Prayer: Alone and with others

Lengthy prayer is suitable for eveyone, not only those who possess advanced knowledge of Chassidus. Even one who does not understand the meaning of the words should endeavor to pray at length. Therefore one should avoide the temptation to sacrifice davening at length in order to to pray with the congregation. The Rebbeim ruled that in order to fulfill "service with the heart", through praying in length, while at the same time praying with the congregation, one should respond to the communal recitation of Kaddish, Borchu, Kedusha and reading of the Torah.

Afterwards one is free to pray at length (Igrot Rayatz vol 3:143, Likkutei Sichos vol 14,:224).

Comment: Even though the normative halacha is that one should skip certain section in order to "stay" with the congregation(the order of priorities is laid out in Orach Chaim 52), there also exists a concept that all parts of davening constitute a Kabbalistic order and that praying out of this order causes undesirable supernal effects. The Maggid told the Beis Yosef to come early to davening so as to not have to skip (see Be'er Heitev ad loc.); interestingly, he does not mention it in his Shulchan Aruch.

It seems that there are several concepts that interact. R. Y.D. Soloveitchik called attention to the different terminology that applies to this subject. There is prayer with the congregation (tefilla im hatsibbur), prayer in the congregation (tefillah batsibbur), and being a part of communal prayer ( tefillas hatsibur). One can daven with the tsibbur but it not constituting a communal prryer, such as, for example, when here is no longer a minyan but one is still permitted to complete the Kaddish after a section that was started with a minyan, or when a minyan does not exist but a child makes up the tenth person etc. These distinctions are extremely helpful in understanding the relevant sugyos. The Chassidic concept is that prayer with the congregation is the minimum required, but praying at length, even if alone, takes priority over other manifestations of communal prayer.

Comments

[Litvak]

Re davening in an unpressured and unhurried manner, see the fine piece תּפילה בּנחת ומתינות in sefer שרשי מנהג אשכּנז, חלק ד