* This liturgy was created by Rev. Dr. Katie Day and with the presence and singing of rabbi Liz Bolton and the choir from Mishkan Shalom Synagogue.
Kristallnacht , also referred to as the Night of Broken Glass, was a pogrom or series of coordinated attacks against Jews throughout Nazi Germany and parts of Austria on 9–10 November 1938, carried out by SA paramilitary and civilians. German authorities looked on without intervening. The attacks left the streets covered with broken glass from the windows of Jewish-owned stores, buildings, and synagogues. At least 91 Jews were killed in the attacks, and a further 30,000 arrested and incarcerated in concentration camps. Jewish homes, hospitals, and schools were ransacked, as the attackers demolished buildings with sledgehammers. Over 1,000 synagogues were burned (95 in Vienna alone), and over 7,000 Jewish businesses destroyed or damaged.
Call to Worship
The assembly stands.
We gather this day as children of Abraham and Sarah.
We gather as Christians and Jews to remember a night in 1938 when
hope was shattered like the glass
which covered the streets of Germany.
We gather to remember and to mourn the hate that was unleashed on the people of God.
We gather to confess and to seek healing;
We gather in longing for God’s presence;
We gather, seeking compassion and courage,
so that justice might roll down like waters
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Opening Prayer
O God, who has promised to be our refuge and our strength,
Give us strength this day.
Even though the earth be moved,
May we not be afraid.
O God of Jacob and Rachel, you who are called our stronghold,
Give us grace to see your face
as waters rage and foam around us.
Help us in this hour to be still and know that you are our God
And we are your beloved people.
Gathering Song # 626
Written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer in December, 1944 while in a prison cell
and shortly before his execution on April 9, 1945.
Call to confession
Silence is more than just the absence of speech and noise
—it can be full of meaning and activity…..
-It was out of silence that the Creator God
spoke in the form of wind–ruach
-It is in silence that we open our hearts and spirits in prayer.
-But silence in the presence of suffering
is a sin against God and neighbor—
–in communicates louder than speech our own indifference.
Sisters and brothers, let us join together in our prayer of confession
Not only for the silence of the church on Kristallnacht,
But our silence, our indifference to suffering today…
CONFESSION
Almighty God,
Creator of the infinite heavens, and the smallest grains of sand,
You who are beyond time yet present in all our moments,
We come before you in humility.
You have called us to worship you, and
yet we are more absorbed with skepticism than with awe.
You call us to be one people,
but we continue to focus on our differences and not on our commonalities.
We have forgotten who we are—your people, created and called by you.
We have lost our voices and too often we are silent when we see our sisters and brothers suffering under injustices you abhor.
Be merciful to us, O God,
And give us the grace to be merciful to one another and to ourselves.
May it be so. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon
Brothers and sisters—know that the voice of God speaks louder even than our silence
-know that the God of Love does not give up on us–ever
-know that we are forgiven…
…not through a cheap or easy grace
…but forgiveness that comes through brokenness,
-even the shattered body of Jesus.
Passing of peace
The peace of Christ be with you always.
And also with you.
The assembly is seated.
SONG (choirs) Sh’ma Yisrael Srul Irving Glick
Shma Yisra’el Adonay Eloheynu Adonay Echad
Listen, Israel, The Lord is our God, The Lord is
Hebrew scripture—Liz Deuteronomy 6
Psalm 119:1-8 The refrain is introduced by the choir, repeated by all.
The choir sings the verses of the psalm.
Gospel
The assembly stands to welcome the gospel.
Sermon – See below
The assembly is seated.
HYMN OF THE DAY # 709
The assembly stands to proclaim the word of God in song.
Prayers of the people
OFFERING
The choir sings If I Had the Strength
Eucharist
Invitation to the Table
The table of bread and wine is now ready.
It is the table of company with Jesus and the beloved community.
It is the table of sharing with the poor and the shattered of the world
With whom Jesus identified himself.
It is the table of communion with the Earth,
In which Jesus was present and the Creator continues to work.
So, come to this table,
Not because you must, but because you may.
Come, you who have much faith
And you who would like to have more;
Come, you who have been to this sacrament often,
And you who have not been for a long time;
Come, you who have tried to follow Jesus,
And you who have failed.
Come.
The God of mercy invites us to meet Gods very self here.
[adapted from Iona Communion]
Great Thanksgiving
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to God Most High.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is truly right and our great joy
To give you thanks and praise,
O God, creator and ruler of the universe,
In your wisdom, you made all things
And sustain them by your power.
You formed us in your image, to be one people,
Setting us in the world to love and serve you
And to create peace and justice among your people.
When we have wandered from you
When questions are too vexing and history seems without meaning,
You have not left us, but claimed us as your own,
Sending prophets to call us back
And courageous witnesses to reflect your truth.
At this table we are thankful for Jesus Christ whose life and death embodied the sacrifice of love which brings light in the darkness of the world—in his brokenness, shattered hope is restored.
