Community Blog Building a New Generation of Prayer Leadership by Re-rooting in Tradition
Hebrew College ordainees are known for leading communities in tefillah across the U.S. and around the Jewish world, often pushing the boundaries of Jewish prayer music. However, as Rabbi Jessica Kate Meyer `14, Hebrew College Rosh Tefillah & Artist-in-Residence notes, guiding a congregation in prayer requires training, practice, and intentional preparation. “Once upon a time, it was assumed that if you know how to pray, you know how to lead,” she explains. “Here at Hebrew College our students come from a wider range of prayer backgrounds. And prayer leadership is its own learned skill, not just knowing the correct prayers in the correct order. No matter what, we want to deepen students’ own prayer practice and help them spread their wings as prayer leaders.”
Hebrew College’s new Certificate in Tefillah Leadership: Shabbat was created to address these needs, offering participants training in the art of tefillah leadership. Housed within the Rabbinical School of Hebrew College, known for its culture of soulful davening and its reputation for attracting musically gifted students, the program is designed to cultivate dynamic, authentic prayer leadership, and transmit Judaism’s rich musical and liturgical traditions to a new generation. Courses will be taught by Hebrew College’s renowned faculty in partnership with masters of Jewish musical traditions from Boston and beyond.
Tefillah leadership, real and vulnerable, is a multi-layered, nuanced art form, one that calls for training in liturgy and song as well as in listening — to the community, to the Divine, to our ancestral musical lineage. With this philosophy as a starting point, the new certificate will approach prayer leadership as a creative practice, the sort of craft which leaders can develop and deepen by building their own understandings and methods. “How do we shape the next generation of tefillah leaders?” asks Rabbi Meyer. “We want to be on the forefront, building a new musical language by re-rooting ourselves in tradition, asserting continuity with our ancestors.”
The certificate is structured to guide learners through four modules of exploration and development. The first module, “The Kedusha: Fumbling Towards Holiness,” takes a deep dive into the Kedushas of Shabbat, exploring them from mystical, musical, liturgical, and practical perspectives. Subsequent modules emphasize more advanced skills, including “Nusah Improvisation”, where experienced daveners learn to infuse traditional prayers with new life through modal improvisation. The “Shabbat Piyyutim” module explores the poetic and musical traditions of Medieval piyyutim from Middle Eastern Jewish communities, while the “Masterclass in Tefillah” offers students the opportunity to lead prayer services and receive real-time feedback. These courses combine to create a rich, immersive learning experience, aimed at shaping the next generation of skilled and spiritually attuned Jewish prayer leaders.
The certificate also includes a series of workshops and intensives, free to attend and open to all. A “Zemiros/t Intensive” will teach Shabbat table songs to enrich personal and communal celebrations, while “Voice Workshop for Prayer Leaders” tackles more practical elements of tefillah leadership such as sustaining vocal health for rabbis and prayer leaders. A “Prayer Percussion” workshop provides hands-on rhythm training for non-percussionists, helping leaders use tempo and beat to guide and ground communal prayer.
The certificate, along with individual modules, are open to current rabbinical students, Boston-area alumni, lay leaders, professional clergy, and musicians of Jewish traditions.
To learn more or apply, visit our Certificate in Tefillah Leadership: Shabbat web page or contact Rabbi Jessica Kate Meyer at jmeyer@hebrewcollege.edu.
Meet students and faculty at one of our fall open houses, Ta Sh’ma (Come & Hear) November 18 (in-person) or online (Dec. 8). Learn more and register.