21^°

INCO's Statement On Pittsburg Shooting

*David Rosenthal, 54 and *Cecil Rosenthal, 59 - Brothers from Squirrel Hill;  *Richard Gottfried, 65, of Ross Township; *Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, 66, of Edgewood Borough; *Irving Younger, 69, of Pittsburgh's Mount Washington neighborhood; *Daniel Stein, 71, of Squirrel Hill, Pittsburgh; *Joyce Fienberg, 75, of Oakland neighborhood, Pittsburgh; *Bernice Simon 84 and *Sylvan Simon, 86 - a married couple from Wilkinsburg; *Melvin Wax, 88, of Squirrel Hill, Pittsburgh; *Rose Mallinger, a 97-year-old from Squirrel Hill

These names belong to innocent individuals, gunned down while worshipping in their synagogue yesterday (October 27^th, 2018). It is crucial to put names to the numbers – “Eleven Jews Murdered” is horrible enough, but they weren’t just 11 Jews. They were beloved family, friends, neighbors and loved ones.

There are not words with enough power to convey what a heinous act this was. The Interfaith Network of Central Oregon (INCO) unequivocally denounces any violence against any faith community anywhere. It is particularly intolerable when anti-Semitic violence occurs in a country that was founded on the premise of religious freedom.

It is in times like these when Americans must band together to help everyone impacted by these hateful acts. Let us – all of us – renew our commitment to reaching out to all in our community to actively reduce hate based on religious beliefs. We can’t just touch lives of those we are comfortable with; we need to reach out to those who differ in their perspectives. May our efforts be successful, may our community become more harmonious, and may each of us examine how we relate to others.