Tag Archive for "Happy New Year"

Posts Tagged ‘Happy New Year’

Music for Pervasive Peace: A New Liturgical Song for Rosh HaShanah

Posted on: August 10th, 2021 by Alden

This Rosh HaShanah — as the specter of another socially-distant holiday looms — let’s renew our dreams of peace, a pervasive peace encompassing wholeness, health, renewal, vitality, and resilience. To share that prayer on Erev Rosh HaShanah 5782, Rebecca Schwartz, cantorial soloist at Congregation Kol Ami, Elkins Park, PA, created a new musical setting for my short blessing “Pervasive Peace.” Watch her singing the blessing on this video, or click the triangle in the bar below for audio only. Follow along with the lyrics, below. The sheet music is available on oysongs here. Combining this music with “Wildly Unimaginable Blessings,” text also below, creates a beautiful sung and spoken two-prayer liturgy for the New Year. To read more about the thinking behind “Pervasive Peace,” read this article in RavBlog.

Pervasive Peace
May it be Your will, G-d of our fathers and mothers,
That the year ahead brings a pervasive and complete peace
On all the inhabitants of the earth,
Beyond all the dreams of humanity.

,יְהִי רָצוֹן מִלְּפָנֶֽיךָ, אֱלֹהֵי אֲבוֹתֵֽינוּ וְאִמּוֹתֵֽינוּ
שֶׁהַשָּׁנָה הַבָּאָה תָּבִיא שָׁלוֹם מֻחְלָט וְשָׁלֵם
,עַל כָּל־יוֹשְׁבֵי תֵבֵל
.מֵעֵֽבֶר לְכָל־חֲלֹמוֹת־הָאֱנוֹשׁוּת

Y’hi ratzon mil’fanecha, Elohei avoteinu v’imoteinu,
Shehashanah haba-ah tavi shalom muchlat v’shaleim
Al kol yosh’vei teiveil,
Mei-ever l’chol chalomot ha-enoshut.

Wildly Unimaginable Blessings
Let us dream
Wildly unimaginable blessings…
Blessings so unexpected,
Blessings so beyond our hopes for this world,
Blessings so unbelievable in this era,
That their very existence
Uplifts our vision of creation,
Our relationships to each other,
And our yearning for life itself.

Let us dream
Wildly unimaginable blessings…
A complete healing of mind, body, and spirit,
A complete healing for all,
The end of suffering and strife,
The end of plague and disease,
When kindness flows from the river of love,
When goodness flows from the river of grace,
Awakened in the spirit of all beings,
When G-d’s light,
Radiating holiness,
Is seen by everyone.

Let us pray —
With all our hearts —
For wildly unimaginable blessings,
So that G-d will hear the call
To open the gates of the Garden,
Seeing that we haven’t waited,
That we’ve already begun to repair the world,
In testimony to our faith in life,
Our faith in each other,
And our faith in the Holy One,
Blessed be G-d’s Name.

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Postscript: Thanks to Rav Aytan Kadden for his help with the Hebrew. The sheet music is available on oysongs here. Find more of Rebecca’s music at www.rebeccasongs.com.

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Photo Source: European Southern Observatory

Two Prayers to End 2020 and Start 2021

Posted on: December 24th, 2020 by Alden

This is a two-prayer liturgy to end 2020 and start 2021, combining my Rosh Hashanah 5780 prayer “Pervasive Peace” with my Rosh Hashanah 5781 prayer “Wildly Unimaginable Blessings.” They’re big, audacious prayers that we’ve earned after a year of global pandemic.

Y’hi ratzon mil’fanecha, Elohei avoteinu v’imoteinu,
Shehashanah haba-ah tavi shalom muchlat v’shaleim
Al kol yosh’vei teiveil,
Mei-ever l’chol chalomot ha-enoshut.

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Postscript: Thanks to Rabbi Gordon Fuller for his suggestion that I offer a prayer for the end of 2020 and the start of 2021.

You’re invited to the Zoom book launch of This Precious Life: Encountering the Divine with Poetry and Prayer. Register to attend here.

Photo Source: European Southern Observatory

Another Year: An Introspection

Posted on: December 29th, 2016 by Alden

For the New Year: a meditation on the passage and the use of time. Have I spent this time wisely? And what have I learned? This prayer appears in my CCAR Press book, This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. This prayer is about living with integrity.

Another Year: An Introspection
Another year slips away,
As do they all,
Day by day,
Hour by hour,
Moment by moment.
Many used wisely,
Many wasted.

Another year opens,
As do they all,
With anticipation,
With wonder and amazement,
With excitement.
With consolation.

Was last year so different from the one before?
What will the New Year bring?
What will I bring to the New Year?

This I pledge to myself:
Love is my answer to grief,
Hope is my answer to loss,
Strength is my answer to fear,
Honor is my answer to slander,
Action is my answer to injustice.

This I pledge to you
My sisters and brothers:
To see you as you are,
To respect your journey,
To hear your truth,
To stand with you in dignity,
To walk with you as a companion and friend.

This I pledge to You
G-d of my ancestors:
To seek Your wisdom,
To follow Your command,
To obey Your Law,
To observe Your Sabbath,
To rejoice in Your works,
To do Your will.

