Tefillah 013

1:
The next stage in the Shabbat Morning Service is what is called in Hebrew P^esuké d^eZimra. This term may be translated literally as "Verses of Song". Long ago, when the format of our worship was being formulated by the sages of old – so long ago that the process is lost in the mists of time and unknown to historical fact – it was felt that it was wrong for the pious Jew to recite his devotions before God in a hasty manner. When pious devotion is also a religious duty – and one that must be performed at least three times every day of the year! – it was felt that there was a grave danger that ther desire to have the duty 'over and done with' might conquer the emotion of devoted supplication. Rambam even codifies this concern [Tefillah 4:16]. He writes:

Therefore, we are told in Mishnah Berakhot 5:1, "the early pietists would spend one hour [in contemplation] and only then pray" according to their religious duty.

2:
It is perhaps curious that what was instituted so long ago in order to prevent the worshipper from saying his prayers "as a burden that he will throw off" has, with the passage of aeons of time, become a stumbling block before many would-be pious worshippers. The ancient sages sought to ensure that one should spend some time before starting one's prayers, sufficient time to ensure a relaxed and contemplative frame of mind, so they prefaced certain passages to be read, studied or recited before the public service started. Those same extra passages today deter many an otherwise positively motivated congregant: they lengthen an already lengthy service and by the time he or she reaches the Amidah they have lost whatever concentration they started off with. It is strange how human nature changes with time.

3:
Originally, public worship began with the Ĥazzan inviting the congregation to join in public worship. That invitation is to be found today in Siddur Sim Shalom on page 107 and in Siddur Va'ani Tefillati on page 333. Therefore, strictly speaking, everything that precedes that invitation is not 'public worship'. The sages arranged it so that the worshipper moved gradually from the private to the public, so that he or she could adjust their frame of mind accordingly. The early morning blessings and Torah study were to be recited in the privacy of one's home. Upon arriving in the synagogue one spent some time in private contemplation, reading to oneself psalms and passages from other parts of the bible. Only then would the Ĥazzan start public worship. (And even that was divided by the sages into two parts: first came Tefillah b^eTzibbur (personal worship, but together with the rest of the congregation) and then finally T^efillat ha-Rabbim (public worship) where the Sh^eli'aĥ Tzibbur, who represents the assembled congregation before God, recites the Amidah on behalf of all those present.

4:
As we have already seen several times, the passage of time and changing congregational needs have almost obliterated that carefully thought-out plan. We have already mentioned that in most congregations the morning service starts with all those blessings that were intended to be recited in private, at home. So the service is lengthened. The next stage, the one we are to study now, was originally intended to be semi-private, but it too has now become public worship.

5:
This 'hour of quiet contemplation' now consists of the following elements:

• An introductory benediction (Barukh she-Amar);
• Selected verses of praise from the bible;
• A selection of nine psalms from the Book of Psalms;
• A series of verses of praise that serve as an introduction to the next stage (Yehi Kh^evod);
• Psalm 145 through to the end of the psalter, Psalm 150;
• A doxology (Barukh Adonai l^e-Olam;
• A series of biblical quotations that serve as an introduction to
• The Song at the Red Sea;
• A prayer of praise (Nishmat);
• A concluding benediction (Yishtabaĥ).

In our next shiur we shall commence our study of each of these elements separately.

Here is a query that I have received from Yehuda Falk, which is long overdue:

In the run-through of Birkot HaShahar, you haven't said anything about the prayer of Rabbi which is included in most siddurim (including the Sim Shalom at the top of page 66 but, for some reason, not the Va-Ani Tfilati). Oddly, while the
original is in the singular, it appears in the siddur in the plural. How old is this addition to the siddur?

I respond:

We have seen (Tefillah 003) that the Gemara [Berakhot 60b] instituted a benediction to be recited upon waking in the morning. The text of this benediction is given in the Gemara in the singular, while in most editions of the siddur it has been transferred into the plural. Since it is essentially a private benediction it should be in the singular (as it is in siddur Va'ani Tefillati). I quoted this passage in Tefillah 003, but I repeat the passage here for the sake of convenience. In a slightly abbreviated translation it reads as follows: