Гафтара: Чтения из Книг Пророков в синагоге

Series of selections from the books of Nevi'im that is publicly read in synagogue

The haftara or (in Ashkenazic pronunciation) haftorah (alt. haftarah, haphtara, ) "parting," "taking leave" (plural form: haftarot or haftoros), is a series of selections from the books of Nevi'im ("Prophets") of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) that is publicly read in synagogue as part of Jewish religious practice. The haftara reading follows the Torah reading on each Sabbath and on Jewish festivals and fast days. Typically, the haftara is thematically linked to the parashah (weekly Torah portion) that precedes it. The haftara is sung in a chant. (Chanting of Biblical texts is known as "ta'amim" in Hebrew, "trope" in Yiddish, or "cantillation" in English.) Related blessings precede and follow the haftara reading. The origin of haftara reading is lost to history, and several theories have been proposed to explain its role in Jewish practice, suggesting it arose in response to the persecution of the Jews under Antiochus IV Epiphanes which preceded the Maccabean Revolt, wherein Torah reading was prohibited, or that it was "instituted against the Samaritans, who denied the canonicity of the Prophets (except for Joshua), and later against the Sadducees." The Talmud mentions that a haftara was read in the presence of Rabbi Eliezer ben Hurcanus, who lived c. 70 CE, and that by the time of Rabbah bar Nahmani (the 3rd century) there was a "Scroll of Haftarot", which is not further described. Several references in the Christian New Testament suggest this Jewish custom was in place during that era.

No one knows for certain the origins of reading the haftara, but several theories have been put forth. The most common explanation, accepted by some traditional Jewish authorities is that in 168 BCE, when the Jews were under the rule of the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, they were forbidden to read the Torah and made do with a substitute. When they were again able to read the Torah, they kept reading the haftara as well. However, this theory was not articulated before the 14th century, when it was suggested by Rabbi David Abudirham, and has several weaknesses. An alternative explanation, offered by Rabbis Reuven Margolies and Samson Raphael Hirsch (except where otherwise identified, this is the Hirsch cited throughout this article), is that the haftara reading was instituted to fight the influence of those sects in Judaism that viewed the Hebrew Bible as consisting only of the Torah. However, all offered explanations for the origin of reading the haftara have unanswered difficulties. Certainly the haftara was read — perhaps not obligatorily nor in all communities nor on every Sabbath — as far back as circa 70 CE: The Talmud mentions that a haftara was read in the presence of Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, who lived at that time. The Christian Bible indicates that readings from the Prophets but not necessarily a fixed schedule was a common part of the Sabbath service in Jerusalem synagogues even earlier than 70 CE.

Only one person reads the haftara portion. This differs from the procedure in Torah reading, wherein the text is divided into anywhere from three to seven portions, which may be read by one person or divided amongst several. The haftara is traditionally read by the maftir, or the last person to be called up to the Torah scroll. Traditions varied or evolved with regard to which person could read the haftara. As an indication that, perhaps to make clear that the haftara reading was not the same status as the Torah reading, a minor (i. e., a boy not yet bar mitzvah age) was permitted to chant the haftara (at least on an ordinary Sabbath), and there were even communities where the haftara reading was reserved exclusively for minor boys. In recent centuries, Ashkenazi bar mitzvah boys, (now an adult) will read at least the maftir portion and the haftara. In some other communities, the haftara could only be read by one who had participated in the Torah reading (in some practices, the maftir the last man to have read from the Torah), or even the whole congregation would read the haftara to themselves from the available humashim this evidently to avoid embarrassing a reader who might make a mistake. Rabbi Yosef Karo (16th century) reported that for many years there were no set haftarot: the maftir chose an appropriate passage from the Nevi'im. Over time, certain choices became established in certain communities; in contemporary Jewish observance one may not choose his or her own haftara, explained Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, as that would run against accepted custom. Rabbi Karo's explanation, however, helps to explain why communities have varying customs regarding what to read as haftara.

