Bulletin THE BETH TFILOH
Celebrating the Joy of Judaism, Embracing all Jews. CHESHVAN-KISLEV 5778 NOVEMBER 2017
Giving Thanks: Once a Year or Once a Day? By Rabbanit Bracha Jaffe, Beth Tfiloh Community Educator November comes around and our thoughts turn to family gatherings: turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie. Thanksgiving is a time to pause and reflect on what we are thankful for in our lives. “Expressing thanks may be one of the simplest ways to feel better.” (Harvard Health Letter) Judaism knows all about the power of gratitude. A favorite prayer we teach our young children to say to God first thing in the morning is Modeh Ani – I offer thanks [to You]. Modeh Ani gives thanks to God for believing in us
and returning our souls to our bodies every morning. It is our opportunity to take a quiet moment and gather our thoughts in preparation for the day awaiting us, channeling our energies into positive thoughts of gratefulness and thankfulness. Thanksgiving is a once-a-year event; a time to give thanks on a grand scale with much anticipation and preparation, celebrating with friends and family. Jewish tradition offers us a quieter and more private spiritual practice that is accessible to everyone, allowing us to connect to ourselves and to Gd every morning. Here are two ways to give thanks each morning: the traditional Modeh Ani prayer and a kavannah (intention) that was inspired by this ancient liturgy:
Modeh ani lifanecha melech chai v’kayam shehechezarta bi nishmahti b’chemlah rabah emunatecha. I gratefully thank you, O living and eternal King, for You have returned my soul within me, with compassion. Abundant is your faithfulness.
In these still, quiet moments, I am not asleep and not yet awake. In the threshold of day and night, with the mixture of darkness and light, my body is once again coming to life. I am reborn, each day, from the womb of your compassion. May all of my actions be worthy of the faith You’ve placed in me. With words of thanks I’ll greet the dawn. - Andrew Shaw
Lower School Tours with Principals: 11/2 & 12/6, 8:45 am
What’s Your Child’s Passion? Find it at Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School Baltimore’s only co-ed college preparatory Jewish day school offering PreSchool through High School
Middle School Open House: 11/15, 7 pm High School Open House: 12/4, 7 pm