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Yaaleh V’Yavo (יעלה ויבוא; trans: "May arise and come … before Thee") is a Jewish prayer that is added to the liturgy on the festivals and Rosh Chodesh; it is inserted into both the Amidah and Birkat HaMazon. It requests that God “remember” His people for merit by granting them blessing, deliverance, and mercy on that auspicious day.

Placement

Yaaleh V’Yavo is recited on all major festivals and intermediate days, but it is not recited on minor festivals such as Chanuka or Purim.. As a rule, any day where a Mussaf sacrifice was brought in the Temple calls for its recitation.

On major holidays, it is recited within the middle blessing of the Amidah, “Atah Bechartanu". On lesser holidays (Rosh Chodesh and Chol HaMoed) is recited is in the middle of the “Ritzeh” (or “Avodah”) blessing of the Amidah. In Birkat HaMazon it is recited within the “Boneh Yerushalayim” blessing. Some of the themes within Yaaleh V’Yavo correspond with the themes of these blessings, namely, the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the restoration of the temple. In regards to its placement within Ritzeh specifically, the Talmud frames this blessing as the correct place to include prayers for the future. Later scholars explain this to include Yaaleh V’Yavo.

Yaaleh V'Yavo is omitted from every Mussaf Amidah, with the exception of Mussaf of Rosh Hashana in the Sephardic rite. Furthermore, it is not recited on any fast day besides Yom Kippur.

History

The Tosefta (Talmudic Israel, c.190 – c.230 CE) is the earliest source for the insertion of an additional prayer for special days. There, it is alternatively referred to as a "Sanctification of the Day” (קדושת היום) or a “Reference to the Occasion” (מעין המאורע). By Talmudic times, the Amoraim settled upon locations in the liturgy to include an additional prayer for special days .

These early Rabbinic sources do not provide us with a sample of the prayer which was used as a “Reference to the Occasion”. Though the archaic language of Yaaleh V’’Yavo led some scholars to declare it an ancient liturgy composed by the Council of Yavne under the auspices of Rabban Gamliel in the first century CE, this attribution was met with suspicion, since a “Reference to the Occasion” beginning with the words “Yaaleh V’Yavo” does not appear in any Jewish texts until the 7 century.

Yaaleh V'Yavo is first mentioned by name in the context of festival prayers in Tractate Soferim (c. 6 – 8 century) . It then appears in various Geonic responsa, most importantly in a responsum by R’ Paltoi ben Abaye (c. 850). R’ Paltoi writes that some communities in his time used Yaaleh V’Yavo for all festivals, while others used it only in Mussaf of Rosh Hashana, and used some unnamed alternatives for other festivals. He states that this variation is a matter of local custom, and that the exact prayer which is used does not affect the validity of fulfilling the obligation to include a “Reference to the Occasion”.

This responsum led other scholars to believe that Yaaleh V’Yavo was originally composed for the Mussaf of Rosh Hashana, specifically for the Zichronot (“Remembrances”) section of the poetic Amidah known as "Tekiata D’Vei Rav" (trans. "The Mussaf Shofar-Amidah of Rav's Yeshiva"), still used to this day. From there, the prayer was borrowed for use on other festivals. The theme of remembrance in Yaaleh V’Yavo supports this theory.

J. Heinemann, while in the early stages of developing his form-critical approach to liturgical study, realized that another perspective of this prayer’s history was possible. In his view, Jewish prayers and liturgical practices emerged naturally among the people in various social settings (synagogue, study hall, etc.) before being systematized and standardized by the rabbis. Therefore, it isn't productive to search for an 'Urtext' (original text) that represents a singular, original version. In this vein, multiple versions of prayer were developed concurrently in different circles and used interchangeably. Due to the similarities between Yaaleh V’Yavo and the Boneh Yerushalayim prayer in Birkat HaMazon, Heinemann suggests that the former was originally composed as a version of the latter, meant for use specifically on Rosh Hashana, the Day of Remembrance. This theory also explains why Yaaleh V'Yavo incorporates both of those themes: Remembrance and Jerusalem.

A. Kellerman studied an early version of Yaaleh V'Yavo from post-Talmudic Israel and argues that it is an early Jewish liturgical hymn from the pre-Classical era of Piyyut composition (pre-6th century). It is important to note that other scholars (even Piyyut specialists) who studied the same version did not agree; rather, they assume that it follows a style typical of archaic liturgical prose.

