Student and Teacher Responses to Prayer at a Modern Orthodox Jewish High School

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: devra@aya.yale.edu