Hakhel
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The term Hakhel (Hebrew: הקהל ''haqhēl'') refers to a biblical
commandment Commandment may refer to: * The Ten Commandments * One of the 613 mitzvot of Judaism * The Great Commandment * The New Commandment The New Commandment is a term used in Christianity to describe Jesus's commandment to "love one another" which, ac ...
of assembling all
Israelite The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan. The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stel ...
men, women and children, as well as converts to assemble and hear the reading of the
Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...
by the king of Israel once every seven years. Originally this ceremony took place at the site of the
Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jeru ...
during
Sukkot or ("Booths, Tabernacles") , observedby = Jews, Samaritans, a few Protestant denominations, Messianic Jews, Semitic Neopagans , type = Jewish, Samaritan , begins = 15th day of Tishrei , ends = 21st day of Tis ...
in the year following a Seventh Year. According to the
Mishna The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...
, the "commandment to assemble" (Hebrew: מצות הקהל ''mitzvat hakhel'') was performed throughout the years of the Second Temple era and, by inference, during the First Temple era as well. The biblical mitzvah of Hakhel is only in effect when all the Jewish people reside in Israel. However, more recently attempts have been made to revive a symbolic form of hakhel.


In the Bible

The Hebrew
Hiphil In Hebrew, verbs, which take the form of derived stems, are conjugated to reflect their tense and mood, as well as to agree with their subjects in gender, number, and person. Each verb has an inherent voice, though a verb in one voice typic ...
verb A verb () is a word ( part of speech) that in syntax generally conveys an action (''bring'', ''read'', ''walk'', ''run'', ''learn''), an occurrence (''happen'', ''become''), or a state of being (''be'', ''exist'', ''stand''). In the usual descr ...
''haqhêl'' (
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
: הַקְהֵ֣ל, "assemble"), from which comes the term ''mitzvat hakhel'', is used in :
"9 Moses wrote down this Teaching and gave it to the priests, sons of Levi, who carried the Ark of Yhwh’s Covenant, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 And Moses instructed them as follows: Every seventh year, the year set for remission, at the Feast of Booths, 11 when all Israel comes to appear before Yhwh your God in the place that He will choose, you shall read this Teaching aloud in the presence of all Israel.12 Gather the people—men, women, children, and the strangers in your communities—that they may hear and so learn to revere Yhwh your God and to observe faithfully every word of this Teaching. 13 Their children, too, who have not had the experience, shall hear and learn to revere Yhwh your God as long as they live in the land that you are about to cross the Jordan to possess (NJPS with modifications)."


In the Mishnah

According to the Mishnah, the ceremony was conducted on the first day of Chol HaMoed Sukkot, the day after the inaugural festival day, on behalf of all the Jews who participated in the pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Trumpets would sound throughout Jerusalem (
Tosefta The Tosefta ( Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: תוספתא "supplement, addition") is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the late 2nd century, the period of the Mishnah. Overview In many ways, the Tosefta acts as a supplement to the Mishnah ( ...
) and a large wooden platform would be erected in the Temple in the court of the women (Hebrew: ''ezrat hanashim'' עזרת הנשים). The king would sit on this platform and all in attendance would gather around him. The ''
hazzan A ''hazzan'' (; , lit. Hazan) or ''chazzan'' ( he, חַזָּן , plural ; Yiddish ''khazn''; Ladino ''Hasan'') is a Jewish musician or precentor trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer. In English, this ...
haknesset'' (החזן הכנסת, "servant of the synagogue") would hand the Book of the Law to the ''rosh haknesset'' (ראש הכנסת, " archisynagogue"), who would hand it to the deputy ''kohen gadol,'' who would hand it to the High Priest, who would present it to the king. According to the
Sefer Hachinuch ''Sefer ha-Chinuch'' ( he, ספר החינוך, "Book of Education") is a Jewish rabbinic text which systematically discusses the 613 commandments of the Torah. It was published anonymously in 13th-century Spain. History The work's enumeration of ...
, the king would accept the ''sefer Torah'' while standing, but could sit while he read it aloud. The rest of Israel were required to stand, which led to
Jeroboam Jeroboam I (; Hebrew: ''Yārŏḇə‘ām''; el, Ἱεροβοάμ, Hieroboám) was the first king of the northern Kingdom of Israel. The Hebrew Bible describes the reign of Jeroboam to have commenced following a revolt of the ten northern ...
's revolt. The king began the reading with the same blessings over the Torah that are recited before every '' Aliyah La-Torah'' in
synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of wor ...
s today. Seven additional blessings were recited at the conclusion of the reading. The reading consisted of the following sections from the Book of Deuteronomy: # From the beginning of the book through
Shema Yisrael ''Shema Yisrael'' (''Shema Israel'' or ''Sh'ma Yisrael''; he , שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ''Šəmaʿ Yīsrāʾēl'', "Hear, O Israel") is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewi ...
(6:4); # The second paragraph of the Shema (11:13-21); # "You shall surely tithe" (14:22-27); # "When you have finish tithing" (26:12-15); # The section about appointing a king (17:14-20); # The blessings and curses (28:1-69).


Why children?

