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Archive for the ‘Holidays’ Category

Gates

Posted on: September 20th, 2014 by Alden

Standing before the gates of heaven in prayer – yearning for them to stay open long enough for true repentance to be heard – is a classic High Holy Day metaphor. The inspiration for this prayer comes from Isaiah, the haftorah read on Shabbat Nitzavim. “Pass through, pass through the gates… Tell fair Zion: Your deliverance is coming!” This prayer envisions each of us briefly entering G-d’s holy realm to be restored. I wrote it at the request of my friend Rabbi Andrea London for the 5775 Beth Emet—The Free Synagogue congregational holiday card. I also took the photo used on the card, shown here. My other prayers using the metaphor of gates include: “At the Gates” and “The Entry to Our Hearts.”

Gates
Keep the gates open,
Holy One,
Keep them open a little longer,
So that my repentance and my yearning
May yet enter Your holy realm.

Keep the gates open,
Compassionate One,
So that our hearts may dwell,
To be refreshed in Your sacred space,
To be restored with justice and mercy,
To be nurtured and renewed with awe and wonder.

Rock of Israel,
Source and Shelter,
Keep the gates open,
So that when we leave this holy place
We remember and know
That wisdom and understanding surround us,
That peace and joy will yet follow,
That holiness and love will yet prevail.

Postscript: This prayer was written in Israel during the 2014 Gaza war known as “Operation Protective Edge.” The last two lines of this prayer were strongly influenced by the war. I’m grateful to Rabbi London for this opportunity and for her suggestions. My other prayers using the metaphor of gates include: “At the Gates” and “The Entry to Our Hearts.” Here are links to prayers for Elul, prayers for Rosh Hashana, prayers for Yom Kippur and prayers for Sukkot. Here’s a link to yizkor and memorial prayers.

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: Alden Solovy

The Entry to Our Hearts

Posted on: September 14th, 2014 by Alden

For the one crushed by sorrow, hope can be a prayer, a prayer of repentance, a prayer for healing. This is a High Holiday prayer for hope and healing – a kind of repentance – for someone deep in loss and despair. At first, it twists the classic metaphor of approaching the gates of repentance, the way grief distorts the way we see the world. Then it softens to a simple question: “What shall we say before You, G-d Old?” Here’s another prayer that uses the same metaphor, called “At the Gates.”

The Entry to Our Hearts
Who mourns at the gates of righteousness
And dances at the gates of desolation?
Who laughs at the gates of judgment,
And cries at the gates of peace?
Who sings at the gates of misfortune,
And howls at the gates of blessing?
Who shouts at the gates of mercy,
Standing mute at the gates of penance?

Ancient One,
Source and Shelter,
We stand at the gates,
At the entry to our hearts,
At the passage to mystery,
At the crossroad of uncertainty.
What shall we say before You,
G-d of Old,
In this sorrow and this despair?
Let these prayers be for healing.
Let these prayers be for life.

Blessed are You,
G-d of Mercy,
You lead us from darkness to light,
From mourning to rejoicing,
From repentance to service,
So we may build our lives, anew.

Postscript: Here’s another prayer that uses the same metaphor, called “At the Gates.” This “Meditation before Neilah” does not mention the word ‘gates,’ but it uses the urgency of standing before the gates to create the internal emotion. Here are links to prayers for Elul, prayers for Rosh Hashana, prayers for Yom Kippur and prayers for Sukkot. Here’s a link to yizkor and memorial prayers. Please take a look at my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

Photo Source: Alden Solovy

Marvelous Gifts

Posted on: April 13th, 2014 by Alden

For Passover, here’s a new meditation on using freedom in service to G-d and our fellow human beings while seeing the beauty and wonder around us. G-d gives us freedom, then we ask G-d to teach us how to use it wisely. More Passover prayers and meditations appear in my new book, Haggadah Companion: Meditations and Readings.

Marvelous Gifts
G-d of Old,
We give thanks
For moments of wonder and awe,
Of righteousness and charity,
For the freedom to do Your will.
Let Your mysteries unfold around us.
Guide us,
Shield us,
Lift us from narrow places
Of fear and despair
Into lives of service,
Into lives of celebration.
Teach me to use my hours with care,
And my words as tools of praise.

The world is beautiful,
Marvelous in opportunity,
Joyous in energy,
Pulsing with excitement,
Vibrant in youth,
Wise in years,
Amazing with vitality,
Fantastic in all life,
A place of love and hope.
Teach me to use my hands to build,
And my heart as a beacon of joy.

G-d of All Being,
Let me use the gift of redemption
From slavery to freedom,
From despair to hope,
As an instrument of holiness,
Celebrating the glory and beauty of creation,
A remembrance of our exodus of Egypt.

Postscript: Please check out my new books, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing and Haggadah Companion: Meditations and Readings.

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: WikiMedia Commons

Redeeming My Life

Posted on: March 23rd, 2014 by Alden

This is meditation on personal freedom, recognizing that we must first forgive ourselves for our own mistakes and misdeeds before we can fully express love and care for ourselves and for others. It appears in This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings from CCAR Press.

