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The Union Prayer Book
Sinai Edition, Revised
An Adaptation of
The Union Prayer Book
Newly Revised Edition
of the
Central Conference of American Rabbis
1940
Volume I
Shabbat, Week-Days, and Festivals
Chicago Sinai Congregation
Chicago
The Society for Classical Reform Judaism
Boston
5772 - 2012
iii
Copyright © 2012
Chicago Sinai Congregation
15 West Delaware Place
Chicago, Illinois 60610
International copyright secured. All rights reserved.
Materials from the Union Prayer Book I, Newly Revised
by the Central Conference of American Rabbis
reproduced by permission.
ISBN: 978-0-9678503-3-7
Printed in the United States of America
iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Shabbat Eve Songs and Hymns
2
Service for Shabbat Eve I
Service for Shabbat Eve II
Service for Shabbat Eve III
Service for Shabbat Eve IV
Service for Shabbat Eve V
11
33
55
75
95
Service for Shabbat Morning
Service for Reading the Torah
Afternoon Service for Shabbat
117
151
161
Prayers for Special Occasions
179
Service for Week Day Evenings
Service at the House of Mourning
Service for Week Day Mornings
213
237
251
Service for the Eve of the Festivals
Service for the Morning of the Festivals
Memorial Service for the Festivals
283
313
361
Concluding Prayers
367
Observances for the Home
Readings on Special Themes
Havdalah Service
Songs and Hymns
Acknowledgements
379
401
413
421
446
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Editor's Introduction
Throughout the history of Reform Judaism in the United States,
never have there been prayer books more beloved than the Union
Prayer Book, published by the Central Conference of American
Rabbis.
Both volumes of the Union Prayer Book (UPB’s) expressed the
essential ideals of Reform Judaism eloquently and poetically. These
prayer books were intended for those who wished to worship
primarily in the English language, and particularly in the American
environment. Their language was both timeless and inspirational.
Embodied in the text were the principles of the American Reform
movement including: religious liberalism, humanitarianism, and
rational faith, and a profound commitment to social justice. At the
same time, these prayer books remained firmly rooted in Jewish
tradition. The essential Hebrew prayers and blessings, from the
traditional Siddur and Machzor, were reflected in their texts.
These prayer books served the needs of virtually all Reform
congregations for nearly two generations. Yet, in several significant
ways, the UPB’s were in need of major revisions. Published in 1940
and 1945, these books appeared before the two epic events of
modern Jewish history which shaped the consciousness of world
Jewry: the Holocaust and the establishment of the State of Israel.
Any contemporary Jewish prayer book needed to deal with these
two watershed events. In addition, the great social changes of the
second half of the twentieth century which affected Jews, and all
people, could not have been anticipated by the Union Prayer Books.
The heightened awareness brought about by the women’s
movement, concern for the inclusion of gays and lesbians, the
strong trend towards intermarriage, the civil rights movement, and
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advances in racial equality all had an undeniable impact on Reform
Judaism. Also, the UPB’s use of traditional “Biblical” English,
which was common to most English-speaking congregations in the
past, seemed arcane, and no longer appropriate.
For all these reasons, and several others, it was decided the time had
come to create new prayer books, still rooted in historic Reform
Judaism and still faithful to the eloquence of the Union Prayer
Book. The result was the Union Prayer Book Sinai edition which
has been in use for over a decade.
The Sinai edition sought to preserve the grace and poetry of the
UPB by building upon the past, not replacing it. The language of the
Sinai edition was gender-neutral and contemporary, with few
exceptions. The beloved twenty-third Psalm (“The Lord is my
Shepherd...”) was preserved in its cherished wording. Also, the
Kaddish prayer, known by heart to so many Jews, is transliterated
both into contemporary and Ashkenazic Hebrew. The earlier UPB
English version of the Shema was also retained as an alternative.
We now present this newest edition of the Union Prayer Book,
entitled The Union Prayer Book Sinai Edition Revised. Added are
many of the traditional prayers that have become widely accepted in
Reform congregations. There are also a number of important
theological modifications which are unique to this new prayer book.
1. We have removed all anthropomorphic references to God, so as
to avoid conveying any physical imagery.
2. We have modified prayers that seem to ask for divine
intervention, emphasizing instead the conviction that people must
be God’s partners in turning our prayers and aspirations into
reality.
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3. There is a long-standing Reform conviction that the Torah is not
a book written by God (Torah mi-Sinai). Rather it is a book
written by inspired human beings about our people’s encounters
with God. In that spirit, we have changed the manner in which we
refer to the Torah, e.g. not “Your Torah” but rather “our Torah”
or simply “the Torah.”
