יוֹצֵר אוֹר | Yotser Ohr, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

Contributor(s):

Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

Shared on:

18 February 2021 under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license

Categories:

Yotser Ohr

Tags:

יוצר אור yotser ohr, paraliturgical yotser ohr, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, blessings prior to the shema, affirmations, shame resilience, paraliturgical reflections

TOGGLE COLUMNS (on/off):

ADJUST COLUMN POSITIONS: select the column header cell and drag it where you want. show me!

COPY INDIVIDUAL COLUMN(S): use CopyTables, a browser extension.

TABLE HELP

Source (Hebrew)	Paraliturgical Reflection (English)
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, יוֹצֵר אוֹר וּבוֹרֵא חֹשֶׁךְ. עֹשֶׂה שָׁלוֹם וּבוֹרֵא אֶת הַכֹּל:	I bless You, Holy One, who creates light and who makes peace. I know You also make darkness and unrest, all that is not whole in the world, all that is not whole in me. Help me trust that these dark, broken places in me and the world are also of Your holy nature, and are not separate from You.
הַמֵּאִיר לָאָרֶץ וְלַדָּרִים עָלֶיהָ בְּרַחֲמִים, וּבְטוּבוֹ מְחַדֵּשׁ בְּכָל יוֹם תָּמִיד מַעֲשֵׂה בְּרֵאשִׁית.	You are the One Who illuminates the earth and all her inhabitants, including me and my loved ones and family, with womb-like compassion. Your goodness renews each day the works of creation.
מָה רַבּוּ מַעֲשֶׂיךָ יְהֹוָה כֻּלָּם בְּחָכְמָה עָשִׂיתָ, מָלְאָה הָאָרֶץ קִנְיָנֶךָ.	How good are your creations! You made them all with wisdom. This is really hard to get behind, God. If you made everything with wisdom, why do I feel so messed up? Why does so much in the world, including myself, fall short of my standards? The paradox is hard for me to grasp, God.
אֱלֹהֵי עוֹלָם, בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים רַחֵם עָלֵינוּ, אֲדוֹן עוּזֵּנוּ, צוּר מִשְׂגַּבֵנוּ, מָגֵן יִשְׁעֵנוּ, מִשְׂגַּב בַּעֲדֵנוּ. אֵל בָּרוּךְ גְּדוֹל דֵּעָה, הֵכִין וּפָעַל זָהֳרֵי חַמָּה. טוֹב יָצַר כָּבוֹד לִשְׁמוֹ, מְאוֹרוֹת נָתַן סְבִיבוֹת עֻזּוֹ. פִּינוֹת צְבָאָיו קְדוֹשִׁים, רוֹמְמֵי שַׁדַּי, תָּמִיד מְסַפְּרִים כְּבוֹד אֵל וּקְדוּשָתוֹ. תִּתְבָּרַךְ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ בַּשָּׁמַיִם מִמַּעַל וְעַל הָאָרֶץ מִתַּחַת עַל כָּל שֶׁבַח מַעֲשֵׂה יָדֶיךָ וְעַל מְאוֹרֵי אוֹר שֶׁיָּצַרְתָּ הֵמָּה יְפָאֲרוּךָ סֶלָה:	Help me to rest in the fullness of your love, despite my confusion and pain. Help me know that the world is full of Your possessions, that I and everything else belong to You and Your light.
