The High Holiday Amida
The Amida prayer for both Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are very different from the regular weekday or Shabbat prayer during the year. Join Rabbi David Sedley as he explores important highlights from each, including the congregation’s participation in the Chazan’s repetition.
The High Holiday Amida: Additions to the Amida in the 10 Days of Penitence
In this class we go through the six additions to the regular Amida that are made between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur.
The High Holiday Amida: Rosh Hashana Musaf (part 1)
In this class we learn about the nine blessings of the Rosh Hashana Musaf Amida. This is the central theme of Rosh Hashana, Kingship, Remembrance and Shofars.
The Talmud says that we include nine blessings corresponding to Hannah’s prayer of thanksgiving after her son Shmuel was born. But what is the deeper connection between Hannah and Rosh Hashana?
Kingship is the major theme of Rosh Hashana, yet it is lacking entirely in the verses about Rosh Hashana. Why is that? And how to the verses that the Torah brings as sources relate to the true meaning of kingship?
The High Holiday Amida: Rosh Hashana Musaf: 10 Verses of Kingship, Remembrance and Shofarot
In this class we look at the verses that make up the bulk of the Rosh Hashana Musaf Amida. We study the Talmudic passage explaining why we recite them, and find patterns within them.
There is also a small discussion of the Aleinu prayer, which began as part of the Rosh Hashana Musaf Amida before becoming part of every single prayer service.
The High Holiday Amida: Unetanneh Tokef
The Unetanneh Tokef prayer is a highlight of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. Musically it is so powerful, but both its history and the words are even more inspiring and touch on the major themes of the day.
In this class I look at the story behind the prayer, and explain why I don’t believe it is literally true. But even if Rabbi Amnon never confronted a bishop, the prayer was likely composed in the aftermath of the massacres of 1096 as the crusaders swept through western Europe destroying Jewish communities as they went.
We look at the words of the prayer and the verses and midrashim which inspired them.
And discuss the meaning of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur.
The High Holiday Amida: The Service of the Cohen Gadol on Yom Kippur
My preparation for this class was hampered slightly by Iran launching over 200 missiles at Israel, and consequently all of Israel having to spend quality time in the bomb shelter.
The Temple service of the Cohen Gadol (High Priest) forms a large part of the Yom Kippur musaf amida. In this class, I compare the Torah description of his tasks with that of the mishna. In effect, we’ll learn through one chapter of chumash, and seven chapters of mishna.
Rabbi David Sedley lives in Jerusalem with his wife and six children. He was born and raised in New Zealand before making Aliya in 1992. He left Israel temporarily (for eight years) to serve as a communal Rabbi in Scotland and England and returned to Israel in 2004. His latest book is "The Elephant of Deliberate Forgetfulness: and other unexpected interpretations of the weekly Torah reading". He has also translated Rabbeinu Yonah's commentary on Pirkei Avos and is the co-author of Sefiros: Spiritual Refinement Through Counting the Omer (both Judaica Press). Over the years Rabbi Sedley has worked as a journalist, a translator, a video director and in online reputation management. He also writes a weekly Torah blog on the Times of Israel.