals which were each an entire world.[6] Paraphrasing the Mishnah Sanhedrin 4.5, we regard their selfless dedication in sustaining life even momentarily as though they had sustained the entire world. |
אֲדוֹן הַשָּׁלוֹם שֶׁהַשָּׁלוֹם שֶׁלּוֹ, וְשָׁלוֹם שְׁמוֹ, פְּרוֹשׂ־נָא עָלֵינוּ – עַל בְּנֵי בְרִיתֶךָ וְעַל כָּל בְּרִיאוֹתֶיךָ – סוּכַּת שָׁלוֹם וְשַׁלְוָה, הַשְקֵט וָבֶטַח. וּבָא לְצִיּוֹן גּוֹאֵל וְנֹאמַר אָמֵן. |
Master of Peace whose name is Peace,[7] Find Judges 6:24. Also find Berakhot 55b.11, Chagigah 12b.12, Derekh Eretz Zuta on Peace §11. spread over us, those of your covenant and all of your creations a canopy of peace, tranquility, quiet and security.[8] Finally, we beseech God, Whose name and essence is Peace, to bring the blessings of peace and tranquility to Israel and to all mankind. May a redeemer come to Ẓíōn, and let us say: Amen |
This memorial prayer by Dr. Moshe Sokolow was offered on the first anniversary of the 9/11 massacres on 10 September 2002. The resource was first shared online at the Lookstein Center website however, only a synopsis of the azkarah is currently preserved there.
Notes
| 1 | Find Genesis 1:27 |
|---|---|
| 2 | We invoke God as the universal Creator of all mankind, and as the particular God of Israel, Who protects His servants from evil. |
| 3 | We ask Him to take account, with a vengeance, of all those who were killed as a result of the deliberate crashing of the hijacked planes by the terrorists. |
| 4 | We beseech Him, in His infinite compassion, to recall the thousands in the two skyscrapers who were killed outright, suffocated, burned or jumped to their deaths. |
| 5 | We further beseech Him, in His infinite grace, to take note of the heroes who climbed the twin towers to bring relief and succor to those who were trapped. |
| 6 | Paraphrasing the Mishnah Sanhedrin 4.5, we regard their selfless dedication in sustaining life even momentarily as though they had sustained the entire world. |
| 7 | Find Judges 6:24. Also find Berakhot 55b.11, Chagigah 12b.12, Derekh Eretz Zuta on Peace §11. |
| 8 | Finally, we beseech God, Whose name and essence is Peace, to bring the blessings of peace and tranquility to Israel and to all mankind. |
“A Memorial Prayer for 9/11, by Moshe Sokolow on 10 September 2002” is shared through the Open Siddur Project under the Fair Use Right (17 U.S. Code §107 - Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use).
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