Many religious traditions honor their ancestors. In Judaism, we honor them, but unlike other traditions we don’t make altars to them or pray to them to help us. Indigenous religions spend a lot of time actually praying to the ancestors and trying to connect with them, feeling they are close at hand and always assisting […]
Inheritance from Our Ancestors Read More »
I’m spending the summer again in New York City with my son. Here, amidst the constant noise and motion, I find it difficult to focus. More than that I see how I am torn in too many directions each day. Because of that, nothing gets accomplished. Let me rephrase that last sentence. Things get accomplished…little
How to Stop Struggling to Focus Read More »
When we can’t seem to solve a problem, we turns to a supernal power that might provide a solution…or a miracle. Thus, more than two months into the Gulf oil spill crisis, four affected State Governors proclaimed this past Sunday, June 27th, A Day of Prayer. In other words, we turn to God for answers
Pray for the Healing of the Gulf and the End of the Oil Spill Crisis Read More »
I visited my 86-year-old mother this past weekend. She was depressed and upset because her dog has contracted Lyme disease and possibly also hurt its back. The dog isn’t eating and can’t walk well; it has lost control of one of it’s hind legs. My mother, also, seems to have lost her appetite. That dog
The Things That Give Us a Reason to Live Read More »
Today I received an email from a friend, who is dealing with his mother’s declining health. He told me that a few weeks ago he was in a local food co-op and the gravity and fullness of his mother’s situation caught up with him. As he quietly sobbed at the soup counter, a young woman who
Have You Given or Received a Hug Today? Read More »
When you feel the desire to judge someone, remember that on the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, the sefirot of gevurah (judgment) lies opposite chesed (loving-kindness), so that these can balance each other. Thus, we never judge someone without tempering that judgement with love and kindness and we don’t offer love and kindness without the some
Finding Balance Between Judgment and Loving Kindness Read More »
The Hebrew month of Tammuz, which we are currently in, has a lot to do with seeing clearly, according to my friend Mindy Ribner. (Check out her book, Kabbalah Month by Month.) Do you think you see clearly? Whether or not you are Jewish, it’s important to consider this during this period of time. The
Do You See Clearly? Read More »
How often do you leave your home and go somewhere else to live for any period of time? For the second time in two years, my son and I are going off to live in New York City for seven weeks this summer. This reminds me of the Torah portion we read called Lech Lecha,
And You Shall Be a Blessing… Read More »
Judaism has a lovely tradition of lighting candles on Friday night to welcome in the Sabbath. I consider this a spiritual practice that creates sacred space and invites in the Divine Spirit. Thus, the ritual can be used by anyone at any time. In Exodus 25:8-9, God says, “Build for me a sanctuary (mikdash), and
Practical Spirituality: Lighting Sabbath Candles Read More »
People change. Sometimes they change for the better, sometimes they change for the worse. There’s a person in my family that I haven’t seen in a number of years that I had to spend time with recently. We tend to avoid each other. We don’t get along. However, we managed this time to be civil
Yesterday my 17-year-old daughter graduated from high school. Thursday marked her last day of classes, Last night we attended the graduation ceremony. I know she is graduating, but to a certain extent, I feel I am as well. We are both graduating to the next phase of our lives together. She goes off to college
Who Really Graduates on Graduation Day? Read More »
Judaism has a prayer that speaks of Divine unity. It also helps Jews remember that God exists not only in the “heavens” but close at hand. This prayer is called the Sh’ma. I’d like to propose that anyone from any religion or spiritual tradition, however, can take the basic premise of this prayer and use
Practical Spirituality: A Daily Prayer of Divine Unity Read More »
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