[Avodah] Streamlining Services: What Can we Learn from High Holidays 5781?

[Prof. L. Levine]

From

https://thelehrhaus.com/commentary/streamlining-services-what-can-we-learn-from-high-holidays-5781/

    Streamlining Services: What Can we Learn from High Holidays 5781? |
    The Lehrhaus

    [1] See also Responsa Zekher Yehosef (Orah Hayyim Vol. 4, no. 213),
    which is cited in support for the position of omiting piyyutim. [2]
    It is intriguing to note that an abridged Rosh Hashanah service
    for Rabbi Akiva Eiger would still take five hours. [3] Translation
    is made accessible by Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman in his article,
    "From Cholera to Coronavirus: Recurring Pandemics, Recurring...

    My goal is not to dictate policy to any particular synagogue. Rather,
    my hope is to provide halakhic sources in the efforts of generating
    a healthy discussion about how to make services efficacious and
    efficient. Unfortunately, the conversation about streamlining services
    is many times stunted. It is easy to halt such a conversation if we
    imagine that the only people who care about the timing of services
    are the people slipping out to kiddush club or the nudniks holding
    audible conversations in the back of the sanctuary. Because of
    this perception, many genuine synagogue-goers who come primarily
    to pray are beset with guilt for wishing that services be run more
    expeditiously. My goal is to show that there is little reason to
    feel ashamed, as many of our great rabbinic leaders shared a similar
    sentiment.

See the above URL for the entire rather long article.

In the interest of making clear where I am personally coming from, I have
to say that I find much of the davening on RH and YK uninteresting and
boring. Almost all of the piyut is kind of meaningless to me, even with
the English translation. I am also not a fan of Chazonis, no matter how
great a particular Chazon may be. These are my prejudices.


[Email #2. -micha]

From: Zalman Alpert <zalmanalpert770 at gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, November 10, 2020 11:44 AM
> I have to admit I find it interesting how you pick and choose from
> Rav Hirsch

> Rabbi Hirsch and FFM were and remain strong believers in piyyut KAJ ROSH
> service commences at about 6:30 and concludes about 2at earliest

> As you know liturgy was a strong point of R Hirsch,choir decorum etc
> and it remains so although its in the decline

> The structure of davening in Frankfurt are not in any manner essential
> to TIDE. Hirsch was fighting the reformers, so he insisted that nothing
> be taken from the davening. Hirsch spoke every week on Shabbos for a long
> time. This was fine in his time, but it is not for most people today.

I ran a Shabbos morning davening in the YI of Ave J that began at
7:15 and ended before 9 almost every week. No drasha, no long singing,
just davening. This is the style for today.