Rabbi Diana's Weekly Message

Dear Hevre,

This week our country received the final verdict surrounding the Tree of Life murderer. I’d like to share with you the public statement released by our Pittsburgh Reconstructing Judaism affiliate, Congregation Dor Hadash, following the final verdict in the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre case:

Congregation Dor Hadash, one of the three congregations attacked in the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre in 2018, issued the following statement in response to the final verdict in the trial:

The jury today issued its final verdict in the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre case. The perpetrator of the deadliest act of antisemitic violence in American history has been sentenced to the maximum penalty for his crimes.

We feel immense gratitude to the many participants in the judicial process. We would like to thank each juror, including the alternates, who took on the grave and important responsibility of serving on this jury. We also thank Judge Colville and his staff for their consistent professionalism and decorum. We give special thanks to all the prosecutors and other Justice Department employees who worked so long and hard, and with such excellence, to bring us to this day, and who have treated the families and victims with the utmost consideration and sensitivity for the past four-and-a-half years. Above all, we thank the law enforcement officers who put themselves in harm’s way on October 27, 2018, and saved many lives.

What happened on October 27, 2018 is never far from our minds. Eleven innocent people were murdered simply because they were Jews. Do not forget them. They were:

Joyce Fienberg Richard Gottfried Rose Mallinger Jerry Rabinowitz Cecil Rosenthal David Rosenthal

Bernice Simon Sylvan Simon Daniel Stein Melvin Wax Irving Younger

They were killed because they were Jews. Our public discourse in this country has shifted to allow antisemitism and white supremacy into the mainstream. Our elected officials and the media need to combat white supremacist lies that the “white race” is in danger of being replaced and Jews are to blame. And easy access to guns allows hate-filled people to make their antisemitic beliefs deadly.

Politicians, legislators, religious leaders, and others in positions of power must recognize that their rhetoric has power and renounce such bigotry and hatred. We must all learn to recognize antisemitism, which can surface in a wide range of speech and conduct, and call it out each and every time we see it.

We will always remember the eleven lost and hold them in our hearts, along with their family members and the survivors. And we will strive to treat each other with kindness and caring, following the example of our beloved Jerry Rabinowitz.

Here is an article in the Forward about the ambivalence some have concerning the death penalty:

https://forward.com/fast-forward/556371/pittsburgh-synagogue-shooter-death-penalty-pennsylvania-jewish-governor-josh-shapiro/

We spoke in Torah study yesterday about how important the verdict was in recognizing that there is no place for Jew-hatred in our country. At the same time, many of us feel uncomfortable with the death penalty. We may explore it as a study session in the future.

In the meantime, may the survivors of the Tree of Life massacre find some peace.

If you would like to respond to this email, please write me at: rabbidianamiller@gmail.com 

Shabbat shalom,

Rabbi Diana