Blessings in the Summer

It’s summertime.

Our Shabbat School is on its summer break; there aren’t quite as many programs at Temple as there are at other times of the year; and many of us travel, spending our time far away from our beloved synagogue, the major focus of many Jewish events in our lives. For many of us, summertime is a season that’s high on recreation, but short on Judaism.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, one of the reasons that Judaism has survived throughout the centuries is its adaptability to different contexts. We can “do Jewish” at home, or when we’re shopping or at work; when we’re at the synagogue, or far away from it; when we’re with large groups of Jewish people, or when we’re alone. In fact, not only can Judaism touch our lives in all of these different contexts, it’s supposed to! Every moment, our tradition teaches, is potentially a moment of sanctity. All we have to do is open the door and let God in.

One easy way to do this is by reciting blessings. There are all kinds of blessings that we recite in Judaism – we recite blessings when we fulfill religious commandments such as lighting Shabbat candles, putting up a mezuzah, or even washing our hands. We also recite blessings during worship services.

And there’s another category of blessings that often gets overlooked. Our tradition calls upon us to recite “blessings of enjoyment” – blessings that you say upon the occasion of certain events. There’s a blessing that you’re supposed to say when you see a rainbow, another when you first put on a piece of new clothing, and another when you see the ocean.

Another blessing of enjoyment is one that we here in Calgary have many opportunities to recite – the “Mountain Blessing.” In Judaism, when you see beautiful mountains, you’re supposed to say:

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu melech ha-olam, oseh ma’aseih v’reisheet.
Blessed are you, Adonai our God, ruler of the universe, who fashions the work of creation.

You can say this blessing when you drive to Banff, when you fly over the Rockies in an airplane, or even when you get a peek of the mountains from here in town. Whatever the context, this prayer allows us to translate into words the gasp that comes to our throat upon seeing an awesome view in the natural world around us.

Even though it’s summertime, even though you might not currently be enjoying the level of Jewish programming that you enjoy during other times of year, Jewish opportunities abound. One of those opportunities is simply that of reciting a nine-word Hebrew blessing, hallowed by our people through the ages as one way to make an otherwise ordinary moment sublime.

When you get good at it, saying this blessing only takes a few seconds. It’s easy, so why not give it a try? Who knows – saying this simple Hebrew prayer might send your soul soaring as high as the mountaintops it praises God for creating.