“Concluding supplication for every morning” by Grace Aguilar was published posthumously by her mother Sarah Aguilar in Essays and Miscellanies (1853), in the section “Sacred Communings,” pp. 207-208. In the UK edition of Sacred Communings (1853) the prayer appears with small variations of spelling and punctuation on pages 87-88. . . .

The poem “Confirmation” by Miriam del Banco (1858-1931) was included in her posthumously published anthology, Poetry and Prose (1932), p. 80-81. . . .

“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). . . .

“Courage to Withstand the Ridicule of the Worldly,” by Rabbi Mordecai Menaḥem Kaplan can be found on p. 433-4 of his The Sabbath Prayer Book (New York: The Jewish Reconstructionist Foundation, 1945). . . .

“Daily Prayer Against Temptation” by Marcus Heinrich Bresslau was first published in his תחנות בנות ישראל Devotions for the Daughters of Israel (1852), p. 12-13. . . .

The piyyut, Dayenu, in its Latin translation by Johann Stephan Rittangel. . . .

The story of Daniel and the dragon held captive by the neo-Babylonians found in Aramaic in the Divrei Yeraḥmiel (the Chronicles of Jeraḥmeel, Oxford Bodleian Heb d.11). . . .

Daniel’s battle with the Dragon, one of the apocryphal Additions to Daniel, is affixed to the end of the book in the Septuagint. The editor has here included a new vocalized and cantillated edition of the Aramaic text preserved in the 12th century Divrei Yeraḥmiel (Oxford Bodleian Heb d.11 transcribed by Rabbi Dr. Moses Gaster). The language of this passage is an odd synthesis of Targumic, pseudo-Biblical Aramaic, and even some Syriac forms, so the editor’s vocalization is aiming for a happy medium of all the possibilities. (In several locations Divrei Yeraḥmiel uses incorrect Hebrew-specific forms, probably due to scribal error. These are here marked as a qere-ketiv split.) . . .

Abraham Joshua Heschel’s essay “Das Gebet Als Äußerung Und Einfühlung” published in Monatsschrift Für Geschichte Und Wissenschaft Des Judenthums, vol. 83 (1939). . . .

The Ḳaddish d’Rabbanan in Aramaic with its German translation by Franz Rosenzweig. . . .

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. . . .

This is De Rechten van den Menschen van den Burger (“The Rights of Man and of the Citizen” 1795) and its Hebrew translation, דברי הברית החקים והמשפטים אשר בין אדם לאדם (1798), upon the establishment of the Batavian Republic and the ensuing emancipation of Dutch Jewry in the Netherlands. The text of the Declaration, with nineteen articles, follows after the French Republic’s much expanded Déclaration des droits de l’Homme et du citoyen de 1793 written by Marie-Jean Hérault de Séchelles. (The French Declaration, ratified by popular vote in July 1793, was a revision of the initial Declaration from 1789 written by the commission that included Hérault de Séchelles and Louis Antoine Léon de Saint-Just during the period of the French Revolution.) Declarations such as these enshrined the liberal values of the Enlightenment which changed the situation and status of Jews under their aegis. Ultimately, these values were largely enshrined under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by member states of the nascent United Nations in 1945. . . .

A Declaration of Interdependence co-authored during WW II as part of an interfaith Jewish-Christian response to fascism and “to mitigate racial and religious animosity in America.” . . .

“Dedication-Hymn” is a hymn written by Felix Adler and published in Hymns, for Divine Service in the Temple Emanu-El (1871), hymn №37, p. 71. 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). That date does match the year that the then new building for Temple Emanu-El’s synagogue was dedicated, 11 September 1868. . . .

“Der Schmerz” by Lise Tarlau can be found in Rabbi Max Grunwald’s anthology of Jewish women’s prayer, Beruria: Gebet- und Andachtsbuch für jüdische Frauen und Mädchen (1907), pages 523-525. . . .

A German translation of the Birkat haMazon prepared by Franz Rosenzweig. . . .

“Descend into thyself, my soul!” by Penina Moïse, published in 1842, appears under the subject “Self-Examination” as Hymn 22 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), pp. 26-27. . . .

The poem, “A Description of my Dreams” by Rosa Emma Salaman, was written in September 1849 and first published in the Occident and American Jewish Advocate Vol. 6:4, Tamuz 5608, July 1848, p.175-177. . . .

