[HANASHIR:5078] Re: prayer/intention

[Andy Curry <acurry...>]

Chaverim,

Amen to what has already been said about intention and direction.

During my career of performing rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and country
and western, my concern was that people would pay attention to me.  I
wanted people to love me!

I think that that desire to have people love us is a large factor in why
many of us became performers in the first place.  I look on that desire as
a yetzer hara.  As Bernard Malamud wrote, "The greatest mistakes are made
in the name of loneliness."

The thing about yetzer hara is that it can be sanctified; this is the
Jewish way.  When we drink wine on Shabbos, the drinking of alcohol, a
waste product which can lead to wasted lives, is raised and made holy.

So how do I sanctify this particular yetzer hara?  I give it to God.
Before I daven, I say a little prayer that God - not the people - will love
me (and the people), and that my PERFORMANCE will help to lift everyone's
prayers a little higher, to add a sweet savor to them.  As Shlomo Carlebach
z"l related in a story, a little yid named Moishele rebuked a chazan by
saying "You're davening down! The prayers are meant to go up!"

Andy

At 09:36 AM 1/26/00 EST, you wrote:
>Per contzius (at) home(dot)com:
>
><<traditionally one faces the same direction as the congregation. In 
> all this talk of performace v. prayer, perhaps one thing we should be 
> reconsidering is in which direction the prayer leaders should face. >>
>
>Wow, someone finally said what I've been thinking all along.  The whole
set up of many congregations is for performance.  To many people, it would
seem strange to have a cantor face the ark, but for those of us who grew up
with that (such as I did, in an Orthodox shul), it only seems natural.  
>
>I would like to add one other thought to this discussion, regarding
intention: when the congregational leadership, and the
cantor/songleader/choral director, etc. become overly focused on whether a
mistake will be made in a song (whether someone will play a wrong chord, or
whether the organ or guitar will be too loud, or whether the hired/paid
musicians will make a mistake, or whether there's a person singing off-key
in the choir) RATHER THAN being grateful that congregants are participating
in the worship service, and that the congregation has a dedicated and
knowledgeable cantor, songleader, music director, whatever, THAT is the
point at which prayer becomes a performance.
>
>-Karen Daniel
>Jewish songwriter/recording artist
>Nashville, TN
>
>
>
>
Andy Curry
6016 Holmes St
Kansas City MO 64110-3034

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