Prayers, pain and hope: Faith communities in Michigan reflect on year of strife

Inside the library at one of Michigan's oldest synagogues, a group of about 20 people sat in a semi-circle around a rabbi to discuss the morality of war. For about an hour on Sunday morning two weeks ago, they read excerpts from a four-page handout that contained various quotes over the centuries from the Torah, Talmud and Jewish theologians that debated the question: When is it legitimate to fight?

With Israel in one of its biggest conflicts in years, it was not just an abstract question for the Jewish group gathered inside Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, which has held pro-Israel rallies over the years. Participants wrestled with the ethics of Israel's response to strikes from Hamas and Hezbollah after the country faced its deadliest one-day attack in history. Some wondered what the eventual goal of Israel's response was: "You can't destroy hate by killing," said one man during the hourlong session.

"Though Judaism believes peace is the ultimate virtue, it recognizes that war is at times necessary and therefore has created laws to govern warfare," read the handout prepared by two rabbis.

A couple of days later inside the Islamic House of Wisdom, a mosque in Dearborn Heights, Sheikh Basem Jawad knelt in front as he led a small group of worshippers in special prayers for Lebanon known as duas, beseeching God for help. The day before, Israeli strikes in Lebanon had killed about 500 people . A young man sat behind the sheikh with the flag of Lebanon draped over his shoulders, his arms outstretched with cupped palms turned upward. Another worshipper cradled his head with his right hand as others read the prayers from smartphones. Taped to an entrance door was a flyer that said: "Assistance for Lebanon," asking for clothing, wheelchairs and toiletries to help victims in the country many mosque members have roots in. The event was one of several prayer services or funeral services held recently at Shia mosques in Dearborn and Dearborn Heights in memory of the victims, some of whom had local ties.

The two recent scenes in metro Detroit illustrate how faith has played out in the lives of thousands across the region in response to a year of turmoil, pain and suffering that has taken a toll on lives in Michigan.

The recent attacks in Lebanon, where more than 1,000 are estimated to have been killed over the past few weeks, have again struck home for many in places like Wayne County, which has the highest percentage of Lebanese Americans in the country. While protests and rallies in Michigan have gotten a lot of media attention, the responses in more personal and quieter settings have been just as intense, but also contemplative, as believers now look to solutions for a way out of the violence.

The Middle East is home to the Jewish, Christian and Islamic faiths, three religions with roots in Abraham that have strong interfaith relations in Michigan, but at times have been strained over the past year as Muslim and Jewish ties weakened.

"The morality of war," Rabbi Aaron Starr, the religious leader of Shaarey Zedek, told the group, repeating the title of the discussion last month. "We are obligated to defend ourselves. At the same time, we have to work doubly hard to make sure that we never become a war-loving people, that we are lovers of peace. We are pursuers of peace. We hate war and understand it only as a tool to achieve the peace we need, the peace we want and the peace we deserve. That is the morality of war, to do everything we can, to protect life and to remember who we are as Jews and what God wants."

Christians walk a fine line

What God wants is something that has been debated for centuries and the topic of many lectures over the past year. In churches and at interfaith events, Christians in Michigan have also weighed in with sermons about the conflict. Some local pastors, especially those in the evangelical community, are generally supportive of Israel, others are more critical, while some have mixed views, trying to maintain good relations with both Muslims and Jews.

"Mainline Protestant churches have walked a fine line on the issue of what is happening in the Middle East," the Rev. Bob Cornwall, of Troy, a minister-at-large with the Protestant denomination Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) who's a retired pastor at Central Woodward Christian Church in Troy, told the Free Press. "Because of historic antisemitism, we walk carefully in our relationships with Jews. At the same time, our churches have tried to separate out political support for the nation of Israel and our relationships with Jews."

But "the presence of Palestinian Christians means we have historic connections to the Palestinian people," Cornwall added. "There is a strong concern for the (Israeli) hostages, but also for the Palestinian people."

At one of the largest evangelical megachurches in Michigan, Kensington, the lead pastor of its Troy congregation, Andrew Kim, has spoken about the role Christians can play in responding to conflict. Kensington is a partner with a Protestant church with a largely Arab congregation in Bethlehem in the West Bank, Immanuel Evangelical Church, and has helped raise money for them.

"It is absolutely heartbreaking," Kim said of the Oct. 7 attacks in a sermon last year that streamed online. "It's infuriating ... the evil that happened." But he added there is also suffering among Palestinians and others.

