Beth Chayim Chadashim Telephone Minyan
Rosh HaShanah Machzor
Prayers for Healing and Understanding
Tuesday
September 30, 2008
1 Tishrei 5769
A Hasidic Tale:
Rabbi Shneur Zalman, The Rav of Northern White Russia was in jail in
Petersburg awaiting trial when the prison warden entered his cell. The majestic
and quiet Rav, who was so deep in meditation that he did not at first notice his
visitor, suggested to the prison warden, a thoughtful person, what manner of man
he had before him. He began to converse with his prisoner and brought up a
number of questions which had occurred to him in reading the Scriptures. Finally
he asked: ‘How are we to understand that God, the all-knowing, said to Adam:
“Where are you?”’
‘Do you believe,’ answered the Rav, ‘that the Scriptures are eternal and
that every era, every generation and every person is included in them?’
‘I believe this,’ said the other.
‘Well then,’ said the zaddik, in every era, God calls to every person:
“Where are you in your world? So many years and days of those allotted to you
have passed, and how far have you gotten in your world?” God says something
like this: “You have lived forty-six years. How far along are you?”’
When the prison warden heard his age mentioned, he pulled himself
together, laid his hand on the Rav’s shoulder, and cried: ‘Bravo!’ But his heart
trembled.
BCC Telephone Minyan Rosh HaShanah Machzor compiled and edited by Bracha Yael Cheng 9/08
Here I Am…
Here We Are…
Just as the prison warden shook at the Rav’s words “where are you in your
world?” We ask: Where are we in ours? The sounds of the Shofar awaken us
from our spiritual slumber. They urge us to search deeply into our souls, on what
we have done right in the past year, and what we would like to do better in the
coming year. We come together today, to pray both alone and in community for
insight and strength to return to our unique purpose in this world.
Here I am…
Here I stand, impoverished in merit, trembling in Your Presence, pleading on
behalf of Your people Israel even though I am unfit and unworthy for the task.
Therefore, gracious and compassionate Adonai, awesome God of Abraham and
Sarah, of Isaac and Rebecca, of Jacob and Leah and Rachel, I plead for help as
I seek mercy for myself and for those whom I represent. Charge them not with
my sins. May they not be shamed for my deeds; and may their deeds cause me
no shame. Accept my prayer as the prayer of one uniquely worthy and qualified
for this task, whose voice is sweet and whose nature is pleasing to others.
Remove all obstacles and adversaries. Draw Your veil of love over all our faults.
Transform our afflictions to joy and gladness, life and peace. May we always
love truth and peace. And may no obstacles confront my prayer.
Revered, exalted, awesome God, may my prayer reach Your throne, for the sake
of all honest, pious, righteous people, and for the sake of Your glory. Praised are
You, merciful God who hears prayer.
Here We Are…
We invite into our presence family and friends who are away or of blessed
memory to join us as we celebrate Rosh HaShanah together. Please say now
who you would like to be with us today.
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This Is My Prayer
This is my prayer to you, my gentle God—
let me not stray from my life’s course,
let not my spirit fall into decay,
and may it never cease to thirst for you,
and for the energizing dew
that you have sprinkled on it
ever since my life was new.
And let my heart open to
the downtrodden, and to the orphaned life,
and to all who stumble,
and to one entangled amid hidden sorrows,
and to one who struggles in the dark.
And bless my eyes, and let me merit
to behold the human beauty in this world.
Deepen my senses, widen their grasp
so they absorb a green and flowering
and budding world, and take from it
the secret blossoming within a silence.
Grant me with strength to yield
the best of fruits. Let my life grow
a wealth of word and deed, steeped
in the fountain of my being,
without my measuring all things
for only what they have to offer me.
And when my day shall come,
let me slip into the land of night,
without asking anything from others
or from you, God.
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Shema and V’havta
We learn from the Sh’ma, which means “Listen,” that the first step in any
significant relationship is the act of listening. But the first part of listening is to be
quiet. Being quiet is not easy. It does not mean simply not speaking. It also
means opening your ears and your heart. It means trying to clear from your mind
the inner dialogue which can be distracting when we want to listen to the voice of
another. To be a good [listener], we must truly listen not only to the words, but to
the heart of the other.
Shema Yisrael, Adonai Eloheynu, Adonai Echad
Hear O Israel, Adonai is God, Adonai is One!
Baruch Shem k’vod mal’chu-to l’o-lam va-ed
Praise the Name to whom all praise is due throughout space and time!
