Yesterday I participated in a Vigil on City Hall Plaza for Ukraine. Here are my remarks.

“Music speaks louder than words. It’s the only thing that the world listens to.” Words from Peter, Paul and Mary. The partnership we are exhibiting today between the Coalition of Elgin Religious Leaders and the Elgin Symphony Orchestra just illustrated the power of music when words fail to express our heartbreak and our anger. Music soothes the savage beast. May it be so. 

Your silent presence here today, makes a difference. It its silence it sends a loud message. You, in Ukraine are not alone. 

The prayer that I offer you today was sent to me by Father John Cox, OMI and in its simplicity, it captures my hopes. 

“For those who are fleeing, sanctuary.
For those who are staying, safety.
For those who are fighting, peace.
For those whose hearts are breaking, comfort.
For those who see no future, hope.” 

Poor Claire nuns of Gallway. 

The Jewish people will celebrate Purim, the story of the Book of Esther this week. Earlier today we had children (and me) in costume, recognizing our Super Heros, like the police and fire departments, who like Queen Esther in a previous era, have helped us survive this pandemic. The question could be who is helping the Ukrainians survive.  

In a month we will celebrate Passover. The story of the Passover in the Hagaddah begins with the sentence, “My father was a wandering Aramean.” Throughout our history, Jews have always been refugees. 36 times in the Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, we are told to welcome the widow, the orphan and the stranger, precisely because we were strangers in the land of Israel. Wherever we have wandered we have been strangers, the other. Sometimes that has even been from Russia and Ukraine.  It is why there are organizations like HIAS that have been working on refugee crisis for over 100 years. Hadassah Hospital already has teams of doctors and nurses on the ground. Last night 17 rabbis left for Poland to do hands on work with those fleeing the horrors of war. Make no mistake, war is a horror.  

Mayor Kaptain, I applaud you for pointing out Elgin’s diversity and promising to help settle refugees here. 

Yesterday we read in synagogue about Amalek. We are supposed to remember to never forget Amalek. What was his crime? He attacked the rear guard when the Israelites were fleeing Egypt. The tired, stragglers, the women, the children, the elderly. The images this week of a maternity ward attacked were chilling. These were the women who could not leave, the rear. I will leave it to you to decide if Putin and his minions are the next generation of Amalek. 

War is hell. It must stop. Oseh shalom bimromav. May the G-d that makes peace in the high heavens make peace here on earth and let us say, Amen. Ufros aleinu sukkat shlomecha. Spread over us, all of us Your fragile sukkah, Your fragile shelter of peace.