''Ani Ma'amin'' () is a prosaic rendition of

Maimonides Moses ben Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (, ) and also referred to by the Hebrew acronym Rambam (), was a Sephardic rabbi and Jewish philosophy, philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah schola ...

' thirteen-point version of the

Jewish principles of faith The formulation of principles of faith, universally recognized across all branches of Judaism remains undefined. There is no central authority in Judaism in existence today although the Sanhedrin, the supreme Jewish religious court, would fulfill ...

. It is based on his

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; , from the verb ''šānā'', "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. Having been collected in the 3rd century CE, it is ...

commentary to tractate

Sanhedrin The Sanhedrin (Hebrew and Middle Aramaic , a loanword from , 'assembly,' 'sitting together,' hence ' assembly' or 'council') was a Jewish legislative and judicial assembly of either 23 or 70 elders, existing at both a local and central level i ...

. The popular version of ''Ani Ma'amin'' is of a later date and has some significant differences with Maimonides' original version. It is of unknown authorship. Both ''Ani Ma'amin'' and a poetic version, ''

Yigdal Yigdal () is a Religious Jewish music, Jewish hymn which in various rituals shares with ''Adon Olam'' the place of honor at the opening of the morning and the close of the evening service. It is based on the Maimonides#Thirteen principles of faith, ...

'', form part of the prayers of Jews and have inspired varied settings to music.

Form

The recitation consists of thirteen lines, each beginning with the phrase "''Ani ma'am be-Emunah Shelema''" ("I believe with full faith"). It follows the same order as Maimonides' enumeration.

In prayer

Many Jews recite Ani Ma'amin at the conclusion of their morning prayers. The poetic version ''Yigdal'' is more commonly recited at the beginning of the prayers. In some communities ''Yigdal'' is also recited on the

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; , , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the seven-day week, week—i.e., Friday prayer, Friday–Saturday. On this day, religious Jews ...

and

holidays A holiday is a day or other period of time set aside for festivals or recreation. ''Public holidays'' are set by public authorities and vary by state or region. Religious holidays are set by religious organisations for their members and are often ...

after the evening service.

Culture

The penultimate line refers to the essential Jewish belief in the coming of the Mashiach. As such, this line has become a popular source of lyrics for Jewish songs. One version of the lyrics, set to a "haunting melody", is attributed to Azriel David Fastag, a Modzitzer Hasid whose compositions were regularly sung in the court of the Modzitzer Rebbe, Rabbi Shaul Yedidya Elazar. He reportedly composed the tune in a cattle car while being taken to

Treblinka Treblinka () was the second-deadliest extermination camp to be built and operated by Nazi Germany in Occupation of Poland (1939–1945), occupied Poland during World War II. It was in a forest north-east of Warsaw, south of the Treblinka, ...

. Fastag announced that he would give half of his share of the

World to Come The world to come, age to come, heaven on Earth, and the Kingdom of God are eschatology, eschatological phrases reflecting the belief that the World (theology), current world or Dispensation (period), current age is flawed or cursed and will be r ...

to whoever would bring the tune to the Modzitzer Rebbe, who had escaped Europe in 1940. Two men took him up on his offer and leaped from the moving train. One died from the fall, but the other survived and eventually brought the tune to the Rebbe's son in Israel, who sent his father the musical score. The tune was sung by dozens of Jews as they marched to the gas chambers in the Nazi death camps. This tune is still frequently sung at Holocaust Remembrance Day services. Some also sing it at the

Passover Seder The Passover Seder is a ritual feast at the beginning of the Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted throughout the world on the eve of the 15th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar (i.e., at the start of the 15th; a Hebrew d ...

, in memory of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, which began on the first night of Passover in 1943. Another tune to the words of ''Ani Ma'amin'' is used as a positive song included at happy events, mainly weddings. The words are the same, but a much happier tune is used. The popular Chabad-Lubavitch singer

Avraham Fried Avraham Shabsi Hakohen Friedman (; born March 22, 1959) better known by his stage name, Avraham Fried, is an Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish American singer. Career Fried was encouraged towards a music career by Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneers ...

has recorded a version of this song that has gained popularity, reflecting the Chabad-Lubavitch's emphasis on the imminent coming of the Messiah. ''Ani Ma'amin'' was sung by the choir during

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

's historic visit to the Synagogue of Rome on April 13, 1986. Other popular versions of ''Ani Ma'amin'' were composed by Shlomo Carlebach and Moshe Goldman.

References

{{Reflist

External links

''Learn to sing Ani Maamin with midi file, lyrics, translation''
at www.greatjewishmusic.com.
"Moshe Steinerman sings a haunting "Ani Maamin" at the kever (grave) of Shmuel HaNavi"
on Facebook Songs in Hebrew Holocaust commemoration Jewish prayer and ritual texts Jewish theology Hebrew words and phrases in Jewish prayers and blessings