Book | The Poetry of Prayer

Often we find it difficult to concentrate on the prayers we recite, due partly to a lack of understanding of the biblical poetry in the tefillot. This book aims to unlock the mystery of the various psalms which comprise the tefilla.

The book begins with an introduction to prayer, Tehillim, and biblical poetry. Then, after an overview of the structure of the morning service, each chapter examines either a prayer adapted from a psalm or the entire psalm and explains the reason it was chosen as part of the liturgy. “Let the words of my mouth praise God and all mankind will bless the holy name of God for eternity” (Psalm 145:21).

Rav Baumol's popular internet classes on Tehillim, written for the Virtual Beit Midrash, inspired the writing of this volume.

“Rabbi Avi Baumol…teaches prayer by selecting from the standard prayer book (the siddur) those prayers built around verses or chapters of the Psalms. In this manner, he gives the reader the opportunity to become acquainted with Tehillim – its poetry, its grand spirituality, and its intimate religious and soulful pleading with the Almighty.… This new approach will be of genuine help to those who would like to experience the spirituality of pious Jews for centuries before us.” Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm, Chancellor, Yeshiva University

Rabbi Baumol’s labors are suffused with a pervasive sense of the sacral status of Tehillim, on the one hand, and its centrality to the fabric and structure of the siddur, on the other. As such it is doubly crowned and doubly enriching.” Rabbi Dr. Aharon Lichtenstein, Rosh Yeshiva, Yeshivat Har Etzion

“An invaluable resource for learning and appreciating Sefer Tehillim in a new light.… Rabbi Baumol has elucidated through his scholarship the beauty and relevance of the mizmorim.” Mrs. Shani Taragin, Educational Director for World Mizrachi