Abstract
This article presents the attitudes of students and teachers to prayer at an American Modern Orthodox Jewish high school. Relevant data, based on observation and interviews, emerged from a larger study of the school's Jewish and secular worlds. A significant gap in responses became apparent. Students viewed prayer as a challenge to their autonomy, while teachers viewed prayer as an indisputable religious obligation. Developmental and demographic explanations for this gap are considered, but particular emphasis is placed on a generational shift in attitude toward religious authority and self-determination and on the ramifications of this shift for religious educators.
Devra Lehmann is director of Ra'anana English Classes, an after-school English program in Ra'anana, Israel. E-mail: [email protected]