Tag Archive for "במדבר"

Posts Tagged ‘במדבר’

Two Prayers for Matot-Masei 5777

Posted on: July 19th, 2017 by Alden

Here are two prayers for this week’s double Torah reading: Matot-Masei. Matot stresses the sacredness of vows to God. They’re serious, solemn and binding. “Vows” portrays love as a scared oath. In Masei we read: “…for blood, it polluteth the land…” (Numbers 35:33). Blood may not be spilled on holy ground. “Blood on Holy Ground,” a prayer for peace, expands the definitions of “innocent blood” to all of humanity and “ground” to the entire earth.

Vows
What vow can I make before You
God of the ages?
What vow can I make before You
My people?
Empty words sting the heart.
Empty promises rend the soul.

This is my pledge:
To love with all of my being,
To the best of my ability,
Even when love seems to have departed.
Yes, some days I will love
More deeply, more fully,
You, my God,
And you, good people.
Some days I will struggle
Even to love myself.
Yet here is my vow,
Simple and pure,
To remember that love surrounds us.
Not to give up
On love,
On loving,
On the love that flows from You,
On the love that surrounds us all.

Blood on Holy Ground
We have all shed blood on holy ground.
Christians. Muslims. Jews.
We have all used anger, violence and hatred
To prosecute our cause.
Woe unto the land
That has soaked in so much blood.
Woe unto the generations
That has soaked in so much death.

We have all shed tears on holy ground.
Christians. Muslims. Jews.
We have all buried the lost
And dressed the wounds
Of those who prosecuted our cause.
Woe unto the generations
Who have tasted so many tears.
Let no one proclaim innocence.
Let no one proclaim justice.
Let no one proclaim God’s blessing.

We have all prayed for peace on holy ground.
Christians. Muslims. Jews.
Woe unto the land
That has waited for our words to become deeds.
Let these hopes become the work of our hands.
Let these blessings become the work of our hearts.
Let no blood be shed on holy ground.
Let all ground be holy.
And let peace spread to the four corners of the earth.

Postscript: My other prayers for peace include: “For Peace in the Middle East,” “To Win the Peace,” “Children of Gaza, Children of Israel” and “When Peace Comes: A Meditation.” “Blood on Holy Ground” first appeared on this site on July 14, 2015.

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: Wikimedia Commons

Blood on Holy Ground

Posted on: July 14th, 2015 by Alden

Spilling innocent blood defiles holy land. In this week’s double Torah reading, Matot-Masei, we read: “…for blood, it polluteth the land…” [Numbers 35:33] This is a new prayer for peace, expanding “innocent blood” to the idea that all of humanity is sacred and “ground” to the entire earth. Blood may not be spilled on holy ground. This piece appears in This Precious Life: Encountering the Divine with Poetry and Prayer from CCAR Press.

Postscript: My other prayers for peace include: “For the Return of Peace,” “For Peace in the Middle East,” “To Win the Peace,” “Children of Gaza, Children of Israel” and “When Peace Comes: A Meditation.”

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons

Pinchas: Mountain Prayer at Twilight

Posted on: July 7th, 2015 by Alden

The death of Moses is foretold in this week’s parasha, Pinchas. When the time comes, Moses will ascend yet another mountain, see the land that he cannot enter and die. Unlike his visits up Sinai, when his physical vision is shrouded in the cloud of G-d, Moses will see the inheritance of the people Israel. I imagine a moment near dusk, as he continues to take in the beauty of the land, knowing that he will not see the new day. This prayer uses a time-honored tradition in Jewish liturgy, incorporating relevant quotes from Psalms. It also incorporates a quote from the Rev. Dr. Martin L. King, Jr.’s “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech. Quotes are shown in italics, with references in (parenthesis).

Mountain Prayer at Twilight
This splendor,
This yearning of cliffs and crests,
This longing of ridges and heights,
The hint of eternity,
The poetry in rock,
Stretches from horizon to horizon,
Beyond the limits of this world.
Power. Thunder. Silence.

