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a community-grown, libre Open Access archive of Jewish prayer and liturgical resources
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 Contributor(s):Scene: the Technion Institute, midnight. A physics graduate student accidentally opens a portal to another timeline. The portal remains open just long enough for someone on the other side to pass a siddur through. Mostly the siddur looks very familiar, but there are a few things odd about it. The following is the first of several uploads the editor is planning that reflect this parallel universe, wherein all Judaism is conducted according to the rabbinic norms of our universe, except for two things. Firstly, the festivals of wine-offering and wood-offering as described in the Temple Scroll of Qumran were included as part of scripture. And secondly, the custom of writing the Tetragrammaton in Paleo-Hebrew is preserved. Anyway this is a count of the fifty days after the wine-offering festival, in which the new oil is gathered from the tribes of Israel to the Temple. The instructions say only half a hin of oil per tribe, which suggests that by “tribe” something more akin to “family group” is meant, since a total of six hin wouldn’t be enough for the Temple to function. . . . סדר ספירת הנסך | Order of the Counting of the Nesekh (in a parallel universe), by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer Contributor(s):Scene: the Technion Institute, midnight. A physics graduate student accidentally opens a portal to another timeline. The portal remains open just long enough for someone on the other side to pass a siddur through. Mostly the siddur looks very familiar, but there are a few things odd about it. The following is the first of several uploads the editor is planning that reflect this parallel universe, wherein all Judaism is conducted according to the rabbinic norms of our universe, except for two things. Firstly, the festivals of wine-offering and wood-offering as described in the Temple Scroll of Qumran were included as part of scripture. And secondly, the custom of writing the Tetragrammaton in Paleo-Hebrew is preserved. Anyway, this is a count of the fifty days after Shavuot, in which the new wine is gathered from the tribes of Israel to the Temple. Apparently there were four different kinds of wine delivered, but we don’t know what they are. Let’s just say red and white, mevushal and non-mevushal. . . . Prayer for the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ, by Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the UK & the Commonwealth 2022) Contributor(s):This Prayer for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee was shared by the Office of the Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, Ephraim Mirvis, on 25 May 2022, via their website. . . . ברכת יוצר האדם | Mi sheberakh for the egg donor, gestational surrogate, physicians, and parents of children celebrating their Bnei Mitsvah, by Rabbi Esteban Gottfried (2022) Contributor(s):This is a “Blessing for the human creation” composed by Rabbi Esteban Gottfried for a mi sheberakh delivered after the Torah reading of twin siblings celebrating their bar and bat mitsvah. Both children came into this world through medical intervention, egg donation, and surrogate pregnancy. “It was a really moving ceremony,” said Rabbi Gottfried, “it is very rare that the parents are in touch with the egg donor and pregnancy surrogate (from the US and Ukraine) thirteen years later, and they all celebrate together….After their ascent to the Torah, I asked the parents together with the donor and the surrogate to take the stage and greet them. I share here (with their approval) the blessing of the “Human Creation.” . . . Contributor(s):A prayer for the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), written in response to their laudable decision to halt the deportation of asylum seekers from Britain to Rwanda. . . . מִי שֶׁבֵּרַךְ לְבָּרְוָחָה הַנַּפְשִׁית | Mi sheBerakh for Mental Health Wellness (the Blue Dove Foundation, 2021) Contributor(s):We believe Jewish prayers and rituals can help to strengthen our mental well-being, resilience and recovery in the same way middot, or Jewish values, can promote them. Faith is an important part of healing for many, and Jewish thinkers and leaders historically have brought the two together. When someone is ill or recovering from illness or an accident, we often recite a mi sheberakh to wish them a refuah sheleimah, or a “full recovery.” We have expanded this prayer for those who are struggling with mental health with this Mi Sheberakh for Mental Health. –the Blue Dove Foundation . . . Contributor(s):This Simḥat Brit was prepared by David Zvi Kalman and circulated via a