(ט) וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יוֹסֵף֙ אֶל־אָבִ֔יו בָּנַ֣י הֵ֔ם אֲשֶׁר־נָֽתַן־לִ֥י אֱלֹהִ֖ים בָּזֶ֑ה וַיֹּאמַ֕ר קָֽחֶם־נָ֥א אֵלַ֖י וַאֲבָרֲכֵֽם׃ ... (יג) וַיִּקַּ֣ח יוֹסֵף֮ אֶת־שְׁנֵיהֶם֒ אֶת־אֶפְרַ֤יִם בִּֽימִינוֹ֙ מִשְּׂמֹ֣אל יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וְאֶת־מְנַשֶּׁ֥ה בִשְׂמֹאל֖וֹ מִימִ֣ין יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַיַּגֵּ֖שׁ אֵלָֽיו׃ (יד) וַיִּשְׁלַח֩ יִשְׂרָאֵ֨ל אֶת־יְמִינ֜וֹ וַיָּ֨שֶׁת עַל־רֹ֤אשׁ אֶפְרַ֙יִם֙ וְה֣וּא הַצָּעִ֔יר וְאֶת־שְׂמֹאל֖וֹ עַל־רֹ֣אשׁ מְנַשֶּׁ֑ה שִׂכֵּל֙ אֶת־יָדָ֔יו כִּ֥י מְנַשֶּׁ֖ה הַבְּכֽוֹר׃ (טו) וַיְבָ֥רֶךְ אֶת־יוֹסֵ֖ף וַיֹּאמַ֑ר הָֽאֱלֹהִ֡ים אֲשֶׁר֩ הִתְהַלְּכ֨וּ אֲבֹתַ֤י לְפָנָיו֙ אַבְרָהָ֣ם וְיִצְחָ֔ק הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙ הָרֹעֶ֣ה אֹתִ֔י מֵעוֹדִ֖י עַד־הַיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּֽה׃
(9) And Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me here.” “Bring them up to me,” he said, “that I may bless them.”...(13) Joseph took the two of them, Ephraim with his right hand—to Israel’s left—and Manasseh with his left hand—to Israel’s right—and brought them close to him. (14) But Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, though he was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head—thus crossing his hands—although Manasseh was the first-born. (15) And he blessed Joseph, saying, “The God in whose ways my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has been my shepherd from my birth to this day—
Malachim (Angel) Cards:
You can lay the malachim face down, take a moment for personal reflection, Kavannah (intention), and then randomly select one. The malach/message might affirm, remind, or inspire you – or maybe it sparks a new understanding. You can use the malachim in families, in community, in solitude.
There is a tradition that we are given a neshama yetera (extra soul) on Shabbat so some people pick two on Shabbat. Others pick during Havdallah, the ceremony that marks the end of Shabbat, to find a focus as they begin their new week. Some Rosh Hodesh groups begin their ritual or study with participants picking from the malachim. This enables individuals to find a kavannah[focus] for their time together or for their month.
The tradition of malachim Jewish angel cards began in a circle of friends in Jerusalem in 1989. We sang Shalom Aleichem to honor the beginning of Shabbat, noting that the words of the song welcome the "messengers/angels of peace," which are said to frequent the homes of those who celebrate Shabbat (Talmud, Tractate Shabbat, page 119a). I created a set of malachim to accompany our singing.
Whether malachim are understood poetically, symbolically, or literally, the questions underlying these traditions are still relevant: How do we make sense of incidents or interactions that occur in our lives? Are the decisions we make and paths we take purely of our own design? Are there forces in our world in addition to those that we can easily sense and "rationally" understand? What gives us spiritual strength as we move through the world? How do we experience that which is transcendent?
- Rabbi Deborah Eisenbach-Budner
excerpt from: https://www.ritualwell.org/ritual/malachim-jewish-angel-cards
To Purchase angel cards: https://ritualwell.myshopify.com/collections/shabbat/products/malachim-angel-cards