סידור חב״ד (חלק 2)

00:00 Okay, this is Igress. Yesterday, we talked about the importance of davening Nusach Ari, which is of course, the Alter Rebbe's Nusach. Uh, we saw letters where the Rebbe appears to suggest that someone who uses our Nusach is more likely to have their prayers answered. That was particularly surprising. And we saw multiple letters strongly encouraging people and even entire shuls to change their family customs, their historical customs, and switch into Nusach Ari. The Rebbe also described the greatness of the Alter Rebbe's siddur, that he went through sixty siddurim and provided a psak in both nigla and nistar on every single word, that it was grammatically, linguistically, kabbalistically superior in every single way. We also saw a section in which the Rebbe explains another unique advantage, which is that this siddur allows you to tap into the kabbalistic kavanos, that real kabbalists, um, take a lot of focus to pull off or a lot of experience. So with this siddur, even a simple person is effectively doing kabbalah when they daven, even if they don't know it. And we talked a lot about the greatness of the siddur and the Rebbe's push to begin using it. Some of those letters hinted to a common and somewhat lingering question, which is, uh, first of all, the halakhic implications of switching from Nusach Ashkenaz or Sephard into Ari. And second of all, we're gonna spend probably most of our time on today, is what to do if you're in a shul that doesn't follow that Nusach. What if you

01:06 find yourself davening in an Ashkenazi or Sephardi shul and you're the only Chabad guy? Uh, are you violating some sort of halakha? Is it maybe lei-tzededul? Is it a violation of maybe a daraysa, of separating from the tzibbur, of going against the prevailing custom of the s-- of the organization? Could be a nisud daraysa. Uh, what do you do if you're, uh, in the cr-- in the, in the crowd? Are you allowed to do a different kedusha than everybody else? Are you allowed to be quiet during the Shemoneh? Maybe a more difficult question, what do you do if you're the chazan? Are you allowed to be a different kind of chazan on the bimah? Are people gonna throw things at you? This is, uh, these are the subjects of today's shiur. We're gonna look at two things. First, we're going to, uh, put a final lid on top of the question of switching Nusachais, which the Rebbe has a lot to say from a halakhic angle. And second of all, we're going to look at what to do when we're in a different shul. Everything that I have for you today, by the way, is Rebbe letters and shailas and tshuvias, but, uh, they're relatively old, which means that none of this shiur should be considered halakha l'maaseh. Normally, this shiur can be considered halakha l'maaseh only because at the end of the shiur, I'll find something that either Rav Bron wrote that's very definitive or that some other Lubavitcher Rav wrote that's very definitive

02:06 on the subject. I didn't find that this time, although I think the Rebbe really is very clear. But at the same time, since I didn't find definitive writing from any of our Rabbonim on this subject, this shiur is, uh, is, is to be used theoretically. However, I think you'll find the Rebbe is pretty clear. I don't know how you could really disagree with him, but just uh, caveat emptor. Okay. First letter we have on our screen is from Dalet Yev, Taf Shin Tes Vav. And, uh, the Rebbe's short letter, the Rebbe writes, "Shalom u-bracha. How to explain to other people that you're switching the Nusach hatefila. The Rebbe says, when people ask you why you're switching over to Nusach Ari, to the, uh, to the Alter Rebbe's Nusach or why you use it, you should tell them it's the Nusach ashava l'chol nefesh. That is the Nusach that everybody can use. This is, uh, going back on something that the Magid of Mezritch originally says. That's brought in the Divrei Chaim. The Rebbe's gonna quote that Divrei Chaim, which says, uh, you might have seen it in the introduction to some of our siddurim. Uh, Rabbi Nessim Manguel, he wrote it in his intro to the siddur, uh, summarizing this Magid and this, uh, and this Divrei Chaim, which says that there, there's se-- there are twelve gates in heaven, and each one of these twelve gates is one of the Nusach hatefila. But then the Arizal invented a thirteenth gate, a way in for

