Tefillah 071

34:
We have mentioned on several occasions that the sages were wont to give the various benedictions of the Amidah names or titles. The names of the benedictions of the Shabbat Amidah are as follows:

• Avot [Patriarchs]
• Gevurot [Powers]
• Kedushat ha-Shem [God's sanctity]
• Kedushat ha-Yom [The day's sanctity]
• Avodah [Worship]
• Hodayah [Thanksgiving]
• Birkat Kohanim [Priestly Blessing]

It is important to note the name of the last of the benedictions. When the Amidah is repeated by the cantor, on certain occasions the last benediction is prefaced by the priests who are present in the synagogue invoking God's blessing through the special Priestly Blessing. Thus, when this ceremony takes place, it is not an appendage to the sixth benediction, as many think, but a preface to the seventh.

35:
Judaism is perhaps different from every other religion in that the priests are not people who have been singled out by a special calling, special training, or special privileges. In Judaism the priests are ordinary people. Their sole distinction is that, according to ancient tradition, their bloodline was selected by God for the sacerdotal purpose. In ancient times this purpose involved performing the ritual of the Bet Mikdash; but nowadays the priests have only two regular duties: the performance of the Priestly Blessing and facilitating the redemption of a firstborn son. (Among the residue of their ancient privileges is the right to be called first to the Torah when it is read publicly, but even this privilege is now waived in many congregations. [For details concerning this privilege see Torah Reading 003 and subsequent shiurim.] For the purposes of our present discussion only the function of invoking the Priestly Blessing is our concern.

36:
The origin of this ceremony is to be found in the Torah [Numbers 6:22-27]

For more than two and one half millennia this blessing has been cherished by the Jewish people. We have known this in our hearts all the time, but we have also known this for a fact for the past thirty years. During excavations in the site of ancient Jerusalem (Ketef Hinnom) in 1979, Professor Gabriel Barkay discovered a couple of silver amulets. When these amulets were unrolled – a very difficult task which took three years! – it was discovered that each of them contained the text of the priestly blessing. These amulets have been dated to around the year 600 BCE. This means that they were worn by people, possibly as a good luck charm, at a time that pre-dates the destruction of the first Bet Mikdash! They are also the oldest written biblical text that has survived so far. (Those interested in biblical scholarship might wish to note that this discovery makes it very difficult now to accept the original theory of Julius Wellhausen that the Priestly document of the Torah [P] is post-exilic, and it certainly enhances the suggestion that the document dates to the time of King Hezekiah.) One of these amulets can be seen to the right.

37:
It is important to note the precise instructions of this mitzvah: the priest is a mere functionary, whose task it is to pronounce the words of the blessing. In doing so they set God's name upon the congregation and thus invoke the divine blessing: it is God who blesses, not the priests:

38:
When the Bet Mikdash was in existence at a certain point in the proceedings every day the priests on duty would assemble on the steps which led up from the priestly courtyard to the sanctuary building and there they would invoke God's blessing, using this text, as commanded in the Torah. [See Tamid 07.] Strictly speaking, this duty devolves upon the priests to this day. Just as in Temple times this blessing was invoked every day, so today it should be a part of the repetition of the Amidah at most services throughout the year if at least one priest is present. In the State of Israel it is customary for priests to invoke God's blessing on Israel daily, at the morning service; and on Shabbat and YomTov both at the morning service and at the additional service, Musaf. The benediction which the priests are required to recite before they perform this duty is as follows:

The sages noted particularly the last two words of this benediction: that the mitzvah is to be performed out of a love for the Jewish people. Such love, thought the sages, is difficult to summon up when one is immersed in the trials and travails of daily life, especially when one lives in a hostile environment. Thus, in many congregations of the diaspora, it became the custom for the priests to invoke this blessing only at the additional service on festivals, when the extra joyousness could be expected to cancel out sadness and worry. [Shlomo Ganfried, Kitzur Shulĥan Arukh 100:1] (As noted above, this has never been the custom of the Holy Land.)

To be continued.

Orin Rotman writes:

As we discuss the shaliach tzibur repetition, a question always comes up. When does the leader start the repetition? When everyone is finished, without regard to how long that wait is, or for a 'reasonable' period of time? Starting earlier than when everyone is finished may put undue pressure or embarrassment on a slow reader, or on a person who is deep in contemplation at this particular service. But waiting for everyone, no matter how long can often be a great distraction to the rest of the kahal. What's the proper approach?

I respond:

Halakhah and custom are quite clear on this point. When the cantor has finished his (or her) personal recitation of the Amidah they should immediately begin the repetition. The reasoning is logical: those who are still engrossed in their prayer – whatever the reason might be – are depending upon themselves and not upon the cantor to fulfill their obligation. To wait any longer would constitute a tirĥah de-tzibbura, a waste of the congregation's time.

However, there are two exceptions to this rule:

1. The cantor should first look around the synagogue to make sure that there are at least nine worshippers who have finished their prayers and can pay attention to the repetition and respond to the benedictions. If there are not nine worshippers ready the cantor should wait until there are.
2. It is customary to wait, out of politeness, for the rabbi to complete the private Amidah. However, I have known many rabbis who take their time over their prayers and so tell the cantor not to wait. But, if it is usual for the rabbi to finish the recitation of the private Amidah more or less at the same time as everyone else, it is correct to wait for him or her to finish the prayer.