15 Facts About Amidah

Amidah, called the Shemoneh Esreh, is the central prayer of the Jewish liturgy.

On Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh, and Jewish festivals, a fourth Amidah is recited after the morning Torah reading, and once per year a fifth Amidah is recited, at sunset on Yom Kippur.

Accordingly, in Judaism, to recite the Amidah is a mitzvah de-rabbanan.

In Orthodox public worship, the Amidah is usually first prayed quietly by the congregation and is then repeated aloud by the chazzan ; it is not repeated in the Maariv prayer.

On regular weekdays, the Amidah is prayed three times, once each during the morning, afternoon, and evening services that are known respectively as Shacharit, Mincha, and Ma'ariv.

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Accordingly, since the Ma'ariv service was originally optional, as it replaces the overnight burning of ashes on the Temple altar rather than a specific sacrifice, Maariv's Amidah is not repeated by the hazzan, while all other Amidot are repeated.

On Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh, and other Jewish holidays there is a Musaf Amidah to replace the additional communal sacrifices of these days.

Halakhah requires that the first blessing of the Amidah be said with intention; if said by rote alone, it must be repeated with intention.

Amidah prayed "speaking upon her heart, " so that no one else could hear, yet her lips were moving.

In Orthodox and Conservative public worship, the Amidah is first prayed quietly by the congregation; it is then repeated aloud by the chazzan, except for the evening Amidah or when a minyan is not present.

Public recitation of the Amidah is sometimes abbreviated, with the first three blessings said out loud and the remainder quietly.

On Shabbat, the middle 13 benedictions of the Amidah are replaced by one, known as Kedushat haYom, so that each Shabbat Amidah is composed of seven benedictions.

Mussaf Amidah begins with the same first three and concludes with the same last three blessings as the regular Amidah.

Amidah formulated a text of the Amidah which seems to be a fusion of the Ashkenazi and Sepharadi texts in accordance with his understanding of Kabbalah.

Conservative Judaism retains the traditional number and time periods during which the Amidah must be said, while omitting explicit supplications for restoration of the sacrifices.