03:16 everybody. So it's a shar hakol that is shava l'chol nefesh. Then the Rebbe starts throwing sources at it. He says, the Rashdam says there, . We have a Rashdam that says you can switch from Ashkenaz to Sephard. We also have Divrei Chaim where it gives the source and that also says this. That's the Divrei Chaim I was mentioning a moment ago. So we have good poskim who say you can switch from Ashkenaz to Sephard. Chaim Zans? Uh, yes, yes, uh, yes, Zans, yes. Now, two people disagree with this. The Chasam Sofer and the Maharim Shik both say that you can't switch. I think I told you yesterday the opposite. I was wrong. It was the Chasam Sofer is the one who says you can't. So the Rebbe was just throwing sources at us. He says that, uh, the Chasam Sofer and the Maharim Shik don't like this, but at the same time, the Minchas Elazar and, uh, the, and the Beis Yosef resolve it, and they answer all the questions. And the maskana is, says the Rebbe, The maskana is the Rebbe being machrid, saying the maskana is that you can definitely switch from Ashkenaz to Sephard. These are strong words from the Rebbe because the Chasam Sofer does not agree. But the Rebbe says, bottom line, there is no dayah whatsoever to allow you to switch from Sephard to Ashkenaz. So definitely can't go back. Now, um, I did wanna give you some of the background here, what the Rebbe is talking about, because

04:33 this is a lot of sources, and I guess the Rebbe expected us to look them up. So the source of all of these problems, problem solutions, if you like, is the Magan Avram. It's in Shulchan Aruch, in Siman Sameches. There, the Magan Avram says you're not allowed to switch your minhag. It's the only Magan Avram in this tiny little siman. He says the Arizal didn't put piyutim and pizmonim. He usually only used the ones that were set up by the Rishonim, that were set according to Kabbalah. And he says, oh, no, when it comes to the minhagim that have been k- practiced, when it comes to tefila, you are not allowed to change from the minhag of the place. That doesn't mean the minhag of the shul you're davening in. Back then, minhag ha'makom meant that if you live in Poland, you're not allowed to suddenly adopt a Sephard Nusach. Because there are twelve gates in heaven, the twelve Shvatim against the corresponding to the twelve Shvatim, and every single one of the tribes has their own gate they're supposed to enter, and, uh, you can't go in through the wrong gate. So if you were born into a certain Nusach, says the Maggid of Abram, you simply are never allowed to switch. And also he says, I'd like to add in the Gemara that it also says in the Yerushalmi that, uh, even though they sent a letter, uh, from elsewhere telling us the proper Nusach hatefila, the Yerushalmi says, . You have a

05:34 Deoraita that says you're not allowed to change from the custom of your fathers. Says the Maggid of Abram, that strongly suggests you're never allowed to change your Nusach. This is more or less what the Chasam Sofer is concerned with. I was able to pull an excerpt from it and put it on the screen. All these chilbus are very long, but this is an excerpt we can read. This is the Chasam Sofer that doesn't like this idea. The Chasam Sofer says, I'll read it, . Every Nusach is equal. There is no better Nusach. Well, we learned yesterday that's not the case, but the Chasam Sofer says, there all Nusachas are equal. Everything that one has, the other one has. We don't know exactly what the nature of it is. We daven according to the understandings of those who put together the tefilas and the Nusachas. The Chasam Sofer is saying, you don't know the nuances that make tefila work. All I can guarantee you is that they all work, they all work equally well, and that we don't know exactly why. They all are, they all are leaning into one kavanah. When the Arizal, the great fire of God came, . The Arizal really knew how to make a great Nusach. He compliments the Arizal on the highest level. He set up his siddur according to the best way. Look at that. He says, the Arizal took all the kavanahs and he cast them onto the Sephardi siddur. Why? 'Cause he was a Sephardi. He, he

06:53 says Nusach Ari is not a Nusach. This is the Chasam Sofer's understanding, is that Nusach Ari is a series of kavanahs that can be placed on any Nusach. You can daven Nusach Ari with Kavanah Sari with Ashkenaz or Kavanah Sari with Sephard. And the reason why Nusach Ari looks so Sephardi is because that was his minhag. His family minhag was Sephardi, so he cast his kavanahs on Sephardi. If he was Ashkenazi, says the Chasam Sofer, it would have looked like an Ashkenazi siddur. The point is, the Chasam Sofer is rejecting the idea that the Arizal actually made a Nusach hatefila and saying the Arizal put kavanahs on the, on the siddur he had. And for you to say that you're adopting the Nusach Ari by davening Nusach Sephardi, you're out of your mind. Use the Arizal's kavanahs on an Ashkenazi siddur. In the, uh... He's not exactly saying that 'cause he's saying he altered some things, but the point is that what he means is that had the, uh, had the, the Ariz-the Arizal didn't change his family minhag. The Arizal kept minhag Sephard, and had he been Ashkenazi, he would have gone Ashkenaz. Now, in the latter generations, he says, we don't know how to do this with Ashkenaz. So he, he explained how to use Sephardi and to put his kavanahs into that. We don't have anybody now to show us how to do that to Nusach Ashkenaz, so we simply can't have an Arizal Ashkenazi siddur. Therefore, some people are saying, "Since