Therefore, we join our voices with choirs of those who have gone before, with prophets and martyrs, with all the faithful of every time and place, who forever sing to the glory of your name:
(Words of Institution)
We give you thanks that on the night before he was taken,
Jesus had a meal with his friends…..he took bread
And after giving thanks to you,
he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take, eat.
This is my body, broken for you.
Do this in remembrance of me.
In the same way he took the cup, saying,
This is my blood, which is poured out for you
For the forgiveness of sins.
Whenever you drink it, do this in remembrance of me.
In this meal, we remember how you emptied yourself of all but love;
We take from the grain this bread and from the fruit of the earth, this wine
We eat and drink in gratitude
And in deep longing for the return of peace.
We offer ourselves to you, to be transformed into those
who will be repairers of the breach and lovers of your
justice in the world.
(Response): When we eat this bread and drink this cup,
We proclaim your death, O Jesus,
Until you come in glory.
Blessing of elements
Gracious God,
Pour out your Holy Spirit on us
And on your gifts of bread and wine
That the bread we break
And the cup we bless
May be the communion of the body and blood of Christ.
As this bread is Christ’s body for us,
Send us out to be his bread in the world.
Lord’s Prayer
Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit, let us pray as Jesus taught us.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and forever. Amen.
Distribution
The assembly is seated.
Communion songs # 262
Post communion prayer
The assembly stands.
Let us pray. Eternal God,
You have made us one with all your people on heaven and on earth.
You have fed us with the bread of life,
And renewed us for your service
Help all of us who have been blessed here today
To be your hands in the world
So that in our daily living,
We may each be part of building a new human community
That your love might be reflected in our love
And your righteousness might shine through us
For the sake of the whole world.
Amen.
Sending Song
Charge
Go out into the world in peace
Pay attention!
Have courage!
Hold on fiercely to what is good.
When you confront evil, don’t turn your eyes away
But don’t get pulled into it either.
Do not abandon those who are suffering—
Be with them…help them…honor them
And God’s justice will roll down like waters,
And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Benediction
Go in peace to love God and love all God’s people,
To serve God and to serve God’s people.
Thanks be to God.
SERMON by Dr. Katie Day
Kristallnacht 2012
Sermon: Dt. 6: 1-9/Mk 12:28-34
Intro:
Many of us are bleary-eyed and exhausted today:
-we have been living through weeks..days..moments that feel epic
–from anticipating/experiencing/recovering from unprecedented Super Storm
–to, of course: long anticipation and participation in this election
-have seen divisions in our society
-opposing…mutually exclusive visions of where U.S. needs to go
and how to get there
-have stood tippy-toe looking anxiously into the future
-“never has there been more at stake” ==heard over and over
-no one can afford to be a bystander—this affects all of us
(long lines and heightened tension at polls yesterday reflected this)
-felt: energized, anxious about future, committed to our causes—
engaged as participants in an epic time when world changing
Today: remember another epic time when, indeed, world was forever changed:
It was a typical Wednesday, that Nov. 9, throughout Germany and Austria
–kids home from school were working on homework
–workers had come home from long day in shops, factories, hospitals
-Lutheran ladies were preparing streudl for Bible study
(Luther’s birthday)
–choir members hurried to synagogue and churches to prepare for Shabbat and Sunday services
Then all hell broke loose….
Nazi Storm Troopers ran through towns and cities throughout Germ and Austria
Smashing windows…destroying buildings…arresting citizens
Fires raged and many caught in the crossfire were killed.
When it was over…streets were covered with broken glass
7500 stores owned by Jews were destroyed
200 synagogues were reduced to rubble
30,000 Jews were rounded up and sent to a
concentration camp
2000-2500 were killed
<<Nancy’s father-in-law was one of those arrested that night in Vienna—taken to Dachau Prison Camp
And who was to clean up this mess?
To add insult to injury, government actually taxed Jewish community
In that night of chaos (“Kristallnacht”=night of broken glass), everything changed:
-It was now apparent to Jews that this was not just a passing political season that they would get through:
Now they knew that the anti-semitism
of the culture and increasingly in laws
could turn violent, even in this great Western culture
-It also became apparent to Jews that they could not look to
the government, their neighbors or other countries for protection
–Herta Adler remembers, as a child, running out to see her
beloved synagogue burning…and being relieved to see the fire
trucks come. But the hoses were directed to the trees and buildings around the synagogue…which was allowed to burn
-The sea changed for the Nazis as well:
they learned that while the world might condemn their pogroms (attacks) against the Jews, it would not intervene.
They learned that their own people would allow them to
Carry out violence against Jews….
And so, there was no looking back…
After Kristallnacht, the stage was set for the Final Solution…when it was over, 6 million Jews would be dead..
