Minyan

Minyan
Halakhictexts relating to this article
Torah:	Leviticus 22:32
Mishnah:	Megillah4:3
Babylonian Talmud:	Megillah23b;Sanhedrin74b
Jerusalem Talmud:	Megillah4:4
Mishneh Torah:	Hilchot Tefillah 8:1
Shulchan Aruch:	Orach Chayim55

InJudaism,aminyan(Hebrew:מניין \ מִנְיָןmīnyān[minˈjan],lit.(noun)count, number;pl.מניינים \ מִנְיָנִים‎mīnyānīm[minjaˈnim]) is thequorumof ten Jewish adults required for certainreligious obligations.In more traditional streams of Judaism, only men 13 and older may constitute a minyan; the minimum of 10 Jews needed for a meeting has its origin^{[citation needed]}in Abraham's prayer to God inGenesis 18:23.

The most common activity requiring aminyanis publicprayer.Accordingly, the termminyanin contemporary Judaism has taken on the secondary meaning of referring to aprayer service.

Minyan Ma'ariv prayer in a JaffaTel Avivflea-market shop

Sources

The source for the requirement ofminyanis recorded in the Talmud. The wordminyanitself comes from theHebrewrootmanehמנה‎ meaning to count or to number. The word is related to theAramaicwordmene,numbered, appearing inthe writing on the wallinDaniel 5:25.

Babylonian Talmud

TheBabylonian Talmud(Megillah23b) derives the requirement of aminyanof tenshomer ShabbatforKiddush Hashem^[1]andDevarim she-Bikdusha,"matters of sanctity", by combining three scriptural verses using the rule ofgezerah shavah:

The word "midst" in the verse:

And I shall besanctifiedin themidstof the children of Israel(Leviticus 22:32)

also appears in the verse:

Separate yourselves from themidstof thecongregation(Numbers 16:21)

The term "congregation" is also used in another verse that describes theten spies(of a total of twelve) who brought back a negative report of theLand of Israel:

How long shall I bear with this evilcongregationwhich murmur against me?(Numbers 14:27)

From this combination, the Talmud concludes that "sanctification" should occur in the "midst" of a "congregation" of ten.

Jerusalem Talmud

TheJerusalem Talmud(Megillah 4:4) offers two sources for the requirement, also using agezerah shavah:

The word "congregation" in the verse:

Speak to all thecongregationof the children of Israel, and say to them:You shall be holy(Leviticus 19:2)

is also used in another verse:

How long shall I bear with this evilcongregationwhich murmur against me?(Numbers 14:27)

Since the term "congregation" in the later verse refers to theten spies,so too in the former verse: "You shall be holy" refers to a "congregation" of ten.

The second source is based on the term "children of Israel" which appears in the following two verses:

And I shall besanctifiedin the midst of thechildren of Israel(Leviticus 22:32)

And thechildren of Israelcame to buy among those that came(Genesis 42:5)

Just as the "children of Israel" in the later verse refers to the ten sons ofJacobwho descended to Egypt to obtain food during the famine, so too the former verse refers to sanctification among the “children of Israel” in the presence of ten.

Rituals requiring aminyan

Some rituals require a minyan; the presence of a rabbi (a teacher, not apriest) is not essential—it is said that "nine rabbis do not constitute a minyan, but ten cobblers can".^[2]

The following instances which require a minyan are listed in theMishnahinMegillah(4:3):

Public worship, which consists of the additional readings ofKaddish,Barechu,Kedushaand theRepetition of the Amidah.The minor tractateSoferimcontains a passage (10:7) often interpreted as asserting that inLand of Israelat that time seven men were allowed to hold public services. Correctly interpreted it refers to the repeating of "Kaddish" and "Barechu" at the synagogue for the benefit of late comers, and declares that in Israel such a repetition is permitted only when seven (according to others, when six) men are present who have not yet heard these responsive readings.
Thepriestly blessing.
Reading from theTorahandProphetswith the associated benedictions.
Seven benedictionsrecited at a wedding, or at any meal of the bridegroom and bride within a week from the wedding. However, the last blessing (asher barah) may be recited in the presence of three men.^[3]
Using the formulation "Let us bless our God, from whose wealth we have eaten," in preparing forGrace after meals.
Ancient funeral ceremonies, no longer in use, which incorporated arranging the standing and sitting, reciting the benedictions of the mourners and the consolation of the mourners.