08:14 I can't do this with my Ashkenazi siddur, I don't know how, I'm gonna daven at a Sephardi siddur because I do wanna get the Arizal boost." That's their idea. Says the Chasam Sofer, "Nice idea, but you can't do it." So this is the thing some of the Chassidim are doing, that the Chassidim are getting. I think that this is, maybe he's not talking about the Chassidim necessarily, but people were already getting, uh, people already had it in their heads maybe they could take the Ashkenazi siddur, or maybe they take the Sephardi siddur and mess with it a little. He says, "Look, we have one thing from the Arizal. We know how it works. You can't do this in Ashkenaz, and you also can't switch to Sephard because the Maggid of Abram in Siman samech heh brings the Yerushalmi that says that you are not allowed to switch your Nusach. He's referring to a Pri Etzaim here where the Arizal says that you're not allowed to change your Nusach either. So he says, "Don't, don't, don't, don't, don't get so excited about Kabbalah that you forget Halakha. The din is you can't change your Nusach." Those who daven Nusach Sephardis and they are within that realm, they certainly know what they're doing, and therefore, good for them. But if somebody is not a Kabbalist like the Arizal and doesn't know exactly what they're doing, like us, and of course, the Chasam Sofer is including himself in this, which means unless you think you're better than him,

09:28 you don't get to qualify for an exception. The Chasam Sofer says, "Me and anybody below me," we daven according to the Nusach of our family's Nusach, Nusach Ashkenaz, and our tefilas are listened to as well. So the Chasam Sofer is saying the Arizal isn't really giving us a Nusach. He's giving us a path in Kabbalah. We don't know how to do it for Ashkenaz, so we're stuck without it. As for the people who wanna switch over to Sephard so that they can get that kavanah, that's a big mistake. If they really know what they're doing at the level of the Arizal, I guess that's fine, he says. But if they don't know what they're doing at the level of the, of the Arizal, the average person can't switch over. You should know the, the Rebbe doesn't quote this, and I believe this is because it came out after these letters. Rav Moshe has a teshuvah that strongly defends the Chasam Sofer's position. Uh, somebody asked Rav Moshe if they can switch between Ashkenaz and Sephard, and, uh, Rav Moshe, I have the teshuvah on the screen in front of you. He sides with the Chasam Sofer very firmly and says he has no idea how Chassidim are justifying the switch, which is a surprising thing to hear. Usually, Rav Moshe's in our corner, but he's not in our corner about this. He says, uh, when it comes to the Antripalen and Hungaria and Rusland, uh, and all sorts of areas where it is cold, they

10:26 are all Ashkenaz. Uh, even though the Chassidim, uh, get this shita Chassidis that they daven, uh, it's actually this fashion shitas of Chassidim, this Chassidim, excuse me, who used to daven Nusach Ashkenaz, but afterwards, the heads of the Chassidim, the Rebbes, they started switching over to daven a different Nusach. And so, uh, So what the, what he's saying here, I need to summarize, we just don't have time to read the whole teshuvah, I wish we did, is that Rav Moshe's saying in this teshuvah, you know, if you're asking me about, about your... The question was, my family custom is that I'm Chassidish, so I daven the Chassidic, the Chassidic, I, I daven Nusach Sephard. Can I switch to Ashkenaz from Sephard? And Rav Moshe's answer is going to be absolutely because that's not really your family minhag. If you come from Ashkenaz, then, you know what? Ten generations ago, your great-great-great-great-great-grandfather, he wasn't a Chassid, he was davening Nusach Ashkenaz. The Chassidim switched, so let's just switch it back. And he quotes the, um, he quotes the Chasam Sofer. He defends this position. So there is what to argue on this. There are people who don't agree with the Rebbe. However We have our Rebbe, and our Rebbe's Machria. Our Rebbe has the Minchas Elazar. Our Rebbe has the, uh, the Beis HaYeitzer. Our Rebbe has the Rashdam. Our Rebbe has the Divrei Chaim. So we have a lot in our Rebbe's corner, and our Rebbe's Machria like those sources. You should just be aware

