A Prayer for the Despondent, by Rabbi Morrison David Bial (1962)

Contributor(s):

Morrison David Bial and Aharon N. Varady (transcription)

Shared on:

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

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., depression, Mental Health, self-care

Source (English)

Contribute a translation	Source (English)
	O Lord: Life is not always easy; the path often seems obscured; worry and doubt seem only too real. Where can I find strength and courage but in the calm resolve that comes from seeking Thee!
	Be a refuge to me from the harsh demands of the world, from the strife and vexations that weigh on me.
	Deliver me, O Lord, from the oppression of selfish thoughts and moods. Help me to escape from vain imaginings and delusions which have too much power over me. Let me learn to quiet my soul that I may truly find rest in Thee.
	May I retreat only so that I may better move forward again. May I who have tasted bitter dregs use my new awareness of life to learn humility and thankfulness.
	I pray to be given the strength of spirit to accept that which cannot be altered, and go forth to do my utmost to develop, to help in that which can become a ground for achievement.
	Then will I have learned to turn defeat into victory. Then with the help of Thy guiding spirit will I be able to express the best that is within me, in light and in hope.
	Amen.

“A Prayer for the Despondent” by Rabbi Morrison David Bial was first published in his anthology, An Offering of Prayer (1962), p. 45, from where this prayer was transcribed.

Source(s)

. Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication . 1.0 . Universal .

“A Prayer for the Despondent, by Rabbi Morrison David Bial (1962)” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication 1.0 Universal license.

Morrison David Bial

Born in New York in 1917, Morrison David Bial studied at Princeton Theological Seminary, served as a chaplain at Mitchell Field during World War II, and was ordained from the Jewish Institute of Religion in 1945. Rabbi Bial spoke from pulpits in the United States as well as in Dublin, Glasgow, and London. He led a number of tours to Israel, and published thirteen books, including The Rabbi’s Bible: Torah and The Rabbi’s Bible: Prophets (began in 1966, co-authored with Solomon Simon), Liberal Judaism at Home: the Practices of Modern Reform Judaism (1971), and Your Jewish Child (1978). Rabbi Bial spent over thirty years serving Temple Sinai in Summit, New Jersey, from 1953 until he became Rabbi Emeritus in 1985. From 1985–1995, Rabbi Bial joined Temple Beth Shalom in Ocala, Florida, revitalizing its interfaith movement, and served as Rabbi Emeritus until his death in 2004.

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.)

Stable Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=46515

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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו "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

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