DailyHalacha.com for Mobile Devices Now Available

Click Here to Sponsor Daily Halacha
"Delivered to Over 6000 Registered Recipients Each Day"

      
(File size: 3.49 MB)
Rosh Hashanah – The Addition of “Te’anu Ve’te’ateru” in Kaddish

In the Kaddish recited at the end of Musaf on Rosh Hashanah, the Hazan adds a special insert that begins "Te’anu Ve’te’ateru Min Ha’shamayim." In this section, the Hazan wishes the congregation many blessings, that G-d should open for us many different "gates" – such as "the gates of light," "the gates of love and brotherhood," and so on. It is customary for the congregation to respond "Amen" after each wish.

Hacham Bension Abba Shaul (Israel, 1924-1998), in Ner Siyon (listen to audio recording for precise citation), laments the fact that many people answer "Amen" to these blessings with greater emotion and enthusiasm than they express in the standard responses to Kaddish. He emphasizes that the "Te’anu Ve’te’ateru" section is a later addition to Kaddish, and must not be treated with greater importance than Kaddish itself. We need to be careful not to confuse the primary responses of "Amen" with the secondary responses. And, our Sages teach that one who answers to Kaddish with all his concentration and feeling can annul even the harshest decrees. Therefore, while it is certainly commendable to answer "Amen" to the blessings in "Te’anu Ve’te’ateru" with great fervor, we should invest that same amount of feeling and emotion into the standard responses to Kaddish.

Summary: It is customary for the congregation to recite "Amen" to each of the special blessings pronounced by the Hazan during the "Te’anu Ve’te’ateru" section added to the Kaddish at the end of Musaf on Rosh Hashanah. This is a commendable practice, but one must ensure to answer "Amen" to the standard portions of Kaddish with no less fervor and emotion as that with which he answers "Amen" to the special additional blessings.

 


Recent Daily Halachot...
The Prohibitions of Misleading or Insulting Another Person
Is it Permissible to Study Secular Philosophy?
When is it Appropriate or Inappropriate to Report Bad Tidings?
Is It Permissible To Wear A Wool Tzitzit Under A Linen Shirt or Is It A Violation of Shatnez
Announcing a Fast Day in the Synagogue on the Preceding Shabbat
Barech Alienu for Travelers to and From Israel
Traveling on Ereb Shabbat
Maintaining Peace in One’s Financial Dealings
Birkat Ha'gomel: The Meaning of the Words, and Whether a Child Recites the Beracha
Reciting Tefilat Ha’derech
Hanukah – If One Does Not Have Enough Oil For All the Candles
Hanukah – Lighting a Menorah That Has a “Back”
Is Birkat Ha’gomel Required After Taking a Cruise on the Kinneret?
Synagogue Decorum and The Prohibition Against Speaking During Torah Reading – In the Wake of the Har Nof Tragedy
The Status of Pasteurized Wine
Page of 239
3585 Halachot found