Halakhah do Psalmów 84:78

You will find also in the words of Moses at the end of the Torah a promise well-known to be about the world to come, which is what is written, “O happy Israel! Who is like you, A people delivered by the Lord.”¹¹⁵Dt 33:29. Because it specified above the destined physical rewards, when it said, “Thus Israel will dwell in safety, untroubled will be Jacob’s abode, in a land of grain and wine, under heavens dripping dew,”¹¹⁶Ibid., 33:28. so it connected it immediately to “O Happy Israel!” to say “don’t think that the only recompense and reward you’ll have for doing the mitzvoth will be in this world.” That’s why it said, “O Happy [ashrekha] Israel,” as our sages taught in a midrash, “‘You shall be happy [ashrekha] and you shall prosper,’¹¹⁷Ps 128:2. ‘You shall be happy’ – in this world, and ‘You shall prosper’ – in the world to come.”¹¹⁸M. Avot 4:1. And afterwards it said, “Who is like you?”¹¹⁹Dt 33:29. that is to say, who among all the nations is like you will be “delivered by the Lord” – which means the salvation [t’shua’at] of the soul in the world of souls, which is why it said, “delivered [nosha’] by the Lord.”¹²⁰Ibid. It’s like the similar expression of the prophet: “Israel has been delivered [nosha’] by the Lord, with salvation [t’shuat] everlasting.”¹²¹Is 45:17: literally “salvation of the worlds” – t’shuat olamim – the plural of which R. Bahya without a doubt understands as an allusion to salvation in both worlds – this world and the world to come. And it said, “your protecting shield”¹²²Dt 33:29. because after it specified the reward of the soul and its salvation in the world of souls, it gave a sign for this and said that Ha-Shem (may He be blessed) is their shield, their protection and their “sword triumphant” [herev ge’utam], ¹²³Ibid., literally, “the sword of your pride.”that is, something they could be proud [le-hitga’ot] about, hence “your protecting shield.”¹²⁴Ibid. And this would even include what midat ha-din above is called – magen – “shield”, because one usually holds a shield in the left hand, and He keeps us safe with it so that by protecting us, we need not be afraid of the enemy overpowering it, and so David said, “You have granted me the shield of Your protection – magen yish’ekha“¹²⁵2 Sam 22:36, or “shield of Your salvation.” – the shield which protects You. And he explained further, “For YHWH God is sun and shield,”¹²⁶Ps 84:12. that is, “the Great Name” [of YHWH], the quality of Jacob, which is called “sun.”¹²⁷E.g., in Joseph’s dream, Gen 37:9, where the sun clearly stands for Jacob. I think R. Bahya means that “sun” is expression for God’s other main attribute, His “right hand” – midat ha-rahamim. Thus, when David referred to “Lord God” as “sun and shield” in Ps 84:12, from a kabbalistic perspective, it’s a reference to God having both midat ha-din and midat ha-rahamim, the attribute of severity and the attribute of compassion. I.e., YHWH (“Lord”) = “sun” = “Jacob” = midat ha-rahamim, while Elohim (“God”) = “shield” = midat ha-din. And so our rabbis z”l taught in a midrash, “Jacob said, ‘Who revealed to him [Joseph] that my name [sh’my] was ‘sun’?”¹²⁸Bereshit Rabba 84:10. Or as R. Bahya interprets it, sh’my= shem Y’, “the great name of YHWH.” And he called the heavenly midat ha-din “shield,” and this what is meant by “For YHWH God is sun and shield;”¹²⁹Ps 84:12. this is why it is specified “Your protecting shield, your sword of pride”¹³⁰Dt 33:29. because of Israel having this eternal success and ultimate victory over all their enemies. So all this is a sign that they are attached to and will be delivered by Ha-Shem in the world of souls. If so, then the account of the things destined for the soul in the Torah are only there by analogy and as a sign, so set your heart to the words of Moses, how he wanted on the day of his death to “seal” his words in the upper world – understand this!

People who are meticulous in observing the mitzvos begin to build the sukkah, immediately after the end of Yom Kippur, fulfilling the verse, "They go from strength to strength" (Psalms 84:8).

