DMC: Deep Meaningful Conversation

THE AMIDAH

Rabbi Ira Kosowsky

Mosaica / 223 pages

In this refreshing reader authored by Rabbi Ira Kosowsky, director of the Machon Maayan Women's Seminary in "Givat Washington", we are treated to a new and modern look at the Shemoneh Esrei we recite three times a day.

Each of the nineteen blessings of the Shemoneh Esrei are examined in individual chapters complete with thoughts, readings, and advice on how to make our prayer experience even better. Much of the material was gathered by "Rav K" (as he's called) from his students over the years. This unique angle, of a work on prayer being authored by a Torah scholar, combined with the input and ideas of students from diverse backgrounds (to say the least), makes for a very unique perspective on the Shemoneh Esrei.

What I found most distinctive in this work and what impressed me the most, compared to other works of this nature, is the outstanding and strategic use of secular sources, ideas, and authors to add menaing and relevance to our prayers. Such content is vital in assisting the modern, worldly Jew, exposed to everything under the sun, to better connect with his Creator at prayer.

DMC: Deep Meaningful Conversation is not only the newest sefer on the Shemoneh Esrei but likely the best for the modern Jew, certainly since Rav Zev Leff's 2008 sefer on the same topic.

Fun, clear, and inspirational. An absolute must-have for those studying Jewish prayer.

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