[Avodah] tehilas Hashem in shir hamaalos

[Micha Berger]

On Tue, Feb 02, 2010 at 11:19:24PM -0500, Daniel Bukingolts wrote:
: Does anybody know the source for the "tehilas Hashem..." addition to shir
: hamaalos in bentching and why do many people say it is anti zionist to
: include it?

Barukh haba!

I answered the following to RDB already, but since I wasn't sure enough,
I pushed him to ask the list:

My family minhag is to say Tehillas, and my greatgrandfather (the
last generation to make a home in Litta) was a Zionist. It is also in
Siach Yitzchaq, the standard Ashkenazi Dutch siddur. It actually dates
back to Tzefat, even though Sepharadim don't add pesuqim. The bit about
it being added to tone down the Zionist implications of Shir haMaalos
is urban legend -- or at most why some johnny-come-latelies adopted an
existing minhag.

Edot haMizrach (as opposed to Sepharadim) say Teh' 67 ("Lamnatzeiach
biNginos Mizmor Shir") -- with five pesuqim appended aftrward. A
parallel extension?

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             You cannot propel yourself forward
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