Many of you saw the recent article in the Jewish Link about our new
tefillah curriculum (if you did not see it yet, please
click here). We are very excited about this new initiative, which grew out of a desire to help our students develop a lifelong intimate and meaningful relationship with their Creator. Through
tefillah, we seek to help our students develop a genuine closeness to
Hashem, and to know that the lines of communication with Him are always open. As it says in in
Ashrei, "
Karov Hashem le'kol korav" ("
Hashem is close to all who call upon him.")
Our curriculum development team is being led by Judaic Studies faculty member, Rav Pinchas Yarhi, in collaboration with our entire Judaic Studies team and has three goals:
1) For students to experience comfort and joy through prayer
2) For students to understand the structure and meaning of the tefillah
3) For students to experience tefillah as an emotional tool with which they can elevate their personal relationships with Hashem (and, thereby, deepen and strengthen all of their interpersonal relationships as well)
I am thrilled to announce that the program was officially launched this morning with a special communal gathering for all students in grades 1-8. I addressed all of the students and shared my excitement about this new program and how we all (faculty, students, and families alike) hope to grow as a result of it. The students enjoyed a brief video created by the
Bnot Sherut focused on
hoda'a - gratitude, which is a key theme that runs throughout the curriculum. (To view the video,
click here.) Together, we sang songs from
tefillah and then older students paired off with younger ones for
chevruta-style learning and to create collaborative art projects related to the theme of
Toda, Teffilah and
Hoda'a that will be displayed in the library.
Each week, in addition to the tefillah curriculum that will be followed at each grade level, the entire elementary and junior high school will focus together on one specific part of the tefillah. We also plan to bring in special guest speakers and programs throughout the year to enhance the curriculum and give our students different perspectives on the role of tefillah throughout their lives.
I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Murray and Sydell Rosenberg Foundation for partnering with BPY to bring this program to life. May it serve as powerful catalyst for the spiritual growth of the entire BPY community.
Tizku L'Mitzvot,
Rav Tomer Ronen
Rosh HaYeshiva
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