תִּתְבָּרַךְ לָנֶצַח צוּרֵנוּ מַלְכֵּנוּ וְגוֹאֲלֵנוּ בּוֹרֵא קְדוֹשִׁים, יִשְׁתַּבַּח שִׁמְךָ לָעַד מַלְכֵּנוּ יוֹצֵר מְשָׁרְתִים, וַאֲשֶׁר מְשָׁרְתָיו כֻּלָּם עוֹמְדִים בְּרוּם עוֹלָם וּמַשְׁמִיעִים בְּיִרְאָה יַחַד בְּקוֹל דִּבְרֵי אֱלֹהִים חַיִּים וּמֶלֶךְ עוֹלָם. כֻּלָּם אֲהוּבִים, כֻּלָּם בְּרוּרִים, כֻּלָּם גִּבּוֹרִים, כֻּלָּם קְדוֹשִׁים, וְכֻלָּם עוֹשִׂים בְּאֵימָה וּבְיִרְאָה רְצְוֹן קוֹנָם, וְכֻלָּם פּוֹתְחִים אֶת פִּיהֶם בִּקְדוּשָׁה וּבְטָהֳרָה, בְּשִׁירָה וּבְזִמְרָה, וּמְבָרְכִין וּמְשַׁבְּחִין וּמְפָאֲרִין וּמַעֲרִיצִין וּמַקְדִּישִׁין וּמַמְלִיכִין.	You are a huge, ancient mystery beyond all words, yet somehow listening to me speak right now. It is totally beyond me that I belong to You, yet still I call out.
אֶת שֵׁם הָאֵל הַמֶּלֶךְ הַגָּדוֹל הַגִּבּוֹר וְהַנּוֹרָא קָדוֹשׁ הוּא. וְכֻלָּם מְקַבְּלִים עֲלֵיהֶם עֹל מַלְכוּת שָׁמַיִם זֶה מִזֶּה, וְנוֹתְנִים בְּאַהֲבָה רְשׁוּת זֶה לָזֶה לְהַקְדִּישׁ לְיוֹצְרָם בְּנַחַת רוּחַ בְּשָׂפָה בְרוּרָה וּבִנְעִימָה, קְדֻשָׁה כֻּלָּם כְּאֶחָד עוֹנִים בְּאֵימָה, וְאוֹמְרִים בְּיִרְאָה: קָדוֹשׁ \| קָדוֹשׁ קָדוֹשׁ, יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת, מְלֹא כָל הָאָרֶץ כְּבוֹדוֹ:	God of unending foreverness! In Your great compassion have compassion on me, on my loved ones, on my tribe, on all creatures. I long to lift my voice like an angel, beloved and clear, to sing: “You are Holy, Holy, Holy, God of Forces! The whole world is filled with Your Presence!”
וְהָאוֹפַנִּים וְחַיּוֹת הַקֹדֶשׁ בְּרַעַשׁ גָּדוֹל מִתְנַשְּׂאִים לְעֻמַּת שְׂרָפִים, לְעֻמָּתָם מְשַׁבְּחִים וְאוֹמְרִים: בָּרוּךְ כְּבוֹד יְהֹוָה מִמְּקוֹמוֹ:	I long to shake this body made of stardust, to make a joyful noise to You and call out: “Blessed is the Presence of Existence in all its Places!”
לָאֵל בָּרוּךְ נְעִימוֹת יִתְּנוּ, לַמֶּלֶךְ אֵל חַי וְקַיָּם, זְמִירוֹת יֹאמְרוּ וְתִשְׁבָּחוֹת יַשְׁמִיעוּ, כִּי הוּא לְבַדּוֹ מָרוֹם וְקָדוֹשׁ, פּוֹעֵל גְּבוּרוֹת, עוֹשֶׂה חֲדָשׁוֹת, בַּעַל מִלְחָמוֹת, זוֹרֵעַ צְדָקוֹת, מַצְמִיחַ יְשׁוּעוֹת, בּוֹרֵא רְפוּאוֹת, נוֹרָא תְהִלּוֹת, אֲדוֹן הַנִּפְלָאוֹת,	Then I fall back into this mortal body, Into the place of darkness and distance. So I ask You to be my strong actor, my renewer, my protector in conflict, my sower of right action, my wondrous healer, my master of miracles.
הַמְחַדֵּשׁ בְּטוּבוֹ בְּכָל יוֹם תָּמִיד מַעֲשֵׂה בְרֵאשִׁית. כָּאָמוּר: לְעֹשֵׂה אוֹרִים גְּדֹלִים כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ. וְהִתְקִין מְאוֹרוֹת מְשַׂמֵּחַ עוֹלָמוֹ אֲשֶׁר בָּרָא. אוֹר חָדָשׁ עַל צִיּוֹן תָּאִיר, וְנִזְכֶּה כֻלָּנוּ (יַחַד) בִּמְהֵרָה לְאוֹרוֹ. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְהֹוָה יוֹצֵר הַמְּאוֹרוֹת:	You are the One whose goodness renews each day the works of creation. You bring big, new light to shine in the center of my being when it is wracked in conflict. May I always remember that I am worthy of Your light. I bless You Holy One, Creator of Light.

