fbpx Prayer for AIDS Awareness Shabbat | Reconstructing Judaism

Prayer for AIDS Awareness Shabbat

Article

Before Lighting the Shabbat Candles:

Tonight, on AIDS Awareness Shabbat, we kindle these lights. Not only do these lights signify the beginning of Shabbat they symbolize much more. Tonight these lights represent the memories that continue to shine of those whom we have lost to the AIDS epidemic. Tonight these lights illuminate the path to wholeness and healing for all of us who are affected and infected by HIV/AIDS. Tonight these lights ignite the sparks within that call us to action. Tonight these lights are beacons of hope for an AIDS-free world.

Before Ufros Aleinu:

Weary from anger, fear and confusion
Wailing at the loss of audacious beauty -
The souls stricken with AIDS
I search.

In my risings, I search for the answers
Buried deep in the cold earth.
Why has become as useless
As battling the winds.

Hope scurries under my feet
She is present, but fleeting.
I trace her with my eyes
I do not want to lose sight.

I lay down
And beseech You
Spread over me Your canopy of peace
So I may rest and find wholeness in Your shards

I lay down
And look above
Where the memories have formed
A canopy embroidered as finely as the stars
I am renewed and will continue to ask You
Spread over us Your canopy of peace.

Related Resources

News and Blogs

Reconstructing Judaism's President Recognized as LGBT Icon

Reconstructing Judaism’s president, Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., has been hailed as an LGBT Icon as part of LGBT History Month. Waxman is the first woman and first lesbian to lead a major Jewish denomination and rabbinical seminary.

News
News and Blogs

Pride Month, Israel, and Us

A personal message from Rabbi Deborah Waxman

News

Text Study on the Creation Story: The Nature of the First Human

In the first two chapters of the Torah, we find two different accounts of the creation of humanity. In this text study, Rabbi Maurice Harris explores the tension between these two stories, and presents a teaching from Midrash Bereishit Rabbah that presents food for thought about gender, essentialism, and the nature of humanity. 

Document

“Straight-Welcoming?!” – Creating an Inclusive Community

Lesser describes the evolution of an LGBT synagogue and dissects the meaning of inclusive community.

Article

Understanding Transgender Issues in Jewish Ethics

Drawing on the surprisingly sophisticated classical Jewish perspective on sex and gender, Rabbi David Teutch advocates for celebration and inclusion of transgender people as a fundamental issue of justice.

Article

Fighting for a Good Name

With few transgender role models, Rabbi Jacob Lieberman, ’15, faced harassment and bullying almost entirely alone growing up. As an adult, he found acceptance within the Reconstructionist community and from himself. In this d’var torah, Rabbi Lieberman shares how Jewish resources can help comfort those who struggle to find acceptance and wholeness.

Video

Coming Out

Reflecting on his own coming out, Rabbi Jacob Staub examines the varieties of tolerance, inclusion, and being considered “normal.” 

Article

Seeing the Other

Rabbi Jacob Staub reflects on the difference between welcoming others and seeing through their eyes.

Article