There are numerous situations in which more than one Sefer Torah is taken from the ark for reading in the synagogue. It often happens that two Sifreh Torah are read, and there are rare occasions when three Sifreh Torah are read. One such occasion is when Rosh Hodesh Nissan falls on Shabbat. In such a situation, the weekly Parasha is read from the first Torah, and the section for Rosh Hodesh is read from the second Sefer Torah. The reading for Parashat Ha’hodesh is then read from the third scroll for Maftir. Another instance is when Rosh Hodesh Tebet falls on Shabbat. In this case, the weekly Parasha is read from the first Torah, the section for Rosh Hodesh is read from the second, and the reading for Hanukah is read from the third.
The question arises in such a case as to when Kaddish is recited. After which reading or readings should Kaddish be recited, and why?
The Bet Yosef addresses this question in Siman 282, and he writes that the custom among the Sepharadim when reading two Sifreh Torah is to recite Kaddish after the reading in each Sefer. Kaddish is recited after the seventh and final Aliya from the first Sefer, since the day’s obligation – which requires calling seven Aliyot – is complete, and then again after the Maftir reading from the second Sefer Torah. However, the Bet Yosef adds, in the case where three Sifreh Torah are read, Kaddish is recited twice, and not three times. In such a case, only six Aliyot are read from the first Sefer. Since the day’s obligation has not been completed after the reading from the first Sefer, Kaddish cannot be recited at that point. It is thus recited only after the reading of the seventh Aliya, which is done from the second Sefer, and then again after the reading of the Maftir from the third Sefer. The Bet Yosef notes that this is the ruling of the Rosh (Rabbenu Asher Ben Yehiel, Germany-Spain, 1250-1327) and of Rabbenu Yeruham (Spain, early 14th century).
This ruling, however, gives rise to an interesting question concerning Simhat Torah, when three Torah scrolls are used. The first is used for the reading of Parashat Vezot Haberacha, the second for the beginning of Parashat Bereshit, and the third for the reading about the special holiday Musaf sacrifice. Unlike on other occasions when three Torah scrolls are read, on Simhat Torah it is customary to call more than six Aliyot to the first Sefer Torah. Seemingly, according to the Bet Yosef’s rationale, in this case three Kaddishim should be recited. Since the required number of Aliyot is called to the first Sefer, this should warrant the recitation of Kaddish after the first Sefer is read. Common practice, however, is to recite Kaddish only twice on Simhat Torah – after the readings from the second and third Sifreh Torah, but not after the first.
The Bet Yosef addresses this question and suggests two reasons for why Kaddish is not recited after the reading from the first Sefer on Simhat Torah. First, it is possible that the Rabbis chose to maintain a consistent, uniform procedure for situations where three Sifreh Torah are read. Even though logic should dictate reciting three Kaddishim on Simhat Torah, the Rabbis nevertheless ordained reciting just two Kaddishim, so that there would be a single procedure for situations of three Torah scrolls. Alternatively, the Bet Yosef suggests, it is possible that a Kaddish was not instituted after the reading from the first Torah on Simhat Torah in order not to make an interruption in between the end of the Torah and the beginning of the Torah. We read Parashat Bereshit immediately after concluding the Torah, and we do not recite Kaddish so that we can proceed directly to Bereshit without any interruption.
These two different answers of the Bet Yosef will affect a different question: how many Kaddishim should be recited on a Shabbat when three Sifreh Torah are read if the congregation called more than six Aliyot to the first Sefer? As we know, it occasionally happens that a congregation will make extra Aliyot to accommodate all those who need an Aliya. It can thus happen that on a Shabbat when three Sifreh Torah are read, seven or more Aliyot can be read from the first Sefer, even though the standard practice is to read only six Aliyot from the first Sefer. In such a case, it would seem, a Kaddish should be recited even after the reading from the first Sefer, since seven (or more) Aliyot were called, such that the day’s obligation has been completed.
The Halacha in this case would depend upon the two theories proposed by the Bet Yosef concerning Simhat Torah. According to the first theory, the Rabbis wanted to maintain a consistent protocol of two Kaddishim. As such, in a situation where the congregation added Aliyot, too, we maintain the standard procedure of reciting only two Kaddishim. According to the second theory, however, the first Kaddish is suspended on Simhat Torah due to the concern for connecting the end of the Torah with the beginning, which obviously would not apply in the case under discussion. Thus, according to the Bet Yosef’s second answer, three Kaddishim would be recited if the congregation called up more than six Aliyot for the first Sefer Torah.
This latter view is the position accepted by Hacham Ovadia Yosef, in his Hazon Ovadia – Hilchot Hanukah (p. 242; listen to audio recording for precise citation). He writes that indeed, if, on a Shabbat when three Sifreh Torah are read, a congregation calls more than six Aliyot to the first Torah, a Kaddish is recited after the readings of each of the three Sifreh Torah.
Summary: When two Sifreh Torah are read in the synagogue, Kaddish is recited after both readings. When three Sifreh Torah are read, Kaddish is recited after the seventh Aliya is read, which is done from the second Sefer, and then again after the Maftir is read from the third Sefer. However, if the congregation made more than six Aliyot in the reading from the first Sefer, then Kaddish is recited after the reading from the first Sefer, as well.
