Ashkenazi or Sephardi Selichot
My father’s family is from Poland and my mother’s family are 12 generations in Israel, probably Sephardi. I became religious and go to Sephardi synagogues. I am single. Which customs and halachos should I keep? Sephardi or Ashkenazi? One way or the other in all the laws?? What should I do for Elul?
Why focus on repentance only during Elul and the Ten Days of Repentance?
I’m bothered by something that I see repeating itself every year. The month of Elul comes and especially the Ten Days of Repentance and everyone tries to be “big tzaddikim”, getting up early to pray and saying Selichot, learn Torah scrupulously, give a lot of charity, and in general trying to become a better Jew […]
Psalm 130 during Selichot
Why do we recite psalm 130 Shir HaMaalot Mima’amakim at the end of Selichot?
Minyan or Selichot?
My brother told me he doesn’t have Selichot in his synagogue and he wants to go to another synagogue that does have Selichot but doesn’t have a minyan. What should he do?
Taking a vacation during Elul
My friends and I were thinking of organizing a vacation during Elul. Is there any problem with doing that?
Explaining a Selicha
What does it mean in Selichot “In rage, remember the Binding of Yitzchak; in rage, remember compassion” etc. What does the term “rage” imply? How is it connected to the Binding of Yitzchak?
Rosh Hashana songs throughout the year
May one hear Selichot songs during the year when Selichot are not being said?
Saying Selichot with the radio
Sometimes I join in reciting Selichot with a live radio program. I understand that I can say the 13 Attributes of Mercy even without their cantillation. But is that considered reciting Selichot with a minyan (at least after the fact) or only “praying at the time that the public prays”?
Selichot for Elul and the Ten Days of Repentance
Are the Selichot that the Sephardim say during the Ten Days of Repentance the same Selichot that they say in Elul?
Do Ashkenazi women have to say Selichot?
Is it the Ashkenazi custom for women to say Selichot?