G-d of time and space,
Another year slips away,
As do they all.
Another year opens before me,
As they all do:
With one hundred choices,
One thousand possibilities
And one sacred duty.
Life. This life. My life.

Postscript: Here’s another prayer “For the New Year” and a meditation called “In This Turning.”

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: jansenphoto

Meditation on the Eve of a New Year

Posted on: September 24th, 2014 by Alden

A new meditation — written this morning — as the year 5774 comes to an end. May 5775 bring hope, blessing and peace. Instructions for using this meditation are found in [brackets]. May you have a year of health and happiness, joy and laughter, livelihood, sustenance, prayer and love.

Meditation on the Eve of a New Year
G-d,
Dear G-d,
We stand at the cusp of a New Year,
Looking forward, looking backward,
So much accomplished,
So much neglected,
Gains and losses,
Joys and sorrows,
Victories and defeats.
A life.
My life.

You,
G-d of Old,
You are Steadfast Witness,
Source and Shelter.
I bend my heart to You,
Recalling these gifts:

[Part 1: Think about, say out loud or write down blessings in your life, including: people, places, events and things. Be specific: a son, daughter, niece, nephew, brother or sister, by name; a wedding a birth or other joyous occasion, with names; seeing a sunrise or a rare bird; a favorite shirt, a new bed, a home repair or expansion; a new job. See how beautifully detailed and long you can make the list, seeing the many blessings that flow through your life.]

[Part 2: If you can, name the blessings that arose from sorrows, for example: a merciful death, an end to suffering or beautiful eulogy for someone, by name; rebuilding after a disaster; potential new life after a divorce. Don’t force it; be true to how you actually feel, not how you think you ‘should’ feel. If you can, try to see how, sometimes, even in times of sorrow there can be gifts.]

G-d,
My G-d,
For consolation in my grief,
For sunlight and midnight,
For hope in my celebrations,
For warmth and for shelter,
For current and tide,
For family and for friends,
For the flow of beauty and grace,
I bend my life back to You,
As the New Year descends,
In love and in service,
My offering
To Your Holy Name.

Postscript: Here’s a related meditation called “Another Year: An Introspection” and a link to prayers and stories for the Yamim Noraim, the High Holy Days, listed by topic, some of which my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

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. Please take a moment to explore my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

Photo Source: Chabad.org

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.

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: Dartmouth Undergraduate Journal of Science

In This Turning: A New Year’s Day Meditation

Posted on: December 30th, 2012 by tobendlight

This is a New Year prayer about love. Why? Those of us who are alone yearn for a partner. Those of us in relationships need to nurture them with joy and love. To adapt this prayer for singles or couples, use either “me” or “us,” shown in [brackets]. This prayer appears in my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

In This Turning: A New Year’s Day Meditation
Darkness and grace
Mourning and thunder
Light and rejoicing
Daybreak and open sky

Here I surrender
To the chance for love
Your warm breath
Your loving hands
The fire in your eyes
The hope in your heart

What gifts wait in this turning
To you
To myself
This joy
This adventure

What gifts wait in this turning
And this yearning
This new year
This new wonder

Let blessings rain down
Upon [me/us] from heaven
And let hope settle softly
Upon this open heart

Let this be the time to sing
To dance
To play
And to delight in another
Glorious
Day

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

Photo Credit: Melaleuca Freedom Celebration

Another Year: An Introspection

Posted on: December 30th, 2010 by tobendlight

20120327-kryptomorphaics-introspection-2_mg_3874 For the New Year: a meditation on the passage and the use of time. Have I spent this time wisely? And what have I learned? Contrast this meditation, which is about living a life of integrity, with another New Year meditation, “In This Turning,” which is about love. Here’s another prayer “For the New Year” and another called “A New Year Begins.” To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows. This prayer appears in This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day.

Another Year: An Introspection
Another year slips away,
As they all do,
Day by day,
Hour by hour,
Moment by moment.
Many used wisely,
Many wasted.

Another year opens,
As they all do,
With anticipation,
With wonder and amazement,
With excitement.
With consolation.

Was last year so different from the one before?
What will the New Year bring?
What will I bring to the New Year?

This I pledge to myself:
Love is my answer to grief,
Hope is my answer to loss,
Strength is my answer to fear,
Honor is my answer to slander,
Action is my answer to injustice.

This I pledge to you
Dear sisters and brothers:
To see you as you are,
To respect your journey,
To hear your truth,
To stand with you in dignity,
To walk with you as a companion and friend.

This I pledge to You
G-d of my ancestors:
To seek Your wisdom,
To follow Your command,
To obey Your Law,
To observe Your Sabbath,
To rejoice in Your works,
To do Your will.

G-d of time and space,
Another year slips away,
As they all do.
Another year opens before me,
As they all do:
With one hundred choices,
One thousand possibilities
And one sacred duty.
Life. This life. My life.

Postscript: Here’s another prayer “For the New Year” and a meditation called “In This Turning.” Please consider purchasing my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

Photo Credit: jansenphoto

Posts Tagged ‘Happy New Year’

Music for Pervasive Peace: A New Liturgical Song for Rosh HaShanah

Two Prayers to End 2020 and Start 2021

Another Year: An Introspection

Meditation on the Eve of a New Year

A New Year Begins

In This Turning: A New Year’s Day Meditation

Another Year: An Introspection

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