III. This begs the question for us: Where was the Church?
Not academic question…one we—living in our own epic time–need to understand ‘
–For 5 years (since 1933)—struggle in Protestant churches
A) Many had actively embraced Nazism and allowed it to take over
the structures of the whole church
German Church (as called)==seized on Martin Luther’s tract “Ag Jews & Lies”
“A Mighty Fortress” rung out in church processions as nationalist hymn
Boundary bet church and state dissolved
-put in place own bishops…took over seminaries and congregations
B) Others resisted the takeover of the church and fought for independence
“Confessing Church” (Karl Barth, Martin Niemoller, Bonhoeffer)
These “years of struggle” (33-38, particularly) were intense—
The battleground was in local congregations
But finally issue was over control of the church…not, for the most part, escalating violence against Jews…and all who were different: disabled, gays, political opponents, Roma, Adventists)
Kristallnact was an epic moment for Jews, Nazi govt –for 2 streams of Prot Ch, locked in struggle:
A. German Church had been working to “deJudaize” Christianity—to rid it of any trace of its Jewish rootedness
—eliminating the OT/Hebrew scriptures and even NT references to them
After Kristallnacht, emboldened:
Excluded all non-Aryans from congregations (including spouses of members)
-baptisms, weddings, funerals became weapons
Even: eliminated “Hallelujah”=too Jewish
Began plans for theological institute which directed research of scholars (Gerhard Kittel)
To establishing that Jesus was, in fact, Aryan
Mission: The Christian faith is the unbridgeable religious opposite of Judaism
B. as horrific…and alien as the German Church sounds to our 21st century Lib. Religious ears
Consider the response of the Confessing Church to Kristallnacht:
Overwhelmingly Silent
Their struggle with the German Church=largely theological about indep of Church
–critical that the Germ Ch would collaborate with the Catholic Church,
but not that they excluded Jews
–passionate in opposition: State’s intrusion into church structures…
but not about German Church’s virulent anti-Jewish ideology and support of Nazi policies on purification
So on Kristallnacht…
The Confessing church, was unprepared,
Shocked by the violence of it, but for the most part, silent
[One pastor (Julius von Jan in Wurttemburg)
In his sermon that week… did condemn Kristallnacht
…beaten, arrested, imprisoned
(there was an big incentive not to notice or speak up)
Historian Kyle Janzten found: local Confessing Church clergy were just too
Preoccupied, conflicted or afraid to defend the Jews
Dietrich Bonhoeffer—whose own consciousness and culture had been evolving
Was disillusioned by the silence of the Confessing Church after
Kristallnacht
–In the days after Kristallnacht, DB traveled to Berlin to meet with
seminarians.
==>asked whether Kristallnacht had resulted from “the curse which had haunted the Jews since Jesus’ death on the cross.” REJECTED
==>Instead, Bonhoeffer called the pogrom
an example of the “sheer violence” of Nazism’s “godless face.”
==>“If the synagogues burn today, the churches will be on fire tomorrow….”
C. How could Christians have so betrayed their Jewish neighbors?
How could the Church—especially the Confessing Church—forgotten who they were?
How could Church have betrayed themselves so deeply….
Today’s readings—lectionary/portion—from Deut. and from Mark—
(two texts I’m sure cut out of German Christian Bible)
-Mark: Comes from small community within the Jesus movement (Marcan community)
-This community concerned esp. with Jewish identity—
What does it mean to be Jewish?
-Jesus, the young rabbi, is being grilled by senior theologians….(can relate to)
èwhich commandment is first?
Which is most central teaching of tradition?
What is core to who we are as people of God?
Jesus echoes the Shema from Deut—
Hear O Israel…
Love God with heart/soul/mind/strength
(from Lev 19): Love neighbor as selves
***Love of God and love of neighbor=inseparable
Cannot have one without the other
As Bonhoeffer reflected on this in his epic context—Kristallnacht—
“Only those who cry out on behalf of the Jews can sing the Gregorian Chant…”
Cannot love God and not our neighbor…very core of who we are
***another identification going on:
Jesus is affirming and reasserting the core commandment of Jewish tradition
–this is what the realm of God looks like
Scribe concurs: You are right! Much more important than burnt offerings and sacrifices
èto come together in loving God and loving neighbor
Much more deeply defines us
Than the differences in our liturgical practices—
èthere is more that Jews and Christians share in religious traditions than divides us
So: incredibly appropriate and moving that together we sing the SHMA
This is not just a nice interfaith thing to do
It is radical act in itself if we let those words move through us/among us
We could not have sung the SHMA together 74 years ago in Germany
<<BTW: Chris Jacob’s father did get out of Dachau…and Germany
..married a Christian woman and Chris was raised as a Christian
–after she died
Chris converted back to Judaism…on Kristallnacht
So it is epic
For him to be here today as Christians and Jews together sing SHMA>>
How much differently things might have gone in epic moment of Kristallnact
If German Christians had returned to the very core of the faith:
==to love God is to love neighbor….a belief we have received through
Jewish tradition
(Conclusion)
Hard to sustain energy, attentiveness of living in/through epic moment
–after the election night confetti is swept up
–the flooded areas cleaned up
–and the glass swept away
…we go back to ordinariness of every day life
-we focus on getting food on the table,
-getting our papers in on time and our lectures done,
-if we should take our cat to the vet….
And in that, we can forget who we are.
We cannot.
We need to sing the SHMA every day
Breathe in the call to love God and neighbor in times epic or not
Open our hearts to receiving and reflecting God’s love
In our love of one another.