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January 7, 2016
Mr. Leo Levy’s first address at the Grafton Peace Pagoda at the beginning of Shabbot:
HIROSHIMA & NAGASAKI COMMEMORATION AT GRAFTON PEACE PAGODA
AUGUST 6, 2004
I am honored and pleased once again to be able to spend the start of the Jewish Sabbath – in Hebrew, Shabbos or Shabbat – at the Grafton Peace Pagoda and to offer some remarks on a Jewish theme to this group assembled to remember those who perished, now 59 years ago, in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
As the sun sets around the globe on this Friday evening, Jews gather together to observe Shabbat. One of the elements of those prayer services – indeed, of Jewish communal prayer in general – is the ancient text known as the Kaddish (still recited in Aramaic, the vernacular language of Middle Eastern Jews at the time the prayer was codified almost 2000 years ago). While recognized by many as the "Mourner's Kaddish", because that is the form in which the Kaddish concludes many services, the Kaddish, in slightly different form, actually is recited more than once during most communal prayer services; and, even when labeled the "Mourner's Kaddish", its text makes no mention of death or mourning. Rather, the text of the Kaddish, repeated several times each day, is an affirmation of faith – faith in the promise of a better world, a world of peace and harmony.
Keeping that example in mind, I would like to shift our focus to a somewhat different example of faith – and begin with a story of a conversation that I had with Jun-san several weeks ago. I came to the Peace Pagoda that day especially weighed down by events in the news – by a world in an extraordinary state of turmoil, by world leaders who seemed to have abandoned efforts to resolve problems by peaceful means, and by government leaders in this country who seemed determined to repeat the worst mistakes of the past. In speaking with Jun-san, I noted, though, how much worse off the world likely would be were it not for efforts such as hers to promote peace by maintaining the Peace Pagoda and by engaging in the walks for peace with which we are familiar. In her self-effacing way, Jun-san began to object to accepting the credit I suggested she deserved, when a man working nearby on the repair of worn parts of the Peace Pagoda said something to her in Japanese. The man – whose name, sadly, I do not recall – then turned to me and said: "I told her you were right."
And I say to all of us here tonight that, while most of us cannot match Jun-san's example – because, indeed, the promotion of peace is her vocation – we, too, must give ourselves credit for the fact that – as bad as things might seem – the world is not in worse shape. We must have faith that our gatherings for peace, that our lighting candles for peace, that our expressed wishes for peace and that our heartfelt prayers for peace – indeed, that our buttons, bumper-stickers and T-shirts for peace – have had and are continuing to have a positive impact. We must have faith in the beneficial effects of continuing to be witnesses for peace – and we must believe that, without our efforts, the world would be a place of less peace and harmony than it is.
And I must say as well that we cannot afford to test that proposition – because the test would require us to cease those efforts. We must fight off the kind of depression that took hold of me a few weeks ago – the feeling that our efforts in the name of peace are for naught. And we must continue to join hands with each other – and to make sure that those joined hands stay clasped in an unbroken circle of calls, prayers and demands for peace – a circle that girdles this globe with faith that the prospect of a better, peaceful world is real. We have made a difference – and we will continue to do so.
With that affirmation of the value of what we are doing in coming together to call for peace and to reinforce our relationships with like-minded people on occasions like this – and with that affirmation of the value of the thousands of years of prayers for peace in myriad religious traditions – I bring us back to the Jewish "Mourner's Kaddish" and to its closing words.
Please listen or repeat with me this sentence that is heard several times in every Jewish prayer service. In Hebrew: "Oseh shalom bim-romav hu ya’aseh shalom aleynu ve’-al kol Yisra’el, ve’-al kol yoshvey tevel, ve’-imru: Omen.” In English: "May the One who creates a peaceful universe make peace for us, for all Israel, and for all who dwell on earth. And let us say: Amen.”
Mr. Leo Levy’s second address at the Grafton Peace Pagoda at the beginning of Shabbot:
HIROSHIMA & NAGASAKI 64th COMMEMORATION AT GRAFTON PEACE PAGODA
August 7, 2009
I am honored once again to be able to spend the start of the Jewish Sabbath – in Hebrew, Shabbos or Shabbat – at the Grafton Peace Pagoda and to offer some remarks on a Jewish theme to this group that assembles not only to remember those who perished, now 64 years ago, in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki but that gathers as well to visualize a world at peace and to celebrate those efforts that bring us closer to that goal.
I know that we all are concerned about conflicts in different parts of the globe – and that many of us have a special concern for problems in the Middle East – and for the vexing issues that relate to Israel’s domestic and international policies. In the latter regard, I recently was reminded of comments by that great journalist of my youth, I. F. Stone, whose weekly newsletter was a precursor of the best of the Internet’s political blogs. Noting the need for Israel to come to terms with the Palestinians, Stone wrote in 1956: “The road to peace lies through the Palestinian refugee camp.” A little more than ten years later, after the 1967 war between Israel and her neighbors, Stone commented: “The essence of tragedy is a struggle of right against right….In a tragic struggle, the victors become the guilty and must make amends to the defeated.”
Going back almost two thousand years earlier, there is a very relevant comment in a volume known in Hebrew as the Pirke Avot and in English as the Chapters or Sayings of the Ancestors. The statement reads: “The sword comes into the world because of justice delayed and justice denied and because of those who misinterpret the Torah.”
Certainly, those of us in the Jewish community must remain ever mindful of the words of one of our great sages of two thousand years ago, Rabbi Hillel. Asked to summarize the essence of Torah, the foundation text of Judaism, Rabbi Hillel said: “What is hateful unto you do not do unto your neighbor. The rest is commentary…”
That philosophy, of course, is not unique to Judaism. We can recognize it as one variant of what generally is known as “The Golden Rule”, and it is found in one form or another as an ethical statement in religious traditions around the world. Indeed, almost identical to Hillel’s statement is the following from Hindu scripture: “This is the sum of duty; do naught to others which if done to you would cause you pain.” The Christian Bible says: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” An element of Muslim faith states: “No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself.” And the Buddhist tradition says: “Hurt not others with that which pains yourself.”
With that, I will bring my comments tonight to a close, as has become my tradition at these gatherings, with a sentence – a plea for peace – that is heard several times in every Jewish prayer service. First in Hebrew – and I’m sure many of you can recite with me: “Oseh shalom bim-romav hu ya’aseh shalom aleynu ve’-al kol Yisra’el, ve’-al kol yoshvey tevel, ve’-imru: Omen.” In English: “May the One who creates a peaceful universe make peace for us, for all Israel, and for all who dwell on earth. And let us say: Amen.”
[Leo provided this note: I have to tell you that, when I mentioned I.F. Stone, a murmur of recognition came from a few in the audience (who were, I assume, of my generation). There was a quite audible appreciative chuckle from the crowd when I got to Hillel's "the rest is commentary" remark!]