Rabbi Shoshana Meira’s paraliturgical reflection on the Birkat Yotser Ohr, the first blessing before the Shema, was first published in her Siddur v’lo Nevosh (2014). Linear correspondence between the Hebrew source and the English by Aharon Varady.

Source(s)

. Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike . 4.0 . International .

“יוֹצֵר אוֹר | Yotser Ohr, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International copyleft license.

Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman is the Associate Rabbi at Temple Sinai in Brookline, Massachusetts. She feels blessed to serve this vibrant community through building personal relationships, teaching Torah, innovating new engagement initiatives, working for justice, and leading prayer. Rabbi Shoshana is a leader in the interfaith climate justice movement in New England. She and her husband Yotam Schachter co-wrote The Tide Is Rising, an anthem for the climate movement that has been sung in congregations, climate rallies, and gatherings in the US, Brazil, Denmark, and France.In other pursuits, she has released an album of original music called Guesthouse, clowned for hospitalized children, tended a community garden, and written poetry. Her publications include pieces in the Huffington Post and the Harvard Divinity Bulletin, and she has written an interpretive translation of the weekday prayer service called Siddur V'lo Nevosh: Jewish Prayer as Shame Resilience Practice.Rabbi Shoshana was ordained at Hebrew College Rabbinical School, and is a graduate of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship, JOIN For Justice, and Oberlin College of Arts & Sciences where she was also a Henry David Thoreau Scholar. She grew up in Newton, Massachusetts, and lives in Jamaica Plain with Yotam and their dog Lulu. For sermons, publications, music, and activism visit www.rabbishoshana.com.

Pocket Pinterest Reddit 𝕏 Facebook Telegram WhatsApp SMS Email

Works of related interest:

יוֹצֵר אוֹר | Yotser Ohr, interpretive translation by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi

"Tea bowl fixed in the Kintsugi method" (Public Domain). Kintsugi is the Japanese art of fixing broken pottery with lacquer resin dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum.

בִּרְכָּת אַהֲבַה | Ahava Rabbah, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

עָלֵינוּ לְשַׁבֵּחַ | Aleinu, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

בָּרוּךְ שֶׁאָמַר | Barukh she’Amar, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

שְׁמַע | Shema, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

בִּרְכָּת גָּאַל יִשְׂרָאֵל | Emet v’Yatsiv, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

תפילת העמידה ביום חול | the Weekday Amidah, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

prev next

Comments, Corrections, and QueriesCancel reply

Stable Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=35681

Associated Image:

“Tea bowl fixed in the Kintsugi method” (Public Domain). Kintsugi is the Japanese art of fixing broken pottery with lacquer resin dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum.

(This image is set to automatically show as the "featured image" in shared links on social media.)

Source Data: XML | JSON

Re-formatted: HTML | ODT

Terms of Use: Be a mentsch (a conscientious, considerate person) and adhere to the following guidelines:

Properly attribute the work to Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman.
Clearly indicate the date you accessed the work and in what ways, if any, you modified it. (If you have adapted the work, let us know so that the contributor might consider endorsing your revision.)
Provide the stable link to this resource: <https://opensiddur.org/?p=35681>.
Indicate that the original work was shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license. (To redistribute or remix this work in any format, modified or unmodified, you must refer to the terms of the license under which the work is shared.)

Additional Notes:

The views expressed in this work represent the views of their creator(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the Open Siddur Project's developers, its diverse community of contributors, patrons, or institutional partners.
We strongly advise against printing sacred texts and art containing divine names as these copies must be regarded with reverence, complicating their casual treatment and disposal.
If you must dispose of a printed sacred text (one containing Divine Names), please locate the closest genizah (often established by a synagogue) and contact its custodians for further instructions. We also recommend using Morah Yehudis Fishman's Prayer for Adding a Work to the Genizah.

Support this work: The Open Siddur Project is a volunteer-driven, non-profit, non-denominational, non-prescriptive, gratis & libre Open Access archive of contemplative praxes, liturgical readings, and Jewish prayer literature (historic and contemporary, familiar and obscure) composed in every era, region, and language Jews have ever prayed. Our goal is to provide a platform for sharing open-source resources, tools, and content for individuals and communities crafting their own prayerbook (siddur). Through this we hope to empower personal autonomy, preserve customs, and foster creativity in religious culture. If you like what you've found here, please help keep our project alive and online with your financial contribution.

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