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Parshas Toldos: The Yichus of the Sheliach Tzibbur No definitive Halacha LeMa'aseh conclusions should be applied to practical situations based on any of these Shiurim. The Torah tells us that after Yitzchak and Rivkah had been married for a while and had been unable to have children, they each davened to Hashem, asking to be blessed with children (Bereishis 25:21). Despite the fact that the beginning of this Posuk (Ibid.) implies that both of them davened to Hashem, as pointed out by Rashi (Ibid. s.v. L'Nochach), the end of the Posuk (Ibid.) indicates only that Hashem responded to his prayers, meaning the prayers of Yitzchak. The Gemara in Yevamos (64a), quoted as well by Rashi in his commentary on the Torah (Ibid. s.v. V'Yaater Lo), wonders why the Torah does not say that Hashem responded to their prayers, and explains that the prayers of a Tzaddik who is the child of a Tzaddik are more powerful than those of a Tzaddik who is the child of a wicked person. Hashem thus accepted primarily the prayers of Yitzchak, since he was a Tzaddik who was the child of a Tzaddik, while Rivkah, though a Tzaddekes herself, was not the child of a Tzaddik. It would thus appear that one's Yichus, that is, one's family background, can play some role in the effectiveness of one's Tefillos. The Rosh (Sheilos V'Teshuvos HaRosh Klal 4 Siman 22) quotes an authority who objected, possibly based on the above, to the appointment of Chazzonim who came from undistinguished families because it is a Bizui Mitzvah, a degradation of the Mitzvah, to have someone represent the community as the Sheliach Tzibbur if he does not come from a distinguished family. The Rosh himself (Ibid.), however, disagrees with this reasoning and states that one's Yichus should not have any bearing on his eligibility to be a Chazzan. He says that if a person comes from a distinguished family but is himself wicked, his Yichus is not worth anything to Hashem. On the other hand, if he comes from an undistinguished or even a non-observant family, but is himself a good person, he should, in the name of Kiruv Rechokim, be encouraged to be the Chazzan and thereby be brought even closer to Hashem. As a side point, the Rosh (Ibid.) does object to the practice of selecting a Chazzan only because people enjoy hearing his beautiful voice, ignoring the fact that he may be a wicked person; he concludes that Hashem has no interest in (only) a beautiful voice. The Rosh (Ibid.) clearly believes that the person serving as a Chazzan must himself be a righteous person, even though he need not come from a great family. The Tur (Orach Chaim Siman 53) quotes this Teshuvah from his father the Rosh (Ibid.) that one's family background is not important in terms of his qualifications as a Chazzan, but the difficulty is that this position appears to go against the aforementioned Gemara in Yevamos (Ibid.) which states that the prayers of a Tzaddik from a righteous family are more powerful than those of a Tzaddik from a wicked family. The Maharshal (Sheilos V'Teshuvos Maharshal Siman 20) raises precisely this question against the view of the Rosh (Ibid.), and he suggests that perhaps the statement of the Gemara (Ibid.) refers only to when a person is praying for himself and his own needs. In such a case, the prayers of a Tzaddik from a family of Tzaddikim are indeed more powerful than those of a Tzaddik from a wicked family, because the merits of the former's righteous ancestors (Zichus Avos) are taken into account and benefit him, while the latter has no such merits to assist him. But as for serving as a Sheliach Tzibbur, if one is recognized as a pious person himself, the fact that he comes from a wicked or non-observant family is inconsequential. In fact, the Maharshal (Ibid.) adds, it is considered significant and especially meritorious in the eyes of Hashem that this person has abandoned the ways of his family and returned to the proper path. In view of that point, it may even be preferable to have such a person represent the community as the Sheliach Tzibbur. This notion may be based in part on the opinion quoted in the Gemara in Berachos (34b) that Ba'alei Teshuvah, from a certain perspective, are on a higher level than people who were always righteous. The Bach, however, in his commentary on the Tur (Orach Chaim Ibid. s.v. V'Z"L A"A), quotes a view expressed by the Maharshal in his Sefer Yam Shel Shlomo on Chulin (Perek 1 Siman 48) that while it may be, from a Kiruv Rechokim perspective, good to encourage someone who is returning to observant Judaism from a non-observant family to be the Chazzan, if there are two people whose levels of personal piety and observance are equal, it is preferable to designate as the Chazzan the one who comes from a more distinguished family. He then adds that it is proper to be scrupulous about this, because the prayers of a Tzaddik from a righteous family are greater than those of a Tzaddik from a less worthy family. The Perishah, in his commentary on the Tur (Ibid. Ot 7), quotes this view as well. The Magen Avraham (Orach Chaim Ibid. Sif Katan 8) likewise writes simply that one should make the effort to find a Sheliach Tzibbur who comes from a righteous family for this same reason. The Taz (Ibid. Sif Katan 3), however, disagrees, referring back to the aforementioned Teshuvah of the Rosh (Ibid.), and pointing out that he implies that it is always preferable to select as the Chazzan the individual from the less pious family in order to bring that person closer to Hashem. He also writes that this person's Tefillos will be more readily accepted by Hashem than those of the person from the more righteous family. The Levushei Serad (Ibid.), commenting on this view of the Taz (Ibid.), explains this latter point by saying that Hashem will see that the Tzibbur asked this person to be their Chazzan as a means of drawing him closer to Hashem, whereas the righteous person from a righteous family did not have the same need to be drawn closer to Hashem; Hashem will thus more readily accept the prayers of this person on behalf of the Tzibbur. The Shulchan Aruch HaRav (Orach Chaim Ibid. Sif 7) suggests that the Tefillos of a Tzaddik from a wicked family may be better than those of the person from a righteous family precisely because the former has no Zichus Avos, meritorious family background; as a result, his prayers may be more pure and of a more humble spirit because he knows he must rely exclusively on Hashem accepting his prayers. He adds, though, that each situation depends on particular, individual circumstances. The Mishnah Berurah (Ibid. Sif Katan 13), writes, however, that it is preferable to have a Chazzan who is righteous and is from a righteous family for the reason cited above, and he quotes that when the Rosh in his Teshuvah (Ibid.) wrote that the Yichus of the Chazzan is unimportant, he meant to allow for a Chazzan from an undistinguished family, but not for one who comes from a wicked family. The former should be encouraged to serve as a Chazzan to bring him closer to Hashem, the latter, perhaps, should not. It is interesting to note that when discussing the qualifications needed for one to serve as a Sheliach Tzibbur in general, the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim Ibid. Sifim 4-6) says nothing about the person's family background. Elsewhere, however, when discussing the qualifications relating to serving as a Chazzan on a public fast day, which is a time of great communal need, the Shulchan Aruch (Ibid. Siman 579 Sif 1) does mention that the person's family members ought to be free of sin as well, as implied by the Gemara in Taanis (16a). The Magen Avraham (Ibid. Siman 53 Sif Katan 6) writes that everything here must be determined based on the needs and circumstances of the particular case. The Kaf HaChaim (Ibid. Ot 41) quotes the different opinions on this entire issue, and as for the question of who takes precedence as the Chazzan, one from a distinguished family or one from an undistinguished family, concerning which the Maharshal (Ibid.) expressed conflicting views, as cited above, he too explains that it all depends upon the feelings and knowledge of the community which this Chazzan will be representing. If you have any questions or comments, please click here
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