DailyHalacha.com for Mobile Devices Now Available

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

      
(File size: 1.29 MB)
Answering “Amen” to Birkot Ha’Torah

The daily Birkot Ha’Torah blessings, which we recite each morning to thank Hashem for the Misva of studying Torah, consists of several sections. It begins with the brief Beracha, "Baruch…Asher Kideshanu Be’misvotav Ve’sivanu Al Dibreh Torah," which is followed by the lengthier Beracha, "Ve’ha’areb Na…" Birkot Ha’Torah concludes with the Beracha of "Baruch Ata…Asher Bahar Banu…Baruch Ata Hashem Noten Ha’Torah."

The second of these sections – "Ve’ha’areb Na" – begins with "Ve" ("And"), which clearly indicates that it continues the previous blessing. As such, one might think that "Ve’ha’areb Na" does not begin a new Beracha, but is rather just the continuation of the first Beracha. Although this is, in fact, the opinion of some Poskim, Sephardic tradition follows the view that Birkot Ha’Torah consists of three separate Berachot, and "Ve’ha’areb Na" begins a new Beracha. Therefore, as Hacham David Yosef rules in Halacha Berura (vol. 3, p. 380), if one hears his fellow reciting Birkot Ha’Torah, he answers "Amen" three times – after "Al Dibreh Torah," after the conclusion of "Ve’ha’areb Na" (meaning, after "He’melamed Torah Le’amo Yisrael"), and after "Baruch Ata Hashem Noten Ha’Torah."

Summary: The various sections that comprise Birkot Ha’Torah are considered three separate Berachot. Therefore, if one hears his fellow reciting Birkot Ha’Torah, he answers "Amen" three times – after "Al Dibreh Torah," after the conclusion of "Ve’ha’areb Na" (meaning, after "He’melamed Torah Le’amo Yisrael"), and after "Baruch Ata Hashem Noten Ha’Torah."

 


Recent Daily Halachot...
Does One Make Beracha Acharona If Immediately Followed By Netilat Yadayim, HaMotzih, and A Meal With Birkat HaMazon
If a Person is Uncertain Whether He Recited Birkat Ha'mazon
If a Person Mistakenly Recited 'Al Haetz' Instead of 'Al Hamiheya', One Who Cannot Remember Whether He Recited 'Al Hamiheya'
If a Person Mistakenly Recited Birkat Ha'mazon Instead of "Al Ha'miheya"
The Proper Sequence When One Must Recite Both "Al Ha'etz" and "Bore Nefashot"
Does One Recite a Beracha Over Coffee Drunk at the End of a Bread Meal?
Does One Recite a Beracha Over Baked Pastries Eaten for Dessert at a Bread Meal?
The Text Recited in the Conclusion of the "Beracha Me'en Shalosh"
Defining the Term "Beracha Me'en Shalosh"
Which Beracha Does One Recite Over Fruits and Vegetables Grown in a Pot or Grown Through Hydroponics?
If One Recited a Beracha Over Food at a Time When Eating is Forbidden, Should He Take a Bite?
Does One Recite a Beracha if He Eats on a Personal Fast Day, or if He Eats Stolen Food?
Does One Recite a Beracha if He Eats Before Reciting Kiddush on Shabbat or Before Praying in the Morning
Reciting a Beracha Acharona After Partaking of a Half-Ke'zayit of Apples and a Half-Ke'zayit of Grapes, or a Half-Revi'it of Wine and a Half-Revi'it of Water
One Who Mistakenly Recited "Ha'adama" Over Meat or Mushrooms
Page of 239
3585 Halachot found