For those who have suffered and endured torture
All over the world
In the name of ethnic cleansing,
In the name of scapegoating,
In the name of “I have the power and you do not.”
May their memory be a blessing,
Together with the memory of the six million Jews
And millions of others whose lives were lost during humanity’s darkest days.
For those who survived the Holocaust
And passed from this world during the years and decades that followed,
May they always be remembered, together with their stories and their courage.
And for the survivors who continue to be among us
And their families and communities
Unto the second, third and fourth generations and beyond,
May their lives be filled with blessing and may we be blessed to know them
And remember them and their stories and courage and
All they are able to share of what they and their ancestors endured.
--Rabbi Pam Frydman
It is very tempting to take the side of the perpetrator.
All the perpetrator asks is that the bystander do nothing.
He appeals to the universal desire to see, hear and speak no evil.
The victim, on the contrary, asks the bystander to share the burden of pain.
The victim demands action, engagement and remembering.
-- Judy Herman