Birkat HaMazon

 

Dear JCCP/CBT family,

What do we call the prayer we recite after we eat a meal?

(For those who answered, “the motzi,” please remember that’s the prayer we recite before we eat.)


Now back to the correct answer.

It’s the Birkat HaMazon.  Literally the “blessing after the meal”, though in our Christianity-influenced culture it’s often called the Grace after Meals. In fact, the scriptural basis for it appears in the first Aliyah of tomorrow morning’s Torah reading of Parshat Ekev: “you shall eat, and you shall be satisfied and you shall bless the Lord your God.” (Deuteronomy 8:10)

Birkat HaMazon is a mitzvah, one of the 613 commandments in the Torah. I’m sure we understand its value and utility. Cultivating gratitude is both good for our mental health, and a significant part of our religious responsibilities. In fact, at the root of the Hebrew word ya’hadut, which is Judaism in Hebrew, is the Hebrew word l’hodot, which means to thank. This reminds us that at the heart of the Jewish experience is gratitude. Birkat HaMazon, like many other mitzvot, is designed to help us cultivate awareness and gratitude.

The modern mind tends to blame God for our problems, but not give God credit for our blessings. But we know we can’t have it both ways. So let this simple verse and this psychological insight help better understand this aspect of our lives, and our Judaism. Let’s eat and work to be satisfied on both the physical and emotional level. After all, as my mother always says, whether you are rich or poor, it’s good to have money. But let’s push ourselves to go one step further. Let’s make sure that we demonstrate the gratitude that is key to our ability to appreciate, even in these terribly difficult times, all we have.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Arthur Weiner

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