Responding to the crisis in
Israel/Palestine
October 7th Commemoration
Tzom Gedalia - Day of Grief, Reflection and Committing to Action
October 6, 2:30-4:00pm
Shir Tikvah Sanctuary and on Zoom: Register here
Sitting between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, Tzom Gedalia commemorates political violence inflicted upon the Jewish community and devastating violence undertaken in response. The Talmud invites us into fasting on this day, “to teach that the death of the righteous is equivalent to the burning of the Temple of our God.”
As a community, we will open our sanctuary for this day of fasting, of body and spirit. We will pause and resolve to take action, for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, for a return of all hostages and an end to the escalation of war.
We will open our sanctuary for song, for the chance for facilitated conversation, and for a facilitated tashlich ritual. Together, we will mourn and remember, weep for and acknowledge the terrible human cost of war, and pray for a future in which Israelis and Palestinians can all live in peace and dignity.
Community is welcome; please register here.
At Shir Tikvah, we represent a diversity of backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences regarding Israel/Palestine. We are dedicated to the value of B’tzelem Elohim (the sacredness of all human life). We lift our collective voice to support, advocate, and pray for an immediate ceasefire by all parties and the end to all hostilities in Israel/Palestine, including:
The immediate release of all hostages
The unrestricted entry of humanitarian assistance into Gaza
The restoration of food, water, electricity and medical supplies into Gaza
The return of people displaced since October 7 to their homes, and assistance in rebuilding destroyed homes and infrastructure
Respect for International Law and the Geneva conventions
A negotiated resolution that honors justice, freedom, security, and self-determination for all innocent people
Shir Tikvah has a 36 year history of affirming the equal humanity and dignity of all people. We are currently engaged in a community-wide endeavor to deepen our commitments and clarify our values in relation to Israel/Palestine, and of being a Jewish spiritual home for people who support liberation and self-determination for all those who are living on the land, Palestinian and Israeli.
Shir Tikvah’s members are not of one mind and one heart in our experience or in our response to the ongoing war. Our relationships to Israel/Palestine are diverse – some of us have deep connections there and some have little or no connection; some of our connections are to Jewish friends and family, some are to Palestinian beloveds, some of our connections are to both. Some of us have spent years or decades in movements for peace and justice in Israel/Palestine. For some of us, the current violence is also rupturing cherished relationships within our families and creating strain with co-workers and in our communities.
Our congregation strives to be open and curious about our different experiences and perspectives, and to compassionately support each other in staying connected to our shared humanity in a time of crisis that may be bringing us despair, confusion and triggering of trauma, both personal and intergenerational.
Since October 7, we have been planning programming that is focused on keeping congregants connected to each other and engaged in facing the devastating violence. We will continue to support our resilience as a community and to support community members in taking action that aligns with our shared values, toward lasting and just peace.
We ground in the following core commitments:
B’tzelem
All human lives are equally sacred. We believe all human beings were created in the image of the Divine. We believe that all people have equal right to justice, freedom and security and that one person’s liberation cannot come at the expense of another’s.
We cannot cross until we carry each other
We do not believe that any one of us knows the exact path to collective liberation, and we trust that each of us has something to learn from connecting authentically and humbly with each other. We seek to create scaffolding and support to help our community feel that we all belong.
We draw inspiration from poet Aurora Levins Morales’s poem Red Sea: This time we're tied at the ankles. / We cannot cross until we carry each other, / all of us refugees, all of us prophets./ No more taking turns on history's wheel, / trying to collect old debts no-one can pay. / The sea will not open that way. / This time that country / is what we promise each other, / our rage pressed cheek to cheek / until tears flood the space between, / until there are no enemies left, / because this time no one will be left to drown / and all of us must be chosen. / This time it's all of us or none.
Open Dialogue, Open Hearts
We believe open dialogue is necessary for the health of our community. We recognize that we will not always agree with each other. We will strive to be open to learning from each other by listening and speaking with compassion, humility, and respect for one another’s dignity and belonging. We strive to turn towards each other, even in moments of pain or disagreement, with the desire to build a shared spiritual community.
Call for Israel/Palestine Committee Interest
This summer, we will charter an Israel/Palestine Committee that will report to the board to support our community in its learning, connection and action. Please let us know if you are interested in being part of this committee.
COMMUNITY EVENTS
We have created a new system for inviting community members into action and learning. If you know of or are organizing an event in the community and would like to invite Shir Tikvah members, please fill out this form. We'll use the form to create a living document of upcoming actions, events or gatherings that will be circulated in our eNews and on our website here. Please review our guidelines here.