March 2008

After a long wait because of the Jewish leap year, with its extra month, it’s almost Purim! And after a long wait because of a printer’s error, the new Reform prayer book Mishkan T’fillah has arrived (tho’ not in numbers large enough for us to use – yet).

To commemorate both these outstanding Once in a While events, we will celebrate Purim 5768 using a special new prayer book for Purim. We’ll be

Introducing

Mishuganneh T’fillah

As Reform Jews have moved from Shaarei Tefillah: The Gates of Prayer (1975) into Mishkan T’filah (the tabernacle of prayer) (2007), we’ll celebrate with Mishuganneh T’fillah (the nonsense of prayer).

You might be asking “Why is this prayer book different from any other prayerbook?” You also might be asking “How is this theme going to translate itself into costumes and songs for Purim?” Keep in mind these important facts:

THIS is the first major liturgy compiled by a baby-boomer. The editor of Gates of Prayer was born in 1930 and ordained in the late ‘50’s. Formative experiences: Depression. WWII, Founding of Israel, Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis. The prayerbook was written on an IBM Selectric. The Hebrew was laid out by a manual typewriter from the British Mandate period.

This new liturgy is edited by a rabbi born a generation later in the mid-50’s and ordained in the early ‘80’s: Formative experiences: JFK Assassination, Six-Day War, Vietnam, moonwalks (both Neil Armstrong and Michael Jackson) Watergate, Saturday Night Live (in the old days, when it was funny). Mishuganneh T’fillah was written on a Dell computer with an Intel Pentium IV processor, 1G of memory (120G on the drive) , 2,792 fonts in English and and 439 Hebrew fonts, using Microshlock’s “Mosaic Mockery-maker” software.

What does it mean to be a prayerbook for boomers and Gen X? Up till now, Reform services were about an hour long. The subtitle for Shabbat morning is now “A three hour tour.” This new book begins with the prayer for turning off your cell phone before services.

Using Mishuganneh T’fillah this Purim, we’ll find many of our favorite songs, hymns, and hyrns, but we’ll find that the words have changed a little (or a lot).

->WARNING: THE HUMOR-IMPAIRED SHOULD NOT ATTEND THIS EVENT. THOSE DEVOTED AND PIOUS INDIVIDUALS WHO CANNOT BEAR POSSIBLY MARGINAL TASTE SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTION.

Once again, our Purim liturgy will bear the coveted seal of the AMERICAN JEWISH HYSTERICAL SOCIETY. And, of course, there will be a reading of the Megillah (Reader’s Digest Version), Costume parades and prizes. Would-be paytanim (liturgical poets) are invited to display their wit at appropriate moments during the service, upon prior application.