Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Thanksgiving Reflection

We looked at the prayer "Mizmor L'todah" in morning Tefillot - it is a reminder of the "Thanksgiving Offering" (Sacrifice) that people would bring to Hashem after surviving a dangerous situation.

Consider the following questions, and answer each one briefly:

  • This "todah" sacrifice was originally brought by people after a life-threatening situation. Why is it now recited every morning in the siddur? 

  • The prayer says "Ivdu et Hashem bsimcha", meaning, "serve Hashem with happiness!"  (We learned the song with claps...) What do you think is the connection between being thankful and being happy? 

24 comments:

  1. 1. because it is modern times and we don't give sacrafices anymore. so instead we pray extra to hashem to make up for it. even though are lives are not always in danger you never know who is behind the next door you will open.
    2.when you are being thankful for something you relize how much you have and what you have that some people usually don't. when you realize how much you have it makes you happy.

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    1. Yes I agree, that's good advice for people who are depressed - find one thing to be grateful for right now, and it can make you see things in a better light. Has this ever happened to you?

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  2. For the first question, I think that we say it every morning because you never know what will happen to you. You might get hit by a truck later in the day, or have just walked past a spot where someone got murderd the night before. You're praying this now because life is so precious, and we never know when it will end.
    For the second question, I think that you are thankful for being so happy about so much, and you are happy because you have so much to be thankful for.

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  3. girl that is almost getting her black belt in karateNovember 28, 2012 at 5:56 AM

    So people can know that you actually care about them. so the will be safer. and can maybe get good luck, because we are praying about them. For example: people that got hurt, lost their home they can get good luck.

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    1. Ariella (SourKangaroo)December 12, 2012 at 5:45 AM

      Great answer!!!! You can pray for other people along with the daily prayers for yourself!

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  4. אני חושבת שצריך להגיד את השיר הזה בגלל שצריך לעבוד רק את ה' ולהודות

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  5. girl that is almost getting her black belt in karateNovember 28, 2012 at 5:58 AM

    The connection about being thankful and being happy is. that when you are thankful you are happy that you are safe, not hurt, and having what you have.

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  6. Ariella (SourKangaroo)November 28, 2012 at 6:02 AM

    we say the prayer every morning because we should be thankful for everything that happens to us; not just escaping a life-threatening situation. We should be grateful for our lives alone, not just good things.

    I think that the connection between being grateful and being happy is that when you have something that you'r grateful for, you feel appy.
    Go Seussical!

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    1. That's a great perspective. I find that saying the tefillah every day forces me to focus on things I'm grateful for, even if I'm not in such a grateful mood. Do you have this experience?

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  7. I think it is recited everyday because we have realized that we have something to be thankful for everyday, for just being alive. The connection between being thankful and being happy is that we thank people for things because we are happy about them.:)

    Go Seussical!

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    1. Ariella (SourKangaroo)December 12, 2012 at 5:48 AM

      I feel glad just to be alive when something happy and good happens to me. I guess it would be hard to be grateful for everything all the time, especially when I want something badly.

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  8. the odd life of timothy greenNovember 28, 2012 at 6:06 AM

    WE GIVE TO GOD SO HE WILL HELP US

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    1. the odd life of timothy greenNovember 28, 2012 at 6:38 AM

      sacrifices were holy because they gave things to God and god helped lead the way

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    2. The commentators actually have a big debate about this. What do you think - does God "need" the sacrfices from us, or were the korbanot actually a way for our ancestors to connect to God somehow?

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    3. Ariella (SourKangaroo)December 12, 2012 at 5:51 AM

      God doesn't need the korbanot. He/she has the power to do anything. Our ancestors probably only thought that because they felt that God had to be rewarded. The korbanot were not needed, only wanted

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  9. 1. because people are thankful about everyday life, todah means thankful.
    when you're happy sometimes u r more thankful. or being thankful for things can make you happier if you're not.

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    1. The connection is that Thanksgiving is a happy time to eat kosher food and give thanks for all the kosher food.

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    2. Why do you think we need to say EVERY day, "thanks for getting me through a dangerous situation"?

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    3. because something could always happen to you, so we realize life is good

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    4. Life is good, we can be thankful that kevin durant got his first triple double in his career, how do u feel about dat

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    5. he feels thankful, so I feel thankful, jake the snake

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    6. A lot of athletes (like Tim Tebow and others) thank God after winning a game or scoring a touchdown, etc. What do you think about this practice?

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    7. I think it's good because it shows that his god gets him to do a good job. if that's what he belives in then that's ok. he shows that god helps him score. it's good for his religon.

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