Reprinted with permission.
A Call to Reexamine Questionable Davening Practices
One would think synagogues would be exempt from the quarantine, for Torah and Tefillah protect us. But alas, even synagogues must close down to fight the coronavirus.
Could it be, perhaps, just maybe, God would rather have fewer or even no minyanim at all because modern davening practices desecrate His Name?
Specifically;
Multiple people saying Kaddish at once (clearly against Halachah if analyzed honestly)
Extra Kaddishim recited unnecessarily; this a violation of the entire purpose of Kaddish: it is a very holy prayer and saying it repeatedly cheapens it. Sephardim do not understand this concept; they honestly believe the more Kaddishim, the better.
The way Qedushah is said in almost all shuls is completely wrong: See Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz Volume One for more on this.
Brich Shmei: Most people just mumble it without understanding what it’s about, not to mention the Zohar itself is somewhat controversial.
Reciting Korbanos and extra Mizmorim like they are magic spells.
Latecomers rushing in and frantically mumbling through entire pages of the siddur, believing they MUST recite every word added by printers over the centuries (such as L’shem Yihud and Korbanoth).
My message to all Gedolim from all Edoth: Once this plague has passed, you must instruct your followers to change the way prayer is conducted in shul.
My suggestions include:
A unified, SHORT siddur with clear directions on what is obligatory and what is customary and Kabbalistic additions clearly noted as optional.
A return to the correct way of reciting Qedushah: Only the Hazzan recites the first paragraph, as spelled out in the Shulhan Aruch (Yemenites, Italians and western Ashkenazim still recite Qedushah correctly).
Reinstate the order of preference of those given the Mourner’s Kaddish, or better yet, abolish the Mourner’s Kaddish entirely, except maybe for Shabbath. In any case, only ONE person says ONE Kaddish per Tefillah.
Abolish the redundancy of saying Aleinu twice between Minha and Arvith (again, both Yemenites, Italians and western Ashkenazim never did this).
Abolish the insanely stupid custom of removing Tefillin for Musaph on Rosh Hodesh (there is no solid justification for this practice).
Finally, most controversial of all, reinstate wearing Tefillin on Hol Hamoedh for all communities, as was the custom in Eretz Yisrael until the Chassidim took over. There is even evidence that the Arizal himself wore Tefillin on Hol Hamoedh.
See Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz volume 5 for 900 pages of proof the modern Israeli custom is plain wrong.
I hope the great Rabbis of Israel will pay heed to my ideas.
Sincerely,
Yehoshua Shalet, a simple Jew and seeker of the TRUTH
P.S.,
Maybe Hashem also wants us to daven outside so get some much needed fresh air in our lungs (smoking is rampant in both the yeshiva and Chassidic communities). Perhaps also, on our way to davening we should look at the trees and flowers in bloom during Nissan, and marvel and appreciate God’s wondrous handiwork.
And, of course, pester the government to enable Korban Pesach, failing that, have armed citizens go to the temple mount and do it anyway. There are surely enough crazy people (in our case, the rational and sane) to get it done. All it takes is the will and desire to act. Perhaps we can get a Rebbe to promise Bibi Netanyahu the greatest s’char in Olam Habaw and total forgiveness for his sins.
Lastly, I am involved in an effort to establish a new party in the Knesset. It is called “The New True Right” or, as I like to call it, “Moshiach Focus”, see more here.
Disclaimer: Hyehudi.org does not endorse any law-breaking.