Mitzvot at a Distance: the Requirement to Leverage Zoom as a tool of Inclusion

Mitzvot at a Distance: the Requirement to Leverage Zoom as a tool of Inclusion

There are times when Halakhic deliberation can feel removed from the everyday life of the average person. However, the current conversation about using Zoom for the fulfillment of Mitzvot will have long-term implications for the shape of our community. Some poskim are not willing to rely on webcams except in the most dire circumstances when no viable safe alternative exists. That approach is based on an assumption that fulfilling Mitzvot remotely is substantially suboptimal. I believe, however, that narrow approach is not the best reading of the sources and represents a minority position over the past 150 years.

For interested readers, I offer links to all the teshuvot in their original throughout the document. In addition, the footnotes contain much of the Halakhic analysis. I am well aware of the risks that embracing Zoom brings to synagogue life. However, I believe deeply that the benefits of inclusion far outweigh those risks. The reality is that we have all learned, over the past year, the strengths and weaknesses of Zoom and similar platforms. I hunger for the in-person experience of social interaction for which online alternatives offer only a mild approximation. However, for those people who may not be able to ever enter the building, conferencing software offers a light of connection that has been absent for too many years.

Part I: The bottom line according to major poskim:

There are five different approaches to the question of fulfilling Mitzvot from a distance.

Group One: the most inclusive poskim allow for any Mitzvah of sound to be fulfilled over the telephone or via a webcam1. This approach includes Shofar2, as well as the reading of the Megilla, Torah reading, Kedusha and Berachu (all assuming the physical presence of a minyan when required)3.

Group Two: A second group allows only those Mitzvot that are fulfilled through the mechanism of שומע כעונה — which again includes the reading of the Megilla, Torah reading, Kedusha and Berachu — but excludes the Shofar because of a technical limitation requiring people to hear the actual sound of the Shofar4.

Rav Moshe Feinstein occupies a kind of middle ground between the most inclusive and most restrictive approach in that he appears only to allow Rabbinic Mitzvot but not Torah commandments to be fulfilled over the phone. He is also only willing to permit when there a high level of need5.

Group Three: There is a specific conceptual move made by a group of early poskim that shift all of the limitations of Shofar onto every other Mitzvah that is fulfilled through speech. Just as there is a requirement to hear the קול שופר (the sound of the Shofar) and not the קול הברה (the sound of the echo), they assert that in order to fulfill any Mitzvah of speech you must hear the voice of the person speaking. Both Rav Chaim Berlin in 1905 and Rav Benzion Uziel, just two years later, make this claim6.

Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach became the champion of the idea that hearing via a telephone (microphone, webcam or hearing aid) is simply not considered “hearing” for the purposes of Halakha. Not only does the Shofar not work via a digital medium but, so too, any Mitzvah that is dependant on שומע כעונה requires the hearing of the actual voice of the person leading on one’s behalf. Rav Shlomo Zalman’s claim is different from group three as he basically thinks that hearing through any digital medium is akin to listening to a recording. Even if the experience of the transfer of sound is apparently immediate, since the sound is being transmitted the listener is imply not hearing a human voice at all7.

Shofar Mitzvot of Speech
Group One Yes Yes
Group Two No Yes
Rav Moshe Feinstein No Only Rabbinic
Group Three No No

(extended from Shofar)
Rav Shlomo Zalman No  No

 

The majority of poskim either fall into group one or group two. Rav Moshe’s position is basically sui generis. While many refer to Rav Shlomo Zalman, most ultimately assume that a hearing aid works for the fulfillment of Mitzvot of speech. The extension from shofar to all other speech based Mitzvot is difficult to substantiate, and is a minority voice. Therefore, I believe that we should pasken in accordance with group two who represent the best read of the sources and at least a plurality of the major poskim – thought perhaps the majority (depending on how we define, “major”).

Part II: The implications of my psak:

The second approach, allowing for all Mitzvot that rely on שומע כעונה, shomea ka’oneh, but not permitting Shofar, accounts best for both the texts of Halakha as well as the lived experience of the phone and web-conferencing. When we talk and learn over Zoom, we all know intellectually that there is a short delay, and yet we also understand that we are having a live interaction with another human being and not listening to a recording. The unique requirements of Shofar, however, place a particular limitation that makes it difficult to imagine that the digitized sound travelling over the wires can reasonably be said to be the actual sound of the Shofar. 

