I had once heard that, in Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz's Mekor Haim Yeshiva in Israel, the faculty members take opportunities throughout the year to talk and reflect about their own spiritual state and growth and not just that of their students. And so, towards the end of last year, we set up about 25 chairs in a circle in the middle of our Beit Knesset, one for each member of our faculty, to do just that. One by one, we each shared a particular memory or moment of prayer that had resonated with us throughout the years. For some, they recalled praying for their children, while others desperately cried out on behalf of an elderly grandparent. Some shared times of feeling particular vulnerability, and others fondly remembered the warmth in holding their parents' hand on the way to Shul. Out of each narrative emerged a simple, yet powerful, thought about each of our personal pathways to prayer, that we thought would be meaningful for our students and selves alike. Please take a look at the thoughts that are now placed dramatically in the front of our Beit Knesset and feel free to share...
