The tension between keva – the fixed words of liturgy – and kavana – the inner intention we bring to those words – is as old as Jewish prayer itself.

One of the many beautiful aspects of the Jewish prayer tradition is the extraordinary richness of the texts in our siddur. However, this very richness can also be a stumbling block for meaningful prayer. With so many words flying by in Hebrew, it can be challenging to connect with the deep ideas embedded within them – ideas that might just hold the secret to what our soul needs at this very moment.

In each session, we will explore a few passages from our prayer book, unearthing the ideas contained in them and discussing what they might mean to us on a personal level. The next time you encounter these passages in prayer, you might just find yourself applying some of the insights we discussed, enriching the kava of your prayer experience with a deeper sense of kavana.

Each of the five sessions will focus on a different part of the Shabbat morning liturgy, providing an overview of the service for those who can attend the full series. However, each class is also self-contained, so it is perfectly fine if you can only attend one or two.