Many of us have schedules that are so jam-packed that our filofaxes cannot hold all of our appointments and reminders (that’s probably why we have so much storage on our computers!) The fast pace of life makes the prospect of praying three times a day, in the synagogue or at home, seem like an impossible task, or something that might have been possible in the Old Country with Old World values, but is maybe out of synch with today’s frantic lifestyle. According to Jewish Law, women are not required to pray as often as men, and not with a quorum of ten or with a tallis (prayer shawl) or tefillin (black boxes which contain Torah verses which are strapped to the head and the arm). How much are women required to pray and under what circumstances?
It is well understood by the Sages that women have a substantial amount of work to do dealing with the home and their children. Since many women are employed nowadays, at least part-time, this adds another time constraint into the mix, and leaves even less time for prayer. The amount women are required to pray depends on which Rabbi one asks, but women are not required to pray as often as men or to complete all of the prayers in a particular service. However, all women are required to pray, at least to some degree, and anyone who is a mother, concerned about her children’s grades, health and behavior at school knows that all women do pray on a daily basis (even by just saying “Please, G-d, I don’t want to burn the casserole again !) The Rambam rules that women are required to pray to G-d, whether briefly or at length, in their own language or in Hebrew. At the other end of the spectrum, Schneur Zalman of Liadi, founder of the Chabad movement, suggested that women pray the morning (Shacharit) and the afternoon (Mincha) service. However, few busy mothers and wives say every prayer in these services.
Basically, a woman is free to pray as much or as little as she likes, depending on her tradition. Many women believe that “less is more” when it comes to prayer, and that it is better to say a few prayers with strong feeling that to feel pressured to say an entire service. Some women prefer “talking to G-d” themselves, whereas others enjoy praying from a traditional siddur (prayer book). Even a few minutes can be enough to provide spiritual sustenance for an entire day of working and caring for one’s household.