group event experienced by our
biblical ancestors.
Back in the days when the
Temple was still standing, the
Kohanim (priests) made sacrifices
three times a day. In those days,
sacrificing animals was the way in
which the Jewish people tried to
climb the mountain — it was their
understanding of how you
worshiped God. They called their
sacrificial rites the Avodah — the
service. After the destruction of the
Temple by the Romans in 70 C.E.,
the rabbis (the same ones who
contributed to the Mishnah)
developed the 18 prayers of the
Amidah as a replacement for the
sacrifices. They saw the Amidah as
Avodat Sh'Balev — the service of
the heart. These brachot ask God
for things which we want and need.
The 18 prayers are divided into
three sections — you guessed it! —
three prayers of praise, 13 requests
and three prayers of thanksgiving.
Wait a moment. 3 + 13 + 3=19?
The Shmoneh Esrei — the 18
Benedictions — are really 19
prayers. Originally there were 18,
and people got used to calling the
Amidah "The 18." Much later, in
response to an emergency, a 19th
prayer — a request — was added,
but the name stuck. In Reform
congregations, some changing and
combining of prayers in the Amidah
a medical orderly
chovesh
a military plane
matos tzva'ee
enemy land
admat ha'oyev
patzua kasheh...severely wounded
the right eye
ayin y'min
the left leg
regel smol
a chance
sikooy
Israeli territory
shetach Yisrael
teepul refoo'ey. . . medical treatment
hospital
beit-cholim
great pain
ke'ev norah
a lot of blood
harbe dam
God's will
retzon Ha'shem
death
mavet
verses
p'sukim
Sefer Tehilim ..The Book of Psalms
slowly
le'at
pains
ke'evim
difficult times
z'manim kashim
finally
sof sof
Israeli
Chayalim Yisraeli 'yim
soldiers
doctors
rof'im
nurses
achayot
power
koach
a miracle
ness
Nira Lev is director of Hebrew
Learning Center, Agency for Jewish
Education: Director of Hebrew
Department, Community Jewish
High School; Associate Professor,
Midrasha College of Jewish Studies.
was done to reflect their different
view of worship, and the result was
a return to an even 18 prayers.
Because we are looking only at
the Shabbat morning service, we
have a dilemma. On Shabbat, we
are not supposed to make requests
of God. Shabbat is a day of rest.
It's God's day off. So on Shabbat,
we dispense with the 13 requests in
the middle of the Amidah, and
replace them with a single prayer of
praise. Here is a quick synopsis of
the prayers of the Shabbat morning
Amidah:
Praise
1. Avot: We praise God for
being there for our ancestors,
and establish our connections
with them: Their God is our
God, even though we each
experience God a little
differently.
2.
G'vurot: We praise God for
doing heroic things like setting
free captives, picking up the
fallen and bringing healing to
the sick. God is our Supreme
Example.
3. Kedushat Hashem: We praise
God as the source of all
holiness.
Requests
4-15. Kedushat Hayom: We
praise God for the sanctity and
rest of Shabbat and ask God for
blessing and happiness.
Thanksgiving
17. Avodah: Thank You, Adonai,
for letting us serve you and be
Your chosen people
18. Hoda'ah: Thank You for
letting us praise You.
19. Birkat Kohanim: Please send
us peace. Even though this is
supposed to be a thank you,
peace is very, very important.
Once we have it, we will be
very, very thankful!
The next part of the service is
often a favorite, especially of
children who are becoming b'nai
mitzvah. It is the Torah service. We
remove the Sefer Torah from the ark
with great pomp and ceremony,
sometimes marching it around the
sanctuary before undressing and
unrolling it. Then we bless God for
giving us the Torah to read and by
which to live. Then we read from
the Parshat Hashavuah — the
portion of the week.
This reading may be divided
into up to seven aliyot (ascensions).
Each aliyah is an opportunity to
honor someone by calling him to
ascend the bimah and read or bless
a particular section of the parashah.
The reading of the Torah is followed
by a haftorah portion, which is a
section from the later books of the
Tanach (Bible) which is thematically
related to the parashah.
Often the bar or bat mitzvah or
the rabbi will deliver a D'var Torah
(Word of Torah). This is an
explanation or interpretation or a
lesson drawn from the parashah
which that person has prepared.
Then the Torah is held up for all to
see, dressed and returned to the
ark.
So far we have revisited the
creation, the redemption and the
revelation. We have praised and
thanked God for all of our blessings
which God has bestowed upon us.
We have asked for peace. We are at
or are approaching the highest part
of the mountain we will be able to
reach this time. Now it is time to
review and conclude the service.
The Aleynu reviews the
highlights of the service — it
recounts the journey we have taken
so far. We praise God as our Ruler,
Creator, Helper, etc. We bow our
heads in reverence because that is
one of the things you do when you
encounter your Ruler.
We have completed the journey.
We have ascended the mountain.
Even though we pray as a
community, each of us has our own
experience of prayer. Sometimes we
feel a very strong closeness to God
while we pray. Other times it may
feel as if we are merely going
through the motions. Often it
depends on what you bring with you
when you pray.
There are no guarantees in
prayer. It is impossible to say
whether your prayers will have an
effect on the world or even upon
how you feel. They do have the
potential for making you feel fulfilled
and energized. If you don't start up
the mountain — if you don't often
experience the worship service for
yourself — then there is little
chance of reaching the top.
Ira J. Wise is the temple educator at
Temple Emanu-El in Oak Park.
.
Famous Facts
Q. Did any Jews serve with General Francis Marion, the Swamp
Fox, during the American Revolution?
After the fall of Savannah
and Charleston to the British and
General Horatio Gates' disastrous
defeat at the Battle of Camden in
August 1780, patriot hopes of
victory reached a low ebb in the
South. The flame of rebellion was
kept alive there by several small
irregular armies led by the
"Swamp Fox" Francis Marion,
Thomas Sumter and Andrew
Pickens, who harassed British
troops and supply lines and
helped lead the way to General
Washington's decisive victory
over Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown
in October 1781.
One soldier in Sumter's
command was Abraham
Alexander, the reader in the
Charleston synagogue. Cushman
Pollack carried dispatches
between General Marion and
General Nathaniel Greene. One
report claims that Manuel M.
Noah fought under Gen. Marion
and was later at Yorktown.
Several dozen southern Jews
served with the American
regulars or in local militia units. A
number of Jewish citizens left or
were banished from Charleston
and Savannah during the British
occupation. Samuel Levy and
Levy Solomon came from Europe
as sutlers to the Hessian troops
but left them and settled in
Charleston.
Compiled by Dr. Matthew and
Thomas Schwartz.
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
L-3