Redeeming My Life
A part of me
Refuses to forgive
Myself
For my errors, my mistakes,
My oversights and misdeeds.
How can I redeem my life from within
This place of judgment,
Of harsh words and
Somber requirement?

G-d of Old,
G-d of Justice and Truth,
Teach me to restore my life
Through acts of love and kindness,
Thoughtfulness and care,
In support of my
Family and community.
Teach me to surrender my days
To the joy of service to others,
The joy of concern for this world
And generations to come.

Heavenly Guide,
Revive me with Your light,
Restore me with Your truth,
Refresh me with deeds
Of righteousness and charity.

Photo Source: Wikipedia

Elijah, Revised

Posted on: February 9th, 2014 by Alden

There’s a special kind of a hope, a kind of hope that opens the heart to our deepest yearning for a world of wholeness and love ushered in by G-d’s hand. For me, it’s captured singularly a song that we sing every year at the Pesach Seder and each week after Havdalah, a song about Elijah the Prophet. Elijah, our legend teaches, will announce the coming of the messianic age.

This is an expansion and revision of a prayer by the same name for use in my new book, Haggadah Companion: Meditations and Readings. The original was a short and simple six-line acrostic spelling Elijah with the first letter of each line. This version deepens the image of a messianic age and, in the third stanza, makes reference to I Kings 18:37 and I Kings 19:11-13.

Elijah
Eternal One,
Hear our cause!
Love and gladness,
Hope and salvation,
Israel restored,
The world redeemed,
Righteousness and mercy in an age of peace.

We are ready for healing.
Nations dream of justice,
While communities yearn for wisdom.
Leaders search for guidance,
While people seek hope and comfort,
Solace and rest.

Answer us, O God, answer us.
For You are not in the wind,
Nor in the shattering rocks.
You are not in the earthquake,
Nor the raging fire.
You are the still, small voice.

Ancient One,
God of our fathers and mothers,
Let us hear Your voice
Resound from Your holy mountain
As in the days of old.
Send us Your messenger,
Elijah, prophet among prophets,
To announce the time of blessing and wisdom,
To herald the return of holiness,
To proclaim Your world to come.

Postscript: Here’s a link to another Passover meditation, “The Season of Freedom.” Click for a full annotated list of meditations and readings for Pesach.

Photo Credit: Beth Flusser on Haggadot.com

A New Year Begins

Posted on: December 30th, 2013 by Alden

This prayer for the New Year is about seeing the joy and grief in life and deciding that kindness and love are the only answers. This prayer stands in marked contrast to the one I wrote for 2013, brimming with hope. Maybe, in the end, they’re just different sides of the same coin. “In This Turning: A New Year’s Day Meditation” appears in my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

A New Year Begins
Every moment a new year begins.
Something lost.
Something gained.
Every day, a new challenge.
Every hour, a new choice.
Every second, a new chance.

God of Old,
In this moment, a baby will be born,
And a child will die.
In this moment, lovers will marry,
And others will split.
In this moment, someone will hear
That their medical treatments succeeded,
And others will be told
To prepare to die.

Every moment a new year begins.
Something lost.
Something gained.
Let me love gently in the morning
And ferociously at night.
Let me dance wildly at dawn
And slowly at dusk.
At midnight, let me sing quietly,
And at midday I will croon, full voice.
I will breathe in a soul of compassion
And breathe out a soul of peace.

Creator of All,
Every moment a new year begins.
The flow of fresh light from heaven
Touches our hearts.
Something lost.
Something gained.
Let it be for blessing.
Let it be for healing.
Let it be for shelter.
Let it be for wisdom and strength.
Let us be, in this moment,
Your messengers of kindness on earth.

Postscript: Here’s another prayer “For the New Year,” a meditation called “Another Year: An Introspection” and another called “The Last Moment.” Please consider purchasing my new book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

Photo Source: Dartmouth Undergraduate Journal of Science

Cancer Fear

Posted on: December 2nd, 2013 by Alden

I wrote this prayer after my doctor strongly suggested a third prostate biopsy. Fortunately, I was also able to write “After News of a Clean Biopsy” from my own experience. My new book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing, will include 14 prayers to be used at various points along the cancer journey, including: For Cancer Treatment,” “Cancer Remission” and “On the Recurrence of Cancer.” In the coming weeks I will post another version of this prayer to be said on behalf of a family member or a friend.

Cancer Fear
G-d of Old,
I am overwhelmed with fear,
Devoured by terror,
At the news that [I may have cancer]
[My cancer may have returned].
This dread in my chest,
In my throat, in my heart and in my eyes,
Fills the core of my being
With a hungry panic,
Consuming my security,
Consuming my peace of mind.

G-d of health and healing,
Release me from worry and alarm
As I seek answers to challenging questions,
[Unbelievable questions,]
Unwanted questions.

