The
Mitsvah of Shema
Dovid
Eidensohn
The
Mitsvah in the Torah for a Jew to read Shema Yisroel by day and night is taught
in the Rambam in two places. One is in the beginning of Mishneh Torah in Sefer
HaMitsvose Mitsvas Eseh Mitsvah 2, and the other is in Sefer HoAhavo Laws of
Krias Shema.
In
Sefer HaMitsvose there we are taught, “This teaches that HaShem commanded us to
belief in the Complete Control HaShem has on everything. That we must belief
that He who produces the realities and their first causes are One. And
regarding this they have taught, Hear O Israel the L-d our G‑d the L-d is One.”
The Rambam continues there to explain our obligation to accept the Yichud of
HaShem, that He made and controls everything.
In
Mitsvah 3 there we are taught, “The third mitsvah is that we are commanded to
love HaShem…The Sifri teaches ‘Because it is said ‘And you shall love the L-d
your G‑d, I don’t know how to love HaShem. The Torah then says, And these
things that I command you today shall be on your heart, because through this
you will recognize He who says ‘Let there be a world.’”
The
Rambam continues there in the name of the Sifri “And you shall love HaShem
means you should cause others to love him, as we find with Avrohom your father
who called upon others to serve HaShem.” Rambam at the end of Mishneh Torah
says that at the End of Days HaShem will introduce through Moshiach a level
where all people, Jews and gentiles, will worship HaShem.”
We
now turn to Rambam:[1] “We
recite twice a day Krias Shema, in the evening and the morning, as it is said,
‘When you lie down and when you rise up.”
This
Rambam is heavily supported by the commentators on Mishneh Torah, but it is not
at all simple. The first page in gemora Berochose[2] brings a long Tosfose that
strongly disagrees with the Rambam, and says that we begin reading the Shema
before nightfall. This is stated by the greatest Tosafists, Rabbeinu Tam and
the Ri. But Rashi agrees with the Rambam to read Shema at night not by day.
To
return to the great battle between Rabbeinu Tam and the Ri with Rashi and
Rambam, if one can read Shema before night, let us introduce another idea. The
Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 58:6 says that the time to say Shema in the morning
passes after the first three hours of the day, but one may still say Shema with
the Berochose until the completion of the fourth hour. If one did not say Shema
by then he can still recite Shema, but with no Berochose.
If
so, according to Rabbeinu Tam and the Ri, that one can say Shema of the evening
before night in the previous day, in defiance of Rambam and Rashi, why do we
not insist that everyone who prays during the day read Shema again at night,
maybe with Berochose maybe without, but at least, say Shema. And if the fourth
hour we may recite Shema with the Berochose, is this not a Berocho livatolo?
On
a simpler level, if we examine the Tosfose in Berochose B1, we see a big
problem. Rabbeinu Tam says that we pasken like Rabbi Yehuda, that day ends
about two hours before night. And yet, Tosfose and seemingly Rabbeinu Tam
concurs that everyone dovens mincha after Rabbi Yehuda forbids it, until night
mamosh. If so, the entire teaching of Rabbi Yehuda is botel.
Furthermore,
the Ri is left; and he explains that one may pray maariv during the previous
day based upon the opinion that night begins with the darkening of the sky when
the sun is not in full strength. But this is mentioned in the gemora B2; and Rashi
explains it means Bain HaShemoshose, when we assume it is already partially
night before the small stars came out. But is that the time that people prayed
in shull the evening prayers? And is there a difference between when people
dovened in the daytime between summer’s long days and winter’s short days? That
is the question.
I
am not concluding here with a clear pesak in these matters, because the
Shulchan Aruch and the Poskim are filled with a variety of opinions. I know
what I do myself, and it is to keep it as safe as possible, to try to find a
strict time to doven.
I
learned under the great rabbis from Europe and I know that they had their
variations with what the Mishneh Berura paskened. One differed about the time
to doven Mincha. One differed when to doven on Shabbos. But I try to follow the
Mishneh Berura. A posek has stated that on Chanukah there are various customs
when to light the candles, and he mentioned that a major Litvisher Rebbe
paskened one way, but that the Mishneh Berura said something else, and this is,
to him, is an interesting thing. The Chazon Ish held very strongly of the
Mishneh Berurah.
[1] Book
of Ahava in Mishneh Torah Laws of Krias Shama chapter One,1
[2]
Berochose B1. See Rashi there some read Shema by day and read only one chapter
of Shema at night when they sleep. The problem is if they only read one chapter
they don’t read about the going out of Egypt, but they read it in the morning
and maybe that is enough. See Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 239:1 Mogen Avrohom
and Bare Haitiv.
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