For the first time in 27 years the haftorah of parshas Kedoshim "Hasishpot" will be leined in shul according to minhag Ashkenaz. That is because the parshiyos of Achrei Mos and kedoshim are usually combined and although when you have a double parsha you lein the haftorah of the 2nd one, when it comes to Achrei kedoshim the minhag is to read Haftorah of Achrei Mos.
Even in years that Achrei and kedoshim are seperate, the shabbos of Achrei falls out many times on erev Rosh chodesh which the haftorah of Macha chodesh is read, or when Achrei falls out on shabbos hagadol, the haftorah for kedoshim the following week is that of Achrei Mos.
Although not the common custom, there is even an old Yerushalmi minhag not to ever read the haftarah of Kedoshim; and even when the Parshiyos are separate, Acharei Mos’s haftarah is read two weeks in a row. Dayan Rav Yisroel Yaakov Fisher ZTL would lock the Aron kodesh in zichron Moshe shul on shabbos Kedoshim to not allow access for anyone to lean the haftorah from Yechezkel.
The reason for the uncharacteristic change is that the haftarah of Parshas Kedoshim, ‘Hasishpot’, from sefer Yechezkel, includes what is known as ‘To’avas Yerushalayim,’ referring to a revealing prophecy of the woeful spiritual state and the terrible happenings that will occur to the inhabitants of Eretz Yisrael for not following the word of G-d.
the Rema, citing precedent from the
Sefer Haminhagim and the Mordechai, rules that the haftarah of the first parashah, Acharei Mos, is the proper one to read.
The reason for the uncharacteristic change is that the haftarah of Parshas Kedoshim, ‘Hasishpot’, from sefer Yechezkel, includes what is known as ‘To’avas Yerushalayim,’ referring to a revealing prophecy of the woeful spiritual state and the terrible happenings that will occur to the inhabitants of Eretz Yisrael for not following the word of G-d. The Gemara in Megillah (25b) relates a story of Rabbi Eliezer and one who read such a haftarah, who was subsequently found to have his own family’s indiscretions exposed. Ultimately though, the Gemara concludes that that haftarah can indeed be read, and even translated.
Hazardous Haftarah?
Despite that, all the same, it seems that we are being taught that whenever possible, we should try to avoid having to read this condemning passage as the haftarah. Additionally, the content of Acharei Mos’s haftarah, ‘Halo K’Bnei Kushiyim’ (from Amos in Trei Asar Ch. 9) has similar content to Parshas Kedoshim as well. Therefore, the Rema rules that when the Torah reading is the double parshiyos of Acharei Mos and Kedoshim, and as opposed to every other double parashah, the haftarah of Acharei Mos is read instead of Kedoshim’s.
Although the Levush vigorously argued against switching the haftaros, positing that it is a printing mistake in the earlier authorities to suggest such a switch, nevertheless, the Rema’s rule is followed by virtually all later poskim and Ashkenazic Kehillos.
However, it must be noted that this switch was not accepted by Sefardic authorities and when Acharei Mos and Kedoshim are combined, they do indeed read Kedoshim’s haftarah, ‘Hasishpot.’
Rav Akiva Eiger, adding a wrinkle, writes that when Parshas Acharei Mos falls out on Erev Rosh Chodesh and its haftarah gets pushed off for ‘Machar Chodesh,’ then the proper haftarah for Parshas Kedoshim the next week is… Acharei Mos’s haftarah, and not Kedoshim’s! Rav Eiger’s reasoning is since we find precedent by a double parashah that we actively try not to read Kedoshim’s haftarah due to its explicit content, the same should apply for any other time Acharei Mos’s haftarah was not read, for whatever reason - that it should trump and therefore replace (and displace) Kedoshim’s haftarah!
Indeed, and although not the common custom, there is even an old Yerushalmi minhag not to ever read the haftarah of Kedoshim; and even when the Parshiyos are separate, Acharei Mos’s haftarah is read two weeks in a row.
However, this is not the common minhag, and actually Kedoshim’s haftarah, “Hisishpot,” the actual rarest haftarah read for most of Ashkenazic Jewry, is slated to be read by the majority of Klal Yisrael on – 5784/2024 – the first time since 5757/1997![13]
‘Halo’ the Hallowed Haftarah of Kedoshim
Although not universally accepted, Rav Akiva Eiger’s rule is cited as the halacha by the Mishnah Berurah, and the proper Ashkenazic minhag by the Kaf Hachaim. The Chazon Ish, as well as Rav Moshe Feinstein, and Rav Chaim Kanievsky, all ruled this way as well. That is why in years when Acharei Mos was Shabbos Hagadol and its usual haftarah was not read, but rather replaced by the special haftarah for Shabbos Hagadol, many shuls read Acharei Mos’s haftarah on Parshas Kedoshim, instead of Kedoshim’s usual one.
In fact, that is how both Rav Yosef Eliyahu Henkin’s authoritative Ezras Torah Luach, as well as Rav Yechiel Michel Tukachinsky’s essential Luach Eretz Yisrael rule as the proper minhag.
https://youtu.be/6gK30rHZC10?si=Jgu2j43BqFGOf58b
ReplyDeleteCurrent video about this from Rabbi Daniel Gladstein