Israeli Memorial Day: Yom HaZikaron

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Israeli Memorial Day, Yom Ha’Zikaron, is observed on the 4th of Iyar, the day before Israeli Independence Day, Yom Ha’Atzmaut. Yom Ha’Zikaron commemorates those who lost their lives in the establishment of the Jewish state and those who have died in active duty since then. In Israel, places of entertainment are closed for the day and a siren blast precedes two moments of silence, where traffic stops and attention is given to the solemnity of the day. Outside of Israel, diaspora Jews mark the day with ritual and prayer.

Latest Rituals

A prayer for understanding when faced with antisemitism
top half of the face of a woman with brown hair and gold eyes looking up
“May we remember that there is no future for any of us without all of us.”
view from above of the mediterranean coast at Jaffa
“In a field of lilies trampled by warriors / the Shekhinah weeps”
close up of light yellow-white lilies with black background
“The stones are full of mystical light”
view of jerusalem western wall sunlit day with blue sky

“Dear God, help us look, / look closer so that we may see / our children in their children”

No Pain Like My Pain

“My body, this wall of Herodian stone …”

Overlooking Jerusalem

Prayer for the State of Israel updated to be inclusive of all its inhabitants

Prayer for the State of Israel: Revised for Israel’s 70th Anniversary

“Are there truly two Jerusalems?”

The Two Jerusalems: A Rebuke

A prayer for rain during the Amidah on Shemini Atzeret in memory of those fallen during the Yom Kippur War

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The Reconstructionist Network

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