Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
I did not attend synagogue. I did not fast. I did not participate in the festive meals. I did not hear the shofar and I did not proclaim my Ashamnu or Al Cheit sins. But for ten days I have found myself in an increasing state of awe.
I was working, with all the distractions that entails. Yet over these days even the work contributed to a sense of atonement.
God is with us. God is within us and about us. Too often I am inclined to feel unworthy of God. I push God to arms-length. In these days my worth did not increase, but I stopped pushing away and extended my hand.
Today and in the days ahead I will sin again and again. I will mistreat others and dishonor God's purpose.
But the gravest sin - that which even God cannot redeem - is the self-made choice to be separated from God. For this sin to be undone requires each of us to put aside our pride-of-self. Whether we express it in anger, or sadness, or unworthiness, or aggression, or obsession or whatever, we must give way to make room for God's grace.
Gracious and glorious God, thank you for the blessing of these days.
I was working, with all the distractions that entails. Yet over these days even the work contributed to a sense of atonement.
God is with us. God is within us and about us. Too often I am inclined to feel unworthy of God. I push God to arms-length. In these days my worth did not increase, but I stopped pushing away and extended my hand.
Today and in the days ahead I will sin again and again. I will mistreat others and dishonor God's purpose.
But the gravest sin - that which even God cannot redeem - is the self-made choice to be separated from God. For this sin to be undone requires each of us to put aside our pride-of-self. Whether we express it in anger, or sadness, or unworthiness, or aggression, or obsession or whatever, we must give way to make room for God's grace.
Gracious and glorious God, thank you for the blessing of these days.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Today is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, the most solemn day in the Jewish calendar. It is a day of fasting and perpetual prayer.
Completing our study of the Amidah prayer:
Blessed are You Lord, who blesses His people Israel with peace. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, Lord, my Strength and my Redeemer. My God, guard my tongue from evil and my lips from speaking deceitfully. Let my soul be silent to those who curse me; let my soul be as dust to all. Open my heart to Your Torah, and let my soul eagerly pursue Your commandments. As for all those who plot evil against me, hasten to annul their counsel and frustrate their design. Let them be as chaff before the wind; let the angel of the Lord thrust them away. That Your beloved ones may be delivered, help with Your right hand and answer me. Do it for the sake of Your Name; do it for the sake of Your right hand; do it for the sake of Your Torah; do it for the sake of Your holiness. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, Lord, my Strength and my Redeemer. He who makes peace in His heavens may He make peace for us and for all Israel, Amen. He who makes the peace in His heavens, may He make peace for us and for all Israel, Amen. May it be Your will, Lord our God and God of our fathers, that the Bet Hamikdash be speedily rebuilt in our days, and grant us our portion in Your Torah.
Open my heart to your Torah and let me eagerly pursue your commandments. Make peace, fulfill your purpose, cause that which is broken to be made whole.
The English atonement is derived from the Germanic attone or atoon. But it might as well be an English compound because it means "at one." It is essentially to be as one, in agreement, in harmony, where two or more become as one.
This is day to be at one with our Creator, to be as one as children of one Creator, to be as one with ourselves, no longer divided, confused, and uncertain; but fulfilled, whole, and complete.
Ten days ago I cast my sins into the Merced River. Last evening I transferred my sins to a living seed spinning about my head. But beyond this, I believe that even before I was born my sins were forgiven.
It is not forgiveness that is needed. That has already been guaranteed. What matters is my acceptance of the forgiveness and my readiness to be at one with God.
Completing our study of the Amidah prayer:
Blessed are You Lord, who blesses His people Israel with peace. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, Lord, my Strength and my Redeemer. My God, guard my tongue from evil and my lips from speaking deceitfully. Let my soul be silent to those who curse me; let my soul be as dust to all. Open my heart to Your Torah, and let my soul eagerly pursue Your commandments. As for all those who plot evil against me, hasten to annul their counsel and frustrate their design. Let them be as chaff before the wind; let the angel of the Lord thrust them away. That Your beloved ones may be delivered, help with Your right hand and answer me. Do it for the sake of Your Name; do it for the sake of Your right hand; do it for the sake of Your Torah; do it for the sake of Your holiness. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, Lord, my Strength and my Redeemer. He who makes peace in His heavens may He make peace for us and for all Israel, Amen. He who makes the peace in His heavens, may He make peace for us and for all Israel, Amen. May it be Your will, Lord our God and God of our fathers, that the Bet Hamikdash be speedily rebuilt in our days, and grant us our portion in Your Torah.