4. In line with our awareness that almost all Reform Jewish
congregations today are diverse, we feel that a contemporary
Jewish prayer book needs to be as inclusive as possible.
Therefore, although we have retained the concept of the Jewish
people having a distinctive covenantal relationship with God, we
have made significant changes to any phrases that may allude to
the Jews being a chosen people.
5. In the same spirit, while preserving the basic sense that this is a
Jewish prayer book, we have moved in the direction of more
universal language so that most of the prayers are accessible to
people of many faiths.
In offering the Union Prayer Book Sinai Edition, Revised, we hope
this volume will provide inspiration to a new generation of
worshippers. Our desire is that many will discover within its pages a
fresh approach to the ideals of Reform Judaism and an added
awareness of the beauty and the importance of our faith for the
twenty-first century. We feel blessed to have participated in the
development of this prayer book and pray that many will cherish it
when expressing the presence of God in their lives.
Rabbi Michael P. Sternfield
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The Union Prayer Book and the Classical Reform Tradition
This new contemporary edition of the Union Prayer Book Sinai
Edition Revised, carries forward a vision that originated with the
first publication of this work in 2000. Our hope has been to provide
a liturgy for contemporary Reform Jewish worship that reflects the
broad, progressive spiritual values, rich intellectual foundations, and
distinctive traditions of prayer and music that are the heritage of
liberal Judaism in America.
Today’s Reform Judaism embraces a broad spectrum of
interpretation, belief, and practice. A diverse range of philosophies
and worship styles are encompassed in this spectrum, appropriate to
a liberal religious movement that affirms individual and congregational freedom and autonomy. Classical Reform, as it
developed in the 19th and early 20th centuries, remains a vital
alternative understanding of our movement today. Classical Reform
is grounded in the Biblical tradition of the Hebrew Prophets,
interpreted as the emphasis on ethical action and social justice,
rather than on ritual observance or ceremonial law. Intellectually, it
was an outgrowth of the modern academic, scientific study of
Jewish history and philosophy that emerged in Germany in the early
decades of the 19th century. Culturally, Classical Reform reflected
the transformation of Jewish communal life at that time, in response
to the Emancipation of European Jewry from the social isolation of
the ghetto.
In America, the early Reform Movement embraced the pluralistic
culture of American democracy and developed a liturgy and
rationale reflecting the unique experience of Judaism in the free and
open society of the United States. It taught that Judaism had always
developed new responses to the challenges of each generation, and
had historically engaged in a creative encounter and synthesis with
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many cultures throughout the ages - affirming that modern Jews had
the right and responsibility to continue this dynamic process for a
new chapter in Jewish history.
The Classical Reform tradition is rooted in the legacy of the
“radical” wing of the early movement, which sought a substantial
revision of both synagogue worship and theological principles. Its
leading rabbinic advocate was David Einhorn (1809-1879), as
opposed to the more “moderate” Isaac Mayer Wise (1819-1900), the
consensus-building founder of the central institutions of the
American movement. These different points on the Reform
spectrum were embodied in the integration of their respective
approaches to worship and observance into the historic common
liturgy of American Reform, the Union Prayer Book, first issued in
1894, and revised in 1918 and 1940. While this effort incorporated
elements of both Einhorn’s and Wise’s earlier prayer books, it more
fully reflected the influence of Einhorn’s thorough revision of the
traditional liturgy. Rather than a merely abbreviated and translated
version of the historic Siddur, this new Reform approach to worship
retained the basic order and core rubrics of the Service, but cast
them in a modern form that paraphrased the themes of the ancient
texts in original, newly composed prayers with contemporary
interpretations.
The Union Prayer Book tradition, creatively renewed in this new
volume, upholds the fundamental principles of historic Reform
Judaism:
The eternal Jewish Covenant with God is at the heart of our identity
and history as Jews. While our faith engenders and empowers many
different understandings and interpretations of the Divine, the
religious quest for faith and meaning remain at the core of our
Jewish commitment.
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We uphold the historic Reform concept, linked to our emphasis on
the ethical and moral vision of our Hebrew Prophets, of the
“Mission of Israel.” This belief holds that as Jews, we are called to
be witnesses to the Unity of God and the unity of all humanity, and
that we must work as individuals, and as a community, to bring
justice and peace to the world.
We cherish the distinctive worship traditions of historic Reform – a
meaningful, participatory liturgy that appeals to both mind and
heart. This commitment has always embraced a primarily English
language worship Service, enriched by the timeless elements of
Hebrew texts and song that symbolically link us to fellow Jews
throughout the world. And yet, we would insist that what makes a
worship experience truly “Jewish” is not its degree of Hebrew
usage, but rather the ideals and values it reflects. Classical Reform
worship embraces the role of inspiring choral and instrumental
music that elevates the spirit as well as encouraging fully
participatory congregational singing.
