9 December 2024 · A sentence from the teachings of Rav Kook

Descent for the Sake of Ascent

„When prayer is abandoned because one awaits a complete prayer, a prayer that has a clear illumination within it – even though the abandonment itself is certainly a matter of great loss, nevertheless, when the clear prayer arrives, it restores all the earlier abandonment.”From Shemonah Kevatzim VII, 216

In the religious world there is sometimes a weariness with prayer. Repeating a familiar text again and again, and a feeling devoid of intention when prayer becomes "a commandment of men learned by rote." The Rav turns to those whose weariness has caused them to despair, and explains that when we understand deeply the essence and depth of prayer, we will return and illumine. This is in fact a call not to despair, even when one feels that the gates of prayer are being locked.

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Prayer
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From the community archive of Mishpetei HaRav Kook — studying Rav Kook's teachings since 2011.