Blessing After the Haftarah Reading
| Blessing after Haftarah |
Mishkan T'filah, page 372
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Why do we read the Haftarah?
No one knows exactly how or when the practice began of completing the Torah reading with a reading from the prophets. Some people believe that it began because of persecution in the time of the Chanukah story. According to this view, the Greek King Antiochus prohibited the Jews from reading Torah in the synagogue. In response, the Jews began reading sections from the prophets to stand in the place of the Torah reading. After the Israelites won their independence from Antiochus and restored the reading of Torah, they continued the practice of reading the haftarah.
It is also possible that the rabbis including the reading from the prophets to make a point against their opponents. The Samaritans and the Sadducees were non-rabbinic Jews who denied that the writings of the prophets belonged in the Jewish Bible. The rabbis may have created the custom of reading from the prophets after reading from the Torah to emphasize the importance of the prophets and to distinguish themselves from those who did not revere them.
It is also possible that the rabbis including the reading from the prophets to make a point against their opponents. The Samaritans and the Sadducees were non-rabbinic Jews who denied that the writings of the prophets belonged in the Jewish Bible. The rabbis may have created the custom of reading from the prophets after reading from the Torah to emphasize the importance of the prophets and to distinguish themselves from those who did not revere them.