This psak creates a series of opportunities and, I believe, responsibilities for shuls today. One of the hard lessons we have learned over this past year is that many people have a strong desire to participate in the religious lives of our communities but are not able to be in person for a range of legitimate reasons. For too long, we felt that we could ignore those individuals and their concerns. Perhaps we did so unwittingly, but we can no longer afford to shield our eyes from those who seek to join but for whom being physically in the room is simply not an option.

So many of our coreligionists fall into this group: the elderly and homebound, people with a range of physical limitations, those who struggle emotionally with large crowds, those who are immunosuppressed (separate from Covid concerns), those who live too far away, those who need to move around too much to sit comfortably in shul, parents of young children. And the list goes on.

We need to commit, as a community, to finding ways to give virtual access to the Mitzvot that happen inside the four walls of our shuls on ימות החול, weekdays. Doing so has several practical implications:

  1. Shuls need to invest in resources to establish a stable internet connection, a camera and a speaker to allow people who are outside the building to participate in shul. These technologies need to be employed thoughtfully, with the user’s experience in mind, and enhanced or altered if the user feels unnecessarily distanced or separate from the activity in shul; these technologies can be used very well or very poorly, so someone on the shul staff needs to be trained in their use and responsible for ensuring their optimal performance. Access should be given to all non-Shabbat and Yomtov events, such as daily minyanim, classes, lifecycle celebrations and events. 
  2. Just as we may no longer build shuls that have steps up to a bima, which limit physical access to the Torah, any new construction must include the cost of this relatively simple technological setup.
  3. I would recommend that we create a small guidebook to help shuls enact these inclusionary steps.
  4. In addition, perhaps a small communal fund could be generated to help incentivize as many shuls as possible to undertake these changes.

It is essential that we begin planning carefully and strategically for life after the pandemic, ב”ה. Rabbis in particular, and religious leaders in general, need to grasp this moment and help propel us into a future that imagines more opportunities for more members of our community to engage in Jewish life. With God’s help, and the help of the doctors and the vaccines, may we be blessed to gather next Purim AND also provide virtual portals of entry for Jews the world over.

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (12) – The relationship between the blessings (4) – Rashba & the Tanya

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (12) – The relationship between the blessings (4) – Rashba & the Tanya

As we can see from a brief review,  the Ramban’s position is clear: the beracha of Yotzer Or is a birkat ha-shevach, and Ahava Rabba is a birkat ha-mitzvah. Rav Hai Gaon and the Ba’alei ha-Tosafot see the berachot as linked to Shema, but one can be recited even after the Shema has been said. They do not agree with the depth of connection that the Ramban builds between the berachot and the Shema, but they do see the two as related to each other.

The Rashba himself takes a strong position against his rebbe, the Ramban, as well as in his rejection of Rav Hai and the Ba’alei ha-Tosafit. His approach appears both in his commentary on the gemara in Berachot 11b and in three separate teshuvot1. The questions that were asked of him all revolve around one of the very first comments of Rashi on Sha”s. 

The first Mishna in Berachot provides a beginning and an end time for when the evening Shema may be recited. Rashi points out that, before or after that time, one is not able to fulfill the Mitzvah of reading the Shema. However, the common practice in Ashkenaz was to daven ma’ariv early, well before the time the mishna lists. Rashi is puzzled by this practice, so he asks:

רש”י על ברכות ב׳ א:א:ב, עד סוף האשמורה הראשונה…

אם כן למה קורין אותה בבית הכנסת? כדי לעמוד בתפלה מתוך דברי תורה…ולפיכך, חובה עלינו לקרותה משתחשך. ובקריאת פרשה ראשונה שאדם קורא על מטתו, יצא. 