And according to the plain meaning, the reason that we bless the moon more than the stars/planets, although it's smaller than almost all the other planets (excepting Mercury), is because it's closer to the Earth than all the other stars/planets; it's only about 43,000 parasangs away. The moon inspires in us a feeling of the greatness of the Holy Blessed One, since every night its path is perceived, and it orbits the earth every month. For this reason it's called "yareach" [ירח], as it is written "[God] made a moon [ירח] to mark the seasons" (Psalms 104:19) -- since it orbits the earth in every moon of days, and its waxing and waning are perceptible. And Israel, who count [days] by the moon, are compared to the moon; just as the moon has no light of its own, and is illuminated by the sun's light, so too Israel have no light other than the Light of the Holy Blessed One, which shines for us from the midst of the Holy Torah, as it is written "A sun and a shield is Lord God" (Psalms 84:12). And just as the moon darkens and lightens, so too is Israel; just as we say in the blessing "and to the moon They said, 'renew yourself!' - a crown of glory to the womb-borne, for they are destined to renew themselves like it." And just as the moon exists even in the days of its diminishment [waning], when it seems dark on Earth -- it however is light on its other face from above, as is known; so too Israel. And for all of these reasons, Israel accepted this commandment with joy.

And after this we are accustomed to say "Blessed is the One Who formed you" -- as a sign for Ya'akov. And some begin "Blessed is the One Who made you", due to the order of the words. And dance three times opposite it with toes [i.e. jump], and say "Just as I... Fall...", and [the latter formula] backwards three times [each]. And we are accustomed to say "David, King of Israel, lives and endures", and the intent is the descendants of David. For the kingship of the house of David is compared to the moon, as it is written in Psalms (89:37-8) "His line continues forever... as the moon established forever." As if to say -- even though it gets dark, it will get light again. And after that we say each to the other "Peace be upon you..." "The voice of my beloved..." "My beloved is similar..." "A song of ascents..." "Praise God from Their Sanctuary..." "It is taught in the house of Rabbi Yishmael, if..." and "May it be Your will", as it is written in prayerbooks. And our teacher the Rem"a [Rabbi Moshe Isserles] writes: "we are accustomed to say "David..." for his kingship is compared to the moon, and is destined to renew itself like one. And the community of Israel will return to cleave unto the Holy Blessed One and their example is the moon which renews itself with the sun, as it says "the sun and the shield of God..." (Psalms 84:12). And therefore we do joys [?] and dances at the sanctification of the moon: an example of the joy of a wedding." This is the end of the Rem"a's language. And the primary portion is the blessing, and [the lack of it] prevents [it working], and the other things, if one didn't say them -- it's not prevented. (And one shakes the folds of one's clothes.)

“The order of confession (of sins)³⁹Viddui, ודוי, confession of sins, is a prerequisite for expiation and atonement in the Bible for sins committed individually or collectively. In the Bible there is usually a pardoning by God following the confession. Examples of this are found in the stories of Cain, (Genesis 4:13) David, (Psalms 32,41,51, and 69), Judah with Tamar (Genesis 36:26), Achan and the spoils of Jerico (Joshua 7:19-21), Saul and the Amalekite booty (I Samuel 15:24-25). There are also examples of Biblical confessions made for the nation; Moses and the golden calf worshipping (Exodus 32:31), the high priest’s confession on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:6, 11, 21) and the confession of Ezra (9:6, 7, 15) and Nehemiah (1:6,7;9:2,33-35).
Prior to the destruction of the Temple confessions had to precede special sin and guilt sacrificial offerings. The person confessing had to place his hands upon the head of the animal sacrifice to transfer his sins to the animal (Leviticus 1:4). The Bible gives no wording for these confessions but there is in the Mishna the wording for the confession of the high priest on Yom Kippur: “O God, I have committed iniquity, transgressed, and sinned before Thee, I and my house. O God forgive the iniquities and transgressions and sins which I have committed and transgressed and sinned before Thee I and my house as it is written in the Law of Thy servant Moses, ‘For on this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins shall ye be clean before the Lord’” (Leviticus 16:30; Yoma 3:8).
In rabbinic times it became an accepted custom to confess one's sins before seeking atonement and the confession of sins became an integral part of the synagogue ritual. On the Day of Atonement it became a focal point of the service. According to the Talmud (Yoma 87b) the simple statement "Truly, we have sinned" is sufficient for confession, but elaborate formulas of confession have evolved. The Ashamnu "We have incurred guilt" is the prayer on Yom Kippur that is inserted into the fourth benediction of the reader's repetition of the Amidah (see footnote 43). The prayer consists of two parts, each of which contains an alphabetical listing of sins probably committed by people during the year for which they are seeking atonement on Yom Kippur. The first alphabetical confession is known as the Viddui Katan, the "Small Confession". The second part of the Ashamnu is known as the Viddui Gadol, the "Great Confession". It is also known as the Al Ḥet "For the sin which I committed before Thee" which is the statement that precedes each specified sin. These confessionals are first mentioned in geonic liturgy (see footnote 19). Additions to the enumerated sins have evolved to include all possible transgressions since a person might have unintentionally forgotten about a sin during the year which must be confessed in order to receive atonement. The sins are all confessed in the first person plural, "we", communally, thus a person may even confess a sin he is sure he did not commit.