Gracious One,
Grant me strength in these hours of uncertainty.
Grant me serenity as I wait for news.
Release my family and friends from worry
And make me an example of dignity and courage
Even as I live in the shadow of the unknown.

Compassionate One,
Let health and healing surround me.
Let health and healing surround all of Your children.

Postscript: Related prayers include: “Waiting for a Pre-Diagnosis Biopsy and Results,” “After News of a Clean Biopsy,” “For Cancer Treatment,” “Cancer Remission,” “On the Recurrence of Cancer” and two Hospice Prayers.

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.

If you use this prayer, please take a moment to post a link to your Facebook page, your blog or mention it in a tweet.

Photo Source: She Knows Cares

For Rain

Posted on: November 29th, 2013 by Alden

Israel needs rain, so much so that the Chief Rabbinate is calling for the addition of a prayer for rain to daily prayers. Here’s my version of a prayer for rain, reposted in response to this call to action. I’ve added two lines to the second stanza to emphasize the blessings of rain. Please pray for rain where ever it’s needed and especially here in Israel.

For Rain
Source of life and blessings,
The rains come in their seasons
To feed the land, the crops, the gardens.
The earth abundant, food plentiful, gardens lush.
Sweet, clean water, feeding rivers, filling the sea.
Sometimes too much,
Sometimes too little,
Sometimes not at all.

Fountain of Blessing,
Remember us with life,
With beauty,
With the gift of rain,
The gifts of earth and sky,
Prosperity and bounty,
Blessings upon the land,
Each in its time,
Each in its season,
Each in its proper measure.

Postscript: This prayer first appeared here on December 12, 2010. Other seasonal prayers include: “For Winter,” “For Spring,” “For Summer,” “For Autumn” and “For the New Year.”

Photo Source: WikiMedia Commons via the Israeli PikiWiki Project

Inside the (Hanukkah) Light

Posted on: November 27th, 2013 by Alden

This meditation carries an echo of Hanukkah. It’s about seeing, feeling and loving the light shining around us, and our yearning to be a source of light and hope for the world. Here’s the meditation set as a song by my friend Cantor Brad Hyman, as well as the article he wrote about it for Reform Judaism.org. This piece appears in This Precious Life: Encountering the Divine with Poetry and Prayer from CCAR Press.

Inside the Light
A rainbow shines
Inside the light.
If you could be the dew drop
You would always see it.

Stillness waits
Inside the light.
If you could be the sky
You would always feel it.

The sunrise dawns
Inside the light.
If you could be the horizon
You would always find it.

Freedom flows
Inside the light.
If you could be the wind
You would always ride it.

Beauty rises
Inside the light.
If you could be the sparrow
You would always reach it.

Mystery pulses
Inside the light.
If you could be the wonder
You would always know it.

Majesty reigns
Inside the light.
If you could be the wisdom
You would always hear it.

Faith rests
Inside the light.
If you could be the eagle
You would always hold it.

Your soul glows
Inside the light.
If you could be yourself
You would never leave it.

Postscript: “Inside the Light” first appeared here on May 22, 2012, the day I arrived in Israel. I wrote it on the airplane from Chicago to Newark on my way to Israel to make aliyah. Cantor Brad Hyman set it to music in 2017 and it was published by CCAR Press four years later. Other Hanukkah prayers include: “Lamps Within” and “The Season of Dedication.”

Please check out my CCAR Press Grateful/Joyous/Precious trilogy. The individual books are: This Grateful Heart, This Joyous Soul, and This Precious Life. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines, 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. For a taste of my teaching, see my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer.”

Photo Source: Ron Almog

To the Soldier, To the Veteran

Posted on: November 5th, 2013 by tobendlight

This is a prayer of honor for veterans. It’s a three-stanza prayer/poem with a parallel structure in each stanza. It is from a liturgy for Veterans Day. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. This prayer was read at a Veterans Day commemoration at Elon University. Click here to see the video.

To the Soldier, To the Veteran
These things I do not know:

The sound of a bullet.
The power of a blast.
The blood of a comrade.
The depth of your wound.
The terror at midnight.
The dread at dawn.
Your fear or your pain.

These things I know:

The sound of your honor.
The power of your courage.
The blood of your wound.
The depth of your strength.
The terror that binds you.
The dread that remains.
Your dignity and your valor.

For these things we pray:

The sound of your laughter.
The power of your voice.
The blood of your yearning.
The depth of your healing.
The joy that frees you.
The hope that remains.
Your wholeness and your love.

Postscript: Here’s a link to a related prayer called “In Times of War.” Click here for Memorial Day Prayers. I wrote the Veterans Day liturgy at the suggestion of my friend Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder, Ph.D., editor of HUC-JIR continuing ed blog Tzeh U’limad. Special thanks to Rabbi Ruth for her suggestions and encouragement. Here are links to other prayers written at her suggestion: “Be’chol Lashon (In Every Tongue)” and “A Liturgy for 9-11”.

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.