Rashi on Berakhot 2a:1:2, s.v. ad sof ha-ashmura ha-rishona

If this is the case, why do we recite the Shema in the Synagogue? In order to stand for Tefila (the Amida) from words of Torah…Therefore [when we daven ma’ariv early in shul] we must recite the Shema again after nightfall. And through the reading of the first portion of the Shema at bedtime, we fulfill [the obligation of reading the evening Shema].

There are many other answers to the question of when to recite the Shema, but the Rashba’s approach is built on the framework provided by Rashi. This structure creates two very specific problems relative to Shema and its blessings:

  1. If, when the Shema is recited in shul early, the individuals were not fulfilling the actual mitzvah of Shema, why should the berachot be said at all? If the berachot are linked to the mitzvah of Shema, then aren’t they, in this case, berachot l’vatala (blessings made in vain).
  2. If it turns out that, in fact, the Shema recited at bedtime is the “real” Shema, then shouldn’t the berachot be recited then?

These two questions animate the three teshuvot of the Rashba. I will bring one selected paragraph that explains his answer, which he repeats in each teshuva. Here is the first paragraph of סימן שיט (Teshuva #319):

שו“ת הרשב“א חלק א סימן שיט

הקורא קריאת שמע בלא ברכותיה יצא דברכות אין מעכבות. וכדתנן היה קורא בתורה והגיע זמן המקרא אם כיון לבו יצא. וגרסינן עלה בירושלמי הדא אמרה שאין ברכות מעכבות. ומיהו מסתברא שחוזר ואומר ברכות ובפני עצמן בלא קריאת שמע שכבר יצא. 

ואף על פי שברכות לפני קריאתה נתקנו לאו ברכות של ק”ש כדי שתאמר היאך יברך שלא על הקריאה…שהרי אינו מברך אשר קדשנו וצונו לקרא את שמע…ולפיכך אף על פי שיצא ידי קריאה ידי ברכות לא יצא. וחוזר הוא וקורא ברכות בפני עצמן. 

Shu”t ha-Rashba, volume 1, Siman 319

One who recites the Shema without its attendant blessings has fulfilled their obligation because “the berachot do not stand in the way [of the Shema]” (ברכות אין מעכבות). As it is taught in the Mishna (berachot 2:1), “If you were reading the Torah and arrived at the appropriate time for reciting the Shema – if you had intention, you can fulfill your obligation.” And the Yerushalmi says, “This teaches that the recitation of the berachot does not stand in the way of the proper fulfillment of the Shema.” Nevertheless, it makes sense that [after having recited the Shema without blessings] you should go back and say the berachot by themselves, without the Shema that you have already fulfilled.

And even though these berachot have been established before the reading of the Shema, they are not berachot of Shema, such that you might ask how can you recite these berachot without saying the Shema…For behold we do not say a blessing “that we have been made holy and commanded to read the Shema2. And therefore, even though you may have fulfilled your obligation to read [the Shema] you have not fulfilled the obligation to recite the berachot. And you must go back and recite the berachot on their own.

The Rashba makes a very straightforward claim that resolves both questions raised by our study of Rashi. The reason that a) there is no problem reciting the berachot of Shema outside of the framework of the mitzvah of Shema, or b) that one need not say the berachot a second time when fulfilling the mitzvah of Shema is that these berachot are basically not related to the Shema! This explanation is in direct contradiction to the Ramban’s claim that Ahava Rabba is a birkat ha-mitzvah, and an indirect rejection of Rav Hai and the Ba’lei ha-Tosafot, who do see some connection between the two.

For the Rashba, these two berachot are fundamentally birkot shevach (blessings of praise) that happen to have been established before the Shema. They function like birkot ha-Shachar in the sense that one has to recite them over the course of the day, but one could just as easily say them at some later point. While this approach does account for many of the Siddur’s moving parts, we are left wondering why this section is even called “the berachot of Shema”3.

When we step back from some of the details, what emerges is a fundamental debate about the nature of the relationship between these berachot and Shema, which turns out to represent two different ways of thinking about the entire section of the Siddur. According to the Ramban, a unit called שמע וברכותיה (the Shema and her blessings) functions together. The pieces are interconnected in ways that lead us to expect that their themes should also be related. According to the Rashba, these are two separate units that happen to be near one another but are not fundamentally related. 

