Ask The Rabbi!!

[TomHagen]

Originally Posted by Tenor CS

Hi Rabbi:

I was raised in the Episcopal church, but in high school, we (my chorus) formed a partnership with the temple across the street. That partnership evolved into a friendship with the cantor. In fact, I wound up being invited to sing for High Holy Days for 15 years with that temple until I moved away.

Please excuse any misspellings in my attempts to transliterate Hebrew.

A couple of questions:

1. There was this one part in one of the services; they would bring up all of the men in the congregation who were of age and had last names like Cohn, Cohen, or Cohan. They referred to them as the "Kohanim" I think. The men would cover their whole faces and heads with their prayer shawls, and many people in the congregation would turn away from the bima. What exactly was going on during this part of the service? Why couldn't they show their faces and why would people turn away?

2. In another service, when they blew the shofar, the rabbi would have various chants in between shofar blasts. One sounded like "te ki ya" and another sounded like "kee ya ga do la." What do these mean?

Thank you for this thread, it is a great read.

PS: The cantor and his brother (who conducted the High Holy Day choir) at the temple always considered me an "honorary Jew." They even picked out a Hebrew name for me: Mordechai. And after 13 years of singing with them, they had a little Bar Mitzvah party for me. It was a great time and they were wonderful people. I miss them.

Interesting recollections, thanks for sharing. You did a great job of tranliterating! Good memory.
I am also glad you are enjoying the thread!!

1)
When is the Blessing Administered?

By Naftali Silberberg

In the Holy Temple, the Kohanim ascended a platform ("duchan"—thus the origin of the Yiddish term for the Priestly Blessing: "duchening") after the morning sacrificial offerings, and blessed the gathered throngs. With the destruction of the Temple, the blessing is administered in the course of the prayer services, during the chazzan's Repetition of the Amidah. It is necessary for a minyan to be present in order for the Kohanim to administer the Birkat Kohanim.

In Jerusalem, the Birkat Kohanim rite is performed every morning. On days when the Musaf service is recited, the Birkat Kohanim is performed both during Shacharit and Musaf. In all other Israeli cities beside Jerusalem, some (mostly Sephardim) perform Birkat Kohanim every day, while others (mostly Ashkenazim) only on Shabbat.

Birkat Kohanim is a throwback to the priestly Temple service. A Kohen who had imbibed even a small quantity of an intoxicating beverage was barred from performing any Temple service until the drink's effects had worn off. The same rule applies to Birkat Kohanim nowadays, and consequently the blessing is not administered during the afternoon Minchah service, for fear that some Kohanim may have enjoyed an aperitif together with their lunches. On public fast days the Kohanim recite the blessing during Minchah as well.

In the Diaspora

A blessing must be conferred with a joyful heart, hence the prevailing custom in the Diaspora to relegate the Birkat Kohanim to the major holidays. Furthermore, the blessing is only done during the Musaf prayer, when the crowd is happily anticipating their impending "dismissal" from synagogue, when they will be free to go home and celebrate the holiday meal with family and friends. Apparently, true joy cannot be experienced by all until the rabbi's sermon is dispensed with… An exception to this rule is Simchat Torah, when the Birkat Kohanim is done during the Shacharit (morning) services, this because on this joyous day many make kiddush (on alcoholic beverages) before Musaf.

Interestingly, the Birkat Kohanim is also performed on Yom Kippur; when we are joyful because of the atonement granted by G‑d on this holiest of days.

There are conflicting customs whether Birkat Kohanim is administered on a holiday which falls on Shabbat. Chabad custom is to proceed with the blessing as usual.

Role of the Congregation

By Naftali Silberberg

It is customary for the congregation to stand for the duration of the Birkat Kohanim, out of respect for the Divine Presence which graces the occasion.

Only those standing in front of the Kohanim are included in the blessing. In synagogues where seats directly abut the eastern wall of the sanctuary (this is especially common with the rabbi's or chazzan's place), their occupants should move back several paces for the Birkat Kohanim, so that they do not stand behind the Kohanim. (The chazzan should move back before starting the Repetition of the Amidah.)

The Blessing

By Naftali Silberberg

This article discusses the function of the Kohanim. Click here for the congregation's participatory role in the blessing.

Calling Upon the Kohanim

The chazzan silently recites the prayer which precedes the Birkat Kohanim ("Our G‑d and G‑d of our fathers, bless us with the threefold [Priestly] Blessing…"), until he reaches the word "Kohanim"—which he calls out loud; officially summoning the Kohanim to discharge their priestly duty. The chazzan then silently says, "Am kedoshecha ka'amur."

At this point, the Kohanim begin incanting a blessing, thanking G‑d for "sanctifying us with Aaron's sanctity and commanding us to bless His nation Israel with love."

(If there's only one Kohen present, the chazzan does not say "Kohanim" – the plural form of Kohen – aloud, rather he says the entire prepatory prayer silently, and the Kohen begins saying the blessing on his own.)

While reciting the blessing, the Kohanim – who are facing the Ark – rotate themselves clockwise to face the congregation by the time they conclude the blessing.

Raised Hands

Immediately after the blessing, the Kohanim lift their hands beneath their tallits—shoulder-high, palms outstretched and facing downwards. The right hand should be slightly more elevated than the left one.

The fingers are positioned in a manner which leaves five "windows" through which G‑d's blessings flow to the congregation. The general idea is to separate each hand into three "sections"—leaving spaces on each hand between the thumb and index finger, and between the middle and ring finger. The fifth space is completed by the way the two thumbs are configured together. There are different traditions regarding this configuration—Kohanim should consult with their father or rabbi to determine their family/community tradition in this matter.

Sephardim have a completely different tradition. They raise their hands above their heads and separate all their fingers.

The Kohanim should not gaze at their hands during the Birkat Kohanim.

The Chazzan Leads

The chazzan then leads the Kohanim in the Birkat Kohanim. He recites aloud the fifteen words of the blessing:

'May G‑d bless you and guard you.
'May G‑d shine His countenance upon you and be gracious to you.
'May G‑d turn His countenance toward you and grant you peace.'" (Numbers 64-26)

The Hebrew words are:

Yivarechecha
Adonai
viyishmirecha

Ya'er
Adonai
panav
elecha
veechuneka

Yeesa
Adonai
panav
elecha
viyasem
lecha
shalom

The Kohanim repeat after the chazzan word-for-word. The Kohanim must chant the words of the Birkat Kohanim in a loud voice—but not a shout. It is traditional in many communities for the Kohanim to precede each word with a short melody. The Kohanim must wait for the chazzan to completely conclude saying a word before repeating it.

After the conclusion of the Birkat Kohanim, the Kohanim remain facing the congregation until the chazzan begins the Sim Shalom blessing. At this point they turn around – clockwise again – and only when they are once again facing the Ark may they bring down their outstretched hands.

While the chazzan recites the Sim Shalom, the Kohanim recite a short prayer, "informing" G‑d that they had complied with His command to administer the Priestly Blessing, and now He must do as He has promised—"Look down from Your holy Heavenly Abode and bless Your people and the Land which You have given us…"
Ideally, the Kohen should conclude this prayer as the chazzan finishes the Sim Shalom blessing—allowing the congregation to respond "Amen" to both prayers simultaneously.

The Kohanim remain at the front of the sanctuary until the conclusion of the kaddish which immediately follows the Repetition of the Musaf Amidah. They then (put on their shoes) and file back to their places.

The congregation should face the Kohanim as they are being blessed – it isn't respectful to turn one's back (or side) to a blessing – but should not gaze at them. The men customarily cover their heads and faces with their tallit. Young children join their fathers beneath the tallit, which makes for a memorable childhood experience.

The congregation listens attentively and responds "Amen" to the Kohanim's preliminary blessing, and at the conclusion of each of the three verses of the Birkat Kohanim. The congregation should wait until the Kohanim have completely ennunciated the final word of the verse before responding with Amen.

