An Evening Prayer (from The Siddur)
In my preparation for this week’s sermon on Psalm 1, I came across this prayer, which I felt compelled to share.
It is found in an orthodox siddur, which I have found to be a wonderful gift for my life of prayer. (A siddur [Heb. for "order"] is a Jewish prayerbook, with prayers for morning, evening, sabbaths, festivals, and the like. Reading one, you can see how Christians developed things like the Book of Common Prayer. There are many editions of siddurs, but they all contain the same basic content and structure, and include prayers that date to biblical times.)
When Jesus (and the whole of the earliest church) prayed in the synagogue, the prayers would have been along the lines of what is recorded here. I find this particular prayer quite moving (as well as being a constant reminder that we cannot understand the message of Jesus if we do not understand it within the larger context of Judaism).
In particular, I am stirred by the gratitude expressed for scripture. I am the first to admit that there was a time in my life I did not understand what it meant to “rejoice in in the words of thy Torah.” I understood not only the first books of the Bible, but much of scripture, as a list of ethical demands – what one must “do” to be worthy of God’s blessing and salvation. How grateful I am for the teachers in my life who have helped me to see God from a very different angle!
By the sheer goodness of God, the faithfulness of Jesus, and our faith therein, we Christians have been adopted into the covenant promises given to Abraham. I hope you will feel enriched by this expression of gratitude to God, and feel comfortable to add your “amen.”
This is part of the evening prayer service for the sabbath:
Blessed art thou, Lord our God, King of the universe, who at thy word bringest on the evenings. With wisdom thou openest the gates of heaven, and with understanding thou changest the times and causest the seasons to alternate. Thou arrangest the stars in their courses in the sky according to thy will. Thou createst day and night; thou rollest away light before darkness, and darkness before light; thou causest the day to pass and the night to come, and makest the distinction between day and night – Lord of hosts is thy name. Eternal God, mayest thou reign over us forever and ever. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who bringest on evenings.
Thou hast loved the house of Israel, thy people with everlasting love; thou hast taught us Torah and precepts, laws and judgments. Therefore, Lord our God, when we lie down and when we rise up we will speak of thy laws, and rejoice in the words of thy Torah and in thy precepts for evermore. Indeed, they are our life and the length of our days; we will meditate on them day and night. Mayest thou never take away thy love from us. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who lovest thy people Israel.
— from A Siddur for Sabbaths and Festivals, ed., Philip Birnbaum, 1978.
