A Havdalah Blessing after the Poway Shooting

We are the People of burnt Torah scrolls,

Whose words lift generations 

And their teachings through the air

When all else is broken and laid to waste.

And we are the People of the fire on the great mountain

Becoming again and again

From slavery to misery

And yet, transcending darkness

Surviving death.

But we are also the people of the candle stick’s flame

Marking life and light still

Enkindling a hope that refuses to fade.

Barukh ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam, ha-mavdil bein kodesh l’chol, bein or-le’choshekh, bein Yisrael la-amim, bein yom ha-shevi’i l’sheshet y’mai ha-ma’aseh. Barukh ata Adonai, ha-mavdil bein kodesh l’chol.

“Blessed are You, Creator of the Universe, who chooses us and helps us choose the sacred in the midst of the profane.”

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