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Communal Tragedy

Memorial wall with photos and plaques honoring Yitzhak Rabin at Tel Aviv assassination site.

As individuals, we all know pain and loss. It is the rare person who escapes sorrow. But when one of us hurts, others are there to offer comfort. Communal tragedy is different. When something bad happens to us as a community—whether that is a school, a town, a people, or a country—we struggle to figure out how to tend to our own wounds while taking care of each other. Drawing on compassion, empathy, justice, and love, we can bring out the best in each other, and perhaps, find a theology of hope in the midst of despair.

Latest Rituals

“If I were to sit in the streets of Sodom what would I see?”

Painting of a burning ancient city with smoke, fire, and people fleeing in the foreground.

“May we open our eyes to possibility, our ears to dialogue, our hearts to compassion”

Hand holding a lit candle with a paper holder in a crowd of people, with blurred lights in the background.

Poem honoring the memory of Yitzchak Rabin, z”l

Memorial wall with graffiti and photos, honoring Yitzhak Rabin in a public space. Hebrew text is present.

“Let your example burn through us”

A person wearing a lace collar and glasses, dressed formally, against a plain background.

Tofu, ice cream, beer, and liquor are new symbolic foods that reference this past year

a picnic basket in a field of grass and flowers, on top is a thermos, mug, apples, and cookies.

“Our eclipsing nation shadows me …”

A person stands on a hill, gazing at the star-filled night sky and the Milky Way galaxy, with a shooting star above.

“They had names”

Stone engraved with Remember on weathered wood, surrounded by smaller stones.

“Be strong and courageous, and I will be with you”

Silhouette of two hikers on a mountain, one helping the other against a backdrop of jagged peaks.

The Reconstructionist Network

Serving as central organization of the Reconstructionist movement

Training the next generation of groundbreaking rabbis

Modeling respectful conversations on pressing Jewish issues

Curating original, Jewish rituals, and convening Jewish creatives

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The Reconstructionist Network