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Which major gedolim, especially at the times at which the events occurred, but in general too, have said Hallel for Yom Haatzmaut and Yom Yerushalyim?

The definition of a major gadol is, of course, highly subjective, and left up to the answerer.

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yoel
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    Related: http://judaism.stackexchange.com/q/1512 – msh210 Feb 04 '13 at 00:15
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    This link suggests that R' Y.D. Soloveitchik was only opposed to reciting hallel with a b'racha. I heard from a talmid of his that R' Soloveitchik would face the wall and b'davka cover himself with a tallis so completely that nobody could figure out what he was doing. – Fred Feb 04 '13 at 00:50
  • @Fred who said it with or without a bracha is a great subquestion. :) – yoel Feb 04 '13 at 01:06
  • @yoel Then perhaps you should edit it in, or ask it as a new question. – Fred Feb 04 '13 at 01:08
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    From here: "Gedolim like Rav Meshulem Roth (Teshuvot Kol Mevaser 21) say Hallel with a Bracha, and others like Rav Ovadia Yosef (Teshuvot Yabia Omer 6:O.C. 41), Rav Aharon Soloveitchik (Gesher, Yeshiva University, 1969), and Rav Yitzchak Herzog (cited in Teshuvot Yabia Omer 6: O.C. 42) say only Half-Hallel." – Fred Feb 04 '13 at 01:09
  • @Fred I had thought of it but I didn't want to overcomplicate the question, or divide potential answers between the two. Maybe I should reconsider? Nice link, thanks! – yoel Feb 04 '13 at 01:15
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    According to R' Binyamin Tabori, the Rav was once so enraged when a Talmid said Hallel with a Berachah on Yom Ha'Atzmaut in defiance of his specific Psak, that he walked into Shi'ur that day and said, "Until now I've thought Hallel on Yom Ha'Atzmaut was a Reshus. Now I think it's Asur 'Al Pi Din!" – Seth J Feb 04 '13 at 03:10
  • @yoel If you do ask a follow up about brachas, consider also the variants of hallel shaleim vs bedilug, and saying it after davening vs in the pre-torah reading spot. – Double AA Feb 04 '13 at 05:40
  • @SethJ Fred, regarding Rav Soloveitchik and Hallel/Zionism http://www.vbm-torah.org/alei/14-02ral-zionism.htm – Double AA Feb 04 '13 at 05:45
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    Well have I got the blog post for you: http://hirhurim.blogspot.com/2007/04/hallel-on-yom-ha-atzmaut.html – Double AA Feb 04 '13 at 05:52
  • @DoubleAA Nice links. As far as the Hirhurim link, it assumes that R' Soloveitchik allowed full Hallel (without a b'racha), though the Avodah post it cites does not specify full Hallel. – Fred Feb 04 '13 at 06:02
  • The Rav himself discussed his views on the matter and is recorded verbatim in Thinking Aloud He details the halachic problems with saying it with a bracha, and certain halachic problems with saying it without a bracha. When asked how he would conduct himself on the day he responded "no differently from any other day" (these quotes are from memory but should be very close to his wording). Furthermore, he mentioned that the "seder hatfillah" for yom haatzmaut was "indicative of retardation". – mevaqesh Feb 09 '15 at 21:21
  • http://hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=21434&st=&pgnum=211 RYEHenkin did not, but said it is not something that can be Paskined and no one is wrong. – Double AA Dec 01 '15 at 19:17
  • R' Herschel Schachter says Hallel for Yom haAtzmaut only on 5 Iyar, which means that his minyan can say Hallel bivrachah and selichot at the same tefillah. – Noach MiFrankfurt Jun 30 '17 at 21:26
  • @NoachMiFrankfurt No they don't say a bracha – Double AA Apr 30 '20 at 15:32

1 Answers1

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Rabbi Eliezer Melamed rules in Peninei Halachah that one must say Halel.

Hallel with a bracha

He says elsewhere that Rabbi Shlomoh Goren (and Rabbi Gershoni, quoted in the footnote) ruled to say it with a blessing, and this is how Rabbi Tzvi Yehudah Kook acted. He also quotes Rabbi Meshulam Rata (Kol Mevaser 1:21) to say it with a blessing. Rabbi Sharki (quoted in Sidur Beis Meluchah), Shu"t Netzer Mata'ai (36), and Rabbi Ch. D. HaLevi (Das HaMedinah p. 82) ruled to say it with a blessing. Rabbi Y. L. HaKohen Maimon ruled likewise in his own synagogue.

