I offered a prayer on behalf of the Denver Jewish Community at a solidarity vigil for the victims of the terrorist attack that took place last night in Orlando. Joining me in prayer were Imam Ali of the Denver Islamic Center and Reverend Amanda Henderson of Interfaith colorado. Most of Denver and the State of Colorado's elected officials were in the program as well as representatives of the LGBTQ community. Here are my words:
A Prayer in the Aftermath of the Tragedy
in Orlando
Rabbi Joseph R. Black – Temple Emanuel –
Denver, CO
June 12, 2016
Our God and God of all
people:
God of the rich and God of
the poor,
God of the powerful and God
of the powerless,
God of those who have no God.
This is a sacred time for the
Jewish and Islamic communities.
Last night and today, Jews
all around the world celebrated the festival of Shavuot, or Pentecost – where we
gave thanks and celebrated the gift of Divine revelation through the Torah.
Our Muslim sisters and
brothers are the midst of the sacred month of Ramadan. They, too, are celebrating the gift of God’s
revelation in the Koran.
This is a time when we are
acutely aware of the potential for good in the world. This is a time when Your children are open to
the Universal messages of peace and love found in our sacred texts.
But as the horror in Orlando
has once again shown us, and as we have seen all too often: In France, in Israel, Syria, Lebanon,
Afghanistan, and in locales too numerous to mention, there are those who refuse
to see the holiness of all of Your creation.
When fear and hatred become the
filters through which Your hopes for humanity are received we all are diminished.
And so we come here tonight -
numb with grief and disbelief. Once
again, violence and the carnage brought about by the deadly combinations of hatred,
intolerance and easy access to weapons of destruction have transformed mothers,
fathers, lovers, spouses, relatives and friends into mourners.
Tonight, we are all
mourners. The categories which once
defined us – who we love, how we love; where we pray and when we
pray; the languages we speak and the music we sing have melted into the common
parlance of our anger and our grief.
We are here tonight to show
solidarity.
We are here tonight to
proclaim the inherent goodness in all of your creation.
We are here because we have to be here – to see within each
others’ eyes the determination to stand up to hatred, bigotry and
inhumanity. Tonight we grieve – tomorrow
we work to tear down the walls of intolerance that too many want to build.
Baruch Ahtah Adonai, she bara et ha-adam b’tzalmo. We praise
You, Eternal – who has created all humanity in your image. AMEN