At the memorial service for Rosa Parks held in Washington, D.C., one of the first speakers invoked the liturgy of the Jewish people.
He recited a prayer in Hebrew and commented that Rosa Parks did for her people what the Exodus from Egypt did for the Jews.
She led her people from slavery to freedom. This eulogy was delivered immediately following the recitation of Psalm 27, the first psalm recited at Rosa Parks’ memorial.
For many of us Psalm 27 should be especially familiar during this time of the year, as we recited it from the New Moon of Elul all the way through Shemini Atzeret.
Ironically, Rosa Parks passed away on the holiday of Shemini Atzeret, the very day that we stopped reciting Psalm 27. Why did the memorial organizers choose to recite Psalm 27?
Perhaps because of the following verse in Psalm 27: “I had but one request of God, which I seek, to sit in the House of God for all the days of my life.” Like the Psalmist, Sister Rosa too, desired to sit.
But it is a big mistake to think that all she wanted to do was to sit on a Montgomery, Alabama bus on December 1, 1955.
What she really wanted to do was to sit in equality in all walks of life. What she really wanted was for all of us to be able to sit in the House of God.
Rosa Parks showed the world that the House of God is anywhere that human beings behave with dignity, courage, and recognition of the Divine Image in each other.
Those of us who were born after the civil rights movement achieved its greatest successes have a difficult time understanding what Rosa Parks accomplished.
Growing up in New York City, the racism that I personally saw was not overt. Racism surely existed all around us, but it was removed from the institutional life of cities across America. This was due to Rosa Parks.
In this respect, her revolution was so powerful that many of us have a hard time understanding its greatness. Her greatness became even clearer to me as I watched the reactions of people most lifted by her bravery.
‘Integrity and God’
Standing on 15th and M streets with the crowd as we waited for speakers to eulogize Rosa Parks, the elderly black women next to me were joyous. They were delighted that Rosa Parks was being given the honor she deserved.
“She brought us freedom,” one of the women said. “We are not completely there. But we are almost there.”
The rabbis teach us, “Adam koneh olam ha-bah be-shah achat, a person can acquire the world to come in one moment.”
Rosa Parks exemplifies this teaching. We should be aware that even single actions of dignity can change the world. One great aspect of her action was that its appeal was universal. We all have the right to sit in the House of the Lord.
More than that, she taught us that we are all able to bring about His teaching. This was perhaps the greatest aspect of her action. It was inspirational. We all, no matter how insignificant we think we are, can change the world.
A seamstress in Alabama can change the world, and so can you, and so can I. In teaching us this, she changed the face of America forever. Her actions transcended the civil rights movement.
Through her passive resistance, she taught us all that real power lies not with armies and guns, but with integrity and God.
Even the most entrenched ruling power in the world cannot defeat the heart of a committed human being.
Human dignity and equality will triumph. Through her actions, she gave courage to so many others — in both the private and public sphere — who were able to stand up for their beliefs.
Inspired by her actions, I went to pay respects in the Capital Rotunda on Monday morning with thousands of others. As I walked past her coffin, I recited a silent prayer of gratitude for her teaching.
All around D.C. are monuments to generals and freedom fighters, but Rosa Parks’ teachings are the mightiest of all. I now understand why the Memorial organizers placed a Jewish prayer at the very beginning of the service.
By not getting up on that bus, Sister Rosa taught us that we all have a seat in the House of the Lord — Jew, Muslim, and Christian. May we truly listen to her message.
Rabbi Shmuel Hertzfeld is spiritual leader of Ohev Sholom Talmud Torah-The National Synagogue, the oldest Orthodox synagogue in Washington, D.C. He is national vice-president of Amcha and co-founder of Lishmah.
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