Illustration Credit: Elad Lifshitz, Dov Abramson Studio
Halakhah הֲלָכָה
In this week’s parashah, Yaakov makes a point of expressing gratitude, called in Hebrew הַכָּרָת הַטּוֹב (hakarat ha-tov).
While he is praying to God before meeting Esav, Yaakov begins his prayer with gratitude, thanking God for everything God has done for him. Then he pleads with God for safety and expresses fear about what Esav will do to him (Bereishit 32:11-12). Even in this moment of danger, Yaakov acknowledges all of the חֶסֶד (hesed, kindness) that God has done for him.
Expressing gratitude is an important Jewish value. One way that Jews express gratitude in prayer is by reciting בִּרְכַּת הַגּוֹמֵל (Birkat Ha-Gomel, a blessing of thanksgiving). This is a blessing that people recite after surviving a dangerous situation, for example, after recovering from an illness or a potentially dangerous journey (Shulhan Arukh, Orah Hayyim 219:1).
Normally, Birkat Ha-Gomel is said in the presence of a minyan (sometimes after an aliyah in shul). The blessing is:
ברכת הגומל: בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' אֱלֹקֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם
הַגּוֹמֵל לְחַיָּבִים טוֹבוֹת שֶׁגְּמָלַנִי כָּל טוֹב.
Blessed are You, God our Lord, Ruler of the world, Who rewards the undeserving with goodness, and Who has rewarded me with goodness.
The people gathered there respond:
הקהל עונה אמן. ואומרים:
אָמֵן. מִי שֶׁגְּמָלְךָ/לֵךְ כָּל טוּב,
הוּא יִגְמָלְךָ/לֵךְ כָּל טוּב סֶּלָה.
Amen. The One Who already rewarded you with goodness should continue to reward you with goodness—selah.
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