Open my heart to your Torah and let me eagerly pursue your commandments. Make peace, fulfill your purpose, cause that which is broken to be made whole.
-+-
The English atonement is derived from the Germanic attone or atoon. But it might as well be an English compound because it means "at one." It is essentially to be as one, in agreement, in harmony, where two or more become as one.
This is day to be at one with our Creator, to be as one as children of one Creator, to be as one with ourselves, no longer divided, confused, and uncertain; but fulfilled, whole, and complete.
Ten days ago I cast my sins into the Merced River. Last evening I transferred my sins to a living seed spinning about my head. But beyond this, I believe that even before I was born my sins were forgiven.
It is not forgiveness that is needed. That has already been guaranteed. What matters is my acceptance of the forgiveness and my readiness to be at one with God.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Inscribe all the children of Your Covenant for a good life. And all living things shall forever thank You, and praise Your great Name eternally, for You are good. God, You are our everlasting salvation and help, O benevolent God. Blessed are You Lord, Beneficent is Your Name, and to You it is fitting to offer thanks. Bestow peace, goodness and blessing, life, graciousness, kindness and mercy, upon us and upon all Your people Israel. Bless us, our Father, all of us as one, with the light of Your countenance. For by the light of Your countenance You gave us, Lord our God, the Torah of life and loving-kindness, righteousness, blessing, mercy, life and peace. May it be favorable in Your eyes to bless Your people Israel, at all times and at every moment, with Your peace. And all living things shall forever thank You, and praise Your great Name eternally, for You are good. God, You are our everlasting salvation and help, O benevolent God. Blessed are You Lord, Beneficent is Your Name, and to You it is fitting to offer thanks. Bestow peace, goodness and blessing, life, graciousness, kindness and mercy, upon us and upon all Your people Israel. Bless us, our Father, all of us as one, with the light of Your countenance. For by the light of Your countenance You gave us, Lord our God, the Torah of life and loving-kindness, righteousness, blessing, mercy, life and peace. May it be favorable in Your eyes to bless Your people Israel, at all times and at every moment, with Your peace.
We do not come to God alone. No matter how shy or shunned, we stand before God as one in relationship with others.
Our relationships may be slight, strained, or broken. If so, we are asking God's help to understand what this tells us of our relationship with God.
Our relationships may be deep, comfortable, and healthy. If so, we are asking God's help to understand "loving-kindness, righteousness, blessing, mercy, life and peace."
Our relationships often range between these poles and are of great variety. What does this variation tell us of ourselves, others, and God?
Bless us, our Father, all of us as one.
Sunday afternoon I finally returned home, fifteen days after leaving. The bright heat of the west was exchanged for the cloudy coolness of the east.
This is the Erev Yom Kippur, the eve of Yom Kippur. In most Jewish homes it is a day of festive meals, giving charity and asking forgiveness of others.
Before sunset the faithful gather for the Kol Nidre service. Here with sacred song the congregation renounce rash vows made in the name of God, but offered as expressions of human control. The congregants recite:
All personal vows we are likely to make, all personal oaths and pledges we are likely to take between this Yom Kippur and the next Yom Kippur, we publicly renounce. Let them all be relinquished and abandoned, null and void, neither firm nor established. Let our personal vows, pledges and oaths be considered neither vows nor pledges nor oaths.
While the purpose of Kol Nidre has sometimes been misunderstood by both Gentile and Jew, it is a communal act of worship that highlights human frailty and discourages human pride. It is not our vows, but God's will that offers assurance.
In some Jewish communities the eve of Yom Kippur is also recognized with the tradition of Kapporas. Last evening my wife and I went into the woods across our meadow, chose a tree nut, placed it in a gauzy golden bag and three times swung it over our head as we recited:
This is my exchange, this is my substitute, this is my atonement. This living seed will be buried while I will enter and proceed to a good long life and to peace.
Then we buried the seed in the ground. There is also a tradition of doing this with a live chicken that is slaughtered and given to the poor.
Prior to the three swings, we are to read from Psalm 107:
O give thanks unto the Lordor He is good, for His mercy endureth for ever. So let the redeemed of the Lord, whom He hath redeemed from the hand of the adversary; And gathered them out of the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the sea. They wandered in the wilderness in a desert way; they found no city of habitation.
and from Job 33: 23-24:
If there be for him an angel, a mediator, one of the thousand, to declare to man what is right for him, and he is merciful to him, and says, 'Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom.
It is easy - perhaps too easy - for a Christian to perceive in this sense of atonement something very close to how many understand the Easter story.