This is the anthology of teḥinot, Devotional Exercises for the Use of Jewish Women on Public and Domestic Occasions (1852), translated by Miriam Wertheimer from Taḥnunei bat Yehudah (1846) by Meïr Letteris. On the title page and the preface, the author of the work translated by Wertheimer was somehow misidentified as Wolfgang Wessely. . . .

A collection of teḥinot translated, adapted, and republished in English. This is one of the first collections of teḥinot published for an English speaking audience. . . .

This is the poem “דיא זרשטע טבילה” by Morris Rosenfeld (1862-1923) written sometime before 1898. We have transcribed the poem as it was published in Rosenfeld’s collection of poems Gezamelṭe lieder (1906) pp. 167-168. The poem was romanized and translated into English by Leo Wiener and published under the title, “Die erste Twile (The First Bath of Ablution)” in Songs from the Ghetto (1898), pp. 52-55. A rhyming translation by Rose Pastor Stokes & Helena Frank under the title, “The First Bath of Ablution” was published in Songs of Labor and Other Poems (1914), pp. 72-73. . . .

An anthology of teḥinot in German compiled by Max Emanuel Stern, Die fromme Zionstochter: Andachtsbuch für Israels Frauen und Mädchen zur öffentlichen und häuslichen Gottesverehrung an allen Wochen -Fest – und Busse-Tagen und für alle Verhältnisse (1841). A second edition with slight changes to the typeface and layout was published in 1846. . . .

The ḳaddish prayer of Rebbi Levi Yitsḥaq of Berditchev in Yiddish with Hebrew, and English translations. . . .

A speech given in honor of Napoleon concluding with a prayer by Abraham de Cologna, chief rabbi of the Central Consistory of Israelites, in 1809 on the anniversary of the emperor’s coronation. . . .

The poem, “Divine Love” by Rosa Emma Salaman, was first published in the Occident 6:7, Tishrei 5609, October 1849, p. 197-198. . . .

This is a faithful transcription of the prayer of Gele (Gella), daughter of the printer Moshe, as found at the end of Tefillah l’Mosheh (2nd ed., Halle, Germany, 1710), a prayerbook Gele typeset when she was only 11-years-old. This prayerbook is rare owing to the destruction of the press following the incarceration of Gele’s father for publishing a prayerbook containing the prayer “Aleinu,” which had been forbidden by royal decree. The translation provided here was made by Dr. Kathryn Hellerstein as found in A Question of Tradition: Women Poets in Yiddish, 1586-1987 (2014, Stanford University Press), p. 63-4. The layout of Gele’s prayer follows that of Ezra Korman from his anthology of Jewish women’s poetry, Yiddishe Dikhterins, also the source of the page image provided. If you know the location of a copy or digital scan of this siddur, please contact us. . . .

“Domestic Prayer of Thanksgiving After Confinement” by Marcus Heinrich Bresslau was first published in his תחנות בנות ישראל Devotions for the Daughters of Israel (1852), p. 58-59. . . .

“Draw nigh, Lord! unto my soul,” by Penina Moïse, published in 1842, appears under the subject “Submission to the Will of God” as Hymn 34 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), p. 37. . . .

In 2017, Rabbi David Evan Markus prepared the end of Dr. King’s famous speech read at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (August 28, 1963) with trope (t’amim, cantillation). The following year on Facebook he shared a recording of the reading hosted on Soundcloud. Rabbi Markus writes, “This weekend at Temple Beth El of City Island, I offered the end of Dr. King’s 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech, which I set to haftarah trope because I hold Dr. King to be a prophet. When my community applauded, I offered President Obama’s response, ‘Don’t clap: vote.’ And do more than vote: organize, donate, volunteer, help, heal, advocate. Only then, in Dr. King’s words quoting Isaiah 40:5, will ‘all flesh see it together.'” . . .

This an an untitled piyyut by Eleazer of Worms, eulogizing his beloved wife Dulcea (Heb: דולצא, also, Dulcia and Dolce). The Hebrew text is derived from the transcription offered by Israel Kamelhar inRabbenu Eleazar mi-Germaiza, ha-Roqeah (Rzeazow, 1930), pp. 17-19. The translation and annotation come from Dr. Ivan G. Marcus from his article, “Mothers, Martyrs, and Moneymakers: Some Jewish Women in Medieval Europe” in Conservative Judaism, vol. 38(3), Spring 1986. . . .

“Early and late my God I seek,” by Penina Moïse, published in 1842, appears under the subject “Hope in God” as Hymn 31 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), pp. 34-35. . . .

The earliest “Earth Pledge” circulated between Earth Day 1970 and 1983. . . .