Hear O’ Israel
Just as God is One, So are We!
Just as you shall love your God with all your heart, with all your soul,
and with all your might, so shall you love all people.
Teach love, compassion, and understanding to your children
when you sit in your home, while you walk on your way,
when you retire and when you arise.
Bind these words as a sign upon your arm so that you may
fight against prejudice, between your eyes so that you may
not be blind to the suffering of others, and write them
on the doorposts of your homes and gates so that
you remind yourself and others that intolerance
will not be tolerated within these walls.
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Torah Service
Awakening to the Words of Torah:
“Rabbi Joshua ben Levy said…’When a person feels pain in one’s head, let one
occupy oneself with Torah, since the verse (Proverbs 1:9) goes on to prescribe
“for your head.” When a person feels pain in one’s throat, let one occupy oneself
with Torah, for the verse likens Torah’s words to “a necklace about your throat”
(Proverbs 3:3). When one feels pain in one’s innards, let one occupy oneself
with Torah, for another verse says of the Torah, that “it shall be a healing to the
navel” (Proverbs 3:8). When one feels pain in one’s bones, let one occupy
oneself with Torah, since the verse also describes Torah as “marrow for your
bones” (Proverbs 3:8). When one feels pain in one’s entire body, let one occupy
oneself with Torah, since another verse speaks of it as “healing for one’s whole
body” (Proverbs 4:22).”
Blessings before Studying Torah:
Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheynu melech ha-olam asher kid’sha-nu b’mitz-vo-tav
v’tzee-vanu l’sok b’divrei Torah.
Blessed are You Adonai, Our God, Sovereign of all Creation, who has
commanded us to soak in the words of Torah.
The Akedah (Binding of Isaac)
1. Some time afterward, God put Abraham to the test. God said to him,
“Abraham,” and he answered, “Here I am.”
2. And God said, “Take your son, your favored one, Isaac, whom you love, and
go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the
heights that I will point out to you.”
3. So early next morning, Abraham saddled his ass and took with him two of his
servants and his son Isaac. He split the wood for the burnt offering, and he set
out for the place of which God had told him.
4. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place from afar.
5. Then Abraham said to his servants, “You stay here with the ass. The boy and
I will go up there; we will worship and we will return to you.”
6. Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and put it on his son Isaac. He
himself took the firestone and the knife; and the two walked off together.
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Torah Service (Cont.)
The Akedah (Cont.)
7. Then Isaac said to his father Abraham, “Father!” And he answered, “Yes, my
son.” And he said, “Here are the firestone and the wood; but where is the sheep
for the burnt offering?”
8. And Abraham said, “God will see to the sheep for God’s burnt offering, my
son.” And the two of them walked on together.
9. They arrived at the place of which God had told him. Abraham built an altar
there; he laid out the wood; he bound his son Isaac; he laid him on the altar, on
top of the wood.
10. And Abraham picked up the knife to slay his son.
11. Then an angel of Adonai called to him from heaven: “Abraham! Abraham!”
And he answered, “Here I am.”
12. And he said, “Do not raise your hand against the boy, or do anything to him.
For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your
favored one, from Me.”
13. When Abraham looked up, his eye fell upon a ram caught in the thicket by its
horns. So Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering in
place of his son.
14. And Abraham named that site Adonai-yireh, whence the present saying, “On
the Mount of Adonai there is vision.”
15. The angel of Adonai called to Abraham a second time from heaven,
16. And said, “By myself I swear, Adonai declares: Because you have done this
and have not withheld your son, your favored one,
17. I will bestow My blessing upon you and make your descendants as numerous
as the stars of heaven and the sands on the seashore; and your descendants
shall seize the gates of their foes.
18. All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants,
because you have obeyed My command.”
19. Abraham then returned to his servants, and they departed together for Beersheba; and Abraham stayed in Beer-sheba.
20. Some time later, Abraham was told, “Milcah too has borne children to your
brother Nahor:
21. Uz the first-born, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram;
22. And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel.”
23. Bethuel being the father of Rebekah. These eight Milcah bore to Nahor,
Abraham’s brother.
24. And his concubine, whose name was Reumah, also bore children: Tebah,
and Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
(Gen. 22:1-24)
On this Rosh HaShanah, may our hands comfort the bereaved, our tongues
speak words of love, our souls seek one another, and our study of Torah refresh
our spirits so that we may taste the world to come.
