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    Chapter 1 · Me'eimatai

    Prayer on the Road and in a Ruin

    Lesson 2 of 64 26 min

    Rabbi Yosei describes Elijah correcting his choice of prayer location. Wanting to avoid interruption does not justify entering a ruin. The narrative yields three conclusions in its setting; the ensuing discussion considers suspicion, collapse, and harmful forces.

    Lesson goals
    • 01Connect the conclusions to Rabbi Yosei’s story.
    • 02Distinguish prayer location from prayer length.
    01

    Source and decoding

    Berakhot 3a
    באותה שעה למדתי ממנו שלשה דברים: למדתי שאין נכנסין לחורבה, ולמדתי שמתפללין בדרך, ולמדתי שהמתפלל בדרך מתפלל תפלה קצרה.

    At that time I learned three things from him: one does not enter a ruin, one prays on the road, and one praying on the road offers a short prayer.

    Rabbi Yosei describes Elijah correcting his choice of prayer location. Wanting to avoid interruption does not justify entering a ruin. The narrative yields three conclusions in its setting; the ensuing discussion considers suspicion, collapse, and harmful forces.

    02

    Building the reasoning

    1. 1Connect the conclusions to Rabbi Yosei’s story.
    2. 2Distinguish prayer location from prayer length.
    Practice

    Return to the source and connect the conclusions to Rabbi Yosei’s story. Then explain how the central distinction follows from the excerpt. Mark what is explicit and what is explained by the surrounding discussion.

    Lesson wrap-up

    Rabbi Yosei describes Elijah correcting his choice of prayer location. Wanting to avoid interruption does not justify entering a ruin. The narrative yields three conclusions in its setting; the ensuing discussion considers suspicion, collapse, and harmful forces.

    Check your understanding

    Test yourself before marking the lesson complete.

    Question 1 of 1

    What alternative does Elijah teach for a traveler?

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