“But if roteness is a danger, it is also the way liturgy works. When you don't have to think all the time about what words you are going to say next, you are free to fully enter into the act of praying; you are free to participate in the life of God.” PrayerSpiritual DisciplinesLiturgyJewish Tradition Book:Mudhouse Sabbath Source: Mudhouse Sabbath
“Sure, sometimes it is great when, in prayer, we can express to God just what we feel; but better still when, in the act of praying, our feelings change. Liturgy is not, in the end, open to our emotional whims. it re-points the person praying, taking him somewhere else.” PrayerSpiritual DisciplinesLiturgyJewish Tradition Book:Mudhouse Sabbath Source: Mudhouse Sabbath
“Fasting is meant to take you, temporarily, out of the realm of the physical and focus your attention heavenward; as one Jewish guide to fasting puts it, 'at the heart of this practice is a desire to shift our attention away from our immediate needs and to focus on more spiritual concerns.” FastingSpiritual DisciplinesJewish Tradition Book:Mudhouse Sabbath Source: Mudhouse Sabbath
“In the words of Jewish liturgical scholar Lawrence Hoffman, 'Jews do offer freely composed prayers... But overall, it is the fixed order and content of Jewish prayer that gives it its distinctiveness and that demands the personal commitment to prayer as a discipline.” PrayerSpiritual DisciplinesJewish Tradition Book:Mudhouse Sabbath Source: Mudhouse Sabbath