How glorious are the peaks at dusk?
How majestic at twilight?
The heights of the mountains are G-d’s. (Psalms 95:4)

I just want to do God’s will.
And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain.
And I’ve looked over.
And I’ve seen the Promised Land. (Rev. Dr. Martin L. King, Jr.)

The mountains skipped like rams,
The hills like young sheep. (Psalms 114:4)
This beauty,
This echo of infinity,
The music of transcendence,
The steadfast power,
Summons us home.
Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of G-d. (Psalms 114:7)

This twilight,
Let it be for shelter.
The coming daybreak,
Let it be for hope, for dedication, for renewal.
Let the mountains bear peace to the people,
And the hills, through righteousness. (Psalms 72:3)

Postscript: My other prayers that use mountains as images include: “The Mountain of My Heart,” “The Soldiers on this Mountain,” “About Miracles,” “Summon My Heart” and “Come Walk.”

Tweetable! Please help share this prayer with this suggested tweet (including the link): “…the hint of eternity, the poetry in rock, stretches from horizon to horizon…” Mountain Prayer at Twilight: https://tobendlight.com/?p=13160

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Photo Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Digital Library

Balak: Your Dwelling Place

Posted on: June 28th, 2015 by Alden

Ma Tovu is one of my favorite prayers. The opening line comes from this week’s Torah portion, Balak. Balak hires Bil’am to curse the people Israel, but instead he blesses them. The blessing includes this line, which opens Ma Tovu: “How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, thy dwellings, O Israel!” [Numbers 24:5] According to rabbinic interpretation, the ‘tents’ are ‘tents of Torah’ and the ‘dwellings’ are synagogues. This prayer turns the metaphor once again, stating that our lives can be the dwelling place of G-d’s glory when we do the work of love and charity. Two lines from Ma Tovu, traditionally said upon entering a synagogue, frame the second stanza.

Your Dwelling Place
When I pray,
When I quiet my mind and open my heart,
I become a priest/priestess
In the house of God.

G-d,
I love Your house,
Your habitation,
The dwelling place of Your glory.
Let me serve You with my hands,
With the toil of healing the world,
With the labor of kindness and compassion.
And I will become Your abode
Of love and charity,
Of thanksgiving and peace,
Doing Your will in joy,
Rejoicing in Your work.
How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob,
Thy dwellings, O Israel!

Let my life become a temple,
A sanctuary of praise and service,
And You will dwell
In me.

Postscript: Some of my other prayers that borrow quotes directly from the liturgy include: “Come, Beloved,” “Sephardi Quarter Note,” “Gathering: A Dream of Reunion” and “Affirmation of Faith.”

Chukat: Living Waters

Posted on: June 21st, 2015 by Alden

In Chukat, this week’s parasha, the prophet Miriam dies. After she’s buried, the scene abruptly shifts to the lack of water in the wilderness. We’re left wondering: How did the people mourn her loss? To get water, G-d tells Moses to gather the people and speak with a rock. Instead, Moses strikes the rock with his staff. Water pours out. Rabbi Sharyn Henry notes that Moses hasn’t yet mourned for Miriam. Striking the rock, she says, is his reaction to unexpressed grief. The water and his tears are the same. This prayer is based on Rabbi Henry’s midrash.

Living Waters
Let the well of living waters
Flow through me
From the Source,
From ancient pools
Of holiness and light,
Ancient pools that sustain the body
And soothe the heart.

My grief has turned
My heart to stone,
My sorrow and loneliness
Have hardened my veins.
Crack me open with Your divine rod.
Release my tears with your staff.
Let me know wholeness
And peace,
Once again.

Postscript: As a result of striking the rock, Moses is denied entry to the Promised Land. Rabbis have struggled with explaining why so small a sin would yield so major a punishment. One common explanation is that, with his act, Moses diminished a miracle of G-d. I propose taking Rabbi Henry’s midrash a step further to explain Moses’ punishment, as well. Moses has a direct and intimate relationship with G-d; we’re told that that relationship is unlike any that came before or will come after. Instead of turning to G-d for healing, Moses holds his grief inside and finally lashes out. He, of all people, should have known to turn to G-d. Perhaps his sin can be understood as withdrawing from G-d. For Moses, that would be quite a sin, indeed.

