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By Aaron Eby | Comments (8) | Posted on January 9, 2007
Avinu Malkenu
One of the most moving traditional Jewish prayers of all is Avinu Malkenu, which is composed of a list of dozens of petitions that begin with "our Father, our King." This prayer is offered primarily during the time of repentance from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur.
(On a side note, it is fascinating to me that this prayer was not penned by an individual. It started with just a couple spontaneous lines uttered by Rabbi Akiva during a drought, and then developed 'wiki'-style as each generation encountered their own times of desperation.)
I appreciate how this prayer exemplifies the focus of a Hebraic mindset on the multifaceted nature of our relationship with God, who is both our Father and our King. Often, people are unable to hold on to one without letting go of the other. For many, this difficulty manifests itself during prayer.
When a person speaks with his or her earthly father, there is normally no need to script what you are going to say. One should be respectful, but not necessarily formal. There is intimacy and nearness, since parents know their children in a way that no one else can. There is room for playfulness, emotion and spontaneity. In a healthy parent-child relationship, a child has confidence and trust that her father desires what is best for her, caring deeply for her well-being. This description characterizes our personal relationship with our Abba in heaven.
And yet, our personal relationship with God is not our only relationship with Him. God is our Father, and it is appropriate to communicate with Him in that way. At the same time, He is our King, which we must also acknowledge. I find myself at a loss for how to do that, because I have never had a relationship with a king. Sure, I have had authority figures in my life, but none of them even approximated the ultimate power held by a king.
Kings: a lost concept
Kings are an extinct species. Kings who do exist are merely ceremonial. I suppose the closest it comes in these days is a dictator, but there is a big difference between a dictator (מושל moshel) and a king (מלך melech), particularly in Jewish thought. A moshel seizes power, subduing subjects by force. A melech is enthroned by loyal subjects, who willingly submit themselves to his absolute authority.
This no longer occurs. Ask yourself: who is the most powerful political officer in the world today? When he speaks, how do people respond? When he takes action, do people rush to support and fulfill it, or does he meet with criticism?
In a true monarchy, there are no checks and balances. One man is the executive, legislative and judicial branch of the government. People do not speak frankly or in familiar terms with the king. In fact, they don't speak at all unless they go through proper channels, formalities and protocol.
Proper protocol
One story that has helped me to understand the proper way to approach and address a king is the book of Esther. Queen Esther was the king's own bride...and yet she fears for her own life when in his presence! Not only does she use formal language, but even her personal grooming and body movements follow strict standards.
Now, if our relationship with our Creator is to be understood in terms of loyal submission to a king as well as endearment to a loving father, then both concepts must be present in our prayer life. It is not either/or. A prayer life that encompasses both is essential in order to achieve fullness and growth.
The "father" part is easy. It comes natural to us. For most of us, the "king" part is what we need to learn and work on. How do we begin? God willing, I will address this at a later time. I hope these thoughts and ideas have been encouraging for you.
Aaron Eby
Tevet 19, 5767
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Visitor Comments
Good article, I enjoyed it.
Couple of questions...
Did the Israelites approach their king with the same fear that the peoples of other kingdoms approached their kings with? Or was it a more benevolent relationship?
Posted by: Wanda Shepherd | January 9, 2007 9:50 PM
Wanda, thanks for your question.
Please don't confuse a king who requires proper manners with one who is not benevolent. The ceremony and protocol performed in the presence of a king was a matter of national dignity. This would have been the case in Israel as well as the surrounding nations.
Posted by: Aaron | January 9, 2007 11:52 PM
Aaron:
I still give thanks that you and I sat together at the Wooden Podium in MN. I learned so much from you at that time, and your focus on prayer is still an example for me to follow.
One question about this Avinu Malkenu prayer. Why is such a strong and poweful prayer limited to only one time a year? Your post led me to want to read it and as I looked at it and studied it I thought this would be a good prayer to do on a regualr basis. Is there a thought process behind limiting it to only one time a year?
Shalom,
Bill
Posted by: Bill Beyer | January 10, 2007 2:22 PM
Aaron, good post. When I first read your title, "Our Relationships with God" I was concerned that there was a typo thinking it should be "relationship" rather than "relationships." However, once I read through your post I understood your point--and I thought it is a very good one. Thanks for reminding me that I need to be mindful of the various relationships that I have and need to carefully maintain with G-d. Certainly I relate with the Creator on various levels and it is healthy to respect the various boundaries established to relate on every level with G-d. Can you please post a small section of the Avinu Malkenu for those reading this post can see its structure...thanks, Boaz
Posted by: Boaz Michael | January 10, 2007 2:51 PM
Bill, that's a great question.
Although most people associate the prayer with the ten days from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur, Avinu Malkenu is also prayed at the conclusion of the morning prayers on the other fast days of the year, with some slight modifications.
The most well known line of the prayer is also included in a supplicatory section of the daily morning prayers called Tachanun. This is the line that says, "Our Father, our King, be gracious to us and answer us, for we have no deeds. Act with righteousness and devotion, and save us."
The whole prayer is not offered every day because it is understood to reflect an extraordinary amount of desperation. There is an important concept in Jewish prayer of saving the right thing for the right moment lest it become cheapened by being absorbed into the mundane. This is also the reason the Hallel (Psalms 113-118) are not recited as a unit except on certain holidays.
Posted by: Aaron | January 10, 2007 3:44 PM
Thanks, Boaz. Here are a few lines from the beginning of the prayer. The desperation of the prayer can be heard in its very repetitive style, particularly in the rhyme and assonance of the Hebrew.
Posted by: Aaron | January 10, 2007 3:57 PM
Shalom Aaron,
After I read this I spent much of my lunchhour praying and I prayed through my entire prayer notebook and then some. I could use a weekly dose of this kind of inspiration toward prayer and more info on the Jewish ways of prayer and actual life application. I only looked at it once, but the Siddur was kind of intimidating to me. Any chance of starting a weekly "e-drash" sort of thing on prayer to maybe introduce these prayers/concepts/siddur or to give testimony both personal and or biblcal? Or is there anyway for me to find articles/blogs posted specifically by you or others regarding prayer? I enjoyed the post and also enjoyed the part in the comments where you answered questions and posted part of that prayer - thanks for the inspiration. Since coming to this understanding of the truth of God's Torah I have realized how much of a spiritual battle we really are in - but greater is He who is in me than He who is in the world!
Also, we briefly went to a "Messianic" congregation that taught some blessings via singing them. I found that to be a great way to remember the blessings - is there somewhere I can get a CD or something where I could learn more of those or teach them to our TC? Our TC has prayed the same blessing (blessing for the reading of the Torah and after the Torah has been read) that came with our TC1 every week for over a year now and I think it would be great to learn some new ones.
Blessings on you and your work in the Kingdom,
Sally
Posted by: Sally | January 17, 2007 7:28 PM
Shalom Sally, thanks for your questions. I am very glad to hear that this post was inspiring for you!
Yes, this section of the FFOZ blogs will be the place to find what you're looking for. Just keep watching The Siddur Project, which I will try to keep updated about once a week.
I understand exactly why the Siddur was intimidating to you. I felt the same way when I first opened it up! I am working with some of my FFOZ colleagues on developing a Siddur with an easier learning curve. Along with this we will have audio tracks available to help people learn the melodies of the prayers.
In the meantime, many of the prayers can be found online. For example, many synagogues have put MP3 files on their web sites to help congregants learn the service. With some creative "googling" you will find many of them available for download.
Posted by: Aaron | January 17, 2007 8:21 PM