Other instances which require the presence of aminyaninclude:

Recitation of theThirteen Attributes of Mercy^[4]
Recitation ofBirkat ha-Gomel.^[5]

While the required quorum for most activities requiring a quorum is usually ten, it is not always so. For example, thePassoversacrifice orKorbanPesach(from the days of theTemple in Jerusalem) must be offered before a quorum of 30. (It must be performed in front ofkahal adat yisrael,the assembly of the congregation of Israel. Ten are needed for the assembly, ten for the congregation, and ten for Israel.) According to some Talmudic authorities, women counted in the quorum of 30 for offering theKorban Pesach(e.g. Rav, Rav Kahana,Pesachim79b).

Prayer with aminyan

It was the firm belief of the sages that wherever ten Israelites are assembled, either for worship or for the study of the Law, theDivine Presencedwells among them. In rabbinical literature, those who meet for study or prayer in smaller groups, even one who meditates or prays alone, are to be praised. However, the stress is put upon the merits and sacredness of theminyanof ten. The codifiers, such asMaimonides,^[6]his annotators, and the author of theShulkhan Arukh,have unitedly given strength to this sentiment, and have thus, for more than a thousand years, made the daily attendance at public worship, morning and evening, to be conducted with a quorum of ten.

There is a disagreement between the medieval commentators on whether prayer with aminyanis preferable or obligatory.Rashiis of the view that an individual is obligated to pray with aminyan,whileNahmanidesholds that only if ten adult males are present are they obliged to recite their prayer together, but an individual is not required to seek out aminyan.^[7]

Rashi and theTosafot^[8]are both of the opinion that one is required to travel the distance of 4milto pray with a minyan (contemporary authorities differ as to whether this is a distance or a time that it would have taken to travel this distance and with modern technology one would need to travel a lot further). TheMishnah Berurahwrites that one who is sitting at home must travel up to onemil.^[9]

Eligibility

There is much discussion inrabbinic literatureon the matter of who is eligible to be counted in aminyan.Some discussions revolve around whether or not aminyanshould consist of individuals who are obligated in performance of that particular precept. Some authorities deduce who may constitute aminyanby drawing on the verses which are brought as the basis for minyan and their implication. For example, the verse,"How long shall I bear with this evil congregation which murmur against me?"is referring to the ten spies, a congregation comprising Jewish adult males. It is understood from this that a minyan must likewise comprise ten Jewish adult males. Other classical sources base their rulings on discussions brought in the Talmud. Contemporary rabbinical authorities deal with a plethora of questions relating to qualification forminyan.

Minors

Before a boyturns thirteen,he is considered aminorin Jewish law and is not obligated in the performance of religious precepts. However, if a child is over six years of age and has adequate comprehension of the significance of the precepts, his status may change. His inclusion inminyanis thus subject of Talmudic dispute. Based on the Talmudicpassagein Berachot,Rabbeinu Tamstates that a minor can act as the tenth person^[10]and according to theBaal Ha-Maor,up to four minors would be permitted.Roshexplains that those who permit the inclusion of a minor maintain that it is theDivine Presencewhich actually constitutes the tenth member, thereby validating theminyan— this may explain why some of these authorities require that the minor represent this fact by holding achumash.However the majority ofposkimfollow the conclusion of theRiwho holds that a minor can never be counted in aminyanunder any circumstances. This is the stance taken by theShulchan Aruch,who, although acknowledging some authorities do permit the inclusion of an astute six-year-old, writes that consensus rejects this view and only males over the age of thirteen may constitute aminyan.^[11]However, in extraordinary circumstances some are lenient and permit a minor over six years old holding a chumash orSefer Torahto complete aminyan.^[12]RabbiMoshe Feinsteinsays that we can rely on this because most of the laws of Minyan are Rabbinical in nature,^[13]so one can conclude that when dealing with a Biblical law of Minyan (such as Sanctifying God's name in public) one would not be able to count a child.