Unlike the Torah portion, the haftara is, nowadays, normally read from a printed book. This may be either a Tanakh (entire Hebrew Bible), a Chumash (or "Humash"; plural: Chumashim)) (volume containing the Torah with haftarot) or, in the case of the festivals, the prayer book; there are also books containing the haftarot alone in large print. Even when a scroll of haftara readings is used, that scroll unlike the Torah scroll is occasionally made of paper and may include such embellishments as the vowel points and trope. However, according to most halakhic decisors (posqim), it is preferable to read the haftara out of a parchment scroll, and according to a small minority of posqim (mainly the followers of the Vilna Gaon), such a parchment scroll is an absolute requirement. This may take various forms. According to some older traditions, the haftarot were read out of a special scroll containing just the selections of the Prophetic Books which were used in actual haftarot; this was known as a Sifra De'aftarta (ספרא דאפטרתא), and can still be found in a few communities today, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic; in some communities the scroll is made of paper. These scrolls sometimes contain vowel points and te`amim (cantillation signs), and sometimes do not. However, the Vilna Gaon instituted that haftarot be read only from scrolls which contained the full text of a Prophetic Book (e. g., full text of Joshua, or full text of Judges, or full text of Isaiah), just as a Torah scroll contains the full text of the Pentateuch. These scrolls are written in accordance with the laws of writing Torah scrolls, and thus in the opinion of the Vilna Gaon do not contain vowel points or cantillation signs. Such scrolls are used for the reading of the haftarot in many, perhaps most, Lithuanian style yeshivot, and in a number of Ashkenazic synagogues, especially in Israel. Some say that if such a scroll is unavailable the entire congregation must read the haftara for themselves, silently or in a murmur, from books rather than the maftir reciting aloud from something other than a scroll. It would seem that the initial resistance to using a printed book has diminished as the technology of printing, and therefore the accuracy and characteristics of the printed books, has improved. There were opinions that a haftara scroll should not be stored in the holy ark, but other opinions (such as Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef) were that it was permitted; however the haftara scroll is not decorated in the manner of the Torah scrolls but may be given distinctive (and inferior, such as copper) decorations.

In ancient times the haftara, like the Torah, was translated into Aramaic as it was read, and this is still done by Yemenite Jews. The Talmud rules that, while the Torah must be translated verse by verse, it is permissible to translate other readings (such as the Haftara) in units of up to three verses at a time. Haftarot must have something in common with the day. On an ordinary Sabbath, this would mean that they have something in common with the Torah reading. However, the connection can be quite vague; the relevance for the parashah Bamidbar (addressing a census of Israel) is that the haftorah beginning that the people of Israel will be numerous like the sand of the sea. The Talmud also says that the haftara should be at least 21 verses in length, to match the minimal Torah reading, but if the "topic finished" (salik inyana) applies this requirement is not necessary. Thus, the haftara for Ki Teitzei for Ashkenazim and Sephardim is only 10 verses; and the haftara for Miketz is, for Ashkenazim and Sephardim only 15 verses, and for Italic Jews only 14 verses. The Tosefta mentions a haftara in antiquity (before the 2nd century CE) that was just one verse, namely Isaiah 52:3, and some others that were only four or five verses. Another rule is that the haftara reading should not end on a macabre or distressing verse, and therefore either the penultimate verse is repeated at the very end or else verses from elsewhere are used as a coda, such as with the haftara for Tzav (Ashkenazim and Sephardim skip ahead in the same prophet to avoid concluding with the description of the dire fate of the wicked, a total of 19 verses; Chabad and Yemenite also skip ahead to avoid concluding with a different disquieting verse, a total of 16 verses; Karaites and Romaniote go back and repeat the penultimate verse, promising the reappearance of Elijah, rather than end with the word "desolation" and the same applies when everyone most communities read that haftarah on Shabbat Hagadol ). Among the consistent characteristics is that entire verses are read; never is only a part of a verse read. In antiquity there was no prescribed list of haftara readings for the year, although the Talmudic literature (including the Midrash and Tosefta) does report some recommendations for specific holidays. It would appear that, in antiquity, the choice of portion from the Prophets was made ad hoc, without regard for the choice of previous years or of other congregations, either by the reader or by the congregation or its leaders; this is evidenced by recommendations in Talmudic literature that certain passages should not be chosen for haftara readings, which indicates that, to that time, that a regular list for the year's readings did not exist. Further evidence of the lack of an ancient authoritative list of readings is the simple fact that, while the practice of reading a haftara every Sabbath and most holy days is ubiquitous, the different traditions and communities around the world have by now adopted differing lists, indicating that no solid tradition from antiquity dictated the haftara selections for a majority of the ordinary Sabbaths.

