A New Video for a New Psalm of Loneliness

Sep 15, 2022

Tefillah - Rabbi Josh Warshawsky
And the Chaverai Nevarech Band

What if we prayed our feelings?

Each morning, we begin our prayers with the words of "P'sukei D'Zimrah, Verses of Song." These are selected hybrid verses from the Psalms, collected around certain themes like kingship, loyalty, and faith. Sometimes, these words offer me inspiration and guidance, but other times I don't want to begin my prayer with verses about kingship and faith.

Before the siddur was codified the prayer leader used to choose selections for P'sukei D'Zimrah based on what they were feeling that day. So one day I made my way through the Psalms looking for words of consolation, comfort, and support in a time when I was feeling lonely and lost. These words called out to me from disparate Psalms and I put them together into a new psalm of my own.

What if each morning we were able to sing out verses that actually expressed how we were feeling that day: nervousness, excitement, loneliness, joy, fear...

What happens when we call out? What could a response sound like? This song is a psalm of loneliness, but it is just the beginning. As the melody continues, other voices join in, helping us to feel less alone.

This High Holiday Season, let's try to really pray what we feel, using the words of the machzor as our guide. Take a listen, what does it bring up for you? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Shanah Tovah,
Josh

Did you miss our past videos in this series?