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Well-being, health, and caregiving

This is an archive of prayers composed for, or relevant to, the health and well-being of others by or for caregivers.

If you have composed a prayer for overcoming illness, for well-being, or for the success of caregivers, healers, and physicians, please share it here.

Sorted Chronologically (old to new). Sort most recent first?

Heal Me, a prayer-poem by Trisha Arlin

A prayer-poem for healing by Trisha Arlin.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., English poetry, English vernacular prayer, first person, Prayers as poems, refuah

Contributor(s):

Trisha Arlin

Transition Ritual Poems, by Joy Ladin

The transition ritual poems below are an effort to hear in the Torah the voices of the various parts of the trans self calling one another toward wholeness.

Categories:

🌐 Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31st), Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, gender transition, LGBTQIA+, transgender prayer

Contributor(s):

Joy Ladin

תפילה לתורם דם | The Blood Donor’s Prayer, by Elli Fischer

A prayer to be recited upon donating blood. In Israel, there are major blood drives around the times of Rosh Hashana and Pesaḥ, so the prayer borrows themes from both of those holidays. It emphasizes both the tzedaka aspect of blood donation and the ancient symbolic resonances of blood sacrifice.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., blood, English Translation, giving blood, כוונות kavvanot, life giving, matanat dam, self-sacrifice, תחינות teḥinot, ישראל Yisrael

Contributor(s):

Elli Fischer

Activist Prayer for a Trauma Center on Chicago’s South Side, by Aryeh Bernstein (2015)

A disproportionate amount of the alarming gun violence in Chicago takes place on the South Side, yet the South Side lacks even a single level one adult trauma center. Consequently, gunshot victims sometimes minutes from death must be transported miles away to Downtown or North Side hospitals. In 2010, after Damien Turner, an 18-year-old resident of the South Side Woodlawn neighborhood, died waiting for an ambulance to drive him ten miles to a downtown hospital instead of two blocks to the University of Chicago Medical Center (UCMC), a grassroots collaboration of community organizations, faith leaders, and University of Chicago student groups began organizing the Trauma Center Coalition, dedicated to reopening a Level 1 adult trauma center at UCMC, the most well-resourced hospital on the South Side. So far, the university has refused. As part of the coalition’s ongoing campaign, last week [April 23, 2015], dozens of activists gathered on the university’s historic Midway field, for a vigil of prayer and song from different faith traditions. At dusk, participants lit candles to spell out “Trauma Center Now”, right across from the home of U. Chicago President Robert Zimmer, and then camped out for the night. As a representative of coalition partner Jewish Council on Urban Affairs, I was invited to offer a Jewish prayer, which is reproduced here; I read it in both the English and Hebrew.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving, Repenting, Resetting, and Reconciliation

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., activism, Chicago, medical treatment, social justice, צדק צדק תרדוף tsedeq tsedeq tirdof

Contributor(s):

Aryeh Bernstein

אשר יצר | Asher Yatsar prayer for recognizing the Divine Image in all our bodies, by Rabbi Emily Aviva Kapor

Asher Yatzar (the “bathroom blessing”, traditionally said every morning and after every time one goes to relieve oneself) has always rung hollow to me, at best, and at worst has been a prayer not celebrating beauty but highlighting pain. The original version praises bodies whose nekavim nekavim ḥalulim ḥalulim (“all manner of ducts and tubes”) are properly opened and closed—yes, in a digestive/excretory sense, but it is quite easy to read a reproductive sense into it as well. What do you do if the “ducts and tubes” in your body are not properly opened and closed, what if one is open that should be closed, or vice versa?

Categories:

Asher Yatsar, 🌐 Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31st), Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., all bodies, אשר יצר Asher Yatsar, disabled bodies, gender transition, LGBTQIA+, North Amercia, transgender prayer

Contributor(s):

Emily Aviva Kapor-Mater

תפילה לפני חלוקת תרופות | Prayer before the dispensation of medication, by Dafna Meir, z”l

This prayer was originally published April 13th, 2013 on Dafna Meir’s blog, Derekh Nashim (Women’s Ways), here, writing “את התפילה זכיתי לחבר תוך כדי למידה למבחן תרופות במחלקה הנוירוכירורגית בסורוקה, בה אני עובדת.” (The prayer I composed for a friend while studying for a test at the Neurosurgery department at Soroka Hospital, which I work.) English translation by Moshe F. via Israellycool. More about Dafna Meir, here and here.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., Care, Medicine, Needing Vocalization, Nursing, prayers of health care workers, ישראל Yisrael

Contributor(s):

Aharon N. Varady (transcription) and Dafna Meir

אֲשֶׁר יָצַר | Asher Yatsar, a paraliturgical reflection by Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

A paraliturgical reflection on the prayer following urination and defecation, Asher Yatsar, for a shame resilience practice.

Categories:

Asher Yatsar, Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., all bodies, אשר יצר Asher Yatsar, Bathroom Prayer, English vernacular prayer, excretion, paraliturgical asher yatsar, shame resilience

Contributor(s):

Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman

A blessing for you if you need one, from Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg

On May 15th, 2018, Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg tweeted this blessing.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, North America, personal blessings

Contributor(s):

Danya Ruttenberg

A Blessing for the Sudden Relief from Chronic Pain, by Rabbi Menachem Creditor

Rabbi Menachem Creditor first shared this prayer in the Open Siddur Project discussion group on Facebook, here.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., all bodies, English vernacular prayer, Gratitude, מודים Modim, Needing Translation (into Hebrew), North America, pain, thanksgiving

Contributor(s):

Menachem Creditor

הודאה לפני התרגיל | Prayer of Gratitude Before Exercise, by Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz

If it is a mitsvah to guard our lives and strengthen our bodies in service of our holy mission, then there should be a brakhah (blessing) before we start a session of vigorous activity; any excuse to add blessings to our day is a wonderful opportunity for personal growth!

