Posts Tagged ‘blessing against terror’

 

One is Everything

Posted on: December 21st, 2016 by Alden

We’re surrounded by violence. Orlando. Nice. Tel Aviv. Pittsburgh. Innocents dead at the hand of terror. In Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray, France, an 84-year-old priest was murdered in his church, Fr. Jacques Hamel. It made instant world news and faded just as fast. There are so many other terror attacks. Larger attacks. More than one dead.

ADDENDUM, April 28, 2019: In memory of Lori Gilbert-Kaye, z”l, who was murdered at the Chabad center outside San Diego during services, I’ve added a new line: “A woman in prayer.” Also, in the opening stanza, I’ve added references to that attack and the Tree of Life massacre.

One is Everything: A Meditation on Numbers and Terror
Orlando, 16 June 2016, 49 souls
Kabul, 23 July 2016, 80 souls
Nice, 14 July 2016, 84 souls
Baghdad, 3 July 2016, 325+ souls
Pittsburgh, 27 October, 2018, 11 souls
Dallas, 7 July 2016, 5 souls
Tel Aviv, 3 July 2016, 4 souls
Rouen, 26 July 2016, 1 soul
Poway, 27 April 2019, 1 soul

One soul.
Just one soul and the world moves on.
We are shocked by the scale of terror.
The 49 and the 84 and the 325
With a plus sign next to it because, well,
It’s just tough to get an accurate count
In so much death.

One is everything.
Each one a human.
Each one a life.
One is enough to cry out to heaven.

When we count the scope of terror,
The range of death,
Remember, too,
The injured and the wounded,
The witness and the bystander,
The first responder and the families.

One is 100 witnesses.
One is 1,000 mourners.
One is 10,000 traumas.
One is a soul G-d sent to this earth.
One is everything.
A priest doing holy work.
A boy studying Torah.
A girl sleeping in her bed.
A woman in prayer.
One soul. One heartbeat.
One more, too soon.

G-d of Consolation,
Every soul is Yours,
A world, unique and holy.
Let Your peace reign quickly among us.
Let violence, hatred and terror vanish.
Let Your comfort descend from heaven,
And let the righteous rest in peace.

© 2016 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

Postscript: The list of terror attacks maintained on Wikipedia is astounding. Hundreds dead each month all over the world. One and one and one. The Talmud says that saving a life is equal to saving the world; taking a life is the equivalent of destroying the world. One is everything.

This is a modified version of an essay that first appeared on RitualWell. See also a prayer “To the Terrorist,” which is part of my “Liturgy after Terror Attacks,” originally written for my “Liturgy for 9-11.”

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Photo Source: WikiMedia Commons

For Israel’s 2016 Olympic Athletes

Posted on: August 1st, 2016 by Alden

life-magazine-1972-munich-massacre-israel-coverA prayer for the safety of Israel’s athletes, including a memorial to the victims of the 1972 Munich massacre and the hope for a joyous festival of sport for all nations. The second stanza is modified from my “Munich Massacre Memorial Prayer.” Good luck to the coaches and athletes from around the world.

For Israel’s 2016 Olympic Athletes
G-d of our ancestors,
Watch over Israel’s Olympic athletes
As the 2016 Summer Games in begin in Rio.
Grant them safety and security
So that they may compete
With the fullness of their abilities and skills.
Let them exult in their accomplishments,
Finding their best selves in competition.
Shield them from hostility and venom.
Guard them from the hand of hatred and violence.
Bring them joy and gladness during this festival of international sport.
Let their dedication and dignity serve as a tribute
To the athletes slain during the 1972 Munich Games.

Grant Your protection and shelter
To all who travel under the flag of Israel
In the name of cooperation, understanding and goodwill –
Athletes, musicians, performers, artists and scholars.
May their spirit be a shining light of integrity and honor.
Watch over the defenders of Israel.
Bless them with courage and strength.
Grant the whole house of Israel
Safety throughout the earth.

May the 2016 Summer Games
Be a source of celebration and rejoicing
For spectators and athletes,
For coaches and fans,
For Israel,
For all nations
And for the world.

© 2016 Alden Solovy and  tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

Postscript: See also “Munich Massacre Memorial Prayer,” “At the Hand of Anti-Semitism,” a Yizkor prayer, and “To the Terrorist,” a prayer of personal resolve to defend ourselves against terror and for healing the sick mind of the terrorist. This prayer first appeared on this site on July 24, 2012.

If you like this prayer, post a link to your Facebook page, your blog or as part of a tweet. And don’t forget to click “like” on this page. Thanks. Please subscribe. For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!”

For Israel’s Olympic Athletes

Posted on: July 24th, 2012 by tobendlight

life-magazine-1972-munich-massacre-israel-coverA prayer for the safety of Israel’s athletes, including a memorial to the victims of the 1972 Munich massacre and the hope for a joyous festival of sport for all nations. The second stanza is modified from my “Munich Massacre Memorial Prayer.”

For Israel’s Olympic Athletes
G-d of our ancestors,
Watch over Israel’s Olympic athletes
As the __________ [add year] __________ [Summer, Winter] Games begin
In ____________________ [add city].
Grant them safety and security
So that they may compete
With the fullness of their abilities and skills.
Let them exult in their accomplishments,
Finding their best selves in competition.
Shield them from hostility and venom.
Guard them from the hand of hatred and violence.
Bring them joy and gladness during this festival of international sport.
Let their dedication and dignity serve as a tribute
To the athletes slain during the 1972 Munich Games.

Grant Your protection and shelter
To all who travel under the flag of Israel
In the name of cooperation, understanding and goodwill –
Athletes, musicians, performers, artists and scholars.
May their spirit be a shining light of integrity and honor.
Watch over the defenders of Israel.
Bless them with courage and strength.
Grant the whole house of Israel
Safety throughout the earth.

May the __________ [add year] __________ [Summer, Winter] Games
Be a source of celebration and rejoicing
For spectators and athletes,
For coaches and fans,
For Israel,
For all nations
And for the world.

© 2012 Alden Solovy and  tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

Postscript: See also “Munich Massacre Memorial Prayer,” “At the Hand of Anti-Semitism,” a Yizkor prayer, and “To the Terrorist,” a prayer of personal resolve to defend ourselves against terror and for healing the sick mind of the terrorist.

If you like this prayer, post a link to your Facebook page, your blog or as part of a tweet. And don’t forget to click “like” on this page. Thanks. Please subscribe. For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!”

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