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Shofar Service
Shechechiyanu
Former BCC Rabbinic Intern Daniel Mikelberg reflects: I like to term the
special times worthy of the Shechechiyanu blessing as Shechechiyanu moments.
These include having the opportunity to share a meal with your family, seeing the
flowers blossom in the garden and waking up in the morning feeling healthy and
strong. Each of these are Shechechiyanu moments that we all let slip by without
notice. We are each surrounded by blessings and gifts that we all too often
overlook!
The Shofar will soon blast in honor of the New Year awakening us to the
call. Don’t let Shechechiyanu moments pass by without recognition! This is the
season for new beginnings. Let us focus on the awareness of the holiness
around us! Rather than dwell on what we don’t have, let us remind ourselves of
the special moments that we take for granted! Let us try our best to assure that
our Shechechiyanu moments don’t slip by…let us celebrate their existence and
holy nature in our lives. May this be a year for you of many special moments
worthy of cherishing and appreciating!
Baruch atah Adonai Eloheynu melech ha-olam shechechiyanu v’kiymanu
v’higianu lazman ha-zeh.
You are praised, Adonai our God, Sovereign of the universe, who has kept us
alive and sustained us and allowed us to reach this wondrous time.
Commandment to Listen to the Shofar
Baruch atah Adonai Eloheynu melech ha-olam asher kid’sha-nu b’mitz-vo-tav
v’tzee-vanu lishmo-a kol shafar.
You are praised, Adonai our God, Sovereign of the universe, who made us holy
through Your mitzvot, and commanded us to listen to the sound of the shofar.
T’kiah
T’kiah
T’kiah
Sh’varim T’ruah
Sh’varim T’ruah
Sh’varim T’ruah
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T’kiah
T’kiah
T’kiah
Shofar Service (Cont.)
MALCHUYOT:
Evocations of God’s Sovereignty
Today marks the birthday of the world. Today we affirm our faith that the
world makes sense, that there is design and purpose, order and beauty within it.
And we affirm that we, who are made in God’s image, are called upon to
continue the work of creation, to finish the task of bringing order out of chaos,
light where there is darkness, understanding where there is ignorance, and hope
where there is despair.
Shema Yisrael, Adonai Eloheynu, Adonai Echad!
T’kiah
T’kiah
T’kiah
Sh’varim T’ruah
Sh’varim
T’ruah
ZICHRONOT:
T’kiah
T’kiah
T’kiah
Remembrances
Said Rabbi Abbahu: Why do we sound the horn of the ram? Because the
Holy One, Blessed be God, said: Blow me a ram’s horn that I may remember
unto you the Binding of Isaac the son of Abraham and Sarah, and I shall account
unto you for a binding of yourselves before me.
“And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a
ram caught in the thicket by his horns” (Gen. 22:13) – teaching us that the Holy
One, blessed be God, showed our ancestor Abraham that by tearing himself free
from one thicket that he was becoming entangled in another. Said the Holy One,
blessed be God, to Abraham: thus are your children destined to be caught in
iniquities and entangled in misfortunes, but in the end they will be redeemed by
the horns of a ram. Therefore, it is said “And Adonai God will blow the horn.”
(Zech. 9:14)
T’kiah
T’kiah
T’kiah
Sh’varim T’ruah
Sh’varim
T’ruah
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T’kiah
T’kiah
T’kiah
Shofar Service (Cont.)
SHOFAROT: The Shofar Sounds
In the world of matter, sound travels great distances from place to place,
connecting two places far away from the other. In the realm of spirit sound can
also transcend space and rise to that Place in which all lesser places merge. On
Rosh HaShanah, the first of the Ten Days of Returning, we begin our returning
from all the bad places that our missteps have carried us, returning to that true
Place which is our proper home. But it is possible to rise to that place only
through the sacred sounds which rise from our lips moving in prayer and from
pushing sounds out of the Shofar up to heaven. As we stand in the place where
we have gone astray and lift the words and Shofar sounds toward heaven, God
hears our voice, and leads us out beyond our present place up and up onto that
realm which transcends place and space to the Place of the World, to God,
where everyone is returned to the perfection of our creation.
T’kiah
T’kiah
T’kiah
Sh’varim T’ruah
Sh’varim
T’ruah
T’kiah
T’kiah
T’kiah G’dolah
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Prayers of Healing and Remembrance
Illness lies within us, and no one else knows exactly how we feel. Prayer has the
power to transform our fears into faith. It reminds us that we are never alone.
