Introduction to Pesukei d’Zimra (9) – Bringing it all together
“The siddur is the most important work of Jewish spirituality” – this was how I began these essays. A number of people reached out to me to clarify what I meant and to try to support this claim. While I do not think that I can prove such an idea, let me return to that point from a different perspective.
Let’s be honest about pesukei d’zimra for a moment. For most people, even those who are committed, regular daveners this is the section that most likely to get skipped or cut for one reason or another. It feels repetitive and it is hard to discern a clear through line that brings it all together. While it does contain some of the most majestic selections of Tehilim it is difficult (for me) to muster the energy and focus for each and every section.
However, when we step back from the details and look at pesukei d’zimra from a bit of a distance, some very powerful and beautiful ideas emerge. What this series strove to do was zoom out and evaluate the spiritual themes that are applied to pesukei d’zimra from the outside – both from the Gemara and rishonim. A careful analysis of those competing ideas and models leads to some important guidance for how to sit with pesukei d’zimra as well as what it means to be a prayerful human being. Let us begin with a brief review and then see if we can make meaning from all these data points. …