A Blessing in Four Worlds

Last month I had the honor of being invited to help confer smikhah (rabbinic ordination) on my dear friend and colleague, the amazing Rabbi Irwin Keller. Irwin had spent several years studying in the ALEPH rabbinic program and many, many years before that serving as the spiritual leader of Congregation Ner Shalom in Cotati, California. ​

He also happens to be a lawyer, an amazing singer/musician, and a beautiful writer--see his blog!–and for years he toured the world as a member of the comedic and politically trenchant drag quartet, The Kinsey Sicks. I wanted to offer Irwin a blessing on the day of his ordination that would honor the work he has done in the world, uplifting, cheering, educating and comforting so many souls, and to offer him strength and courage for the continuing work of holding both his local and his extended communities. What emerged was a blessing that invokes the qualities of each of the Four Worlds of Kabbalah: Assiyah, the world of Doing and physicality; Yetzirah, the world of Formation and emotional flow; Bri'ah, the world of Thought and imagination; and Atzilut, the world of Spiritual Presence. In our current covid-driven reality, ordination happened on zoom, with all ordinees and witnesses in our own homes, connecting electronically across the globe. Prior to the ceremony, I was invited into a zoom breakout room, where I offered Irwin this blessing. He has encouraged me to share it more broadly, so here it is. May it support us all in the various ways that we serve and heal in this complex world.

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