"I want to urge you ... to pray every single day for Jesus' peace, his love, his comfort, his unity to become a reality in that place," Kim told the crowd.

Some pastors, such as the Rev. Ed Rowe, retired pastor at Central United Methodist Church in Detroit, one of the oldest Protestant congregations in Michigan, argued that the actions of Israel violate the values of religion.

"What's happening in Gaza right now is a violation of every faith," Rowe said at a memorial at the Greenfield Manor in Dearborn in November for Palestinians who died in Gaza. "Palestinian lives are magnificent creations of the divine, just like your life and my life. ... And when we devalue life ... in order to be able to kill them without guilt, we violate every sacred book that was ever written on anything, whether it is the sacred scrolls of Judaism, or the Bible, or the Quran. There is no sacred scripture that condones the deaths of innocent people."

A couple of months later, on a damp evening in January, inside Christ Episcopal Church in Dearborn, a group of dancers led by a man waving a Palestinian flag strode up the aisle clapping their hands to the sounds of a rhythmic Arab beat. They were a dabke troupe who perform Palestinian folk dances, sporting Palestinian scarves and dress. After reaching the front, they linked hands while hopping, a large Christian cross seen behind them. The event, titled "Interfaith Voices for Gaza: An Evening of Learning, Lamentation, and Liberation," included Jewish, Christian and Muslim speakers.

The reaction from the Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit over the past year has been largely quiet. Except for a short statement released Oct. 8, Archbishop of Detroit Allen Vigneron has not commented publicly about the conflict in the Middle East.

But Pope Francis last week appeared to criticize the Israeli attacks that killed Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, and others, saying they were disproportionate and went "beyond morality," Reuters and the Associated Press reported.

Palestinians 'love life'

Three days after the Oct. 7 attacks, the first big pro-Palestinian rally was held in Dearborn at Ford Community & Performing Arts Center, packed with more than 1,000 protesters, many waving Palestinian flags.

"After 75 years, Metro Detroit says: free, free Palestine," read a large banner on stage.

Imam Imran Salha, a Palestinian American who is the religious leader at the Islamic Center of Detroit, expressed concern that Palestinian lives are devalued, almost as if he was anticipating the deaths to come in Gaza. He talked about the Palestinian love of food, culture and folk dancing.

"They do not love to die," Salha said of Palestinians. "They love life. ... Nobody loves life more than the Palestinians. We love our food, we love our weddings, we love our ceremonies, we love our families, we love our people. However, there is a movement that wants to dehumanize the Palestinian, to justify all of the murder and all of the massacres, to say to the world, well, they're not even human, they don't even love life."

The prayers led by Jawad at the service at the Islamic House of Wisdom on Sept. 23 were "for the people of Lebanon, prayers for all innocent people to overcome challenges ... for the protection of humanity," explained Jennifer Elahi, who works at the mosque. "All of us have family, friends that have been touched by this tragedy, whether it's our cleaner here at the mosque, or whether it's my children's teacher who lost her entire family."

On Monday, a group of Islamic clerics gathered at the Bint Jbeil Cultural Center in Dearborn to denounce Israel's attacks in Lebanon and against Palestinians, calling for a cease-fire. The center where they held their news conference is named after a village and district in Lebanon where many in Wayne County have roots and which has faced attacks from Israel, responding to strikes from Hezbollah. The week before, a vigil was held at the center to remember victims in Lebanon, with several local clerics attending. And, on Wednesday, Imam Mohammad Mardini of the American Muslim Center in Dearborn and Imam Mohammad Elahi of the Islamic House of Wisdom spoke at a "Stand With Lebanon" rally outside the Dearborn police station.

In Dearborn, the largest group within the city's Middle Eastern population is the Lebanese American Shia Muslims, a group that has ties to areas in Lebanon that have been in battle with Israel for decades. Shias often recall in religious ceremonies the deaths in battle in the 7th century in Karbala, Iraq, of followers of Imam Hussein, a grandson of Prophet Muhammad who died fighting an unjust ruler. An annual procession in August drew thousands in Dearborn marking his death on a day known as Arbaeen that included some elected officials and clerics who referenced the plight of Palestinians in Gaza, saying the fight for justice in Karbala centuries ago continues today. The fatal victims in Lebanon are being described in some local mosques as martyrs. After Nasrallah died last week, there was a small event in Dearborn where speakers praised him and an online flyer for another memorial event at a local mosque had a shadow profile of Nasrallah. One of the speakers at the Dearborn rally on Wednesday praised the late leader.

