Restful Reflections

Kerry M. Olitzky, Lori Forman–Jacobi

Description

At day's end, quiet your mind and unburden your heart. These peaceful reflections offer wisdom to "sleep on." For each night of the year, an inspiring quote from a Jewish source and a personal reflection on it from an insightful spiritual leader help you to focus on your spiritual life and the lessons your day has offered.

Sujets

• Philosophie et théologie
• Torá
• List of Jewish prayers and blessings
• Jewish philosophy
• Judaism
• Religion
• Torah

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 10 janvier 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781580235716
• Langue: English

Extrait

Restful Reflections: Nighttime Inspiration to Calm the Soul, Based on Jewish Wisdom
2009 Quality Paperback Edition, Second Printing
2001 Quality Paperback Edition, First Printing
2001 by Kerry M. Olitzky and Lori Forman
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
For information regarding permission to reprint material from this book, please mail or fax your request in writing to Jewish Lights Publishing, Permissions Department, at the address / fax number listed below, or e-mail your request to [e-mail] .
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Restful reflections: nighttime inspiration to calm the soul, based on Jewish wisdom / [edited by] Kerry M. Olitzky Lori Forman.
p. cm.
Sequel to: Sacred intentions
Includes bibliographical reference and index.
ISBN-13: 978-1-58023-091-9 (quality pbk.)
ISBN-10: 1-58023-091-1 (quality pbk.)
1. Jewish devotional calendars. 2. Jewish meditations.
3. Spiritual life-Judaism. I. Olitzky, Kerry M. II. Forman, Lori.
III. Sacred Intentions.
BM724.R46 2000
296.7 2-dc21
00-011957
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
Manufactured in the United States of America
Cover design: Stacey Hood, Big Eyedea Design
Text design: Susan Ramundo
Published by Jewish Lights Publishing
A Division of LongHill Partners, Inc.
Sunset Farm Offices, Route 4, P.O. Box 237
Woodstock, VT 05091
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]
www.jewishlights.com
Featuring contributions to rekindle the spirit written by :
Yosef I. Abramowitz
Bradley Shavit Artson
Leila Gal Berner
Jonathan Jaffe Bernhard
Tsvi Blanchard
Barry H. Block
Terry A. Bookman
Herbert Bronstein
Ayelet Cohen
Jerome K. Davidson
Avram Davis
Lavey Derby
Malka Drucker
Amy Eilberg
Edward Feinstein
Yehudah Fine
Mordecai Finley
James A. Gibson
Melvin J. Glazer
James Scott Glazier
Edwin C. Goldberg
Elyse Goldstein
James Stone Goodman
Irving Greenberg
Daniel Gropper
Judith HaLevy
Brad Hirschfield
Elana Kanter
Stuart Kelman
Francine Klagsbrun
Peter S. Knobel
Jeffrey Korbman
Jonathan Kraus
Irwin Kula
Neil Kurshan
Mark H. Levin
Levi Meier
Steven Heneson Moskowitz
David Nelson
Vanessa L. Ochs
Nessa Rapoport
Jack Riemer
Jeffrey Salkin
Nigel Savage
Ismar Schorsch
Harold M. Schulweis
Rami Shapiro
Rick Sherwin
Jeffrey Sirkman
Marcia Cohn Spiegel
Liza Stern
Michael Strassfeld
Michael White
Arnold Jacob Wolf
Joel H. Zaiman
Josh Zweiback
Raymond A. Zwerin
For Terry Elkes, and for the vision that he inspires KO
For Maya, my daughter, to inspire, guide, and comfort her in the years ahead LF
C ONTENTS
Acknowledgments
How to Use This Book
Introduction
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
Notes
Glossary of Terms
Our Teachers: Authors of Quoted Texts
Sources of Quoted Texts
Contributors
Contributor Index
Theme Index
Permissions
About Jewish Lights
Copyright
A CKNOWLEDGMENTS
T his book is a sequel. It is part of an ongoing project of reaching into the rich reservoir of Jewish thought in order to draw from it wisdom and inspiration for everyday-and every night-living. Therefore, we must begin by thanking all those people who read and were inspired by each daily entry in our first book, Sacred Intentions , and encouraged us to prepare a second volume. We also thank all of our colleagues who enriched our own writing by contributing many thoughtful pieces, some of which we were unable to use owing to the sheer volume of contributions.
We express our profound appreciation to staff members at Jewish Lights Publishing who carefully shepherded this volume page by page. In particular, we thank Martha McKinney, who constantly kept us on track and looked out for each administrative and creative detail. Our profound gratitude goes to Sandra Korinchak, who took this project on herself among her editorial responsibilities at Jewish Lights Publishing. The words are ours, but their final form is due in significant measure to the editorial care she took in helping to shape each entry.
Words are inadequate to express the abiding gratitude that I feel toward both Stuart, publisher of Jewish Lights, and Antoinette Matlins. They have stood by me, from the early days of only dreaming about their sacred intention of creating an inclusive Jewish community through the expression of sacred words. It has been a privilege to be part of this unfolding enterprise. Everyone who participates in it with them is truly blessed. I want to acknowledge with abiding appreciation my colleagues and coworkers at the Jewish Outreach Institute, particularly Dr. Egon Mayer and Nastaran Afari, and Terry Elkes, president of our organization. In a short time, they have welcomed me into an environment in which people from all walks of Jewish life feel at home-particularly those who previously felt as if they were on the periphery. In the environment that we are working to create, we are helping to bring to reality a more inclusive Jewish community.