The Ba’al ha-Tanya

In our very first essay on this topic, we began with a short excerpt from the Tanya where he asked (chapter מט):

דלכאורה אין להם שייכות כלל עם קריאת שמע,,,ולמה קראו אותן ברכות קריאת שמע? 

ולמה תיקנו אותן לפניה דווקא?

For presumably they [the berachot] have no connection at all to the reading of the Shema…and why were they called, “The blessing of kriyat Shema?” And why, in particular, were they instituted before the Shema?

 

He answers his own question with the following set of ideas:

ובזה יובן טוב טעם ודעת לתקנת חכמים, שתיקנו ברכות קריאת שמע, שתים לפניה וכו’. דלכאורה אין להם שייכות כלל עם קריאת שמע, כמו שכתבו הרשב”א ושאר פוסקים. ולמה קראו אותן ברכות קריאת שמע? ולמה תיקנו אותן לפניה דווקא? אלא משום שעיקר קריאת שמע לקיים “בכל לבבך” וכו’ בשני יצריך וכו’, דהיינו לעמוד נגד כל מונע מאהבת ה’….

ואיך יבוא האדם החומרי אל מידה זו? לכך סידרו תחילה ברכת יוצר אור. ושם נאמר ונשנה באריכות עניין וסדר המלאכים…ואחר כך ברכה שניה, “אהבת עולם אהבתנו ה’ אלהינו”. כלומר, שהניח כל צבא מעלה הקדושים, והשרה שכינתו עלינו, להיות נקרא “אלהינו”, כמו “אלהי אברהם” וכו’, כנ”ל. והיינו כי אהבה דוחקת הבשר. ולכן נקרא “אהבת עולם”, שהיא בחינת צמצום אורו הגדול הבלתי תכלית, להתלבש בבחינת גבול הנקרא “עולם”, בעבור אהבת עמו ישראל, כדי לקרבם אליו ליכלל ביחודו ואחדותו יתברך. וזהו שנאמר: “חמלה גדולה ויתירה”, פירוש, יתירה על קרבת אלהים שבכל צבא מעלה. “ובנו בחרת מכל עם ולשון”, הוא הגוף החומרי, הנדמה בחומריותו לגופי אומות העולם. “וקרבתנו” וכו’ “להודות” וכו’. ופירוש הודאה יתבאר במקום אחר. “וליחדך” וכו’, ליכלל ביחודו יתברך כנ”ל.

Thereby will be understood the true reason and meaning of the Rabbinical enactment, ordaining the recitations of the blessings of the Shema: two preceding it…. For it would appear, at first glance, that they have no connection whatsoever with the recital of the Shema, as “Rashba” and other codifiers have stated. Why, then, were they termed “Blessings of the Shema?” And why were they ordained to to be recited specifically before it? But the reason is that the essence of the recital of the Shema is to fulfil the injunction “With all thine heart,…” to wit, “With both thy natures,…” that is to say, to overcome anything that deters from the love of G‑d…

But how can physical man attain this level? It is, therefore, to this end that the blessing of yotzer or was introduced first, for [in this blessing] there is said and repeated at length the account and order of the angels… Then follows the second blessing, “With an everlasting love hast Thou loved us, O Lord, our God.” That is to say, that He set aside all the supernal, holy hosts and caused His Shechinah to dwell upon us, so that He be called “Our God,” in the same sense that He is called “The God of Abraham,” as explained earlier. This is because “love impels the flesh.” Therefore it is called ahavat olam (“worldly love”), for this is the so-called “contraction” of His great and infinite light, taking on the garb of finitude, which is called olam (“world”), for the sake of the love of His people Israel, in order to bring them near to Him, that they might be absorbed into His blessed Unity and Oneness.

This is also the meaning of “With great and exceeding pity [hast Thou pitied us],” namely, exceeding the nearness of G‑d towards all the hosts above; “… and us hast Thou chosen from every people and tongue,” which refers to the material body which, in its corporeal aspects, is similar to the bodies of the gentiles of the world; “And Thou hast brought us near… to give thanks,…”— the interpretation of “thanks” will be given elsewhere;”… and proclaim Thy Unity,.. .”— to be absorbed into His blessed Unity, as has been explained above.

