It is hard to believe that the High Holidays are here once again. This holiday, I am very fortunate to have all my daughters home along with a houseful of friends and family to celebrate Rosh Hashanah. My favorite moment was lighting the holiday candles to start the evening off and then with many voices joined in singing the blessings over the bread and the wine. My husband then reminded us all that we must finish this portion of the evening by chanting a final blessing called the "Shehechyanu" prayer. We include this blessing tonight in honor of Rosh Hashanah, the holiday that commemorates the start of a new year.
In fact, this prayer is chanted frequently during a religious service. When and where it is said during a religious service, whether for daily prayer, Shabbat or holidays, offers clues to the importance the meaning of the words. Jews say the "Shehechyanu" prayer, from the Talmud (Berachot 54a, Pesakhim 7b, Sukkah 46a, etc.), as part of a holy prayer set called the Kaddish. Kaddish is a form of the word Kadosh which is translated to mean "Holy". Jews have been saying this prayer for over 2000 years. When the "Shehechyanu" prayer is said at the end of a list of prayers it is considered the period to the end of a sentence. Since prayer is a form of thanks, or an acknowledgement of a gift we've received, the "Shehechyanu" prayer expresses of our greatest thanks to G-d.
There are many prayers available to thank G-d for creating the world, our being in this world and everything else that is connected, but when memory fails to recall the unique individual blessings to give thanks, there is always the "Shehechyanu" prayer to fill in the empty spaces. Years ago a Cantor at my synagogue joked with me that this prayer was an all purpose prayer. Anytime something new enters your life or if you feel blessed or rewarded and you feel grateful or happy this is the prayer to cover all bases.
Here are the words in Hebrew, English and transliterated Hebrew. It is easy enough to memorize and will make you feel good every time you say this prayer.
Hebrew[1]
English[2]
Transliteration[3]
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ
Blessed are You, Lord
Baruch atta Adonai
אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הַעוֹלָם
our God, Ruler of the
Universe,
Eloheinu melekh ha'olam
שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ
who has granted us life, sustained us
she-ecḥeyanu ve'qi'eh'manu
וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לַזְּמַן הַזֶּה׃
and
enabled us to reach this occasion.
va'higiy'anu laz'man hazeh.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shehecheyanu
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
August 14, 2012 Pain, Pressure and Prayer
It has been some time since the last post and for that I am sorry. There has been quite a few changes happening to family and friends and without going into detail you can assume by the post title that it has caused quite a bit of stress. It is a funny thing about stress, that I have discovered, a little stress can add excitement or pleasure, but too much stress can cause pain. My emotional stress has connected itself to a physical pain that I am trying slowly to undo. I look out into the world to find help in unexpected places. Perhaps a song on the radio to change and lighten my mood or listening to noisy political debates on television to distract.
Another method of finding peace and positive energy is through prayer. Formal prayer, as in a house of religious worship feels "official", and being surrounded by friends almost always makes me feel better. Stories also transport me away from my troubles. The best ones find the hero or heroine in worse circumstances than you and then you feel like your problems aren't so bad. Or sometimes you empathize as the character struggles with the same issues as you do and you wonder what solutions they came up with and would it work for you as well.
One of my favorite stories in the Bible to illustrate the power of prayer is the story of Hannah (1Samuel 1:2). She was unable to concieve a child and it caused her deep emotional pain. Hannah braved her times and came to the Priest Eli to pray for a son. Her prayer was not voiced aloud because women of the day were not allowed to pray aloud. Hannah came to Shiloh everyday and mouthed a whispered prayer. Finally, her prayer for a son was answered, but the deal with God was to give this child, her son Samuel, back to God when he was weaned. In the end Samuel became a prophet and God gave Hannah more children to raise for herself. Of course there is much more to the story and online commentaries from many faiths are easily found on the internet or from personal discussions with your clergy, but for me, this story specifically illustrates how prayer was used as a method to relieve pain and stress.
Today, Eli the Priest might have recommended a healthy diet and exercise to go along with that prayer, still a good idea, we can only guess...
