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The Story of Why We Recite Baruch Shem Kevod Malchuto Leolam Vaed
The Talmud says that the people of Jericho did three things to which the Sages did not object. One of those things was that they would “bundle the Shema.”
What does this mean that they would “bundle the Shema?”
1) Rabbi Yehuda said that they recited: “Shema Yisrael Hashem Elokeinu Hashem Echad, Hear Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord is One” (Deuteronomy 6:4), and they would immediately continue to the next verse without pausing –Vehavta et Hashem Elokecha….
2) Rava disagreed and said that they would indeed pause between the first verse and the second verse of the Shema. Rava said that what they would do is pause when reciting the word “today (hayom)” in the Shema. This might have been incorrectly interpreted to mean -- Today it will be on your heart, and tomorrow it will not be on your heart.
3) The Sages taught: How would they bundle Shema? They recited: “Hear Israel, the Lord is our God the Lord is One,” without pausing; this is the statement of Rabbi Meir. Rabbi Yehuda says: They paused, but they would not recite: Blessed be the name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever—Baruch Shem Kevod Malchuto Leolam Vaed.
The Gemara asks: What is the reason that we recite Baruch Shem Kevod Malchuto Leolam Vaed, even though it does not appear in the Torah?
Reis Lakish explains that the reason is follows: The Torach tells us: “And Jacob called his sons and said, Gather around and I will tell you what will occur to you in the end of days” (Genesis 49:1). Jacob wanted to tell his children when the Mashiach would arrive at the end of days (see Daniel 12:13), but at the moment Hashem abandoned him, and he was unable to see the future secrets. He said: Chas Veshalom! Perhaps Hashem has abandoned me because one of my children is a sinner, as was the case with my grandfather Abraham, from whom Ishmael emerged, and like my father Isaac, from whom Esav emerged. His sons said to him: Shema Yisrael -- Hear Israel (another one of Jacob’s names), our father, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One. They said: Just as there is only one God in your heart, so too, there is only one in our hearts. At that moment Jacob our father said in praise: Baruch Shem Kevod Malchuto Leolam Vaed. Blessed be the name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever, as all his children were righteous.
The Rabbis said: What should we do? Shall we recite this verse? But Moses our teacher did not say it in the Torah as part of Shema. Shall we not recite it? But Jacob said it. In order to resolve this dilemma they established that this passage should be recited privately.
This is like the daughter of a king who smelled dried spices stuck to the bottom of the pot and wanted to to eat them. What can she do? If she tells her servants to give it to her, she will be disgraced, as the dried spices are a disgraceful food. However, if she does not say she wants to eat them, she will endure suffering. Her servants began to bring them to her privately.
Later the Sages instituted that the people should recite Baruch Shem Kevod Malchuto Leolam Vaed aloud in order to prevent the heretics from claiming that the Jews are secretly reciting dangerous words. In Neharde’a, where there are no heretics, even today they recite it privately. (Pesachim, 56a)
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