Shacharit in the context of "Jewish prayer"

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⭐ Core Definition: Shacharit

Shacharit [ʃaχaˈʁit] (Hebrew: שַחֲרִית šaḥăriṯ), or Shacharis in Ashkenazi Hebrew, is the morning tefillah (prayer) of Judaism, one of the three daily prayers.

Different traditions identify different primary components of Shacharit. Essentially all agree that pesukei dezimra, the Shema Yisrael and its blessings, and the Amidah are major sections. Some identify the preliminary blessings and readings, as a first, distinct section. Others say that Tachanun is a separate section, as well as the concluding blessings. On certain days, there are additional prayers and services added to shacharit, including Mussaf and a Torah reading.

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In this Dossier

Shacharit in the context of Shema

Shema Yisrael (Shema Israel or Sh'ma Yisrael; Hebrew: שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל, lit.'Hear, O Israel') is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewish prayer services. Its first verse, Deuteronomy 6:4, encapsulates the monotheistic essence of Judaism: "Hear, O Israel: YHWH our God, YHWH is one" (שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָֽד׃).

The first part can be translated as either "The LORD our God" or "The LORD is our God", and the second part as either "the LORD is one" or as "the one LORD" (in the sense of "the LORD alone"). Hebrew does not generally use a copula in the present tense, so translators must decide by inference which translation is appropriate in English. The word used for "the LORD" is the Tetragrammaton (YHWH).

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Shacharit in the context of Tefillin

Tefillin (Hebrew: תְּפִלִּין or תְּפִילִּין; Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: [tfiˈlin]; Modern Israeli Hebrew pronunciation: [tefiˈlin]), or phylacteries, are sets of small black leather boxes with leather straps containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah. Tefillin are traditionally worn by male adult Jews during Shacharit on weekdays.

In Orthodox and traditional Conservative Jewish (including Masorti) communities, they are worn solely by men; some Reform and Conservative communities allow Jewish adults to don tefillin regardless of gender. In Jewish law (Halakha), women are exempt from most time-dependent positive commandments (including the wearing of tefillin). Unlike other time-dependent positive commandments, most halakhic authorities rule that female Jews need not fulfill this commandment.

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Shacharit in the context of Tallit

A tallit, taleth, or tallis is a fringed garment worn as a prayer shawl by religious Jews. The tallit has special twined and knotted fringes known as tzitzit attached to its four corners. The cloth part is known as the beged ("garment") and is usually made from wool or cotton, although silk is sometimes used for a tallit gadol.

The term is, to an extent, ambiguous. It can refer either to the tallit katan ("small tallit") item worn over or under clothing (commonly referred to as "tzitzit"), or to the tallit gadol ("big tallit") worn over the outer clothes during Shacharit—the morning Jewish prayer service—and all of the Yom Kippur prayer services. The term "tallit" alone typically refers to the tallit gadol.

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Shacharit in the context of Pesukei dezimra

Pesukei dezimra (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: פְּסוּקֵי דְזִמְרָא, romanized: pǝsuqē ḏǝzimrā, lit.'Verses of praise'; Rabbinic Hebrew: פַּסוּקֵי הַזְּמִירוֹת pasuqẽ hazzǝmiroṯ "Verses of songs"), or zemirot as they are called by the Spanish and Portuguese Jews, are a group of prayers that may be recited during Shacharit (the morning set of prayers in Judaism). They consist of various blessings, psalms, and sequences of other Biblical verses. Historically, reciting pesuqe dezimra in morning prayer was only practiced by the especially pious. Throughout Jewish history, their recitation has become widespread among the various rites of Jewish prayer.

The goal of pesukei dezimra is for the individual to recite praises of God before making the requests featured later in Shacharit and the day.