We do not come to God alone. No matter how shy or shunned, we stand before God as one in relationship with others.
Our relationships may be slight, strained, or broken. If so, we are asking God's help to understand what this tells us of our relationship with God.
Our relationships may be deep, comfortable, and healthy. If so, we are asking God's help to understand "loving-kindness, righteousness, blessing, mercy, life and peace."
Our relationships often range between these poles and are of great variety. What does this variation tell us of ourselves, others, and God?
Bless us, our Father, all of us as one.
--+--
Sunday afternoon I finally returned home, fifteen days after leaving. The bright heat of the west was exchanged for the cloudy coolness of the east.
This is the Erev Yom Kippur, the eve of Yom Kippur. In most Jewish homes it is a day of festive meals, giving charity and asking forgiveness of others.
Before sunset the faithful gather for the Kol Nidre service. Here with sacred song the congregation renounce rash vows made in the name of God, but offered as expressions of human control. The congregants recite:
All personal vows we are likely to make, all personal oaths and pledges we are likely to take between this Yom Kippur and the next Yom Kippur, we publicly renounce. Let them all be relinquished and abandoned, null and void, neither firm nor established. Let our personal vows, pledges and oaths be considered neither vows nor pledges nor oaths.
While the purpose of Kol Nidre has sometimes been misunderstood by both Gentile and Jew, it is a communal act of worship that highlights human frailty and discourages human pride. It is not our vows, but God's will that offers assurance.
In some Jewish communities the eve of Yom Kippur is also recognized with the tradition of Kapporas. Last evening my wife and I went into the woods across our meadow, chose a tree nut, placed it in a gauzy golden bag and three times swung it over our head as we recited:
This is my exchange, this is my substitute, this is my atonement. This living seed will be buried while I will enter and proceed to a good long life and to peace.
Then we buried the seed in the ground. There is also a tradition of doing this with a live chicken that is slaughtered and given to the poor.
Prior to the three swings, we are to read from Psalm 107:
O give thanks unto the Lordor He is good, for His mercy endureth for ever. So let the redeemed of the Lord, whom He hath redeemed from the hand of the adversary; And gathered them out of the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the sea. They wandered in the wilderness in a desert way; they found no city of habitation.
and from Job 33: 23-24:
If there be for him an angel, a mediator, one of the thousand, to declare to man what is right for him, and he is merciful to him, and says, 'Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom.
It is easy - perhaps too easy - for a Christian to perceive in this sense of atonement something very close to how many understand the Easter story.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
We thankfully acknowledge that You are the Lord our God and God of our fathers forever. You are the strength of our life, the shield of our salvation in every generation. We will give thanks to You and recount Your praise, evening, morning and noon, for our lives which are committed into Your hand, for our souls which are entrusted to You, for Your miracles which are with us daily, and for Your continual wonders and beneficences. You are the Beneficent One, for Your mercies never cease; the Merciful One, for Your kindnesses never end; for we always place our hope in You. And for all these, may Your Name, our King, be continually blessed, exalted and extolled forever and all time.
The last five days were blessed. I was solo teaching from 7:30 to 4:30 each day, with plenty of thinking before and after.
Most of my adult life has been closely related to the defining and doing of "good" teaching, but it is hard for me to do. As an introvert (or is it just my pride?), I am especially sensitive to public error. I am too easily shamed.
Yet the best teaching method is to let learners take the substantive lead and to shape learning objectives to their particular interests. The best teaching method is to be open to the concerns of a group of strangers in an unfamiliar place and to uncover concerns that are held in common.
We always place our hope in you.
Unless I am effective at hearing their interests and insightful finding intersections with what I know, the learning can be uneven. And my students - cops, firefighters, emergency managers, and such - can be quick, harsh, and accurate in their judgments.
You are the strength of our life, the shield of our salvation.
When the intersections are found, the shared concerns are exposed, and these are explored and framed in a meaningful way, what unfolds is a kind of communal joy akin to a winning sports team. You feel it when a tough police sergeant shakes your hand and says, with a sparkle in his eyes, "these were the best two consecutive days I have had in years..."
Your miracles are with us daily.
According to the class evaluations, some outside observers, and my own assessment these were fabulous classes. The students enjoyed themselves, they were challenged, they learned alot, and they left ready and intending to apply what they learned.
Your mercies never cease.
Thank you my God and friend.
The last five days were blessed. I was solo teaching from 7:30 to 4:30 each day, with plenty of thinking before and after.
