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Archive for the ‘Praises’ Category

Howling at the Moon

Posted on: November 5th, 2017 by Alden

This meditation was inspired by a writing workshop I conducted for teens. One youth asked if howling at the moon could be a prayer. We went outside and howled at the moon, but I told them to howl with kavanah, with an intention of prayer. They invented a word – ‘Wowl’ – combining ‘howl’ with ‘wow.’ It means: ‘howling with the intent of prayer.’ They wrote a prayer called “Wowl-ing to G-d,” which I’ve already posted.

Howling at the Moon
What freedom
To dance in the rain, cool and clean,
On a warm summer afternoon?

Let me honor Your works.
Let me celebrate Your splendor.
Let me rejoice in Your creation.

What joy
To sit on the beach, empty and quiet
As the sun rises to meet the morning tide?

Let me listen for Your voice.
Let me hear Your whisper.
Let me know Your word.

What glory
To howl at the moon, full and bright,
Hanging majestic in the eastern sky?

Let me sing Your praise.
Let me shout Your glory.
Let me exalt Your majesty.

Postscript: See also “Come Walk,” a prayer in the voice of the spiritual traveler that also uses moon imagery.

Please check out my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer,” and This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” To receive my latest prayers via email, please subscribe (on the home page). You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Source: NASA

Falling in Love with Prayer

Posted on: April 4th, 2017 by Alden

What is prayer? Perhaps an invitation to holiness and healing, bending the light from heaven toward tikkun olam. Have you ever fallen in love with a prayer? That’s the theme of my ELItalk, “Falling in Love with Prayer.” Please check it out. Loving prayer is a favorite topic of my work, including “Rise on Wings,” “Prayers of My Heart,” “Whispered Prayer” and “Prayer for You, Prayer for Me.”

Invitations
Quiet now.
Listen.
Breathe.
And listen.
Blessings float gently around you.
Your prayers set them free.

Oh, you hidden delight of heaven.
Oh, you secret gift of G-d.
Welcome you majesty and splendor.

Prayers are invitations,
Beckoning holiness and awe,
Radiance and wonder,
To join in this moment,
Summoning compassion and grace,
Healing and hope,
To spread their wings.

Quiet now.
Listen to the blessings from the earth
And the prayers in the wind.
They yearn for you,
Calling out
To join in the chorus.
Breathe and sing out
With your spirit and your voice.

Oh, you hidden delight of heaven.
Oh, you secret gift of G-d.
Welcome you majesty and splendor.

Postscript: Other prayers about prayer include: “For Prayer,” “Prayer Released” and “To Pray.” And here are four related prayers: “For Devotion,” “For Humility,”“For Joy” and “For Service.” This prayer first appeared here on October 24, 2012.

Please check out my Meet the Author video and This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” To receive my latest prayers via email, please subscribe (on the home page). You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Credit: ELItalks

Va’etchanan: Affirmation of Faith

Posted on: July 29th, 2015 by Alden

This week’s Torah portion, Va’etchanan, includes both the 10 Commandments and the bold declaration of our belief in G-d, the sine qua non of Jewish affirmations, the Shema. [Deuteronomy 6:4] This prayer weaves two paragraphs about the love of God – and dedication to mitzvot – into the words of the Shema. This piece appears in This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day from CCAR Press.

Affirmation of Faith

Hear O Israel,

The covenant we made
Together on Sinai
Is a pledge for all time,
A vow for the ages,
To do and to listen
To teach and to learn
With the fullness of our hearts
From the depths of our souls
And the strength of our being
Binding ourselves to

Adonai Our G-d

With Torah and Mitzvot,
Binding our lives to each other
With righteousness and charity,
So that blessings will rain down from heaven
To feed our hearts and fill our land
With G-d’s abundant gifts,
The brilliance and wonder
That flow from service to G-d’s Holy Word,
In remembrance of creation
And our liberation from slavery,
Declaring throughout the generations:

G-d is One,

G-d is One,
G-d is One.

שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָֽד׃‎

Postscript: This prayer was originally written for a conversion reaffirmation ceremony, which is discussed in the original post of December 10, 2013. Here’s a link to a meditation called “Doubt,” representing a radically different approach to finding faith.

Photo Credit: Hebrew TShirts

Emor: Your Name: Meditation at Dusk

Posted on: April 29th, 2015 by Alden

In Parashat Emor, in one amazing line, we are given twin injunctions: one against profaning G-d’s name (chillul hashem) and the other to sanctity G-d’s name (kiddush hashem). This prayer is about sanctifying G-d’s name according to the blessings we receive. It appears in my book, This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers For a New Day.

Your Name: Meditation at Dusk
G-d of Old,
Your name is Peace.
Your name is Justice.
Your name is Mercy.

