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Shalom from the Shabbat Lady


by Laura Seymour

Special to DJW

Dear parents and children,

Summer is the time for fun and especially for CAMP! We continue to learn especially when we are having fun! During the summer, my column will be the weekly themes and thoughts that go home with each of our JCC campers for their Shabbat table talk. Please enjoy and keep studying all summer - and all your life!

Summer Edition - Week 7

Big Idea: B'rachah - We Can Be a Blessing. We all know blessings that we say at different times especially when eating. However, in Chapter 12 of Genesis, G-d tells Abraham: "I will bless you," "You will be a blessing," "All the nations of the world shall bless themselves by you." Each of these has different meanings but the hardest question for us is - How can we BE a blessing? Being a blessing tells us how to live our lives.

Text Study: (read carefully and talk about each idea) "Give thanks unto G-d because we are able to give thanks." Talmud

"Never undervalue the blessing of a common man." Ishmael ben Elisha, Talmud

"May G-d bless you and keep you. May G-d make His face shine upon you and be kind to you. May G-d's face turn to you and give you peace." Numbers 6:22-27 - The priestly blessing

Thinking: Joel Lurie Grishave, author and Jewish educator, says: I learned to make blessings at the dining room table, and to pray on the ballfield. What is the difference between saying blessings and praying? We are told to make the ordinary holy and that can be done through a blessing. When you see a beautiful sight or are given something delicious to eat, we should say a blessing. Why? Bonus Question: Why do we say "Bless you" when someone sneezes?

Doing: The rabbis of the Talmud have told us to say 100 blessings each day. Blessings are a way to say "Thank you, G-d" or even "Good going, G-d." When we eat something, we must remember to say thank you and sometimes we tell G-d that we are amazed at the wonderful things in the world. There is even a blessing when we go to the bathroom, thanking G-d that all of our insides work the way they are supposed to. Try saying as many blessings in a day that you can.

Laura Seymour is the director of Taglit Preschool at the J.


This story was published in the DallasJewishWeek
on: Thursday, July 24, 2003

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Copyright 2003, Dallas Jewish Week