[Avodah] Davening at home on Yamim Nora'im

[Arie Folger]

RChaim Tafel wrote:
> This year, a lot of us will be unable to go to shul
> for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
>  We will miss out on much of the "experience" of
> the piyutim. Does anyone know of guidelines for
> what to do at home, such as part of chazarat haShatz?

Say them all except for the few you should only ever say when you are
shatz, for example the netilot reshut, like all the misod chakhamim
unevonim lines and such as the Ochila (which really, in  my opinion,
despite the popular tunes, the tzibbur should never say, as it is the
netilat reshut for the shatz to insert the seder ha'avodah).

Also skip obviously hineni  he'ani mima'as, as it is for the shatz.

Also skip the E-lohein vE-lohei Avoteinu heyei 'im pifiyot (which in my
opinion the shatz shouldn't ever say, as it is a prayer for the shatz'
success recited by the public).

Finally, obviously whenever the cachzor calls for reciting 13 middot,
depending on the poskim you follow, either skip or recite with te'amim.

Otherwise I see no reason why you couldn'T beautifully sing your way
through the entire machzor. But don't use one of these butchered machzorim,
go for the real, unabbreviated, full and complete Rdelheim. (I am assuming
you're ashkenazi, because Sefardi piyutim are altogether different).


[Email #2. -micha]

By the way,  this is a great time to introduce the proper recitation of
certain popular piyutim that are generally paused wrong: Vekhol Maaminim,
Ma'aseh E-loheinu, Imru l'E-lohim, Ata Hu E-loheinu.

In all this cases,  a wrong "minhag" has established itself to read the
latter half of one line with the former half of the next line,  always
weirdly stopping in the middle. Or to use the opening refrain as a closing
refrain. That's just plain wrong,  so this is the year we can all train to
adapt the time to the proper sentence structure,  so next year we break the
bad habit.

I am obviously totally tolerant,  but it is still poetically wrong,
objectively so.
;-)

Ketiva vachatima tova,
--
Mit freundlichen Gren,
Yours sincerely,
Arie Folger
Check out my blog: http://rabbifolger.net