Tamuz Summer

It is hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that we are entering a third Shabbat since my arrival in the Flathead. My days have been so full, and I have been enriched by an abundance of meaningful experiences and conversations with so many of you. Thank you for making the time in your busy summer lives to include me and GJC in your plans. 

In the rhythms of Jewish time, and our biblically derived holy days and festivals, summer is a hot, dry span between the early harvests and abundance of Pesach/Passover and Shavuot (meaning weeks and arriving seven weeks after the second night of Passover), and the late harvest of Sukkot, preceded by our Yamim Nora’im (Days of Awe – Rosh HaShanah through Yom Kippur). So too, in the Flathead Valley. 

I love the way that the ecological rhythms of our natural world manifest in a small and mighty modification to the prayer practice at the heart of traditional Jewish daily prayer, the Amidah/standing prayers – the 19 prayers (only 7 on Shabbat, when we remove the petitionary prayers because God rests on Shabbat too). The modification is in the second prayer of the Amidah – Gevurot/Strength which speaks of the Might and Power of the Sacred Source. Because our ancient fixed prayers recognize God’s power in the natural cycles of the world around us, we switch from praying for wind and rain/moisture (snow here!) throughout the winter (which nourish the earth’s abundance) to praying for dew to descend in the summer. This switch occurs during the Passover festival (first harvest) and again during Sukkot (final harvest).* It is a recognition of the power of the earth’s cycles and the power of gratitude for these cycles and the Divine Mystery that connects all. As we experience – from the lack of local cherries this summer to the danger of forest fires, the power of the elements are mighty, and we must recognize our role in the vital balance of our ecosystems.

I am so grateful for the opportunity to spend my first summer in the Flathead Valley with you. In the waxing and waning of the moon of Tamuz (our current Jewish month), all of my senses are enlivened and enriched by this time with the land so many of us call home (even if we don’t live here year-round). In addition to all of the wonderful interpersonal experiences, the time I have had to sit with my feet in a running river, feel the warmth of the sun in contrast with the cool of the water, admire beautiful stones and glorious flowers, listen to new birdsongs, see wild animals, smell the pine and scents of the forest, and watch beautiful sunsets and sunrises, are all extraordinary gifts of enormous value. I am keeping track of all of my Shehechiyanu moments (new experiences and the joy they bring) and will share them with you later this summer. Gratitude is a powerful feeling and I am experiencing it regularly thanks to all of you and to the incredible natural surroundings and the elements – earth, air, water, and, yes, even fire, that we share here in Northwestern Montana, hugged by the mountains and one another.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Jessica

*Remember, we began as an agrarian people and so many of our holidays are deeply tied to the rhythms of the Land.