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...
May One Ask a Non-Jew to Turn Off a Light on Shabbat?
Asking a Non-Jew to Move a Mukseh Item on Shabbat
Shabbat – If a Non-Jew Mistakenly Turned Off a Light and Then Turned It Back on for a Jew
Asking a Non-Jew to Turn on the Heat or Air Conditioning on Shabbat
If a Non-Jew is Paid to Turn Lights on For a Jew on Shabbat
Giving Precedence to the Shabbat Day Meal Over the Friday Night Meal
Shabbat – The Prohibition Against Eating and Drinking Before Kiddush on Friday Night
Minors Eating Before Kiddush on Friday Night; Eating During Ben Ha’shemashot
Eating and Drinking Before Shaharit, and Before Kiddush on Shabbat
Reciting Kiddush Along With Somebody Else
A Woman’s Obligation of Kiddush
During Which Shabbat Meal Should One Eat His Favorite Food?
May One Wear a Surgical Mask on Shabbat in a Public Domain?
Is it Permissible to Use a Water Filter on Shabbat?
Covering the Bread on the Table for Kiddush and Habdala
Page of 239
3585 Halachot found