{"id":6416,"date":"2010-01-20T05:00:11","date_gmt":"2010-01-20T03:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ph.yhb.org.il\/en\/?p=6416"},"modified":"2018-05-24T12:08:39","modified_gmt":"2018-05-24T09:08:39","slug":"02-20-05","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ph.yhb.org.il\/en\/02-20-05\/","title":{"rendered":"05 – The Connection of Birkat Kohanim to the Amidah and the Korbanot"},"content":{"rendered":"

During the time of the Temple, the Kohanim<\/i> would recite the Priestly Blessing after the conclusion of the Korbanot<\/i> service. The Torah writes this in reference to the eighth day of the dedication of the Tabernacle, the day the Kohanim<\/i> began performing their service there. \u201cAharon lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them. He then descended from [the altar where he] had performed the sin offering, the burnt offering, and the peace offering\u201d (Leviticus 9:22). From here we learn that the people were blessed at the conclusion of the sacrificial offerings. The reason for this is that after offering the sacrifices, which express our readiness to surrender ourselves and sacrifice our souls to Hashem, we are worthy of receiving His blessing.<\/p>\n

Outside the Temple, the Chachamim<\/i> established that Birkat Kohanim<\/i> would be recited during the prayer service, since prayer replaced the Korbanot<\/i>. There is a similarity between the Korbanot<\/i> and prayer, for in both, one\u2019s yearning for Divine closeness is expressed. Just like the Kohanim<\/i> recited the blessing after the Korbanot<\/i>, so it was established that towards the end of the Shemoneh Esrei<\/i> the Kohanim<\/i> bless the nation.<\/p>\n

In order to greatly emphasize the relevance of Birkat Kohanim<\/i> to the conclusion of the sacrificial offerings, the Chachamim<\/i> established that the Kohanim<\/i> are obligated to start walking in the direction of the duchan<\/i> at the time of Birkat<\/i> Retzeh<\/i>, for that is the berachah<\/i> that discusses the return of the sacrificial offerings. Any Kohen<\/i> who does not head toward the duchan<\/i> (\u201clift his feet\u201d) at the time of Birkat<\/i> Retzeh<\/i> loses the opportunity to fulfill the mitzvah and is prohibited from ascending to the duchan<\/i> during that Amidah<\/i> (Shulchan Aruch<\/i> 128:8). L\u2019chatchilah<\/i>, the Kohen<\/i> should lift his feet in the beginning of Birkat<\/i> Retzeh<\/i>. However, as long as the chazan<\/i> did not reach the end of the berachah<\/i>, the Kohen<\/i> is still permitted to ascend towards the duchan<\/i> (Mishnah Berurah<\/i> 128:25).<\/p>\n

A Kohen<\/i> who arrives late and realizes that he will not complete the washing of his hands before the conclusion of Birkat<\/i> Retzeh<\/i> is advised to take a small step in the direction of the duchan<\/i> while still standing at the sink. With this step he is considered to have started to walk towards the duchan<\/i> during Birkat<\/i> Retzeh<\/i>. When he finishes his washing, he continues to walk to the duchan<\/i> to bless the people (see Mishnah Berurah<\/i> 128:27, 28; Sha\u2019ar HaTziyun<\/i> 30; Sefer Nesiat Kapayim Kehilchatah<\/i> 7:2, note 8).<\/p>\n

Because Birkat Kohanim<\/i> is connected to the Korbanot<\/i>, the Chachamim<\/i> teach that just as the time to bring sacrificial offerings was specifically during the day, so too, Birkat Kohanim<\/i> is recited during the day. Therefore, the Kohanim<\/i> do not bless the nation during Ma\u2019ariv.<\/i> Although presumably there is reason to recite Birkat Kohanim<\/i> during Minchah<\/i>, the Chachamim<\/i> decided against this since the time of the Minchah<\/i> prayer is usually after a meal, and there is concern that a Kohen<\/i> who drank wine at his meal will subsequently ascend the duchan<\/i> to bless the people and desecrate the berachah<\/i>. It is forbidden for a Kohen<\/i> who is drunk to work in the Temple, and he is prohibited from blessing the people (Shulchan Aruch<\/i> 128:38). However, in Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>, and during Minchah<\/i> of public fast days, the blessing is recited. Since the Kohanim<\/i> are fasting, there is no concern of intoxication (Shulchan Aruch<\/i> 129:1). This is on condition that the Minchah<\/i> of a fast day is prayed after plag haminchah<\/i> (a proportional hour and a quarter before sunset), but when Minchah<\/i> of a fast day is recited before plag haminchah<\/i>, the Kohanim<\/i> do not bless the people.[3]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

\n
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[3]<\/a>. Although some maintain that it is permissible to bless the nation even at Minchah Gedolah<\/i> of a fast day, the majority of poskim<\/i> maintain that the blessing is only recited after plag haminchah<\/i>. This is because the enactment to bless the nation in the afternoon pertains to the Ne\u2019ilah<\/i> prayer and not the Minchah<\/i> prayer (on Yom <\/i>Kippur, the Kohanim<\/i> do not bless the people at Minchah<\/i>). If Birkat Kohanim<\/i> in the afternoon would have been instituted for the Minchah<\/i> prayer, people might think that Birkat Kohanim<\/i> is recited at Minchah<\/i> of a regular day as well, when it is in fact forbidden for concern of intoxication. However, on a fast day in which there is no Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>, the blessing is recited at Minchah<\/i>, on condition that it is recited at the time of Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>, meaning close to the end of the day.<\/p>\n

Even though there are various opinions as to how to calculate plag haminchah<\/i> (a proportional hour and a quarter before sunset, or a proportional hour and a quarter before tzeit hakochavim<\/i>), the main calculation is a proportional hour and a quarter before sunset, since the opinion maintaining that it is before tzeit hakochavim<\/i> is calculated based on Rabbeinu Tam<\/i> (meaning, 72 minutes after sunset, as explained earlier in this book, chapter 11, note 14. In other words, plag haminchah<\/i> according to Rabbeinu Tam<\/i> is between two to eighteen minutes before the visible sunset.) Nonetheless, it is best to start Minchah<\/i> a little later than that, approximately half an hour to three quarters of an hour before sunset, closer to the time of Ne\u2019ilah<\/i>. This way, Birkat Kohanim<\/i> will be recited as close as possible to sunset.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During the time of the Temple, the Kohanim would recite the Priestly Blessing after the conclusion of the Korbanot service. The Torah writes this in reference to the eighth day of the dedication of the Tabernacle, the day the Kohanim began performing their service there. \u201cAharon lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6416","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-20-birkat-kohanim-the-priestly-blessing"],"yoast_head":"\n05 - The Connection of Birkat Kohanim to the Amidah and the Korbanot - Peninei Halakha<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ph.yhb.org.il\/en\/02-20-05\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"05 - The Connection of Birkat Kohanim to the Amidah and the Korbanot - Peninei Halakha\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"During the time of the Temple, the Kohanim would recite the Priestly Blessing after the conclusion of the Korbanot service. 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