The haftara is read with cantillation according to a unique melody (not with the same cantillation melody as the Torah). The tradition to read Nevi'im with its own special melody is attested to in late medieval sources, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic. A medieval Sephardic source notes that the melody for the haftarot is a slight variation of the tune used for reading the books of Nevi'im in general (presumably for study purposes), and Jews of Iraqi origin to this day preserve separate "Neviim" and "Haftara" melodies. Note that although many selections from Nevi'im are read as haftarot over the course of the year, the books of Nevi'im are not read in their entirety (as opposed to the Torah). Since Nevi'im as a whole is not covered in the liturgy, the melodies for certain rare cantillation notes which appear in the books of Nevi'im but not in the haftarot have been forgotten. For more on this, see Nevi'im. As a generality, although the Torah was chanted in a major key (ending in a minor key), the haftara is chanted in a minor key (as is the blessing before the reading of the haftara) and ends in a pentatonic mode (and the blessings following the haftara reading are also pentatonic). The Haftarot for the morning of Tisha b'Av, and for the Shabbat preceding it, are, in many synagogues, predominantly read to the cantillation melody used for the public reading of the Book of Lamentations, or Eicha. In the German tradition, the Haftara for the morning of Tisha b'Av, as well as the Torah reading then, are read without cantillation at all, but rather with a melancholic melody. Leonard Bernstein employed the Haftara cantillation melody extensively as a theme in the second movement ("Profanation") of his Symphony No. 1 ("Jeremiah").

Some Rishonim, including Rabbenu Tam, report that a custom in the era of the Talmud was to read a haftara at the mincha service each Sabbath afternoon — but that this haftara was from the Ketuvim rather than from the Nevi'im. Most halachic authorities maintain that that was not the custom in Talmudic times, and that such a custom should not be followed. In the era of the Geonim, some communities, including some in Persia, read a passage from Nevi'im (whether or not in the form of a haftara) Sabbath afternoons. Although this practice is virtually defunct, most halachic authorities maintain that there is nothing wrong with it. Rabbi Reuven Margolies claims that the now widespread custom of individuals' reciting Psalm 111 after the Torah reading Sabbath afternoon derives from the custom reported by Rabbenu Tam. Louis Ginzberg makes the analogous claim for the custom of reciting Psalm 91 in Motza'ei Shabbat.

In many communities the haftara is read by a Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah at his or her respective ceremonies, along with some, all, or, sometimes none of the Torah portion. This is often referred to, mainly in Hebrew schools and bar preparatory programs, as a haftara portion. The reading of the haftara by the Bar Mitzvah is a relatively new custom, since it is not derived from either Bible nor Talmud. According to the Talmud, the lesson from the Prophets may be read by a minor (i. e., a boy younger than 13), if he is sufficiently educated to do it. A tradition that might have dated back to medieval times was that a boy would read the haftara on the Sabbath prior to his Bar Mitzvah, and on the day of his Bar Mitzvah read the portion from the Torah but not the haftara; this custom changed, in the United States, in the late 19th century or early 20th century, when the Bar Mitzvah would read both the Torah and haftara on the Sabbath immediately following his 13th birthday. The custom of the Bar Mitzvah reading the haftara is so recent that the appropriate procedure for a haftara reading when two boys are Bar Mitzvah on the same day is still unresolved.

The selections of haftarot readings for the various weeks and holy days of the year differs from tradition to tradition Ashkenazic from Sefardic from Yemenite from Mizrachi, etc. And even within a tradition there is no one authoritative list, but a multitude of different lists from different communities and congregations, usually differing from each other by only one or two haftarot. A study of the antiquity of each of these lists, and how they differ from each other, is beyond the scope of this (or any other brief) article but may be most informative on the history (including the contacts and separations) of the various communities. The selection from Nevi'im [the Prophets] read as the haftara is not always the same in all Jewish communities. When customs differ, this list indicates them as follows: A=Ashkenazic custom (AF=Frankfurt am Main; AH=Chabad; AP= Poland; APZ = Posen;); I=Italian custom; S=Sephardic and Mizrahi custom (SM=Maghreb [North Africa]; SZ= Mizrahi [Middle and Far East]); Y=Yemenite custom; R=Romaniote (Byzantine, eastern Roman empire, extinct) custom; and K=Karaite custom. In some instances Isr. Wikip = the Israeli version of Wikipedia (in Hebrew) of this article had different readings in its list. In several instances, authorities did not agree on the readings of various communities. Because, in the Diaspora, certain holy days and festivals are observed for an additional day, which day is not so observed in Eretz Yisrael, sometimes different haftarot are read simultaneously inside and outside Eretz Yisrael.