11:36 that there are other sources who don't agree. But, uh, the bottom line is that, uh, the Rebbe says that all the, uh, all the, uh, everything's answered by these sources. I did look them up a little bit. The main way the Minchas Elazar answers this question is relatively Kabbalistic, not really Halakhic. He says that what the Arizal is really doing is creating this thirteenth gate, and since it is a thirteenth gate, you're not really changing your minhag. You're entering through a minhag that should work for everybody. I understand that might be an answer that's not Halakhically, um, as appealing as some of the other stuff we've looked at. But again, we're dealing with Nusach, which is somewhat Kabbalistic in nature anyway. In any event, I want you to see the full breadth and depth of this discussion. The Rebbe is very clear that you can switch only from Ashkenaz to Sefard to Chabad, and you can't go back the other way. And, uh, there's no really room for argument in the, in the Rebbe's Shitah. However, if you wanted other opinions, Eglei Shel Ometh doesn't agree. The Chasam Sofer doesn't agree. Okay, we're going on to the next thing. Next thing is, what do I do if I find myself in a different shul? So we have, uh, two let-- we have three letters we'll look at about this, and one Piskei Dinim of the Tamach Tzedek. Cool. Queue it up. This is letter... I don't think I told you what the last letter was.

12:36 I think I just started reading it. The first letter we read was Gimel Tav Mem He from Tav Shin Tes above. The letter we're looking at right now is Zayin Lamed He, and it is from Tav Shin Chaf. Dalet Yisroel of Tav Shin Chaf. And it's written to a woman, but it's about Nusach Hatefila. Okay, Nachan Adavri. We're gonna go all the way down to Gimel. Gimel. Nachan Adavri SheKasavish. It's very nice that I'm hearing from you that you have switched over to Nusach Arizal. This Nusach is, uh, is the right Nusach, uh, the Nusach that the Arizal himself established, although, of course, it's the Alter Rebbe's version of it, and he explains a little bit of what we saw yesterday. Let's look in Dalet. Am Yisfalo B'Beis Knesset SheNusach Sham Hacheresi. What do I do if I'm davening in a different shul? I find myself in an Ashkenaz shul. RaShaya Yochel Lisfal B'Nusach Asher Lei. In that case, the Rebbe says, you one hundred percent can daven your Nusach. So this seems to be... I, I-- the Rebbe's gonna say this over and over again in a thousand different ways, but this seems to be the Rebbe's bottom line, is you absolutely can do when you're davening on your own, it's not even a question. You absolutely just do everything that you do. It is noteworthy that, uh, that if the, if you're davening in a shul where they don't say Tachnun by Mincha, uh, you are allowed to. Rabbi Binyamin Paskins, you are

13:34 allowed to not say Min- not say Tachnun if you want to, um, because you're allowed to join in the minyan's joy of not saying Tachnun. At the same time, he too says it would probably be preferable to sort of do a secret Tachnun on the side. So you can absolutely keep our Nusach completely without any changes. Ven BeZe Achashash Klal Uklal. There's no concern at all, says the Rebbe, whatsoever. No concern klal uklal to davening our Nusach in a shul that's not davening our Nusach if you're in the back somewhere. Kum Uvim Yochel Ze Inna Ivri Nehateva B'Tor Sheyechtzivah. Obviously, the Rebbe says, I mean this, if, uh, if you're not gonna be the chazzan. Ela Shapiam Al Yesh Lese B'Darkei Nem B'Bli Hadgashah. But don't forget, always do things B'Darkei Nem. Be pleasant about it. No Hadgashah. You don't have to stand at the front of the room and show them that you're doing things differently. This is something to do quietly, subtly. Don't make a mess. And the Rebbe's gonna say this multiple times, that our goal is not to upset people. Our goal is the opposite. It's the ways of peace. So daven your own Nusach. Definitely don't make a show about it. We also have a little more here on switching Nusach, so we don't need this for that. Uh, there's another letter over here. This is, uh, the first letter in a certain volume. That's kind of cool. In the, uh, nineteenth volume, this is the first letter. So we