For the Ba’al ha-Tanya, the berachot of Shema help us to prepare for the hard work of the Shema itself. Committing ourselves in mind and body to the oneness of God is not a simple task. We need to begin to climb a spiritual ladder in order to bring ourselves closer to God at that moment. It is true that these berachot may be standard birkot shevach that are not technically linked to the Shema. However, they are liturgically connected and serve as a scaffolding for the heights required by the Shema.

Although the Tanya was trying to explain the Rashba, one can also understand that for the Ramban, Rav Hai and Tosafot, the berachot serve as a spiritual preparation for the Shema. At some level, that is the function of all berachot done before mitzvot: they are intended to help us focus on the gravity of the moment. All of these competing approaches have halakhic implications, but their spiritual ramifications help us enter into this section of the Siddur with a much greater sense of depth and meaning.

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (11) – The relationship between the blessings (3) – Ramban & Rav Hai (Rashba)

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (11) – The relationship between the blessings (3) – Ramban & Rav Hai (Rashba)

We have seen that the Yerushalmi and the Bavli seemed to use the phrase ברכות מעכבות (that the omission of the blessings does or does not impact the Shema or the other blessings) to refer to different questions. The Yerushlmi appeared to refer only to the question of the berachot and Shema while the Bavli seemed to deal only with the question of the berachot  in relation to each other. We noted a difficult question of Tosafot who compared those very two texts on the assumption that they are talking about the same topic. What emerged was that when one says ברכות אינן מעכבות את שמע (the omission of the blessings does not stand in the way of the fulfillment of the Shema) one could mean that these two berachot are not only distinct from the Shema but also operate apart from one another.

The claim that recitation of the berachot is not linked directly to the Shema basically indicates that they are not ברכות המצוה (mitzvah blessings) but standard ברכות שבח (blessings of praise) that happen to be situated before the Shema. If a person skipped one of the ברכות השחר (the morning blessings), there would be no reason to think that any of the other berachot are impacted1. What I would like to show is how this debate appears after the Tosafot, in the 13th century Rishonim in Sefarad — the Ramban and the Rashba — and how that appearance deepens our understanding of this entire unit of the Siddur. …

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Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (10) – The relationship between the blessings (2) – Yerushalmi, Berachot  2:1, Tosafot

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (10) – The relationship between the blessings (2) – Yerushalmi, Berachot  2:1, Tosafot

Last time, we unpacked a complex sugya in the Bavli that struggled to understand the relationship of the berachot of the Shema to each other. Let’s take a look at a short comment of the Yerushalmi that appears to use this same phrase in a different way. The comment was made on the first Mishna of the second chapter of Masechet Berachot:

משנה ברכות ב:א

הָיָה קוֹרֵא בַּתּוֹרָה וְהִגִּיעַ זְמַן הַמִּקְרָא אִם כִּוֵּון לִבּוֹ יָצָא

Mishna, Berachot 2:1

If one was reading the Torah and arrived at the time of the reading of Shema – if you intend your heart, you can fulfill your obligation. 

The Mishna understands that even though this person did not recite the complete liturgy — meaning that they did not recite any of the blessings — they could nonetheless appropriately fulfill the mitzvah of the Shema. The Yerushalmi then says:

תלמוד ירושלמי ברכות י”ב א (וילנא) פרק ב הלכה א

א”ר בא זאת אומרת שאין הברכות מעכבות. 

Yerushalmi Berachot 12a (2:1)

Rabbi Aba said, “This teaches that the blessings do not stand in the way of [the Shema].”

It is clear that this short passage explains that the recitation of the berachot of Shema is not essential to the proper fulfillment of the mitzvah of reading the Shema. It seems that, while approximately the same phrase is used in both the Bavli and the Yerushalmi, they are talking about two very different questions.  …

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Chanukah: the Holiness of the Doorway – the Mezuzah and the Chanukiya

Chanukah: the Holiness of the Doorway – the Mezuzah and the Chanukiya

There is a curious connection between the mezuzah and the lighting of the chanukiya. These two mitzvot are brought together in halakhic,  midrashic and mystical material. I would like to present two foundational texts that help prepare us for a new and exciting approach to Chanukah.

