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Archive for the ‘Hopes’ Category

Prayer before Sleep

Posted on: June 24th, 2015 by Alden

This is a prayer to be said before going to sleep. This piece appears in This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day from CCAR Press. Here’s a related prayer for those who suffer from insomnia.

Prayer before Sleep
G-d,
Watch over my sleep.
Grant me a night of rest and renewal,
And spread Your loving shelter
Over my family and friends,
My [wife/husband/partner/child(ren)/mother/father]
And all who are dear to me.
Keep us safe through the night
And stay present when the morning comes.
This night I’m keenly aware of those in special need of Your care.

Ancient One,
Ease my mind,
Soothe my heart,
Rejuvenate my body,
Restore my strength,
Revive my faith,
So that when I open my eyes
To the new day
I see beauty in Your creation
And marvel in all Your works.
Then, I will rise up
In service to Torah and mitzvot,
In service to Your will,
A testimony to Your Holy Name.

Postscript: Other “quick prayers” include: “Quick Meditation for Today,” “Quick Meditation at Noon,” “Your Name: Quick Prayer at Dusk,” “Quick Meditation at Night” and “Quick Prayer for Healing.”

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Photo Source: Wilkimedia Commons, Flaming June, by Frederic Lord Leighton (1830-1896)

New Adventures

Posted on: June 7th, 2015 by Alden

This prayer is about reaching the end of a trail. It’s my second hiking prayer, again using the hike as a metaphor for life. Here’s to seeing you all “On the Trail.”

New Adventures
Every new adventure
Begins at the end of a trail,
Seen or unseen,
Physical, spiritual,
The place where going on
Makes no more sense,
The place where one more step
Would be a betrayal
Of every lesson learned along the way.

Every new adventure
Begins with a choice to enter the unknown,
To explore the wild and the majestic,
The wilderness and the mundane,
To invite new moments
Of holiness and challenge
Into our days,
To invite struggle and triumph
To walk beside us.

Every new adventure
Begins with faith in the journey,
Discovering faith in ourselves,
Finding faith in the daily blessings that
Surround us,
Guide us,
Carry us to
New vistas,
New horizons,
New landscapes,
Wonders beyond imagination.

Postscript: See also: “On the Trail,” “On the Road,” “For Travel” and “Being Lost.”

Photo Source: Alden Solovy

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

Let G-d

Posted on: May 21st, 2015 by Alden

This simple prayer is a reminder to invite G-d into our lives and to move in the direction of holiness. My other pieces using birds and flight as a metaphor include: “Soarbird,” “Bird is Bird” and “First Bird.”

Let G-d
Let G-d
Hold majesty before your eyes,
And mystery before your heart.

Let G-d
Place strength in your hands
And radiance in your soul.

Let G-d
Lead you to awe and wonder
And redeem you from fear and shame.

You are cloud and horizon,
A bird in solo flight,
Seeking your flock,
Seeking your journey,
Seeking your place.

Let G-d
Put healing in your hours
And rejoicing in all of your days.

Let G-d
Find you in the open sky
And lift you in joy and grace.

Postscript: You might also like “Fresh Delights” and “Unseen Lands.”

Photo Source: Island Real Estate

Travel to an Unexpected Family Emergency

Posted on: March 25th, 2015 by Alden

One Friday morning I called my daughters to tell them: “Your mom’s going to die today.” We faced harrowing cross-country trips to be at Ami’s z”l deathbed. Here’s a prayer for travel to a family emergency. This text is less important than the idea: move from fear and worry and into prayer. Word choices are shown with slashes (“/”). The blank line is for including a name. This piece appears in This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day from CCAR Press.

Travel to an Unexpected Family Emergency
Today,
God of Old,
Is a day I never imagined
And never prepared to face.
I am traveling
To be present as my [father/mother/sister/brother/child/wife/husband/partner]
Faces a medical emergency.
My fear is compounded by the stress of travel.
And I feel alone.

G-d of Healing,
Bless __________________________ (name),
With healing of mind,
Healing of body,
And healing of spirit.
Ease his/her pain.
Remove her/his suffering.
Grant him/her courage and endurance
Throughout this challenge.
Bless her/hid doctors with wisdom and skill,
And his/her caregivers with compassion, focus and dedication.
Grant her/him a full and speedy recovery.

