[Avodah] Hashkafah and the Siddur

[Yaakov Jaffe via Avodah]

Hi,

Regarding the first point that "This is taking a specific hashkafah's side
in order to argue that tefillah
shouldn't be taking a specific hashkafah's side." I confess that I am
guilty as charged.

But one approach to tefilah (let's call it the one that resonates with me)
is that it is purely a communication between the speaker and his or her
Creator, and that consequently, it is not the time and place to be focused
on proclaiming our ideologies.  Obviously others may argue, and there are
numerous siddur options for them.  But we shouldn't pretend that this is
the only approach to prayer, or that every Jew must use ideology in chosing
a siddur.


Regarding the second point, which I understand to be saying "each occasion
of Torah study involves someone chosing an approach they prefer to
understand the text, so they should chose a Chumash that furthers the
approach that they prefer" I also tend to agree as well, but here my post
focuses on the reductio ad absurdum problem of splitting hairs and
hyper-focus on details hashkafa.
I did not conduct a comprehensive study of the stone Chumash, but wonder
whether the troubling explanations are ubiquitous, occasional, or somewhere
in between.  The problem with a "Modern" chumash, is that there are many
"modern" explanations that could be equally troubling, depending on how
modern the chumash and conservative the reader.  Did Bilaam's donkey talk
or was it a dream (Ramban versus Rambam)?  If Artscroll said he spoke, and
for example a new chumash says that he did not - then which one most
accurately reflects my hashkafa?  And if you imagine 100 different texts
that can be each read multiple ways, how do we find the chumash that on all
100 provides the perfect match?

Hope this makes sense, happy to continue the conversation further,

Yaakov
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