public post on Facebook on 9 July 2018. . . . הַנּוֹתֵן תְּשׁוּעָה | Prayer in honour of the 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ, by Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the UK & the Commonwealth 2016) Contributor(s):This “Prayer in honour of the Queen’s 90th birthday,” was first delivered by Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis for the Office of the Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth on Shabbat 11th June 2016, and shared via their website in English. Side-by-side with the English we have set the Hebrew text from the formula of the traditional prayer “haNoten Teshua” as used by the Office of the Chief Rabbi as amended in 2014. . . . Contributor(s):In 2014, the formula of “haNoten Teshua” suggested by the Office of the Chief Rabbi of the UK and the Commonwealth, was amended by the chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, to include a short passage in recognition of the United Kingdom’s armed forces. . . . Prayer for the Success of the Four-Power Conference at Geneva, by Rabbi Israel Brodie (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the UK & the Commonwealth, 16 July 1955) Contributor(s):This “Prayer for the Success of the Four-Power Conference at Geneva, Switzerland (18 July 1955)” was composed in 1955 by the Office of the Chief Rabbi (of the United Hebrew Congregations of the UK and the Commonwealth) for the success of a meeting of the “Big Four” (President Dwight D. Eisenhower of the United States, Prime Minister Anthony Eden of Britain, Premier Nikolai A. Bulganin of the Soviet Union, and Prime Minister Edgar Faure of France), ostensibly to promote international trade, but hopefully as well, to reduce international tensions and make some progress towards ending the Cold War. . . . Contributor(s):This prayer by Rabbi Dr. David de Sola Pool was included in the anthology, The Prayer Book of the Armed Forces (ed. Daniel A. Poling, 1951), pp. 72-73. . . . Contributor(s):This prayer by Rabbi Dr. Edgar Magnin, then serving as rabbi of the Wilshire Boulevard Temple in Los Angeles, was included in the anthology, The Prayer Book of the Armed Forces (ed. Daniel A. Poling, 1951), p. 51. . . . Contributor(s):This prayer by Rabbi Philip S. Bernstein, then President of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, was included in the anthology, The Prayer Book of the Armed Forces (ed. Daniel A. Poling, 1951), p. 11. . . . Prayer for the United States during the Cold War, by Julius Klein (Jewish War Veterans of the USA, 1951) Contributor(s):This prayer by Brigadier General Julius Klein was included in the anthology, The Prayer Book of the Armed Forces (ed. Daniel A. Poling, 1951), p. 47. The anthology notes that “Accompanying the prayer of General Klein, National Commander of Jewish War Veterans, U.S.A., is this message: ‘I wish to express the deep-seated conviction that this book of prayers will be warmly received by a world which is very much in need of closer contact with God.’” . . . Opening prayer for the 12th U.A.W.–C.I.O. Labor Convention in Milwaukee, by Rabbi Joseph Baron (1949) Contributor(s):This prayer, initially delivered by Rabbi Joseph Baron as an invocation at the opening of the 12th U.A.W.-C.I.O. Labor Convention in Milwaukee, July 1949, was included in the anthology, The Prayer Book of the Armed Forces (ed. Daniel A. Poling, 1951), pp. 81-82. The prayer was selected for the anthology by Walter P. Reuther (1907-1970), a Lutheran, a leader of organized labor, and a civil rights activist who built the United Automobile Workers (UAW) into one of the most progressive labor unions in American history. . . . Contributor(s):This prayer by Rabbi Dudley Weinberg, National Chaplain of AMVETS after World War II, was included in the anthology, The Prayer Book of the Armed Forces (ed. Daniel A. Poling, 1951), pp. 79-80. The prayer was chosen for publication by the then National Commander of AMVETS, Harold Russell. . . . Prayer of Intercession [for Britain in the War against Nazi Germany], by Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1940) Contributor(s):“Prayer for Intercession,” almost certainly written by Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz, was published in the Prayer Book of Jewish Members of H.M. Forces (Office of the Chief Rabbi 1940), pp. 18-19. . . . Prayer on the Declaration of War [against Nazi Germany], by Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1940) Contributor(s):This prayer for victory and deliverance in the war against Nazi Germany, simply titled “War Prayer,” appears in the Prayer Book of Jewish Members of H.M. Forces (Office of the Chief Rabbi 1940), pp. 16-17. Sections of the prayer were adapted from the prayer on the declaration of war by Rabbi Hertz