The text of the popular counting song “Who Knows One?” in its original Hebrew, with a translation in Latin. . . .

The text of the popular Passover song “Who Knows One?” in its original Hebrew and Yiddish, with a translation in English. . . .

In a poignant reflection on human limitation and the role of religion, Albert Einstein (1879-1955) consoled two rabbis each grieving the painful loss of their children. The first letter dated 12 February 1950, drafted in German before its translation into English, was written for Rabbi Robert S. Marcus after the death of the rabbi’s eleven-year-old son, Jay, from polio in September 1949. The second letter, dated 4 March 1950, was written for Rabbi Norman Salit after the death of Salit’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Miriam. Einstein’s letter to Rabbi Salit borrowed from and expanded upon the composition of his letter to Rabbi Marcus. In a few short lines, the letter expresses Einstein’s opinion on the prison-like delusion of consciousness — and the work of “true” religion to escape this prison through the intentional expansion of compassion beyond one’s self. . . .

The piyyut, El Adon, in Hebrew with an interpretive “praying translation” by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalom, z”l. . . .

This Chinese translation of an Ashkenazi nusaḥ for the alphabetic acrostic piyyut “El Adon,” is found on page 8 of the liner notes for the Chinese edition of Richard Collis’s album We Sing We Stay Together: Shabbat Morning Service Prayers (Wǒmen gēchàng, wǒmen xiāngjù — Ānxírì chén dǎo qídǎo). . . .

An adaptation of El Malei Raḥamim for victims of the 7 October massacres, and for the soldiers and other security personnel fallen in its aftermath was prepared for the Yizkor services held on the 7th day of Passover 5754 (2024) by Lt. Col. Shai Abramson, Chief Cantor of the IDF. The English translation was made by Ematai and published on their website and on social media. . . .

This is an undated El Malé Raḥamim prayer for the victims of the Shoah translated into Dutch for a Yom Kippur ne’ilah service, likely sometime soon after the Holocaust had ended. To this I have added an English translation for those not fluent in Dutch or Hebrew. We are grateful to Shufra Judaica (Ellie Fisher and David Selis) for sharing a digital copy of this prayer. . . .

The prayer El Malé Raḥamim, translated by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi. . . .

The poem, “Elijah” by Rosa Emma Salaman, was first published in the Occident 6:7, Kislev 5610, December 1849, p. 455-457. . . .

A rhyming translation of Elohai Neshamah. . . .

Variations of the prayer “Elohai Netsor” upon concluding the Amidah are recorded in Berakhot 17a. The version appearing here is as found in Rabbi David Einhorn’s עלת תמיד Gebetbuch für Israelitische Reform-Gemeinden (1858), p. 426. The English translation here, by Joshua Giorgio-Rubin, translating Rabbi David Einhorn, is as found in Rubin’s Olat Hadashah: A Modern Adaptation of David Einhorn’s Olat Tamid for Shabbat Evening (2020), p. 11. . . .

“God the Life of Nature” by Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan was first published in his Sabbath Prayer Book (Jewish Reconstructionist Foundation 1945), p. 382-391, where it appears side-by-side with its translation into Hebrew by Abraham Regelson. . . .

This translation by Rabbi David Aaron de Sola of “Elohim Yisadenu” by a paytan named Avraham (possibly Avraham ibn Ezra) was first published in his Ancient Melodies of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews (1857). . . .

The first of two blessings following the shema in the evening, rendered by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi in his English “praying translation.” . . .

This Chinese translation of the prayers “Emet v’Yatsiv” and “Al haRishonim” commencing the Geulah blessing immediately following the Shema in Shaḥarit is found on pages 16-17 of the liner notes for the Chinese edition of Richard Collis’s album We Sing We Stay Together: Shabbat Morning Service Prayers (Wǒmen gēchàng, wǒmen xiāngjù — Ānxírì chén dǎo qídǎo). . . .

A teachable moment in the life of Emma Goldman to reflect upon whether our practice is liberating or in need of liberation. . . .

This paraliturgical adaptation of the piyyut Shalom Aleikhem by Lise Tarlau (“Engelsgruß. (Scholaum alechem.)”) can be found in Rabbi Max Grunwald’s anthology of Jewish women’s prayer, Beruria: Gebet- und Andachtsbuch für jüdische Frauen und Mädchen (1907), page 85. . . .

“Enoch” by Rosa Emma Salaman was first published in the Occident 4:9, Kislev 5607/December 1846. . . .