TORAH TALK
Parashat Vayetze ~ Thanksgiving
Genesis 28:10-32:3
Parashat Vayetze ~ Thanksgiving
Genesis 28:10-32:3
Gratitude is at the core of what it means to be a Jew. Indeed, the word in Hebrew Yehudi, contains the same root meaning as grateful. In this week’s Torah portion, Vayetze, our matriarch, Leah, names her fourth son, Yehuda, saying: "Ha'pa-am odeh et Adonai," "This time I will give thanks to Adonai" (Gen. 29:35)
This sentiment is repeated often in our prayers, and much of the spiritual practice of Judaism invites us to translate our sense of gratitude into words and actions towards others.
As we anticipate Thanksgiving tomorrow, I offer you an adaptation of Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan's Service of Thanksgiving that first appeared in the 1945 Reconstructionist Prayer book. I invite you to use it at your Thanksgiving or Shabbat tables this week, as a bridge between the essential Torah teaching of what it means to be a Jew celebrating the American tradition of Thanksgiving.
May all of you have a safe, healthy, and joyous Thanksgiving,
Rabbi Yael Ridberg
We give thanks to You, O God, and God of our ancestors, for the privilege of life that is ours, for the wonders of earth and sea and sky about us, for all that is good and true in us, and our society, and for that promise of a greater goodness and clearer truth, which, because of our faith in You, we know will yet be fulfilled.
Open our eyes, Dear God, and illumine our souls, so that despite frustration and pain, despite confusion and anguish, we may steadily discern the signs of Your beneficent presence; and, discerning them, may we face the present with confidence, and the future with hope.
Your goodness is inscribed in the Testament of Humanity, in the powers of the body, the skill of the hand, in the capacity to think, to feel, to aspire; in the ability to communicate with other people, in the will to labor cooperatively at their side. Indeed, it is written large and bold in the nobility of a person's spirit.
This is a sign of the goodness of God that there are people ready to surrender their comfort and happiness out of love for their fellow human beings...ready to sacrifice themselves to attain truth...and, that being free human beings, they will not rest until freedom is the lot of all people, everywhere.
This is a sign of the goodness of God, that though humanity might be at ease with the world as it is, they labor steadfastly to convert it into what it ought to be.
O God, Your goodness is manifest in the Testament of Israel. From Egypt You redeemed us, and from the house of Bondage you delivered us. In famine You fed us, and in plenty sustained us. From the sword You rescued us, from pestilence you saved us, and from grievous ills, You delivered us...Shall we not thank You on this holiday of Thanksgiving, for having kept Israel alive, for having giving us the gift of your Torah, and for having brought us closer to Your service?
Your goodness is revealed in the Testament of America. Into this land there have assembled the outcast and weary of the world. Here they dreamed a new dream of a nation founded on the truth that all men and women are created equal, that they are endowed with certain inalienable rights, and among these rights are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
And because You have been with us and Your goodness has kept us strong, the freedom which they won is still ours. May we ever be worthy of our American heritage; may we ever treasure our liberties, not for ourselves alone, but for all; and may our country be a guiding light to all humanity.
For all these, O God, we thank You: For your goodness as maintained in nature, in the human spirit, in Israel's Torah, and in America's promise. Embolden our hearts so that, surmounting discouragement and despair we may learn to see clearly Your bounties, and seeing them, make them manifest in the world.
Open our eyes, Dear God, and illumine our souls, so that despite frustration and pain, despite confusion and anguish, we may steadily discern the signs of Your beneficent presence; and, discerning them, may we face the present with confidence, and the future with hope.
Your goodness is inscribed in the Testament of Humanity, in the powers of the body, the skill of the hand, in the capacity to think, to feel, to aspire; in the ability to communicate with other people, in the will to labor cooperatively at their side. Indeed, it is written large and bold in the nobility of a person's spirit.
This is a sign of the goodness of God that there are people ready to surrender their comfort and happiness out of love for their fellow human beings...ready to sacrifice themselves to attain truth...and, that being free human beings, they will not rest until freedom is the lot of all people, everywhere.
This is a sign of the goodness of God, that though humanity might be at ease with the world as it is, they labor steadfastly to convert it into what it ought to be.
O God, Your goodness is manifest in the Testament of Israel. From Egypt You redeemed us, and from the house of Bondage you delivered us. In famine You fed us, and in plenty sustained us. From the sword You rescued us, from pestilence you saved us, and from grievous ills, You delivered us...Shall we not thank You on this holiday of Thanksgiving, for having kept Israel alive, for having giving us the gift of your Torah, and for having brought us closer to Your service?
Your goodness is revealed in the Testament of America. Into this land there have assembled the outcast and weary of the world. Here they dreamed a new dream of a nation founded on the truth that all men and women are created equal, that they are endowed with certain inalienable rights, and among these rights are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
And because You have been with us and Your goodness has kept us strong, the freedom which they won is still ours. May we ever be worthy of our American heritage; may we ever treasure our liberties, not for ourselves alone, but for all; and may our country be a guiding light to all humanity.
For all these, O God, we thank You: For your goodness as maintained in nature, in the human spirit, in Israel's Torah, and in America's promise. Embolden our hearts so that, surmounting discouragement and despair we may learn to see clearly Your bounties, and seeing them, make them manifest in the world.