By the way, one should daven the entire service as layed out in the siddur and not just pick and choose which prayers to daven... The men of the great assembly composed the order for many mystical and kabbalistic reasons...
Uh, ok... But if a person is just starting out, there is no way he can just adopt the entire siddur in one swoop. When I first became religious my rabbi advised me to start by saying the shema and shemoneh esray. The shema should be twice a day, once in the morning and once before bed, and the shemoneh esray (amidah) if a person can do it 3 times a day that is ideal, but just starting out it may not be realistic... test the waters with it. At least try it once a day first if you've never said it before, become accustomed to the prayers and make them heartfelt.
It is certainly not possible to jump in with a minyan 3 times a day right off the bat.... Try for shemoneh esray (the "amidah"), 3 times a day is ideal, (but like I said that may be too much at first) and if you can make to an orthodox shul try also a minyan once in a while, a few times a week, or on Shabbat. Build up from there. Shabbat is a good time to daven with a minyan when you're first starting out. Otherwise build on praying alone until you become more set with it. My rabbi (one of them anyway, my main rabbi when I first started out) has been through this with many baalei teshuvah, and he knows (he told this to me) that people who try to take on too much too quickly end up burning out and dropping everything.
The real keys to first getting started are threefold: Shabbat, kashrut, and tefillin. If you are saying shema and working on these 3 things, everything else will eventually fall into place. So see if you can spend Shabbat with an Orthodox family and learn about the different customs and laws that make Shabbat beautiful, try to ease kosher food into your diet while phasing out the nonkosher stuff. Taking on kashrut can be a gradual process, I know it was for me. If you have access to a pair of tefillin, that is the third pillar for a strategic initiation into Judaism, and all it takes is really 5 minutes to put them on each day and say the shema with them (the one you say in the morning).
So what you are saying muman is not appropriate for someone just getting started with praying. Why should they be forcing themself to go through korbanot and psukei dzimra etc etc, they havent even said the amida before! Seriously, you can't go overboard with stuff like this, and muman you should know better since I'm sure you started off gradually yourself in what mitzvahs you took on. Don't cause people to burn out when they are just getting into Judaism.
Ariel, it's a growth process that can take time and work and will be gradual. Start with some very heartfelt and sincere prayers each day and the shema. The shema is a very critical prayer. You will only grow from there. When you feel solid and accustomed to a certain level you can start to do more and try to build on that. A good idea would be to contact an orthodox rav, one who has experience with baalei teshuvah, to be in contact with him and consult with him about taking on different practices etc. They will help guide you so that it will be a growth at the right pace and where you will not become overwhelmed.
Topic: Which prayers, and how many times, do I make each day, ideally? (Read 3912 times)