Dear TBZ community:
Psalm 27
David's.
Yah! You are my light. You are my savior.
Whom need I dread?
Yah, with You as my strong protector
who can make me panic?
When hateful bullies gang up on me,
wanting to harass me,
To oppress and terrorize me,
they are the ones who stumble and fall.
Even if a gang surrounds me my heart is not weakened.
If a battle is joined around me
my trust in You is firm.
Only one thing do I ask of You, Yah:
Just this alone do I seek,
I want to be at home with you, Yah,
all the days of my life.
I want to delight in seeing You
when I come to visit You in Your temple.
You hide me in your sukkah on a foul day.
You conceal me unseen in Your tent;
You raise me beyond anyone's reach.
And now, as You have held my head high
despite the presence of my powerful foes
I prepare to celebrate and thrill,
singing and making music to You, Yah!
Listen, Yah, to the sound of my cry,
and, being kind, answer me!
My heart has said, I seek Your face.
Your presence is what I beg for.
Don't hide Your face from me.
Don't just put me down.
You who have been my helper, don't abandon me,
don't forsake me, God my support.
Though my father and my mother have left me,
You, Yah, will hold me securely.
Please teach me Your way.
Teach me Your way and guide me on the straight path.
Discourage those who defame me
Because false witnesses stood up against me
belching out violence.
Don't let me become the victim of my foes.
I wouldn't have survived
If I hadn't hoped that I would yet see
Your goodness, God, fully alive on earth.
So I tell you, my friends:
you too hope to Yah! Be sturdy!
And make strong your heart.
And most of all, keep hoping to Yah.
Rabbi Edward Feld introduces this Psalm in an article in the PsalmSeason project from Hebrew College by saying: “There are times when we are sure of ourselves, and then questions arise, our sense of confidence deserts us. The questions which we never truly faced before overwhelm us and after, we are left to try to pick up the pieces.” Rabbi Feld goes on and explains that this is the journey that Psalm 27 takes us through.
As I follow the news in Afghanistan, in Haiti and also the spread of the Coronavirus and the Delta Variant, this feeling of being overwhelmed and left to pick up the pieces has resonated with me. For me, the practice reciting Psalm 27 each day of Elul, is a practice of recognizing my strength and my weakness, my hope and my despair, my faith and my anger, my belief and my frustration.
Perhaps this Psalm doesn't speak about separate moments -- times when we are sure and strong and faithful in contrast to times that we feel deserted and alone and fearful. Perhaps this Psalm reminds us that we hold both the good and the terrible; that our relationship with the Divine can hold the joy of God’s presence, love and shelter at the very same moment that we are longing for God’s presence because we are unable to feel or find it in our life.
As I shared in the last two weeks, Noah Weinberg, TBZ’s Musical Prayer Leader, and I are spending time singing together and choosing some new songs to introduce to our community for these High Holy Days. Today, we offer words from Psalm 27:
אַחַ֤ת ׀ שָׁאַ֣לְתִּי מֵֽאֵת־יְהֹוָה֮ אוֹתָ֢הּ אֲבַ֫קֵּ֥שׁ
שִׁבְתִּ֣י בְּבֵית־יְ֭הֹוָה כׇּל־יְמֵ֣י חַיַּ֑י לַחֲז֥וֹת בְּנֹעַם־יְ֝הֹוָ֗ה וּלְבַקֵּ֥ר בְּהֵֽיכָלֽוֹ
One thing I ask of the LORD, only that do I see
to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD, to frequent His temple.
Or in the words of Reb Zalman:
Only one thing do I ask of You, Yah:
Just this alone do I seek,
I want to be at home with you, Yah,
all the days of my life.
I want to delight in seeing You
when I come to visit You in Your temple.
The tune we offer is a new tune by the Razel Family in Jerusalem. (You can see their beautiful video recorded in the Streets of Nachlaot, the neighborhood - and street- I lived for many years in Jerusalem). Noah and I recorded our video at Gann Farm, the place where Noah spends most of his days farming and teaching. It was a beautiful day and many many butterflies sang along with us (you can spot them on the video). When we were singing these words, I know I truly felt the sense of being in God’s home and with God. Whether we are in Nachlaot, in the Farm, in our TBZ Sanctuary, in our homes, in the streets, in every place we are, we have the opportunity to be in God’s presence, kol yemei chayai, every day of our lives. That is the journey, that is our prayer.
We will be singing this tune during the High Holidays (and also our “traditional” tune). So we invite you to listen and learn it with us.
May this Elul journey be one of meaning and purpose, so we can arrive ready for Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur.
Don’t forget to sign up to join us for The High Holy Days, in person or online. All information you need can be found HERE. Some of the services are filling up!
May this Shabbat bring renewal and blessings to all of you and your loved ones.
May we find strength, courage, and patience, and open our hearts with generosity.
May all those who are ill find healing of spirit
May we have a joyful and restful Shabbat!
Shabbat Shalom
