The System of Tefillah with Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe – Part 1

About this episode

Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe discusses the nature and purpose of tefillah in Judaism with host Dan Kullman.

In this episode, Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe and I explore one of the deepest questions in Judaism: what is tefillah actually doing? If Hashem already knows everything, why do we need to ask? Does prayer change reality, change us, or both? We discuss why tefillah was built into creation itself, why structured prayer matters, how hishtadlus and bitachon fit together, and what it means when tefillos seem unanswered. If you’ve ever struggled to connect to davening or wanted a deeper understanding of what Chazal believed tefillah truly is, this conversation will fundamentally reshape how you think about prayer. Join the Conversation! Be part of our growing community—join the Shema Podcast for the Perplexed WhatsApp group to share feedback, discuss episodes, and suggest future topics. Click here to sign up .

People in this episode

Host: Dan Kullman

Guest: Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe

Topics covered

• tefillah
• prayer
• Judaism
• spirituality
• hishtadlus
• bitachon

Keywords

• tefillah
• prayer
• Judaism
• spirituality
• hishtadlus
• bitachon
• Chazal
• unanswered prayers

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Chazal, Hashem

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