in 1914 at the outset of World War I. In the preface to the payer book, Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz specifically mentions this prayer, among others, as having been newly revised for this publication. The initial version of the prayer, likely to have been written by Rabbi Hertz, was published by the Office of the Chief Rabbi for a 17 Tammuz service in July 1938. A revision was disseminated after Kristallnacht (9-10 November 1938). This is the third version of the prayer. . . . Contributor(s):“Prayer Before a Battle” appears at the start of Prayer Book of Jewish Members of H.M. Forces (Office of the Chief Rabbi 1940), p. 5. . . . Prayer for Military Personnel on Active Service (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1940) Contributor(s):“Prayer for Men on Active Service” is the opening prayer in the Prayer Book of Jewish Members of H.M. Forces (Office of the Chief Rabbi 1940), p. 4. . . . 📖 [Abridged] Prayer Book for Jewish Members of His Majesty’s Forces (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1940) Contributor(s):An abridged prayer book for Jewish personnel in the service of the British armed forces in 1940, prepared by the Office of the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the British Empire, Joseph H. Hertz, based upon the 1917 prayer book offered during the first World War. . . . תפילה לעזרת היהודים תושבי גרמניה | Prayer for German Jewry under Nazi oppression before and after Kristallnacht (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1938) Contributor(s):An untitled prayer on behalf of German Jewry under Nazi oppression disseminated in Bombay, likely after Kristallnacht (9-10 November 1938). . . . Contributor(s):The poem “When I Am Old” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 111-112. . . . Contributor(s):The poem “Shebuoth” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 37-38. . . . Contributor(s):The poem “Through Darkness to Light” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 29. . . . Contributor(s):The prayer-poem “For What I Bless Thee” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 15. . . . Contributor(s):The poem “Confirmation” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 80-81. . . . Contributor(s):The poem “New Year” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 113-114. . . . Contributor(s):The poem “Musings” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 115-116. . . . Contributor(s):The prayer-poem ““Mene, Mene, Tekel Upharsin”” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 94-95. . . . Contributor(s):The prayer-poem “Night” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 90-91. . . . Armistice Day Prayer, by Rabbi Jospeh H. Hertz (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1923) Contributor(s):This “Armistice Day Prayer” was composed in 1923 by the Office of the Chief Rabbi on the Anniversary of the cessation of conflict on November 11th marking the end of the Great War (later known as World War I). . . . 📖 סדר זמירות ישראל | Seder Zemirot Yisrael: Gesänge für Sabbat und Festtage, compiled by Rabbi Dr. Moses Loeb Bamberger (1922) Contributor(s):A birkon and collection of table songs in Hebrew with German translation. . . . לְכָה דוֹדִי | Princess Sabbath, three stanzas of l’Khah Dodi by Shlomo al-Qabets (English adaptation by Angie Irma Cohon (1921) Contributor(s):These three stanzas of the piyyut l’Khah Dodi by Shlomo haLevi al-Qabets were adapted into English by Angie Irma Cohon and published in her תפלת ישראל (Tefilat Yisrael) A Brief Jewish Ritual (Women of Miẓpah 1921), p.16. . . . Contributor(s):“The Pilgrim March” by Angie Irma Cohon is a hymn for Sukkot published in her תפלת ישראל (Tefilat Yisrael) A Brief Jewish Ritual (Women of Miẓpah 1921), p. 22. . . . Hymn for Shaḇuoth (Father, See Thy Children) — from a Confirmation hymn by Felix Adler (1868) adapted by Angie Irma Cohon (1921) Contributor(s):“Hymn for Shaḇuoth (Father, See Thy Children)” is based on “Confirmation (Father, see thy suppliant children)” an original hymn by Felix Adler published in Hymns, for Divine Service in the Temple Emanu-El (1871), hymn 34, p. 68. The last four lines of the hymn have been amended and replaced with “Till our lives shall bud and blossom…” by Angie Irma Cohon, for use on Shavuot. This version was published in her תפלת ישראל (Tefilat Yisrael) A Brief Jewish Ritual (Women of Miẓpah 1921), p. 19. . . . Day of God, Leopold Stein’s “O Tag des Herrn!” (1840) adapted from Frederick Lucian Hosmer’s translation (1904) as a hymn for Yom Kippur by Angie Irma Cohon (1921) Contributor(s):Angie Irma Cohon’s “Day of God” is a hymn for Yom Kippur, an abbreviated adaptation of “O Tag des Herrn!,” a paraliturgical Kol Nidrei by Leopold Stein, translated