Photo Source: Diodocs

Korach: For Political Leadership

Posted on: June 17th, 2015 by Alden

In this week’s Torah portion Moses and Aaron face a rebellion. It fails and the perpetrators are punished. This is a prayer for wise and dedicated political leaders, asking that they have the imagination and strength to address the problems of our time. The prayer includes an option in [brackets] to identify particular issues and problems of interest to the person reciting the prayer.

ADDENDUM, June 11, 2018: This prayer seems more relevant to world leadership now than it did when I wrote it three years ago.

For Political Leadership
G-d of history,
We yearn for [new] leadership,
For men and women of inspiration and insight,
Visionaries to build nations and communities
In Your image,
Stewards dedicated to justice,
Unafraid to face the challenges of our day,
[In particular, the challenge(s) of
_________________________,]
So that our cities and countries resonate with
Compassion and health,
Justice and mercy,
Kindness and peace.

Bless our leaders
With dedication and foresight,
Fortitude and imagination
To solve the complex issues that threaten our future.
May they lead us to a time when neighbors embrace
And the communities thrive,
A time when liberty and equality
Reign supreme.

Source and Shelter,
Grant safety and security to all nations and communities,
So that truth and harmony will resound
From the four corners of the earth.
Let the light of wisdom
Shine brightly in the halls of power,
A beacon of hope
For every land and every people.

Postscript: In writing this piece, I avoided the use of the word “statesmen,” which brought a wave of criticism when I used it in the prayer “For Wisdom During Democratic Elections.”

Photo Source: Accede Holdings

Shelach Lecha 5775: Gathering, A Dream of Reunion

Posted on: June 9th, 2015 by Alden

This week’s Torah portion includes the commandment to wear tzitzit — fringes — on the corners of our garments (Numbers 15:37-41), which we fulfill with the tallit. The ritual use of the tallit includes gathering the four tzitzit just before saying the Shema, upon reciting this line: “Bring us in peace from the four corners of the earth and lead us upright to our land…” The act reflects our historic longing for reunification in our homeland. This meditation has dreamlike quality, beginning with the yearning for Israel that’s in each of us. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Gathering: A Dream of Reunion
והביאנו לשלום מארבע כנפות הארץ
ותוליכנו קוממיות לארצנו

Bring us in peace from the four corners of the earth
And lead us upright to our land…

First Tzitzit – Gathering fringes
The first knotted string in hand,
I imagine the journey home,
Home to the land of our mothers and fathers,
Holy and full of promise, labor and love,
To build a life of wonder and awe.
This is me.
This is my pilgrimage to sacred soil.
This is my dream of holiness and redemption.
I am the first tzitzit.
I am returning home.

Second Tzitzit – Gathering hearts
The second fraying string in hand,
I imagine my children, my family, my household
Returning with me to our homeland
To build and to renew our ancestral blood.
This is my family.
This is our journey to hallowed ground.
This is our wholeness and rebirth.
We are the second tzitzit.
We are returning home.

Third Tzitzit – Gathering moments
The third worn string in hand,
I imagine you, my community, my kahal,
Returning together to our Source and Shelter,
To consecrate the ancient land and our holy vow.
This is my village.
This is our journey to mystery and majesty.
This is our bond of ages.
We are the third tzitzit.
We are returning home.

Final Tzitzit – Gathering millennia
The final woolen string in hand,
I imagine all of us, from all corners of the Earth,
Returning with songs of praise and rejoicing,
To claim our place among the nation of Israel.
This is my people.
This is our journey of destiny.
This is our covenant.
We are the final tzitzit, separate no more.
We are returning home.

Postscript: This remains my deepest yearning for all of the people Israel. We’ll each arrive when the time is right. Thanks to Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder for challenging me to think about how this meditation might be heard by those who are not considering aliyah. Click here for more prayers and meditations about Israel. “Gathering: A Dream of Reunion” first appeared on this site on December 30, 2011.

