The Joy of Tefillah, Ari Rosen

The Torah of Rochelle Zell

The Joy of Tefillah Ari Rosen, RZJHS 2020

Today would have been our last all school Friday Tefillah. We would have all been sitting in the Beit Knesset, probably a little more rowdy than usual. Our excitement would have filled the room.

Tefillah Friday morning has been one of the most vital parts of building my Jewish identity. Seeing the upperclassmen who I looked up to leading services, built an image for me of what great Jewish leadership looks like.

Freshman year, Felix Rosen putting me on his shoulders during Hallel. Sammy Hoffman and Yoni Maltzman ensured that Friday Tefillah never went on without a leader. ie. You feel the intensity of the movie, but the emotion may find it one day and not another. life. Thousands of times I sat through Shacharit without became easier.

My journey this year with my davening had reached a summit. I felt I had reached a milestone. I felt that I was truly able to lead services.

And then the journey just ended. It was over. Coronavirus shutdown everything, a common theme with almost everything in my life. Everything just ended.

I felt like I was playing centerfield chasing after a fly ball, running back, finally reaching a speed where I feel like I am just floating through the air,arely even feeling the ground, but then without a warning track, BANG, the wall. Only this time you can’t even recover and resume

As a young freshman, I saw these seniors who I looked up to take Being able to daven gives you And since the quarantine, I have found davening extremely diffisuch pride in Tefillah. It made me a no-questions-asked VIP flash cult. The pride and passion I once take pride in Tefillah. pass to a community no matter felt are completely gone. Still, I try what. to daven once a day because what This pride I felt was not authentic I realized is, davening is not about pride though. It was merely their pride and passion. It is about pride rubbing off on me. It is like watching a scary movsomething bigger than me. is not your own. You are experiencing someone else go Davening is about being a part of a community. At a through a terrifying situation and their emotion is exminimum, ten people coming together. During the tended to yourself. You are not truly scared, just as I was Mincha zooms, I was transported back into a communot feeling true pride in Tefillah. nity. And during this time when I feel so far away from Finding that pride in davening takes years. And you back in the Beit Knesset. Between Schechter, Ramah, and RZJHS, I have basicalhad, the structure of daily Tefillah connects me back to ly been davening every morning for the majority of my the community. playing the game. everyone, during those fifteen minutes, it’s like we are While I may be lacking the same intention that I once finding any meaning. But that is normal. So, I urge everyone, but specifically the senior class, to continue to practice your davening throughout the rest The beginning of this year, I began to find this pride of your life. Who knows when you will need that access in Tefillah. I began saying the Amidah every morning. to a community? Maybe you are studying abroad and At first, I struggled, but then over time it became easihave not met anyone. Maybe, you just started graduate er. I began to lead services routinely. Again, I struggled. school. Maybe, you are just feeling lonely. But being able I was unfamiliar with the words and would stumble to daven gives you a no-questions-asked VIP flash pass through saying them out loud. to a community no matter what.