Taking Ownership of Prayer

By RABBI RACHEL MILLER

PRAY TELL
A Hadassah Guide to Jewish Prayer
By Rabbi Jules Harlow, with Tamara Cohen, Rochelle Furstenberg, Rabbi Daniel Gordis, and Leora Tanenbaum
Edited by Claudia R. Chernov and Carol Diament
383 pages. Hadassah/Jewish Lights Publishing. $29.95.

Formal prayer is a challenge for Jews—the languages are foreign to most of us (even if you know Hebrew, there is always the difficulty in deciphering Aramaic), and the oldest parts of the standard liturgy date from over 2000 years ago and reflect the worldview of that era.  As we settle into the High Holy Day season, more than a few of us could use a guide to the service that aids in understanding our ancient prayers and making them our own.

Pray Tell is the third volume in a trilogy generated by Hadassah’s Jewish Education Department.  The previous volumes, Jewish Women Living the Challenge and Moonbeams: A Hadassah Rosh Hodesh Guide, were obviously targeted at women readers.  Pray Tell departs from this model.  Although the volume contains two chapters dedicated to women’s prayer, the book—as a whole—reads as an insightful guide to prayer for general audiences, both male and female.  It is a welcome addition to the growing library of books dedicated to revealing the usefulness of prayer in individuals’ spiritual life.

Unfortunately, Pray Tell has a shaky opening.  Anticipating objections to her choice of primary author, editor Carol Diament begins with a defense of Rabbi Jules Harlow. A noted scholar of Jewish liturgy, Harlow served as editor of the first edition of Siddur Sim Shalom (published by the Rabbinical Assembly in 1985).  He raised public attention both inside and outside the Conservative movement by refusing to attach his name to that book’s 1994 revision due to its inclusion of the matriarchs' names in the Amidah.  Rather than taking a defensive pose, Diament should have focused on how Harlow's involvement represents a major strength of the volume—its inclusion of perspectives on a spectrum from radical to traditional.

The first unit of Pray Tell is Harlow’s commentary on the traditional prayer book.  Beginning with the classic blessing formula (“barukh Attah Adonai”), Harlow examines the history, development, and theological themes of the prayer service for weekdays, Shabbat, and holy days.  In addition to the main body of the text, there are supplemental comments on each page: wisdom from the Talmud, medieval scholars, modern thinkers, and personal insights.  This multi-layered commentary is similar in concept to that of Jewish Lights’ series, My People’s Prayer Book, edited by Lawrence Hoffman.  Although fascinating and thorough, that structure also makes the MPPB series a difficult read.  Pray Tell is an improvement in readability—the various comments are grouped together on the page.  The choice to present traditional prayers in translation alone also adds to its accessibility.  On the other hand, Pray Tell contains a few omissions.  Although there is a discussion of women wearing tallitot (prayer shawls), there is no similar discussion of tefillin.  There are also a few prayers on which there is little comment, most obviously, Barkhu (the call to prayer).

Unit Two provides substantial chapters on contemporary issues: feminist liturgical innovation, Orthodox women’s devotions, Israeli liturgy as prayer, and the role of prayer in response to evil and suffering.  Together, the two chapters on women and tefilah (prayer) provide one of the most inclusive dialogues on the topic.  Both Tamara Cohen (representing innovation) and Leora Tanenbaum (representing Orthodox women) bring together the most important theological and legal issues regarding women and prayer, as well as the best of feminist liturgy, rituals intended for women, and traditional and contemporary prayers for private usage.  In particular, the comprehensive discussion of women’s traditional forms of prayer—the Yiddish tehine and Ladino songs—provide models of personal prayer inspiring to both men and women in their discussion of everyday holiness, individual hopes, and strong emotion.  Still, it is strange to note that the chapter on feminist innovation is filled with sidebar comments, while the Orthodox chapter is almost devoid of them.

Rochelle Furstenberg’s discussion of modern Israeli poetry enlightens readers to a little-discussed aspect of Israeli culture—the religion of its secular society.  While frequently opposed to the institutions of state religion, Israeli poets have found in their work an outlet for personal awe, fears, hopes, and confessions.  Furstenberg’s chapter points to the fundamental human need for prayer.  This theme continues with the final essay in this fine volume.

Pray Tell concludes with Rabbi Daniel Gordis’ essay on the use of prayer in times of individual and communal desperation, discussing Jewish responses to evil and suffering.  Gordis’ close readings of traditional prayers illuminate the essential human emotions that motivated their writing and make them still applicable today.  It is a fitting close to Pray Tell, a book that provides an excellent framework by which to claim prayer as a personal spiritual tool.