![]() Uniformed Newton police officers or private security personnel now guard the entrances at Temple Emanuel 12 hours per day, Gardenswartz said. ![]() ![]() Some worshipers may see increased security. “What we do on Shabbat is we come together to celebrate life and celebrate our love for humanity.” “We realize this is a moment of such tremendous vilification of the other,” Soffer said. Bowers appeared in federal court Thursday in Pittsburgh, where he pleaded not guilty to murder and hate crime charges. The killings in Pittsburgh were an attack on Jews, immigrants, and others considered outsiders, said Soffer, citing anti-Semitic and anti-immigrant views expressed online by the alleged shooter, Robert Bowers. Markey, City Councilor Ayanna Pressley, and Police Commissioner William Gross plan to attend, he said. Temple Israel of Boston is expecting about 1,500 people to gather Friday evening for what is being called Shabbat of Comfort, Community, and Courage, said Rabbi Matthew Soffer. Other interfaith services are planned for the Jewish Sabbath. “It’s good to be together,” said Susan Etscovitz, 73, a member of Jewish Voice for Peace, of several groups represented at the vigil.Īs a Jewish woman, Etscovitz said, the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting “felt very, very painful - very painful.” A moment of silence was held for the victims. Some who attended held signs decrying hate, and many wiped tears from their eyes. “We light candles tonight to honor the lives and to mourn the deaths of those we lost last week to white supremacy.” “The Torah teaches that every human soul is a divine light,” Abelson told the crowd standing in the shadow of the memorial’s tall, glass towers. Rabbi Leora Abelson of Congregation Agudas Achim in Attleboro read the names of the 11 Pittsburgh victims, as well as two African-Americans killed in a racially motivated shooting at a Kentucky supermarket. In Boston Thursday evening, hundreds gathered at the New England Holocaust Memorial for a candlelight vigil to show solidarity with the Pittsburgh victims, and to denounce racial violence and intolerance. It is going to be their spiritual home as always.” “They are not going to stay away from synagogue. “It’s an important statement that people are not going to be intimidated,” said Rob Leikind, regional director of AJC New England. The American Jewish Committee is promoting the concept with the hashtag ShowUpForShabbat.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |