JL;DR SUMMARY Abraham Joshua Heschel's 1953 speech highlighting the need for more meaningful prayer experiences serves as a backdrop for the rise of over sixty independent minyanim (prayer communities) in the U.S. and Israel since 2000, offering an alternative to traditional synagogues. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.