In addition to Yom Kippur, the Ashamnu is also recited during the Seliḥot Services prior to Yom Kippur (see footnote 14). It is also recited in the Minḥah Afternoon Service on the Eve of Yom Kippur and ten times during the Day itself.
The Ashamnu is also included in the daily service of the Ḥasidic rite, and on Monday and Thursday it is recited by the Sephardi, Italian, and Yemenite communities.
The viddui, confession of sins, can also be said by individuals silently at appropriate occasions especially when one is about to die. The viddui said on the Day of Atonement in the singular has become acceptable as a death confessional. A bridegroom also recites this viddui in the singular during the Minḥah Service before his wedding, the wedding day being considered a day of judgment for the bride and groom.
Editorial Staff, E. J., v. 5, pp. 878-80. during Minḥah⁴⁰Minḥah, מנחה, is the Afternoon Service which is one of the three daily services, the Morning Service being called the Shaḥarit (see footnote 17) and the Evening Service being called the Arvit or Ma'ariv Service (see footnote 144). The Minḥah Service possibly derives its name from the minḥah sacrificial offering performed at the Temple in Jerusalem in the afternoon. A lamb was sacrificed at the Temple at dusk. The Minḥah Service consists of the following parts: the Ashrei (Psalm 145 preceded by Psalms 84:5 and 144:15 and closed by Psalm 115:18); the Amidah (see footnote 17); the Taḥanun (see footnote 10); and it is concluded with the Aleinu (see footnote 17).
On the Sabbath and on fast days a portion of the Torah is read before the Amidah and in some rites portions dealing with daily sacrifices are read before the Ashrei. On Sabbaths part of the portion from the Torah of the coming week is read.
The Minḥah Prayer can begin any time after the sixth and one-half hour of the day, which mean any time after 12:30 P. M. If Minḥah is prayed at this time of the day it is called Minḥah Gedolah or the "major" Minḥah. If Minḥah is prayed after the nine and one-half hour, which means after 3:30 P. M., it is called Minḥah Ketannah or the "minor" Minḥah. The Minḥah Service must though be completed before the twelfth hour, that is, before sunset, (Ber. 4:1; Ber 26b-27a).
The Shulḥan Arukh, Oraḥ Ḥayyim, 324 states that one may pray both Minḥah Gedolah and Minḥah Ketannah provided that one is obligatory (ḥovah) and the other is a voluntary act (reshut). But this is only allowed for the extremely pious.
The third meal on the Sabbath, Se'udah Shelishit is usually eaten between the Minḥah, Afternoon Service, and the Ma'ariv, or Evening Service. It has become the custom during the daily service to wait and begin the Minḥah Service shortly before sunset, so that the congregation can wait a few moments and then not have to reassemble (for a third time, having also assembled in the morning for Shaḥarit) for the Evening, Ma'ariv Service which on Sabbaths and holidays can be recited immediately following the sunset. On weekdays, it can be recited even before sunset.
cf., Aaron Rothkoff, E. J., v. 12, pp. 31-32. (the Afternoon Prayer) on the Eve of Yom Kippur” - Containing six paragraphs.
One needs to confess during Minḥah (the Afternoon Prayer) before the (last) meal before fasting.⁴¹Se'udah ha-Mafseket, סעודה המפסקת, is the term given to the last meal which is eaten immediately prior to the fast of Yom Kippur and the fast of Tishah be-Av. It contains the last food which is eaten until the fast has been completed.
Hagah: If one is alone he says it (the confessional) after he finished his Silent Prayer, but the public reader⁴²Shelia'aḥ Ẓibbur, שליח צבור, is the public reader or the envoy or messenger of the community. It is the term given to an individual in public synagogue worship who officiates as the reader or the cantor, ḥazzan, the one who chants the liturgy. The main function of the sheli'aḥ ẓibbur is to lead the congregation in communal worship by chanting (or reading) aloud certain prayers or parts of them. He also recites the doxology of calling the congregation to worship (Barekhu) and he repeats the Amidah (see footnote 17 and 43). He also recites most Kaddish (see footnote 177) prayers which is a prayer in praise of God, and he leads the congregation in responsive readings and hymns. The Shulḥan Arukh, Oraḥ Ḥayyim, 53:4-9 lists the qualifications of a sheli'aḥ ẓibbur. He must have humility, be acceptable to the congregation, know the rules of prayer, and the proper pronunciation of the Hebrew text, have an agreeable voice, be properly dressed, and have a beard. The beard however was later not required except on the High Holydays. Except for the recital of hymns and psalms (e.g., pesukei de-zimra, see footnote 17) the sheli'aḥ ẓibbur had to be a male past the age of bar mitzvah, thirteen years old.
