Treatment Tuesday
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Why did I think Tuesday was Monday ... even though I had all my regular Tuesday meetings? So much is happening so fast it's challenging to keep up. And, I realize now, I got distracted by a series of troubling news and unexpected events yesterday. Some of it was political. Some of it was personal. Some of it was powerful. Some of it was petty. But the cumulative effect was disorienting. By the time I went to bed I had re-centered and slept peacefully. But
for so many hours yesterday I was "out of space and time."
Today, instead of sharing a prayer I've written, I am sharing two prayers written by Rabbi Irwin Keller. Whether you are reading the news in print or online, listening to the news via radio, or watching the news on TV, cable, or a streaming service ... let his prayers support you.
A Prayer Before Reading the News
by Rabbi Irwin Keller
Elohai neshamah shenatata bi tehorah hi: My God, the soul you have placed in me is pure and vulnerable. I am afraid that looking at today’s news will be painful. Encircle me
in a robe of light so that I can witness the wounds of the world without being wounded myself. Let me learn what I need to know in order to be of my greatest use, without being overwhelmed by despair. I feel your protective light now as I open myself to the world’s suffering and the world’s joys.
A Prayer After Reading the News
by Rabbi Irwin
Keller
Ribono shel Olam, I am Yours, and all that is in this world is Yours. Today I have read stories and seen images, but my knowledge is incomplete. I don’t know how it all connects. But I know I am connected to everyone; I take joy in their joy; I suffer with their suffering. If there is no role for me to play today then let my learning leave me wiser and better prepared. If there is a
role for me to play, let clarity rise up in me to see it, even if that role is a humble one. Uma’aseh yadeynu konenehu. Lift up the work of my hands, in anything they might do for peace, for justice, for the wholeness of our planet, or for the betterment of my community. Just as you turned the curse of Balaam into a blessing, so may all my actions accrue to the good.
