Siman 128: Vacating One's Place During Avoda

SE'IF 8 -  VACATING ONE'S PLACE DURING AVODA

 

And R.  Yehoshua ben Levi said: Any kohen who does not ascend in avoda ("retzei"), can no longer ascend, as it is said, 'And Aharon raised his hands towards the people and blessed them, and then came down from doing the sin-offering (chatat) and the burnt-offering (ola) and the peace-offering (shelamim).'  Just as that [BK] was during service [the Temple service], so here during service [the blessing relating to the Temple service].

 

But what about Rav Ami and Rav Asi who ascend [afterwards]?  Rav Ami and Rav Asi vacate their places beforehand, but they only arrive [at the dukhan] later on  (Sota 38b).

 

            We learn from the gemara that just as in the Temple the priestly blessing of Aharon was the closing of the sacrificial service, so too in the synagogue BK should adjoin the blessing of avoda and should begin while the avoda (blessing) is still in progress.  However, the actual ascending to the dukhan can take place afterwards as long as the kohen left his place on time.

 

            This rule can present a problem for a kohen whose own silent prayers extend well into the repetition of the shatz.  Even if he does manage to complete his own prayers before avoda is finished, the MB points out that he must leave the PLACE OF WASHING HANDS before the end of avoda.  One possible solution is to wash hands before the Amida begins, as is sometimes done in the case of a kohen who is shaliach tzibur.  Some kohanim who pray at a reasonable pace in breakneck-pace minyanim seldom have the opportunity to bless BK.

 

            Under some conditions, if there is no other kohen, a kohen who davens at length should interrupt his silent Amida to bless BK - see MB s.k.  106.

 

            We pointed out that according to MB, the "uprooting" referred to is from the place of washing hands.  But the Arukh HaShulchan (se'if 16) rules that as long as the kohen left his place of prayer during avoda, he may still ascend to the dukhan - although lekhatchila he should have finished washing his hands by then.

 

CALLING THE KOHANIM (se'if 10)

 

            The SA writes: "And (the shatz) calls to them, kohanim!"  Because "shatz" appears in parentheses, there is uncertainty as to whether the SA himself wrote that the caller is the shatz.  In fact, the question of who should call to the kohanim is a subject of dispute among the Rishonim:

 

            Rabbenu Tam ruled that the shatz should not call to the kohanim, since this would constitute an interruption in his tefilla.  (Cited by the Tosafot and Rosh on Berakhot 34a.)

 

            The Tosafot suggest that though calling "kohanim" directly would be an interruption, the shatz may call to them in the course of saying the special prayer "barkhenu bi-verakha ha-meshuleshet."  In this case, the calling to the kohanim is really not a separate call but merely a word from this inserted prayer, and therefore is no interruption, just as there is no problem of interruption when the shatz says this prayer when there are NO kohanim.

 

            The Rambam (Tefilla 14:8) rules explicitly that the shatz should call to the kohanim; evidently he thought that since BK itself is an integral part of the tefilla, and since summoning the kohanim is an integral part of BK, it would be difficult to view this as an interruption.

 

            How does the MB rule? See s.k.  34.

 

 

TURNING TOWARDS THE CONGREGATION (se'if 11)

 

            We mentioned the scriptural source last week.  The gemara learns an interesting principle from this halakha:

 

Rav Yitzchak said: Always be in awe of the congregation, for the kohanim [bless BK] face the people and turn their back on the Shekhina (Divine Presence)  (Sota 40a).

 

            The gemara also connects this with the halakha studied last week of removing shoes for BK, which according to the first opinion is due to the honor of the congregation, or according to Rashi's text, the AWE of the congregation.

 

            Rav Ovadia cites a midrash in a similar vein: "Come and see how great is the honor of the congregation, for the Torah scholar who gives a derasha faces the people and turns his back to the Shekhina" (cited in Yechaveh Da'at III:19; I can't find the midrash on the CD, which has a long way to go before it approaches the breadth of Rav Ovadia's knowledge)

 

            These midrashim "come to learn, and end up teaching."  We can infer that turning one's back on the ark is not something to be taken lightly.  According to some opinions, the problem only exists when one ascends to the platform before the ark, but at the very least when standing on this platform one should not turn one's back to the ark if the honor of the congregation is not enhanced.

