Day to Praise
Day to Praise is a global interfaith praise initiative set forth by Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation chancellor and founder Rabbi Shlomo Riskin and CJCUC executive director David Nekrutman. The initiative takes the form of an annual event on Yom Ha'atzmaut—Israel's Independence Day—during which Christians worldwide are invited to join Jews in reciting the full Hallel, praising God for the State of Israel.
Background
The full Hallel consists of six chapters of the book of Psalms, which are recited as a unit on joyous occasions. These occasions include the mornings of the first one or two days of Pesach, as well as on Shavuot, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret–Simchat Torah, and Hanukkah. The partial Hallel—which omits some passages of the six psalms, depending on the community's custom—is recited on the first day of every Hebrew monthand the intermediate and final days of Pesach.
Two years after the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, the Chief Rabbinate of Israel decided that Yom Ha'atzmaut should be given the status of a minor Jewish holiday and include the recitation of Hallel. The recitation of the blessing preceding Hallel was introduced in 1973 by Israeli Chief Rabbi Shlomo Goren.
History
Conception
In October 2014, Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, the chancellor and founder of the CJCUC, became the first Orthodox rabbi to invite Christian visitors to Israel to participate in a "praise rally" with Jewish and interfaith leaders at the center's headquarters during the holiday of Sukkot—one of the Jewish festivals during which the full Hallel is recited daily. This celebratory event would serve as the basis for the eventual conception of the global Day to Praise initiative.In 2015
The Day to Praise Global initiative was launched in March 2015. In an email sent to his followers, Riskin wrote:Day to Praise produced songs inspired by the Hallel psalms as part of worship preparations. A portion of the proceeds from the songs went to Heart to Heart, a virtual blood donation program in Israel.
The initiative caused an uproar within Haredi Jewish circles. In a statement, the once-chief Sephardi rabbi of Israel and Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem Shlomo Amar noted "stomach-churning" reactions in light of the joint Jewish–Christian Hallel recitation—led by Rabbi Riskin—in a synagogue in Jerusalem. In a rebuttal, Rabbi Riskin defended his actions, stating, "We are talking about a thanksgiving prayer to God that would include Christians who worship His actions towards the Jewish people and the Land of Israel... What could possibly be more appropriate?" Later that year, in September, on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, Riskin's claim was given further backing by Rabbi Pesach Wolicki. In an article for The Times of Israel, Wolicki wrote, "While discomfort is understandable, we dare not assume that what is uncomfortable and new is therefore forbidden."
The first annual Day to Praise was on 23 April 2015, with the central event held at HaZvi Israel Synagogue in Jerusalem. The central event was reportedly joined by tens of thousands of worshipers worldwide, in their own respective groups.
Later in 2015, during Sukkot, CJCUC, with Riskin and the chief rabbi of Efrat, hosted an interfaith event in Efrat with a similar theme. Riskin expressed his hope that the interfaith unity would encourage God to usher in the Messianic Age.
In 2016
The second Day to Praise occurred on 12 May 2016, and the central event was held in Gush Etzion. The event consisted of 120 representatives from Jewish groups and Christian denominations from Israel, the United States, Germany, Brazil, and international interfaith organizations, such as Bridges for Peace and Christian Friends of Israel.During the event, participants read Psalm 117 in their native languages, then recited it together in Hebrew. According to co-founder David Nekrutman, the gathering fulfilled a prophecy delivered by Zephaniah in Zephaniah 3:9: