In March of 2002, I attended the Kansas Prayer breakfast at the request of Governor Bill Graves as a way of reminding the participants in that gathering of the diversity of the faith community in the state. I was asked to read the passage from Deuteronomy Chapter 8: “For the Eternal God is bringing you into a good land, a land with streams and springs and fountains issuing from plain and hill; a land of wheat and barley, of vines, figs and pomegranates, a land of olives trees and honey; a land where you may eat food without stint, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and from whose hills you can mine copper. When you have eaten your fill, give thanks to the Eternal your God for the good land given to you.” At the breakfast, I read these verses in English and chanted them in Hebrew as well.
The message of diversity came, that morning, mostly from me and Governor Graves, but also from the featured speaker. Martha Williamson, producer of the popular television show, “Touched by an Angel,” did something surprising when she began her talk. She spoke about how her church youth group visited Temple Emanuel in Denver, where she learned a Hebrew song which she proceeded to sing (I can’t remember what it was…but I did translate it for her afterwards – I hadn’t heard it before). She also spoke about an episode from “Touched by an Angel” with a Jewish theme, titled “Chutzpah,” which brought the father, who was a sofer/scribe, and his daughter, an editorial cartoonist, closer together after years of emotional estrangement. Here is a link to the summary of that episode, which was co-written by Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, a well-known author and scholar:
http://www.tv.com/shows/touched-by-an-angel/chutzpah-81901/
After I left that event, I felt a need to express the common language that exists between faiths, whether related to terms that describe God, specific words used in prayer, and scriptural passages held in common. One of my favorite books that suggests a universal approach to God is Rabbi Sandy Eisenberg Sasso’s In God’s Name, one of my favorite books to read about how the many names for God can bring people together. Find out more about this book at the following link:
http://www.jewishlights.com/page/product/978-1-879045-26-2
That book was a source of ideas on which names of God to use in my lyrics. Halleluyah and Amen were obvious choices for common words for worship to include in the song. The idea about the “circle of salvation/redemption” came from a discussion with a United Methodist Minister in Topeka. “No one who’s righteous will be left behind” is a paraphrase of an important Jewish teaching about salvation for humanity: “The righteous of all nations will have a share in the world to come.” (Tosefta Sanhedrin 13:2)
I have always appreciated the richness of various names for God and terms related to the divine in Judaism. Think for yourself about what these names/terms mean to you as you consider your thoughts about God: Shield…Savior…Ruler…Shepherd…Keeper…Friend…Protector…Creator…Sovereign…Healer…Almighty…Redeemer…Gracious One…Compassionate One…Helper…Parent…
And the list could go on. In Rabbi Sasso’s book, God’s many names bring everyone together into one place, where they simultaneously call out their favorite names for the divine and, through their united cry, God becomes One. May we do all that we can in our lives to create that oneness – and reveal the Oneness – that permeates every corner of the human family.
The message of diversity came, that morning, mostly from me and Governor Graves, but also from the featured speaker. Martha Williamson, producer of the popular television show, “Touched by an Angel,” did something surprising when she began her talk. She spoke about how her church youth group visited Temple Emanuel in Denver, where she learned a Hebrew song which she proceeded to sing (I can’t remember what it was…but I did translate it for her afterwards – I hadn’t heard it before). She also spoke about an episode from “Touched by an Angel” with a Jewish theme, titled “Chutzpah,” which brought the father, who was a sofer/scribe, and his daughter, an editorial cartoonist, closer together after years of emotional estrangement. Here is a link to the summary of that episode, which was co-written by Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, a well-known author and scholar:
http://www.tv.com/shows/touched-by-an-angel/chutzpah-81901/
After I left that event, I felt a need to express the common language that exists between faiths, whether related to terms that describe God, specific words used in prayer, and scriptural passages held in common. One of my favorite books that suggests a universal approach to God is Rabbi Sandy Eisenberg Sasso’s In God’s Name, one of my favorite books to read about how the many names for God can bring people together. Find out more about this book at the following link:
http://www.jewishlights.com/page/product/978-1-879045-26-2
That book was a source of ideas on which names of God to use in my lyrics. Halleluyah and Amen were obvious choices for common words for worship to include in the song. The idea about the “circle of salvation/redemption” came from a discussion with a United Methodist Minister in Topeka. “No one who’s righteous will be left behind” is a paraphrase of an important Jewish teaching about salvation for humanity: “The righteous of all nations will have a share in the world to come.” (Tosefta Sanhedrin 13:2)
I have always appreciated the richness of various names for God and terms related to the divine in Judaism. Think for yourself about what these names/terms mean to you as you consider your thoughts about God: Shield…Savior…Ruler…Shepherd…Keeper…Friend…Protector…Creator…Sovereign…Healer…Almighty…Redeemer…Gracious One…Compassionate One…Helper…Parent…
And the list could go on. In Rabbi Sasso’s book, God’s many names bring everyone together into one place, where they simultaneously call out their favorite names for the divine and, through their united cry, God becomes One. May we do all that we can in our lives to create that oneness – and reveal the Oneness – that permeates every corner of the human family.
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