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Photo Source: Old Shoe Woman (On Flickr)

Beha’alotcha 5775: Three Quick Prayers for Healing (Revised)

Posted on: June 3rd, 2015 by Alden

At the end of this week’s Torah portion, Moses says a quick five-word prayer for healing his sister Miriam: “Please G-d, heal her now.” (Numbers 12:13) Here are three revisions of my “Quick Prayers for Healing:” a general version, asking for healing for all in need; one that names a specific individual in need of healing; and a third for individuals to say for their own healing. The revisions each include a new line reflecting Moses’ prayer for Miriam. Note that optional lines appear in [brackets], gender choices are identified with a “/” slash and the place to insert a name is shown with a blank line. The original versions of these prayers appear in my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

Quick Prayer for Healing – General (Revised)
G-d of love,
Cast the light of health and well-being
On the injured, the infirm and the insecure,
All who yearn for Your healing hand.
Bless them with healing of body
Healing of soul
And healing of spirit.
Please G-d, heal them now.
Grant all in need a full and complete recovery.

Blessed are You, Adonai our G-d, Source of Life.

Quick Prayer for Healing – Specific (Revised)
G-d of love,
Cast the light of health and well-being on
________________ (add name),
[His/her family]
And all who are injured, infirm or insecure,
Those who yearn for Your healing hand.
Bless them with healing of body
Healing of soul
And healing of spirit.
Please G-d, heal them now.
Grant all in need a full and complete recovery.

Blessed are You, Adonai our G-d, Source of Life.

Quick Prayer for My Healing (Revised)
G-d of love,
Cast the light of health and well-being on me [and on my family]
And all who are injured, infirm or insecure.
We yearn for Your healing hand.
Bless us with healing of body
Healing of soul
And healing of spirit.
Please G-d, heal us now.
Grant all in need a full and complete recovery.

Blessed are You, Adonai our G-d, Source of Life.

Postscript: Other prayers in my “Quick Prayers” series include: “Quick Meditation for Today,” “Quick Meditation at Noon,” “Your Name: Quick Prayer at Dusk” and “Quick Meditation at Night.” “Quick Prayer for Healing” was first posted on October 3, 2012. The other two prayers were originally posted together as “Quick Prayers for Healing” on January 29, 2013.

Photo Credit: Jewish Medicine

Naso 5775: Place Your Name upon Us

Posted on: May 26th, 2015 by Alden

This week’s parasha includes the Priestly Blessing, three lines of remarkable beauty and power. The line immediately after – a line that gets precious little attention in the classic Torah commentaries, like Hertz and Stone – appears to give us an important clue to how the blessing works. “So shall they put My Name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them.” (Numbers 6:27) Inspired by that verse, this meditation includes one stanza for each of the Kabbalistic sefirot. To make this meditation accessible to all, the ninth stanza provides the option shown in [brackets] to use either “Torah” or “Your word.”

Place Your Name upon Us
Place your name upon us
G-d of grace,
So that we may bring peace and love
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d of justice,
So that we may bring awe and discipline
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d of beauty,
So that we may bring harmony and compassion
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d of eternity,
So that we may bring strength and endurance
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d of splendor,
So that we may bring humility and wonder
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d the foundation,
So that we may bring healing and bonding
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d of sovereignty,
So that we may bring nobility and majesty
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d of understanding,
So that we may bring mystery and creation
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d of wisdom,
So that we may bring righteousness and [Torah / Your word]
Into the world.

Place your name upon us
G-d the One,
So that we may return to You
Our Source, the Crown, our destination.

Postscript: Even Rashi’s commentary on the line is remarkably terse. See also “Your Name, Quick Prayer at Dusk,” which I posted for Emor 5775 and Va’eira 5773.

Photo Source: Turmsegler

Posts Tagged ‘במדבר’

Two Prayers for Matot-Masei 5777

Blood on Holy Ground

Pinchas: Mountain Prayer at Twilight

Balak: Your Dwelling Place

Chukat: Living Waters

Korach: For Political Leadership

Shelach Lecha 5775: Gathering, A Dream of Reunion

Beha’alotcha 5775: Three Quick Prayers for Healing (Revised)

Naso 5775: Place Your Name upon Us

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