Hallel without a bracha

However, he quotes Rabbi Ovadyah Heda'yah and Rabbi Ovadyah Yosef (Yabia Omer Orach Chayim 6:41) who ruled to say it without a blessing. Rabbi Yosef Mashash (Otzar HaMichtavim 3:1769) ruled to say it with a blessing; however, he says that when Rabbi Mashash heard Rabbi Yosef's ruling, he ruled that someone who had the practice already not to bless should not bless (Shemesh UMagen 3:63,66). Rabbi Sha'ul Yisra'eli ruled not to bless. This is also the opinion of Rabbi Avraham Shapira and Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu (quoted in HaRabbanus HaRei'shis vol. 1 pp. 901-903).

Rabbi Ushpiza'i, Rabbi Hertzog, Rabbi Uzi'el (brought in HaRabbanus HaRei'shis vol. 2 p. 841), Rabbi S. Y. Zevin (quoted there p. 890 note 6), and "HaRav HaNazir" (quoted by his son) all say that when Israel was first created they should have ruled to say Halel with a blessing; but since they didn't, we can no longer say it with a blessing.

Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik (quoted in Nefesh HaRav p. 97 quoted on this website) ruled to say it without a blessing. Though Fred quotes a student of his who said he would cover himself so no one could figure out what he was doing.

Not to say Hallel at all

After I searched a little bit, I came up with these other sources not quoted by Rabbi Melamed:

Rabbi Yehudah Herzl Henkin (Bnei Vanim 1:16 and vol. 2 p. 210 in the addendum about his grandfather) quotes his grandfather Rabbi Yosef Eliyahu Henkin who said not to say Halel at all, but said not to stop those who did say it because they have on whom to rely.

The Minchas Yitzchak (10:10) is against saying Halel on "ימי חגם אשר בדו מלבם."

The Lubavitcher Rebbi (Igros Kodesh 9573) also says not to say it.

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  • Nice answer, very comprehensive. As a minor point, I thought I read that in Mercaz HaRav they don't make a bracha... maybe I misunderstood? It seems unlikely to me that R' Kook z"l would have conducted himself differently from the yeshiva. – yoel Feb 04 '13 at 05:08
  • It sounds to me more like Rav Ovadiah Yosef is saying, if you say hallel to say without a bracha. I'm not so sure (at least from that teshuva) that he says it himself. – Double AA Feb 04 '13 at 05:14
  • @yoel It seems pretty clear at least from the source I quoted: "על פי זה הנהיג מו"ר הרב צבי יהודה הכהן קוק זצ"ל, לומר הלל בברכה בישיבת 'מרכז הרב', וכן נוהגים כל תלמידיו." DoubleAA Since Rabbi Melamed quoted Rabbi Ovadyah Yosef's opinion with the conjunction "וכן" after an opinion that clearly means to say it without a blessing, it seems that he is quoting Rabbi Yosef as saying the same thing. However, I don't have the tshuvah in front of me right now. – b a Feb 04 '13 at 05:27
  • To clarify about R' Soloveitchik, your cited source actually says: "R. Soloveitchik (Nefesh Ha-Rav, pg. 97)... objected to reciting Hallel, as he objected to any other change of the liturgy. He sanctioned, however, reciting half-Hallel, without a blessing, at the end of Shacharit, as this does not constitute a major change in the liturgy." So the source does not say he ruled that one should say it but rather that one could say it (after the end of Shacharis). – Fred Feb 04 '13 at 05:51
  • @Fred The site you quoted in your comment to the answer said he "endorsed" saying it (I don't have Nefesh HaRav in front of me right now to check). – b a Feb 04 '13 at 06:21
  • @ba The full quote there is: "He endorsed reading the mizmorei Tehillim that comprise Hallel if the community wanted to on the morning of Yom haAtzmaut." This quote is eid m'pi eid, so I don't think that we need to be m'dayek from the word "endorse". I suppose it would be best if someone could produce a direct quote from Nefesh HaRav. – Fred Feb 04 '13 at 06:29
  • not to get into a gedolim debate but the roshei yeshiva of YU, many of whom do recite with a bracha, are conspicuously absent from this answer. I would include Rav Herschel Shechter at the very least. –  Feb 04 '13 at 15:31
  • @nikmasi Rav Aharon Lichtenstein is technically a Rosh Yeshiva of YU too. – Double AA Feb 04 '13 at 18:04
  • @nikmasi I certainly didn't mean any offense to YU or its rabbis, but I only wrote down the sources mentioned in Peninei Halachah and what turned up in an OCR search on HebrewBooks for "הלל ביום העצמאות" and in the first page of Google search results. – b a Feb 05 '13 at 01:04