Healing from Illness

While there are many traditional Jewish prayers for healing, the feminist movement empowered first women and then men and women to create many more prayers and ceremonies which spoke to the specific situations in which they found themselves. The complexity of modern medicine has added to this need for prayers for medical tests, prayers before surgery, prayers after chemotherapy and for each chemo session, etc. In addition, several writers on Ritualwell have created ceremonies to celebrate an important anniversary in relationship to their disease. 

 

Latest Rituals

“Binder of wounds, / Open me to / Unplanned wonder”
light brown skinned person with eyes closed and white shirt on and beige sun hat with head slightly lifted looking peaceful before light blue sky and clouds
“Is it selfish of me to ask / That she not be in pain?”
closeup of white arm with an IV in it in a hospital bed with person standing near bed
“We invoke the energy of the universe and express our gratitude for our health and wellbeing”
woman's white hand outstretched in golden field of wheat with circle of light surrounding
“However we have abused ourselves or others, something within us remains pure”
a woman places her hand on her heart
Prayer for the journey of chemotherapy and the light which is carried within it
Prayer for Undergoing Chemotherapy
“To see each member of our community / With clear eyes and an open heart”  
For Those Who Endure Chronic Conditions
“We are each created in the image of sacred divinity and worthy of honor”
A Body Positive Ritual
“Help me find my voice to fight for my needs”
Prayer for Grappling with U.S. Health Insurance

“Help us to find holiness in this time”

Prayer of a Family Facing Difficult Medical Decisions

“I see the words of my prayers / wrap themselves around you”

The Light and the Wick

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

Jewish Spiritual Autobiography

 Writing a spiritual autobiography helps you to discover how teachers, touchstones, symbols and stories have led you to make meaning and understand the sacred in your personal story. In this immersion, join Ritualwell’s Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer, a writer and spiritual director, to map out and narrate your most sacred life experiences. Four sessions starting May 16, 2024. 

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The Reconstructionist Network