The Bavli

First, the gemara in Shabbat 22a, in describing where exactly to place the Chanukah lights, tells us that there is a mitzvah to place the chanukiya within a tefach (a hand’s breadth) of the doorway1. We then learn this debate:

שבת כ”ב.

וְהֵיכָא מַנַּח לֵיהּ? 

רַב אַחָא בְּרֵיהּ דְּרָבָא אָמַר מִיָּמִין 

רַב שְׁמוּאֵל מִדִּפְתִּי אָמַר מִשְּׂמֹאל.

Bavli Shabbat 22a

And where [near the doorway] should it be placed?

Rav Acha the son of Rava said, “On the right.”

Rav Shmuel from Difti said, “On the left.” …

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Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (9) – The relationship between the blessings (1) – Bavli, Berachot 11b/12a

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (9) – The relationship between the blessings (1) – Bavli, Berachot 11b/12a

The last few essays addressed the question of סמיכת גאולה לתפילה: the juxtaposition of the beracha of geula to the Amida. We looked at the relationship between one of the berachot of Shema and what follows. The remaining installments will analyze the relationship of these berachot to each other and to the Shema itself. 

We will address these two final questions together. 

  • First, how do the various berachot interact with each other? For example, what if you said them out of order, or what if you skipped one? 
  • Second, are the berachot recited before the Shema meant as a normal blessing on a Mitzvah or as something else? If they are like other berachot on Mitzvot, why is their formulation so different? If they are not like other berachot on Mitzvot, then what are they? 

I hope to show the ways in which these two questions are, in fact, interrelated. …

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Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (8) – The Blessings and the Amida (5) – סמיכת גאולה לתפילה – Rav Amram Gaon

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (8) – The Blessings and the Amida (5) – סמיכת גאולה לתפילה – Rav Amram Gaon

Last time, we introduced the fascinating position of Rav Amram, which explains the interruptions between the conclusion of the beracha of geula in Arvit as a result of the fact that Ma’ariv is not a full obligation. While there are a few echoes of this idea within the canon,1 the vast majority of Rishonim roundly reject this idea. 

Let us take a step back and try to drill down to the debate between R. Yochanan and R. Yehoshua b. Levi. Perhaps a deeper understanding of what is happening there may shed light on this curious debate. The Gemara in Berachot 4b explains that their positions can be seen as revolving around a matter of logical reasoning or around Biblical commentary. …

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Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (7) – The Blessings and the Amida (4) – סמיכת גאולה לתפילה – Berachot 4b, Tosafot & Rav Amram

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (7) – The Blessings and the Amida (4) – סמיכת גאולה לתפילה – Berachot 4b, Tosafot & Rav Amram

Our Halakhic analysis of the requirement to move quickly from the beracha of geula to Tefila began with the Gemara in Berachot 4b that introduced the debate between R. Yochanan and R. Yehoshua b. Levi:

ברכות דף ד:

אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן אֵיזֶהוּ בֶּן הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא? זֶה הַסּוֹמֵךְ גְּאוּלָּה לִתְפִלָּה שֶׁל עַרְבִית. רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן לֵוִי אוֹמֵר תְּפִלּוֹת בָּאֶמְצַע תִּקְּנוּם.

Bavli Berachot 4b

R. Yochanan said, “Who is assured a place in the World to Come? It is one who goes immediately from the beracha of geula to Tefila in Arvit. R. Yehoshua b. Levi said, “Tefilot were instituted in the middle.”

