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Do you pray in Hebrew or English or other language?
Hebrew and English
I’m sure some people use txt spk wen thy dvn. I use Hebrew from the siddur and I try to occasionally daven in English like when I feel I can use some help with something I’ll ask Hashem for assistance.
I pray in the language of love
Other languages – mostly Loshon Hakodesh, some Aramaic.
Ivrit
For formalized, ritual prayer, I use Hebrew (except where the text of the prayer goes into Aramaic, of course).
For ad-hoc prayer, I use English.
The Wolf
Besides for the regular Hebrew davening found in a siddur, I usually add my own words from my heart.
When I daven formally, Hebrew and Aramaic (where applicable), of course. Otherwise, when I talk to Hashem on my own, it’s in English.
DY: That’s a Machlokes between the Abudraham and the Noda Bihuda.
Hebrew regular davening, English in my own words.
Yiddish “Gutt fun Avrohom”. It means so much more to me now that I’m married and appreciate the importance of everything mentioned in this tefila.
Sam, I’m not familiar. Can you please explain?
If you do not know Hebrew well enough to daven in Hebrew from the siddur, or your concentration/intention is better while davening in English, I understand that it is permissible to daven in English, or whatever your native language is. If you would like to daven in Hebrew while understanding the English better, the interlinear siddur can be good for that.
In addition to davening the formal prayers from the siddur, it is very beneficial to engage in at least a few minutes a day of personal prayer in your native language, thanking and praising G-d for everything, analyzing your deeds and doing teshuvah for your sins, and asking for whatever material or spiritual things you need. Some rabbis, such as Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, emphasized the importance of this practice, and recommended strongly that all people spend at least an hour a day doing this. The Essential Rebbe Nachman, available online for free, or the books of R’ Shalom Arush, are good sources of information on this practice.
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