According to the Chasidei Ashkenaz, an ascetic movement of the German Rhineland in the 12th-13th centuries, prayer has mystical effects on higher worlds and Godly realms. Therefore, the number of letters in a prayer was crucially important. For example, R. Eleazar of Worms, in his Sefer Rokeach, finds all sorts of hidden meanings in the number of verses and letters in Psalm 145, or Ashrei, which we say three times a day. One enduring contribution of the Chasidei Ashkenaz to the siddur is the poem Anim Zemirot, called the Shir ha-Kavod or Song of Glory. Although it speaks about God in strikingly anthropomorphic terms, it is recited every Shabbat in many Ashkenazi congregations before the open Ark, which suggests that we hold the poem in particularly high regard.
In 1486, the Soncino family in Italy printed the first siddur. Printing revolutionized the prayer book. The prayers, which were initially the expertise of those who could memorize them and then the domain of those who had access to handwritten manuscripts, became available to all. A congregation of worshippers could participate more fully than ever before, not just passively listen to the chazzan and recite a few refrains.
Our entire series has addressed the way the siddur has changed over time, but many of these changes have been slow and organic, arising on their own over time. The final article will be dedicated to the issue of intentional changes made to the siddur, the ideologies animating such proposals, and the fault-lines that emerged.
Whoever chants the haftarah should not begin until after gelilah is finished. But on Monday and Thursday when Yehi ratzon is recited, there is no need to wait for gelilah to be over before beginning the Yehi ratzon[28].
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