Prayer for Armed Forces in Combat, by Rabbi Dr. Edgar Magnin (1951)

Contributor(s):

Anonymous (translation), Aharon N. Varady (transcription) and Edgar Magnin

Shared on:

8 June 2022 under the Creative Commons Zero (CC 0) Universal license a Public Domain dedication

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20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., Cold War (1947–1953), English vernacular prayer, United States in the Korean War

Translation (Hebrew)	Source (English)
אֱלֹהַי, אָמְנָם מְרֻחָק אֲנִי מֵאֲהוּבַי, אַךְ לֹא אֵשֵׁב בָּדָד; מֶרְחָק רַב מַפְרִיד בֵּינִי וּבֵין רֵעַי, אַךְ יֵשׁ לִי רֵעַ וְקָרוֹב בָּךְ.	Dear Lord, I am far from my loved ones but not alone; Miles away from my friends but I have a Friend.
לִבִּי מָלֵא אֹומֶץ, וְתִקְוָתִי חֲזָקָה, כִּי אַתָּה עִמָּדִי.	My heart is filled with courage and I have hope, For Thou art with me.
אַתָּה הוּא הָאוֹר הַמֵּאִיר אֶת נַפְשִׁי בְּנֹגַהּ וּבְשִׂמְחָה.	Thou art the light that fills my soul with brightness and with joy.
עָלֶיךָ אֶשָּׁעֵן וְלֹא אֶמּוֹט.	I shall lean upon Thee and not fall.
אַשְׁלִים אֶת מְשִׁימוֹתַי אֲשֶׁר נָטַלְתִּי עַל עַצְמִי, אַשְׁלִים וְלֹא אֶכָּשֵׁל; כִּי בְּעֶזְרָתְךָ אֵין כִּשָּׁלוֹן.	I shall accomplish the task I have set out to do and not fail; With Thy help nobody can fail.
אָהַבְתִּיךָ, ה׳ אֱלֹהַי, בְּכָל לְבָבִי וּבְכָל נַפְשִׁי וּבְכָל מְאֹודִי,	I love Thee, O Lord, my God, with all my heart, with all my soul and with all my might,
וְיוֹדֵעַ אֲנִי כִּי אַהֲבָה רַבָּה אֲהַבְתָּנִי, וְתַשְׁגִּיחַ עָלַי בְּרַחֲמִים.	And I know Thou dost love me and will care for me.
אָמֵן.	Amen.

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. On 13 August 2026, a Hebrew translation was submitted by an anonymous translator.

Source(s)

Anonymous (translation)

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Aharon N. Varady (transcription)

Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer transcriber for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his transcriptions, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also translates prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes of the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)

Edgar Magnin

Edgar Magnin (July 1, 1890 – July 17, 1984) was rabbi and spiritual leader of Wilshire Boulevard Temple (previously Congregation B’nai B’rith), the oldest Jewish congregation in Los Angeles, California. Magnin served at the temple for 69 years and was considered one of the most prominent Jewish leaders in the United States, sometimes called the "Rabbi to the Stars" because of his close connections to the Hollywood film industry.

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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו׃ (תהלים צ:יז) · "May the pleasantness of אדֹני our elo’ah be upon us; may our handiwork be established for us — our handiwork, may it be established." (Psalms 90:17)

Prayer for Armed Forces in Combat, by Rabbi Dr. Edgar Magnin (1951)

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