kosher bookworm: alan jay gerber

Understanding prayer and ritual

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Several high-quality books have recently been published dealing with tefillah, a Jew’s conversation with G-d.

The first book, “From Within the Tent: The Shabbat Prayers” (Yeshiva University Press), features a series of 29 learned essays dealing with the most iconic Shabbat themed prayers. It explores deeply the text of the Shabbat prayer book from a variety of approaches that include effective textual analysis, homiletic and academic exposition, as well as detailed and practical Jewish law analysis.

In an essay that deals with Tehillim, Chapter 19, which is recited by many during the Shabbat morning service, Rabbi Hayyim Angel presents the following teaching titled, “Combining Torah and Madda.”

“Dr. Norman Lamm discusses an apparent conflict within Rambam’s writings,” writes Rabbi Angel. “In his Mishneh Torah, Rambam writes that one attains love of G-d through contemplating nature. He writes similarly in his Moreh Nevuchim. In his Sefer Ha-Mitzvot, however, Rambam includes both mitzvah observance and contemplation of nature as means to attaining love of G-d.’’

Rabbi Angel asks why the Rambam is inconsistent and cites further the following teaching by Rabbi Lamm.

“Rabbi Lamm adopts an approach common in Rambam scholarship, and distinguishes between the masses and the intellectual elite. The masses love G-d though observance of the mitzvoth, whereas the philosophical elite love G-d through nature.” I leave it to you, my dear reader, to follow through on this teaching and of how it relates further to the basic theme of Psalm19.

Rabbi Angel concludes:

“Tehillim 19 teaches that the Torah and nature are different manifestations of G-d’s voice. They are different, and the psalm therefore separates them. But they are two means of hearing G-d’s voice that work together in harmony. The job of harmony is to perceive G-d’s glory in nature and the Torah, and speak of G-d’s praises. In this manner, all creation harmoniously unites in the service of G-d.”

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