The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America denounces the deadly attacks perpetrated yesterday against people at a synagogue in Manchester, England, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in Judaism. We extend our condolences to the victims and their families and our profound concern to all Jewish people living in fear in communities around the world. As the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
The ELCA also condemns anti-Semitism wherever it occurs. In “A Declaration of the ELCA to the Jewish Community,” this church recognizes anti-Semitism as “a contradiction and an affront to the Gospel, a violation of our hope and calling,” and pledges to “oppose the deadly working of such bigotry, both within our own circles and in the society around us.”
O Holy One, we ask for your blessing upon all people living amid fear and deadly violence. Help us to be ambassadors of justice and peace in our communities and around the world. Amen.
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.7 million members in more than 8,400 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