c.f., Editorial Staff, E. J., v. 14, pp. 1355-56. says his (confessional) on Yom Kippur during the Silent Prayer,⁴³Ha-Tefillah, התפילה, "The Prayer" is a synonym for the Amidah, עמידה, the Silent Prayer said standing which is recited individually during each of the daily services, the Shaḥarit, Morning Service (see footnote 17), Minḥah, Afternoon Service (see footnote 40), and the Arvit (or Ma'ariv), the Evening Service (see footnote 144). It is also recited for the Musaf, the Additional Service (see footnote 166) on the Sabbath and festivals, and on Yom Kippur for a fifth time during the Ne'ilah, the concluding prayer (see footnote 191). During a congregational prayer that is when there is a minyan, a quorum of at least ten adult males, the reader (see footnote 41) repeats the Amidah outloud and on festivals a number of additions are made. Originally the repetition was for the uneducated people who did not know the prayers. Upon hearing each blessing they could respond, "Amen" and thus fulfill their religious obligation of reciting the Amidah. The Amidah of Arvit, the Evening Service, was originally optional but it long ago became obligatory to recite it silently but it is not repeated outloud except on the Sabbath eve when an abbreviated version of it in one single benediction is recited.
The word Ha-Tefillah for this prayer originated in the Talmud where it was referred to as "The Prayer" par excellence. It is also known as the Amidah for it is said "standing" and as the Shemoneh-Esreh (18) for it originally had eighteen benedictions in the daily worship while today it contains ninteen.
The Amidah takes on various forms for different occasions. On weekdays there are ninteen benedictions, on fast days an additional benediction is added when the reader repeats the prayer, (in ancient times on some public fasts six prayers were added to the regular ones, Ta'an. 2:2-4). On Sabbaths and festivals there are only seven benedictions in the Amidah except for the Musaf Service (see footnote 166) on Rosh HaShanah where there are nine. All the various forms of the Amidah have six blessings in common, the first and last three, with the middle changing according to the occasion. The first three benedictions praise God and the last three basically express thanksgiving. On the weekdays the intermediate benedictions are petitions and the Amidah is therefore predominantly a prayer of supplication where praise, petition, and thanksgiving are included. In most of the benedictions the one praying addresses God as "Thou" for it is through the Amidah that one communicates with God. The pronoun, "we" is also used throughout the Amidah which indicates that it is to be a communal prayer. Even though at times it is said individually, the worshipper is considered a member of the congregation. On Sabbaths and on festivals the central prayer concerns the specialness of the day or one aspect of that part of the day (that is, morning, afternoon, or evening on the Sabbath), and there is no petition, only praise, the special blessing of the day, and thanksgiving.
On the Day of Atonement the central blessing called Kedushat ha-Yom, the sanctification of the day, is concluded specially as follows: "Barukh…Melekh moḥel ve-sole'aḥ le-avonoteinu…mekaddesh Yisrael ve-Yom ha-Kippurim," "Blessed…King who pardons and forgives our iniquities…who sanctifies Israel and the Day of Atonement". On Yom Kippur also the third blessing (of the first three standard blessings of praise) is elaborated to contain the prayer "u-Vekhen Ten Paḥekha", "Now therefore impose Thy awe", which is an ancient petition for the eschatological Kingdom of God. On the Day of Atonement the silent recital of the Amidah is followed by the viddui, a confession of sins (see footnote 39) which is not written as a benediction. When the reader repeats the Amidah the viddui is inserted into the fourth, the central, benediction. Two confessions are recited, one short and one long which are both arranged in alphabetical order. The sins which every person might have committed during the year are included and enumerated upon. Since this prayer is part of community worship, the pronoun "we" is used, "we have transgressed, etc." (see also footnote 17).
Joseph Heinemann, E. J., v. 2, pp. 838-45. (טור).⁴⁴Tur, טור, see footnote 23.

