I Stand with Those Who Stand with Others
اسالوا سلامة اورشليم. ليسترح محبوك.
Pray for the well-being of Jerusalem; “May those who love you be at peace.
יְהִֽי־שָׁל֥וֹם בְּחֵילֵ֑ךְ שַׁ֝לְוָ֗ה בְּאַרְמְנוֹתָֽיִךְ׃
ليكن سلام في ابراجك راحة في قصورك.
May there be well-being within your ramparts, peace in your citadels.
לְ֭מַעַן אַחַ֣י וְרֵעָ֑י אֲדַבְּרָה־נָּ֖א שָׁל֣וֹם בָּֽךְ׃
من اجل اخوتي واصحابي لاقولنّ سلام بك.
For the sake of my kin and friends, I pray for your well-being.
~Psalm 122:6-8
With this psalm, I offer a prayer for the sake of all who cherish Jerusalem.
With this psalm, I extend a hand to all who desire peace.
With this psalm, I stand with those who are brave enough to stand with the Other.
We are heartbroken. We are angry. We are horrified. We are grieving. Whether our connection to Israel and Palestine is personal, whether we worry for friends and family, or whether we are morally outraged by the hatred, death and destruction, we are overwhelmed by events that started in Jerusalem and now seem to engulf much of Israel in what some are calling an imminent civil war.
There are two separate crises at work in Israel and Palestine right now, as Michael Koplow explains in an article I highly recommend from the Israel Policy Forum. Each crisis has already driven us to opposing protest rallies. The extremists on both sides are rejoicing, as they corral us to choose one victim narrative over another. In the end, it is the courageous people on all sides who have learned to live and study and work together, and who desire to build a shared society of peace and justice, who are the victims.
Here in the United States, many of us feel helpless. What can we do? As one Israeli activist pleaded on a recent webinar hosted by the New Israel Fund and watched by thousands, “don’t give up on us.”
I am making a plea on behalf of the individuals and organizations who have tirelessly brought together Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel, as well as Israelis and Palestinian residents of the West Bank and Gaza. They need us more than ever. Here are just a few sites to visit and donate.
Between Arabs and Jews In Israel:
Standing Together: Israel’s Jewish-Arab grassroots movement
Across the borders of Israel, the West Bank and Gaza:
The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies
(I also recommend this article to parents to help speak to our kids in developmentally appropriate ways as they experience these events.
We pray for the well-being of Jerusalem, for all of her inhabitants.
What can we do? Support those calling for an immediate end to the violence and give hope to those who insist on honoring the humanity of Palestinians and Israelis of all backgrounds.
לְשָׁלוֹם
Toward peace,
Rabbi Barbara Penzner