The Tide Is Rising

When I was a newly ordained rabbi in 2015, I read an email that would change my life: I was being invited to perform a song at Coming Together in Faith on Climate, an interfaith service at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. in honor of Pope Frances’ visit to the US capitol. It was my mother who suggested I write my own song for the occasion, and I remembered the empowering words I’d seen at a climate rally several months earlier: “The Seas Are Rising: So Are We!” The line came from Gulf Shore Rising, a grassroots coalition responding with resilience and commitment to the disastrous BP Gulf oil spill in 2010.

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Inspired by Gulf Shore Risings’ words, my husband Yotam Schachter and I co-wrote a climate anthem that I debuted at the National Cathedral. “Tide” quickly spread in the climate justice movement. It has been sung at protests, marches, blockades, conferences, worship services, and community gatherings. It has been covered by Annie Patterson & Peter Blood (celebrated creators of Rise Up Singing!), arranged for choir by Nick Page (internationally known song leader) and performed by choirs across North America. From Standing Rock to the People’s Climate March, from pipeline construction sites to holding cells in police stations, across oceans and at least three continents, “Tide” spreads a message of radical empowerment, devotion, and active hope. It holds us as we continue to fight for all we love.

 

All are welcome to sing it, print lyrics, and sheet music.

Please credit Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman & Yotam Schachter.