{"id":5853,"date":"2010-02-07T12:00:54","date_gmt":"2010-02-07T10:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ph.yhb.org.il\/en\/?p=5853"},"modified":"2019-06-11T10:33:57","modified_gmt":"2019-06-11T07:33:57","slug":"05-07-12","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ph.yhb.org.il\/en\/05-07-12\/","title":{"rendered":"12 \u2013 Birkat Kohanim (the Priestly Blessing) During Mincha"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Throughout the year, the <i>kohanim<\/i> (\u201cpriests\u201d) do not lift their hands [to bless the people] during <i>Mincha<\/i> services, because people [usually] eat a meal before <i>Mincha<\/i> and we are concerned that the <i>kohanim<\/i> might bless the people when they are drunk, which is forbidden.\u00a0 On fast days that have a <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i> service, like Yom Kippur and the fasts [that the Rabbis instituted] for droughts, the <i>kohanim<\/i> bless the people [during <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>], because there is no reason to fear that they will be drunk, seeing that it is a fast day.\u00a0 During <i>Mincha<\/i> of those days, however, the <i>kohanim<\/i> do not bless the people for fear that they may mistakenly think that they are supposed to do so on regular days, as well.\u00a0 Regarding ordinary fast days, on which we do not pray <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>, [the law depends on when the congregants pray <i>Mincha<\/i>].\u00a0 If they pray at the same time that <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i> is usually said [i.e., shortly before sunset], the <i>kohanim<\/i> bless the people (<i>cf.<\/i> <i>Ta\u2019anit<\/i> 26b; SA, OC 129:1).\u00a0 But if the congregation prays <i>Mincha<\/i> earlier, <i>Birkat Kohanim<\/i> is omitted, since it is not the time designated for <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>.\u00a0 In such a case, the cantor, as well, omits \u201c<i>Elokeinu v\u2019Elokai Avoteinu<\/i>,\u201d which is customarily said when no <i>kohanim<\/i> are present.<\/p>\n<p>Therefore, it is fitting to call <i>Mincha<\/i> on fast days for a time that enables people to merit [participating] in the <i>mitzvah<\/i> of <i>Birkat Kohanim<\/i>.\u00a0 Ideally, one should pray <i>Mincha<\/i> within half an hour of sunset, which is the best time to pray <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>.\u00a0 Nevertheless, as long as the congregation prays after <i>plag mincha<\/i>, the <i>kohanim<\/i> may lift their hands [and bless the people].\u00a0 If they pray earlier than that, however, <i>Birkat Kohanim<\/i> is omitted.<sup><a href='#_ze01ftn7_16' id='_ze01ftnref7_16' class='aup1'>[16]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>A <i>kohen<\/i> who is not fasting should not ascend the platform [to bless the people].\u00a0 And if there are no other <i>kohanim<\/i>, some authorities say that he [still] may not go up (KHC 129:5, <i>Torat HaMo\u2019adim<\/i> 3:4), while others maintain that he should. \u00a0[The latter opinion] goes as far as to say that he should go up even if there is one other <i>kohen<\/i> (<i>Lu\u2019ach Eretz Yisrael<\/i>; <i>Halichot Shlomo<\/i>, <i>Tefilla<\/i> 10:13).\u00a0 If there are less than six people fasting, no <i>kohen<\/i> should go up to bless the congregation during <i>Mincha<\/i>, even if he is fasting (see <i>Piskei Teshuvot<\/i> 129:2).<\/p>\n<div>\n<hr size=\"1\" \/>\n<div>\n<a href='#_ze01ftnref7_16' id='_ze01ftn7_16'>[16]<\/a>. According to the author of <i>Ginat Veradim<\/i>, a <i>kohen<\/i> who is not fasting may nonetheless ascend to the platform [to bless the people] during <i>Mincha<\/i> of a fast day.\u00a0 All other <i>poskim<\/i> disagree.\u00a0 According to the Chazon Ish (OC 20), <i>kohanim<\/i> may lift their hands even when praying an early <i>Mincha<\/i>, for there is no concern that they will be drunk.\u00a0 However, most <i>poskim<\/i> hold that <i>Birkat Kohanim<\/i> is recited only when praying <i>Mincha<\/i> at <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i> time, which is close to sunset.\u00a0 The following authorities hold this viewpoint: <i>Rav Poalim<\/i> (OC 5), KHC (129:7), <i>Luach Eretz Yisrael<\/i> (by the <i>gaon<\/i> R. Yechiel Michel Tikochinsky), <i>Piskei Teshuvot<\/i> (129:1).\u00a0 Also see <i>Torat HaMo\u2019adim<\/i> 3:2-4.\u00a0 The basis for this opinion is the fact that the <i>kohanim<\/i> do not bless the people during <i>Mincha<\/i> of Yom Kippur, for [<i>Chazal<\/i> were afraid that] they might mistakenly do so on a regular day.\u00a0 The reason they were concerned is that we pray <i>Mincha<\/i> on Yom K|ippur the same time we pray <i>Mincha<\/i> on a regular day.\u00a0 Furthermore, [<i>Mincha<\/i> time] is close to midday, which is when people eat lunch and are liable to drink [wine], as opposed to <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>, which is said at the end of the day.\u00a0 Therefore, on a day that has no <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i> service, the <i>kohanim<\/i> bless the people during <i>Mincha<\/i> only if it is said at the time of <i>Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>.\u00a0 Nonetheless, everyone agrees that if the <i>kohanim<\/i> ascend the platform during a <i>Mincha<\/i> service that is being held before <i>plag ha-mincha<\/i>, they need not descend.\u00a0 Many authorities rule this way with regard to <i>Mincha<\/i> of Yom Kippur.\u00a0 <i>Plag ha-mincha<\/i> is 1.25 hours before the end of the day, calculating each hour as one-twelfth of the day.\u00a0 There is a dispute whether the day ends at sunset or when the stars emerge (<i>tzait ha-kochavim<\/i>); see <i>Peninei Halakha<\/i>, <i>Prayer<\/i>, chap. 24, note 9.\u00a0 Regarding our issue, we calculate <i>plag<\/i> from sunset, as explained there, chap. 20, note 3.<\/p>\n<p>If the cantor\u2019s repetition of the <i>Shemoneh Esrei<\/i> continues until after sunset, the <i>kohanim<\/i> are permitted, <i>be-di\u2019avad<\/i>, to lift their hands [and bless the people] up until <i>tzait ha-kochavim<\/i>, for there is a combination of uncertainties here: 1) According to Ra\u2019avyah, Sefer Yerayim, and Or Zaru\u2019a, <i>kohanim<\/i> are allowed to bless the people at night.\u00a0 2) Twilight is possibly still daytime.\u00a0 3) Rabbeinu Tam holds that the period after sunset is definitely daytime, and [the following <i>poskim<\/i> agree with him]: Shulchan Aruch HaRav (623:8); Piskei Teshuvot (623:13), quoting Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach and Rav Elyashiv.\u00a0 The authors of <i>Yechaveh Da\u2019at<\/i> (6:40) and <i>Or Le-Tziyon<\/i> (vol. 2, 8:13) concur, adding that [this period lasts] 13.5 minutes after sunset.\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Throughout the year, the kohanim (\u201cpriests\u201d) do not lift their hands [to bless the people] during Mincha services, because people [usually] eat a meal before Mincha and we are concerned that the kohanim might bless the people when they are drunk, which is forbidden.\u00a0 On fast days that have a Ne\u2019ilah service, like Yom Kippur [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[60],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-05-07"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - 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