Kaddish for People with Disabilities: A Prayer of Remembrance
“Blessed is God, Ruler of the Universe, who created people with disabilities in Your image. / Blessed is God, who cherishes disabled lives and desires that they flourish and thrive.”
From the Deep
This is a song about coming up for air. From the deep, tossed, drawn down, then rising to another blue, to gulls shrieking, “Safe! Safe!” From a murky-cool peace I’ll […]
Tipat Torah: Am I Aging Like a Date Palm?
On SukkotLit. Booths or huts Sukkot is the autumn harvest Festival of Booths, is celebrated starting the 15th of the Jewish month of Tishrei. Jews build booths (sukkot), symbolic of the temporary shelters used by the ancient Israelites when they wandered in the desert. Traditionally, Jews eat and sleep in the sukkah for the duration of the holiday (seven days in Israel and eight outside of Israel). The lulav (palm frond), willow, myrtle, and etrog fruit are also waved together., we read the words of Kohelet (Ecclesiastes), a person bitterly reflecting on his older years. Does aging have to be negative, calling everything that brings pleasure pointless?
I didn’t fast on Yom Kippur
“I didn’t fast on Yom KippurThe holiest day of the Jewish year and the culmination of a season of self-reflection. Jews fast, abstain from other worldly pleasures, and gather in prayers that last throughout the day. Following Ne'ilah, the final prayers, during which Jews envision the Gates of Repentance closing, the shofar is sounded in one long blast to conclude the holy day. It is customary to begin building one's sukkah as soon as the day ends. / But I mended my relationship with my spouse and children by being present in the moment and honest about my feelings in a positive way…”
Abortion Access Al Cheit
An original Al cheit prayer focused on reproductive rights
Prayer for Discernment After Heartbreak
“Adonai, hear my prayer: / out of the depths of my sorrow, I call to you.”
When Sorrow Comes Knocking
“Sometimes there is not / enough space / to contain all of the grief.”
To keep my name from being sealed, I will eat: A Poetic D’var for Yom Kippur
“Today, do not take your hunger for granted, and likewise,
do not take your food tomorrow as a given…”
Prayer for People, Peace, and Planet
“May we never forget that we are all connected, historically, relationally, energetically, and that harm to one is harm to all.”
Sharing Shabbat With Neighbors
“The nearby porch clutter did not diminish their / prayers, inspiring my own return to ShabbatShabbat is the Sabbath day, the Day of Rest, and is observed from Friday night through Saturday night. Is set aside from the rest of the week both in honor of the fact that God rested on the seventh day after creating the world. On Shabbat, many Jews observe prohibitions from various activities designated as work. Shabbat is traditionally observed with festive meals, wine, challah, prayers, the reading and studying of Torah, conjugal relations, family time, and time with friends..”
