To the editorial board of Vechol Ma’aminim,
Thank you most sincerely for your wonderful pamphlet, which serves as a source of chizuk for me in the mitzvah of answering amen according to halachah.
Baruch Hashem, for a number of years already, the minyan in which I daven is strict that the mispallelim recite Birchos Hashachar bechavrusa. This is to the credit of a Yid who insisted on this practice, until it became something that all the mispallelim adopted. They have become accustomed to coming to shul a few minutes before davening to be able to say the brachos together.
We know the words of the Gemara (Brachos 6b): "Rabbi Yochanan said: When HaKadosh Baruch Hu comes to the beis knesses and does not find ten people there – He immediately gets angry, as it says, ‘Why did I come and there is no one there...’"
The question is asked: If the claim is about the fact that there aren’t ten people, the passuk should have said: "Why did I come and there are no people?" The answer given is that if one "ish," one person there would have cared enough, then everything would look different...
In our shul, baruch Hashem, we have this one "ish" who recognizes the value of answering amen, and who effected a transformation in the way all the mispallelim view this mitzvah. And incidentally, the acronym of the word איש is יהודי ...שמייקר אמן
I will add that every so often, people who are not regular mispallelim join our minyan. I once asked one of them, don’t you live very far from here, and don’t you have a shul right near your house, why do you come all the way here? His answer surprised me. He told me that when he needs hatzlachah and siyata diShmaya for something specific, he makes the effort to come and daven in a place where people come early to daven and are strict to answer amen, according to the words of the Zohar (Vayeilech 285 2) that when Am Yisrael are careful to answer amen properly, then when they daven to Him about their troubles, the Voice announces through the Upper worlds: "Pischu she’arim veyavo goy tzaddik shomer emunim" (Yeshayah 26:2) – do not call it "emunim" but rather "amenim." Pischu she’arim – just like Am Yisrael opened the gates of the brachos, so too, the gates of tefillah will be opened to them and their tefillos will be accepted.
Thank you for all your work,
S.L., Beit Shemesh
Letters can be sent to fax number 08-9746102 or emailed to the Vechol Ma'aminim email address. [email protected]
