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From the Bimah
February 2005

Tradition holds one should recite a hundred blessings a day. Why? To be reminded of the daily gift of life. Think about it: There are literally hundreds of blessings. There are blessings said when you hear good news, blessings recited over hearing bad news. There are blessings over bananas, and beverages other than wine. Blessing on bread (the kind you eat), and yes, the kind you earn.

There are blessings on and over candles. You can find a blessing said before you eat cheese; a blessing said for oneās child. Go to a Brit Milah, circumcision, and youāll hear an assortment of blessings. Blessings are said for oneās parents. Blessings are offered for the distinctions we make in our lives. Put on your clothes in the morning and there is a blessing, not to mention the blessing for simply waking up.

Eat a piece of dried fruit and there is a blessing. Over fish and fragrant herbs and flowers youāll learn of a blessing. When you recite a Maftir, eat a piece of meat, drink a glass of milk (not in that order of course), bless the new month, our tradition dictates a blessing. When you eat a pastry, eat uncooked raw foods, sure enough there is a blessing. You can find blessings on the wonder of sight, smell, touch, even the crush of thunder.

Jewish prayer is filled with blessing. But remember this: the purpose of pray, with its varied blessings, is not to tell God how wonderful He is! God is not insecure. Yes, there are blessings of praise and gratitude to our creator. But the bulk of Jewish prayer is to remind us of the preciousness of life. At its core, blessings serve to heighten our own sense of awareness, our own sense of appreciation. Blessings are the sign posts of life, reminding us to slow down, or depending on the path -- speed up. They are there to teach us to see and feel differently. They are there to make us more compassionate and caring, more human and more Godly.

Here is a blessing/prayer that appears in one of my rabbinic manuals. It is a blessing that truly fits our synagogue community. May the door of our synagogue be wide enough to receive all who hunger for love, all who are lonely for fellowship. May it welcome all who have cares to unburden, thanks to express, hopes to nurture. May the door of our synagogue be narrow enough to shut out pettiness and pride, envy and enmity. May its threshold be no stumbling block to young or straying feet. May it be too high to admit complacency, selfishness, and harshness. May our synagogue be, for all who enter, the doorway to a richer and more meaningful life. Blessings to all of you, and yours -- Amen.

Rabbi Michael Gotlieb