Source and Shelter,
Give me the presence of mind
To be a source of wisdom and strength
In this hour of need.
Bless my family with ease and comfort.
Give us energy and endurance,
Hope, tranquility and peace.

Blessed are You, G-d of mystery,
Source of health and healing.

Postscript: The story of Ami’s death is told in an article in JTA News, with greater detail in the introduction to my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

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: Adventist Hinsdale Hospital

Tzav: Fire and Ash

Posted on: March 22nd, 2015 by Alden

Early in this week’s Torah portion we learn about tending the fire on the sacrificial altar, both the manner in which wood will be kindled and added to the fire, as well the removal of ash, which is first set off to the side of the altar, but is ultimately removed to a clean place outside of the camp. Ashes, of course, will ultimately choke a fire. Here’s a new prayer for parashat Tzav, honoring the holiness of both the fire and the ash.

Fire and Ash
My love of G-d
Rises like savory smoke,
A sweet smell,
Ascending from the altar
Of my heart.

The fires burn.
Prayer. Healing.
Joy. Hope. Surrender.
Keep them burning.
Keep them alive and strong,
In the sanctuary of your heart.

Smoke will rise.
Ash will fall.

Let us carry these ashes
To a holy place.
They are the dust that remains
When we set our lives
A blaze with joy and passion.

Tend the fire in your heart
With wisdom.
Give it power.
Let it breathe.
Make your life
A tabernacle of blessing.
Your life will be as incense
On the altar of G-d,
Sweet and savory,
With the scent of glory,
Leaving holy ash
As a sign of your devotion.

Postscript: Please read these related prayers “Salt and Honey,” “Dust and Water” and “Fire and Water.”

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Photo Source: Daniel Hardman’s flickr photo stream

Vayikra 5775: Salt and Honey

Posted on: March 18th, 2015 by Alden

The second chapter of Vayikra (Leviticus) describes the “meal offering,” a voluntary offering often given by those too poor to afford an animal to sacrifice. The meal offering must include salt, but must not include honey. There are a variety of commentaries on the prohibition against honey and the requirement for salt. Both clearly have power. Here’s a new prayer for the parasha, riffing on the flavors of life. To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below (website only).

Salt and Honey
G-d of secrets,
Ancient whisper,
Music in wind,
Heartbeat in water,
Soul of eternity,
You are in my breath
And beyond my reach.
You kiss my eyelids,
From beyond my sight.
You are pulse and rhythm.
The call of sunrise
At midnight.
The first star
And the last.

Let me bring salt and honey
To the tents of life,
To the tents of wonder,
To the tents of joy beyond understanding.
The salt that calls vitality.
The honey that calls love.
The salt that summons savor and essence.
The honey that summons heart and core.
Flavors of power and passion.
Flavors of holiness and rejoicing.
Flavors of longing and desire.

Hear my prayer.
Let me be coarse and sweet,
Savory and tart.
A source of beauty,
A source of delight.
And I will sing praises
To the unknown and unknowable,
The unseen and unseeable,
The untouched and untouchable,
The radiance that swirls around us,
The salt and honey that flows from You.

Postscript: Here’s a recipe for Salted Honey Butter and another for Brown Butter Salted Honey Pie. Some other prayers and meditation that are based on the Temple, Temple service or the sacrificial cult include: “The Temple,” “Tabernacle” and “Stones of Remembrance.”

Photo: Kinfolk

Come, Rain

Posted on: March 15th, 2015 by Alden

This meditation is on the blessing of rain, which Torah says is a reward for our love of G-d. I wrote it sleepless in a one-man tent during a nighttime rainstorm at a campground overlooking the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee). Although the Galilee now is lush due to the rainy season, the Sea is low and rain is a blessing. I wrote the meditation on the second night of a charity hike supporting Tsad Kadima, a wonderful organization that provides education and other services for kids and adults with cerebral palsy. To listen while you read, click the triangle in the bar below.

Come, Rain
Come, rain,
Pour forth
Upon this barren land,
Upon this barren heart.
The earth is dry,
My chest is withered
And love has fled
For more fertile ground.

Come, rain,
Pour forth
With abandon,
Fill the air with moisture,
Feed the ground with promise,
Let living water
Soak through me,
A gift of heaven,
A gift of holiness,
A fountain of glory,
A well of healing,
A source of power,
Pounding through my thirsty veins.

