Posts Tagged ‘blessings and praises’

 

Hallel in Peril

Posted on: August 14th, 2023 by Alden

As we approach Rosh Chodesh Kislev, Monday evening and Tuesday, how can we recite Hallel — joyous psalms of praise — in fear for the State of Israel and in anguish for the hostages? How can we recite the traditional psalms of praise in these difficult times? The answer: “Hallel in a Minor Key” with music by Sue Radner Horowitz. This full alternative Hallel with sheet music is available free as a PDF download here as our gift. Click on the triangle in the bar below to hear Sue sing the music. The text follows, beneath the download link. For a deeper discussion of how we created the liturgy, click here for article on the CCAR’s RavBlog. (Updated 12 November 2023.)

Hallel in a Minor Key
Praise God from the heights of rejoicing.
Praise God from the depths of despair.
Praise God from the places between.

Praise God when plague stalks our days.
Praise God when fear stalks our nights.
Praise God when the darkness descends.

We sing praises in a minor key,
The key of heartbreak,
With tropes of lamentation,
But still praises,
For beauty has not been lost
And hope has not been defeated,
And love still shines,
A beacon of tomorrow.

הַ֥לְלוּיָהּ הַ֭לְלוּ עַבְדֵ֣י יהוה הַֽ֝לְל֗וּ אֶת־שֵׁ֥ם יהוה׃
Hal’luyah hal’lu avdei Adonai, hal’lu et shem Adonai.
Hallelujah. O servants of Adonai give praise; praise the name of Adonai. (Psalm 113:1)

Praise God from joy and blessing.
Praise God from sorrow and pain.
Praise God from the places between.

Praise God when God feels distant.
Praise God when God feels absent.
Praise God when darkness descends.

We sing praises in a minor key,
The key of heartbreak,
With tropes of lamentation,
But still praises,
For beauty has not been lost
And hope has not been defeated,
And love still shines,
A beacon of tomorrow.

הַ֥לְלוּיָהּ הַ֭לְלוּ עַבְדֵ֣י יהוה הַֽ֝לְל֗וּ אֶת־שֵׁ֥ם יהוה׃
Hal’luyah hal’lu avdei Adonai, hal’lu et shem Adonai.
Hallelujah. O servants of Adonai give praise; praise the name of Adonai. (Psalm 113:1)

____________________

Hallel in a Minor Key” lyrics, © 2021 Alden Solovy and www.tobendlight.com, music © 2021 Sue Radner Horowitz.

Postscript: It was a thrill to work with Sue on this project. Check out her music here. Thanks to my publisher, CCAR Press, for creating the PDF and debuting it on RavBlog, as well as the many individuals who were part of this project. Portions of “Hallel in a Minor Key” were first presented during a Ritualwell online event, “Refuah Shleimah: A Healing Ritual Marking a Year of Pandemic,” and portions were shared in a breakout session at the 2021 Annual CCAR Convention held online. Thanks to both CCAR Press and Ritualwell for sharing the full liturgy. Individual thank yous are shown on the PDF.

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Please check out my CCAR Press Grateful/Joyous/Precious trilogy. The individual books are: This Joyous Soul, This Grateful Heart, and This Precious Life. Here’s a link to my ELItalk, “Falling in Love with Prayer..” 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.

 

Hallel in a Minor Key

Posted on: March 25th, 2021 by Alden

This Hallel is for singing praises in times of struggle or sorrow. “Hallel in a Minor Key” is the name of both the liturgy and the opening song, music by Sue Radner Horowitz. The liturgy — a full alternative Hallel, including Hebrew from each of the Hallel Psalms — is available as a PDF download here, including the sheet music. Listen to the song by clicking on the triangle in the bar below. Follow along with the words, beneath the download link. For a deeper discussion of the development of this liturgy, click here to read an article on the CCAR’s RavBlog.

Hallel in a Minor Key
Praise God from the heights of rejoicing.
Praise God from the depths of despair.
Praise God from the places between.

Praise God when plague stalks our days.
Praise God when fear stalks our nights.
Praise God when the darkness descends.

We sing praises in a minor key,
The key of heartbreak,
With tropes of lamentation,
But still praises,
For beauty has not been lost
And hope has not been defeated,
And love still shines,
A beacon of tomorrow.

הַ֥לְלוּיָהּ הַ֭לְלוּ עַבְדֵ֣י יהוה הַֽ֝לְל֗וּ אֶת־שֵׁ֥ם יהוה׃
Hal’luyah hal’lu avdei Adonai, hal’lu et shem Adonai.
Hallelujah. O servants of Adonai give praise; praise the name of Adonai. (Psalm 113:1)

Praise God from joy and blessing.
Praise God from sorrow and pain.
Praise God from the places between.

