Description
We are coming together as a Jewish community to mourn the loss of lives at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh on Shabbat. We are drawing on the ritual of Shemira for comfort and guidance—Shemira which can be translated as safeguarding, is the practice of staying by the bodies of the dead until they are buried. How can we safeguard each other as Jews? And how can our allies safeguard us? We are centering our people in all the ways that this past week has harmed Jews in their intersecting identities. We invite our allies to join us in affirming the power of solidarity as the way we will keep all of us safe from harm.
This framing has been a collaborative effort and we want to acknowledge that Jewish ritual feels alienating for some Jews, and is grounding for some Jews. We will try to hold space for many relationships to ritual, through the language we use to describe it. There will be a mix of speeches, saying Kaddish (a text/prayer said by mourners), and singing.
This event will take place on the Law Quad at the University of Michigan Law School. Please be prepared as best you can for possible rain. Facebook event can be found here.