There is a folk tradition that the gates of heaven are particularly open to the prayers of the bride and groom. In some communities, wedding couples are handed small pieces of paper prior to the processional on which personal prayers are written. They read these prayers as they walk down the aisle and while circling one another. This prayer is offered in that tradition.
Esther fasted and asked all the people to join her in her fast before she approached the king. Norma Josephs suggest we use Esther’s fast as an opportunity to collectively protest the injustice done to women unable to obtain a Jewish divorce (get).
In this immersion, we will reflect and expand on our personal experiences of identity, using writing exercises and in-depth discussions to think about, challenge, discover, explore, and experiment with different ways to identify ourselves, to consider how those ways connect us to and separate us from others, and how they represent and misrepresent aspects of who we are.