Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu la'asok b’divrei Torah. Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign of the universe, who hallows us with mitzvot, charging us to engage with words of Torah.

1) Think of or imagine a moment when you gave or or received a compliment. How did you and they respond? How did you carry that compliment with you throughout the day, or how do you hope the other person carried it with them?

2) How might compliments be like blessings?

LGBTQIA+ = Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and more

Queer = Often considered an umbrella term for LGBTQIA+ folks, many have reclaimed this word from its pejorative usage

The Priestly Blessing (Birkat Kohanim) is the oldest surviving benediction for which there is archeological evidence. When the Temples were still standing, the High Priests (Kohanim) would offer this blessing. Today, some communities have descendants from the High Priests recite this blessing at different times of the year while others, like the Reform movement, have minimized, adapted, or removed the Priestly Blessing from liturgy because of objections to the caste system. This blessing may also be used by parents to bless children on Shabbat and at certain life cycle events.

Who is giving the blessing and who is being blessed? What kinds of power is each individual or group experiencing?

Rabbi Bahya ibn Pequda (~1050–1120 CE) is a medieval Spanish commentator and philosopher who is known for authoring the first work of Jewish ethics, Guide to the Duties of the Heart.

What are the responsibilities of giving blessings? What are the benefits of receiving blessings?

1) Recall the moment from the beginning of Torah study when you gave or received a compliment. How might that compliment have been a blessing?

2) How can we empower others or be empowered through our blessings? What are our responsibilities to give and create blessings?

3) What are the blessings that you want to give to LGBTQ+ people––particularly youth? How have queer people blessed the world, the community, and/or your life?

Marsha, Stormé, Sylvia, our forebears whose names have been lost to time, and the elders who still walk among us.

They, who taught us to stand up, stand with, stand for, stand against, and stand together.

They, who kindled the fires of revelation at Greenwich Village in summertime.

May we always remember the places where they fought, where they stood, and how their paths continue to make inroads for us now: to love, to heal, to demand our rights, and to answer only to our holiest names.

Blessed are our ancestors,

The forefolx whose spirits and life-blood we hold within ourselves like sparks of the divine.

Those who created cornerstone towers from glass and broken brick,

Whose steps of defiance created paths where none existed, lightening our burden.

Let us celebrate our hard won victories, and remember that the work continues with us.

Keshet -

The Trevor Project -

The Attic Youth Center -

Philadelphia Family Pride -

Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism -