A Minyan in a Garage

On Tu B'Av, the holiday of love, I was walking down a small Jerusalem alley lined with automobile repair shops when I was invited to join a Mincha service. Curious, and always up for a "chavaya," I accepted the invitation. The prayers took place in a tiny office behind one of the garages. The room was barely large enough to hold a minyan. For a few minutes, this cramped workspace was transformed into a place of worship.

The minyan included mechanics replete with the mandatory oil-stained hands and grime beneath their fingernails. Some men had flowing beards and black velvet yarmulkes, others were clean-shaven and wore yarmulkes of different sizes and colors, while a few borrowed one for the service. Jews from diverse backgrounds stood together in quiet, sincere prayer. Once the prayers began, those outward differences no longer mattered.

I was honored to join this inspiring service, as the respect and acceptance among the participants represented to me the essence of what we should aspire to on the holiday of love. Watching this cross-section of people pray together also made me think about the language of our prayers. Even when we stand before G-d in the Amidah, in an intimate encounter with the Almighty, we make our requests in the plural. We approach Him as members of a larger community, asking Him to provide for both our personal needs and the needs of the entire Jewish people.

The month of Elul, which begins the process of teshuvah, is just around the corner. The Sages explain that the word Elul is an acronym for the verse in Shir HaShirim, Ani L'dodi V'dodi Li – "I am to my Beloved and my Beloved is to me." While this pasuk describes the loving relationship between G-d and the Jewish people, perhaps it can also remind us of the love we must show one another. By caring for our fellow Jews, we emulate the Almighty's love for all His children.

As I left that tiny office behind the garage, I thought that the setting itself carried a message. Sometimes, in our little country, the most inspiring moments happen when and where you least expect them.