Based on a prompt by Rabbi Tamara CohenPriest. Descendants of Aaron who served in the Temple in Jerusalem. Today, in the absence of a Temple, Jews continue to keep track of who is a Cohen. A Cohen is accorded certain privileges in synagogue and is forbidden from entering a graveyard or marrying a divorcee. Priesthood is patrilineal – if one’s father was a Cohen, then one is a Cohen.: What does it mean to be a white Jewish woman in Philadelphia right now, and what do I want it to mean? #saytheirnames
On the Sunday of the week that we read parashat Naso,
my daughter and I kneeled outside her school
six feet from the other children and families
chalking “Black Lives Matter,”
MLK quotes and rainbow hearts
in pastel hues on our Philadelphia sidewalks.
Around the corner another family listed the names,
the names we know,
of our murdered Black brothers, sisters, trans and non-binary siblings:
George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery
And this is how I explain to my child
what it means to declare “Black Lives Matter.”
It means that each one of these lives matters.
Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin, Oscar Grant
It means that we must speak the names, we must speak out.
Eric Garner, Sandra Bland, Philando Castile
In the wilderness, the Holy One,
The One who breathed the soul into each one of us,
Instructs MosesThe quintessential Jewish leader who spoke face to face with God, unlike any other prophet, and who freed the people from Egypt, led them through the desert for forty years, and received the Torah on Mt. Sinai. His Hebrew name is Moshe. to count the people by name.
Samuel Dubose, Walter Scott, Michael Brown
We count not because God did not know how many there were;
We count to take on the sacred obligation
to create a world in which each one of us counts.
Rekia Boyd, Freddie Gray, Alton Sterling
And only in this way, together, can we build our sanctuary in the wilderness,
can we carry our holy community.
Helicopters circle overhead,
windows shatter, but we are safe,
my family, safe in our health,
our house,
our tribe of white privilege, remote work, grocery delivery.
But not until each one of us counts
will we be able to assemble and carry with integrity
the newer words written on parchment, just a few blocks away,
“We the People of the United States,
in order to form a more perfect Union …”
As it was written, enslaved people did not count in the People,
And in the 231 years since, we’ve failed in forming
A union more perfect.
Tony McDade, LaQuan McDonald, Terence Crutcher
This week our TorahThe Five Books of Moses, and the foundation of all of Jewish life and lore. The Torah is considered the heart and soul of the Jewish people, and study of the Torah is a high mitzvah. The Torah itself a scroll that is hand lettered on parchment, elaborately dressed and decorated, and stored in a decorative ark. It is chanted aloud on Mondays, Thursdays, and Shabbat, according to a yearly cycle. Sometimes "Torah" is used as a colloquial term for Jewish learning and narrative in general. tells that each tribe comes to the Mishkan
bringing identical offerings of silver and gold, rams, goats, and oxen.
The precious bloody sacrifice repeats again and again,
each letter inscribed on parchment with care,
each syllable chanted, every year, everywhere.
The rabbis say this teaches that each tribe matters,
every holy offering counts.
But what do we believe as we, again and again,
hear the same story of sacrifice?
Manuel Ellis, Eric Harris, Tony Robinson
Again, a person, a Black person,
has been shot, smothered, has fallen to the ground.
We learn the name, we watch the video, we see the mourners,
we join the protests,
every year, everywhere.
Is this sacrifice enough yet?
Alexia Christian, Mya Hall, Shelly Frey
As it repeats, we resist, we insist
Black Lives Matter!
But neither expiation nor perfection is within our grasp.
Some vow to separate,
Free their hair, drink dissent in place of wine.
Some are lost, but others become our prophets, our artists, our organizers,
who lead us back onto a holy path.
Others, afraid, disconnected, lay blame without knowing
They assume that the jogger is a thief
That the driver has a gun
That the child is a threat
That the woman is unfaithful.
But when those in power force bitterness on those they don’t know, those they fear,
unmediated by priest or ritual or restraint,
they take life, they break innocence, and the sacrifice repeats again.
Tanisha Anderson, MiriamMiriam is the sister of Moses and Aaron. As Moses' and Aaron's sister she, according to midrash, prophesies Moses' role and helps secure it by watching over the young baby, seeing to it that Pharaoh's daughter takes him and that the baby is returned to his mother for nursing. During the Israelites' trek through the desert, a magical well given on her behalf travels with the Israelites, providing water, healing, and sustenance. Carey, Michelle Cusseaux
In its wisdom our tradition teaches us the blessing we need this week,
the blessing that we make upon all of our children, all of Philadelphia, all people in our imperfect union.
We must summon our ancestors:
Moses and AaronBrother of Moses, chosen as Moses' interlocutor. His Hebrew name is Aharon.; priests with faces covered and arms raised; parents kissing their children;
We must summon ourselves;
We must cry out, speaking:
May the Holy One bless you and keep you,
Meagan Hockaday, Natasha McKenna, Rumain Brisbon
May the Holy One shine upon you and show you grace,
Ezell Ford, Dante Parker, George Mann, Jerame Reed, Matthew Ajibade
May the Holy One’s face lift toward you and grant you peace.
Sean Reed, Akai Gurley, Jameek Lowery, Alteria Woods, Jordan Edwards, Dominique Clayton, Atatiana Jefferson.
Ken y’hi ratzon.
Ken y’hi ratzon.
Ken y’hi ratzon.
