Christopher Lubinski: The Phenomenology of Prayer- Collective Prayer

     While going over The Phenomenology of Prayer, I discovered a passage that had a incredibly relevant subject matter. On page 39 in the second chapter, written by Jill Robbins, in the section called God Prays, she talks about the importance of community in a religious sense when talking about Judaism and prayer. With many of the lock down restrictions being put in place as well as many politicians focus of lockdowns being emphasized on the religious communities what Jill said really stood out.

    Pre-pandemic, I would have most likely skipped over the line where she quotes Levinas explaining that "not praying with others is to be walled in, is to be in "a windowless room". That really struck me while reading especially now that more restrictions are being enacted by the Governor of Virginia, who directly targeted religious communities in his address on the executive order. I, like many students of faith at CNU, was lucky enough to have the ability to go to church. However, many individuals in my community back at home had a much more difficult time fitting into these new restrictions in place. By preventing people from coming together as a community, it hurts both the community and their faith. 

    Prayer is meant to be a plural subject, according to the text, and to strip those of their ability to pray in community hurts it in a whole. It weakens communitas by preventing that crucial interaction made within the community through participating in holy acts.

    Though I believe that we should be responsible on preserving the health and safety in our community, the lock downs have a negative impact on people in religious communities. We should find a balance in safety and keep the centers of religious communities open in order to preserve the culture and health of communities.