Dear Friends and Colleagues,

There is a longstanding Jewish tradition that an onen, a person whose loved one has recently died is exempt from many ritual obligations until the deceased is buried. One explanation for this custom is that we don't have the requisite presence of mind when we are grieving so intensely. Our board and staff have been starting to think about how we can respond to Saturday's atrocity in Pittsburgh, while recognizing that we are in our own period of aninut. 

One thing we are certain of though is that Saturday's attack is a reminder of how important it is to strengthen our civic norms and institutions. Healthy democracies are not immune from hatred and bigotry, but their very premise — the unique value of every individual — is the antithesis of philosophies of hate that group people together indiscriminately; and we know that democracies are almost always safer for minority communities than non-democracies.

Focusing this year's Lippman Kanfer Prize for Applied Jewish Wisdom on democracy and civic engagement feels more important than ever. We invite you to learn more by joining an informational webinar this Thursday at 12PM. As is customary in Jewish tradition, we will begin the webinar with some Jewish learning in memory of those who were killed on Shabbat. You can sign up for the webinar using this link. We look forward to seeing you then.

Warmly,
Aaron