Healing from Trauma & Abuse

It happens in every kind of family, no matter what we’d like to believe. Girls and boys are sexually abused by adults in their households. Women and men are battered by their spouses. Even if our homes are loving and safe, many of us have experienced violence and trauma in settings too numerous to list. To begin to heal, we must create space for people to tell their stories—and we must listen without turning away.

Latest Rituals

Today, and Maybe Only Today: a Reflection on Moving Out of an Unsafe Home

“Today, as I affix mezuzot, as I say the shehekhayanu, / As I step into a new chapter of my life, / I take this moment to acknowledge / That my life is about to change.”

abuse, healing, moving, shehekheyanu

Healing Affirmation

A reminder of our covenant with the Source of Life.

covenant, healing, hope

Every Truth Spoken Is a Step Toward the Promised Land

“When we speak the truth to power – saying, this is who we are / We reach back to help those still stifled in Mitzrayim, or poised / Uncertain at the shore.”

identity, mitzrayim

Healing Niggun for Ukraine

Healing niggun set to the melody of a traditional Ukrainian lullaby

healing, music, Ukraine

Sky as Offering: For Canada in the Wake of Domestic Terror and Ottawa Siege

“there is a space between / flags and fireworks”

healing, peace, terrorism

Sky as Offering: For Canada in the Wake of Domestic Terror and Ottawa Siege

God Doesn’t Want Us To Hurt Ourselves

“We are commanded not to harm ourselves, because for some of us that is a struggle.”

depression, mental health, mental illness, self-harm

The Voyage Home: A Prayer for Re-Entry after Rehab

Prayer is for anyone re-entering life after rehab, whether for addiction, an eating disorder, psychiatric hospitalization, or another form of inpatient treatment