G-d of Life,
Your name is Compassion.
Your name is Love.
Your name is Hope.

G-d of Blessing,
Your name is Truth.
Your name is Wisdom.
Your name is Righteousness.

G-d of our fathers,
G-d of our mothers,
Your name is in my heart
And before my eyes.

Blessed are You Adonai,
Your name shines throughout creation.

Postscript: This prayer first appeared on this site on July 14, 2011. I also used it for Va’eira 5773. The photo of me praying near the Kinneret was taking during the 2105 Tsad Kadima Hike for Hope by my friend Marc Render. Please check out “Quick Meditation for Today,” “Quick Meditation at Noon” and “Quick Meditation at Night.” Other prayers of praise include: “Dance Hallelujah,” “Sing Hallelujah” and “In Praise.”

Please consider making a contribution to support this site and my writing. For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Source: Marc Render

Gravity and Light

Posted on: November 23rd, 2014 by Alden

During a short walk from “The Bayit” to the dining hall on a crisp fall morning at OSRUI’s Shabbat Shira retreat, my friend Michael said: “Torah is gravity.” He paused to let me soak it in. I thought for a moment, then said, “I may borrow that line.” A few days later, I wrote this meditation on Torah and mitzvot.

Gravity and Light
Torah is gravity,
Binding us to our ancestors,
Holding us near to our G-d,
Anchoring us with wisdom and understanding.
Torah is gravity,
Tying our lives
To our history and our destiny.

Mitzvot are light,
Illuminating our path,
Brightening our days,
Showing us the way to holiness and service,
Leading us to heal the world.
Mitzvot are light,
Shining around us,
With beauty.

Torah is gravity.
May your feet never falter.
Mitzvot are light.
May your hands shine with grace.

Blessed are G-d’s gifts.

Postscript: Shabbat Shira was an amazing “reboot” to my creativity. I wrote many new pieces there, including “Sephardi Quarter Note,” and began several others. My friend Rabbi Larry Carol and I wrote a song together called “Only Now.” Here’s a link to his blog post about it. In the coming weeks I’ll post additional prayers written because of that amazing event. Shabbat Shira 2015 is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 22-25.

Please consider making a contribution to support this site and my writing. For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter. If you like this prayer, please post a link to Facebook, your blog or mention it in a tweet.

Photo Source: Facebook Photo of “The Bayit” at OSRUI during 2014’s Shabbat Shira

Sephardi Quarter Note

Posted on: November 2nd, 2014 by Alden

This prayer/poem is about the beauty of Sephardic song. The inspiration came during a class taught by Galeet Darsahsti at OSRUI‘s Shabbat Shira, an annual weekend of creativity, focused on Jewish music. Music is a common theme for me, such as: “For the Gift of Music,” “Sing Hallelujah” and one of my favorites “We are Music.” This appears in my new book This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day from CCAR Press.

Sephardi Quarter Note
If you listen
To the space between
The notes and the half notes,
The space between heartbeats,
You’ll hear quarter notes of love and yearning,
Ancient music of hope and sorrow,
Infinite in variation,
The echo of generations.
Notes that bend toward G-d.
Notes that linger with longing.
Notes that plead for redemption.
The voice of sorrow
And the voice of laughter.
Notes of surrender.
Notes that refuse to surrender.
Notes that cry out to Zion and Israel.

If you listen
To the space between
The notes and the half notes,
The rises and the falls,
The trills and trumpets,
You will hear a rhythm and a pulse
Calling out:
“Adon Olam,
Yedid Nefesh,
Shachar Avakeshcha,
Yodukha Rayonai.
Master of the Universe,
Beloved of my Heart,
At Dawn I Seek You,
My Thoughts will Praise You.”

In the space between the notes,
Dreams of G-d
Touch the core of being
To become music.

Postscript: Thanks to Galeet for including this prayer/poem in a recent email to her fans, as well as her suggested changes to this piece. More prayers incorporating the theme of music include: “We are Music,” “Life as a Symphony” and “For the Gift of Song.”

Photo Source: BuzzNet/Jewish Art House

Breisheit: About the Rainbow

Posted on: October 17th, 2014 by Alden

Seeing a rainbow brings an immediate sense of beauty and awe, a sense of the wonder of creation, which is why I’ve selected it for Breisheit. This is from series of prayers in the voice of the one who has a question that doesn’t need an answer. Other prayers in this series include “About the Heavens” and “About Shabbat.” To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

About the Rainbow
Majestic Sovereign,
Source of beauty,
When did You decide
To create the rainbow?
Was this Your design?
Or perhaps it was a
Fantastic discovery
The moment Your Divine Light
Burst through the firmament of heaven?
Did You know that
Your Glory
Could be refracted
Through a simple lens of water?
Or were awe and wonder created
When You first saw
Your own colors,
When You gasped
At Your own brilliant light
Arching across a deep blue sky?

