Welcoming Shabbat with a Dolly Parton Influenced Lecha Dodi at Houston's Congregation Beth Yeshurun

Dolly Parton, the American singer-songwriter, actress and businesswoman who died last week in Nashville had a profound impact on the education of Jewish children worldwide. In 1995 she founded the Imagination Library in honor of her father, who never learned to read or write. It mails one book per month to each enrolled child from the time of their birth until they enter kindergarten. 

The idea inspired Jewish philanthropist Harold Grinspoon to take the concept even further by creating PJ Library using Parton's model to mail free, high-quality books directly to Jewish children, adapting it to focus on Jewish stories, values, and traditions for families worldwide. 

The PJ Library team selects an age-appropriate board book, picture book, or early chapter book every month for kids ages 0 to 8. Older readers ages 9 to 12 get to choose their own middle-grade book each month from a selection of fiction, nonfiction, and graphic novels.

At Congregation Beth Yeshurun in Houston last Friday night, Cantor Rachel Goldman paid tribute to Parton by singing Lecha Dodi to her song, 9 to 5.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with Oseh Shalom as Sung by Cantor Daniel Mutlu of New York's Central Synagogue

Cantor Daniel Mutlu was called to serve as Senior Cantor of Central Synagogue in 2017. Cantor Mutlu is a first-generation American born to Turkish Jewish parents.

 Raised in Worcester, Massachusetts, Cantor Mutlu attended the Yeshiva Academy Achei Tmimim where he forged a strong Jewish identity and a broad religious perspective.

Cantor Mutlu proudly represented Central Synagogue at the 2019 URJ Biennial in Chicago where he led Friday evening Shabbat services for nearly 5,000 worshippers.

Today we join Cantor Mutlu in welcoming another Shabbat with Oseh Shalom.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with Yedid Nefesh at Beth Torah Benny Rok Campus in North Miami Beach

Today we welcome Shabbat with Annie singing Yedid Nefesh at Beth Torah Benny Rok Campus, a Conservative synagogue in North Miami Beach, Florida. 

There is a custom to sing Yedid Nefesh between Mincha (afternoon prayer) on Friday and the beginning of Kabbalat Shabbat (literally: receiving or greeting the Sabbath—a collection of psalms usually sung to welcome in the Shabbat Queen. This custom is believed to have begun in the second half of the 20th century. 

Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat With Ana Bekoach as Sung by Rivka Zohar

Today we are welcoming Shabbat with Rivka Zohar singing the song Ana Bekoach, a liturgical poem from the Kabbalat Shabbat service that appears in the siddur just before Lecha Dodi. It's a Kabbalistic prayer composed by Rav Nehunia Ben Hakannah. It is also sung at weddings. 

Israeli pop artist Rivka Zohar is a great performer. Her music fits under the popular pop category, which is distinguished by catchy melodies and approachable lyrics. Rivka's music is joyful and emotional at the same time, focusing on universal themes and personal experiences that connect with listeners.

Rivka has a special talent for engaging her listeners with her music. Her music is filled with an openness and sincerity that speaks to the human condition. Rivka's music is consistently relevant and extraordinarily touching, whether she is singing about love, loss, or personal development.

Known as the 42-letter Name of God, Ana Bekoach is a unique formula built of 42 letters written in seven sentences of six words each. Each of the seven sentences correspond to the seven days of the week, seven specific angels, and to a particular heavenly body. The letters that make up Ana Bekoach are encoded within the first 42 letters of the book of Genesis.

The kabbalists explain that this combination of letters takes us back to the time of Creation, and each time we meditate on a particular sequence, we return to the original uncorrupted energy that built the world. By performing the Ana Bekoach meditation, we enrich our lives with unadulterated spiritual Light and positive energy.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with a Jazzy V'Shamru by Cantor Sydney Michaeli of Virginia's Temple Rodef Shalom

Temple Rodef Shalom is a Reform Jewish congregation located in the Northern Virginia suburbs just outside Washington, DC. Since its founding in 1962, it has grown into the largest Jewish congregation in Virginia, serving over 1,800 households from close–by communities like McLean, Arlington, Falls Church, and Vienna.

Cantor Sydney Michaeli served for two years as the Student Cantor at Temple Shaaray Tefila, and two years as the Cantorial Intern at Park Avenue Synagogue, both on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. While in school, Cantor Michaeli was a JDC Weitzman Fellow for Global Jewish Leadership and a UJA Federation Graduate Fellow. She has led multiple Birthright trips and participated in the iCenter’s Birthright Israel Fellowship. Cantor Michaeli was ordained from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in May 2023 upon completing her thesis and recital about the intersection of baroque oratorio and Jewish music. 

