The other day I wrote about the shoah (catastrophe) of faith, or lost faith, that happened after the Holocaust and after 9/11. I mentioned that people lose faith every day for many reasons. I touched on the fact that every day we have to do faith…find a way to regain our lost faith. I’m wondering, …
Do you count the Omer? If you are Jewish, you may know about this practice. If you aren’t, you likely have no idea to what I’m referring. However, anyone can count the Omer, and in the process you can refine your character. The process of receiving the Torah at Mt. Sinai began 49 days before …
I turned 50 last week. Although I really don’t feel 50 and I didn’t have much psychological “stuff” around turning 50, I felt the need to mark this event in some way with a ritual. So, I asked a few friends if they might help me do so. The first friend took me off to …
Yesterday many Jews observed Holocaust Memorial Day. Yom Hashoah Ve-Hagevurah, literally the “Day of (remembrance of) the Holocaust and the Heroism,” is celebrated on the 27th day in the month of Nisan, a week after the seventh day of Passover, and a week before Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day for Israel’s fallen soldiers). It marks the …
I walked down to the stupa here at the retreat center today. I was amazed to read how this structure was built to help balance the earth and create peace. All sorts of blessings were said. Mantras were recited. Things were buried in the earth. I meditated there for a while. I think of this …
This week I celebrated my 50th birthday by attending a three day writing retreat. I treated myself to two extra days on the site. Everyone just left but one woman who is staying an extra day and my roommate, who is also staying the two extra days. Turning 50 didn’t really make that much difference …
Today marked the last day of Passover. I think of the week of Pesach like a seven day birth period during which I have the chance to be reborn free of at least one the things I feel constrain me. We are told that the Israelites left Mitzrayyim, the Hebrew word for Egypt, which all …
Today, I will look at the last seder plate symbol: maror. These are the bitter herbs that represent slavery. Of course, during Passover the issue of slavery comes up big time. We discuss how the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt and how Moses asked the Pharaoh to let free them. When Pharaoh said, “No,” God …
Does Your Life Enslave You? Learn How to Free Yourself! Read More »
Here in Northern California it does not feel like spring. It’s 40 degrees and rainy. However, it’s April and the lilies and daffodils are blooming, so I know spring has sprung. So, it’s appropriate that the next seder symbol I’m going to look at is karpas, the green vegetables that remind the seder participants that …
What are You Growing in the Garden of Your Life? Read More »
The first and second night seders are over, but we are still eating matzah and other Pesach foods. I’m still considering the seder plate symbols and answering questions related to them. I invite you to do the same whether you are Jewish or not. The next Passover symbol on the seder plate I’m going to …
Charoset:A Reason to Think About the Bricks and Mortar of Building an Ideal Life Read More »
Today I’m considering the Passover symbol of the egg, roasted or otherwise. Called beitzah, it symbolizes rebirth and represents the second sacrificial offerings given at the ancient Temple in Jerusalem on Passover. Here are some questions that come to mind around beitzah. How do I want to be reborn? That’s a hard question to answer. …
Beitzah: Will You Be Reborn or Give Birth on Passover? Read More »
Second day of Passover…on to the second symbol on the seder plate: zeroa, the lamb shank, which represents sacrifice. The zeroa symbolizes the Paschal lamb offered as the Passover sacrifice in the ancient Temple. Getting away from the idea of communal sacrifice, I am thinking about personal sacrifice now. Thus, I ask myself: What will …
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