According to Chabad custom, the members of the congregation move their heads "in synch" with the words of the Birkat Kohanim. When the Kohanim say the first word, "yivarechecha," they face forward; next word, "Hashem," they turn their head to the right; next word, "viyishmerecha," forward; next word, "ya'er," head to left, etc. (Forward, right, forward, left, forward, right, forward, left, etc.)

Congregation's Prayer

While the Kohanim sing the melody before the final three words of the Birkat Kohanim, the congregation recites a prayer requesting the "healing" of all their negative dreams.

After the Birkat Kohanim, with faces still covered by the tallit, the congregation silently recites the short Adir bamarom prayer.

As the Kohanim file back to their places, it is customary for the congregation to appreciatively acknowledge their blessing with the traditional salutation: "Yasher koach!"



2) Listening To The Sound Of The Shofar

How many times must one hear the shofar sounded on Rosh Hashanah? One must hear it nine times, for the Torah uses the word teruah [a shofar sound] three times in reference to Rosh Hashanah and each teruah sound is preceded and followed by a tekiah sound.

Now, concerning the teruah to which the Torah refers, doubt has arisen, over the ages, as to which sound is intended: whether it is a wailing tone, such as women cry among themselves when they lament; or a kind of sigh, such as one might repeatedly emit in a state of acute sorrow; or if it is a combination of both a sighing and a wailing tone. For such is the way of one who feels great sorrow and anxiety: he first sighs, and then laments.

Therefore we sound all three of these shofar tones, and to differentiate between them we call the wailing sound teruah and the sighing sound shevarim, and the combination of the two shevarim-teruah. In order to resolve all doubt as to the original teruah sound, we sound all three possibilities, each preceded and followed by the straight tekiah.

The order of the shofar sounding is therefore as follows:

After reciting the appropriate blessings, a tekiah is sounded, followed by shevarim, a teruah, and then another tekiah.

This order is followed three times, for a total of twelve sounds [six tekiot, three shevarim and three teruot]. Then another tekiah is sounded, followed by a shevarim, and then another tekiah. This order is also followed three times, for a total of nine sounds. Then, another tekiah is sounded followed by a teruah, and then another tekiah.

Again, this order is followed three times, for a total of nine sounds. Altogether, thirty sounds are made. This order of shofar sounds is referred to as the tekiot d'meyushav - the tekiot sounded when the people may either stand or remain seated. While the person sounding the shofar is required to stand, the congregation may remain seated since they have not yet begun Musaf. Nonetheless, it is customary to stand when the shofar is sounded.

During Musaf, there is an additional requirement to sound the shofar when reciting the blessings of malchuyot - our recognition of G-d's sovereignty, zichronot - when we remind ourselves of G-d's providence, and shofarot - when we refer to the sounding of the shofar. These are referred to as the tekiot d'me'umad - the sounding of the shofar while standing, because the shofar is sounded during the Amidah prayer, which is said while the congregation is standing.

The custom in some congregations is to sound the shofar during the silent Amidah, while others do so only during the cantors repetition.

The sound of the shofar is produced by the breath of the heart in a simple tone, without combinations of letters (as in speech), and this indicates the innermost point of the heart. Therefore it is called “tekiah”-a word also used for pounding in a stake-for this point is “sunk” in the heart in a manner of utmost simplicity, without the possibility of being compounded with intellect and knowledge, let alone being revealed in speech and letters. A person emits such a cry in a simple voice, from the depths of the heart, quite beyond intellect.

There are two types of cries: the cry of a voice and the cry of the heart. The cry of a voice comes from the intellect, as in the case of a person who meditates on the greatness of the Creator, is overcome, and cries in a loud, simple voice. This cry is external, like the cry that comes from seeing something new. The cry of the heart, on the other hand, is the “inner cry that is not heard.”

When the heart is overwhelmed by love or an idea, the innermost point of the heart, higher than intellect, is evoked, and this point is expressed in the cry of the heart.