from German to English by Frederick Lucian Hosmer. Cohon’s abridged rendering is published in תפלת ישראל (Tefilat Yisrael) A Brief Jewish Ritual (Women of Miẓpah 1921), p. 20. . . . Contributor(s):A small work of Jewish prayer intended for Jewish women published by the sisterhood of Temple Miẓpah in Chicago. . . . Contributor(s):The poem “Friday Night” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in The Standard Book of Jewish Verse (ed. Friedlander & Kohut 1917), p. 269. . . . Prayer on the Declaration of War [against Imperial Germany], by Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1914) Contributor(s):“Prayer Composed by the Chief Rabbi on the Declaration of War. (August 1914.),” by Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz, was published in the Prayer Book for Jewish Sailors and Soldiers [of H.M. Forces] (Office of the Chief Rabbi 1914), p. 32. . . . Prayer for Sailors and Soldiers on Active Service, by Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1914) Contributor(s):“Prayer for Sailors and Soldiers on Active Service,” was likely written by Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz and published at the outset of the Prayer Book for Jewish Sailors and Soldiers [of H.M. Forces] (Office of the Chief Rabbi 1914), p. 5. . . . 📖 [Abridged] Prayer Book for Jewish Sailors and Soldiers [in H.M. Forces] (Office of the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire 1914) Contributor(s):A bilingual Hebrew-English prayerbook for soldiers and sailors in the service of His Majesty’s army and navy during World War One . . . O Day of God, an English translation of Leopold Stein’s paraliturgical Kol Nidrei “O Tag des Herrn!” by Frederick Lucian Hosmer (1904) Contributor(s):“O Tag des Herrn!” is a paraliturgical Kol Nidrei by Leopold Stein. Here it is translated from German to English by the Unitarian minister Frederick Lucian Hosmer on behalf of the Reform rabbi Isaac S. Moses. Hosmer’s translation appears in Hymns and Anthems for Jewish Worship (ed. Isaac S. Moses, 1904), hymn №107 pp. 69-71. . . . Contributor(s):A hymnal compiled by one of the Reform rabbis who first prepared the Union Prayerbook. . . . תפלה לבני ישראל בעד הצלחת יושבי ארצנו בּמלחמתם עם השׂפּנים | Prayer for the success of the United States in its war with Spain, by Rabbi Joshua Seigel (1898) Contributor(s):A Prayer for American Victory in the Spanish-American War by Rabbi Joshua Seigel (1846-1910), New York: Eliakum Zunser, [1898]. . . . Contributor(s):“The City of Light” is a poem written by Felix Adler. The earliest publication I could find for it dates to 1882, in Unity: Freedom, Fellowship and Character in Religion vol. 8, no. 12 (16 Feb. 1882), p. 477. . . . Contributor(s):A collection of hymns used by Temple Emanu-El in New York City. The hymn book mainly contains hymns in German with English translation by Rabbi James Koppel Gutheim (1817-1886) with another handful in English including one by Rabbi Moritz Mayer (1821-1867), and the rest by a young Felix Adler (before his founding of Ethical Culture). . . . Contributor(s):“Thanksgiving” is a hymn written by Felix Adler and published in Hymns, for Divine Service in the Temple Emanu-El (1871), hymn №35, p. 69. We have tentatively dated this hymn to 1868, since another hymn by Adler (“School-hymn, no. 36”) can be found appended from another unattributed work in A Guide to Instruction in the Israelitsh Religion (Samuel Adler, trans. M. Mayer, Temple Emanu-El, 1864, 4th printing 1868). . . . Contributor(s):“School-hymn” is a hymn written by Felix Adler and published in Hymns, for Divine Service in the Temple Emanu-El (1871), hymn №36, p. 70. We have found this hymn published in A Guide to Instruction in the Israelitsh Religion (Samuel Adler, trans. M. Mayer, Temple Emanu-El, 1864, 4th printing 1868). The hymn, numbered “36” is appended from another unattributed work as it appears in the 1871 Temple Emanu-El hymnal. So, tentatively, we may date this hymn to 1868, although it may likely have been authored earlier, along with the other hymns later attributed in 1871 by Rabbi James K. Gutheim to Felix Adler. . . . Confirmation (Father, see Thy suppliant children), a hymn for a Confirmation ritual by Felix Adler (1868) Contributor(s):“Confirmation (Father, see thy suppliant children)” is a hymn written by Felix Adler and published in Hymns, for Divine Service in the Temple Emanu-El (1871), hymn №34, p. 68. We have tentatively dated this hymn to 1868, since another hymn by Adler (“School-hymn, no. 36”) can be found appended from another unattributed work in A Guide to Instruction in the Israelitsh Religion (Samuel Adler, trans. M. Mayer, Temple Emanu-El, 1864, 4th printing 1868). . . . |
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