Saturday, December 26, 2015

Is anybody home? :(

My husband came down with pharyngitis, and didn't have enough voice to chant a haftarah.  Unfortunately, there are now only two other congregants who can chant a haftarah with no advance notice--I'm not one of them, I'm sorry to say--and neither of them was there this morning.  So the poor chazzan (cantor) ended up chanting the haftarah in addition to leading the Shacharit (Morning) service, leining (chanting) the Torah reading, and leading the Musaf  ("Additional" [for Sabbath and Pilgrimage-Festival]) service.  That's what happens in a declining congregation, says my husband.  I suppose I should be happy that we can still get a (women-included) minyan, even if we have to wait 15-20 minutes.  Given the toll taken by the Mal'ach HaMavet/Angel of Death, it's just a matter of time before that won't be possible anymore, either.  Sigh.

2 Comments:

Blogger Mighty Garnel Ironheart said...

Heh. I was once leading Shacharis at this small shul and the rabbi who is the ba'al koreh as well as away. Usually he arranged for some yeshiva kid to come out and lain but this week there wasn't one in the crowd. And as I'm finishing up the amidah the president and his gabbais are looking at me and whispering.
Hey, Lord Ironheart, can you lain an entire parsha on Shabbos without any preparation?

Sun Dec 27, 06:04:00 AM 2015  
Blogger Shira Salamone said...

Ouch. I hope that went well.

Sun Dec 27, 08:49:00 AM 2015  

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