Everything we are, body and soul, is in the hand of God, whose presence fills the
universe and who is as close to us as our own breath.
No matter what this unpredictable world sends our way, with God by our side we
can find the strength to comfort our fears. So pray and welcome God's healing
power.
Prayer for Family and Friends
Dear God, be with my family and friends. Bring peace to their troubled spirits.
Enable them to know that their love gives me strength. Help me to express my
gratitude and appreciation to them for all they have done and are continuing to
do. Let them feel free to bring me their own joys and sorrows that I may continue
to participate in their lives even as they share mine.
May this also be a time of inner searching, that I may appreciate more fully the
good and beautiful in life and labor to bring these to the lives of others. Grant me
health and healing that I may carry out Your will in peace. Then will my life
reflect Your presence, and my love, Your love.
To know healing
is to know that
all life is one
and there is no beginning
and no end
and the intention is loving
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Prayers of Healing and Remembrance (Cont.)
Kaddish (for Marilyn)
As long
as I speak
your name
you are
not dead
as long
as I think
your pain
I cannot
grieve
the granite marker
tells
your name
your age
the bleak horizon
scars
the barren hedge
as long
as I
you
are not dead
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Prayers of Healing and Remembrance (Cont.)
Mourner’s Kaddish
Yit-gadal ve-yit-kadash shmei raba, b’alma divra khir’utei ve-yamlikh mal-khutei
be-chayei-khon uve’yomei-khon uve-chayei di-khol beit yisrael ba-agala uvizman kariv v’imru amen.
Ye-hei shmei raba meva-rakh l’alam ul’almei ‘al-maya
Yit-barakh ve-yish-tabach ve-yitpa’ar ve-yitromam ve-yitnasei ve-yit-hadar veyit’aleh ve-yit-halal shmei di-kudsha brikh hu, l’eila l’eila min kol bir-khata veshirata tush-be-chata ve-neche-mata da-amiran b’alma, v’imru amen.
Ye-hei shlama raba min shmaya ve-chayim aleinu v’al kol yisrael v’imru amen.
Oseh shalom bimromav hu ya-aseh shalom aleinu v’al kol yisrael v’imru amen.
Hallowed and enhanced may God be throughout the world of God’s own
creation. May God cause God’s sovereignty soon to be accepted, during our life
and the life of all Israel.
And let us say: Amen.
May God be praised throughout all time.
Glorified and celebrated, lauded and praised, acclaimed and honored, extolled
and exalted may the Holy One be, far beyond all song and psalm, beyond all
tributes which one can utter.
And let us say: Amen.
Let there be abundant peace from Heaven, with life’s goodness for us and for all
the people Israel.
And let us say: Amen.
God who brings peace to God’s universe will bring peace to us and to all the
people Israel.
And let us say: Amen.
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Sources
‘Hasidic Tale’ from The Way of Man: According to the Teaching of Hasidism by
Martin Buber
‘Hineni Prayer’ adapted from Traditional Sources.
‘This is My Prayer’ by Hillel Bavli (translated by Joel Rosenberg) from Kol
Haneshamah, Reconstructionist Press.
‘Shema Means Listen’ from Stepping Stones to Jewish Spiritual Living by Rabbi
James L. Mirel and Karen Bonnell Werth.
Interpretive V’havta by Bracha Yael Cheng.
‘Awakening to the Words of Torah’ from Stepping Stones to Jewish Spiritual
Living by Rabbi James L. Mirel and Karen Bonnell Werth.
Torah Reading translation from The Jewish Study Bible: Tanakh Translation,
Jewish Publication Society, 1999. (Minor editing by Bracha Yael Cheng).
Shechechiyanu Reflection from a Drash by Daniel Mikelberg (Rabbinic Intern).
Malchuyot Reading from On Wings of Awe.
Zichronot Story from B. Talmud Rosh Hashanah 16a.
Shaforot Reflection from On Wings of Awe.
‘Illness Lies Within Us Prayer’ from Talking to God by Naomi Levy.
‘Pray for Family and Friends’ from Gates of Healing: A Message of Comfort and
Hope published by CCAR.
‘To Know Healing Prayer’ by Margaret Torrie from Kol Haneshamah,
Reconstructionist Press.
‘Kaddish (for Marilyn)’ by Hannah Kahn from Kol Haneshamah, Reconstructionist
Press.
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