Today we join Temple Rodef Shalom in welcoming Shabbat with a jazzy version of V'Shamru, part of the Friday evening service.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with Lecha Dodi as Sung by Coleen Dieker and Clergy of Temple Israel in Michigan

Coleen Dieker isn’t your typical Jewish soul singer.

As Uriel Heilman wrote in The Jerusalem Post, 

A Korean-American musical prodigy who plays everything from violin to guitar to piano, Dieker was raised in a devout Catholic home where she played church music every Sunday with her three siblings.

But after a rebellious stint in her 20s in which she struggled with addiction and depression and gave up religion, Dieker stumbled into an unusual gig with a traveling Jewish prayer band in Kansas City.

Dieker got sucked into the world of bar mitzvahs, Jewish holidays and Shabbat, and before she knew it was rediscovering spirituality – this time from a Jewish vantage point.

Dieker started working at a Reform synagogue in 2012 as a pianist, quickly picking up Hebrew and helping lead songs during services. A year later she became the musical director at The Temple-Congregation B’nai Jehuda in Overland Park, Kansas, working with the rabbi to redesign the congregation’s High Holiday services.

Her interest in Judaism deepened, and she took her first trip to Israel.

On Hanukkah 2016 she formally converted to Judaism. She chose for herself the Hebrew name Rafaela Zimra.

In this video, Dieker joins the clergy of Temple Israel in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan in welcoming Shabbat in a most unusual way with Lecha Dodi.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom! 

Welcoming Shabbat with V'Shamru at Ottawa's Kehillat Beth Israel Congregation

Kehillat Beth Israel is simultaneously Ottawa’s oldest and newest congregation. While its legacy congregations have more than 100 years of history, Kehillat Beth Israel Congregation was founded on July 1st, 2016 through the amalgamation of Agudath Israel Congregation and Congregation Beth Shalom. The congregation has become “stronger together” and has become a flagship congregation for Canada’s National Capital Region.

A native of Montreal, Canada, Cantor Jason Green (lyric tenor) began singing at age 6 as a child soprano in his Synagogue’s choir.  He became its conductor at age 15, under the tutelage of Stephen Glass. He continued his vocal development and knowledge of repertoire by joining the Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue Choir in 1992, soon afterwards becoming its associate conductor. 

In this video Cantor Green sings V'Shamru, part of the Friday night service.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with Lecha Dodi at Temple Beth El in Hollywood, Florida

Temple Beth El of Hollywood, Florida opened its doors in 1957 when its first service was held in a meeting room of the Hollywood Beach Hotel. At that time, the congregation boasted approximately two dozen families, all of whom had a vision - a traditional Reform congregation in the heart of Hollywood. Through the generosity and dedication of several of these families, Temple Beth El became a reality and grew into the focal point of Reform Judaism in southern Broward County.

Last week the congregation had a Bluegrass Shabbat and their Kabbalat Shabbat service inluded a version of Lecha Dodi in the style of John Denver's Country Roads.

We've been welcoming Shabbat in many ways, and today is no different.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom! 

Welcoming Shabbat in South Africa with Lecha Dodi by Singer Leigh Nudelman

Leigh Nudelman is an Ashkenazi South African Jewish singer, who is single-handedly reviving Yiddish music in Johannesburg. A fourth generation South African, Leigh eloquently describes the power of Yiddish to connect her to her ancestors, just as she expresses the struggles and joys of being Jewish in South Africa today.

In this video, Nudelman and her Beis Clef ensemble sing the traditional Kabbalat Shabbat song Lecha Dodi. Beis Clef is a Johannesburg-based Jewish community that explores Jewish identity through music, ritual and creative expression. Their monthly Friday night gatherings bring together traditional liturgy, contemporary arrangements and communal singing in an intimate home setting.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with a Sephardi Lecha Dodi by Cantor Jacob Agar

Cantor Jacob Agar of Congregation Beth Shalom in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania received his cantorial investiture at the H.L Miller Cantorial School at Jewish Theological Seminary of New York. Previously he studied opera performance and linguistics at SUNY Purchase College. Following conservatory, he sang with several opera companies in New York and New Jersey, and has worked with a wide variety of conductors. 

Cantor Agar is also a composer and arranger and is inspired by a wide variety of music. He was inspired to become a cantor by his love for Judaism, Jewish music, and his interest in using music to uplift people and bring them closer to Judaism. 

Tonight we welcome another Shabbat by joining Cantor Agar in a Sephardic version of Lecha Dodi. Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with Adon Olam to "Summer Nights" at Temple Rodef Shalom

Tonight we welcome another Shabbat with the singing of Adon Olam by the congregation of Temple Rodef Shalom, a Reform shul in Falls Church, Virginia. The congregation welcomes the start of summer with an outdoor service called Hot Shabbat. 

