Posts Tagged ‘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.

“Pervasive Peace” lyrics © 2019 by Alden Solovy, music © 2021 by Schwalkin Music (ASCAP).
“Wildly Unimaginable Blessings” © 2020 by Alden Solovy.

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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.

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: 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.

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.

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.

Pervasive Peace” and “Wildly Unimaginable Blessings” are © 2019 and 2020 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com.

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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.

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Photo Source: European Southern Observatory

Wildly Unimaginable Blessings: A Prayer for 5781

Posted on: September 17th, 2020 by Alden

This new Rosh Hashanah prayer — written this morning — is a response to Covid-19. Since March, since the reality of pandemic and plague struck our worlds, wildly unimaginable shifts have occurred in the way we live and, perhaps, the way we see life. One lesson of these unimaginable losses and changes is the possibility that there might also be wildly unimaginable blessings. The idea for this prayer came as I signed an email to musician Josh Nelson. I concluded: “For a year of wildly unimaginable blessings. Your friend, Alden.” So the idea for this prayer was born. This prayer, followed by my 5780 prayer “Pervasive Peace,” would make a lovely kavanah for the New Year.

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.

© 2020 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com.

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Please check out my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer,” and my two CCAR Press books: This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings 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

Another Year: An Introspection

Posted on: December 29th, 2016 by Alden

20120327-kryptomorphaics-introspection-2_mg_3874For 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.

© 2017 CCAR Press from This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day

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

Let this Day

Posted on: January 3rd, 2016 by Alden

Jewish ZodiacAs we move from celebrating the arrival of a new secular year to living day-to-day, here’s a prayer about making the most of our time here on earth. May 2016 bring us all blessings and peace.

Let this Day
G-d,
Help me to use this day wisely,
And with care,
Planting laughter in the hours,
And dedication in the moments,
In service to You,
In service to myself,
In service to humanity.

Let my inner wisdom shine
And my talents burst forth,
Bringing the gifts You gave me
To the works of my hands
And the works of my heart.
Let this day be for blessing.
Let this day be for healing.
Let this day be for joy.

G-d,
My time is like water in the desert,
Precious and scarce,
Giving life, giving hope.
Let this day be for creativity and discovery.
Let this day be for curiosity and imagination.
Let this day be for excitement and adventure.
So that the heavens smile on me
And Your creation calls me ‘friend.’

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

Postscript: Here are more prayers about time and using time wisely: “Leaving,” “Arriving,” “Now,” “Another Year: An Introspection” and “In This Turning.”

Tweetable! Click here to tweet this: “My time is like water in the desert, precious and scarce…” http://bit.ly/1P9hJeS Prayer for using time wisely by @ToBendLight

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Photo Source: Klau Library Hebrew Union College, as appearing in the Jerusalem Post

The Greatest Sin

Posted on: September 28th, 2014 by Alden

Rosh Hashana 5775The High Holiday Vidui – the Jewish confessional prayer – contains a broad list of transgressions. This meditation suggests that the greatest sin of all is failure to create the conditions in our hearts and in our lives that lead to love of each other and service to G-d. The idea: if we engage always in these acts, there is no room for sin. In other words, the greatest transgression is to carelessly allow the conditions for sin to take root. See also: “Meditation Before the Yom Kippur Vidui”and “Meditation After the Yom Kippur Vidui.”

The Greatest Sin
The greatest sin
Is not to see
The miracle of each new day
Or to fill our days with hope
And love.

The greatest sin
Is not to see
The miracle of each new breath
Or to fill each breath with joy
And service.

The roots of sin
Are hatred and idle hands.
The roots of holiness
Are love and work.

G-d of wisdom,
Grant me the ability
To see the flow of miracles around me,
In awe and wonder,
So that I become of vessel of Your glory,
And an instrument of Your holy name.

Then, I will rejoice,
Rededicating my life to You,
With prayer
And with deeds of loving-kindness.

© 2014 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

Postscript: Here are links to prayers for Elulprayers for Rosh Hashanaprayers 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: Temple Beth Elohim

Meditation on the Eve of a New Year

Posted on: September 24th, 2014 by Alden

Rosh Hashana 5775 Card ChabadA 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.

© 2014 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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

 

Gates

Posted on: September 20th, 2014 by Alden

Gate Beth EmetStanding 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.

© 2014 Alden Solovy, Beth Emet-The Free Synagogue and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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 Elulprayers for Rosh Hashanaprayers 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

A New Year Begins

Posted on: December 30th, 2013 by Alden

TimeThis 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.

© 2013 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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

Repentance Inside

Posted on: September 10th, 2013 by tobendlight

582746main_sunrise_from_iss-4x3_428-321What does it take to internalize a deep sense of repentance, so that real change is possible? What will it take to be the man G-d envisioned when making me? This is from a series about internalizing G-d’s gifts, including “Egypt Inside” and “Forgiveness Inside.” This piece appears in This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day from CCAR Press.

Repentance Inside
This I confess:
I have taken my transgressions with me,
Carrying them year-by-year into my hours and days,
My lapses of conscience
And indiscretion with words,
My petty judgments
And my vanity,
Clinging to grief and fear, anger and shame,
Clinging to excuses and to old habits.
I’ve felt the light of heaven,
Signs and wonders in my own life,
And still will not surrender to holiness and light.

G-d of redemption,
With Your loving and guiding hand
Repentance in prayer is easy.
Repentance inside,
Leaving my faults and offenses behind,
Is a struggle.
In Your wisdom You have given me this choice:
To live today as I lived yesterday,
Or to set my life free to love You,
To love Your people,
And to love myself.

G-d of forgiveness, help me to leave my transgressions behind,
To hear Your voice,
To accept Your guidance,
And to see the miracles in each new day.

Blessed are You,
G-d of justice and mercy,
You set Your people on the road to t’shuva.

© 2017 CCAR Press from This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day

Postscript: Here are focused lists of prayers for the High Holidays: Elul, Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur and Sukkot. Here’s a link to yizkor and memorial prayers.

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

“Alden has become one of Reform Judaism’s master poet-liturgists…" - Religion News Service, Dec. 23, 2020

“Mesmerizing, spiritual, provocative, and thoughtful, Alden was everything you would want in a guest scholar and teacher.” – Rabbi Denise L. Eger, Congregation Kol Ami, Los Angeles, and Past President, CCAR

"Alden Solovy has become one of the most revered liturgists of the last decade…" - Jewish Post & Opinion, March 29, 2023

“Alden left everyone feeling inspired.” – Cantor Jeri Robins, Shabbat Chair, NewCAJE6