A Prayer for Pittsburgh [after the Tree of Life synagogue massacre], by Rabbi Menachem Creditor (2018)
Source Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=22332
open_content_license: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license Date: 2018-10-27
Last Updated: 2025-02-18
Categories: Mass Shootings & Gun Violence, Terror
Tags: 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, mass murder inside a synagogue, prayers for municipalities
Excerpt: "A Prayer for Pittsburgh" was first published by Rabbi Menachem Creditor at his website, and shared with the Open Siddur Project via our Facebook discussion group. . . .
Content:
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Source (English) |
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Dear God,
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Your precious Children are crying.
We have every reason to become numb,
to become used to this blasphemous trend,
to barely even register
that Your Images are being erased
by cold guns wielded by hurtful hearts.
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God, we know we must act,
and we know that, in order to act,
we must feel the urgency – Your Urgency.
We must channel Your pain
at the deaths of Your children
– in Your Holy Home –
and remind ourselves and
our leaders to look to the Tree of life
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and
choose
life
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We’ve been too quiet,
mistaking status updates and reactionary prayers
for repentance.
Our nation has endured
the epidemic of Gun Violence
for far too long.
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And so, God,
as we feel the beginnings of our own weariness
after two mass shootings within four hours
we remember the wisdom of Your Prophet,
who taught that:
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וְקוֹיֵ יְהוָה יַחֲלִיפוּ כֹחַ
יַעֲלוּ אֵבֶר כַּנְּשָׁרִים
יָרוּצוּ וְלֹא יִיגָעוּ
יֵלְכוּ וְלֹא יִיעָפוּ׃ (ישעיה מ:לא)
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“…those who hope in God will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.”
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We pray to You for renewal
as we spread our protective wings over one another again,
running to justice,
refusing weariness,
and choosing life.
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May we sing louder than weapons
and merit to see You in each other’s eyes,
sanctifying Your Name
by standing together
by rising up again,
this time rebuilding Your World
by saving each other.
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Amen.
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“A Prayer for Pittsburgh” was first published by Rabbi Menachem Creditor at his website, and shared with the Open Siddur Project via our Facebook discussion group.
Contributor: Menachem Creditor
Co-authors:
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Name: Menachem Creditor
Bio: Rabbi Menachem Creditor serves as the Pearl and Ira Meyer Scholar in Residence at UJA-Federation New York and was the founder of Rabbis Against Gun Violence. A frequent speaker in communities and campuses around the United States and Israel with over 1 million views of his online videos and essays, he was named by Newsweek as one of the fifty most influential rabbis in America. His 22 books and 6 albums of original music include the global anthem "Olam Chesed Yibaneh" and the anthologies "When We Turned Within" and "None Shall Make Them Afraid." He has been involved in the leadership of American Jewish World Service, AIPAC, the Rabbinical Assembly, and the One America Movement, an organization dedicated to bringing together Americans of different faiths and opinions. He and his wife Neshama Carlebach live in New York, where they are raising their five children.
Website: http://rabbicreditor.blogspot.com
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/menachem-creditor
Featured Image:
Title: 1032px-Gustav_Klimt_-_Beech_Grove_I_-_Google_Art_Project
Caption: Gustav Klimt - "Beech Grove I" (1902)