14:35 have this letter is Zayin Lamed Beis from Tav Shin Chaf. And the Rebbe writes, Umai Aleh B'chtav Me-Me-Me, uh, Chaf Ches Elul, um, responding to your letter from Chaf Ches Elul. You're asking, uh, how to act. Minyan SheMeichiluk Nusach HaArizal Minhag Beis Knesset BeMispalel. This guy says, "I daven Chabad Nusach. I daven in a shul that doesn't. I wanna know what to do when I get in trouble." And the Rebbe gives him some advice. Excuse me. Mu Ban, says the Rebbe. It's well understood. SheB'gulah On Hagus Hu, when it comes to the actual customs, Ein Fotam Shishne. Don't change any of your customs. Do everything the way a Chabad person does it in the other shul. No one's gonna bother you. Kim U'in BeZe Inyan DeLetit Sgedu, there's no problem Letit Sgedu. You're definitely not creating dissent in Letzibur, which is a, is a Daraysa, as explained in Piskei Dinim of the Tamach Tzedek. Ela Shapiam B'vor B'kam M'kemes, as explained in many places. SheYesh Lashonot B'Nusach Ashkenaz, L'Sefard, L'Sefard, L'Nusach Arizal U'Nusach Chabad. Amal Lei DeHepech. LeHishtadel Al Hi Kamai Minhagim Kum Uvdarkei Nem. So the Rebbe's saying here there's a second problem. Since we've already established that a person is allowed to go from Ashkenaz to Sefard and Sefard to Arizal and not back, that means that if you're doing Nusach Chabad, you cannot for the day switch and be Ashkenaz, because that would be a real issue, because we already said you're not allowed to go in that direction. So anyway, you

15:43 can't do it. So you have to do it. You have to keep your own minhagim. You have to. But you have to do it B'darkei Nem. Definitely be peaceful about it. Be quiet about it. Don't make a mess. Um, now that, now he asks the Rebbe about some things that automatically make a mess. For example, Adera Hakafah SheMinhag Gem, Gem, Gem Pam. So this is on Shemini Atzeret. We do three Hakafahs on Shemini Atzeret, the rest of the world does not. So, uh, to be in line with that, it's a Zohar. You didn't know the rest of the world doesn't do that? Yeah, we only go three and a half. We don't do the, uh... Oh, wait, I don't mean that. It's not three times around. It's three times total. Excuse me. That's right. Yes. Adera Hakafah SheMinhag Gem, Gem Pam. That's what I meant. Yes. Uh, anyway, the, the extra set of Hakafahs that we do, uh, the rest of the world doesn't do it. Now, on one hand, you're saying be quiet in the shul, you know, just very quietly say you're, say you're a Murdar Tal and don't bother anybody. That's not the same thing as getting up in the shul and making Hakafahs, right? So what do I do when I, when I wanna make Hakafahs and my shul doesn't make Hakafahs? He says, Yesh Laasbir SheMa Echpat Lahem BeIm Tiar Shalos Pamim. Say, explain to the shul, what do you care if there's an extra set of Hakafahs? Mechol Yoser.

16:36 Lachri SheKol HaRetze Shad BeZe. Furthermore, make an announcement. Anybody who wants to participate is welcome. U'Frat Shaar Hakafas Nasos L'Achar HaTefilah. Why? Because this is after shul. Things happening after shul don't get in anybody's way. Ein Ze Havah Bal Acher. It doesn't bother anybody when you do something after davening is over. So after davening is over, tell them that, you know, anybody who's interested can do an extra set of Hakafahs. Eini Yodea Ech Nag B'Neguel Hatekiah. I don't know what you do regarding Tekiah Shefer. Well, L'Pe'er SheB'Reishit Libiro Inyan. You should have really, uh, clarified this to me initially. Ki Im Du Ma Leesh Minhag SheEin Tekein Meah Tekiot. My-- the Rebbe says, I believe your shul's not gonna blow a hundred Tekiot. I guess that's not the custom everywhere, right? Gam BeZe Yachel Haila Melas Nis BeKuf Raz V'Rah Mura Meilah Haya Magia Ze. Um- I think what he means here, I think what he means here is that you can just do it afterwards al derech what we said earlier. There's definitely-- So just afterwards, just blow the rest of the candle. But the Rebbe's giving him advice, which is, uh, do our minhagim, don't change our minhagim, but don't make a, don't make a scene. Now, the Rebbe quoted a Temach Tzedek, uh, that it's not a problem Lehitcheded Du. It's very important for us to know this because this is the main thing you will hear in other shuls if they find out that you're doing your own thing. Some guy

