[Avodah] Reciting L'Dovid Hashem Ori, A Secret History Dr. Shnayer Leiman

[Simon Montagu]

On Tue, Aug 20, 2013 at 5:18 PM, Prof. Levine <llevine at stevens.edu> wrote:
>
> From  http://www.yutorah.org/lectures/lecture.cfm/736949
>
> Dr. Leiman examines the dubious custom of reciting Psalm 27 in Elul and
> Tishrei.


Hanahh lahem leYisrael! I take exception to the word "dubious" in the blurb.

I realize this is not your word, and I doubt if it is Dr Leiman's. In
fact, I suspect the blurb was written by somebody who was familiar
with some of the controversies about the minhag and had not listened
to the lecture all the way through -- which I would recommend everyone
to do, or read the summary at
http://jewishthoughtandbeyond.blogspot.co.il/2010/08/custom-of-reciting-psalm-27-during.html.

RMB asked me an interesting question in a moderation comment:

"I already noted that the Chozeh of Lublin rejected the custom because
of its connection to Chemdas Yamim. If you knew he thought it was
dubious, would you still object?"

I would stand by "Hanahh lahem leYisrael". Gedolim vetovim have
practised this minhag without knowing that it was connected to [C]HY,
and it has enriched their Avoda during Elul and YN. I don't know that
the Hoze of Lublin would necessarily disagree with that. Even if he,
knowing of the connection, rejected the custom, that doesn't make it
dubious for those who followed it as minhag Yisrael Saba without such
knowledge.

(Not to mention RSL's own response in the lecture, that in fact the
practice is mentioned in earlier works than the HY and connected in
oral tradition to the Ba'al Shem of Chelm in the 16th century)