“Now HannahHannah is the mother of the prophet Samuel, who, through her prayers, is rewarded a child. She herself is also considered a prophet. Hannah's intense devotional style of prayer becomes the model, in rabbinic Judaism, for prayer in general. was praying in her heart;
only her lips moved,
but her voice could not be heard.”
Hannah’s prayers could not be heard,
but we know them in our hearts.
Her voice catches in our throats every time
the test is negative
the drugs are injected
the eggs do not fertilize
the embryo does not attach
Her voice catches in our throats
when the pregnancy arrives, but is finally lost
in clots of blood, hopes, and dreams.
“In her wretchedness, she prayed to God, weeping all the while.”
Every person’s silent prayer
is based on Hannah’s voiceless cry,
but only some of us know the words,
words injected by syringes
words of doctors and nurses
words made of acronyms, made of letters, and longing,
words of bargaining, please, this time,
please let it be different –
words that never fill our wombs.
“And she made this vow: ‘O LORD of Hosts,
if You will look upon the suffering of Your maidservant
and will remember me and not forget Your maidservant,
and if You will grant Your maidservant a child,
I will dedicate him to the LORD for all the days of his life.’”
God, please remember us, as you remembered Hannah.
We cannot promise You our children,
but we can raise them with compassion
for all of Your creation.
Our children cannot serve in Your Temple,
but we can teach them to see
Your world as a Holy Place.
ShemaThe most central prayer in Jewish liturgy, the Shema states: "Hear O Israel, the Lord Our God, the Lord is One." These words are written inside mezuzot and t'fillin. It is traditionally said during all major services and when waking and going to sleep. Koleinu, hear our voices, God,
God of Hannah, SarahThe first matriarch, wife of Abraham, and mother of Isaac, whom she birthed at the age of 90. Sarah, in Rabbinic tradition, is considered holy, beautiful, and hospitable. Many prayers, particularly the Amidah (the central silent prayer), refer to God as Magen Avraham – protector of Abraham. Many Jews now add: pokehd or ezrat Sarah – guardian or helper of Sarah., RachelLavan's younger daughter and Jacob's beloved wife second wife (after he is initially tricked into marrying her older sister, Leah). Rachel grieves throughout her life that she is barren while Leah is so fertile. Ultimately, Rachel gives birth to Joseph and dies in childbirth with Benjamin. Rachel is remembered as compassionate (she is said to still weep for her children), and infertile women often invoke Rachel as a kind of intercessor and visit her tomb on the road to Bethlehem., and RebeccaThe second Jewish matriarch, Isaac's wife, and mother to Jacob and Esau. Rebecca is an active parent, talking to God when she is pregnant and learning the fate of her children, then ultimately manipulating Isaac and the children to ensure Jacob's ascendancy. Her Hebrew name is Rivka.,
so that our children and our children’s children
may hear our words one day:
words of compassion, words of praise,
words of love.
