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by Manny Silver, Cantorial Soloist This summer, I paid a condolence call to a family sitting Shiva and one of the mourners asked me some thoughtful questions. “Who decided what prayers we say at every service? And why do we have to say just those prayers?” The questioner, a brilliant young physician, said that he'd become a Bar Mitzvah over 20 years ago... and admitted that while he could read Hebrew, he wasn't fluent enough to really understand what the prayers mean. So here's what I replied: “I believe that all prayers to God are valid. We can pray to God anytime and anywhere. You certainly don't have to be in a synagogue to pray. For instance, every time I go to the beach, I like to say a little prayer thanking God for the beauty of our magnificent universe. “But to really answer your question, our formalized Jewish liturgy was first designed by The Men of the Great Assembly – in Hebrew, Anshei Knesset HaGedolah – a group of 120 wise leaders who led the Jewish people between 410 BCE and 310 BCE. This process continued for about 500 years and became even more important after the destruction of the Second Temple, because, until that time, sacrifices were the main way of communicating with God. “Nowadays, the centerpiece of every Jewish worship service is the prayer we call the Tefilah in Reform temples; it's called the Amidah or Shmonei Esrai in Conservative and Orthodox congregations. The mystical depth of this prayer is so powerful that even when it is recited without feeling, understanding, or even intention, its words are said to have a great impact on the world. “So I think that any prayers to God are fine, but we gain strength as a community praying together using our traditional Jewish prayers.” I hoped my reply was satisfactory and I invited the young doctor to come join us at Temple Beth El sometime for Shabbat services. I told him that we still employ the ancient prayers from thousands of years ago but we communicate with God in other ways too. Each week, we're led by our rabbi in a guided meditation. We use our own prayer book, with modern prayers in English that are very relevant. And we begin each service with a niggun... a Hebrew word for a melody without words. That too is a way of baring our souls as we begin our weekly dialogue with our Creator. I recently came across an explanation of the power of a niggun that I'd like to share. It said, “The Hebrew word niggun is spelled with the letters nun, gimmel, nun. The mystics say the first nun stands for nefesh, which means spirit. The gimel stands for guf, which means body. The last nun stands for n'shamah, which means soul. “This teaches that melody affects all three aspects of man: our primal lower spirit, the spirit that makes us want to move and dance; our entire body, the body whose heart rhythm, whose pulse beats out a perfect harmony to our song, the body that davens and rocks like a metronome when it hears the lips sing in fervent worship; and the upper spirit, the n'shamah that connects us with God, and with every song, expands and lifts like a giant sail.” As we come together to worship and usher in the New Year of 5768, let's say special prayers for President Bush, Prime Minister Olmert of Israel, and other world leaders who must find the courage and the way to combat the evil threatening the free world. Let us find the moral courage to face the harsh reality of what is facing us. I believe we should also give thanks for the blessings of freedom and the brave soldiers defending our way of life. L'shana tova tikateivu! May you be written in God's special book for a good year!
Temple Beth El's "Friday Night Live" services with Cantor Manny and the Klezmer Kings, and our "Carlebach Minyan" Friday night services featuring the Temple Beth El band have become special events for the entire Jewish community. Cantor Manny received his cantorial training from Hazzan Moshe Schulhof, considered one of the greatest cantors in the world today and a gifted teacher of chazzanut, the art of cantorial prayer. |
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