As many words as there are in this book and in the others that I have been blessed to write, they are insufficient to articulate the depth of support, encouragement and love I receive from my family. Each word stands on the firm foundation that they have created for me. Whether we plumb the valley or ascend to the peaks, we do it together. In the midst of the richness of their lives, sometimes simple words are best to express the deepness of our feelings. To my wife, Sheryl, and to our sons, Avi and Jesse: I thank you with every ounce of my being. Whatever I am and whatever I am yet to be is all because of you.
R ABBI K ERRY (S HIA ) M. O LITZKY
It has been a true journey writing both Sacred Intentions and this sequel with Kerry. I thank him for his wisdom and guidance as we compiled these two volumes of inspiration. I continue to be grateful to U JA -Federation of New York for supporting me in my work as I search for creative ways to teach and connect our Jewish values with our organization s mission. I am also greatly appreciative of the assistance Stephanie McFadden gives me as my secretary, which allows me to take on interesting projects. One of my many projects has been to write The Jewish Thought of the Day, which is the backbone of my entries herein. I thank all my readers for their continued interest and support. I am forever in awe of the warm responses I receive for these daily messages.
I worked on this book while I was home on maternity leave with my daughter, Maya. As Maya is my first child, little did I realize what it would mean to experience motherhood for the first time and to write simultaneously. Though being disciplined was challenging, Maya s birth filled me with such joy and love that hopefully this perspective on life comes through in my writing. I hope that these words of inspiration guide her as she grows and matures. To my husband, Simcha, who is my true partner in our lives together, my love and thanks for supporting and nurturing me as I continue to grow and explore new territory as mother, wife, rabbi, and teacher.
R ABBI L ORI F ORMAN
H OW TO U SE T HIS B OOK
T his book follows the daily Gregorian calendar and is designed to be used as a companion to daily life. It may be used in conjunction with the book Sacred Intentions: Daily Inspiration to Strengthen the Spirit (which is focused on the beginning of each day) or on its own. Most of its entries are tied to the themes that emerge from the calendar. Sometimes dates that have become part of the fabric of North American society are noted. At other times, attention is given to the general season. Since Jewish calendar dates are generally not tied to the secular calendar, they are noted with some measure of flexibility.
Place the volume by your bed and as you get ready to sleep, read the entry for the day that is coming to a close. Let it provide a framework for you to review the day at its end. Some people will want to reflect on an entry late in the day (perhaps reading it at the end of the work day, or even with family members around the dinner table) and then once again before retiring for the night. You may also want to read an entry once again in the morning.
Don t feel compelled to follow the book s daily format. If there are things that weigh on your mind, use the index to choose a selection that might better reflect what you feel. Flip through the pages. Read entries that catch your attention as they speak to you.
This is not a book that you read quickly and then put aside. Rather, take time to read each entry slowly. Drink in the words of text that begin each selection, before working your way through the entry itself. In the case of texts that have been selected from sacred literature, think about what the text meant to the generation in which it emerged. For contemporary selections, react to it directly. Then read through the entry in order to see how we have mined the text s wisdom for the everyday.
Whatever approach you take to this book, set your critical and analytic mind aside for a few moments. Let the words speak to your heart and soul so that you may feel inspired and enriched.
I NTRODUCTION
A s the sun sets, darkness begins to cover the earth. Our instinct is to dispel the darkness with light. We turn on lamps. We light candles. The seasons change, and fall fades into winter. As many of us leave our homes for work while it is still dark or come home after the sun has already set, we even set automatic timers so that lights are on in our homes before we come home at night. Some even illuminate as we approach them. When we were children, many of us slept with little night-lights glowing in t