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Kristallnacht – Judith Dassio
Holocaust Museum St. Petersburg, FL
See the note on Kristellnacht at the end of this posting.
Invitation to Worship
Come, let us sing to Adonai, let us praise the God of all Creation!
O Holy ONE + open my lips,
~And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
Let there be no forgetfulness before the Throne of Glory;
~ let memory startle us at any moment.
HYMN for KRISTALLNACHT, SHOAH & Other Horrors
Children die from drought and earthquake,
children die by hand of man.
What on earth, and what for God’s sake,
can be made of such a plan?
Nothing – no such plan’s been plotted;
nothing – no such plan exists:
if such suffering were allotted,
God would be an atheist.
Into ovens men drive brothers,
into buildings men fly planes;
history’s losers are the mothers,
history’s winners are the Cains.
Asking where was God in Auschwitz,
or among the Taliban:
God himself was on the gibbets –
thus the question: Where was man?
God of love and God of power –
attributes in Christ are squared.
Faith can face the final hour,
doubt and anger can be aired.
Answers aren’t in explanation,
answers come at quite a cost:
only wonder at creation,
and the practice of the cross.
Text: Kim Fabricius (2007); Tune: Beach Spring
from Richard Hall’s CONNEXIONS
PSALMODY
Antiphon/Refrain
Friend and neighbor you have taken from me;
darkness is all I have left.
Psalm 87/88
Adonai Elohim, I call for help by day;
I cry at night before you.
Let my prayer come into your presence.
O turn your ear to my cry.
For my soul is filled with evils;
my life is on the brink of the grave.
I am reckoned as one in the tomb:
I have reached the end of my strength.
You have laid m in the pit of the tomb,
in places that are dark, in the depths.
It seems you are angry with me
I am drowned beneath your waves.
You have taken away my friends
and made me hateful in their sight.
Imprisoned, I cannot escape;
my eyes are sunken with grief.
I call to you Adonai, all the day long
to you I stretch out my hands.
Will you work your wonders for the dead?
Will the shadows stand and praise you?
As for me, Adonai, I ask for help;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
Adonai, must you reject me–
or hide your face from my pleading.
Wretched and close to death from my youth,
I have borne these trials; I am numb.
Such fury has swept down upon me;
Terrors have utterly destroyed me.
They surround me all day like a flood;
they assail me all together.
Friend and neighbor you have taken away:
my one companion is darkness.
Friend and neighbor you have taken from me;
darkness is all I have left.
READING Ezekiel 37:1- 6, 11-14
The hand of Adonai came upon me, and led me out in the spirit of Adonai and set me in the center of the broad valley. It was filled with bones. God made me walk among them in every direction. So many lay on the surface of the valley! How dry they were! God asked me: Human One, can these bones come back to life? “Adonai Elohim,” I answered, “you alone know that.” Then God said to me: “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them: Dry bones, hear the word of Adonai! Thus says Adonai Elohim to these bones: Listen! I will make breath enter you so you may come to life. I will put sinews on you, make flesh grow over you, cover you with skin, and put breath into you so you may come to life. Then you shall know that I am Adonai. I prophesied as I had been commanded.
…God said to me: Human One, these bones are the whole house of Israel! They are saying, “Our bones are dried up, our hope is lost, and we are cut off.” Therefore, prophesy and say to them: Thus says Adonai Elohim: Look! I am going to open your graves; I will make you come up out of your graves, my people, and bring you back to the land of Israel. You shall know that I am Adonai, when I open your graves and make you come up out of them, my people! I will put my spirit in you that you may come to life, and I will settle you in your land. Then you shall know that I am ADONAI.
Silent Prayer
Let us now remember as we are able, in silence.
Responsory
God in Heaven we remember.
We remember the Night of Broken Glass.
We remember the burning of synagogues.
We remember the looting of schools.
We remember the destruction of orphanages.
We remember the arrests, the deportations, the deaths.
Canticle of Zachary– Luke 1:68-79
Antiphon
O Adonai, deliver us from our enemies
and from the control of our oppressors.
Blessed + be Adonai, the God of Israel,
Who visits this people to set us free
Raising for us a sign of salvation
In the house and family of David.
God promised throughout past ages
In words of holy prophets
To save us from our enemies,
And from the control of our oppressors.
Adonai favored our ancestors
And remembered the sacred covenant.
The pledge to Abraham and Sarah
Is now renewed for us;
That freed from the grip of our foes
We might worship without fear
And be both just and holy
For the rest of our days.
And you, child, called “prophet of the Most High,”
Will go ahead to prepare the way,
By teaching this people of salvation
Through forgiveness of their sins.
For the loving compassion of the Holy One
As the Rising Sun will shine upon us
To illumine the darkness and dispel death’s shadow
To guide our feet on the way of peace.
Glory to the ONE and to the WORD
and to the BREATH of Love!
As always before,
so now and evermore. Amen
O Adonai, deliver us from our enemies
and from the control of our oppressors.
Intercessory Prayer
Though hatred and violence broke the glass of Jewish homes,
~may our hearts be broken in love and reconciliation.
Though scapegoating burned the synagogues and sacred scrolls of Torah
~ may we burn with commitment to ensure that this never happens again.
Though false pride and nameless fear looted Jewish schools and businesses,
~may truth and justice empower us to stand up for all our neighbors.
As Kristellnacht saw the violent destruction of orphanages, hospitals, and cemeteries,
~ may hatred and oppression be forever destroyed and the lives of all people and creatures be protected.
While the majority of Christians said nothing and did less,
~ may the suffering of any move us to speak out and work together for justice and peace.
Kaddish
The Kaddish is the Jewish prayer recited during the period of mourning and on every anniversary of a deceased member of a Jewish family or community.
The Prayer of Jesus follows the same structure & themes.
Glorified and sanctified be God’s great Name throughout the world which God has created according to God’s own will. May God establish the kingdom in our lifetime and during our days, and within the life of the entire house of Israel, speedily and soon:
and let us say Amen.
May God’s great name be blessed forever and to all eternity.
Blessed and praised, glorified and exalted, extolled and honoured, adored and lauded be the name of the Holy One, blessed be God beyond all the blessings and hymns, praises and consolations that are ever spoken in the world; and let us say, Amen.
May there be abundant peace from heaven, and life, for us and for all Israel:
and let us say, Amen.
May the One who creates peace in the celestial heights, create peace for us and for all Israel: and let us say, Amen.
Closing Prayer & Blessing
We share the world’s horror at the tragic loss of life resulting from terrorism in all its forms and in every place where fear and hatred have taken charge of the human heart. Together we mourn for the victims and grieve with those whose loss is so great. As people of faith we pray for peace and call on world leaders to respond by seeking justice, not revenge.
May the God of peace protect us all.
~Amen.
Let us bless Adonai.
~Thanks be to God.
Some of the texts for this prayer service are based on a Memorial Service for Kristallnacht from the | 01.11.2004