Social Justice

As we gather today to commemorate our ancestors' journey from bondage to freedom, we pause to acknowledge that we are meeting on the traditional territory of the __________ [insert local Indigenous nation(s)/tribe(s)], who have stewarded this land throughout the generations.

Just as we remember our own people's displacement and yearning for liberation, we recognize that we are on land where Indigenous peoples have maintained their cultural and spiritual connections despite facing oppression and displacement. Their ongoing pursuit of sovereignty reminds us that the work of freedom is continuous.

As we prepare to recite "This year we are here; next year in Jerusalem," we reflect on what it means to seek belonging while honoring those whose relationship with this land preceded us. In the spirit of Passover's call to justice and liberation, we commit to learning about, respecting, and supporting the __________ [insert local nation(s)/tribe(s)] people and their rightful connection to this place.

May our Seder's celebration of freedom inspire us to work toward justice and dignity for all peoples who still struggle for self-determination and the right to live freely on their ancestral lands.

By David Seidenberg

With my vote today I am prepared and intending to seek peace for this country, as it is written:

“Seek out the peace of the city where I cause you to roam and pray for her sake to God, for in her peace you all will have peace.”

May it be Your will that votes will be counted faithfully and may You account my vote as if I had fulfilled this verse with all my power.

May it be good in Your eyes to give a wise heart to whomever we elect today and may You raise for us a government whose rule is for good and blessing to bring justice and peace to all the inhabitants of the world and to Jerusalem, for rulership is Yours!

Just as I participated in elections today so may I merit to do good deeds and repair the world with all my actions, and with the act of [fill in your pledge] which I pledge to do today on behalf of all living creatures and in remembrance of the covenant of Noah’s waters to protect and to not destroy the earth and her plenitude.

May You give to all the peoples of this country, the strength and will to pursue righteousness and to seek peace as unified force in order to cause to flourish, throughout the world, good life and peace and may You fulfill for us the verse:

“May the pleasure of Adonai our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us, may the work of our hands endure.”

Contributed by Hebrew Helpers

If there is to be peace in the world,

There must be peace in the nations.

If there is to be peace in the nations,

There must be peace in the cities.

If there is to be peace in the cities,

There must be peace between neighbors.

If there is to be peace between neighbors,

There must be peace in the home.

If there is to be peace in the home,

There must be peace in the heart.

- Lao-Tse