Last week they started the summer season with a version of Adon Olam set to the song Summer Nights from the Broadway show and movie Grease.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom! 

Welcoming Shabbat with Eshet Chayil Sung by Yeshivah of Flatbush Elementary School Choir

Traditionally sung on Friday night during Shabbat dinner, Eshet Chayil (A Woman of Valor) is a tribute to the strength, beauty, and dignity of righteous women. 

Eishet Chayil is a twenty-two verse poem with which King Solomon concludes the book of Proverbs (Proverbs 31). The poem has an acrostic arrangement in which the verses begin with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet in regular order. The poem describes the woman of valor as one who are is energetic, righteous, and capable.

This version is sung by the Yeshivah of Flatbush Elementary School Choir.

Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with Yedid Nefesh - as Sung in the Israeli City of Tzfat (Safed)

Yedid Nefesh (Friend of the Soul) is a piyyut (poem) usually sung on Friday night just before the Kabbalat Shabbat (Welcoming Shabbat) service begins.

According to Wikipedia, this beautiful poem is commonly attributed to the sixteenth century kabbalist, Rabbi Elazar ben Moshe Azikri (1533-1600), who first published it in Sefer Charedim (published in Venice 1601). Azikri's philosophy centered around the intense love one must feel for God, a theme that is evident in this piyyut. The first letters of each of the four verses make up the four letter name of God, known in English as the tetragrammaton.

This version of Yedid Nefesh was sung two weeks ago by a group of Chasidim at the grave of Rabbi Elazar Azikri in the Israeli city of Tzfat (Safed).

Shabbat shalom! 

Welcoming Shabbat with Lecha Dodi Sung by Cantor Jenna Sagan

In the summer of 1976, a small group of Jews banded together to form a Reform congregation in the Fountain Valley – Huntington Beach community in California. 

They were firmly committed to the idea that a synagogue should not only preach justice, but should endeavor to make that principle its guide in every facet of its operation. Congregation B’nai Tzedek is a Reform Synagogue with a love for tradition.

On this Shabbat we join cantor Jenna Sagan of Congregation B'nai Tzedek in the Kabbalat Shabbat service with a Sephardic version of Lecha Dodi.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with L'Cha Dodi by Beth Reinstein at Central Synagogue

Beth Reinstein is a Cantorial Intern at New York City's Central Synagogue with a mission to craft community through music. Born and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Beth’s first introduction to music came through joining Temple Beth Emeth’s youth choir. It was there that she discovered and experienced how music can bring a community together.

Through Temple Beth Emeth’s music program, Beth fostered a love and passion for music that blossomed into her work. 

While pursuing her secular music career, Beth began to serve the greater Chicago area as a Cantorial soloist and song leader. Beth has served as a Cantorial soloist and song leader at Beth Emet the Free Synagogue, Temple Sholom, Anshe Emet Synagogue, Sukkat Shalom, and several other Chicago communities. She also performs with Jewish Rock Radio’s group “Chicago Sings” and had the opportunity to debut her own liturgical compositions at URJ’s Biennial in 2019. It was through her work as a Cantorial soloist that Beth realized her heart lay in Jewish music, and it was time to pursue the Cantorate.  

In this video, Beth sings L'Cha Dodi, a traditional part of the Kabbalat Shabbat service.

Shabbat shalom!

 

Welcoming Shabbat with Ana Bekoach Sung by Cantor Chaim Stern

Chaim Stern was born in 1996 to a renowned family of cantors in Jerusalem, with a long-standing tradition in cantorial music. He grew up in a Haredi environment in Beit Shemesh, Jerusalem, and Be'er Ya'akov. Chaim studied cantorial music at the Cantorial School in Petah Tikva and is considered one of the leading students of Maestro Eli Jaffe and Cantor Israel Rand.

Since 2020, Chaim has served as the Chief Cantor of the Great Synagogue in Munich. In addition, he regularly performs in Jewish communities around the world and in major synagogues in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Ramat Gan, as well as in the United States, Australia, and Europe.

As we welcome Shabbat let's listen to Chaim Stern sing Ana Bekoach from the Friday night Kabbalat Shabbat service.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom! 

Welcoming the Shabbat Before Purim with a Sephardi Version of Yigdal by Hazzan Daniel Halfon

In the Spanish and Portuguese Sephardi tradition, it is common for a particular melody to serve as a motif for a specific day or occasion. There's a custom which is observed with particular consistency in the New York community. 

On the Shabbat before Purim, known as Shabbat Zachor, Mi Kamokha, a Piyyut of considerable length by Yehuda Halevi is inserted into Nishmat during Shacharit. 

