This is a Hebrew interpretation of my acrostic, “Tree of Life, Pittsburgh,” a response to the Oct. 27, 2018, shooting. The Hebrew and English versions are part of a new Yom Kippur Martyrology from Tree of Life – Or L’Simcha Rabbi Jeffrey Myers. The Hebrew, by my friends Rav Aytan Kaden and Elyssa Moss-Rabinowitz, is energized with references to Tanach and Siddur. Read the story behind this prayer on Times of Israel. A PDF download of an annotated set of the prayers appears at the end of this post.

עֵץ חַיִּיםְ ,פִיטְסְבּוּרְג

עֵץ חַיִּים
צִוִּיתָנוּ לִבְחֹר בַּחַיִּים
חַדֵּש אֶת יָמֵינוּ
יַחֵד לְבָבֵנוּ וְהָאֵר עֵינֵינוּ בְּתוֹ¬רָתֶךָ
יִשָּׂא פָּנָיו אֵלֵינוּ בְּחֵן וּבְשָׁלוֹם
.מְקוֹר הַחַיִּים וְהַבְּרָכוֹת

פָּתַחְנוּ שִׂפְתוֹתֵינוּ בִּתְפִלָּה
י-ה, מִמַּעֲמַקִּים קָרָאנוּ אֵלֶיךָ
טוֹב לְהוֹדוֹת עִם הַנִּצּוֹלִים וַעֲבוּר הַמַּצִּילִים
סוֹמֵךְ ה’ לְכׇל הַנֹּפְלִים וְזוֹקֵף לְכָל הַכְּפוּפִים
בְּיָגוֹן וּבִכְאֵב הִתְאַחַדְנוּ
וְשַׁבְנוּ עַדֶיךָ בֶּאֱמוּנָה מִתּוֹךְ אַהֲבָתֵנוּ אֶחָד לַשְּׁנִיָּה
רְפָאֵנּוּ וְנֵרָפֵא
.גְּמֹל עָלֵינוּ כָּל טוֹב סֶלָה

עֵץ חַיִּים
צוּר יִשְׂרָאֵל וְגוֹאֲלוֹ
חוּסָהּ נָא וְחָנֵּנוּ
יִשְׁכְּנוּ בְּתוֹכֵנוּ צְדָקָה וּמִשְׁפָּט
י-ה, שְׁמֹר צֵאתֵנוּ וּבוֹאֵנוּ בְּפִיטְסְבּוּרְג וּבְרַחֲבֵי תֵּבֵל
.מֵעַתָּה וְעַד עוֹלָם

© 2019 Alden Solovy, Rav Aytan Kaden and Elyssa Moss-Rabinowitz

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Postscript: Here’s a link to the English version of this prayer. See also: “Ma’oz Tzur for Pittsburgh,” “Taharot in Pittsburgh,” “After a Deadly Anti-Semitic Attack” and “Racist Violence against Houses of Worship.”

Tree of Life English and Hebrew Acrostic with Annotations

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Please check out my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer,” and This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” To receive my latest prayers via email, please subscribe (on the home page). You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Source: Tree of Life * Or L’Simcha Congregation website

This acrostic spelling out “Tree of Life Pittsburgh Tree of Life” will be used on Yom Kippur in a new Martyrology created by Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, the rabbi at Tree of Life – Or L’simcha Congregation. This prayer is a response to the Oct. 27, 2018, shooting there and first appeared in a CCAR rapid response resource kit. Here’s a link  an interpretive Hebrew version of that prayer. See also: “Ma’oz Tzur for Pittsburgh” and “Taharot in Pittsburgh.”

Tree of Life, Pittsburgh
Tree of Life,
Revive our souls,
Enrich our days,
Entreating Your blessings.
O, God of Peace,
Fill our hearts with comfort,
Letting Your Torah shine,
In the fullness of our love.
Faith in You, our God,
Eternal Source of blessings.

Praying for healing
In the depths of despair,
Thanking God for the survivors,
Thanking God for the first responders,
Sorrow crushing our hearts,
Bereaved beyond belief,
United in our love,
Returning to You in faith,
God of Israel,
Healer of generations.

Tree of Life,
Redeemer of Israel,
Enliven this moment with healing,
Enliven this moment with hope.
Oh, Rock of Israel,
Forget not the Jews of Pittsburgh.
Let Your love flow
In the days ahead
For justice and peace
Everlasting.

© 2018 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com.

New here? Subscribe here to get my newest prayers by email.
Share the prayer! Email this to a friend.

Postscript: See also: “Ma’oz Tzur for Pittsburgh,” “Taharot in Pittsburgh,” “After a Deadly Anti-Semitic Attack” and “Racist Violence against Houses of Worship.”

Please check out my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer,” and This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” To receive my latest prayers via email, please subscribe (on the home page). You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Source: Tree of Life * Or L’Simcha Congregation website