Postscript: Here are links to “For Creation,” the prayer I posted for Breisheit 5773, and “This is the Place,” the prayer I posted for Breisheit 5774. This prayer first appeared on this site on October 5, 2010.

Photo Credit: ScienceBlogs.com

Umbrella of Blessings

Posted on: December 5th, 2013 by Alden

Here’s a prayer in praise of G-d’s blessings. Why? By remembering the blessings around me – the blessings around my friends and family – my sight becomes clearer. Small annoyances vanish. Core fears fade. The light around becomes radiant. Even sadness and grief take on a new form, a new meaning, a new form of holiness. This is a companion to a prayer called “Receiving Blessings,” a prayer to see and receive the blessings around us.

Umbrella of Blessings
G-d of mystery,
G-d of wonder,
Your word is an umbrella of blessing,
Your wisdom a canopy of holiness and light,
A shelter of awe and wonder.

Ancient One,
Let Your blessings protect the strong
And lift the humble,
They guard the joyous
And they support the grieving,
They guide the hopeful
And raise the downcast.

Your tent is the arch of the heavens.
Your drape is the firmament of sky.
Your blessings quench our thirst,
Feed the land,
Fill our hearts,
Bring hope and healing.

Blessed are You, Ancient One,
You cover our lives with an umbrella of blessings,
Filling our days with joy and thanksgiving.

Postscript: Here are prayers with a similar theme: “Receiving Blessings,” “Garden of Blessings,” “An Amazing Life,” “These Blessings” and “Unlock Your Heart.”

For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter. If you like this prayer, please post a link to Facebook, your blog or mention it in a tweet.

Photo Source: Jen Martin Spirituality

Sing Praises

Posted on: October 31st, 2013 by tobendlight

I wrote this song of praise in about seven minutes while making the Kickstarter film about my forthcoming book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing. My videographer wanted a shot of me writing. Pretending to write a prayer felt silly, so I jotted down a few favorite lines, ignored the camera and let it flow. The lines are, essentially, instructions to the reader incorporated into the prayer: quite, breathe, listen. I use those same instructions in two other prayers: “We are Music” and “Invitations.”

Here’s what I wrote during the video. Since then, I’ve changed one word. The rest is exactly as I wrote it in the black moleskin notebook that you can see me using the film. The title came later.

Sing Praises
Quiet now.
Breathe.
Breathe and listen.

Listen to the prayers in the wind.
Listen to the joy on the breeze.
Listen to the hope in the heavens.
For love and life are yours.
Holiness and passion remain.
Wonder and awe
Shimmer from sunset to sunset.

This is the moment where love meets joy,
Where hope meets surrender.

What is that music?
What is that radiance?
What is that yearning?

Quiet now.
Breathe.
Breathe and listen.

Listen to your own voice.
Listen to your own prayers.

This is your power and your peace.
This is your pulse and your heartbeat.
This is your life.

Sing praises,
Sing praises.

Postscript: Please see also: “We are Music,” “Invitations,” “Life as a Symphony,” “For the Gift of Song” and “For the Gift of Music.”

For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. Connect with To Bend Light on Facebook and on Twitter.

Photo Source: Elahn Zetlin, Chutzpah Media, from my Kickstarter

Praise the New Day

Posted on: August 5th, 2013 by tobendlight

Here’s another prayer of praise for G-d, with the added hope and desire to be of service to G-d’s world. My other prayers of praise include “Dance Hallelujah,” “Sing Hallelujah” and “Sing Out.” This prayer will appear in my forthcoming book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

Praise the New Day
Praise the new day,
A gift of the Source of All Being,
The Breath of Life,
The Soul of the Universe.
Cherish the moments
And sanctify the hours.
Bless the joys
And honor the tears.
Lift your heart in song.
Raise your voice in thanksgiving.
Magnify your faith.
Practice acceptance.
Offer consolation.
Seek wisdom.
Become a well of healing,
A beacon of kindness,
A source of forgiveness,
A light of wonder and wisdom.

Soul of the Universe,
Breath of Life,
Source of All Being,
We praise the new day.
A gift of holiness and love.

Postscript: Here’s a link to prayers of Thanksgiving.

For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. Connect with To Bend Light on Facebook and on Twitter.

Photo Source: My Glimpses of Glory

Archive for the ‘Praises’ Category

Howling at the Moon

Falling in Love with Prayer

Va’etchanan: Affirmation of Faith

Emor: Your Name: Meditation at Dusk

Gravity and Light

Sephardi Quarter Note

Breisheit: About the Rainbow

Umbrella of Blessings

Sing Praises

Praise the New Day

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