Monday, September 12, 2011

Sometimes its okay to change the liturgy, sometimes it isn't.

Before we had shuls, prayers took place in the Temple where a liturgy was often celebrated by the Levites as sacrifices were brought. One such prayer was the recitation of Psalm 44, which speaks of a slumbering God who no longer performs the miracles our ancestors saw. An excerpt:
9 But now you have rejected and humbled us;
you no longer go out with our armies.
10 You made us retreat before the enemy,
and our adversaries have plundered us.
11 You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
and have scattered us among the nations.
12 You sold your people for a pittance,
gaining nothing from their sale.

13 You have made us a reproach to our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.
14 You have made us a byword among the nations;
the peoples shake their heads at us.
15 I live in disgrace all day long,
and my face is covered with shame
16 at the taunts of those who reproach and revile me,
because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge
[ ]
23 Awake, Lord! Why do you sleep?
Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.
24 Why do you hide your face
and forget our misery and oppression?
According to the Gemarah this Pslam was recited by the Leivites every day as sacrifices were offered. The Gemarah also says the practice was instituted during times of suffering. In The Sages, Binyamin Lau suggests the custom owas established as a response to Selucid persecutions. For the Jews who lived through those terrible years, it must have seemed as if God was sleeping.

Year later (probably around 120 BCE)  Yochanan Kohen Godol abolished the prayer (Maaser Sheni 5:15) As Lau argues, the times had changed. A new era of peace and tranquility had begun (see back story below), and it was no longer appropriate to speak of a sleeping God who ignored prayers and left His people defenseless. Though the facts of currents events had previously supported the words of the Psalm, by the time of YKG the facts of current events had changed and the prayer could no longer be said.

There's an analogy here to events in our own time. Once upon a time, there were clear advantages to being a man. In the ancient world, women were slightly better than slaves, with no real legal rights. In such a time and place it made sense to thank God each morning "for not having made me a woman." Those days are over. Women are now full citizens of nearly every country, with rights and opportunities their ancient grandmothers never imagined. Just as Yochanan Kohen Godol abolished the Temple prayer on the grounds that the times no longer justified it, isn't it time for someone of YKG's stature to do the same with our out-of-date morning blessing?
~

Here is some of the historical back story:  Yochanan Kohen Godol,  identified by scholars as John Hyrkenus, was perhaps the most successful Hashmonian leader. Acting as Prince of Judea, he negotiated a truce with the Selucids, and later took advantage of the collapse of their empire to expand his own kingdom, destroy the rival Samaritan Temple on Mount Grizim, and force the neighboring Idumeans to convert. Read more about the achievements of Yochanan Hyrcanus on Wikipedia



Search for more information about # at 4torah.com

53 comments:

Anonymous said...

xanax for sale without prescription xanax 2mg recreation - xanax high

Anonymous said...

diazepam 10mg buy diazepam line usa - diazepam 10 mg tablets side effects

Anonymous said...

order ambien online no prescription what will 10mg of ambien do to you - ambien 5 mg high

Anonymous said...

order zolpidem much does zolpidem cost walgreens - ambien side effects dreams

Anonymous said...

online xanax much xanax show up drug test - order xanax online no prescription

Anonymous said...

buy zolpidem online hvad er zolpidem - ambien side effects when stopped

Anonymous said...

buy diazepam diazepam online europe - diazepam vs soma

Anonymous said...

order lorazepam ativan dosage wikipedia - ativan withdrawal forum

Anonymous said...

ativan for sale ativan dosage before surgery - buy cheap ativan no prescription

Anonymous said...

buy diazepam online can i buy diazepam in spain - diazepam side effects in animals

Anonymous said...

order ativan ativan long term use - ativan withdrawal and depression

Anonymous said...

diazepam 5mg buy diazepam online with mastercard - rectal diazepam for dogs

Anonymous said...

buy xanax cheap will 1mg xanax get you high - effects quitting xanax

Anonymous said...

diazepam 10mg how much does valium cost - valium half life 5mg

Anonymous said...

soma online pharmacy buy somatropin hgh uk - grapefruit juice carisoprodol

Anonymous said...

generic diazepam buy valium online fast delivery - where can i buy valium online yahoo answers

Anonymous said...

zolpidem online buy ambien overnight - ambien withdrawal long does take

Anonymous said...

soma online carisoprodol pills - carisoprodol dosage information

Anonymous said...

buy soma online carisoprodol 749 - soma 10 panel drug test

Anonymous said...

valium pharmacy valium effects with alcohol - pakistan valium diazepam

Anonymous said...

diazepam drug valium vs xanax recreational - generic valium buy

Anonymous said...

Blogger: DOVBEAR - Post a Comment buy reductil - buy meridia without prescription http://www.meridiaordernow.com/#buy-meridia-without-prescription

Anonymous said...

Blogger: DOVBEAR - Post a Comment generic prednisone online - generic prednisolone http://www.ourdailybreadmarket.net/#generic-prednisolone

Anonymous said...

Holstic Medicine Distributor In Arizona buy acomplia online - buy acomplia http://www.buydiscountedisotretinoin.net/#buy-acomplia

Anonymous said...

Hello, finasteride without rx - propecia 5mg http://www.bigdocpoker.com/#buy-propecia

Anonymous said...

Hello, buy finasteride - propecia online http://www.wheretobuymedsonline.com/propecia/

Anonymous said...

Pharmaceutical Identification Of Pills where can i buy acomplia online - buy generic acomplia http://www.buydiscountedisotretinoin.net/#buy-generic-acomplia

Anonymous said...

The Paparazzi Effect Drugs buy acomplia online - buy acomplia http://www.buydiscountedisotretinoin.net/#buy-acomplia

Anonymous said...

Hello, buy lipitor - generic lipitor no prescription http://www.costoflipitoronline.net/#lipitor-no-prescription

Anonymous said...

Hello, lipitor online pharmacy - generic for lipitor http://www.costoflipitoronline.net/#generic-for-lipitor

Anonymous said...

Hello, purchase lipitor - buy generic lipitor online http://www.costoflipitoronline.net/#buy-generic-lipitor-online

Anonymous said...

Hello, atorvastatin cost - generic lipitor price http://www.costoflipitoronline.net/#atorvastatin-cost

Anonymous said...

Drug Free Pain Relief buy topiramate online no prescription - cheap topamax http://www.topamaxdiscount.com/

Anonymous said...

dalsCleax discount valium - diazepam online pharmacy http://www.diazepamgenericonline.com/#diazepam-online-pharmacy

Anonymous said...

dalsCleax ciprofloxacin 500mg - cipro price http://www.ciproonlinerx.com/#cipro-price

Anonymous said...

Troy Froehlich Drug Bust diazepam online no prescription - valium price http://www.samskitchenonline.com/, [url=http://www.samskitchenonline.com/]cheap diazepam [/url]

Anonymous said...

Holistic Seizure Medicine For Dogs buy cheap sibutramine - cheap reductil http://www.meridiaonlineorder.net/#cheap-reductil , [url=http://www.meridiaonlineorder.net/#reductil-for-sale ]reductil for sale [/url]

Anonymous said...

Drug Information Management buy sibutramine meridia - generic reductil http://www.meridiaonlineorder.net/#generic-reductil , [url=http://www.meridiaonlineorder.net/#purchase-meridia-online ]purchase meridia online [/url]

Anonymous said...

Drug Testing Hydroxycut reductil for sale - buy reductil online no prescription http://www.meridiaonlineorder.net/#buy-reductil-online-no-prescription , [url=http://www.meridiaonlineorder.net/#meridia-diet-pills ]meridia diet pills [/url]

Anonymous said...

tfv [url=http://www.prozacbuynow.net/#cheap-prozac-online ]prozac online [/url] - buy prozac - prozac cost http://www.prozacbuynow.net/#buy-generic-prozac-online-no-prescription ,

Anonymous said...

tfv order terbinafine no prescription - lamisil pills no prescription http://www.lamisilonlinerx.net/#purchase-lamisil, [url=http://www.lamisilonlinerx.net/#purchase-lamisil]cost of lamisil [/url]

Anonymous said...

losneyfgd cheap zolpidem - buy ambien without prescription http://www.ambienonlineprices.com/#buy-ambien-without-prescription , [url=http://www.ambienonlineprices.com/#zolpidem-online-pharmacy ]zolpidem online pharmacy [/url]

Anonymous said...

3. summer holiday homework - summer homework ideas http://www.homeworkhelpinstant.com/#summer-homework-ideas , [url=http://www.homeworkhelpinstant.com/#buy-homework ]buy homework [/url]

Anonymous said...

2, lasix online - order lasix online no prescription http://www.lasixordernow.net/#order-lasix, [url=http://www.lasixordernow.net/#lasix-cost]lasix cost[/url]

Anonymous said...

g, cheap imitrex no prescription - cheap sumatriptan http://itrafficgeneration.com/#cheap-sumatriptan , [url=http://itrafficgeneration.com/#sumatriptan-without-rx ]sumatriptan without rx [/url]

Anonymous said...

Hi, nexium online - buy nexium no prescription http://www.prfreetoairsatellites.com/, [url=http://www.prfreetoairsatellites.com/]buy esomeprazole online [/url]

Anonymous said...

1, [url=http://www.onlinecelebrexdeal.net/]Celebrex Online Pharmacy[/url] - Cheap Celebrex - generic celebrex cost http://www.onlinecelebrexdeal.net/.

Anonymous said...

6, [url=http://www.isotretinoinonlinerx.net/]accutane no prescription [/url] - buy accutane online - accutane pills http://www.isotretinoinonlinerx.net/.

Anonymous said...

5, [url=http://www.isotretinoinonlinerx.net/]roaccutane price [/url] - purchase accutane - buy accutane no prescription http://www.isotretinoinonlinerx.net/.

Anonymous said...

6, [url=http://www.costofeffexor.net/]Effexor For Sale[/url] - Order Effexor Online - effexor 75 http://www.costofeffexor.net/

Anonymous said...

5, [url=http://www.nexiumpricewatch.net/] Nexium Online[/url] - Cheap Nexium - order nexium online http://www.nexiumpricewatch.net/ .

Anonymous said...

6, [url=http://www.costofeffexor.net/]Effexor No Prescription[/url] - Generic Effexor - effexor generic http://www.costofeffexor.net/

Anonymous said...

17, [url=http://www.francescresswelsing.com/]Modafinil Cost[/url] - Buy Provigil - modalert online http://www.francescresswelsing.com/ .