17:36 who thinks he's got a brain will come up to you and say, "Isn't this an Issur of Lehitcheded Du?" Lehitcheded Du is an Issur Deoraisa of separating from the tzibbur, of going against the prevalent minhag of the time, and there is a Piskei Dinim Temach Tzedek on this, and the Temach Tzedek paskens very clearly that there's no Inyan of Lehitcheded Du in this Inyan, in this particular case, and he's gonna explain why. Um, the Guf HaDin, I'm quoting the Piskei Din. The Guf HaDin, Im Yesh Mishum Lehitcheded Du B'shilan Nusach HaTefilah, how much or more on the nose could you get? When it comes to the question of whether you are violating Lehitcheded Du when it comes to Nusach HaTefilah Ben Sefardim Ashkenazim, Ein Mochrach Klal. It's not a problem at all. If people are saying that it's a problem, not at all Mochrach. Because it's already explained in the Magen Avram, SheMinhag Ein Bo Mishum Lehitcheded Du. A minhag never has Lehitcheded Du except Zulas, minhag SheYesh Bo Isur, a minhag that has an isur. For example, if you live in a place where they don't cut their hair during a certain period of time in Sefira, and you decide you're gonna be the only one cutting their hair in that period of time, that is an isur. The whole community said we're not cutting our hair right now. If you choose to violate that minhag and cut your hair in a time when the community doesn't cut its hair, that would be a

18:32 real Issur of Lehitcheded Du. Otherwise, minhag never has an Issur of Lehitcheded Du. SheNen Nusach HaTefilah Shen Sefardim Ashkenazim like Avaraba, Avaselem, and things like that, Vada Ein Bo Zeshom Niddu V'Isur. There's nothing happening here when you change your Nusach HaTefilah. There's no isur. Uh, there's not that the kahal is saying not to do something, and so you're doing something differently. Doing things differently than the prevalent minhag never violates Lehitcheded Du, only doing things that are against the current minhag, meaning that the minhag is to us or something, and you're mafter it, that's the only possible Lehitcheded Du. So the Rebbe quotes this and says, "This certainly is not a halachic problem, but I want you to see this last letter 'cause it's super important." The Rebbe's gonna say there could be a different halachic problem if you're davening from the Amud, and it's not gonna be Lehitcheded Du. This last letter we're looking at is letter Heih Kuf Samech Heih. And the Rebbe says, "Mein Hamachtavim, responding to your letter where you write about something that happened, you were davening Nusach Ari-- um, I'm sorry, somebody, somebody was davening Nusach Ari, became the chazan in the shul where they daven Nusach Ashkenaz. You can imagine they didn't like it. And you write, VemeChubi Ad, that they, that they resisted. UMeOysim Midelaya Shailah BeZa, Menei Lehitcheded Du, and they added on to the shailah, maybe it's a problem Lehitcheded Du. So you're asking me, what, what should have been done? What should we do in

19:33 this situation? So this person was a Chabad person who davened for the Amud in an Ashkenaz shul, and they yelled at him, and, uh, they wanted to know, wasn't he violating Lehitcheded Du? So we already know that he wasn't violating Lehitcheded Du, right? We know from the Temach Tzedek that couldn't have been that problem. Hinei, the Mishayach V'Azal Lehitcheded Du on that question, Faramadnu Amdu Chazal, Rav Is, Rav Is Rishonim, V'Aim Ridrash, the Rebbe quotes many others where he says the Ridrash says this, there's two Teyrutzim, there's a Piskei Rash on this, there's a Shulchan Aruch where he quotes the Magen Avram and other places as well. He says also see the Piskei Dinim Temach Tzedek that I showed you, and also Meis Rab BeGedelei Yisrael, SheEm Zeh Mishum Lehitcheded Du. That, um, that, uh, certainly we've seen Meis Rabbe, this many Gedelei Yisrael, including, I believe, the Hafla, that, uh, the Hafla, that, um, that, uh, davening in another shul, uh, davening for the Amud in another shul does not violate Nisadar Aisa if you're using a different Nusach. Excuse me. UV'Am KiGeinenu, but when it comes to these things, it's important. When it comes to these things, Eiku Lisha'amim Mahlekes. You do have to avoid Mahlekes. Devar Asu Mina Torah L'chol HaDe'as. Making Mahlekes is Asu Mina Torah according to everybody, says the Rebbe. So let's not talk about Lehitcheded Du. Let's not talk about, uh, let's not talk about the fact that Kitrish Mina Tzibbur. Let's talk about real Isurim. We have