Postscript: Please consider donating to my Tsad Kadima “Hike for Hope” with this link. It’s a great organization. My other prayers about rain include “For Rain,” “The Flood” and “About the Rainbow.”

Photo Source: Alden Solovy; view of the Kinneret from our campground, March 11, 2015

Tetzaveh 5775: Stones of Remembrance

Posted on: February 24th, 2015 by Alden

This meditation is based on four lines in Tetazveh (Exodus 28:9-12) instructing the creation of two stone shoulder fasteners for the high priest’s Ephod (see postscript). Called avnei zikaron, remembrance stones, the fasteners were engraved with the names of the 12 tribes. Here are three alternative uses: use it as a Jewish prayer (shown here); others may focus on their own religion; or it can be used as a universal prayer, including all teachers of faith and peace, from rabbis to Sufis, from Budda to Mother Teresa.

Stones of Remembrance
Whose names
Will you engrave upon your shoulders
When you stand before G-d
In prayer?

Whose names
Will you carry in your heart
As you sing songs
Of blessing and praise?

G-d,
Remember us in the name of
Our ancestors: ________________________.
[Add meaningful names from Biblical times to the Second Temple, for example: Abraham, Miriam, Nachshon, Zilpah, etc.]

G-d,
Remember us in the name of
Our sages: ________________________.
[Add names from the Second Temple to contemporary times, for example: Yochanan ben Zaki, Regina Jonas, etc.]

G-d,
Remember us in the name of
Our teachers: ________________________.
[Add names from the contemporary period, for example: a scholar, teacher, author or friend.]

These are the stones of remembrance,
The righteous and the driven,
The certain and the seeker,
The women and the men
Who have led Your people,
Taught Your Torah,
And rallied congregations and assemblies
To Your service.

Let my name,
One day,
Be worthy.
Let my life
Become a tribute
To your wondrous works,
A remembrance of Your gifts
Throughout the generations.

Postscript: See also: “Sages,” “Tabernacle” and “The Statutes of Heaven.” The Ephod was an apron covering the tunic and robe and served as the place where the Choshen, the breastplate, was fastened. The Soncino (Hertz) commentary says the engravings were to remind the people of their unity in the service of G-d; the Stone (Scherman) commentary says that they reminded G-d of the righteousness of the people. The two concepts are inseparable. By remembering those who came before us in prayer, we remind both G-d of the righteous among us and ourselves of our unity before G-d.

Photo Source: WikiMedia Commons

Terumah 5775: Tabernacle

Posted on: February 18th, 2015 by Alden

In Terumah, this week’s Torah portion, we get the instructions for creating the Sanctuary, the portable structure that accompanied the Israelites as they wandered, including the inner chamber where G-d’s presence would dwell. This meditation begins with a common metaphor, each of us building a tabernacle is his or her heart. It then takes that idea a step further, claiming that we, in fact, are the raw materials for the dwelling place of G-d’s glory.

Tabernacle
Let me build Your tabernacle
With my own hands
So that Your glory
Will dwell with us
Once again.

I will build a sanctuary
In the space between my heart and my soul,
Clearing the residue of sorrow and misdeeds,
Making a place for Your covenant,
Your wisdom and Your truth,
To rest in me.

Come, my people,
Shake off your slumber.
Shake off your despair.
G-d’s majesty waits only for an invitation.

Let your days be the woven fabric of love.
Let your life be the golden lamp of peace.
Together, we will become
The staves and the planks,
The walls, the curtain and the table,
Each one of us a pillar,
A sacred congregation,
A faithful assembly,
In service to G-d’s Holy Name.

Postscript: My other prayers seeking G-d and about the heart as a sanctuary to G-d include: “Let Us Meet,” “Seeking G-d” and “Let Holiness.”

Photo Source: Jewish Gems – Anita Silvert

Archive for the ‘Hopes’ Category

Prayer before Sleep

New Adventures

Naso 5775: Place Your Name upon Us

Let G-d

Travel to an Unexpected Family Emergency

Tzav: Fire and Ash

Vayikra 5775: Salt and Honey

Come, Rain

Tetzaveh 5775: Stones of Remembrance

Terumah 5775: Tabernacle

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