I’m sure that you were as touched as I was viewing the long-awaited reunion of the 20 live Israeli hostages with their parents, family and friends. The tears of joy that poured out as they embraced made these moments unforgettable.
The less prominent, but holy aspect to this is that many families added an additional phrase upon reuniting: the Hebrew blessing Shehechiyanu.
“Baruch Atah Adoshem Elokeinu, Melech Haolam Shehechiyanu, V’kiy’manu, V’higianu Lazman Hazeh.”
“Blessed are You, Hashem our G-d, Sovereign of all, who has kept us alive, sustained us, and brought us to this moment.”
This blessing is usually reserved for joyous firsts in Jewish lives, like the beginning of a holiday, including Passover, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, and Chanukah. It is not recited during holidays that commemorate sad events, or when one may feel pain, like at a Brit milah.
It is recited with the first performance of certain mitzvot in a new year, including sitting in a sukkah, eating matzah at the Passover seder, reading the megillah, The Book of Esther on Purim, or on the first night of Chanukah.
We also recite it when seeing a friend who has not been seen in thirty days, when acquiring a new home or other significant possessions, when a child is born or during a ritual immersion in a mikveh as part of a conversion. And most significantly to the hostage return, we recite the blessing upon arrival in Israel.
The inclusion of the Shehechiyanu blessing by many of those weeping parents and family members signified that their faith in the Almighty accompanied the sublime joy they felt at that moment. It meant that there were at least three souls in the room that day: the returning hostage, their family member, and the grateful presence of our G-d.
As Jews, we will undoubtedly again suffer in the future due to antisemitism and senseless hatred merely because of our cultural identity.
Yet, during these moments, we still have the opportunity to chant the Shehechiyanu, blessing G-d for enabling us to experience the exhilaration of firsts buoyed by the joy and gratitude of having survived another day. It is our affirmation that there is still good in the world and that immutable conviction in our eternal heritage girds us for the perpetration of the most heinous of iniquities by others.
Dr. Michael Isaacson has enjoyed a long creative career as a film and television composer and conductor. He has created a large music catalog of Jewish sacred settings and secular orchestral, choral and chamber works. In his third act, he now authors columns and articles, and has completed four novels that are available through ECM Publications.
