The Cantor Who Trembled
A chazzan shaking before his congregation learned from the Rebbe whom he was really standing before.
A story ofRav Yerachmiel Yisroel Yitzchok Danziger of Alexanderרבי ירחמיאל ישראל יצחק דנציגר מאלכסנדרProfile ›
Chassidim relate that a chazzan once came to the Yismach Yisroel in distress. Every time he stood before the congregation to lead the tefillos, he began to shake. He lost his place, he stumbled over words, and some in the shul laughed at him. He had tried to calm himself again and again, and nothing worked.
The Rebbe listened closely. As the chazzan spoke, he saw where the trouble lay. The man was worried about what the people thought of him. His mind was on the faces in the pews, not on the words of the tefillah or on the One to whom they were addressed.
The Rebbe gave him a simple instruction. He told him to fear Heaven more than he feared the congregation. Let him turn his awe toward Hashem, he said, and pray as though he stood before Him alone. In that case his tefillah would be sincere, and the opinions of the people would weigh far less on him.
The advice did not ask the chazzan to stop caring about others. It asked him to place his fear where it belonged. A person who is truly in awe of Hashem finds that no one else can frighten him in the same way.
Source: Sapir V'Yahalom (Rav Menachem Mendel Pomeranz), Parshas Acharei Mos, chapter 1.
Whenever you feel nervous about being seen, whether at a shiur you give, a meeting, a davening you lead or a simple conversation, take one breath before you begin and remember who is truly listening. Then say the first sentence as if it were for Hashem alone. You are allowed to care how others see you; just do not give them first place. Try this once today, in something small, and notice whether your voice settles. The point is not to feel nothing, but to aim your awe higher.