Blessed Are You, Wondrous Universe: A Siddur for Seekers
offers a much-needed bridge between secular and religious approaches to Judaism. It takes what is most important in each world view and seeks to create a new synthesis.
From secularism, this siddur takes its commitment to facts and scientific method. From religion, it adopts a stance of wonder and gratitude. Drawn from both worlds, it embraces a commitment to individual and collective responsibility for our lives.
People with a religious world view may find themselves having to stretch toward seeing the world as a face of God that deserves our blessing. Those with a secular world view may find themselves having to stretch toward the possibility that words like "blessed" and "holy" are compatible with the humanist premise that only humans can attribute such qualities to our experience. In a traditional siddur, God is the ultimate actor whose intervention we seek, whether through blessing, redeeming, healing, or forgiving us. In this siddur, we praise the universe, the earth, and Jewish tradition. With respect to moral choices, we address ourselves; humans are the agents who need to hear our own prayer.