| Shalom Zaitch,
I think you hit the nail right on the head. I have been davening at
Temple Emanuel in Newton. They do the same thing. I generally don't
listen to the reading. I sit and try to read the whole portion (translation
only, ivrit sheli lo tov 8^{). Curiously the sermon on the portion
generally covers the whole thing. You tell me what they think they're
doing.
They also daven the shacharit amidah in unison through Kedusha and then
have no repetition. Anyone know the validity of this practice? Being
a slow reader I don't like it (I am hard pressed to finish before the
Chazan finishes the Kaddish 8^{(.
L'hit,
Gavriel
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| re: < Note 620.1 by GVRIEL::SCHOELLER "Who's on first?" >
>They also daven the shacharit amidah in unison through Kedusha and then
>have no repetition. Anyone know the validity of this practice? Being
>a slow reader I don't like it (I am hard pressed to finish before the
>Chazan finishes the Kaddish 8^{(.
(For my 30 years in the Conservative movement, I used to think
that this was normal...)
There are some references to this in Shulchan Aruch (and some
other places). The context is this: suppose that you are delayed
in gathering a minyan for Mincha, and shkiyah is fast approaching.
You (assume you're the gabbai...) have a choice:
(a) "Forget" the minyan for today, and each person can
davven for themselves. That, of course has its own set
of problems (for another note).
(b) If you believe that you'll indeed have the minyan
before shkiyah, you wait. If you _don't_ get the minyan,
go to (a), above. If you _do_ get the minyan, then
you davven Shmoneh Esrai as you described above, i. e.,
sha"tz davvens aloud through the end of Kedushah, and
everyone continues silently through end. In this case,
S. A. rules that you would also omit Tachanun, and davven
right to Aleinu.
Properly managed, this allows you to finish Mincha
Shmoneh Esrai before shkiyah. (Within minutes, then,
it's possible to say ma'ariv, instead of having a 20
or so minute delay. The delay is of course built in
to the mincha schedule the gabbai establishes to avoid
exactly this problem!)
Somehow, the Conservative movement seems to have picked up this as a
"loophole". Why anyone would use it, say, especially on Shacharit
shel Shabbat, is totally beyond me, unless either (a) they believed
that the congregation couldn't say it / wouldn't say it anyway [my
observation of the normal case], and/or (b) they really were in a
hurry to go shopping after shul.
My impression is that they would also say the mincha Shmoneh
Esrai this way, except that, at the majority of Conservative
Temples, there's no Mincha (on any day)!
/don feinberg
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| reply to < Note 620.3 by DECSIM::GROSS
>> There are some references to this in Shulchan Aruch (and some
>> other places). The context is this: suppose that you are delayed
>> in gathering a minyan for Mincha, and shkiyah is fast approaching.
>
>My ignorance is already well demonstrated so I'm not afraid to ask...
>what is "shkiyah"?
>
It is the time of actual (ephemeris) sunset. It's the last
moment that you can legally begin Shmoneh Esray of Mincha,
under any interpretation.
/don
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| Re: .0
Alan,
Sorry for the delay in answering. Your original analysis was correct.
There is quite a nice "easy to follow discussion" on the Triennial Cycle
in the Encyclopedia Judaica (Vol 15 Pages 1246-1253 and 1386-1389).
To precis it down. There are two customs.
o The Babylonian custom that divided the Torah into 54 sections,
which was read annually.
o The Palestinian custom divided the Torah into 153, 155 or 167
sections, which was completed in three years.
In time the Babylonian custom superseded all other customs.
In direct answer to your question, I took the liberty of copying form
the Encyclopedia:
"In traditional synagogues, the Pentateuch is read in one year. Reform
Judaism (and some Conservative synagogues) has, however, reverted to
the ancient Palestinian custom of a triennial cycle. It was done in
response to the spiritual needs of congregants most of whom do not
understand Hebrew, and consequently, cannot follow - with proper
attention - the lengthy reading in Hebrew of the entire weekly sidrah.
The weekly reading was shortened to approximately one third. In order
that the portion should not be different from that read in traditional
synagogues, the first part of each weekly sidrah is read in the first
year, the second in the next and the third in the last year of the
triennial cycle. Consequently, three different haftarot were provide to
correspond to the central theme of the particular part of the portion
read. (See Union Prayer Book, 1(1924), 339-406)"
Alan, do the communities that you mentioned, have Simchat Torah every
year or once every three years ???
What I did find interesting in the article was a mention of a modern
commentator Buechler attempt to use the triennial cycle as an
explanation of various traditions regarding event in the Torah (e.g.
that Moses was died on the seventh day of Adar and that Sarah was
"remembered" on the first day of Tishri). Buechler contends that since
the portions describing these events were read once every three years
at these times (assuming the cycle starts in Nissan), the tradition
grew that the events themselves had taken place then.
..... Monty
P.S. Regards to the family from us in sunny Ra'anana
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