Minyan
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This article is about the term used in Judaism. For other uses, see Minyan (disambiguation).
| Halakhic texts relating to this article | |
|---|---|
| Torah: | Leviticus 22:32 |
| Mishnah: | Megillah 4:3 |
| Babylonian Talmud: | Megillah 23b; Sanhedrin 74b |
| Jerusalem Talmud: | Megillah 4:4 |
| Mishneh Torah: | Hilchot Tefillah 8:1 |
| Shulchan Aruch: | Orach Chayim 55 |
| Part of a series on |
| Jews and Judaism |
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The most common activity requiring a minyan is public prayer. Accordingly, the term minyan in contemporary Judaism has taken on the secondary meaning of referring to a prayer service.
Minyan Ma'ariv prayer in a Jaffa Tel Aviv flea-market shop
Contents
Sources
The source for the requirement of minyan is recorded in the Talmud. The word minyan itself comes from the Hebrew root maneh מנה meaning to count or to number. The word is related to the Aramaic word mene, numbered, appearing in the writing on the wall in Daniel 5:25.Babylonian Talmud
The Babylonian Talmud (Megillah 23b) derives the requirement of a minyan of ten shomer Shabbat for Kiddush Hashem[3] and Devarim she-Bikdusha, "matters of sanctity", by combining three scriptural verses using the rule of gezerah shavah:
The word "midst" in the verse:
- "And I shall be sanctified in the midst of the children of Israel" (Leviticus 22:32)
- "Separate yourselves from the midst of the congregation" (Numbers 16:21)
- "How long shall I bear with this evil congregation which murmur against me?" (Numbers 14:27)
Jerusalem Talmud
The Jerusalem Talmud (Megillah 4:4) offers two sources for the requirement, also using a gezerah shavah:
The word "congregation" in the verse:
- "Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them: You shall be holy" (Leviticus 19:2)
- "How long shall I bear with this evil congregation which murmur against me?" (Numbers 14:27)
The second source is based on the term "children of Israel" which appears in the following two verses:
- "And I shall be sanctified in the midst of the children of Israel" (Leviticus 22:32)
- " And the children of Israel came to buy among those that came" (Genesis 42:5)
who descended to Egypt to obtain food during the famine, so too the
former verse refers to sanctification among the “children of Israel” in
the presence of ten.
Rituals requiring a minyan
Some rituals require a minyan; the presence of a rabbi (a teacher, not a priest) is not essential—it is said that "nine rabbis do not constitute a minyan, but ten cobblers can".[4]The following instances which require a minyan are listed in the Mishnah in Megillah (iv. 3):
- Public worship, which consists of the additional readings of Kaddish, Barechu, Kedusha and the Repetition of the Amidah. The treatise Soferim, written in Babylonia in the seventh century, contains a passage (10:7) often interpreted as asserting that in Land of Israel
at that time seven men were allowed to hold public services. Correctly
interpreted it refers to the repeating of "Kaddish" and "Barechu" at the
synagogue for the benefit of late comers, and declares that in Israel
such a repetition is permitted only when seven (according to others,
when six) men are present who have not yet heard these responsive
readings. - The priestly blessing.
- Reading from the Torah and Prophets with the associated benedictions.
- Seven benedictions recited at a wedding, or at any meal of the bridegroom and bride within a week from the wedding.
- Using the formulation "Let us bless our God, from whose wealth we have eaten," in preparing for Grace after meals.
- Ancient funeral ceremonies, no longer in use, which incorporated
arranging the standing and sitting, reciting the benedictions of the
mourners and the consolation of the mourners.
- Kiddush Hashem[3]
- Recitation of the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy [5]
- Recitation of Birkat ha-Gomel.[6]
the assembly of the congregation of Israel. Ten are needed for the
assembly, ten for the congregation, and ten for Israel.) According to
some Talmudic authorities, women counted in the minyan for offering the Korban Pesach (e.g. Rav, Rav Kahana, Pesachim 79b).
Prayer with a minyan
An exhibit at the Diaspora Museum, Tel Aviv shows a group of Jews waiting for the tenth man
assembled, either for worship or for the study of the Law, the Divine Presence
dwells among them. In rabbinical literature, those who meet for study
or prayer in smaller groups, even one who meditates or prays alone, are
to be praised. However, the stress is put upon the merits and sacredness
of the minyan of ten. The codifiers, such as Maimonides,[7] his annotators, and the author of the Shulkhan Arukh,
have unitedly given strength to this sentiment, and have thus, for more
than a thousand years, made the daily attendance at public worship,
morning and evening, to be conducted in a quorum of ten.
There is a disagreement between the medieval commentators on whether prayer with a minyan is preferable or obligatory. Rashi is of the view that an individual is obligated to pray with a minyan, while Nahmanides
holds that only if ten adult males are present are they obliged to
recite their prayer together, but an individual is not required to seek
out a minyan.[8]
Rashi and the Tosafot on Talmud Bavli Pesachim 46a are both of the opinion that one is required to travel the distance of 4 mil to pray with a minyan. The Mishnah Berurah writes that one who is sitting at home must travel up to one mil.[9]
Eligibility
should consist of individuals who are obligated in performance of that
particular precept. Some authorities deduce who may constitute a minyan by drawing on the verses which are brought as the basis for minyan and their implication. For example, the verse, "How long shall I bear with this evil congregation which murmur against me?"
is referring to the ten spies, a congregation comprising Jewish adult
males. It is understood from this that a minyan must likewise comprise
ten Jewish adult males. Other classical sources base their rulings on
discussions brought in the Talmud. Contemporary rabbinical authorities
deal with a plethora of questions relating to qualification for minyan.
Minors
Before a boy turns thirteen, he is considered a minorin Jewish law and is not obligated in the performance of religious
precepts. However, if a child is over six years of age and has adequate
comprehension of the significance of the precepts, his status may
change. His inclusion in minyan is thus subject of Talmudic dispute. Based on the Talmudic passage in Berachot, Rabbeinu Tam states that a minor can act as the tenth person[10] and according to the Baal Ha-Maor, up to four minors would be permitted. Rosh explains that those who permit the inclusion of a minor maintain that it is the Divine Presence which actually constitutes the tenth member, thereby validating the minyan. (This may explain why some of these authorities require that the minor represent this fact by holding a chumash.) However the majority of poskim follow the conclusion of the Ri who holds that a minor can never be counted in a minyan under any circumstances. This is the stance taken by the Shulchan Aruch,
who, although acknowledging some authorities do permit the inclusion of
an astute six-year-old, writes that consensus rejects this view and
only males over the age of thirteen may constitute a minyan.[11] However, in extraordinary circumstances some are lenient and permit a minor over six years old holding a chumash or Sefer Torah to complete a minyan.[12]
Women
Although the issue of whether women are permitted to make up a minyanhas been noted in early works, the matter has only come to the fore in
the past few decades, a reaction to an enhanced role of women in modern
society and to the demand for their inclusion in all areas of religious
life.[13]
The Talmud itself does not directly address the question of whether
women may count as part of a minyan for devarim shebkdusha. Since the
Talmud uses the same gezerah shavah for Kiddush Hashem as it uses for
devarim shebkdusha, one may expect the laws for those two cases to be
the same. Many authorities are of the opinion that women are included in
the minyan for Kiddush Hashem and Hillul Hashem. However, traditional
codifiers generally do not include women in the minyan for devarim
shebkdusha.[citation needed]
The Talmud (Arakhin 3a) relates that women are required to recite zimmun
of three participants, and Berakhot 45 says that women may recite the
zimmun. However, the majority of scholars are of the opinion that ten
women may not recite the additional form of zimun be-Shem, which is obligatory when ten men are present. The few authorities who do permit ten women to use the zimmun be-Shem formulation explain that the necessity for ten in this case is unique and cannot be compared to other instances requiring minyan. Only Rabbeinu Simcha among these authorities mentions the possibility of one woman joining with nine men to form a minyan for prayer. This isolated opinion is rejected by the codifiers. There are a number of cases, including reading of the megillah,
where a limited number of authorities count women towards the minyan.
However, in these cases the reason why women are counted is not because
they constitute a “congregation,” but rather because a public audience
is required.[14]
A possible reason why it is men who were obligated to form a
congregation in order to convene the Divine Presence is that women were
individually considered sufficiently holy and did not require the
combination of a group and special prayers to achieve added holiness
deficient in men. Due to the righteousness of the women in the
wilderness, they did not suffer the same deadly fate as their male
counterparts, and despite the spies’ negative report about the holy
land, wished to enter it.[15]
Others point to the sociological reality that women were traditionally
expected to care for the house and children. The Jewish tradition did
not require women to leave their social role to engage in public prayer.[16]
In 1845, rabbis attending the Frankfort Synod of the emerging Reform Judaism declared that women count in a minyan, a formalization of a customary Reform practice dating back to 1811.[17]
In 1973, the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of Conservative Judaism voted to count men and women equally as members of a minyan.[18] In 2002, the Committee adapted a responsum
by Rabbi David Fine which provides an official religious-law foundation
for women counting in a minyan and explains the current Conservative
approach to the role of women in prayer.[19]
This responsum holds that, although Jewish women do not traditionally
have the same obligations as men, Conservative women have, as a
collective whole, voluntarily undertaken them. Because of this
collective undertaking, the Fine responsum holds that Conservative women
are eligible to serve as agents and decision-makers for others. The
responsum also holds that traditionally-minded communities and
individual women can opt out without being regarded by the Conservative
movement as sinning. By adopting this responsum, the CJLS found itself
in a position to provide a considered Jewish-law justification for its
egalitarian practices, without having to rely on potentially
unconvincing arguments, undermine the religious importance of community
and clergy, ask individual women intrusive questions, repudiate the halakhic tradition, or label women following traditional practices as sinners.
Transgressors
The question of whether a sinner can be counted for a minyanhas become much more pertinent in recent generations, where a general
malaise in religious observance among the majority of Jews has occurred.
The Shulchan Aruch states that though a person may be a notorious and
habitual sinner and has even committed a capital offense,
unless a person has been placed under a religious ban due to his sinful
behaviour, he is counted among the ten. The source provided for this
sentiment is from the incident with Achan who, despite having been put to death for his transgression, was still referred to as a Jew.[20] However, the Pri Megadim
explains that this is only true if he sins for self-satisfaction, but
if a person sins to spite God or has openly severed their connection
with the Jewish people by professing a hostile creed or by publicly
desecrating the Shabbat, such a person is prohibited from constituting a
minyan.[21]
Nevertheless, many contemporary authorities have been driven to adopt a
lenient view in the face of widespread public non-observance of the
Shabbat, on the presumption that it does not indicate a deliberate
denial of faith, but is rather a result of ignorance and succumbing to
the pressure of social and economic conditions.[22][23]
Proselytes
See also: Proselyte
Even though Tosafot deduce from the Talmud in Sukkah38b that wherever the verse states “children of Israel” it comes to
exclude a proselyte unless there is specific clause for inclusion, here
with regard to minyan the sources state that there is no
reasoning to exclude a full-fledged proselyte. Since he is permitted to
act as a prayer leader, obviously he can count towards a minyan.[24]
Those who are unable to respond
As long as a person is of sufficient intelligence, he can be included in the minyan,even if he is unable to respond to the prayers which make the presence
of ten a necessity. According to some sources, this is because as long
as ten are gathered the Divine Presence descends and it is feasible to pronounce a Dvar she'bekedusha. This includes someone who is in the middle of his prayers but is precluded from responding to the hazzan’s incantations and someone who is mute
but can hear the prayers. (Someone who is deaf but has the ability and
knows when to respond can also be included.) There is however a dispute
regarding someone who is asleep or intoxicated. Such a person has
sufficient intelligence, but at present can neither hear or respond.[25]
Ideally he should be woken to the extent that he is dozing, but in
extraneous circumstances where it impossible to arouse him, it is
permitted to include the maximum of one sleeping person in the minyan.[26] In the case of a drunkard, the accepted view is that even if he has not reached the “drunkenness of Lot”, he still cannot be included.[27]
A minimum of six of those gathered in the minyan have a duty to listen
attentively and respond appropriately to the additional prayers and that
at least nine are required to respond for the repetition of the Amidah.[28]
Arrangement
It is not just the status of the individual which dictates eligibility; the physical arrangement of the minyan is also a factor. Maimonides delineates the confines which are placed on the arrangement of the people making up a minyan.Ideally all the members of the minyan should be gathered in one room.
