Drawing on Rabbi Marcia Prager’s book, The Path of Blessing, and other sources, this class will use the opening six words of our traditional Jewish blessing – Baruch Ata YHVH Eloheinu Melech Ha’Olam – to explore how to make of our lives a blessing, and become a blessing onto others in the process. As Rabbi Marcia Prager writes: “Blessing offers us a personal consciousness-raising practice, a spiritual adventure bringing sensitivity and gratitude into the foreground of our lives.” By practicing the path of blessings, we may be lucky enough “to feel the Presence of God [or however you imagine Mystery] move within and through us.” In addition to learning about the traditional Jewish act of blessing in this class, we will also practice blessing one another – and become a continuous feedback loop for love and flow. As the prayer in our Saturday morning Siddur, Lalevav, that comes at the moment of the service when we stand to call ourselves into community with one another and with the Divine affirms:
 
As we bless the source of Life, so we are blessed.
And our blessings give us strength,
And make our visions clear.
And our blessings give us peace,
And the courage to dare.
As we bless the source of Life, so we are blessed. (Faith Rogow)
 
 
As always drop-ins are welcome at any time during the class series!

Cost: Members $10 | Guests $14

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Rabbi Diane Tiferet Lakein (she/hers) holds a B.A. in East Asian Studies and International Politics from Princeton University and an M.A. in Anthropology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Born in San Francisco, she spent time in Stockholm, Sweden as a child and in Beijing, China as an undergraduate. She moved to Germany in the mid-1990s to conduct ethnographic research on anti-racist responses to rising xenophobia – and discovered her passion for Jewish spirituality and education.

Rabbi Diane received a Masters of Jewish Education from Hebrew College and ordination from ALEPH, the Alliance for Jewish Renewal. She most recently served as Jewish Educator in Cologne, Germany (2011-2014), Rabbinic Intern in Freiburg, Germany (2013-2016) and Rabbi of Chawurah Gescher in Freiburg, Germany and of Migwan in Basel, Switzerland (2017-2019). She joined the Religious School staff and the Spiritual Leadership Team at Nevei Kodesh in 2020.

Rabbi Diane is a member of the General Rabbinical Council of Germany – Allgemeine Rabbinerkonferenz (ARK ) – and of Haver, the Rabbinic Council of Boulder, Colorado. She is also a member of OHALAH, the Association of Rabbis for Jewish Renewal.