Invoking the memories of martyrs throughout Jewish history, the Eleh Ezkerah section of Yom Kippur invites us to consider their narratives through time and in this moment on this day. As you prepare for this introspection, we invite you to consider these insights from Rabbi Chaim Seidler-Feller, Daniel Libeskind, Ittai Shapira, and more.
Rabbi Chaim Seidler-Feller: Eleh Ezkerah
Rabbi Chaim Seidler-Feller recently celebrated forty years working with students and faculty as the Executive Director of the Yitzhak Rabin Hillel Center for Jewish Life at UCLA, where he is now Director Emeritus. He is a faculty member of the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America and of the Wexner Heritage Foundation. Chaim was the founding director of the Hartman Fellowship for Hillel Professionals and a founding member of Americans for Peace Now.
Nizakher Venikatev: A Reflective Guide for Eleh Ezkerah
While Yizkor services mark the loss of close family members and allow spiritual space for individuals and families to remember their loved ones, Eleh Ezkera is a time for acknowledging communal pain, tragedy, and loss. How might our communal mourning be different from our personal mourning? Explore these questions and more in our reflective guide for Eleh Ezkerah.
The Ethics: Building the Next Generation of Holocaust Memory
A conversation between violinist Ittai Shapira and architect Daniel Libeskind about Holocaust memory, music, and architecture (moderated by Natasha Zaretsky). This conversation was inspired by Itta Shapira’s new composition, The Ethics, premiering at Carnegie Hall on May 14, 2015, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Theresienstadt.
Leah Silver: A Letter to my Grandfather
Leah Silver wrote the following letter to her grandfather, Maks Etingin, which she shared publicly as part of Eleh Ezkerah, on Yom Kippur 5780 at B’nai Jeshurun. Maks died in November 2019, a few months after this was recorded. May his memory be for a blessing.