The Speed of Prayer

I have asked this question a few months ago and want to ask it again for the sake of a deeper conversation.  Is a longer tefilla better?  Or is less more?

My motivation behind this questions is the fact that when some people daven or observe people in the depths of prayer, there is a sense that a skilled craftsman can be in deep focus.  But this is completely an outwardly judgmental as it is impossible to know the true focus and intention of this person. 

Take for example the shmoneh esrei prayer, also known as the “silent devotion”.  There is a custom, when praying in a school or synagogue, to wait for the rabbi to finish his/her personal davning before starting the public repetition.  This waiting period can either lead to a great sense of awe amongst the congregation or a lot of chit-chatting in shul to pass the time.  I have a friend who went to a yeshiva which customarily waits a good five extra minutes from when the students finish their shmoneh esrei and the Rabbi concludes – he has taken on the habit of opening up a book. 

Here is how I evaluate if the speed of my tefilla is appropriate:  I try to start out intensely focused on the purpose of my prayer and the words that I am saying – if (WHEN) I lose focus and notice that my mind is wandering I will speed up saying the words in a precise manner but not wanting to draw them out.  Track how far you get before you lose focus, 

I once met a rabbi who was the first to finish his personal tefilla in shul and many congregants were a buzz about how quick he davened.  I finally mustered up the courage to ask him what his methodology for tefilla was and he responded in one of the most honest and refreshing ways – he said that it was hard to keep his mind on task so he says it quickly with purpose. 

So which do you think is better, a quick tefilla or a slow one? 

A Mediation on Shlomo Carlebach

Today marks 17 years since the death of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach - one of the most powerful influences on modern Jewish expression in the past 30 years.  I think that his influence is really taken for granted - especially in the Jewish music world but also in the realm of tefilla.

Considering that the Kabalat Shabbat service was introduced only in the 16th century and is arguably one of the most popular tefillot, it is hard to think of davening or singing in camp without a 'Carlebach' niggun.  Someone once told me, and I tend to agree, that the two most influential personalities on people "returning" to the practice Judaism in Israel are Rebbe Nachman from Bretslav (stories) and Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach (songs).  Whether this is true or not I cannot empirically prove nor do I have the time to do so. What I can say is that the Jewish content that they have created has positively touched thousands of Jews beyond their immediate circles and has generated new connections to the Jewish tradition. 

For Jewish day-school students today, the concept of a niggun is actually mainstream.  For Hebrew School students, thankfully there are other versions to "david melech yisrael" than the one with the funky hand gestures.  By the way, I also think that Debbie Friedman (who passed away almost a year ago) did much to bring non-Orthodox music into a new more meaningful era. If there was a Carlebachian influence on Friedman I do not know...

The point of this post is to first of all appreciate that the tone, tune, and variety of music has improved dramatically over the past few decades and actually engages a lot more people to participate or even dance in shul.  The second point of this post is to highlight the often overlooked meditation element to singing a Hasidic niggun.   Repeating a word allows participants to focus on the theme at that moment.  Removing words and humming or shouting a meaningful tune permits more people to feel included.  And most significant is that a niggun stretches a powerful moment - at a wedding, a brit, the welcoming of Shabbat, or a prayer for soldiers - to be longer than the one minute it actually might take to say the bracha.  This is mediation and I sadly have not and do not hear many educators of tefilla teaching their students practical steps to block out distractions and learn to elevate their focus. 

While there is indeed controversy surrounding some of the actions and stories of Reb Shlomo, his name is now a ubiquitous tag line to sing-songy service honors his memory and reminds us that, like the addition of Kabalat Shabbat nearly 500 years ago - things can change for the better.

Sounds of Silent Prayers

One of the hardest (and most special) parts of davening in a community is the Amidah. When else do you stand in a room with a hundred of people in absolute silence? The answer to this question may be never. It is often hard for people to remain quiet for the 2-4 minutes it takes for people to say their personal 'silent devotion'. The beginning seconds are bothered by the rattling chairs and soon the chatter of those that finish quickly. It is hard to resist the many small conversations but they noise the make can be incredibly frustrating to people trying to concentrate/meditate on their tefilla.

My brother-in-law recently expressed his frustration that at his shul there are couple of folks that whisper their words loud enough to create a hum and noise that interrupts his focus. We looked into the Shulchan Urech in Hilchot Tefilla halacha 101 where it states that you should not only pray in your heart, rather you should move the words on your lips and hear the words in your ears quietly and not hear his voice; these words are appropriate for oneself, but if in a community it is forbidden to disturb the community. This is an allusion to Hannah's prayer in Samuel 1 Chapter 2 which many prayer practices are learned from. Interesting to see the Mishna Berura's comment on this verse which links people who daven loudly as following in the prophets of falsehood and accuses them of lacking in faith by assuming that Hashem could not hear their whispered prayers.

In our overly stimulated environments that are saturated with technology and visual and audio prompts we rarely encounter a few solid moments of silence. As educators, I think it is highly worthwhile to ensure that the students get comfortable with the meditative silence and learn to suppress the urge to cough or chatter with a neighbor during this special moment of tefilla. I have done this exercise in nature (at night) and students have responded positively to questions of awakening feelings of spirituality. Can you do this in a school classroom/synagogue? In an effort to encourage developing spiritual focus I think it is worth testing the respect your students have for the silent moments and possibility of listening to their own hearts.