Question:
- On occasion, I am stuck with a minyan for shachris that davens so fast that I can’t possibly keep up, with having a basic level of kavana. Are there any issue(s) with starting birchos krias shema and krias shema way ahead of them so that I can start shemoneh esrai with them? What are the halachos regarding answering Amen Yehei shemei rabbah, barchu, etc. while in middle of shema/birchos krias shema?
- I would prefer to daven vasikin by myself. Is that an option?
Thank you so much for this service!
Answer:
- R’ Volbe zt”l used to say, (I heard it from him numerous times) that when a person is davening in a shtiebel, and the minyan is davening too quick for him, he should start davening earlier than the minyan, and time himself to start Shemona Esrei together with the tzibbur. The halachos of answering to amen etc. after starting birkas kriyas shema, are as follows. Between perakim (between “yotzer hamioros” and “Ahava Rabba”, between the end of that bracha and Shema, between the end of that paragraph and “V’hoyo im shamoah”, between the words “al horetz, and “V’yomer”) you may answer “amen” to all brachos, but not to “boruch hu ubarich shemo”.
When you are in middle of a perek, you may only answer to the following “special things”,
- Amen of the brachos “H-kel hakadosh”, “shomeya tefillah”, but not to any other amen’s.
- You may answer Borchu.
- During Kaddish you may answer “amein yihei shmei…” and to the amen after the words “d’amiron b’olma”.
- During kedusha you may only say the verses of “Kadosh, kadosh” and “Boruch kevod”.
- For modim you may say the words “Modim anachnu loch”.
2. It is better to daven with a minyan then vasikin, unless you always daven vasikin and occasionally you don’t have a minyan. Please see the following post https://dinonline.org/2020/05/27/what-is-better-tefillah-btzibbur-or-vasikin/
Best wishes
Sources:
O:CH 66-3 with Mishna Berura.