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Shacharit in the context of Amidah

The Amidah (Hebrew: תְפִלָת הַעֲמִידָה, romanizedTefilat HaAmidah, lit.'the Standing Prayer'), also called the Shemoneh Esreh (שְׁמוֹנֶה עֶשְׂרֵה, 'Eighteen'), is an important prayer in Judaism. Religious Jews recite the Amidah during each of the three services prayed on weekdays: Morning (שַׁחֲרִית, Shacharit), afternoon (מִנחָה, Mincha), and evening (מַעֲרִיב, Ma'ariv; also called עַרבִית, Arvit). On Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh (ראש חודש, 'Head [of the] Month'), and Jewish holidays, after the morning Torah reading, a fourth Amidah is recited during Mussaf ( (מוּסָף). Once annually, a fifth Amidah is recited during the Ne'ila (נְעִילָה) service of Erev Yom Kippur. Due to the importance of the Amidah, in the Rabbinic literature it is referred to only as "ha-tefila" (הַתְּפִילָה, 'the prayer').

A precise dating of the Amidah's formalization is not possible. However, Rabban Gamaliel is recorded in tractate Berakhot 28b:12 of the Talmud saying, "Each and every day, a person recites the prayer of eighteen blessings" (i.e., the Shemoneh Esreh), suggesting that the Amidah likely had a fixed formula before the end of the Mishnaic period (c. 220 CE). Furthermore, in Berakhot 28b:23, the Talmud records the formalization of the contemporary nineteen-blessing Amidah by the tanna Shmuel ha-Katan during the same period. Given that the Amidah includes a petition for the reconstruction of the Temple, the Second of which was destroyed in 70 CE, the Amidah's fixing likely occurred between then and the end of the Tannaitic era. Accordingly, in Judaism, to recite the Amidah is a mitzvah d'rabbanan (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: מִצְוָה דְּרַבָּנָן, lit.'commandment of [the] Rabbis'), or a commandment of Rabbinic origin.

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Shacharit in the context of Tachanun

Tachanun (Hebrew: תַחֲנוּן, romanizedTaḥănûn, lit.'supplication'), also referred to as nefilat apayim (נְפִילַת אַפַּיִם, 'falling [on the] faces'), is a supplicatory and confessional component of Shacharit (שַחֲרִית, 'dawn') and Mincha (מִנְחָה, 'offering'), the morning and afternoon prayer services of Judaism, respectively. The recitation of Tachanun follows the Amidah, the central part of the daily Jewish prayer services. It is also recited at the end of the Selichot service. It is omitted on Shabbat, Jewish holidays, and many other celebratory occasions (e.g., in the presence of a groom in the week following his marriage). Most traditions recite a longer prayer on Mondays and Thursdays.

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Shacharit in the context of Mussaf

Mussaf (Hebrew: מוּסָף, also spelled Musaf or Musof) is a Jewish prayer service that is recited on Shabbat, Jewish holidays, Chol Hamoed, and Rosh Chodesh in addition to the three other services religious Jews recite daily: Shacharit (morning), Mincha (afternoon), and Maariv (evening). It is traditionally combined with Shacharit when recited. In contemporary Hebrew, the word may also signify a newspaper supplement.

During the days of the Temple in Jerusalem, additional sacrificial offerings were given on Shabbat, festival, days Rosh Chodesh, and Chol Hamoed; in the absence of sacrifices, Mussaf were likely instituted between the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE and the end of the Mishnaic period.

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Shacharit in the context of Aleinu

Aleinu (Hebrew: עָלֵינוּ, lit.'[it is] upon us'), or Aleinu l'Sh'bei'akh (עָלֵינוּ לְשַׁבֵּחַ, '[it is] upon us to praise [God]'), is a Jewish prayer traditionally recited at the end of most Jewish religious services, including weekday Shacharit, Mincha, and Maariv services; the close of Mussaf services on Shabbat and during festivals; and in the middle of the Rosh Hashanah Mussaf. It is recited following Kiddush levana and brit milah services, as well. It is It is second only to the Kaddish (counting all its forms) as the most frequently recited prayer in the current synagogue liturgy.

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