 

            Some people descend from the bima backwards for this reason, see MB s.k.  61.  However, we should recall that "danger is more severe than transgression" (Chullin 10a) and therefore if there is a danger of tripping on the stairs it is better to descend the stairs in a normal fashion.

 

HANDS OF THE KOHANIM (se'if 12)

 

            The SA instructs the kohanim to make five spaces among the fingers.  This involves bunching the second and third fingers of each hand, as well as the fourth and fifth fingers, thus creating two spaces on each hand; the space between right and left thumbs makes five.  The source of this custom is a midrash cited in the MB s.k.  44; the midrash is brought down by the Rosh.  The gist of this midrash is that the hands of the kohanim are the "window" through which the Shekhina shines on us. 

 

            Another source with the same idea is that the word "koh" - kaf heh - From the phrase "THUS shall you bless," is similar to the word kav-vav-heh meaning window.  The extra vav comes from the word "SAY to them" which is written maleh (pleine), that is with an extra vav.  (Mordechai cited in Beit Yosef.)

 

            The midrash itself does not indicate that there should be five spaces; the source is in MB s.k.  45.  Other customs exist, for instance Ma'aseh Rav 167 indicates that the Gra ruled to open ALL the fingers (cited in TKH 14 note 91).

 

            The Shibolei HaLeket says that separating the fingers is a sign of trembling before the Divine Presence.  Another reason mentioned there (rejected by the Beit Yosef) is to help the kohanim keep track of which blessing they are on by counting on their fingers.

 

            Another custom mentioned in the Beit Yosef in the name of Rav Yitzchak Abuhav (Menorat HaMaor) and ultimately in the name of Rabbenu Tam is to make the name shin-dalet-yud with the fingers.  I am not sure exactly how this was done.  And I have heard from kohanim that yet other customs exist.

 

PRONUNCIATION OF THE BERAKHA

 

            It is very common to pronounce the first word "yi-var-EKH-e-KHA" - with accents on the third and final syllables.  A careful look at the ta'amim (notes in the Torah shows that the proper pronunciation is "yi-VAR-ekh-e-KHA" - with accents on SECOND and last syllables.  This halakha is relevant not only for kohanim but also for anyone who is shaliach tzibbur.

 

KOHEN WHO IS SHALIACH TZIBUR (se'if 20)

 

            According to the first option in the SA, if a kohen is shaliach tzibur he does not bless BK even if he is the only kohen.

 

            According to the second option, which the MB accepts, if a kohen is shaliach tzibur he does not bless BK UNLESS he is the only kohen (s.k.  76).

 

            Today it is not unusual for a kohen (shaliach tzibur) to bless even if there are other kohanim, for the same reason the SA allows the Shaliach Tzibur to bless alone - since everyone prays from a siddur there is no danger of confusion.  (And Tefilla KeHilkheta 14:61 considers this acceptable for Ashkenazim.)  What does the MB say about this custom?  See s.k.  72.  See what the Peri Chadash says (cited in Be'er Heitev at the end of s.k.  36).

 

            When does the shaliach tzibur wash his hands?  The SA indicates that the kohen goes straight from the amud to the dukhan, suggesting that he washed his hands before starting chazarat ha-shatz.  And this is what is ruled in TKH 14:62. 

 

            What if the shatz did NOT wash his hands before chazarat ha-shatz?  It seems obvious that he should not disturb the chazara in order to wash his hands, since he has no obligation but only an option to bless BK.  But I have not found this ruling explicit in any source.

 

            If the shatz is a kohen, even if he does NOT ascend the dukhan someone else calls out the blessings for the kohanim on the dukhan to repeat - SA se'if 22.