Dear Friends,
This week, our governor announced greater restrictions in our State following the rise in Covid cases. From Europe to Israel to Chicago, it appears that another wave of the pandemic is upon us.
Added to our Covid fatigue, next week is the culmination of a divisive campaign and an election that many believe to be one of the most important of our lifetimes.
We are all feeling anxious, and fighting negativity and worry.
We struggle to know what to do and how to help. We remain exhausted from the past seven months.
In our Jewish calendar, we are in the month of Mar Cheshvan. Mar means bitterness. It is a month without holidays that comes after the joy of Tishre. Ahead of us is the month of Kislev, when we celebrate finding light within the darkness. However, there is also a belief that this month without holiday will one day be the month to celebrate the building of the Third Temple (in our hearts).
We need to hold on to the faith that within this turmoil and difficulty are the seeds of a new beginning and of consequential transformation.
Once again, let us find strength, resilience by tapping into our higher self.
Let us to turn to each other to find support. Let us be a force of positivity and light (yes – Hannukah is not too far away) in all of our interactions.
At least within our own immediate environment, we can do our best to resist anger and hate, and hold on to understanding and love. We each have a part to play.
This week, our president Juli Geldner and I are relaunching our weekly question.
In the spirit of this month’s Jewniversity theme ‘protection’ (every month, our new adult education program will have a theme that will be addressed in classes, sermons, these questions and other forums), Juli asked me about the Tefillat Ha-Derekh, the Jewish traveler’s prayer.
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I am glad to be answering these questions again! The traveler’s prayer is one of those beautiful Jewish customs that is widely practiced in some communities while remaining unknown in others. The Talmud says that whenever we go on a journey outside the boundaries of our city, we are to recite this prayer of protection.
When I think of the traveler’s prayer, I remember communal bus trips in Israel on journeys outside of Jerusalem where someone would grab the microphone and recite the ancient prayer, invoking God’s help against bandits and wild beasts on the road. I always found it powerful and a connecting force that we have a blessing that we say before heading out on a journey.
Here is the English text of the blessing:
"May it be Your will, Lord, our God and the God of our ancestors, that You lead us toward peace, guide our footsteps toward peace, and make us reach our desired destination for life, gladness, and peace.
May You rescue us from the hand of every foe and ambush, from robbers and wild beasts on the trip, and from all manner of punishments that assemble to come to earth.
May You send blessing in our handiwork, and grant us grace, kindness, and mercy in Your eyes and in the eyes of all who see us.
May You hear the sound of our humble request because You are God Who hears prayer requests. Blessed are You, Lord, Who hears prayer.”
In our modern days we rarely have to fear from wild beasts (although when traveling through a national park it has come to mind!). Yet, in our journeys of life we encounter obstacles and dangers, foes and ambushes.
In the Talmud, the sage Abba concludes the section on the prayer by remarking, one should merge oneself into the community. The traveler’s prayer can be said individually but is often recited as a group.
Just a few days before our elections is an appropriate time to say the traveler’s prayer; to pray that we are led to peace, that our footsteps are guided toward peace, that we reach our desired destination for life, gladness, and peace. May we be rescued from every obstacle, and every foe and ambush.
Please hear our humble request! Amen.
As we head into this week, I would like to leave you with a video from the High Holiday of one of our most profound prayers, imagining the Shepherd on the Day of Judgment counting and measuring every sheep (on the way to the voting booths?). Please click here for the video featuring myself, Cantor Figa, Leila Cleofe, and David Oromaner on the drums. (https://youtu.be/Egz3Fh6-7Jk)
With blessings that we all find hope for the journey ahead and a peaceful Shabbat.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Adir Glick
