OHALAH Statement on Poway, CA Shooting
Our hearts break for the newest victims of hatred and violence, and for seemingly incessant reminders that we are living in a time of vulnerability and upheaval. OHALAH extends condolences and prayers for speedy and complete r’fuah to the Poway, CA Chabad community. And, in light of the recent attacks on Muslim and Christian holy places in New Zealand and Sri Lanka, we must note that, for some, the gathering of people of faith provokes a murderous reaction.
The Piasetzner Rebbe came to believe that the Nazi desire to exterminate Jews was at its root a desire to eliminate the human connection to the Holy One, and this insight rests heavy on my heart right now. No matter our faith path, if we live with an awareness that we all emerge from a single, sacred Source, we find ourselves in opposition to the forces that deny the inherent value of all life; faith itself becomes a form of resistance, and oppressors seek to destroy it.
May we find comfort in the embrace of our loved ones, in our communities, in our places of worship, in our public activism, in our determination to withstand all efforts to undermine our unbreakable connection to the Source of life, of peace, of healing, of wholeness. To emulate our North Carolina prophet, Bishop William Barber, II, we must respond: Forward together, not one step back. Shalom u’vrachot, rj
Rabbi Raachel Jurovics
President, OHALAH: Association of Rabbis and Cantors for Jewish Renewal
Our hearts break for the newest victims of hatred and violence, and for seemingly incessant reminders that we are living in a time of vulnerability and upheaval. OHALAH extends condolences and prayers for speedy and complete r’fuah to the Poway, CA Chabad community. And, in light of the recent attacks on Muslim and Christian holy places in New Zealand and Sri Lanka, we must note that, for some, the gathering of people of faith provokes a murderous reaction.
The Piasetzner Rebbe came to believe that the Nazi desire to exterminate Jews was at its root a desire to eliminate the human connection to the Holy One, and this insight rests heavy on my heart right now. No matter our faith path, if we live with an awareness that we all emerge from a single, sacred Source, we find ourselves in opposition to the forces that deny the inherent value of all life; faith itself becomes a form of resistance, and oppressors seek to destroy it.
May we find comfort in the embrace of our loved ones, in our communities, in our places of worship, in our public activism, in our determination to withstand all efforts to undermine our unbreakable connection to the Source of life, of peace, of healing, of wholeness. To emulate our North Carolina prophet, Bishop William Barber, II, we must respond: Forward together, not one step back. Shalom u’vrachot, rj
Rabbi Raachel Jurovics
President, OHALAH: Association of Rabbis and Cantors for Jewish Renewal