New Each Day: A Spiritual Practice for Reading Psalms

Debra J. Robbins

Jan 2024 · CCAR Press

About this ebook

Every day of the year, Jewish liturgy includes the Shir Shel Yom, a psalm recited to mark the day of the week. New Each Day by Rabbi Debra J. Robbins breathes new life into this ancient practice, inviting us to engage with psalms in a fresh, inspiring way. Daily "Reflections for Focus" offer unique insights on each psalm, with a structure for meditation and writing that encourages the reader to develop their own personal routine. Reflections for each month, based on the psalm for Rosh Chodesh, provide a full year of spiritual practice. Just as Rabbi Robbins did for the High Holy Day season in Opening Your Heart with Psalm 27, New Each Day guides us along the journey of the year with intention and meaning.

With New Each Day, Rabbi Debra Robbins reenergizes and reframes the ancient practice of reciting a daily psalm for our modern context. Through thoughtful teachings, reflections, and interpretations, she helps us connect across time and space to generations of our ancestors who engaged in this very same practice, linking us to the infinite chain of our tradition while giving a fresh perspective for our time.

--Elana Arian, composer, prayer leader, and recording artist

I'm so grateful to Rabbi Debra Robbins for creating this rich, accessible, and eminently useful book of reflections and practices on one of the Jewish people's oldest prayer practices---the liturgical recitation of psalms. With intelligence, care, boldness, and creativity, Rabbi Robbins invites and guides us on a journey of spiritual discovery. Whether you have long experience with these prayers or you're just beginning, you will find depth and illumination in these pages.

--Rabbi Josh Feigelson, PhD, President and CEO, Institute for Jewish Spirituality

A perennial struggle of spiritual seekers is how to creatively engage with daily practice, week in and week out. New Each Day breathes life into the Jewish tradition of saying a psalm every day, by exploring the form, language, story, ethic and feeling of the seven psalms of the week and the psalm for the new moon. Those who yearn for a meaningful daily practice can find inspiration here in the form of poetic translations, reflections, and writing exercises, all engaging with this ancient ritual. Rabbi Robbins's personal and vulnerable voice of everyday devotion is a refreshing antidote to our cynical age.

--Rabbi Jill Hammer, PhD, author of The Jewish Book of Days: A Companion for All Seasons

The psalms are a cherished treasure that have transformed souls for millennia. Rabbi Debra Robbins has offered us a sweet gift by renewing the spiritual power of these ancient texts through relevant, nuanced, and wise interpretations, to support our contemporary moment of seeking God, meaning, sanctity, and purpose.

--Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz, author of The Book of Proverbs: A Social Justice Commentary

An astute and welcoming introduction to the daily practice of reading psalms.

-- Kirkus Reviews