Many commentators ask why young children were also required to be present at this assembly. Rabbi
Eleazar ben Azariah Eleazar ben Azariah ( he, אלעזר בן עזריה) was a 1st-century CE Jewish tanna, i.e. Mishnaic sage. He was of the second generation and a junior contemporary of Gamaliel II, Eliezer b. Hyrcanus, Joshua b. Hananiah, and Akiva. Bio ...
said: “Men would come to learn and women, to listen. Why would children come? To provide a reward for those who brought them” (
Chagigah Hagigah or Chagigah (Hebrew: חגיגה, lit. "Festival Offering") is one of the tractates comprising Moed, one of the six orders of the Mishnah, a collection of Jewish traditions included in the Talmud. It deals with the Three Pilgrimage Festiv ...
3a).


Twentieth-century revival

The idea of reviving the ''mitzvat hakhel'' in modern times was first proposed by Rabbi
Eliyahu David Rabinowitz-Teomim Elijah David Rabinowitz-Teomim (1843—1905), also known by his acronym ADeReT, was a Lithuanian rabbi in the 19th century who served as the leader of the Jewish community of Panevėžys, as the rabbi of Mir, led the Ashkenazi community in Jer ...
(the "Aderes"), who published two pamphlets on the issue, ''Zecher leMikdash'' and ''Dvar Be'ito''.
Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...
Shmuel Salant Shmuel Salant ( he, שמואל סלנט; January 2, 1816 – August 16, 1909) served as the Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem for almost 70 years. He was a renowned Talmudist and Torah scholar. Early life Shmuel Salant was born in Białyst ...
of Jerusalem would gather all the
Talmud Torah Talmud Torah ( he, תלמוד תורה, lit. 'Study of the Torah') schools were created in the Jewish world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic, as a form of religious school for boys of modest backgrounds, where they were given an elementary edu ...
students in front of the
Western Wall The Western Wall ( he, הַכּוֹתֶל הַמַּעֲרָבִי, HaKotel HaMa'aravi, the western wall, often shortened to the Kotel or Kosel), known in the West as the Wailing Wall, and in Islam as the Buraq Wall (Arabic: حَائِط ...
on the first day of Chol HaMoed
Sukkot or ("Booths, Tabernacles") , observedby = Jews, Samaritans, a few Protestant denominations, Messianic Jews, Semitic Neopagans , type = Jewish, Samaritan , begins = 15th day of Tishrei , ends = 21st day of Tis ...
and read to them the same passages that the king would read at Hakhel. The first official Israeli ceremony of Hakhel was held during Sukkot of 1945, the year following the
sabbatical A sabbatical (from the Hebrew: (i.e., Sabbath); in Latin ; Greek: ) is a rest or break from work. The concept of the sabbatical is based on the Biblical practice of '' shmita'' (sabbatical year), which is related to agriculture. According ...
year. A special service was held in the Yeshurun Synagogue, after which a mass procession moved on to the Western Wall where the Torah portions were read. Similar ceremonies presided over by Israel government officials have been held every seven years since. The Hakhel ceremony conducted in 1994 was attended by the
Chief Rabbis of Israel Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...
, the
President of Israel The president of the State of Israel ( he, נְשִׂיא מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, Nesi Medinat Yisra'el, or he, נְשִׂיא הַמְדִינָה, Nesi HaMedina, President of the State) is the head of state of Israel. The po ...
and other dignitaries. The ceremony performed at the Western Wall in 2001 was led by the
President of Israel The president of the State of Israel ( he, נְשִׂיא מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, Nesi Medinat Yisra'el, or he, נְשִׂיא הַמְדִינָה, Nesi HaMedina, President of the State) is the head of state of Israel. The po ...
,
Moshe Katzav Moshe Katsav ( he, מֹשֶׁה קַצָּב; born 5 December 1945) is an Israeli former politician who was the eighth President of Israel from 2000 to 2007. He was also a leading Likud member of the Israeli Knesset and a minister in its cabine ...
. Rabbi
Menachem Mendel Schneerson Menachem Mendel Schneerson (Modern Hebrew: מנחם מענדל שניאורסון; old-fashioned spelling: מנחם מענדל שניאורסאהן; April 5, 1902 OS – June 12, 1994; AM 11 Nissan 5662 – 3 Tammuz 5754), known to man ...
, the Lubavitcher
Rebbe A Rebbe ( yi, רבי, translit=rebe) or Admor ( he, אדמו״ר) is the spiritual leader in the Hasidic movement, and the personalities of its dynasties.Heilman, Samuel"The Rebbe and the Resurgence of Orthodox Judaism."''Religion and Spiritu ...
, urged Jews everywhere to conduct large and small Hakhel gatherings throughout the Hakhel year in synagogues and private homes to foster greater unity and increase
Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...
learning, mitzvah observance, and the giving of
charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...
.


References


Further reading

* {{cite web , last = Schneerson , first = Menachem M , title = A Rosh Hashana Message: What Exactly Is Hakhel? , url = http://www.chabad.org/2183846/


External links


Time Magazine report on the commemoration of Hakhel in Israel in October 1952
Hebrew words and phrases in the Hebrew Bible Tishrei observances Positive Mitzvoth Talmud concepts and terminology