Prayer on the Signing of the Versailles Peace Treaty on June 28th 1919 ending World War Ⅰ (Liberal Jewish Synagogue of London, 5 July 1919)

Creative Commons Zero (CC 0) Universal license

Date: 2023-09-12

Last Updated: 2023-09-12

Categories: Armistice Day (November 11th)

Tags: 20th century C.E., 57th century A.M., British Empire, British Jewry, English vernacular prayer, Liberal Movement for Progressive Judaism in Britain, Versailles Peace Treaty, World War Ⅰ

Excerpt: A prayer upon the signing of the Versailles Peace Treaty on 28 June 1919, included in a special service by the Liberal Jewish Synagogue of London on the following Shabbat. . . .

Content:

Contribute a translation	Source (English)
	Lord God, our Father, under whose rule the things on earth come to pass, we give thee thanks for the peace that has now been established and for the victory that made it possible.
	Cause to cease whatever of conflict there may still be among peoples, so that all mankind shall give thee thanks for all men’s peace.
	We look with hope to the days to come that in them a new humanity shall arise, one devoted to righteousness, and that a better life for nations shall be the memorial and earthly glory for them whose deaths have by thy will brought us unto this day.
	Let these hopes bring healing to the bruised hearts; and may peace speedily bind up humanity’s wounds.
	Create, O God, a new heart and a new spirit within us.
	Cause us to love peace and pursue only that which is right.
	Establish thy rule among men and nations that they shall be forever bound before thee by a spirit of human brotherhood.

A prayer upon the signing of the Versailles Peace Treaty on 28 June 1919, included in a special service by the Liberal Jewish Synagogue of London on the following Shabbat. The author of the prayer is not indicated but Rabbi Israel Mattuck led the congregation at that time and was the editor of the congregations prayerbooks published in 1923. If you know for certain, please leave a comment or contact us.

Source(s)

Service of thanksgiving and prayer on the signing of peace (June 28th, 1919), p 11

Contributor: Liberal Jewish Synagogue of London

Co-authors:

Name: Israel Mattuck
Bio: Rabbi Israel Isidore Mattuck (1884–1954) was a leader of the Liberal (Reform movement) in the United Kingfom. Born in Lithuania, he came as a child to the United States with his family and grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts. A graduate of Harvard University, he was ordained at the Hebrew Union College in 1910 having only spent two years in residence. He held a pulpit in Far Rockaway, New York, for a year and then went to England to serve a young congregation, the Liberal Synagogue in London. He served as senior minister for 36 years and then after 1947 was minister emeritus. Under his leadership the synagogue grew into one of the largest synagogues in London. The building that he helped build was bombed in World War II, but Mattuck lived to see it restored and rededicated. He was succeeded by his disciple and son-in-law Rabbi Leslie Edgar. He was a leading figure, perhaps the leading figure in English Liberal Jewry, its philosopher and its public face. He was known as one of the "Three Ms": Montagu, Montefiore, and Mattuck. He helped form the Union of Liberal and Progressive Synagogues and helped establish the World Union for Progressive Judaism in 1926 and served as its first chairman from 1926 until his death. He was chairman of the Society of Jews and Christians. He compiled and edited the Liberal prayer book, first in three volumes in 1923–26 and in a revised edition in 1937. He is the author of several books: What Are the Jews (1939); The Essentials of Liberal Judaism (1947); Jewish Ethics (1953); and The Thought of the Prophets (1953). He also edited Aspects of Progressive Jewish Thought (1955), which was dedicated in honor of Leo Baeck's 80th birthday. It was published posthumously.
Website: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_Mattuck
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/israel-mattuck

Name: Liberal Jewish Synagogue of London
Bio: The Liberal Jewish Synagogue, or LJS (קהל קדוש לב חדש, Qahal Qadosh Lev Ḥadash), is a house of prayer in St John's Wood, London, founded in 1911. It is the oldest and largest member of Britain's Liberal Judaism, a constituent member of the World Union for Progressive Judaism.
Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_Jewish_Synagogue
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/qehilat-qadosh-lev-hadash

Name: Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)
Bio: 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 naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת 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.)
Website: https://aharon.varady.net
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/aharon-varady-transcription

Featured Image:

Title: Service of thanksgiving and prayer on the signing of peace (June 28th, 1919), p 11 – cropped
Caption: Service of thanksgiving and prayer on the signing of peace (June 28th, 1919), p 11 - cropped