Shacharit Kedusha

NeKadesh_Shimcah mp3
NeKadesh - Sheet Music [PDF]

Kedushah
Comments by Ann Saab

This new melody for the Kedushah was introduced by Elie Holzer when he was here.  It is taken from a prayer before bedtime asking God to surround us with angels as we sleep.  The Kedushah is the third paragraph of the Amidah, and was added by Ezra at the time of the building of the Second Temple.  Entitled “Holiness,” the prayer describes the angels’ praise of God from the heavens, so this music is especially appropriate.

In the first, introductory section we daveners associate ourselves with the angels described by Isaiah (6:3), who chant “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts, the whole world is filled with His glory.”  Dramatically reliving their praise, we turn from side to side and rise up on our toes, recalling how the angels called to each other and flew up in excitement.  The passage is taken from Isaiah’s vision, when in response to his protests that he is unworthy to prophesy, an angel touches his lips with a burning coal.  Understanding that he had been purified, Isaiah answers God’s call, a powerful response to His sanctity.     

In the second paragraph, we recount how majestic voices rise up towards the seraphim, quoting Ezekiel’s words (3:12), Praised is the glory of God “mimkomo” (literally, “from His place”).  But what is His place?  There is a tradition that Ezekiel, as was fitting for a prophet, began his preaching in Jerusalem.  In this case, God’s “place,” sometimes translated “abode,” might mean the Temple. But most of Ezekiel’s preaching dates to his captivity in Babylon, hence after the fall of the Temple.  Perhaps we should understand the phrase as “from (or throughout) His universe.” 

Either way, once again we are present at the beginning of prophecy.  God gives Ezekiel a scroll to eat, filling his mouth with it, and the scroll turns to honey.  As Ezekiel is borne up by the spirit of God, the wings of the angels resound like a great earthquake.  Again we recall a moment when angels touch a man with an extraordinary mission.

The final section of the Kedushah associates us, the daveners, with a plea to God to establish His Kingdom.  “When will You reign in Zion?  Let it be soon in our own days.”  While the first two paragraphs (discussed previously) are chanted by the leader, the whole congregation joins in these words and in the response from Psalm 146:10, “The Lord shall reign forever, Your God, Zion, from generation to generation, Hallelujah.”

L'Cha Adonai Hagdulah
Hodu Al Eretz V'Shamaim

L'Cha Adonai Hadulah mp3
L'Cha Adonai Hadulah- Sheet Music [PDF]
Hodu Al Eretz V'Shamaim mp3
Hodo Al Eretz - Sheet Music [PDF]

Lekha Adonai Hagdulah
Hodu Al Eretz V’Shamaim
Comments by Ann Saab

These two short pieces frame the Torah processions to and from the bima before and after the weekly Shabbat reading.  Both incorporate Biblical passages.

Lekha Adonai Hagdulah starts with a passage from I Chronicles (29:11).  David, an old and broken man after Absalom’s revolt, still yearns to build the Temple, but recognizes that he is impure.  The task is reserved for Solomon.  David compromises by preparing everything for his son.  He meets with the builders, draws up the plans, revising them endlessly, and orders and stores the materials which will be needed.  Then comes Adonijah’s revolt.  Solomon’s succession is abruptly thrown into doubt.  David and his advisers decide that he must invest Solomon with the kingship immediately.  It is a solemn ceremony in which David summons the new king and the people to unite in a common task, building the Temple.  All goes forward without a hitch.  The dignitaries attend and bring donations.  Although he is near death, David stands and speaks, asking God to bless Solomon, the people and their endeavor.  And finally, in phrases reminiscent of the Barchu, David leads the nation in praising God.

This section in the Torah service is completed by a short section from Psalm 99 (5,9), one of the Enthronement Psalms also recited during the Kabbalat Shabbat service.  Now the Temple has been built and the people are reminded to bow down and worship God. 

The final prayer, marking the return of the Sefer Torah, takes a passage from Psalm 148 (13).  This psalm calls on all living beings, from sea giants to crawling things to human princes and potentates to praise the Lord.  Looking outwards to all forms of life, the people Israel, a people near to Him, are especially enjoined to worship Him.

Mizmor Shiru L'Adonai Shir Chadash

Mizmor Shiru LaShem mp3
Shiru L'Hashem - Shlomo Carlebach mp3
Mizmor - Sheet Music [PDF]

PSALM 98 – Mizmor Shiru L’Adonai Shir Chadash
Comments by Ann Saab

This psalm, one of six chanted during the Kabbalat Shabbat service before Lekha Dodi, is considered by many scholars to be an “Enthronement Psalm” because it emphasizes God’s Kingship, His acclamation by harp, shofar, trumpet and song, and His mission, to rule the world with “fairness.”  The last line is virtually identical to the last line of the preceding Psalm 96, except that there God rules with faithfulness (emunato, faithfulness to the natural order) whereas in this psalm, He rules with fairness (mesharim, miraculous understanding).  Evidently, this psalm and others like it were used in the Temple in an early version of the Rosh Hashanah service (see the similar themes).

During these years of the First Temple, it was customary for volleys of six blasts of the shofar to be blown randomly throughout the day on Friday to announce the coming of Shabbat.  By the time the Israelites were taken into captivity in Babylon, this custom was no longer observed.  But there, in a strange land, the Israelites felt the need for some sort of announcement.  Shofar blowing would not be permitted.  Instead, they settled for reading psalms such as this one which describe blasts of the shofar. 

Based on this use, Psalm 98 eventually became part of the “warm-up” for the Kabbalat Shabbat service, recited by early arrivers while the other congregants were straggling in from the countryside.  The exact choice of psalms thus recited was not finalized until the sixteenth century, by Rabbi Moshe Cordovero. 

Ein Kaylohaynu

Ein K'elohaynu - Shlomo & Neshama mp3
Ein K'elohaynu - Shlomo mp3
Ein Kelohaynu - Sheet Music [PDF]

EIN KEILOHEINU
Comments by Ann Saab

Ein Keiloheinu is one of the most loved and best remembered songs in our liturgy. It has proved extremely adaptable to different tunes, including several by Carlebach. It seems ironic that instead of coming from a burst of inspiration or a favorite Torah passage, it was constructed by the Rabbis to meet a very practical need.

Jews are encouraged to say one hundred blessings each day. The weekday Amidah contains nineteen, so if one recites it three times, much of the obligation is met. But there is a problem on Shabbat and festivals, when the shortened Amidah has only seven. Ein Keiloheinu was devised specifically to fill the gap. First of all, each blessing is applied to four names of God, listed in the order of the Torah: God, Lord, King, and Savior (Deliverer or Rescuer). This gives twenty blessings.

In a further twist, the lines were arranged so that the first three form the acrostic “Amen.” Along with the text attached to them, this passage provides another twenty blessings. A plausible suggestion holds that to make the acrostic, the first two lines were reversed. Originally, the question “Who is like our God” came first and was followed by the answer, “No one is like our God.” To make the acrostic, these lines were changed and the now second line, “Who is like our God,” became a rhetorical question, along the lines of “Who could possibly be like our God?”

The song ends with a reference to the incense offering. Apparently it was important to praise God first, before mentioning the offering. This way the emphasis was put on our praise, not on the wealth which allows the gift.