INVITING GOD IN

Salkin, a former congregational rabbi, provides an introduction to the Reform movement’s prayerbook.

The author, a widely recognized thinker in the Reform movement, has previously written 11 books, including the bestselling Putting God on the Guest List: How to Reclaim the Spiritual Meaning of Your Child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah (1992). His latest work, a guide to Jewish prayer, focuses on the Reform Jewish liturgy for Shabbat (the Jewish Sabbath). In this volume, Salkin takes the reader through the Friday night and Saturday morning service, according to the practices of the current prayerbook of the Reform movement, Mishkan T’filah (the tabernacle of prayer). He offers an in-depth explanation of each prayer and blessing, including their histories and various meanings. Each section of the book ends with questions for readers to consider that help bring out the relevance of prayers or practices that might seem anachronistic or obscure: “What do you think of the idea of minyan—of needing a quorum for prayer? Is it necessary?” Salkin’s book is illustrative of the advances—and potential limitations—of worship practices in the Reform movement, which in recent decades has moved back toward prayers and customs that the movement in its inception had rejected, including the use of the Hebrew language and prayer garments. The book’s purpose appears to be to help liberal Jews find meaning in prayer and in the Shabbat service in particular, and it largely succeeds. That said, the author takes a maximalist and, in some ways, traditionalist approach to the service, which doesn’t always account for the variations in many Reform services (which the Mishkan T’filah itself does). On the other hand, this book is specifically intended to serve as a companion to the Reform prayerbook and doesn’t include the Musaf (additional) service that’s an integral part of traditional Jewish Sabbath worship. Even with these limitations, Salkin offers a work that will speak to many who seek deeper meaning in Jewish prayer.

A largely successful prayer guide, geared mainly toward Reform Jewish audiences.