However, if they are within hearing distance of one another, it is
permitted for the ten to be distributed in two adjoining rooms.[29]
Later authorities limit the extent of this opinion and rule that even
if there is an opening between the two rooms, the two groups are still
considered separate entities. Only in unusual circumstances is it
permitted, as long as some of the men in each room can see each other.[30]
Ten-and-ten minyan (ten men and ten women)
Over the last decade or so, more and more lay-led worship communitieshave formed that attempt to combine commitment to traditional Jewish
law with a push for increased participation and recognition of the role
of women. While many are simply referred to as "independent minyanim,"
the term used by the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance
for those groups that consider themselves part of the Modern Orthodox
community is "partnership minyan." Many of these groups have adopted the
custom initially instituted by Shira Hadasha in Jerusalem to wait for a "ten-and-ten minyan," made up of ten men and ten women.
Shira Hadasha has based many of its decisions on the writings of rabbis like Mendel Shapiro and Daniel Sperber. Some also use the Guide for the Halakhic Minyan,
a compendium of halakhic sources supporting increased participation by
women in services, as a basis for discussions of practices like the
ten-and-ten minyan.
See also
- Jewish services
- Torah reading
- Amidah
- Kaddish
- Birkat HaMazon
- Megillah
- Partnership minyan
- Tzadikim Nistarim
Further reading
- Adler, Rachel. "Innovation and authority : a feminist reading of the "women’s minyan" responsum" In Gender Issues in Jewish Law (2001) 3–32
- Broyde, Michael J.;
Wolowelsky, Joel B. "Further on women as prayer leaders and their role
in communal prayer; an exchange." Judaism. 42,4 (1993) 387–395. - Feinstein, Moses. "Splitting the worshipers into two minyanim for the sake of two mourners." (Heb.) Iggrot Moshe, Noble Press Book Corp. Brooklyn, New York (1982); Yoreh Deah vol. 4, ch. 61:4.
- Feinstein, Moses. "Including one who dwells in the Land of Israel for a minyan on second day yom-tov." (Heb.) Iggrot Moshe, Noble Press Book Corp. Brooklyn, New York (1982); Orach Chayim vol. 4, ch. 106, pg. 196–199.
- Feinstein, Moses. "Including a person who is praying a different prayer." (Heb.) Iggrot Moshe, Noble Press Book Corp. Brooklyn, New York (1982); Orach Chayim vol. 4, ch. 20, pg. 31.
- Feinstein, Moses. "Including a minor in extraneous circumstances." (Heb.) Iggrot Moshe, Noble Press Book Corp. Brooklyn, New York (1982); Orach Chayim vol. 2, ch. 18, pg. 188–189.
- Feinstein, Moses. "Forming a minyan of minors for the purpose of religious instruction." (Heb.) Iggrot Moshe, Noble Press Book Corp. Brooklyn, New York (1982); Orach Chayim vol. 2 ch. 98, pg. 290.
- Feinstein, Moses. "Is it sufficient for the minyan to contain a majority of those who have not already prayed?" (Heb.) Iggrot Moshe, Noble Press Book Corp. Brooklyn, New York (1982); Orach Chayim vol. 1, ch. 28–30, pg. 72–76.
- Feinstein, Moses. "Including one who profanes the Sabbath." (Heb.) Iggrot Moshe,
Noble Press Book Corp. Brooklyn, New York (1982); Orach Chayim vol. 1,
ch. 23, pg. 66–67 & Orach Chayim vol. 1, ch. 19, pg. 189. - Feinstein, Moses. "Is praying with a minyan obligatory or just preferential?" (Heb.) Iggrot Moshe,
Noble Press Book Corp. Brooklyn, New York (1982); Orach Chayim vol. 1,
ch. 31, pg. 77; Orach Chayim vol. 2, ch. 27, pg. 200–202; Orach Chayim
vol. 3, ch. 7, pg. 305 & Orach Chayim vol. 4, ch. 2, pg. 27. - Hauptman, Judith. "Some thoughts on the nature of halakhic adjudication; women and "minyan"." in Judaism 42,4 (1993) 396–413.
- Oppenheimer, Steven. "The breakaway minyan" in Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society 46 (2003) 41–59
- Safrai, Chana. "The "minyan" : gender and democracy" (Heb.) in Men
and Women; Gender, Judaism and Democracy. Ed.: Rachel Elior. Jerusalem:
Van Leer Jerusalem Institute; Urim Publications, 2004 - Schachter, Zvi. (Essay on women’s minyan) "Bet Yitzhak" 17 (1985).
