Interfaith/Multi-Cultural Events

Through his Tear Down the Walls initiative, Rick produces interfaith services and concert productions that create opportunities for communities to actively worship and celebrate together, developing the foundation for ongoing, meaningful relationships.

The Tear Down the Walls Concert Production creates powerful opportunities for social action organizations and clergy from of a variety of faiths to unite their communities in celebration, learning, interaction, and meaningful relationship building.  Tear Down the Walls is a highly interactive, musical experience featuring synagogue and church choirs, soloists, and featured speakers.  Guest speakers have included clergy of a wide diversity of faiths, state representatives, city mayors, civil rights pioneers, and social justice leaders of organizations such as the ADL, NAACP, and the Urban League.  Tear Down the Walls utilizes the power of popular music to inspire and educate youth about ways to break down bias and prejudice in their communities. Tear Down the Walls also strives to educate the public about the social action organizations existing in their communities and specific ways to support them and get involved. Multiple churches, synagogues, and social action organizations unite through the Tear Down the Walls experience, creating incredible community excitement which consistently translates into very large audiences. Often, local social action organizations will facilitate a series of leadership training workshops for local youth from churches and synagogues in the months before and after the Tear Down the Walls production.  

Shabbat Alive! Interfaith Worship Services create a beautiful common ground for Jewish and other faith groups to worship, learn and celebrate together. A message of social justice and tikun olam (repair of the world) is an underlying theme of this very unique service experience.  

Rick Recht - Passover 'Freedom Seder' is an extraordinary and deeply moving Passover Freedom Seder with community clergy and lay leaders, honoring and celebrating the common history of oppression and ultimate survival of both African Americans and Jews. While the traditional Jewish Passover seder commemorates the biblical story of slavery and liberation in ancient Egypt, the African American/Jewish Seder expands upon these traditional themes by focusing on the two communities' common historical experiences with bonds of pain, agony, and survival. With a similar structure and ritual feel to the traditional Jewish seder, this unique and deeply spiritual service tells the story of African American oppression from Africa to the United States, from slavery to liberation. Instead of the 6-dish traditional Jewish seder dinner, foods of African American slavery are eaten, commemorating the African American history of oppression and triumph (ie collard greens instead of 'karpas' - symbolizing springtime and growth).

Musical accompaniment is provided throughout the service by Rick Recht and congregational singers and musicians performing intimate versions of both Negro rituals and traditional Jewish Passover melodies. During this spiritual journey, there are also emotive readings read aloud by congregants from a Passover prayer book/ 'Haggadah' provided by Rick Recht.  

Contact Rachel Brown for additional booking information for Rick Recht or Sheldon Low

Videos

Tear Down The Walls
A video on permanent display at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, TN.

Photos