Question: I recently returned from a trip abroad. When I entered my synagogue early one weekday morning, I asked the officers for an aliyah so that I could bless Gomel. I was informed that I could receive an aliyah; however, as per the rabbi’s instruction, I would have to wait until the Sabbath to bless Gomel. I was not given any reason for this and did not wish to display my ignorance, so I quietly acquiesced. Can you please explain what was meant?
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Synopsis: We discussed the concept of requiring a minimum of ten men for synagogue services and other related mitzvot that are davar she’bi’kedusha – matters of sanctity. The requirement of a minyan is derived through the hermeneutic principle of “gezerah shava,” one of the exegetical rules by which halachot are derived from the Biblical text. Gezerah shava is the principle according to which a law is inferred via verbal analogy. If the same word or phrase appears in two separate verses in the Torah, and a certain halacha is explicitly stated in one of them, we may infer that the same halacha applies in the second case as well.
In our case, the first verse is found in Leviticus 22:32, where we are instructed not to violate any of G-d’s commands, which would result in a diminution of G-d’s honor. The word “betoch” is used. In Numbers 16:21, G-d instructs Moses and Aaron to separate themselves from the rebellious Korach and his followers, using the word “mitoch.”
This gezerah shava comes up in a discussion between R. Huna and R. Yehoshua b. Levi regarding a person who enters the synagogue while the congregation is already in the midst of the Shemoneh Esrei (Berachot 21b). If this person wishes to catch up and join the congregation, R. Huna permits him to recite the Kedusha by himself, while R. Yehoshua rules that it can be said only with a quorum of ten – a conclusion he made by applying a series of analogies stemming from the verse mentioned above, Leviticus 22:32, that implies that there have to be at least ten people present for any manifestation of sanctification.
Although the drawing of analogies is often quite intricate because the Sages differ as to which verses are considered to be the source of the ruling, the ruling itself – that any davar she’bi’kedusha requires a minyan – is unanimous.
But why did your rabbi instruct you to wait until the Sabbath to recite Birkat HaGomel?
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Answer: Based on your question, I am guessing the following two facts: First, that this occurred on a Thursday morning at your synagogue’s Shacharit services. Second, that including yourself, there was an exact minyan present that morning. As such, it would seem that your rabbi had good reason to ask you to delay the blessing of Ha’Gomel until the Sabbath, as we will explain. First let us see the delineated halacha.
The Mechaber (Orach Chayyim 219:1, essentially citing the Talmud (Berachot 54b), rules as follows: “Four situations [that one may have experienced] require a person to offer hoda’ah – thanksgiving [to G-d]: those who have crossed the sea and have come up from it [to dry land], those who traveled the wilderness and have reached habitation, one who was ill and recovered, and one who was imprisoned and was set free.”
In order to remember these situations, the Mechaber uses the following mnemonic from the Modim prayer in the Amidah: “V’chol hachayyim yoducha Selah” – And all that live will acknowledge You, Selah. The construct of chayyim is the Hebrew letters chet, yud, yud, mem, which represent respectively: chet = choleh (one who was ill); yud = yisurin (suffering, in this case referring to one who suffered incarceration); yud = yam (lit., the sea, in this case one who crossed the sea); and mem = midbar (lit., desert or wilderness, in this case one who has traveled the wilderness.
Thus we have the four situations that require hoda’ah once they have passed. As we will see further, the Mechaber’s choice of source for this mnemonic is very relevant to the preferred method of satisfying the hoda’ah that these four situations require.
The Mechaber (219:2) continues: “And what does one bless [when offering thanks]? ‘Baruch Ata Hashem, Elokeinu Melech ha’olam, ha’gomel l’chayavim tovot, she’gemalani kol tov” – Blessed are You, Hashem, our G-d, King of the universe, Who bestows [loving] kindness upon the guilty, Who has bestowed every goodly kindness upon me.’ Those [the assembled] who hear respond, ‘[Amen!] Mi she’gemal’cha kol tov yigmal’cha kol tov, Selah’ – He Who has bestowed goodness upon you, may He continue to bestow every goodly kindness upon you, Selah.’”
The Mechaber (219:3) then says: “It is necessary [for the person who experienced one of these situations] to recite this blessing before a quorum of ten, two of whom are rabbis [i.e., scholars], as the verse (Psalms 107:32) states: ‘Viy’romemu’hu b’k’hal am u’v’moshav zekeinim ye-haleluhu” – Let them exalt Him in the assembly of people, and praise Him in the session of the elders. And if there are no sages present, one should not keep from blessing. The custom has become such that the blessing is recited after the reading of the Torah because [at that time] ten are assembled there. However, if one blessed with less than ten present, there are those (Tur O.C., ad loc.) who opine that his obligation has been fulfilled, while others (Rabbeinu Yonah) are of the view that he has not discharged his obligation. It is [therefore] better that he repeat the blessing before a quorum of ten, but without mention of the Holy Name – Shem u’Malchut.”
To be continued.
