Machzor

20 Jun 2006

Jewish Prayer Book, used on the Days of Awe, Rosh HaShanah and Yom HaKippurim, and on the three major holidays, Pesach, or Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot. Prayers and Torah Readings are included which capture the spirit of these great holidays. A tiny sample: On Rosh HaShanah, “Malchiyot,” Kingliness, “Zichronot,” Remembrances, and “Shofarot,” Sounds of the Shofar, which express the transcendent themes of Rosh HaShanah. First, the unique majesty of Hashem, the Holy King, His Knowledge of our innermost thoughts, and that He gave to Mankind the ultimate gift when He gave the Torah to the Jewish People amidst thunder and lightning and the rising call of the Shofar. The “Viduyim” (Confessions) which we recite on Yom Kippur until “Neilah,” the “Closing of the Gates of Prayer,” when our Judgments are sealed.

The Prayer “Tal” for Dew, symbolizing the renewal and liberation of Pesach, the chant of Akdamot, in which we attempt to express our gratitude for the Torah, on Shavuot, and the “Geshem” Prayer for Rain, in which we petition Hashem for that great life-sustaining gift (for which our appreciation is heightened from the perspective of the Northeast United States in the Summer of 5759 (1999), during which we are experiencing the worst drought of the century), and we recognize Hashem as our Redeemer from all manner of trouble throughout all of Jewish History, on the Holiday of Divine Protection, Sukkot.