Thousands of letters addressed to God were placed in the Western Wall this week by Israel Post CEO Danny Goldstein and Rabbi of the Western Wall and the Holy Sites Shmuel Rabinowitz.
“Each letter embodies within it a whole life of people who turn to God with requests, words of thanks and forgiveness,” Goldstein said.
Throughout the year, the Israel Postal Company receives letters from around the world and from people of all religious denominations that are addressed to the Jewish God or Jesus. They all generally share a common theme of prayer, according to the faith of the individual.
Israel Post keeps the letters in its lost and found department until they are placed once a year – ahead of Rosh Hashanah – in the Western Wall. This year, according to the company, there were even more letters than usual since tourists were unable to enter the country due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Rosh Hashanah begins this year on the evening of September 6.
The letters came from Kenya, Spain, India, Belgium, Japan, Ecuador, Denmark, Germany, France, Poland, Russia, the United States, and Canada. They were written by people of all ages. Some were sent on postcards and others on torn notebook pages. Some were short, others long. There were even those transcribed with a paintbrush.
“Dear God, please end the coronavirus pandemic,” wrote Aron from Germany. And then he asked God to make his parents buy him an iPhone.
Another note came from Sylvia from Ecuador: “Forgive me, my Father, I have been unable to repent,” she wrote. “Please care for my late husband’s soul and the living on earth.”
“This is an exciting project in which we take part every year on the eve of the Jewish festivals,” Goldstein said. “It is a tradition for us and we guard these letters with reverence since their delivery is a responsibility and mission and a tremendous privilege.
“The coronavirus pandemic caused many to turn to God for health and well-being for themselves and their families, and to return to the routine of their lives, each in their own home and country,” he continued. “We wish and pray with them for the fulfillment of all the senders’ requests. Shana tovah [a good year] and good health for all of us.”