'Horrible year for Israel'

The Jewish community in Michigan has responded over the past year with several rallies and prayer services, drawing upon their history to find solace and ways to cope. During the Jewish high holidays, which are currently taking place and will end with Yom Kippur on Saturday, many rabbis will be talking about how their faith relates to Oct. 7, a date that is like Sept. 11 for many Israelis and Jews, said Rabbi Asher Lopatin, of Oak Park.

"It's going to be so difficult to match the hopefulness that the holidays have with the sadness that we feel for Oct. 7 and the horrors of that day," said Lopatin, with the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor. "This has been a horrible year for Israel and for ... innocent Palestinians."

Two days after the Oct. 7 attacks, thousands of Jews packed Congregation Shaarey Zedek for a pro-Israel rally that featured leading Democratic politicians, including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and U.S. Sen. Gary Peters.

About one month after that rally, hundreds of Jews gathered at Adat Shalom Synagogue in Farmington Hills to call for the hostages held by Hamas to be released. At a menorah lighting ceremony in December in downtown Detroit for Hanukkah, family members of some of the hostages visited to share their stories with metro Detroiters.

The clashing views among local Muslims and Jews led to the first time in years that Muslims did not participate in a Christmas Day volunteer event in metro Detroit organized by Jewish groups known as Mitzvah Day . Instead, Jews partnered with Hindus and others for the volunteering.

Rabbi Alana Alpert, who leads Congregation T'chiyah in Ferndale, has spoken often over the past year at interfaith events alongside Arab Americans and Muslims. She was one of three faith leaders — Jewish, Christian and Muslim — who delivered an invocation at ArabCon, a convention held in Dearborn by the largest Arab American civil rights group, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. Alpert at times has found herself caught between staunch supporters of Israel in the Jewish community and some Arab Americans who oppose the state of Israel.

"I could tell you how painful and exhausting and heartbreaking this year has been, but I am also filled with gratitude and purpose," Alpert said. "So many of my rabbinic colleagues are muzzled. I wholeheartedly believe that this is not us or them, that there is no safety for some of us without all of us. My loved ones in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and Ashkelon and the Galil will never be safe while the people of Gaza starve."

"A blessing of this time has been new and deepened relationships with Arab colleagues," she added. "I know that some in the Jewish community think of Dearborn as a threat. I think of it as an opportunity. It can be uncomfortable, of course there is some latent antisemitism in those spaces, just as there is racism and Islamophobia in ours, but I shudder to think of what Arab Americans would think about Jews if none of us were showing up in solidarity."

At an interfaith event in Dearborn in December featuring presidential candidate Cornel West, Alpert was heckled by a man who objected to her speaking about the suffering of people on Oct. 7. She paused and then continued, calling for people to protect all lives.

"The efforts to insist on binary choices, that either Palestinians or Israelis are worthy of protection, has been unrelenting," Alpert told the crowd, arguing that the fighting in the Middle East serves the interests of outside powers.

"Who does it serve to pit Jews and Palestinians against each other? Who? We refuse."

The event last month at Congregation Shaarey Zedek was organized by Limmud Michigan , a group whose name is the Hebrew word for "to learn." It featured a number of thoughtful lectures on a range of topics involving Judaism, from the effects of the Interstate 696 highway construction decades ago on local Jewish communities to how Jews living in the Midwest have developed unique accents. Some of the topics dealt with Israel and the past year. Lior Zisser-Yogev, an Israeli emissary currently living in Bloomfield Hills to work with Jewish communities, gave a talk on news media coverage of Israel. Last year, her brother serving in Israel's military, Eli Zisser, died while battling Hamas on Oct. 7. She will be in Israel on the anniversary of Oct. 7, remembering him and other victims of Hamas.

In the library where the discussion with Starr on the morality of war took place stood two figurines of Jewish men with prayer shawls draped on their shoulders as they read books, symbolizing centuries of the Jewish tradition of learning and debate.

"You can kill every single member of Hamas ... (but) you can't kill an ideology, and you can't destroy hate by killing," a man said during the discussion. "It just doesn't work. So it becomes perpetual. ... Why I came here is because we need to look for other solutions over the last 8,000 years of persistently killing each other."

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