Jews gather in Oakland to pray for Iran 13

Sometimes it takes divine intervention to stop evil in this world.

With that in mind, a crowd of 50 gathered at Temple Sinai in Oakland May 25 to pray for an end to the trial of 13 Iranian Jews accused of spying. Organized by the Jewish Community Relation Council, the hourlong prayer service seemed to touch the hearts and minds of all in attendance.

"It is our responsibility as Jews, as Americans and as humans to try and put an end to this kind of persecution," said Rabbi Ferenc Raj of Berkeley's Congregation Beth El.

"If we don't speak out about these tragic situations, no one will speak for us," added the Hungarian-born rabbi, who survived the Holocaust and lived under communism.

In one of the most touching moments of the prayer service, the names and ages of the 13 Iranian Jews were read aloud. Asking the audience to close their eyes, Laurie Earp of Oakland urged the audience to try and visualize their faces.

"I hope they will stay in our hearts and our prayers," said Earp, a board member of the Jewish Community Relations Council. "May God be with them and with us."

The list of Jews on trial includes religious leaders and educators, a shoe clerk and a tailor. The youngest is 16 and the oldest 48. All of them have been held in prison for more than a year.

In an evening of intense prayer, six rabbis took the stage to offer their thoughts on the crisis in Iran. Though they came from various strains of Judaism, from Orthodox to liberal, their message was the same: Persecution of Jews must stop.

"We are here to pray for an end to this tragedy," said Rabbi Zari Weiss, the community rabbi for the Greater East Bay. "We are united in this struggle, and we all work to stop this sort of religious intolerance."

Later in the service, the JCRC's Middle East affairs director, Yitzhak Santis, took the floor to explain the situation in Iran. Calling the charges against the 13 Jews "absolutely false beyond a doubt," he criticized the Iranian government for holding the trials behind closed doors.

"It's shameful to see the court do something like this," said Santis. "It is just a complete mockery of justice, and demonstrates that these men are only being tried because they are Jews."

Participants read messages of support from California's two Democratic U.S. senators, Barbara Boxer of Greenbrae and Dianne Feinstein of San Francisco. The letters thanked those who helped draw attention to the situation in Iran and mentioned the Senate's passage of Resolution 104, which condemns the arrest and prosecution of the Jews in Iran, and demands that all charges be dropped.

"The arrest of these 13 Iranians of the Jewish religion on espionage charges have shown that Iran has taken a tragic step in the wrong direction," wrote Feinstein in a letter outlining human rights abuses that continue in Iran. "We must be clear that a new wave of religious and political persecution will not be ignored and will not be tolerated."

At the conclusion of the prayer service, the audience gathered around tables to write letters to countries that continue to trade with Iran. Urging the foreign governments to take a more active role in helping to stop the Iranian trials, the letter-writing campaign hopes to bring global attention to the plight of the 13 Jews.

"Freedom, equity and justice are basic tenants of our faith," said Abby Michelson Porth, coordinator of special projects at the JCRC. "These letters, along with our vigil tonight, demonstrate our pursuit of these tenets for our people in Iran."