In anticipation of this, the Friday night service at Congregation Shearith Israel concludes with Hazzan Daniel Halfon singing Yigdal set to the melody of that Piyyut.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with Shalom Aleichem by Central Reform Congregation of St. Louis, Missouri

Central Reform Congregation is a vibrant urban Jewish community dedicated to supporting one another in holy ways, pursuing justice and lifelong learning, and providing a shelter of peace. It is based in St. Louis, Missouri with a thriving online community across the globe.

In this video, the congregants of Central Reform Congregation sing Shalom Aleichem to welcome Shabbat at one of their Friday night services.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with Eshet Chayil by Dor Zamir

Traditionally sung on Friday night during Shabbat dinner, Eshet Chayil (A Woman of Valor) is a tribute to the strength, beauty, and dignity of righteous women. 

Eishet Chayil is a twenty-two verse poem with which King Solomon concludes the book of Proverbs (Proverbs 31). The poem has an acrostic arrangement in which the verses begin with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet in regular order. The poem describes the woman of valor as one who are is energetic, righteous, and capable.

In this heartfelt version by Dor Zamir, we bring you a unique melody that blends tradition with emotion.

The transliterated Hebrew text and English translation appear below the video. 

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom! 

 

 

Eshet chayil mi yimtza v'rachok mip'ninim michrah
An accomplished woman, who can find? Her value is far beyond pearls.

Batach bah lev ba'lah v'shalal lo yechsar
Her husband's heart relies on her and he shall lack no fortune.

G'malathu tov v'lo ra kol y'mei chayeiha
She does him good and not evil, all the days of her life.

Darshah tzemer ufishtim vata'as b'chefetz kapeiha
She seeks wool and flax, and works with her hands willingly.

Haitah ko'oniyot socher mimerchak tavi lachmah
She is like the merchant ships, she brings her bread from afar.

Vatakom b'od lailah vatiten teref l'vetah v'chok l'na'aroteiha
She arises while it is still night, and gives food to her household and a portion to her maidservants.

Zam'mah sadeh vatikachehu mip'ri chapeiha nat'ah karem
She plans for a field, and buys it. With the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.

Chagrah v'oz motneiha vat'ametz zro'oteiha
She girds her loins in strength, and makes her arms strong.

Ta'amah ki tov sachrah lo yichbeh balailah nerah
She knows that her merchandise is good. Her candle does not go out at night.

Yadeha shilchah vakishor v'chapeiha tamchu felech
She sets her hands to the distaff, and holds the spindle in her hands.

Kapah parsah le'ani v'yadeiha shil'chah la'evyon
She extends her hands to the poor, and reaches out her hand to the needy.

Lo tira l'vetah mishaleg ki chol betah lavush shanim
She fears not for her household because of snow, because her whole household is warmly dressed.

Marvadim astah lah shesh v'argaman l'vushah
She makes covers for herself, her clothing is fine linen and purple.

Noda bash'arim ba'lah b'shivto im ziknei aretz
Her husband is known at the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land.

Sadin astah vatimkor vachagor natnah lak'na'ani
She makes a cloak and sells it, and she delivers aprons to the merchant.

Oz v'hadar l'vushah vatischak l'yom acharon
Strength and honor are her clothing, she smiles at the future.

Piha patchah v'chochma v'torat chesed al l'shonah
She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the lesson of kindness is on her tongue.

Tzofi'ah halichot betah v'lechem atzlut lo tochel
She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness.
 
Kamu vaneha vay'ash'ruha ba'lah vay'hal'lah
Her children rise and praise her, her husband lauds her.

Rabot banot asu chayil v'at alit al kulanah
Many women have done worthily, but you surpass them all.

Sheker hachen v'hevel hayofi ishah yir'at Hashem hi tit'halal
Charm is deceptive and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears God shall be praised.

T'nu lah mip'ri yadeiha vihal'luha vash'arim ma'aseha
Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

 

Welcoming Shabbat with Yedid Nefesh by Cantor Yaki Lauer of La Kehile, the Ashkenazi Community of Mexico City

Yedid Nefesh is the first piyyut sung in the Kabbalat Shabbat service every Friday night. It's a moment when we arrive at the synagogue, pause from the rhythm of the week, enter the Shabbat atmosphere, stand together, and pray from the heart. 

This music video was filmed in the first Ashkenazi synagogue in Mexico City, Justo Sierra, built approximately 85 years ago by the Ashkenazi community. The video showcases the impressive murals and the ancient and majestic Holy Ark (Aron Hakodesh). In this historic synagogue, some of the great cantors of the golden age prayed and sang, such as Zevulun Kwartin, Moshe and David Koussevitzky, Richard Tucker, Shmuel Vigoda, among many others.

In this video Yedid Nefesh is sung by international Chazzan & Singer Yaki Lauer, the Chief Chazzan of the community Ashkenazi in Mexico City (La Kehile).

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!