Women

Although the issue of whether women are permitted to make up aminyanhas been noted in early works, the matter has only come to the fore in the past few decades, a reaction to an enhanced role of women in modern society and to the demand for their inclusion in all areas of religious life.^[14]

The Talmud itself does not directly address the question of whether women may count as part of a minyan for devarim shebkdusha. Since the Talmud uses the samegezerah shavahfor Kiddush Hashem as it uses fordevarim shebkdusha,one may expect the laws for those two cases to be the same. Many authorities are of the opinion that women are included in theminyanfor Kiddush Hashem and Hillul Hashem. However, traditional codifiers generally do not include women in theminyanfordevarim shebkdusha.^{[citation needed]}

The Talmud (Arakhin3a) relates that women are required to recitezimmunof three participants, and Berakhot 45 says that women may recite the zimmun. However, the majority of scholars are of the opinion that ten women may not recite the additional form ofzimun be-Shem,which is obligatory when ten men are present. The few authorities who do permit ten women to use thezimmun be-Shemformulation explain that the necessity for ten in this case is unique and cannot be compared to other instances requiringminyan.OnlyRabbeinu Simchaamong these authorities mentions the possibility of one woman's joining with nine men to form aminyanfor prayer. This isolated opinion is rejected by the codifiers. There are a number of cases, including reading of themegillah,where a limited number of authorities count women towards the minyan. However, in these cases the reason why women are counted is not because they constitute a "congregation," but rather because a public audience is required.^[15]

A possible reason why it is men who were obligated to form a congregation in order to convene the Divine Presence is that women were individually considered sufficiently holy and did not require the combination of a group and special prayers to achieve added holiness deficient in men. Due to the righteousness of the women in the wilderness, they did not suffer the same deadly fate as their male counterparts, and despite the spies’ negative report about the holy land, wished to enter it.^[16] Others point to the sociological reality that women were traditionally expected to care for the house and children. The Jewish tradition did not require women to leave their social role to engage in public prayer.^[17]

Reform

In 1845, rabbis attending theFrankfort Synodof the emergingReform Judaismdeclared that women count in a minyan, a formalization of a customary Reform practice dating back to 1811.^[18]

Conservative

In 1973, theCommittee on Jewish Law and StandardsofConservative Judaismvoted to count men and women equally as members of a minyan.^[19]In 2002, the Committee adapted aresponsumby Rabbi David Fine which provides an official religious-law foundation for women counting in aminyanand explains the current Conservative approach to the role of women in prayer.^[20]This responsum holds that, although Jewish women do not traditionally have the same obligations as men, Conservative women have, as a collective whole, voluntarily undertaken them. Because of this collective undertaking, the Fine responsum holds that Conservative women are eligible to serve as agents and decision-makers for others. The responsum also holds that traditionally-minded communities and individual women can opt out without being regarded by the Conservative movement as sinning. By adopting this responsum, the CJLS found itself in a position to provide a considered Jewish-law justification for its egalitarian practices, without having to rely on potentially unconvincing arguments, undermine the religious importance of community and clergy, ask individual women intrusive questions, repudiate thehalakhictradition, or label women following traditional practices as sinners.

Transgressors

The question of whether a sinner can be counted for aminyanhas become much more pertinent in recent generations, where a general malaise in religious observance among the majority of Jews has occurred. The Shulchan Aruch states that though a person may be a notorious and habitual sinner and has even committed acapital offenseunless a person has been placed under a religious ban due to his sinful behavior, he is counted among the ten. The source provided for this sentiment is from the incident withAchanwho, despite having been put to death for his transgression, was still referred to as a Jew.^[21]However, thePri Megadimexplains that this is only true if he sins for self-satisfaction, but if a person sins to spite God or has openly severed their connection with the Jewish people by professing a hostile creed or by publicly desecrating the Shabbat, such a person is prohibited from constituting a minyan.^[22]Nevertheless, many contemporary authorities have been driven to adopt a lenient view in the face of widespread public non-observance of the Shabbat, on the presumption that it does not indicate a deliberate denial of faith, but is rather a result of ignorance and succumbing to the pressure of social and economic conditions.^[23]^[24]

Proselytes

Even thoughTosafotdeduce from the Talmud inSukkah38b that wherever the verse states “children of Israel” it comes to exclude a proselyte unless there is specific clause for inclusion, here with regard tominyanthe sources state that there is no reasoning to exclude a full-fledged proselyte. Since such a person is permitted to act as a prayer leader, obviously they can count towards aminyan.^[25]