If there is a circumcision on Yom Kippur;¹⁷¹A circumcision must take place on the eighth day after birth, if the baby is healthy, regardless of whether it is the Sabbath, Yom Kippur, or any day of the year. The circumcision takes precedence over anything else. then they circumcize between the (Morning Prayer¹⁷²Shaḥarit, שחרית; see footnote 17. prior to the Keri’at Shema named) “יוצר¹⁷³The Shema, made up of Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 11:13-21; and Numbers 15:37-41, during the Morning Service is surrounded by two blessings before and one afterwards. (In the Evening Service there are two blessings before and two afterwards.) The Shema and its blessings are called Keri'at Shema, קריאת שמע, the Reading of the Shema. It is the basis of a Jew's declaration of One God and his devotion to God. "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One."
The first blessing before the Shema in the mornings is called the "Yoẓer Or", יוצר אור, "Who formest light and createst darkness" and it is a prayer of thankgiving for the creation of physical light, the light of day and the daily renewal of creation. (For a further explanation of the Reading of the Shema, see footnote 17).
Hertz, op. cit., p. 108.”, “Creator,” and the Additional Service¹⁷⁴Musaf, מוסף, Additional Service; see footnote 166. after the reading of the Torah. And after the circumcision we say the prayer, “אשרי¹⁷⁵Ashrei, אשרי, means literally "Happy are they". It is the first word and the name of a prayer in the liturgy composed from the Book of Psalms. The prayer is made up of the following: Psalms 84:5, 144:15, 145, and 115:18. The Talmud (Ber. 4b) states that anyone who recites the Ashrei three times a day will be assured of a life in the world to come. Therefore the prayer is read three times a day in the liturgy. It is read twice during the Shaḥarit Service, once in the preliminary psalms, Pesukei de-Zimra (see footnote 17), and once toward the end, and it is read at the beginning of the Afternoon, Minḥah Service (see footnote 40). The Ashrei is also recited before the Seliḥot (see footnote 14), prayers of forgiveness, in the months of Elul and Tishrei. On Yom Kippur the Sephardim recite the Ashrei both at Minḥah and Ne'ilah (see footnote 191) whereas the Ashkenazim only recite it at the Ne'ilah Service.
Raphael Posner, E. J., v. 3, p. 736.” But the custom is to circumcize after the “אשרי”, (מנהגים).¹⁷⁶Minhagim, מנהגים; see footnote 13. And if the circumcision takes place in a location where it is necessary to leave the synagogue, we do not circumcize him until after the Torah scroll is returned to the ark, and then they return (to the synagogue) and say the (reader’s) Kaddish.¹⁷⁷The Kaddish, קדיש, which literally means "holy" is a doxology, mostly in Aramaic which is recited by a reader with responses made throughout it by the congregation at the close of individual sections and at the conclusion of the whole prayer. There are four principal types of the Kaddish; the whole or complete Kaddish, the half Kaddish, the Kaddish de-Rabbanan (the scholar's Kaddish), and the Mourner's Kaddish.
The whole Kaddish basically glorifies God and prays for peace. It is recited by the reader after the Amidah except for the Morning Service when it comes after the prayer U-Va le-Ẓiyyon (see footnote 187). The half Kaddish omits the conclusion of the prayer which consists of the last three blessings. The half Kaddish is recited by the reader between different sections of the service. The Kaddish de-Rabbanan is the whole Kaddish except for a substitution which prays for those who study Torah and teach it. It is recited after communal study, after the reading of the lighting the Sabbath candles in the synagogue (Be-Mah Madlikin, Shabbat 2), after the early Morning Service, and after the song Ein Kh'Elohenu praising God. The Mourner's Kaddish is recited by the close relatives of a deceased person for eleven months following the death and every year on the day which marks the anniversary of that death. It is basically the whole Kaddish with the exception of one line concerning supplications. It is said at certain points of the service, e. g., after the Aleinu (see footnote 182) and may be repeated after the reading of additional psalms.
All versions of the Kaddish are said standing facing Jerusalem. The Sephardi form has an additional verse which is not found in the Ashkenazi concerning the coming of the Messiah. At first the Kaddish was not part of the daily synagogue worship but by the geonic period (see footnote 19) it was an established part of the Service and it required ten men (a minyan constituting a congregation) to be recited.
The Kaddish did not become a Mourner's prayer until around the thirteenth century as a result of the persecution of German Jews by the Crusades. The prayer is not for the soul of the departed, but rather an expression of the justification of judgment proclaimed by those who have suffered a loss. Man is required to give praise to God even when afflicted by sorrow.
Editorial Staff, E. J., v. 10, pp. 660-62.