These and Those

Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem

Tag Archives: blessing / bracha

"ברוך אתה ה אלוקינו מלך העולם מתיר אסורים" – "Blessed are you, Hashem, our God, King of universe who releases the bound" by Ben Heligman

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Eryn

“ברוך אתה ה אלוקינו מלך העולם מתיר אסורים” – “Blessed are you, Hashem, our God, King of universe who releases the bound” – I am particularly grateful for this blessing from Birckot Hashachar. It is symbolized through stretching.  I have always thought of stretching as something purely physical, however, this bracha makes us aware that there Continue Reading »

Eat, Pray…

Posted on October 28, 2010 by Mosheh

It’s been recently pointed out to me that there is a tradition of doing netilat yadayim (ritual hand washing and blessing) before prayer, just as we do before eating bread. Apparently, it is not so common for people to follow this custom, which is why I hadn’t noticed it before, but it does exist. Moreover, Continue Reading »