Quote #3

Like sacrifices, prayer is intended to change man, not God. Its purpose is to cultivate a contrite heart, to promote feelings of humility and inadequacy in man, whilst encouraging reliance on Divine assistance.

More from Immanuel Jakobovits

  1. Even if one is familiar with the precise meaning of everything one recites, the act of worship can hardly have any significance at all unle…
  2. In all 'benedictions', be they expressing plea or thanksgiving, we affirm that God is the 'source' of every bounty we enjoy and of every fa…
  3. Our Sages refer to Prayer as 'Service of the Heart'. But the heart cannot work properly unless the brain functions to stimulate and control…
  4. Realise that man is comparable to the brute creation except when uplifted by the loving Covenant initiated with our Patriarchs.

All Immanuel Jakobovits quotes