Praise God when God feels distant.
Praise God when God feels absent.
Praise God when darkness descends.

We sing praises in a minor key,
The key of heartbreak,
With tropes of lamentation,
But still praises,
For beauty has not been lost
And hope has not been defeated,
And love still shines,
A beacon of tomorrow.

הַ֥לְלוּיָהּ הַ֭לְלוּ עַבְדֵ֣י יהוה הַֽ֝לְל֗וּ אֶת־שֵׁ֥ם יהוה׃
Hal’luyah hal’lu avdei Adonai, hal’lu et shem Adonai.
Hallelujah. O servants of Adonai give praise; praise the name of Adonai. (Psalm 113:1)

____________________

Hallel in a Minor Key” lyrics, © 2021 Alden Solovy and www.tobendlight.com, music © 2021 Sue Radner Horowitz.

Postscript: It was a thrill to work with Sue on this project. Check out her music here. Thanks to my publisher, CCAR Press, for creating the PDF and debuting it on RavBlog, as well as the many individuals who were part of this project. Portions of “Hallel in a Minor Key” were first presented during a Ritualwell online event, “Refuah Shleimah: A Healing Ritual Marking a Year of Pandemic,” and portions were shared in a breakout session at the 2021 Annual CCAR Convention held online. Thanks to both CCAR Press and Ritualwell for sharing the full liturgy. Individual thank yous are shown on the PDF.

New here? Subscribe here to get my newest prayers by email.
Share the prayer! Email this to a friend.

Please check out my CCAR Press Grateful/Joyous/Precious trilogy. The individual books are: This Joyous Soul , This Grateful Heart, and This Precious Life. Here’s a link to my ELItalk, “Falling in Love with Prayer..” 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.

Before Writing a Prayer

Posted on: June 17th, 2019 by Alden

Here’s a prayer to be said before writing a prayer. The intention of the prayer is to achieve the kavanah, the spiritual mindset, necessary to serve G-d by writing a prayer. Join me this summer for a five-week online workshop, “Ingredients of Prayer: Writing Contemporary Liturgy” hosted by Ritualwell.

Before Writing a Prayer
Ancient One,
Rock of Israel,
With joy and with gratitude,
With humility and love,
I approach the sacred work
Of putting voice to Your people’s prayers.

Only You know the depth of our love,
The sound of our yearning,
The music of longing,
The song of our hope,
And the thunder in our grief.

G-d of Old,
Give me the words that will open
Your People’s hearts to You,
The words that will open
Our hearts to each other,
The words that will open
Our hearts to healing the world.
And give me the words,
Holy One,
That will open Your heart
To us.

© 2012 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com

New here? Subscribe here to get my newest prayers by email.
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Postscript: Please consider joining me for my online workshop, “Ingredients of Prayer: Writing Contemporary Liturgy” Here’s a prayer to be said “After Writing a Prayer.”

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 credit: Living a Life of Writing

 

Receiving Blessings

Posted on: December 29th, 2018 by Alden

This prayer is my blessing for you for 2019. It’s about opening our hearts to receiving blessings. In this New Year, may we bless each other and be open to being blessed. This prayer appears in my new book, This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings from CCAR Press.

Receiving Blessings
Ancient One,
Open my heart to receive
The blessings around me,
Kindness and wisdom,
Friendship and understanding,
Tenderness and compassion,
Moments of holiness,
Messages from heaven.

Source and Shelter,
Why can’t I bless others
With the fullness of my being
With joy and thanksgiving,
From a hope for healing
And a pulse of love,
To fill the world with benedictions?

Rock and Redeemer,
Grant me the ability to see and to hear
The blessings around me,
A fountain of love
To fill my soul
With gratitude and courage,
With joy and peace.

© 2019 CCAR Press from This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings

New here? Subscribe here to get my newest prayers by email.
Share the prayer! Email this to a friend.

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: The Poached Egg

Howling at the Moon

Posted on: November 5th, 2017 by Alden

Moon NasaThis 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.

© 2017 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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.

© 2012 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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

In Gratitude for Your Gifts

Posted on: January 10th, 2016 by Alden

Ashrei ArtThis prayer of gratitude is one of my few attempts at an English alphabetic acrostic. Here, the acrostic is in second word of the first two sets of indented lines, and the first word of the third set. Many Psalms are Hebrew acrostics, such as Psalm 145, the core of the Ashrei. Many classic piyyutim also incorporate acrostics. A sample of the poetic structures of famous piyyutim can be found on Wikipedia.

