Many years ago, my
wife and I regularly attended a local synagogue for Sabbath services. Although
we were Christians, I enjoyed the Jewish liturgy and rhythm of the rituals
because they reminded me of my Jewish upbringing.
During each Sabbath
service, Jews sing the Sh’ma – an ancient declaration of Jewish faith taken
directly from Deuteronomy chapter six: Sh’ma Yisrael, Adonai Elohenu, Adonai
echod – Hear, oh Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. The Sh’ma is so
important in Jewish religious history that persecuted Jews have died with those
words on their lips in a final testament to their faith.
One Sabbath as we sang
the text I noticed a middle-aged man a few pews to my left singing with the
rest of us, but his attention was focused on his fingernails. I watched in
dumbfounded disbelief as he cleaned his nails with a toothpick – yet all the
while singing Israel’s most profound declaration of faith.
Like the Sh’ma, the Lord’s
Prayer is a profound declaration of our relationship with God. The full meaning
of that prayer has still not yet been plumbed, although volumes have been written
about it over the millennia.
Christian, beware. Like
the Sh’ma, the Lord’s prayer can lose its vibrancy in the dullness of rote
recitation.
Don’t let that happen
to you. The next time you recite the prayer – even if you have to stop reciting
after the first sentence – let the congregation continue without you. But you, take
time to think about what you are saying. And do the same each week. It will
change the impact of the prayer for you.
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