This is “Spirituality”!: Prayer
Posted: October 21, 2011 | Author: David Yehuda Stern | | Tags: community, Judaism, maariv, meditation, mincha, prayer, shacharit, synagogue |Leave a comment »
by David Yehuda Stern
In my last article I said that “at its core, spirituality is about connection,” and that, “in its many manifestations a spiritual person is one who is connected to their surroundings and also, importantly, to themselves.” In this article I wish to explore the concept of prayer as a means to this end. When I wrote this piece I was thinking of “prayer” from quite a traditional Jewish perspective but I believe my assessment can also be applied to non-conventional forms of “praying” such as group-meditations and other non-traditional forms of prayer.
Why should a person pray? What is the purpose of praying? Is praying really worth it? These are just some of the questions that fill my mind whenever I am actually faced with a situation that requires me to pray. (For me these situations usually arise on the rare occasions that I am in a synagogue). Day to day life is often crammed full of things we need to/or would like to do. We are aware of the value and limits of time and within this consciousness I have wondered if a reserved, daily time-slot for praying is really a constructive use of ones time. I write this reflection to help clarify my personal thoughts on the subject, to present my conclusions, and finally, to invite others who struggle to see the value or maintain the practice of daily prayer, into a conversation on the matter.
Prayer within the Jewish tradition, at least as I have experienced it, is both a deeply personal process and yet, at the same time, an external communal affair. I wish to explain how these two “experiences,” can be reconciled, presenting not a dichotomy, but in fact a single, positive (perhaps even spiritual) activity. For me prayer is a form of intense self-meditation yet also a significant method for societal engagement and change. Both of these speak directly to the core of what I would term “spirituality”.
Traditional Judaism understands that human-beings are to pray 3 times a day; roughly 45min in the morning, 15min around lunchtime, and a final 10min just after dinner. The rest of the day is filled with working, studying, socializing (and perhaps even a little procrastination). That is a lot of prayer for a single day! Why is traditional Judaism so dominated by praying? On the one hand prayer can be seen as “me” time. It is the moment in the day when one can pause and take heed of so many things; the way we act towards others, what we are thankful for, what we are troubled by, why we are happy, why we are sad. In essence, prayer can be a moment to collect ones thoughts and regain their composure. It is that time in the day when a person can check-in with themselves to see if they are on the right course and heading in the direction they really want to be going. An hour of prayer a day can help a person keep the remaining 14+ hours of their waking day on track, and ultimately, elevate their self-conscious awareness of their preciousness conscious time.
It is important that I also explain the communal benefits that prayer can give to a person (and a community). Human beings are social creatures by nature. Actually, to emphasis my point fully, I would say that people need to interact with other people in order to be happy! Our search for meaningful communications with others proliferates are daily lives and is serviced by numerous instituions and activities. Prayer is a process of human engagement and a superb method in curing societal loneliness. Prayer brings people together and unifies them under a common calling. It provides the perfect opportunity for people of different backgrounds to reflect on themselves, interact with one another, and finally, to look outwards to the plight of those outside the prayer space. Everyone is present and everyone is accounted for. In communal prayer I am aware of myself but also of those around me. Here we are encouraged to think of ourselves, each other, and those outside of our daily sphere.
Making time to pray, especially as part of a group, can be difficult. I confess that I do not prayer 3 times a day, hell I don’t even prayer 3 times a week! What I am saying is that prayer is a powerful tool for community building and certainly something I encourage each individual to explore. Why? For many reasons; pray to help build a more conscious conversation with yourself, to help raise your awareness to the needs and wellbeing of those who also inhabit this planet, and to help form meaningful relations with the other people who share your prayer space. The time can definitely be well spent, and though certainly challenging, prayer can yield powerful results!