Authors: Nina Beth Cardin, Ilene Winn-Lederer (Illustrator), Ilene Winn-Lederer
ISBN-13: 9780874416459, ISBN-10: 0874416450
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: Behrman House, Incorporated
Date Published: April 2000
Edition: (Non-applicable)
In The Tapestry of Jewish Time: A Spiritual Guide to Holidays and Life-Cycle Events (Behrman House, 2000), Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin presents Judaism as a cloth textured with layers of old and new meanings. With descriptions of both traditional and contemporary practice, The Tapestry of Jewish Time hands us our tradition as an heirloom and shows us how to remake that tradition. In Part One, Jewish Holidays, Rabbi Cardin tells the story of the Jewish week, month, and year, showing us the struggles and celebrations we share with our ancestors, and how we have transformed those struggles and celebrations. Rabbi Cardin teaches that Jews once celebrated Passover by sacrificing a lamb, but Jews now celebrate Passover by foregoing chametz, leavening. Jews have always left a cup of wine for Elijah; today some leave a cup of water for Miriam as well. But we all celebrate Passover with a family meal and the telling of the freedom story.
In Part Two, Jewish Life-Cycle Events, Rabbi Cardin reveals the eternal cycle of Jewish life through contemporary and ancient stories. She writes about marriage in the down-to-earth language of Genesis, the poetic language of the Song of Songs, and the devout language of the Talmud. But Rabbi Cardin also describes the variety of wedding ceremonies Jews choose from today, shows us how Judaism releases men and women from unhappy unions, and remembers the widow and the widower.
Perhaps most strikingly, The Tapestry of Jewish Time teaches all of us to knit our personal stories together with those of our ancestors. The chapter Prayers and Rituals for the Home shares blessings in Hebrew, English, and transliteration, empowering us to transform our everyday life by speaking those ancient words. The beautifully decorated Personal Weavings write-in chapter invites us to weave memories and experiences from our own lives into Tapestry itself.
About the Author: Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin is the Director of Jewish Life at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Baltimore, and the Chair of the Editorial Committee of Sh'ma: A Journal of Jewish Responsibility. She was the editor of Sh'ma from 1993 to 1998, and Director of the National Jewish Healing Center in New York City from 1995 to 1997. She lives in Baltimore with her husband, Rabbi Avram Reisner, and their children.
This intelligently crafted guide to Jewish living likens the fabric of Judaism to a tapestry woven of communal celebration and personal spirit. Cardin, a Conservative rabbi in Baltimore, explores the structure of Jewish time and its ability to lead us to the sacred, by weaving together history, Jewish law, legend, practice, ritual both ancient and contemporary and suggestions for celebration. What distinguishes this comprehensive handbook is Cardin's imaginative, poetic language and her inspiring willingness to share intimate experiences in her own life, from her husband's illness to her young son's declaration that he wanted to be a Christian. Cardin compares the onslaught of the daily world to being in a bakery too long ("the smell is still there, but we no longer notice") and suggests that Jewish patterns of prayer, blessings and sacred deeds "help us remain conscious of the artistry of everyday living." Part I features 14 Jewish holidays, including Shabbat and Rosh Hodesh (the New Month), while Part II elaborates on life-cycle observances, from birth and bar mitzvah to marriage and death. Cardin explains concepts and offers instructions clearly but not simplistically, enriching the text with snippets of ethical wills, memories, women's prayers, blessings and "personal weavings" (blank pages to be detailed with the reader's own observances). Meticulously researched and filled with tidbits of practical information, the book reads like a conversation with an intuitive friend. (Apr.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|
Prologue | |
A Union of Weavers | 1 |
Introduction | |
1. Entering the Story | 2 |
Part One: The Jewish Holidays | |
2. The Story of Time | 12 |
3. The Blessings of Everyday | 20 |
4. Shabbat: The Palace in Time | 34 |
5. Rosh Hodesh: The New Moon | 46 |
6. Rosh Hashanah: The Birthday of the World | 54 |
7. Yom Kippur: The Day of Atonement | 68 |
8 | Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret and Simhat Torah: The Journey |
and the Joy | 82 |
9. Hanukkah: The Festival of Lights | 94 |
10. Tu B'Shevat: The New Year of the Trees | 110 |
11. Purim: The Holiday of Masks and Miracles | 118 |
12. Passover: The Festival of Freedom | 128 |
13. Yom Hashoah: Holocaust Remembrance Day | 146 |
14 | Yom Hazikaron, Yom Ha'atzma'ut and YomYerushalayim: |
Songs of Israel | 156 |
15. Shavuot: The Giving of the Torah | 166 |
16. Tisha B'Av: A Time of Mourning | 178 |
Part Two: Jewish Life-Cycle Events | |
17. Thresholds in Time | 188 |
18. Birth: Affirming theCovenant | 192 |
19. Growing Up: Bar and Bat Mitzvah and Beyond | 206 |
20. Marriage: The Sanctification of Love | 216 |
21. Death and Mourning: A Life to Be Remembered | 226 |
Epilogue | |
The Journey Continues | 240 |
Prayers and Rituals for the Home | |
Declaration upon Rising in the Morning | 248 |
Blessing for Putting on a Tallit | 249 |
Shma | 250 |
Blessing over Bread | 252 |
Grace After Meals | 253 |
Alternative Grace After Meals | 254 |
Sheheheyanu | 255 |
Candlelighting for Shabbat | 256 |
Kiddush for Shabbat Eve | 257 |
A Blessing for Children | 259 |
Havdalah Service | 261 |
Blessing for Affixing a Mezuzah | 263 |
Candlelighting for Festivals and Rosh Hashanah | 264 |
Candlelighting for Yom Kippur | 265 |
Blessing upon Waving a Lulav | 266 |
Blessing upon Sitting in a Sukkah | 267 |
Candlelighting for Hanukkah | 268 |
Personal Weavings | 270 |
Calendar of Jewish Holidays | 296 |
Index | 303 |