Dear Friends,
Each day during this month of Elul brings us closer to the arrival of the New Year. With that in mind, I offer the words by my colleague Rabbi Debra J. Robbins as a meditation to carry into Shabbat this evening.
The Hebrew words “hope” and “cord” share letters.
I grab hold of both.
I use them to tie myself securely to a base or pull myself to safety.The Hebrew words “hope” and “cord”
also share letters with the Hebrew word mikveh.
Immerse in God, like a person immerses in the water,
in the ritual bath.I immerse in the fresh possibilities for holiness and new life.
Hold on and immerse in God
This takes strength, courage, and daring.
Will I dare to grab hold of hope and pull it tight?
Can I let Holiness wash over me?Am I brave enough to
Pray?See the divine image in every human encounter?
Use my voice for those who have no voice?
Hear with heart?
Learn and grow in soul?
Do I have the courage
to live, really live, in the world of the living,
here and now, in a new year?Yes.
I will.
Hold on. Immerse. Live.
—Rabbi Debra J. Robbins, Opening Your Heart with Psalm 27: A Spiritual Practice for the Jewish New Year
May this Shabbat be a Shabbat of reflection for us all.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Daniel M. Cohen