Those who are unable to respond

As long as a person is of sufficient intelligence, he can be included in theminyan,even if he is unable to respond to the prayers which make the presence of ten a necessity. According to some sources, this is because as long as ten are gathered theDivine Presencedescends and it is feasible to pronounce aDvar she'bekedusha.This includes someone who is in the middle of his prayers but is precluded from responding to thehazzan’s incantations and someone who ismutebut can hear the prayers — someone who is deaf but has the ability and knows when to respond can also be included. There is however a dispute regarding someone who is asleep or intoxicated. Such a person has sufficient intelligence, but at present can neither hear or respond.^[26]Ideally he should be woken to the extent that he is dozing, but in extraneous circumstances where it impossible to arouse him, it is permitted to include the maximum of one sleeping person in theminyan.^[27]In the case of a drunkard, the accepted view is that even if he has not reached the “drunkenness ofLot”,he still cannot be included.^[28]A minimum of six of those gathered in the minyan have a duty to listen attentively and respond appropriately to the additional prayers and that at least nine are required to respond for the repetition of theAmidah.^[29]

Arrangement

It is not just the status of the individual which dictates eligibility; the physical arrangement of theminyanis also a factor. Maimonides delineates the confines which are placed on the arrangement of the people making up aminyan.Ideally all the members of the minyan should be gathered in one room. However, if they are within hearing distance of one another, it is permitted for the ten to be distributed in two adjoining rooms.^[30]Later authorities limit the extent of this opinion and rule that even if there is an opening between the two rooms, the two groups are still considered separate entities. Only in unusual circumstances is it permitted, as long as some of the men in each room can see each other.^[31]

Ten-and-ten minyan (ten men and ten women)

Over the last decade or so^[when?],some very liberal Modern Orthodox communities have formed an attempt to combine commitment to traditional Jewish law with a push for increased participation and recognition of the role of women. While many are simply referred to asindependent minyanim,the term used by theJewish Orthodox Feminist Alliancefor those groups that consider themselves part of the Modern Orthodox community ispartnership minyan.Many of these groups have adopted the custom initially instituted byShira Hadashain Jerusalem to wait for a "ten-and-ten minyan", made up of ten men and ten women.

Shira Hadasha has based many of its decisions on the writings of rabbis likeMendel ShapiroandDaniel Sperber.Some also use theGuide for the Halakhic Minyan,a compendium of halakhic sources supporting increased participation by women in services, as a basis for discussions of practices like the ten-and-ten minyan.

Footnotes

^Sanhedrin74b
^"Temple Israel Chronicle, January 2009, p3"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2016-03-04.Retrieved2015-10-10.
^Shulchan Aruch Even Ha-ezer 62:4.
^Shulchan Aruch OC565:5
^Shulchan Aruch OC219:3
^Maimonides writes that"The prayer of the community is always heard; and even if there were sinners among them, the Holy One, blessed be He, never rejects the prayer of the multitude. Hence a person must join himself with the community, and should not pray by himself so long as he is able to pray with the community."Mishneh TorahHilkhot Tefillah8:1
^Meiselman, Moshe (1978).Jewish Woman in Jewish Law.Ktav Publishing Inc.p. 134.ISBN 0-87068-329-2.
^Rashi and Tosafot to Talmud Bavli Pesachim 46a
^Savannah at the Hashkafah.com forums quoting https://www.dafdigest.org/pesachim/Pesachim%20046.pdf
^Tosafot Berachot47b
^Shulchan Aruch OC55
^Ziegler, Aharon (2004). "Counting a Minor in a Minyan".Halakhic positions of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik: Volume III.Rowman & Littlefield.pp. 26–28.ISBN 0-7425-4293-9.
^See Igrot MosheOC 2:18.
^Bleich, J. David(1976). "The Synagogue: Women in a Minyan?".Contemporary Halakhic Problems.Vol. I. Ktav Publishing. pp.28–83.ISBN 0-87068-450-7.
^Meiselman, Moshe (1978).Jewish Woman in Jewish Law.Ktav Publishing. pp. 136–40.ISBN 0-87068-329-2.
^Aiken, Lisa (1993).To Be A Jewish Woman.Aronson. p. 58.ISBN 0-87668-609-9.
^Rabbi Saul Berman, "The Status of Women in Halakhic Judaism", Tradition, Fall 1973, pp. 5–8.
^"7: Significant People and Ideas in Judaism".45: Religious Traditions Depth Studies.Understanding Faith.AU:VIC. Archived fromthe originalon 21 August 2014.Retrieved22 May2022.
^"Women Equal with Men in Minyan".Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 1973-09-11.Retrieved2016-10-13.
^Fine, Rabbi David J. (12 June 2012)."Women and the Minyan"(PDF).Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly(in English and Hebrew). New York, NY: Rabbinical Assembly.Retrieved23 May2011.
^Beit Yosef OC55:11–12
^OC55
^Appel, Gershon (1978).The Concise Code of Jewish Law.Ktav Publishing. p. 63.ISBN 0-87068-298-9.
^Melamed Le-ho'ilOC29
^Kaf Hachayim55:17
^Aruch Hashulchan55:12–13
^Pheufer 1997,p. 127.
^Pheufer 1997,p. 212.
^Pheufer 1997,p. 126.
^Mishnah TorahTefillah viii
^Mishna Berurah55

Bibliography

Pheufer, A Y (1997),Ishei Yisrael – The Laws of Prayer,Jerusalem: Nishmat Aharon ve-Yaakov Institute

External links

"Minyan"–Jewish Encyclopediaarticle.
The Minyan ProjectbyMechon Hadar
GoDaven.comFind an Orthodox Minyan anywhere in the world.
"What is a Minyan?"on Ask Moses
"What's the Truth about... Davening with a Minyan?".18 October 2004.(jewishaction.com)
Minyan in the Jewish Knowledge BaseonChabad.org
Frimer, A., "Women and Minyan".Tradition23:4, pp. 54–77 (1988)(Modern Orthodox view of women in minyan for various purposes)

[Sanhedrin_74b-1] Sanhedrin74b

[2] "Temple Israel Chronicle, January 2009, p3"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2016-03-04.Retrieved2015-10-10.

[3] Shulchan Aruch Even Ha-ezer 62:4.

[4] Shulchan Aruch OC565:5

[5] Shulchan Aruch OC219:3

[6] Maimonides writes that"The prayer of the community is always heard; and even if there were sinners among them, the Holy One, blessed be He, never rejects the prayer of the multitude. Hence a person must join himself with the community, and should not pray by himself so long as he is able to pray with the community."Mishneh TorahHilkhot Tefillah8:1

[7] Meiselman, Moshe (1978).Jewish Woman in Jewish Law.Ktav Publishing Inc.p. 134.ISBN 0-87068-329-2.

[8] Rashi and Tosafot to Talmud Bavli Pesachim 46a

[9] Savannah at the Hashkafah.com forums quoting https://www.dafdigest.org/pesachim/Pesachim%20046.pdf

[10] Tosafot Berachot47b

[11] Shulchan Aruch OC55

[12] Ziegler, Aharon (2004). "Counting a Minor in a Minyan".Halakhic positions of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik: Volume III.Rowman & Littlefield.pp. 26–28.ISBN 0-7425-4293-9.

[13] See Igrot MosheOC 2:18.

[14] Bleich, J. David(1976). "The Synagogue: Women in a Minyan?".Contemporary Halakhic Problems.Vol. I. Ktav Publishing. pp.28–83.ISBN 0-87068-450-7.

[15] Meiselman, Moshe (1978).Jewish Woman in Jewish Law.Ktav Publishing. pp. 136–40.ISBN 0-87068-329-2.

[16] Aiken, Lisa (1993).To Be A Jewish Woman.Aronson. p. 58.ISBN 0-87668-609-9.

[BermanWomen-17] Rabbi Saul Berman, "The Status of Women in Halakhic Judaism", Tradition, Fall 1973, pp. 5–8.

[18] "7: Significant People and Ideas in Judaism".45: Religious Traditions Depth Studies.Understanding Faith.AU:VIC. Archived fromthe originalon 21 August 2014.Retrieved22 May2022.

[19] "Women Equal with Men in Minyan".Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 1973-09-11.Retrieved2016-10-13.

[Fine-20] Fine, Rabbi David J. (12 June 2012)."Women and the Minyan"(PDF).Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly(in English and Hebrew). New York, NY: Rabbinical Assembly.Retrieved23 May2011.

[21] Beit Yosef OC55:11–12

[22] OC55

[23] Appel, Gershon (1978).The Concise Code of Jewish Law.Ktav Publishing. p. 63.ISBN 0-87068-298-9.

[24] Melamed Le-ho'ilOC29

[25] Kaf Hachayim55:17

[26] Aruch Hashulchan55:12–13

[FOOTNOTEPheufer1997127-27] Pheufer 1997,p. 127.

[FOOTNOTEPheufer1997212-28] Pheufer 1997,p. 212.

[FOOTNOTEPheufer1997126-29] Pheufer 1997,p. 126.

[30] Mishnah TorahTefillah viii

[31] Mishna Berurah55

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