Here is a simple chart to help see just how far apart these two positions are:

שחרית ערבית
רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן שמע ← עמידה שמע ←  עמידה
רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן לֵוִי שמע ← עמידה עמידה ← שמע

 

The gemara there goes on to try to pinpoint the central point of debate and shows us just how much they agree as well as where they disagree: …

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Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (6) – The Blessings and the Amida (3) – סמיכת גאולה לתפילה – Talmidei Rabbeinu Yona

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (6) – The Blessings and the Amida (3) – סמיכת גאולה לתפילה – Talmidei Rabbeinu Yona

Rabbeinu Yona

The perush of the students of Rabbeinu Yona that appears on the Rif in the back of Masechet Berachot is one part commentary and two parts musar. In his elaboration on R. Yochanan’s praise that one can achieve entry into the world to come (Berachot 4b), R. Yona offers two different values that undergird the beracha of geula. It is important to note from outset that, as opposed to all of Rashi’s ideas1 that see the beracha as a preparation for the Amida, R. Yona sees inherent value in the beracha itself.

Rabbeinu Yona begins his analysis with a statement about the nature of prayer as service:

רבינו יונה על הרי”ף ברכות ב:, איזהו בן העוה“ב זה הסומך גאולה של ערבית לתפלה של ערבית. 

ואומר מורי הרב שהטעם שזוכה לשכר גדול כזה מפני שהקב”ה כשגאלנו והוציאנו ממצרים היה להיותנו לו לעבדים…ובברכת גאל ישראל מזכיר בה החסד שעשה עמנו הבורא. והתפלה היא עבודה. כדאמרינן (בבא קמא דף צ”ב:)…וכשהוא מזכיר יציאת מצרים ומתפלל מיד מראה שכמו שהעבד שקונה אותו רבו חייב לעשות מצות רבו כן הוא מכיר הטובה והגאולה שגאל אותו הבורא ושהוא עבדו ועובד אותו. וכיון שמכיר שהוא עבדו מפני שגאלו ועושה רצונו ומצותיו נמצא שבעבור זה זוכה לחיי העולם הבא. 

Talmidei Rabbeinu Yona, Rif Berakhot 4b, eizehu ben ha-olam ha-ba…

And my teacher the master said that the reason that one merits so greatly is that when the Holy Blessed One redeemed us and took us out of Egypt were were to be to Him as slaves…And in the beracha of Ga’al Yisrael we mention the loving kindness that the Creator did on our behalf. And Tefila is service (avoda – from the root for the word slave) as we are taught in Bava Kama 82b … And when you mention the Exodus from Egypt and pray immediately you show that just like a slave who has been acquired by his master is obligated to what his master commands so too you recognize that you are God’s slave and must worship Him. And once you recognize that you are God’s servant, because God redeemed you, you will do God’s will and His commandments – and because of this you can merit to live in the World to Come.

The first reason offered by R. Yona is that the beracha of geula reminds us that we must serve God. When we recall the miracles of the Exodus, we imagine what it was like to be slaves. When God redeemed us, we then became enslaved to God. This is a tough metaphor in the 21st century. Living with a foundation of commandedness is an essential component of religious life. However, the image of master-slave does not resonate with many people today and may even seem disturbing.

While the master-slave image may be difficult, the awareness that God and halakha have a claim on my life, my behavior, is essential. The beracha of geula here stands apart from the Amida as an expression of a core value of Jewish life: God is the commander and we are commanded. As opposed to all three of Rashi’s approaches (insert link), R. Yona sees the beracha of geula as expressing its own core value. The reason that it is juxtaposed to the Amida is simply to remind us of that same idea – that we must serve God.

Let us now turn the R. Yona’s second answer:

ועוד אמר מורי נר”ו טעם אחר מפני שכשמזכיר גאולת מצרים ומתפלל מיד הוא מראה שבוטח בה’ בתפלה כיון שמבקש ממנו צרכיו. שמי שאינו בוטח בו לא יבקש ממנו כלום…וכיון שמזכיר עכשיו אותה הגאולה שבטחו אבותינו בה’ והצילם ומתפלל מיד נמצא שגם הוא בוטח בו שיענה אותו כמו שענה לישראל בעבור שבטחו בו. ומפני זה מזכיר אותה הגאולה ומתפלל מיד. והבטחון הוא עיקר היראה והאמונה ולפיכך זוכה בסיבתו לחיי עולם הבא: 

And my teacher also said another reason [for the great rewards of linking geula to Tefila]. Because when you mention the exodus from Egypt and immediately make requests in Prayer you show that you have faith in God. For you would not ask something on someone in whom you had no faith. And since you mention the same redemption that caused our ancestors to have faith in God who had saved them, and then pray immediately, behold you must have faith that God will answer you as was done for the Israelites. And because of this you mention the same redemption and then pray immediately. And faith (trust, בטחון) is the foundation of fear (יראה) and belief (אמונה). And therefore, you merit a place in the World to Come.