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Is it better to include someone who profanes the Sabbath or dissolve the minyan?" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 1, ch. 469.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Counting the Omer with a minyan" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 1, ch. 310.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Including a person whose hearing is assisted with a hearing aid" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 1, ch. 101.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Including someone who lives with a non-Jewish lady" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 1, ch. 113.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Including someone who has not yet finished the silent prayer" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 1, ch. 104.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Including worshipers who are praying outside the synagogue" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 1, ch. 163.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Sanctifying the new moon with a minyan" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 1, ch. 205.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Reciting Birkat ha-Gomel in the presence of ten people" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 2, ch. 143.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Going on holiday to place where there is no minyan" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 2, ch. 63.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Leaving an exact minyan during prayer" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 2, ch. 62.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Including an Israeli for the Reading of the Law on second day yom-tov of the diaspora" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 2, ch. 89.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Including a despondent person with the worry that he may not respond" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 2, ch. 61.
- Sternbuch, Moishe. "Annulment of vows on New Year’s eve with a minyan" (Heb.) Teshuvos VeHanhagos, Frank Publishing, Jerusalem (1997); vol. 3, ch. 161.
- Weiss, Yitzchok Yaakov. "In an unenclosed area, how close together must people be to be considered part of the minyan?" (Heb.) Minchat Yitzchak, Minchat Yitzchak Publishing, Jerusalem (1991); vol. 2, ch. 44.
- Weiss, Yitzchok Yaakov. "Can one person make up two separate minyanim simultaneously?" (Heb.) Minchat Yitzchak, Minchat Yitzchak Publishing, Jerusalem (1991); vol. 2, ch. 45.
- Weiss, Yitzchok Yaakov. "Including a person who desecrates the Sabbath." (Heb.) Minchat Yitzchak, Minchat Yitzchak Publishing, Jerusalem (1991); vol. 3, ch. 26:4; vol. 6, ch. 9.
- Weiss, Yitzchok Yaakov. "Including a person who married out" (Heb.) Minchat Yitzchak, Minchat Yitzchak Publishing, Jerusalem (1991); vol. 3, ch. 65.
- Weiss, Yitzchok Yaakov. "Can people in a corridor be included in a minyan?" (Heb.) Minchat Yitzchak, Minchat Yitzchak Publishing, Jerusalem (1991); vol. 4, ch. 9.
- Weiss, Yitzchok Yaakov. "Regarding a small congregation who need to hire out people to make up the minyan" (Heb.) Minchat Yitzchak, Minchat Yitzchak Publishing, Jerusalem (1991); vol. 9, ch. 1, pg. 17–18.
- Weiss, Yitzchok Yaakov. "Can women make up their own minyan" (Heb.) Minchat Yitzchak, Minchat Yitzchak Publishing, Jerusalem (1991); vol. 9, ch. 11a, pg. 17.
- Wolowelsky, Joel B. (1992). "Women's Participation in Sheva Berakhot". Modern Judaism. 12 (2): 157. doi:10.1093/mj/12.2.157.
- Zuckerman, P. (1997). "Gender Regulation as a Source of Religious Schism". Sociology of Religion. 58 (4): 353–373. doi:10.2307/3711921. JSTOR 3711921.
- Frimer, Aryeh. “Women and Minyan”.[31] Tradition 23:4, (1988) 54–77.
Footnotes
- "WOMEN AND MINYAN \ Rabbi Aryeh A. Frimer". Daat.ac.il. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
External links
- Minyan – Jewish Encyclopedia article.
- The Minyan Project by Mechon Hadar
- GoDaven.com Find an Orthodox Minyan anywhere in the world.
- What is a Minyan? on Ask Moses
- What's the Truth about... Davening with a Minyan? PDF (92.9 KB) (OU.org)
- Minyan in the Jewish Knowledge Base on Chabad.org
- Frimer, A., Women and Minyan. Tradition 23:4, pp. 54–77 (1988) (Modern Orthodox view of women in minyan for various purposes)
prayer of the community is always heard; and even if there were sinners
among them, the Holy One, blessed be He, never rejects the prayer of
the multitude. Hence a person must join himself with the community, and
should not pray by himself so long as he is able to pray with the
community." Mishneh Torah Hilkhot Tefillah 8.1
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