Prayer lesson 220: “May there be no hope for slanderers”—the 12th blessing of the weekly Amidah
We might title this essay “On the virtue of telling [...]
Prayer Lesson 219: Love Past, Present, and Future
The blessing right before the Sh’ma centers on G-d’s [...]
Prayer Lesson 218: Three Ways to Praise G-d
The Song of the Sea, Az yashir, begins with the [...]
Prayer Lesson 217: The Case Of The Missing Prayer
Imagine you were rewriting the prayer book. What would you [...]
Prayer Lesson 216: “And Let Us Say, Amen”
Who’s “us”? At the end of every Amidah, there is [...]
Prayer Lesson 215: Prayer vs. Politics
During the inaugural prayer service, newly installed President Trump was [...]
Prayer Lesson 214: The Torah as a Tree of Life
As we return the Torah to the ark, we [...]
Prayer Lesson 213: The Pure and The Impure
During Chanukah, we add the prayer “al hanisim” to [...]
Prayer Lesson 212: “Cause a new light to shine on Zion”
The first blessing before the morning Sh’ma references the creation of the [...]
Prayer Lesson 211: Weekday Amidah Blessing 5 and 6—Repentance and Forgiveness
As soon as we finish praying that G-d grant us [...]