Dear Congregation Beth Ohr,
As you read this, Ilya and I are preparing for Shabbat in Berlin, Germany. That’s right! We are exploring some possibilities here, and it is wonderful to be together for Shabbat. I hope that you, too, are blessed to welcome in this Shabbat in the company of your family and friends.
There is so much in this week’s Torah portion, Naso, that it was hard to pick just one song to send. So I’m sending two versions of the same text!
The Priestly Blessing is a much beloved passage. God shares it with Moses so that Aaron and his priestly descendants can bless us, the Children of Israel, with these words:
May God bless you and keep you.
May God shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May God turn towards you and grant you peace.
We recite the Priestly Blessing every day during the repetition of the Shaharit (morning) amida, and additionally in the Musaf amida repetition on Shabbat and Hagim (festive days). It is also customary for parents to recite these words as part of the Friday night blessing for children. My challenge for you this Shabbat, whether or not you have children at home, is to give your blessing to someone, using the words of our tradition and/or the words of your heart.
CLICK HERE to listen to Y’varechecha (Priestly Blessing)
Composed by Elliot Z. Levine, 2004
This arrangement for SSAA adapted and recorded by Cantor Sarah Myerson (voice)
Text: Numbers 6:24-26
Elliot Z. Levine is one of my favorite living composers, and I am honored to be able to call him one of my colleagues and friends.
CLICK HERE to listen to Birkat HaKohanim (Priestly Blessing)
Recorded by Cantor Sarah Myerson (voice and piano)
Composed by Solomon Braslavsky, 1948
Text: Numbers 6:24-26
Solomon Braslavsky had been the music director at Congregation Mishkan Tefila, my previous pulpit, in Boston. He was a mentor to Leonard Bernstein, who grew up at CMT, and had some of his first music performance opportunities there.
Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom,
Cantor Sarah Myerson
Affiliated with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism