There’s a Talmudic teaching that, as a condition of being born, every creature has to consent to God to accept the form it is being given, and the life that will ensue from that. Following on from that, here is my reading of the first two verses of Ki Tavo (Deut. 26:1-2). “Now it shall […]
Being deployed by God – Ki Tavo Read More »
These are my own gleanings from the book by Zalman Shachter-Shalomi and Edward Hoffman, Sparks of Light: Counseling in the Hasidic Tradition, 1983, Shambhala, Boulder). I hope they encourage you to buy the book. I have paraphrased in order to clarify my own understanding, but there are also direct quotations from the book. The notes
Sparks of Light (book by Zalman Shachter-Shalomi) Read More »
These are my own gleanings from the book by Joel Lurie Grishaver, Stories We Pray: insights into the inner-work of Jewish worship (2012, Torah Aura Productions). I hope they encourage you to buy the book. I have paraphrased in order to clarify my own understanding, but there are also direct quotations from the book. The notes
These are my own gleanings from a profound book (both spiritually and practically by Zalman Shachter-Shalomi, The Gates of Prayer: Twelve Talks on Davennology (2011, Albion / Andalus, Boulder). I hope they encourage you to buy the book. I have paraphrased in order to clarify my own understanding, but there are also direct quotations from
The Gates of Prayer: Twelve Talks on Davennology – notes on Reb Zalman’s book Read More »
These are my own gleanings from a classic text by Zalman Shachter-Shalomi, First Steps to a New Jewish Spirit: Reb Zalman’s guide to recapturing the intimacy & ecstasy in your relationship with God (2003, Albion / Andalus, Boulder). I hope they encourage you to buy the book. I have paraphrased in order to clarify my
First Steps to a New Jewish Spirit – notes on Reb Zalman’s book Read More »
Notes on the essay by Abraham Joshua Heschel in Review of Religion vol. 9 no. 2, January (1945) 1. Prayer as an answer “We do not refuse to pray; we abstain from it.” “We cannot make Him visible to us, but we can make ourselves visible to Him. So we open our thoughts to Him.” “To
‘Prayer’ – A.J. Heschel (1945) Read More »
Last Saturday, I turned 60. That means that, if I’d had a bar mitzvah at 13, it would have been in 1977, and Tzav would have been my portion. At that age, I think I would have felt very hard done by to get this parsha, with its exhausting minutiae on sacrifices: what flour and
All are honoured, no one goes without (Tzav) Read More »
Exploring God as Transcendent and God as Immanent, I began to wonder how this might relate to Buber’s formulation of I-Thou and I-It. Having decided that I don’t think they map on top of each other, I am experimenting with a matrix like this: I’ve called it the T2-I2 matrix—Transcendence-Thou-Immanence-It. The T2-I2 matrix stimulated some
Transcendence, Immanence, I-Thou, I-It Read More »
Introduction before leyning Chapter 15 of Exodus Today is Shabbat Shirah—the shabbat of song, because it’s the week when we read Shirat Hayam—the Song of the Sea, the story of when the Israelites escaped through the miraculously parted sea, while behind them, Pharoah, his army, and their horses drowned. Moses and Miriam led the Israelites
Beshallach 5784 – God of now Read More »
Music and audio © 2 Dec 2023 Alexander Massey – All Rights Reserved אֱלהַי נְשָמָה שֶנָתַתָ בִי טְהורָה הִיא נֵר יְהוָה, נִשְמַת אָדָם חֹפֵשׂ, כָל-חַדְרֵי-בָטֶן כִי-אַתָה, תָאִיר נֵרִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהַי, יַגִיהַ חָשְכִי Ch: My God, the soul you have given me is pure. [Berachot 60b, morning prayer] 1: The soul of a person is the
Neir Adonai (No.2) Read More »