With respect to the idea of a blessing to God, we are obviously not referring to the Being of God, God-forbid, God is above any blessing. But the idea is introduced in the Zohar, that there are parts of God that are hidden away...
“Elokainu vei’lokei avoteinu” Continued: The halacha teaches that if you are not going to be able to concentrate and have kavana, awareness over the course of the Amidah, at least have concentration on the first three blessings. You see now why this is...
“Elokainu vei’lokei avoteinu” Continued: General Providence and Individual Providence: If God wants our prayer, we must be important as individuals. The first feeling we should have in approaching God is awe, and that sense of awe comes from feeling so insignificant in comparison....
“Elokainu vei’lokei avoteinu” Continued: General Providence and Individual Providence: When I pray my Amidah, I am not coming from within a vacuum, all by myself. I am part of an almost infinite Creation. Definitely from my perspective, Creation is infinite. All the number...
“Elokainu vei’lokei avoteinu” Continued: General Providence and Individual Providence: One of the most devastating things for a human being is to feel that he is not important, not even important to God. “You need to look at me in the whole context of...
Elokainu vei’lokei avoteinu Elokainu vei’lokei avoteinu speaks of two separate attributes of God. Elokainu (“Our Lord”) refers to that attribute called hashgachat pratit, or Individual Providence. Meaning, God is intimately involved with the lives of each one of us. Elokei avoteiu (“The Lord...
Blessing continued: The Artscroll Siddur, page 108, you will find a prayer to insert in Shema Koleinu that is based on the Ba’al Shem Tov’s concept of blessing as a spring The prayer to insert is in the shaded area, and is...
When we use the word “Ata”, we are talking directly to God. The Ba’al Shem Tov explains that in every blessing we begin by addressing God in the second person. Baruch Ata – “Blessed are You.” And then we end the phrase in the...
The following is a selection from the siddur of the Ketav V’ha’Kabbalah, written by Rabbi Yaakov Mecklenberg, called Iyun Tefillah. (Please Note: The Ketav V’ha’Kabbalah has the most magnificent meditation, which is six lines published in his siddur, right after the Modeh Ani). ...
When someone says “Baruch ata Hashem” they are speaking in second person direct; You are listening to me. Look at what it does for us. When we first begin to daven the Amidah, we are not asking God for things. We are doing...
Expanding God’s Presence in the World Every time we acknowledge God’s presence in the world, every time we say the words baruch ata Hashem, God’s Presence literally expands in the world. Just think about the world around us. How much of God is really...
With respect to the idea of a blessing to God, we are obviously not referring to the Being of God, God-forbid, God is above any blessing. But the idea is introduced in the Zohar, that there are parts of God that are hidden away...
Baruch Ata Hashem continued: When we say the phrase “Baruch ata Hashem”, we are saying to God, “May You grow.” How does God grow? – When a human being acknowledges God. Every time you make a blessing, God’s presence in the world expands and...
“Blessed are You, Hashem.” Every time that I acknowledge God, God’s presence expands. – Nefesh Hachaim (See too Proverbs 11:25, where the word “Beracha” means to expand.) This is a selection from the Second Chapter of the Second Gate: First you...
“Blessed are You, Hashem.” “You are the source of all blessing,” -- Rashba, Rabbi Samuel ben Aderet, 14th century. This is the explanation that is the most universally accepted. And this too, is the idea of a blessing. All should bless God and thank...
Reflecting On Our Goals It is important to take time before taking the three steps back to reflect on what we hope to gain through our saying the Amidah. To simply say that I want to communicate with God usually does not work for...
“My Lord, open my lips that my mouth may declare Your praise.” A statement of humility We are asking God for the ability to express all that that is inside. It is a statement of humility. It means that I need Your help...
I am not a grouch, just confused. I have often wondered about the way we celebrate weddings. I cannot begin to comprehend why we are willing to spend
(Deuteronomy 13:4) The verse tells us that we are challenged by false prophets; “for God, your Lord, is testing you to know whether you love God, your Lord with all your heart and all your soul.” Nachmanides explains that God wills to measure our...