Blessings

We believe Jewish prayers and rituals can help to strengthen our mental well-being, resilience and recovery in the same way middot, or Jewish values, can promote them. Faith is an important part of healing for many, and Jewish thinkers and leaders historically have brought the two together. When someone is ill or recovering from illness or an accident, we often recite a misheberach to wish them a refuah sheleimah, or a “full recovery.” We have expanded the prayer for those who are struggling with mental health.

Mi Sheberach for Mental Health:

May the One who blessed our ancestors and named us Israel bless and heal those among us who struggle with mental well-being. May they acknowledge their own strength and resilience, treat themselves with forgiveness and patience, and find help, compassion, and resources when they need them. And, may the Holy One grant those of us who aren’t experiencing mental health issues the strength, resilience and capacity to listen without judgment and with intention, and the ability to notice when others are struggling. May we create communities that accept, uplift, and support those among us who are struggling. Now, speedily, and in a time soon to come. Amen.

The Blue Dove Foundation with Association of Reform Jewish Educators

May you feel relief from the pressures.

May the decision you make be based on joy, not fear.

May your interactions with others bring you happiness, as you see the holy spark inside everyone around you.

May you focus less on the differences between you and others, and more on the connections that bring us all together.

May you be kind to yourself, giving yourself the same chesed that you give to others.

The Blue Dove Foundation with Association of Reform Jewish Educators

Shabbat Candles

May the festival lights we now kindle,

Inspire us to use our powers

To heal and not to harm,

To help and not to hinder,

To bless and not to curse,

To serve You, O God of freedom.

The custom of blessing children on Friday night is one of the most tender rituals of the Jewish home. Place both hands gently on the child's head and begin:

For sons:

יְשִׂימְךָ אֱלֹהִים כְּאֶפְרַיִם וְכִמְנַשֶּׁה

Yesimcha Elohim k’Efraim v’chiMenashe.

May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.

For daughters:

יְשִׂימֵךְ אֱלֹהִים כְּשָׂרָה רִבְקָה רָחֵל וְלֵאָה

Yesimech Elohim k’Sarah, Rivkah, Rachel v’Leah.

May God make you like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah.

Then, for all children, continue with the Priestly Blessing.

Ephraim and Manasseh were the first brothers in the Torah who did not compete with or harm each other—theirs is a blessing of peaceful sibling love and of holding their Jewish identity even while living in Egypt. Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah are the founding mothers of the Jewish people, each of whom navigated profound uncertainty with courage, leadership, and faith.

Many families also offer a gender-neutral version that combines both sets of names:

“May God make you like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, Leah, Ephraim, and Manasseh.”

You might also choose to create a more modern version that names ancestors or other beloved individuals who embody qualities you want to pass on.

After the Priestly Blessing, the most important part: add your own words. Whisper something specific to this child, this week—what you love about them, what you see in them, what you hope for them. The blessing doesn’t have to be formal. The act of pausing, placing your hands on someone you love, and speaking words over them is the ritual itself.

And if your children are far away—at college, across the country, or living abroad—many families continue this practice over the phone or on video calls. The distance doesn’t diminish the blessing. It may even deepen it.

One of the most intimate and powerful acts in Jewish home life is blessing the people you love with your own hands. On Friday nights, many parents and grandparents bless their children and grandchildren. The Priestly Blessing — ancient words first spoken in the wilderness of Sinai — passes from generation to generation through the simplest gesture: two hands, placed gently on another person's head or shoulders.

The Priestly Blessing / Birkat Kohanim

יְבָרֶכְךָ ה׳ וְיִשְׁמְרֶךָ

Yevarekhekha Adonai v'yishmerekha.

May God bless you and protect you.

יָאֵר ה׳ פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וִיחֻנֶּךָּ

Ya'er Adonai panav elekha vichuneka.

May God's face shine upon you and be gracious to you.

יִשָּׂא ה׳ פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וְיָשֵׂם לְךָ שָׁלוֹם

Yisa Adonai panav elekha v'yasem lekha shalom.

May God lift God's face toward you and grant you peace.

The traditional Shabbat table includes a moment of honoring one’s partner — historically through the singing of Proverbs 31 (Eshet Chayil, A Woman of Valor). These pieces have been reimagined by many couples into something more personal: a brief, private moment before the meal to turn toward each other and say something positive and true.

This doesn’t require Hebrew. It doesn’t require a specific text. It requires only the intention to see your partner clearly — not as an extension of yourself, but as a whole person deserving of blessing — and to say it out loud.

From Song of Songs (2:16):

דּוֹדִי לִי וַאֲנִי לוֹ

Dodi li v'ani lo.

My beloved is mine, and I am my beloved's.

Or simply: What do I most want for this person this week? What do I see in them that they might not see in themselves? Say that.