Introduction
The Minchah service is the second prayer of the day. It can take place any time from a half hour after midday until sunset. Jewish tradition teaches us that our patriarch Isaac instituted this prayer, and we associate it also with the daily sacrifice that was offered in the evening hours in the Temple, just before sunset.
The Special Status of This Prayer
The Minchah service has a special character that distinguishes it from the other prayers of the day. During Shacharit—the morning service—a person sets out to pray after arising in the morning, with his head clear and his heart alert. Maariv—the evening prayer—takes place after the workday has concluded and the person has returned home and had an opportunity to become calm. But the Minchah service takes place in the middle of the day. It interrupts the flow of the day, disrupting one’s work and other activities to refresh his connection with his Creator. That is why this prayer is particularly precious to G-d, and He accepts it with special willingness.
The Talmud discusses the unique nature of the Minchah service and points out that Elijah the Prophet, in his historic confrontation with the prophets of the Baal (a type of idolatry) on Mount Carmel, prayed to G-d before sunset—at the time of the Minchah service—and his prayers were answered instantly, as fire descended from Heaven, “licked up” the water on the altar that he had built, and consumed the sacrifice on the altar.
The name of the service
The word “minchah” refers to a gift. Why is this the name for the afternoon prayer service?
In the morning, a person must thank G-d for returning his soul, as well as praise Him for the beautiful world He created. At night, we are once again duty bound to give thanks to G-d for having gone through another day in peace and for the opportunity to entrust our souls to Him for the night. We must also express our confidence that He will return our souls in the morning, refreshed and renewed. But the Minchah service, on the surface, seems superfluous. We have already thanked G-d for restoring our souls to us in the morning, but we are not yet returning them to Him for the night.
In light of the above, however, we understand that this itself constitutes the unique nature of the Minchah prayer. We are not technically obligated to recite this prayer; it is a “gift” from us to G-d. We approach our Creator as two friends who miss each other stop to speak in the middle of the day even without a compelling reason to do so.
Minchah Gedolah
“Minchah Gedolah” refers to a Minchah service that takes place about half an hour after midday. Minchah services take place at this time of day, in conjunction with the lunchtime break, in many synagogues and at many places of work.
Minchah Ketanah
“Minchah Ketanah” refers to a Minchah service that takes place toward the end of the daylight hours, shortly before sunset. Every synagogue holds a Minchah service at this time of day, since it can be followed immediately by Maariv.
Question: I am on my way to the synagogue in my car, but there is a heavy traffic jam and it’s distinctly possible that I won’t get there until after sunset. What should I do?
Answer: In such a situation, in which one must decide between praying with a minyan and praying on time, it is preferable to recite Minchah on time—before sunset— even alone.
The preparations for prayer
When the time for Minchah is about to arrive, one should not become involved in any activities that might continue until the evening, such as a festive meal at a bris, a long conference, and the like. Therefore, if a person knows that he is about to become involved in something that might “drag on” until after sunset, he should be sure to recite Minchah first.
Preparing the Body and Attire
- Before the prayer service, one should be sure that one’s body is clean and he has no need to use the lavatory.
- One should be attired in an appropriately dignified manner during the prayer service itself. One should dress in the way that it is acceptable to dress for a meeting with an important person.
- A man should pray while wearing a jacket and a double head covering (a yarmulke and a hat).
- It is customary among Hasidim for married men to wear a special belt known as a gartel, which separates the lower half of the body from the upper half.
Netilat Yadayim
Before Minchah, like before Shacharit, one should wash one’s hands with water, even if they are not soiled, in order to achieve an enhanced level of cleanliness and purity. No blessing is recited when the hands are washed.
A person who finds himself in a place where water is not available should use any other item available (moist towelettes or the like) to clean his hands.
- After the hands have been cleaned, one should take care to keep them clean throughout the prayers.
Tzedakah—Charity
It is customary to preface the Minchah service, as well, by performing a good deed or act of kindness. As a result, many people give charity before Minchah.
The order of the Minchah Service
At the beginning of the Minchah service, we recite the passages pertaining to the sacrificial service and the incense, which we have already discussed at length in our section on the Shacharit service (see above). We recite these passages again because the daily sacrificial offering was brought twice every day—once in the morning and once at night—during the Temple era. The Shacharit and Minchah services correspond to these two daily sacrifices.
Ashrei
The reading of the sacrifices is followed by Ashrei.
- In a communal prayer, the official start of the Minchah service is with Ashrei. The chazzan recites Ashrei, followed by Half Kaddish.
The Shemoneh Esrei
We go on to recite the Shemoneh Esrei as we did during the Shacharit service. Here too, the chazzan repeats the Shemoneh Esrei aloud and the congregation recites Kedushah and Modim during his repetition. The laws pertaining to the Shemoneh Esrei are described at length above.
Tachanun
After Shemoneh Esrei, we recite the paragraphs of Tachanun in the same order that we followed during Shacharit: Ashamnu, E-l Erech Apayim, the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, Nefilat Apayim—L’David, Avinu Malkeinu, and Vaanachnu Lo Neida.
The only difference between the Tachanun of Shacharit and that of Minchah lies in the manner in which nefilat apayim is performed. At Minchah we are required to prostrate ourselves on the left arm, unlike Shacharit, when we prostrate ourselves on the right. Technically, the requirement of nefilat apayim is to prostrate oneself on the left arm during Shacharit as well, but due to the sanctity of the tefillin, which are worn on the left arm, we lean on the right arm instead.
For almost any day when Tachanun is not recited (such as Tu B’Shevat), we also omit Tachanun on the Minchah of the preceding day (in this example, the fourteenth of Shevat). This rule applies also to the specific days on which various chassidic sects do not recite Tachanun. On such an occasion, the chazzan proceeds to the Full Kaddish immediately after the Shemoneh Esrei, followed by Aleinu and Al Tira.
There are three days that are exceptions to this rule, when Tachanun is recited at Minchah even though it will not be recited on the following day. These are:
- the day preceding the day before Rosh Hashanah (the 28th of Elul).
- the day preceding the day before Yom Kippur (the eighth of Tishrei).
- and the day before Pesach Sheini (the thirteenth of Iyar).
Beginning on the first day of Elul and continuing through the 21st of Tishrei—Hoshana Rabbah—we recite Psalm 27, “To David, G-d is my Light and my Salvation,” after the Kaddish following Tachanun. We have described this Psalm at length in the section on the morning service.
After Tachanun, the chazzan recites the Full Kaddish and the Minchah service concludes with Aleinu and Al Tira. Another two Kaddishes are recited at the end of Minchah, by a mourner or an orphan.