Nusach

As with many early Jewish prayers, we find two recensions of Yaaleh V'Yavo in medieval times: the "Babylonian" rite and the "Palestinian" rite. Both rites are quite similar and are recognizably the same prayer. With the decline of the Geonic centers in Israel (ca. 11th century), the Palestinian rite slowly fell into disuse as the majority of Jewish communities adopted the laws and practices of the Babylonian centers. The Babylonian rite appears in Geonic Siddurim and has remained considerably stable since then, with minor variations arising in different communities.

One clear distinction between the modern Sephardic and Ashkenazic Nuschaot of Yaaleh V'Yavo is seen in the inclusion (Sephardic) or exclusion (Ashkenazic) of the words "מקרא קודש" on the holidays

Notes

References

1. ^ "Tosefta Kifshutah on Berakhot 3:8:6". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
2. "Tosefta Kifshutah on Berakhot 3:8:6". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
3. As a prayer with much discussion of Jerusalem, Halachic sources (ex. Shulchan Aruch 188 Tosafot Shabbat 24a) take its location there as a given. However, no Talmudic source fixes it there explicitly. See "Tosefta Kifshutah on Berakhot 3:8:6". and cf. "Berakhot 48b:3" which require that the "Sanctification of the Day" for Shabbat be placed in that blessing.
4. "Rashi, Shabbat 24a:3". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
5. "Jerusalem Talmud Berakhot 4:3:13". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
6. Wohlgemuth, Isaiah. "Lehovin Es HaTefilah Newsletter Vol 8. No. 24 (Rosh Chodesh)". www.beureihatefila.com. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
7. "Tur, Orach Chaim 591:1". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
8. "Berakhot 29b:2". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
9. Fleischer, Ezra (2012). Elitzur, Shulamit; Beeri, Tova (eds.). תפילות הקבע בישראל בהתהוותן ובהתגבשותן [Statutory Jewish Prayers: Their Emergence and Development] (in Hebrew). Jerusalem: Magnes Press. p. 73. ISBN 978-965-493-416-9.
10. ^ קלרמן, אהרן; Kellerman, Aaron (2016). ""Kedushat HaYom" and "Ya'aleh V'Yavo" — Are They One and the Same? / "קדושת היום" ו"יעלה ויבוא" — האם חד הם?". Sidra: A Journal for the Study of Rabbinic Literature / סידרא: כתב-עת לחקר ספרות התורה שבעל-פה. לא: 125–137. ISSN 0334-6986.
11. "Tractate Soferim 19:7". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
12. "ספר המנהיג - אברהם בן נתן, הירחי, 1155-1215 (page 83 of 198)". hebrewbooks.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
13. Compare the variant text in "ספר הפרדס לרש"י - שלמה בן יצחק (רש"י), 1040-1105 (page 255 of 400)". hebrewbooks.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10. which doesn't allow for this proof.
14. Elbogen, Ismar (1993). "9:44". Jewish Liturgy: A Comprehensive History. Translated by Scheindlin, Raymond P. (English ed.). The Jewish Publication Society (jointly with JTS). p. 51. ISBN 978-0827604452.
15. Heinemann, Joseph (1970). Abramson, Shraga; Mirski, Aaron (eds.). ספר חיים שירמן : קובץ מחקרים [Hayyim (Jefim) Schirmann Jubilee Volume] (in Hebrew). Jerusalem. pp. 100–101.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
16. Fleischer, Ezra (1988). תפילה ומנהגי תפילה ארץ-ישראליים בתקופת הגניזה [Eretz-Israel Prayer and Prayer Rituals As Portrayed in the Geniza Documents] (in Hebrew). Jerusalem: Magnes Press. pp. 96–97. ISBN 978-965-223-691-3. {{cite book}}: line feed character in |trans-title= at position 39 (help)
17. Liebreich, Leon J. (1963). "Aspects of the New Year Liturgy". Hebrew Union College Annual. 34: 125–176. ISSN 0360-9049.
18. See for example "סדור רב סעדיה גאון - סעדיה בן יוסף, אלפיומי, 882-942 (page 162 of 497)". hebrewbooks.org. Retrieved 2024-11-10. and סדר ר עמרם גאון (מוסד הרב קוק) ח"ב מד
19. See Kellerman, (p. 131-132 fn. 43) for the history of this development.

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