Morning Blessings: Iyun Tefillah: The Sweetness of a Unified Torah

The 4th of Nisan is the Yahrtzeit of Rav Yaakov Tzvi Mecklenberg, author of HaKesav Vehakabala (1785-1865). A talmid of Rav Akiva Eiger, Rav Yaakov Tzvi was appointed Rav of Kenigsberg, Germany, spending years fighting against the Reform movement. In addition to his most famous work, he also wrote Iyun Tefilla, which was printed together with another perush on tefilla called Derech Hachaim by the Nesivos Hamishpat.

“Please, God, our Lord, sweeten the words of Your Torah in our mouth end in the mouth of Your people, the House of Israel.” We are asking God that the words of Torah should be Sweet, pleasant, and beautiful so that we can toil in then with love. There are definitely times when we have difficulty with understanding the clear connection between the Written Torah with the teachings of those who receive the Torah, the words of the Oral Law. We don’t taste the sweetness, the flow of all the interpretations of the verse in the actual words of the Torah. We therefore ask of the One, Who grants wisdom, to give us the form of wisdom called “Sweetness,” that we should experience through our wisdom the sweetness of finding the unity between the Written and Oral Laws. (Iyun Tefillah)