Tisha B'Av 2025: 'Pray the Devil Back to Hell' Screening, Discussion and Services at Emanuel Synagogue

Join us for a Tisha B'Av mincha prayer service and Torah reading, followed by a screening of documentary film, Pray the Devil Back to Hell, which embodies the themes of the day. We will take some time to discuss the film before concluding with the evening service and a breaking of the fast with light refreshments.

• MINCHA (AFTERNOON SERVICE)

  An afternoon service with Torah reading for Tisha B'Av. In the afternoon, the mood of the day shifts to become more hopeful. We rise from the depths of tragedy and mourning and look towards the future and hope. The service and Torah reading reflect these themes.

• ‘PRAY THE DEVIL BACK TO HELL’ SCREENING + DISCUSSION

  We are taught that the Temple was destroyed because of sinat chinam, hatred amongst us. When we are in conflict with one another, destruction is the result. On the afternoon of Tisha Be Av, we move from a place of mourning, to looking towards the future with hope and resolve. At this time in our world it can seem challenging to find that place of inspiration and hope for an end to war and conflict. Join us between the afternoon and evening services for a screening of Pray the Devil Back to Hell, a documentary about a group of 3000 ordinary Muslim and Christian women who brought to an end a 14-year civil war in Liberia. After years of sinat chinam (fighting against one another), peace talks had stalled and there seemed no hope for an end to the conflict, a group of ordinary women came together and achieved peace. A poignant reminder that when it seems that we can do nothing, there is always something we can do.
  

• MA'ARIV (EVENING SERVICE) + LIGHT REFRESHMENTS

  The evening service is a beautiful reflective service which contains kinnot (elegies) written after the destruction of the Temple and other tragedies which have befallen the Jewish people. We chant the book of Lamentations with a special musical trope, reflecting the emotions of the book and the journey through the chapters. After the service we will break our fast with light refreshments courtesy of Nora's Kitchen.

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TISHA B'AV 2025 AT EMANUEL SYNAGOGUE

On Tisha B'Av we commemorate the many tragedies and disasters which have befallen the Jewish people, from the destruction of the Temple to modern day. We begin with a moving service at sundown, chanting the book of Lamentations (Eicha) with its haunting melody, describing the destruction of the Temple and the deep pain of the survivors grieving their losses.

Following the service and reading, the rabbis will each reflect upon the topic, Why Us? Processing Calamity and Destruction. Each rabbi will offer a different perspective on this topic from the rise of extremism, grief and loss, to prayer and our relationship with God in the aftermath of communal tragedy.

The following afternoon, join us for sound healing and meditation, followed by a mincha prayer service and Torah reading, and a screening of documentary film, Pray the Devil Back to Hell. We will take some time to discuss the film before concluding with the evening service and a breaking of the fast with light refreshments.

Please RSVP for each of the three sessions.

2 AUG, 6.15 PM – Evening Service and Rabbi Panel – RSVP
3 AUG, 2.00 PM – Sound Healing and Meditation – RSVP
3 AUG, 3.00 PM – Film Screening, Discussion and Services – RSVP

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We are proud to be able to offer this as a complimentary experience. If programs like this are important to you, please consider making a donation to Emanuel Synagogue so that we may continue to offer such experiences.