Most of my adult life has been closely related to the defining and doing of "good" teaching, but it is hard for me to do. As an introvert (or is it just my pride?), I am especially sensitive to public error. I am too easily shamed.
Yet the best teaching method is to let learners take the substantive lead and to shape learning objectives to their particular interests. The best teaching method is to be open to the concerns of a group of strangers in an unfamiliar place and to uncover concerns that are held in common.
We always place our hope in you.
Unless I am effective at hearing their interests and insightful finding intersections with what I know, the learning can be uneven. And my students - cops, firefighters, emergency managers, and such - can be quick, harsh, and accurate in their judgments.
You are the strength of our life, the shield of our salvation.
When the intersections are found, the shared concerns are exposed, and these are explored and framed in a meaningful way, what unfolds is a kind of communal joy akin to a winning sports team. You feel it when a tough police sergeant shakes your hand and says, with a sparkle in his eyes, "these were the best two consecutive days I have had in years..."
Your miracles are with us daily.
According to the class evaluations, some outside observers, and my own assessment these were fabulous classes. The students enjoyed themselves, they were challenged, they learned alot, and they left ready and intending to apply what they learned.
Your mercies never cease.
Thank you my God and friend.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Hear our voice, Lord our God; merciful Father, have compassion upon us and accept our prayers in mercy and favor, for You are God who hears prayers and supplications; do not turn us away empty-handed from You, our King, for You hear the prayer of everyone. Blessed are You Lord, who hears prayer. Look with favor, Lord our God, on Your people Israel and pay heed to their prayer; restore the service to Your Sanctuary and accept with love and favor Israel's fire-offerings and prayer; and may the service of Your people Israel always find favor. May our eyes behold Your return to Zion in mercy. Blessed are You Lord, who restores His Divine Presence to Zion.
God hears. God has not turned-away, but abides with us always. God looks. God pays heed.
In our prayers, do we hear? Do we abide with God or do we turn away. Do we look for God in our daily lives? Do we pay heed?
God is present on Zion. God is present here and now. But to participate in blessing we must be present to God.
God hears. God has not turned-away, but abides with us always. God looks. God pays heed.
In our prayers, do we hear? Do we abide with God or do we turn away. Do we look for God in our daily lives? Do we pay heed?
God is present on Zion. God is present here and now. But to participate in blessing we must be present to God.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
May Your mercies be aroused, Lord our God, upon the righteous, upon the pious, upon the elders of Your people, the House of Israel, upon the remnant of their sages, upon the righteous proselytes and upon us. Grant ample reward to all who truly trust in Your Name, and place our lot among them; may we never be disgraced, for we have put our trust in You. Blessed are You Lord, the support and security of the righteous. Return in mercy to Jerusalem Your city and dwell therein as You have promised; speedily establish therein the throne of David Your servant, and rebuild it, soon in our days, as an everlasting edifice. Blessed are You Lord, who rebuilds Jerusalem. Speedily cause the scion of David Your servant to flourish, and increase his power by Your salvation, for we hope for Your salvation all day. Blessed are You Lord, who causes the power of salvation to flourish. Hear our voice, Lord our God; merciful Father, have compassion upon us and accept our prayers in mercy and favor, for You are God who hears prayers and supplications; do not turn us away empty-handed from You, our King, for You hear the prayer of everyone. Blessed are You Lord, who hears prayer.
Trying to make sense of a transliteration of the Amidah prayer, I am pretty sure the mercy being prayed for so intensely is the Hebrew racham.
Other than mercy this is most often translated as compassion. There is a clear suggestion, especially in Isaiah, of forgiveness.
Forgive us, have compassion on us, and return us to power. This strikes me as a fair summary of the prayer.
Yesterday, speeding through the orchards of California's Central Valley as sign outside a church read, "Many want to serve the Lord... as advisers."
We come to God with our desires. I am not suggesting we should not. But we should also stay around long enough - and be open enough - to hear if God might have some advice regarding our desires.
Trying to make sense of a transliteration of the Amidah prayer, I am pretty sure the mercy being prayed for so intensely is the Hebrew racham.
Other than mercy this is most often translated as compassion. There is a clear suggestion, especially in Isaiah, of forgiveness.
Forgive us, have compassion on us, and return us to power. This strikes me as a fair summary of the prayer.
Yesterday, speeding through the orchards of California's Central Valley as sign outside a church read, "Many want to serve the Lord... as advisers."
We come to God with our desires. I am not suggesting we should not. But we should also stay around long enough - and be open enough - to hear if God might have some advice regarding our desires.
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