20:37 a Nisadar Aisa here of you making a fight. V'Gadol HaShalom SheKol Hatorah Nitna Lasha Shalom Be'Olam. The greatest peace because the entire Torah was given to make peace in the world. So, uh, and, and now the Rebbe does not at this point say what to do. He just leaves this hanging. So what I'm getting from this letter is that if somebody wants to daven for the Amud in a shul that does not keep our Nusach, if they can do it in a way of peace, there's no isur at all. There's no, there's no Lehitcheded Du. You're not gonna violate any Isur Deoraisa if it's in a way of Shalom. But if you davening Nusach Chabad from an Ashkenazi shul is gonna make Mahlekes, then there's an isur from you davening from that Amud because you just made Mahlekes. Um, but I didn't find a bottom line on this anywhere. As long as we're on this topic, it says, V'Yeida Nusach Ashkenaz V'Sefardim V'Ari V'Chilul Me'ach L'Chavera. Um, you should also see the shailas and teshuvahs that we quoted previously. Ah, this is where I got this Hafla thing from. Meis Rabba SheMar An Adler, Ba'al Hafla. It's well known that the Ba'al Hafla, uh, who was, uh, he, he lived in Germany, uh, so obviously they daven Nusach Ashkenaz there. Uh, Aver L'Fne Hatevah V'Nusach Sefard, he would go up to the Amud, and he would daven Nusach Sefard from the Amud. UV'Am Minyan shel lo is follow Nusach Ashkenaz, and nonetheless, the people in

21:34 his Minyan would daven Nusach Ashkenaz. This was a way of Darkei Nem Darkei Shalom. They loved the Ba'al Hafla, obviously. He's a Talmid of the Chasam Sofer. He was, uh, he was very popular. Um, at the same time, or maybe the, uh, yeah, he was, yes, yes. Um, he was, uh, he was very popular. Um, so it sounds like if you are popular enough and not gonna upset your Ashkenazi shul, go for it. There's no isur. But at the same time, this has to be in a way of, uh, in a way of peace, in a way of Darkei Nem Darkei Shalom. Okay, so what we get from this letter and from all the letters that we've looked at today, I think, first of all, we covered, just a quick review, we covered that we, uh, that we can switch from Ashkenaz to Sefard and Sefard to Chabad, but not back, and we proved it through teshuvahs. We did point out that the Niggas Mesha doesn't agree. We also pointed out that, uh, the Chasam Sofer doesn't agree. We had some solutions, but the solutions were heavily Kabbalistic. So, uh, I think we're probably going to have to agree to disagree halachically, but we certainly know our Rebbe's Shitah. And when it comes to a different shul, if you're davening in a different shul and you just wanna keep to yourself and do it quietly, the Rebbe is totally in favor of this. Daven your own Nusach. Don't change anything. You can even do an

22:25 extra set of Hakafas. They can even be somewhat open, as long as you're not getting in anybody's way. The important thing is to not get in anybody's way and to do this somewhat quietly. Uh, as for whether I'm allowed to daven the Nusach of the shul that I'm in, it sounds like not if I'm davening Nusach Chabad, because I might be going backwards. I can't go from Chabad back to Sefard or Ashkenazi. So it sounds like even if I do wanna blend in, I'm not really allowed to. I just gotta keep a low profile if I'm davening in another shul. When it comes to being a chazan, it's a little more subtle. Uh, the Rebbe seems to be saying that if no-- they don't have a problem with it, then absolutely go up to the Amud and, uh, and the Ba'al Hafla did this, and it's not a problem Lehitcheded Du. We saw the Piskei Dinim of the Temach Tzedek. Clearly not an actual isur of you davening a different Nusach than the Kehillah as the chazan. The real issue here is that usually when you do that, you make a fight, and fights are not allowed. So you're gonna have to find a way to make it peaceful or not do it, is, uh, is my, is my read of this final letter. Thank you all very much.