Prayer

Prayer can be one of the most confounding of spiritual practices. If it is a personal, meditative, soul experience, then why is so much of it dictated by formality and structured liturgy?

This class examines the importance of prayer, its biblical and historical origins, and the Jewish view on material requests. We conclude with explaining the first prayer upon waking in the morning.

The origins and evolution of prayer through the ages.

An overview of the roots, purpose and practice of Jewish prayer.

We spend much time each day reciting the words of the siddur. Join us to enhance your prayers and become more proficient in understanding and mastering the prayer liturgy. This comprehensive series on Tefillah explores the special meaning embedded in the ...

Why are men and women separated by a mechitzah in the synagogue? Why aren’t women counted for a minyan? Do women wear tallis and tefillin?

The core of every prayer service is the “Amida” or “Shmoneh Esreh” – the silent prayer. But in fact it is not so silent. In order to fulfill the requirements of the silent prayer, we have to physically verbalize the words so that we can hear the words we’...

At first glance, the structure of the prayers in the prayerbook may seem arbitrary. How did the “Men of the Great Assembly,” the Talmudic Sages who authored the basic liturgy of Jewish prayer, devise the structure that has remained for over 2,000 years? I...

Though the formal prayers found in prayerbooks today were established in Talmudic times, the origin of prayers dates much earlier, to Biblical times. The three patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, each introduced one of the three daily prayers, and their...

Does G-d really need our prayers? Obviously not. He wants our prayers. But why? The same question can be asked about existence as a whole – G-d doesn’t need a world, but He wants one, and wishes to have a relationship with every being in it. Through praye...