Prayer Lesson 66 – “V’ahavta”—“You shall love”
Last week, I wrote about how peculiar the shma is. [...]
Prayer Lesson 65 – Hearing the Sh’ma
What kind of prayer is the Sh’ma? Normally, when we [...]
Prayer Lesson 64 – Ahavah Rabbah: Loving Through Learning
The second blessing immediately preceding the Sh’ma tells the story [...]
Prayer Lesson 63 – The Many Faces of G-d
The first blessing before the Shma concludes with a cascade [...]
Prayer Lesson 62 Hakol Yoducha All Creatures Praise You
The first blessing before the shma begins with the words, [...]
Prayer Lesson 61 – The Barchu and Sacred Time
We are all familiar with the concept of sacred space. [...]
Prayer Lesson 60 Ps. 150 – Summing up
Ps. 150 is the last of the psalms, and it [...]
Prayer Lesson 59: Ashrei The Case of the Missing Nun
Ashrei is an alphabetic acrostic, a fancy way of saying [...]
Prayer Lesson 58 – Hallel Hagadol
A truly remarkable prayer in pesukei d’zimra is Ps. 136, [...]
Prayer Lesson 57 – Why Do We Recite Baruch Sheamar?
After the morning blessings (Birkot Hashachar), we begin a series [...]