We believe that these characteristic qualities of historic Reform
Jewish belief and worship, most meaningfully embodied in the
Union Prayer Book, continue to offer a vital, creative option for
many Jews today. This includes countless younger people, who are
searching for a meaningful and accessible form of Jewish identity
and worship, based not on nostalgia nor ethnicity, but rooted in the
realities of their experience in our contemporary, pluralistic society.
We trust that this new interpretation of the beloved Union Prayer
Book will provide an inspiring and challenging resource for the
continuing spiritual renewal of our American Jewish community.
Rabbi Howard A. Berman
The Society for Classical Reform Judaism
xiii
Photographs
This new revision of the Union Prayer Book, Sinai Edition, has been
inspired by the mandate of the Book of Psalms to “worship God in
the beauty and majesty of holiness…” The beloved imagery and
cadences of the original text of the Union Prayer Book are echoed in
the contemporary interpretation of prose and poetry in this volume.
In Reform Jewish tradition, the beauty of the liturgy has always
been conceived as part of a worship experience enhanced both by
great music and by the physical setting of the architecture of the
synagogue. The creation of sacred space – of beautiful sanctuaries
that invoke inspiration and enhance a sense of community, are all
part of our distinctive liberal Jewish understanding of prayer.
To further enhance the beauty of this sacred book, we offer visual
images of some of the great, historic temples of American Reform
Judaism. This unique dimension of this new edition recalls the
magnificent illuminated embellishments of ancient manuscript
Prayer Books in medieval Jewish communities.
The sanctuaries portrayed in the following images are all historic
landmarks of the American Reform Movement, and reflect the
broad range of architectural styles that have expressed the spiritual
ideals of liberal Judaism. Among these values is the affirmation of
the dialogue between Jewish tradition and the broader cultures in
which our people have lived. All of these spaces also reflect the
many ways in which the play of light and color create inspiring
places of worship.
xiv
K.K. (Holy Congregation) Beth Elohim, Charleston,
South Carolina. 1845
plate after front leaf
The major Jewish congregation in the Colonial America, founded in
1749, Beth Elohim (“House of God”) is considered the birthplace of
Reform Judaism in America, with the first efforts of liturgical
change dating back to 1824. The temple, built in 1845 in the Greek
Revival style, is a nationally known architectural landmark. The
Corinthian columns of the Ark, and the detailed plasterwork of the
ceiling were highlights of religious buildings in the United States in
that period.
K.K. Mickve Israel, Savannah, Georgia. 1876
plate after page 110
Mickve Israel (“The Hope of Israel”) was founded by the earliest
settlers in the colony of Georgia in 1733. Its members have been
illustrious leaders in American Jewish history since the
Revolutionary War. The famous sanctuary is the only surviving
Victorian gothic synagogue in the United States, and embodies the
ancient Jewish tradition of designing synagogues in the prevailing
styles of the various cultures in which Jews have lived.
Temple Sinai, New Orleans, Louisiana. 1927
plate after page 206
Congregation Temple Sinai was founded in 1870 and has been one
of the leading centers of Reform Judaism in the South. This
beautiful sanctuary was built in 1927, and reflects the dramatic
modernist design of the Art Deco period. The magnificent stained
glass windows colorfully depict ancient Jewish symbols, the
menorah and Star of David, in rich hues that cast a glow throughout
the space.
xv
Temple Emanu-El, New York City. 1930
plate after page 334
This magnificent neo-Romanesque sanctuary is renowned as the
largest synagogue in America, and one of the pioneer Reform
congregations in the country, founded in 1845. The soaring Ark,
crowned by the organ and choir loft, dominate the vast space.
The intricate patterns of the marble and mosaics that frame the
Bimah, help direct attention to the Ark and to the Torah Scrolls
visible through the bronze grille-work.
Chicago Sinai Congregation, Chicago, Illinois 1997
plate before back leaf
The design of this contemporary temple of the historic center of
the Classical Reform tradition, founded in 1861, was conceived
to reflect many of the elements of great synagogue architecture
in various times and places. The octagonal domed space recalls
some of the earliest synagogues of the First century; the Biblical
inscriptions surrounding the ceiling were inspired by the famed
synagogues of medieval Spain; the wooden roof echoes the
simple country shuls of Poland and Russia. The towering
stained glass window, with the text of Genesis, Chapter 1,
depicts the Creation.
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