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Folklore and fairy tales: the midrash of the Lamed Vav-
I love stories of all kinds. Folk tales, myths, legends, fairy tales, oral histories you name it I get transfixed when I hear a great story. I even took a class on how to take apart or dissect one of these stories to find the kernel of truth that makes them a little bit believable. What I learned is that we humans share a common life experience. A story which is known to a particular region of the world often shows up in another part of the world but with a slightly different regional twist. The Cinderella story could be the bible story of Joseph which is a perfect example of the rags to riches tale every culture shares. Many times these stories were used to explain things that seemed miraculous and unknowable such as the regularity of a sunrise or the stages of the moon. For all the weather science we know today, my snow plow company told me he knew we would have a snowless winter in 2011- 2012 because the Farmer's Almanac told him so. He also did not refund me the season rate even though he knew I would overspend and recommended that I use that as a guide for future reference.
My favorite story of all time is the Lamed Vav- the 36 angels sent by God to roam the earth with the intention to save the world
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0012_0_11784.html.
I love this story because it makes the connection between God and people through the heart (lamed) and mind (vav). The word Lamed-Vav is Hebrew for the number thirty-six. In Hebrew all words have many layers of meaning, and so, challenging to study and come to common opinion. In this story there are 36 undistinguished people roaming the earth to save the world. These people do not know that they are one of the chosen thirty-six so it might be you. I like to believe, sometimes, I am one of the thirty-six and try to live my life to do good things. When I meet people who do good I believe they are a Lamed Vav too. Are you?
I love stories of all kinds. Folk tales, myths, legends, fairy tales, oral histories you name it I get transfixed when I hear a great story. I even took a class on how to take apart or dissect one of these stories to find the kernel of truth that makes them a little bit believable. What I learned is that we humans share a common life experience. A story which is known to a particular region of the world often shows up in another part of the world but with a slightly different regional twist. The Cinderella story could be the bible story of Joseph which is a perfect example of the rags to riches tale every culture shares. Many times these stories were used to explain things that seemed miraculous and unknowable such as the regularity of a sunrise or the stages of the moon. For all the weather science we know today, my snow plow company told me he knew we would have a snowless winter in 2011- 2012 because the Farmer's Almanac told him so. He also did not refund me the season rate even though he knew I would overspend and recommended that I use that as a guide for future reference.
My favorite story of all time is the Lamed Vav- the 36 angels sent by God to roam the earth with the intention to save the world
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0012_0_11784.html.
I love this story because it makes the connection between God and people through the heart (lamed) and mind (vav). The word Lamed-Vav is Hebrew for the number thirty-six. In Hebrew all words have many layers of meaning, and so, challenging to study and come to common opinion. In this story there are 36 undistinguished people roaming the earth to save the world. These people do not know that they are one of the chosen thirty-six so it might be you. I like to believe, sometimes, I am one of the thirty-six and try to live my life to do good things. When I meet people who do good I believe they are a Lamed Vav too. Are you?
Friday, June 22, 2012
June 22, 2012
Welcome to my first ever blog! I have two passions one is Nutrition and in college at The Ohio State University I studied Human Nutrition graduating in 1980 with a BS in Human Nutrition. This was a relatively new major back then and differed from how most Registered Dietitians were trained in that I was not hospital trained with an internship. In 1983, I went to graduate school at the University of Cincinnati and received a Master's in Nutrition Education. I became a Registered Dietitian through the six month hospital experience route available to those with Master's Level education. My second passion is Jewish History and much later in my life after marriage and children I decided to return to school and get a Master's in Judaic Studies with a concentration in Modern Jewish History at Siegal College in Cleveland. At first it may seem that these two subjects have no connection to each other but you would be suprised how often nutrition and spirituality have meaning together. The purpose of this blog is to explore, educate, highlight and draw parallels when these subjects collide. I am also interested in hearing what you have to say as I have found that most people feel quite strongly about this subject BUT please be polite.
Welcome to my first ever blog! I have two passions one is Nutrition and in college at The Ohio State University I studied Human Nutrition graduating in 1980 with a BS in Human Nutrition. This was a relatively new major back then and differed from how most Registered Dietitians were trained in that I was not hospital trained with an internship. In 1983, I went to graduate school at the University of Cincinnati and received a Master's in Nutrition Education. I became a Registered Dietitian through the six month hospital experience route available to those with Master's Level education. My second passion is Jewish History and much later in my life after marriage and children I decided to return to school and get a Master's in Judaic Studies with a concentration in Modern Jewish History at Siegal College in Cleveland. At first it may seem that these two subjects have no connection to each other but you would be suprised how often nutrition and spirituality have meaning together. The purpose of this blog is to explore, educate, highlight and draw parallels when these subjects collide. I am also interested in hearing what you have to say as I have found that most people feel quite strongly about this subject BUT please be polite.
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