Celebrate– Shavua Tov

CELEBRATE – SHAVUA TOV!

Shavua tov! A good week, a week of peace. May gladness reign and joy increase.

וּהָיִלֵא ,יִּבְׁשִּתַה וּהָיִלֵא ,איִבָנַה וּהָיִלֵא םִע וּניֵלֵא אוֹבָי וּנֵמָיְּב הָרֵהְמִּב יִדָעְלִגַה .דִוָד ןֶּב ַחיִׁשָמ Elijah the prophet, Elijah of [the town of] Tishbi, Elijah of [the region of] Gilead. Soon he will return, and with him [the messianic age of goodness and peace for all, ushered by] the Messiah, scion of David.

Eliyahu hanavi, Eliyahu haTishbi, Eliyahu haGiladi. Bimheirah biyameinu yavo eleinu im Mashiach ben David.

God, protect Your beloved people Israel from all harm. As the holy Shabbat departs, grant that the coming week bring us trust in You, closeness and love with family and friends, and hope in bettering the world. Our Creator, who gives strength to the weary, please grant us, Your beloved people, strength to be grateful and to serve You with health, blessings, prosperity, and loving-kindness.

— AdaptedfromRabbiLeviYitzchakofBerditchev

THINK

We welcome the new week with the traditional greeting of “Shavua tov,” a good week, and with songs that reference Elijah the prophet and his legendary acts of lovingkindness and vision of peace. In biblical times, the prophet Elijah’s strategies for bringing about change were intense, critical, and ultimately unsuccessful. At the end of his life, Elijah dramatically ascends to heaven, and in legends he becomes the most beloved prophet! Deeply compassionate, he is often depicted in Jewish tradition as emerging to care for people in distress just at the right time and place, spreading hope and kindness.

CONNECT

The final prophecy of Malachi, who is considered the last biblical prophet, says that Elijah will return “before the coming of the great and awesome day of God” to announce the coming of the Messiah and a world of peace and health for all. Malachi said Elijah will “turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents.” While biblical Elijah does not seem the most likely harbinger of a grand reconciliation, the Elijah of legends reflects a person who transformed his own character over time to become intensely attentive to the needs of others, committed to showing up and offering help.

REFLECT

How can you be inspired by the character transformation of Elijah? How can you add loving-kindness around you this week?

PERSONAL PRAYER

Thank You for this blessed time of peace: of mind, body, and soul. Thank You for giving me the pleasure of loved ones, of joy, and of connection. To be mindfully grateful for what has come to a close, and for the opportunity to start again. May I merit to do better, be better; and to grow myself, others, and our world with every new beginning.

— Dana Sender-Mulla,

Kadima, Israel