[Avodah] The influence of Nusach Sefard on Nusach Ashkenaz

[kennethgmiller at juno.com]

R' Yitzchok Levine wrote:
> I daven Nusach Ashkenaz and I put on Tefillin on Chol
> Moed, although without a brocha.  This was the almost
> universal custom in Chutz L'Aretz, as far as I know.
> I know that the GRA and his followers did not put on
> Tefillin on Chol Moed. There may be some others. However,
> today, due to the Chassidization of Yiddishkeit, there
> are a number of people who have stopped putting on
> Tefillin during Chol Moed.

You might be correct, but I hope not. It is one thing for non-Chassidim to Chassidize themselves with minhagim like wearing a kittel at the wedding, or having an upsheren at age three. But to abandon a possible d'Oraisa like tefilin? I shudder at the thought.

I would prefer to believe that it was a different route which caused this change. Namely, the GRA's minhag (as you wrote), which then became the universal Minhag Eretz Yisrael, and then spread to those who went to learn there, either for a short time, or a long time, or permanently.

Some evidence for my guess might be gathered by comparing how many men skip Tefilin on Chol Hamoed, and how many skip Baruch Hashem L'Olam at Maariv. I would hope that the great majority of Ashkenazim either do both or do neither. And that if anyone changed, they did it only after consulting with their rav.

Akiva Miller
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