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The growing number of advertisements in the Anglo- Jewish press offering to teach people how to pray, or at least participate in a service, is testimony to the demise of the art of praying. Most of the time, however, what is offered is the temptation of a quick fix — five easy lessons on how to pray, or a new kind of lowest-common-denominator prayer service that will tax neither the brain or the stay- ing capacity of the would-be worshipper. Rabbis, hazzanim and con- cerned laymen have long been aware of the desperation of those who wish to pray but cannot. Many cures have been suggested and tried. Most of them have failed, not for an absence of sincerity or determination but for lack of insight into the real source of the trouble. The root problem of this lost art of prayer is to be found in the illiteracy and alienation of the would-be worshipper. Attempts to find an easy solu- tion can only fail since they focus on changing the wor- shipper's tools instead of changing the worshipper himself. In turn, each failure brings more frustration and disap- pointment, driving the Jew further away from the only path that will bring him suc- cess: genuine study, real preparation. Learning to pray can take a lifetime. For this reason the problem will not be solved by tampering wth the prayer book, or simplifying the ser- vice, or changing the basic purpose of prayer. All such at- tempts have been tried and found wanting. It is time we faced the pro- blem honestly. No one in his Samuel Rosenbaum is ex- ecutive vice president of the Cantors Assembly, the world's largest body of hazzanim. right mind would hope to en- joy golf or bridge or skiing — or to enter a profession or business — without the pro- per preparation, motivation, education and equipment. And even these are not enough. There must also be the inspiration gleaned from observing a skilled practi- tioner pursue that art or that profession. For example, how does a concert hall or a ball park or a theater treat its patrons? This is not to suggest that prayer falls into the category of entertainment, but I believe much can be learned from them. Each of these institutions exists because of the loyalty of its devotees. It is in the best interest of a concert hall, ball park and theater to make its product as accessible and understandable as possible. Yet no one would suggest that a concert pianist slow down the tempo of a composition so that novices can follow the score, or that a listener hear- ing a Beethoven symphony for the first time can fully grasp all of the nuances and meaning of the work. Institutions offer the most authentic performance they can, no matter what difficul- ty thth may present to the uninitiated. In the normal course of events, a'person who is really interested in music, theater or football will read a book, take lessons or attend enough concerts or ball games so that he or she begins to understand and ap- preciate what's going on. After that, the concert-goer or football fan can participate at a level that brings growing satisfaction and pleasure. A Jew cannot come to the service spiritually naked, in- tellectually bankrupt, and liturgically unskilled and ex- pect to get something out of it. It takes wanting, prepara- tion and knowledge. We cannot hope to revitalize prayer by catering to the lowest level, or by changing the rules or editing the liturgy to accommodate the inept. We serve the Jewish community best by conduc- ting the most authentic, most sincere and most genuine ser- vice we can. The test for the effec- tiveness of a service is the reaction of the experienced worshipper — the knowledgeable one. How does it affect him? Let the novice begin to sit among Jews a prayer. Let him study and practice.