Message in Prayer: The Scripturalization of Prayer in Jewish Tradition

Message in Prayer: The Scripturalization of Prayer in Jewish Tradition

WONG Fook Kong

I think no one doubts the importance of prayer in worship. What may not be obvious is that prayers convey messages to the believers no less than sermons and songs. In this essay, we will look at the practice of prepared prayers in Jewish tradition. My point is that prepared prayers, in particular prayers that cite Scripture, are not just messages from believers to God, but also messages from God to the believers. According to Jonathan Sacks, when sacrifice and prayer merged in the post-temple period, prayer took on the highly structured character of the sacrificial service, with fixed texts and times. Whereas before, sacrifice was made in silence, it was transmuted into the speech of prayer. In the majority of these prayers, scriptural passages are either alluded or cited. The Amidah (or “Eighteen Benedictions”) and the Shema, which are prayed on numerous occasions, are two good examples. These prayers evince the underlying theological assumption that God will act in the pattern he exhibited in the past. At the same time, the repetition of scriptures impresses the teachings of the passages in the minds of the worshipers. Thus, “praying” scriptures sends its contents in two directions–one to God and the other to the worshippers.