[Avodah] How Fast Do You Daven

[Akiva Miller]

.
I had a suggestion:
> ... The person then listens to that recording, and judges for
> himself whether or not he actually said the words well enough.

R' Micha Berger responded:
> This is a different goal, and I think your methodology would get
> in the way of RBK's goal. ...
> RBK wrote about going slow enough to think about peirush hamilim.
> You are talking about going slow enough to actually say the words
> clearly.

I think it is safe to say that RMB and I agree that one's ultimate goal
should include (among many other things) BOTH peirush hamilim and saying
them clearly. The question on which we *might* disagree is the sequence of
steps towards reaching that goal.

My understanding is that if one says his prayers with a basic appreciation
for what he is doing, then he will be yotzay on some level, even if he
doesn't understand the individual words. On the other hand, if he
understands the words, but the essential parts come out as gibberish (or
worse, not at all) then there is no degree of kavanna that can make up for
the fact that simply *did* *not* *say* the tefilah.

That's why I think one's first goal should be to actually enunciate the
words. Once we agree on that l'halacha, then we can move on to the
l'maaseh, which I suppose could involve a comparative weighting of various
tefilos, and even of phrases within those tefilos. Certainly, the portions
that are m'akev one's chiyuv would rank higher, and portions that are
"merely" minhag would rank lower. One would also ask, "How accurate must
the pronunciation be? Which inaccuracies are m'akev?"

But those are mere details. My main point is that the top priority must be
to actually say the words. Too often, I see people who think they're saying
Birkas Hamazon, but their lips are barely moving, not even for sounds (like
b and m) which are difficult or impossible to say if the lips don't touch.

Akiva Miller
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