In this second answer, R. Yona focuses on faith / trust (בטחון, bitachon) as the key theme of the beracha of geula. The miracles of the Exodus inspire total faith and trust in God. The way that faith is expressed is through the thirteen central petitions of the Amida. R. Yona points out that we only ask for anything from a person or a being whom we think has the power to grant our requests. Simply by virtue of asking for health, prosperity and peace, we show our faith in God.

In the second to last sentence, R. Yona makes a fascinating claim that faith serves as the foundation of fear and belief. Prior to believing in God, we must first have faith in God. Perhaps in R. Yona’s calculus, belief is something that can be proved or disproved while faith precedes those arguments. Here we see R. Yona’s work on the Rif as very much a book of musar or Jewish thought.

In this second formulation, R. Yona moves towards Rashi’s idea that the beracha of geula is meant to prepare us for the encounter of the Amida. By reminding ourselves of the miracles of the Exodus, our faith in God grows such that it now makes sense to petition God for our human needs.

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (5) – The Blessings and the Amida (2) – סמיכת גאולה לתפילה – Rashi 

Introduction to Shema and its Berachot (5) – The Blessings and the Amida (2) – סמיכת גאולה לתפילה – Rashi 


This week we will learn the approaches of Rashi, and next week we will unpack the ideas of Rabbeinu Yona. They provide us with diverse views on the depth and breadth of what it means to juxtapose the beracha of geula with the Amida. The question was put quite bluntly by the Shita Mekubetzet1.

שיטה מקובצת מסכת ברכות דף ד:, אמר מר קורא קריאת שמע ומתפלל מסייע ליה לר’ יוחנן איזהו בן העולם הבא זה הסומך גאולה של ערבית לתפלה של ערבית.

יש לשאול וכי מפני שסומך גאולה לתפלה יהי לו שכר כל כך שיהיה בן העולם הבא? 

Shita Mekubetzet, Berachot 4b, s.v. amar mar koreh kriyat shema…R. Yochana, “Who is one who merits the world to come…”? And one should ask, for just because someone juxtaposes the beracha of geula to the Amida, why should they merit the world to come2? In order to unpack this sharp question, we will learn the approaches of Rashi and Rabbeinu Yona.

Rashi – Petition, Praise, Joy

There are two comments of Rashi – with three different approaches – that address our question and try to offer deeper meaning to the practice of moving immediately from the beracha of geula to the Amida. In explaining the original comment of R. Yochanan (Berachot 4b), Rashi quotes the Yerushalmi 1:1 (Vilna) 2d (Venice). We will begin with the first few sentences, which really stand alone from the concluding paragraph.

רש”י על ברכות ד׳ ב:ו:ג, זה הסומך – וכל שכן דשחרית. דעיקר גאולת מצרים בשחרית הוה, כדכתיב מִמָּחֳרַת הַפֶּסַח יָצְאוּ בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל (במדבר ל”ג:ג). וסמיכת גאולה לתפלה רמזה דוד בספר תהלים, דכתיב  יְ-וָה צוּרִי וְגֹאֲלִ (תהלים י”ט:ט”ו), וסמיך ליה יַעַנְךָ יְ-וָה בְּיוֹם צָרָה (תהלים כ’). 

Rashi on Berakhot 4b:6:3, s.v. Zeh ha-Somech – All the more so [one merits a place in the world to come] for shacharit, because the essence of the redemption from Egypt was in the morning, as it is written and the day after Pesach the children of Israel left (Bamidbar 33:3). And the [practice] of juxtaposing the beracha of geula to Tefila is hinted at by David in the Psalms God, my rock and my redeemer (Psalm 19:15), and it says right after that May the Lord answer you in a time of trouble (Psalm 20:2). 

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