Yom Kippur

[debka_notion]

Yom Kippur went quite well. Better kavannah than Rosh Hashanah (which wasn't bad, just not quite Good), especially during Kol NIdrei/Ma'ariv, Musaf and Neilah. And I (with about 3 minutes of warning, and no chance to learn the special nusakh, but oh well, maybe next year- wait, did I just say that?) ended up leading psukei d'zimra. What else are you going to do when you know you can, and the rabbi comes up and asks you to do it and says that the special nusakh is nice, but Shabbos nusakh is fine? Oh yes, and I only noticed once I'd agreed that the Harlow makhzor doesn't have those happy little boxes that tell one when to chant aloud. But I managed just fine, I think. At least, I got no complaints. But then, the number of people who show for Pd'Z on Yom Kippur is fairly small. And most of the honors got out ok, and fairly easily. Except hagbah for the mega-torah (Rabbi Lehmann just made an announcement asking for someone with good balance and upper body strength to lift "our large second torah" and we got someone who did quite nicely- only a little worrisome wobble, which was very impressive), and a kohein for mincha (afternoon service) since I forgot I needed to get out such honors before the service started- got out 6 out of 7 honors in about 1 1/2 pages of text. Not too shabby. Just sort of rushed: my balance of students:community members got off. Oh well, I doubt anyone else pays too much attention to that. Or maybe they do, I don't know. I didn't Freshman year, but then I was so busy trying not to be absolutely lost that I didn't notice much outside my own experience. But it all worked. And Rabbi Lehmann told some very good stories. And the fast went smoothly. And we got the torahs (plural is what? torot?) back to the chapel before going to the breakfast (although post sip of grape juice left from havdalah that R.Lehmann passed around and a much appreciated cracker from skyblue_dreamer).

R. Lehmann added a new ritual practice this year that a few folks had told me about before- all through Ne'ilah, there was the chance for whomever wanted to to go up to the ark and spend a moment davenning there. People seemed to take to it well- there was a pretty steady flow of people going up, some with their prayerbooks, others not. And the appearances seemed to indicate good spiritual experiences. Tried it myself, after some internal debate, and thought it was very worthwhile, even though intellectually I'm not sure I ought to feel like being close to the ark is "holy space" per se. I mean, it feels a little too much like davennign to the torah scrolls, which we're not. But it worked. My thought just after was that there's this connection between our ark and the Ark or chest or whatever it was in the Holy of Holies. Or maybe it's just this impression that this is special that intensifies the experience of holiness. But it was nearly palpable. I don't quite understand it. But it worked, for more folks than just me, I think.

But this did just prompt me to start an actual written list of interesting and useful minhagim and rituals. Should have started doing that a long time ago.

OK, grocery shopping in the AM, should go to bed soon. This will be a parent-filled weekend. Steve's mom is in for Shabbos and a bit after. My own folks are doing dinner with zodiacmg and I after Shabbos, and I'm hoping to see them Sunday as well. I'm very much looking forward to that.

Comments

[fleurdelis28.livejournal.com]

Interesting -- I lead P'seukei once, was given a rabbi-created official tape to learn from, and lo and and behold it was the Shabbat nusach. So I had no idea there was another.

[debka-notion.livejournal.com]

Well, there's one that everyone Rabbi Lehmann has taught in advance has used the last few years (Aka, Raphi of previous gabbay fame, and the Rabbinical grown offspring) which has this really neat run of downward moving notes towards the end of each out-loud unit. But I don't remember more of it than that.

But then, one of my teachers at Lishma has a separate Nusakh for the Torah service for weekdays too. THere's tons more nusakh than most of us know or use. (I Want to learn said Nusakh, just because. It was pretty. Maybe I should email him and see if he can point me to a recording, or make one and put it online. But he's in rabbinical school And he has a 1 1/2ish year old baby. I'd rather not put any extra stress on his time...)

[armonie.livejournal.com]

Dan Victor (now in rabbinical school), terriqat, fleurdelis28, Zoos, shir_hashibolim (who's name I proably just messed up...you know all know who I mean, Mr.terriqat (the two previous ones are currently in cantorial school) plus Rav Lehmann all had me do it in Shabbat nusach.


On a side note, I'm sorry you didn't get "my" mahzor. I had marked it up for leading psukei d'zimra junior year. Senior year when I went to lead again, lo and behold that happened to have been the book I got again. Hashem is special that way.

Re going up to the ark during neilah, apparently my shul has been doing that for years. They did it this year but I didn't go up because it was mobbed--the shul is huge. FYI, this is my first year there because prior to that I was in Moldova, then at 'Deis and then at a different shul.

[thevortex.livejournal.com]

Sing.: Torah
Pl.: Torot

The Vortex

[redlily.livejournal.com]

My understanding is that if you're talking about multiple copies of the Torah, you don't say "Torot," you say "Sifrei Torah."

[thevortex.livejournal.com]

Actually, "sifrei torah" is the plural of "sefer torah." The plural of torah (teaching) is torot (teachings).

Huzzah!

The Vortex

[redlily.livejournal.com]

Well, yes . . . but like I said, I've been told that if you're talking about the Torah as a physical body of work -- which is the context that Maya's using it in -- the word "Torot" simply isn't used that way.

Maybe I should just tell you who told me that, and you two can duke it out.

[skyblue-dreamer.livejournal.com]

Yay for tea biscuits! I don't know what to do about eating the rest of the package—I don't particularly like them plain—maybe dip them in tea or spread frosting on them?

[naomichana.livejournal.com]

The HHD PdZ nusach is fairly simple if you have a musically oriented mind -- my husband does it every year, and it takes him about two run-throughs to remember which bits end on the two-note conclusion and which on the niftier three-note conclusion (Ah-Ah-MEN). You can certainly do it next year if you're crazy enough. :)

I like the idea of davening close to the ark, but then I hate the monumental space that most HHD services are (necessarily) held in and escape down to our basement allegedly-limmud services whenever I can (which, unfortunately, does not include Neilah). I am a small-service girl: I grew up that way, I run a minyan that works that way, and I daven with small groups whenever possible and sit near the front when it's not. The ark isn't sacred, but it's the center of action, which is what I like to be near -- I don't want to watch a performance, I want to participate in tefillah.

[naomichana.livejournal.com]

(And if you have trouble with your local tape sources, I can certainly get him to make one and send it off -- he has a very pleasant voice, and the nusach's very similar everywhere I've been. But it might be easier to get it locally.)