Rabbi Dr. Jay Goldmintz Leads 8th Grade Tefilla Group

Over the past few weeks, we have had the unique privilege of having Rabbi Dr. Jay Goldmintz, a distinguished educator, speaker and author of a newly published Siddur Ani Tefilla, facilitate an experiential Tefilla group for our 8th grade students. Initially, Rabbi Goldmintz davened together with a different group of 10 boys and 10 girls from the 8th grade each week and led them in discussions about what parts of Tefilla seem incomprehensible or irrelevant, they unpacked specific Tefillot like Baruch She'amar, and took time to focus on experiential parts of Tefilla like valuing one's eyesight prior to saying the Bracha of Pokeach Ivrim (He who opens the eyes of the blind). More recently, Rabbi Goldmintz has expanded the discussion further with a small group of students to delve further into Tefillot, what they originally meant, where they were said, what they mean today, and how to make more meaning out of them for our own lives.