In Gratitude for Your Gifts
Guardian of my life.
Guide of my spirit:

In Awe we seek You,
With Blessings we reach You,
In Communion we call to You,
With Devotion we come to You.
With Enthusiasm we turn to You,
In Faith we trust in You,
With Gratitude we look to You,
In Humility we yearn for You,
With Inspiration we return to You,
In Joy we praise You.

Source of all being,
Light of the earth:

In Kindness You heal us,
In Love You sustain us,
In Mercy You forgive us,
With Nobility you bless us,
With Openness You hear us,
With Peace you comfort us.
In Quiet we hear You,
With Radiance You bestow divine gifts,
With Splendor You renew the world,
In Trust You’ve given us free will.

Soul of the universe,
Grant us:

Understanding to follow Your word,
Vigor to live by Your law,
Wisdom to follow Your path,
Yearning to study Torah,
Zeal for justice and peace.

© 2015 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

Postscript: The original version of my prayer “Elijah” is an acrostic, although when I revised and expanded the prayer, I chose to forgo the acrostic. I haven’t experimented with much with this form. Dealing with several letters – in particular, ‘x’ – is a challenge. In this prayer, I’ve chosen to avoid the issue by leaving it out.

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: Judaism.com

Ki Tavo: Be the Blessing

Posted on: September 2nd, 2015 by Alden

blessingsThis week’s parasha, Ki Tavo, lists blessings and curses. “All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you, if you harken to the voice of Adonai your God.” (Deut. 28:2) Blessings come from accepting God’s law; curses come from rejecting it. “…if you do not harken to the voice of Adonai your God… then all these curses will come upon you and overtake you.” (Deut. 28:15)  This prayer centers on the idea that we are the tools of both.

Be the Blessing
To be a blessing, to be a curse.
To speak with kindness, to speak in anger.
To act with compassion, to act with cruelty.
With a loving heart or with threatening hands.
To build. To destroy.
To lift up. To tear apart.
Mindful or thoughtless.
Careful or careless.
Openhanded. Closefisted.
Honest. Corrupt.
To strive for holiness, or to abandon God’s word.

To be a blessing, to be a curse.
You gave us this choice, God of generations.
To bless ourselves, to curse ourselves.
To bless each other, to curse each other.

Let blessings pour forth from my life.
Let blessings rain down from heaven.
God’s blessings will fill our days.
God’s blessings will surround us all.

Be the blessing.
Be the blessing.
Be the blessing.

© 2015 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

Postscript: See also “An Amazing Life,” “A Moment of Blessing,” “Receiving Blessings,” “Umbrella of Blessings” and “Garden of Blessings.”

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: Russham: Faith, Inspiration and Challenging Thoughts

Naso 5775: Place Your Name upon Us

Posted on: May 26th, 2015 by Alden

ana-bekoach-01This 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.

© 2015 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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.

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: Turmsegler

Beshalach: Miriam’s Word

Posted on: January 27th, 2015 by Alden

443px-Miriam,_the_golden_HaggadahImagine what happens the moment after Miriam and the women finish their dance. Elated and exhausted from celebration, her people having crossed the sea into safety by the power of G-d’s hand, what would a prophet do? Teach, of course. This new meditation is a contemporary midrash that imagines what Miriam tells the women of Israel when their dance ends. This piece appears in This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings from CCAR Press.

“Miriam, the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women came out after her with timbrels and with dances.” – Exodus 15:20

Miriam’s Word
Listen sisters,
Always dance
In the direction of holiness.
Always sing
In the direction of heaven.

Our dance is a prayer,
Our song an offering
Of joy and love.

And you will feel
The glory of G-d’s presence
Pass through you.
You will feel
The breath of life
Surround you.
Together, we will become a hymn,
Praise that resounds throughout the earth,
Throughout the ages.
Women will dance this dance,
Sing this song,
Pray this prayer.

Come, Sisters,
Summon your joy,
Summon your voice,
Summon your heart,
Summon the generations
To this song,
To this dance.

All praise to G-d Most High,
Who leads us through moments
Of sorrow and pain,
Of hope and comfort,
Of celebration and victory,
Triumph and exultation.

Dance, sisters.
Dance.

© 2019 CCAR Press from This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings

Postscript: Here are two prayers for Jewish leadership: “Cornerstone” and “Messengers among Us.” Here are links to related prayers: “Dance Hallelujah,” which I posted for Beshalach 5773, as well as “Sing Hallelujah,” “For the Gift of Song,” “For the Gift of Dance” and “For the Gift of Music.” Please take a look at my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

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

Photo Source: Miriam, Golden Haggadah; WikiMedia Commons

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