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., all bodies, Gratitude, מודים Modim, North America, שמירת הגוף shmirat haguf, תחינות teḥinot

Contributor(s):

Shmuly Yanklowitz

אַ געבעט פאַר דער אימונירונג | תְּפִלָּה לִפְנֵי חִסּוּן | Prayer before a Vaccination, by Hannah Katsman

A prayer in Hebrew to be said before a vaccination, with Yiddish and English translation.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., Magyar translation, prayers of health care workers, שמירת הגוף shmirat haguf, תחינות teḥinot, תחינות tkhines, חיסון vaccination, Yiddish translation, ישראל Yisrael

Contributor(s):

Hannah Katsman, Leah Garfinkle (Yiddish translation) and Chana Deutsch (Magyar translation)

Blessing for Caregivers, by Rabbi Me’irah Iliinsky

I am a rabbi, and I serve an assisted living community: Rhoda Goldman Plaza in San Francisco. I was inspired by the loving care given to the members of this community, and wanted to acknowledge these workers. I, together with three residents, wrote a prayerbook for our services, Siddur Erev Shabbat (Kindle/Amazon Direct Publishing, 2020). This prayer, which is entirely my own composition, is included in that prayerbook, and we recite it at each Friday service.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, prayers for caregivers, prayers of health care workers

Contributor(s):

Me'irah Iliinsky

תְּפִלָּה לַמִּתְחַסְּנִים | A Prayer for the one to be Vaccinated, by Rabbi Esteban Gottfried (2020)

A kavvanah before a vaccination offered by Rabbi Esteban Gottfried of Ḳ.Ḳ. Beit Tefilah Yisraeli in Tel Aviv.

Categories:

Epidemics & Pandemics, Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

2020 coronavirus outbreak in Israel, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., COVID-19 coronavirus, שמירת הגוף shmirat haguf, חיסון vaccination

Contributor(s):

Isabel Bard (translation) and Esteban Gottfried

תפילה למתחסן/ת | Prayer for those Receiving Vaccinations (Masorti Movement in Israel 2020)

A prayer for those receiving vaccinations.

Categories:

Epidemics & Pandemics, Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

2020 coronavirus outbreak in Israel, 2020 coronavirus pandemic, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., COVID-19 coronavirus, שמירת הגוף shmirat haguf, חיסון vaccination

Contributor(s):

Knesset haRabanim b'Yisrael, the Masorti Movement in Israel, Aharon N. Varady (transcription) and Shoshana Michael Zucker (translation)

מי שברך על כל המחרפים נפשם לעצור את המגפה | Mi sheBerakh for the Medical Workers & Researchers on the Front Lines of the COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic (2020)

A prayer for the medical workers and researchers on the front lines of treating the afflicted and finding a cure for the COVID19 coronavirus pandemic.

Categories:

Epidemics & Pandemics, Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

2019–20 coronavirus outbreak, 2020 coronavirus outbreak in the United States, 2020 coronavirus pandemic, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., coronavirus, COVID-19 coronavirus, מי שברך mi sheberakh

Contributor(s):

Stephen Belsky

תפילה למחסן/ת | Prayer for those Administering Vaccinations (Masorti Movement in Israel 2020)

A prayer for those administering vaccinations.

Categories:

Epidemics & Pandemics, Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

2020 coronavirus outbreak in Israel, 2020 coronavirus pandemic, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., COVID-19 coronavirus, prayers of health care workers, שמירת הגוף shmirat haguf, חיסון vaccination

Contributor(s):

Knesset haRabanim b'Yisrael, the Masorti Movement in Israel, Aharon N. Varady (transcription) and Shoshana Michael Zucker (translation)

בקרב כולם | in the midst of it all, a short prayer by Rabbi Menachem Creditor (2020)

A short prayer of gratitude in the midst of a global pandemic and civil unrest.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., COVID-19 coronavirus, Gratitude, מודים Modim, Needing Vocalization

Contributor(s):

Menachem Creditor

Blessing for Myself and for You, by Kohenet Ilana Joy Streit

A poem-blessing for trailblazers of many kinds, to honor everyday courage and to inspire trust and self-compassion.

Categories:

Well-being, health, and caregiving, Rosh Ḥodesh Adar (אַדָר) Alef & Bet

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, Prayers as poems, תחינות teḥinot, teḥinot in English

Contributor(s):

Kohenet Ilana Joy Streit

Prayer for When My Children are Vaccinated Against COVID-19, by Cantor Hinda Labovitz (2021)

This prayer for a parent (or primary caregiver) on the vaccination of their children by Cantor Hinda Labovitz was first shared via their Facebook page on 5 November 2021,

Categories:

Epidemics & Pandemics, Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., COVID-19 coronavirus, English vernacular prayer, Prayers on behalf of children, Prayers of Primary Caregivers, חיסון vaccination

Contributor(s):

Cantor Hinda Labovitz

מִי שֶׁבֵּרַךְ לְבָּרְוָחָה הַנַּפְשִׁית | Mi sheBerakh for Mental Health Wellness (the Blue Dove Foundation, 2021)

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

Categories:

After the Aliyot, Well-being, health, and caregiving

Tags:

21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., health, Mental Health, מי שברך mi sheberakh

Contributor(s):

the Blue Dove Foundation

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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)

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