All brachas in shemona esrah speak of ourselves- Klal Yisroel- in first person, רְפָאֵנוּ- heal us, שְׁמַע קולֵנוּ,- hear our prayers etc. We ask Hashem to help us- me, included in Klal Yisroel. There is one bracha that speaks of Klal Yisroel and yet speaks of Yisroel in third person.רְצֵה ה' אֱלהֵינוּ בְּעַמְּךָ יִשרָאֵל וּבִתְפִלָּתָם .....וְאִשֵּׁי יִשרָאֵל וּתְפִלָּת . Take pleasure in your people and their prayer...
What is different in this bracha that we change the way we relate to ourselves- from first person to third person?
4 comments:
Take a look at the Metsudah Siddur note #45. In order to achieve a level in which we will be a source of pleasure to Hashem, we must possess greater merit than what we as individuals can claim. We therefore ask Hashem to take pleasure in the entire people of Klal Yisroel among whom there are pious and righteous individuals who possess great merit, and we ask Him to accept "their prayer" with love and satisfaction. Ayin Siach Yitzchok
I saw the Siach Yitzchok inside (in the sidder HaGra) today. It didnt satisfy me, for all the brochas we ask for the whole of Klal Yisroel- including the pious rightous AND ourselves.
The Ramchal in Das Tevunos gives an explanition to the tefillah of רְצֵה, as follows. Through doing proper Avodah in this world we give Hashem massim tovim, and with that he showers good back onto us, so to speak. In the tefillah of רְצֵה we are asking Hashem to accept our Avodah.(Sorry it's a bit hard to explain it in short and in English.) I would like to say that being that this is probably the most we are asking for throughout Shemonah Esrai, (for the world to be a good place) we therefore we must come to hashem as a tzibbur make our request.
(I'll try and fix it up eventually)
menachem- Im not sure i get what you are saying, I guess youll have to tell me in person. Thanx anyhow!
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