In this week’s Exploring Judaism class at Or Shalom Synagogue, we discussed “prayer.”
Student questions drove our discussion.
What are we hoping to achieve through prayer? What’s more effective: personal spontaneity or formal liturgy? How can a spontaneous person come to terms with a fixed order of prayer?
We discussed the traditional Jewish distinction between keva, a fixed order and kavannah, intention. People who feel at home in a universe ordered by structure, rules and routine cannot imagine deep prayer without keva; those who are most alive when swept away by spontaneous strong emotion are drawn to kavannah. Our sages say: a balanced approach to life and prayer is best.
Does prayer explore different facets of God? How can prayer make me more accountable? How does prayer awaken awareness? Can everyday thoughts be considered prayer?
We looked at traditional early morning prayers. Some establish a standard of accountability for the day: “Today I shall love my neighbour as myself. These are the good deeds of which one can never do too many.” Others call us to gratitude for ordinary things: “Thank you God for the rooster screaming outside my window; now I know my soul has been restored for at least another day.”
We read and analyzed the piyyut, formal liturgical poem, Adon Olam. The first three stanzas express awe at the infinite universe, identifying infinity with God. The last two describe a personal God, providing support and comfort through difficult times. Different experiences, hints the poet, both part of what we mean by knowing “God.”
Can I pray without visualizing a personal God? Is there a path to Jewish prayer if I don’t believe in God? If I feel more connected to community than to God, am I praying? If I pray in community, but don’t understand the Hebrew words, does that count?
Yes – that’s the simple answer. Deeper answers, however, are best discovered by the questioners themselves.
To that end, I explained that many traditional piyyutim are what literary scholars call “found poems.” Poets search the Tanakh for phrases that speak deeply to them, and arrange the phrases into a poem expressing a new, personal meaning.
Let us be poets, too, I suggested. Using the Siddur itself as a sourcebook, each of us can identify phrases that speak to our hearts, and arrange them in a short poem. Through this combination of formality and spontaneity, perhaps we will touch exactly what we hope to find in prayer – be it accountability, awareness, community or God.
You have made me in your image You shaped it into my very own soul That I be strong as a mountain Helping me walk on my intended path You straighten the bent (Rocky Lis and Bernadette Dowle) All fruit trees and cedars, and oak trees are stripped bare. A thundering presence in the land and over waters, and the in the depths of the sea. God gives life to the dead. (Jacob Slosberg) Strive for peace and pursue it relentlessly. Justice, justice shall you pursue. May all those who honour Your essence find true serenity And become engaged with the words of Torah, For all its pathways are peace (Mark Welch) This glorious inheritance, the words of Your Torah, they are our lives– our lives that are entrusted into Your hand. Listen to our voices, Adonai our God. Answer us. (Shelley Darjes) May the one who makes peace in the heavens make peace for us Grant us lives filled with acts of kindness And may we be counted among the righteous When we are broken, help us find healing When we feel desperate help us find hope (Ingrid Sanchez) We acknowledge Your influence in our lives When we are perplexed help us find clarity When we have lost our way help us find direction When we feel far from You help us feel nearer When we are broken help us find healing When we feel overwhelmed help us find peace of mind When we feel fearful help us find courage We praise You Hashem for always being receptive to our prayers and for listening compassionately. (Kymn Bonfield) May each of us, together with all Jews and all human beings Teach them to your children at all times and places We each pass on to one another the cue to join in the chorus And the children of Israel shall keep the Shabbat (Zac Cohen) I thankfully acknowledge You, Adonai, our God, ruler of the universe, You have given me understanding to see differences clearly as between day and night. You shall love each other person like yourself. May our eyes see clearly that Your return to Zion will be only through the attribute of compassion. Justice, justice shall you pursue. You are with me, I am not afraid. (Twilla Welch) We exist for just an instant, our days are like a fleeting shadow Teach us to treasure each day, that we may get us a heart of wisdom I will live in faith and not in fear, for you Adonai are my strength and inspiration May all who honour your essence find true serenity on this day. (Amy Frye) Answer the prayers of our hearts. Answer the prayers of all our hearts. Day after day and night after night. (Laura Duhan Kaplan) — Image: Bonfire, Or Shalom retreat 2011.