Fostering & Adoption

There are many ways to bring children into a family, whether biologically or through fostering and adoption. When a child joins a family through adoption, the moment deserves to be celebrated and marked ritually. Sometimes an adoption does not work out or a foster child re-joins their birth family, a complex and painful experience for the foster family, and rituals can help us acknowledge these difficult times. Sometimes a prayer for becoming a parent through adoption is needed to prepare for this momentous transformation.

Latest Rituals

A ritual to say goodbye to a beloved foster child, modeled on the Jewish baby naming ceremony

Farewell Ritual for Foster Child

Miriam’s Cup reinterpreted to highlight the relationship between adoptive moms and adopted daughters

Miriam’s Cup: A Ritual for Adoptive Mothers of Chinese Daughters

Just as God hear the prayers of our matriarchs, so too may God hear our prayers

family at sunset silhouetted on the beach

While happily the majority of adoptions work out as planned, some do not. This havdalah ceremony marks such a loss.

Havdalah Ritual for a Failed Adoption

A prayer for the gift of an adopted child in which the baby is welcomed, the parents pledge to create a good and Jewish life for the child, and ask God’s blessings for the baby’s health and well-being

woman deep breath near celmatis vine

A poem for adopting a child

mother and baby in silhouette on beach at sunset

The Reconstructionist Network

Serving as central organization of the Reconstructionist movement

Training the next generation of groundbreaking rabbis

Modeling respectful conversations on pressing Jewish issues

Curating original, Jewish rituals, and convening Jewish creatives

Presence and Absence: Images of the Divine in Kabbalah

In this study of the Zohar, Rabbi Margie Jacobs will guide you in exploring the Shekhinah, the feminine, immanent, indwelling Sacred Presence, through the use of art materials and reflective writing. Four sessions starting May 7, 2024. 

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The Reconstructionist Network