July 2026 - Who Is Like You?

Last month I wrote about one of the pieces of art, the one on the right, which I gifted to Beth Samuel on my 25th anniversary of Cantorial Ordination, and this month I will address the other.  These two beautiful canvases, created by artist Joanne Fink, hang in our sanctuary.  Stop in and take a look!

This month I will describe the picture on the left.  It is a lovely, colorful rendering of the well-known verse in the Torah and in our prayers, “Mi Chamocha ba’Elim Adonai, Who Is Like You, Adonai?”  It comes from parsha Beshalach, in Exodus, and is part of the Song of Moses, and the Song of the Sea.  It is really a rhetorical question, and the answer to it is, of course, “Ein Kamocha, There is None Like You!” 

These words are a prayer that thanks God for redeeming us from Egypt, for splitting the sea and enabling us to escape to our freedom.  You remember, Miriam and the women danced when they reached the other side.  You can see the colorful waves of the seas parting in this picture.  We show our gratitude by singing it morning and evening in our davening.  There are several melodies for it, depending on which prayer service we are doing.  There are also many musical compositions, one of which you can listen to HERE. This is Debbie Friedman’s composition and it is widely used in synagogues all over. 

When we sing Mi Chamocha, we celebrate our lives and our freedom, and also recommit ourselves toward freeing all who are enslaved, all who are oppressed in our world today.  One of the ways we can achieve this is by coming together and by singing together.  Come to one of our services, any service, and we will be singing, “Mi Chamocha…”

B’shalom,

Cantor Rena