Invocation

The Invocation given by Rabbi Joel R. Schwartzman on January 10th, 2006 at the Mayor's Luncheon for Denver's Faith Community Initiative to End Homelessness

The Hebrew prophets challenged the people in the name of God to care for

the poor, the widow, and the orphan. It was, they attested, not a matter

of choice but, rather, a holy obligation…an obligation to share the

gifts of the Almighty and to care for /everyone/; for everyone was

created in the image of God.

In our own day, the poor, the widow, and the orphan have often appeared

in the guise of the homeless. Many in the religious community, ever

sensitive to the call of a prophet, have righteously attempted to combat

the rising number of indigent souls living on our streets. Charitable

donations, shelters, food kitchens and even use of Houses of Worship

have been the salvation of many who otherwise might, literally, have

perished.

But a religious attempt at a solution has increasingly been seen as

falling short of the need. The tide is too strong, the swells of

suffering forced from their dwelling places too overwhelming.

Homelessness would never be solved to any meaningful extent until

/government/ and the religious community could find a way to confront

the problem together; for it is primarily government’s responsibility to

care for its citizens. It is only within /government’s/ power to find

the necessary resources which, combined with the goodwill and the

righteous fervor of the faithful, can begin to create lasting solutions

that will return many homeless their dignity and encourage them in their

attempts to rejoin society as productive members.

I would like to invite you now to participate in this invocation by

responding to some prompts from me. Please join me (now) in saying:

thank God for this mayor! Together: "thank God for this Mayor." Say with

me, also, thank God for the courage to act. Together: "Thank God for the

courage to act!" Say with me one more thing: thank God for each other.

Together "Thank God for each other." Thank you! Because

together…together we can help the homeless regain their faces, their

pride and their statuses of ones created in the image.

As we bless this meal, may we, who have taken the time and made the

commitment to be here today, now be blessed both in the fellowship and

for the cause that has brought us here. God has called us to caring. The

Mayor has challenged us to help him with his plan to end homelessness in

Denver. How can we, so eager to serve, so responsive to the prophets’

words, do other than answer: Here are we; use us!

So said, let us now say together: "Amen"