Rabi Preda had a student for whom he taught over a lesson 400 times until his student understood it.  What was the rest of the class doing all that time?  It’s hard to imagine that the other children were sitting there listening to the same thing told over 400 times without getting fidgety, or talking among themselves.  Maybe they were permitted to read something while they were waiting.

 Or maybe they were expected to listen to the same thing over and over again 400 times even though they already understood it.  What could possibly be the value for those classmates to sit there listening quietly as their rebbe told over the same lesson 400 times?

 If you’ve just said to yourself, “Yeah, there can’t be any value to that, they must’ve been told to go ahead and study the next page or talk quietly among themselves,” slow down and think about it some more.

 There is value in watching someone do something with patience, with respect, with caring and diligence.  It could be inspiring for those classmates to watch and listen to their Rebbe.  They had already learned what he was teaching.  They could learn a lot from how he was teaching it.  They could learn how patient, respectful, caring and diligent a Rebbe can be, and aspire to be like him.

 There is value in chazara.  Even if you have learned and understood something you will understand it and remember even better if you repeat it or hear it repeated.   The classmates could learn to replace the arrogant self-talk of “I know that already,” with the anivus driven self-talk of “let me listen and hope it will sink in even deeper.”

 If Rabi Preda asked the classmates to sit quietly and listen, there would be the additional value of showing respect to him by complying with his request.

 What if Rabi Preda had asked all the classmates to help in some way to bring the lesson across to this one student who was having a hard time?  What do you imagine some of the classmates might say?

 I don’t think my participation is all that important.  Let the other boys work on it with Rebbe.

 I suspect that Rabi Preda would help this boy to accept that when Rebbe considers your participation important, it is, and you do not shirk it off onto others.

 Maybe some of the other boys have nothing better to do but I could go on to something else that would be more worthwhile.

 Rabi Preda would, I imagine, help this boy to understand that there is nothing better to do than what your Rebbe asked you to do.

 Did Rabi Preda give the classmates permission to learn or converse while he repeated the lesson to the struggling child?  Or did he ask the classmates to stay focused and listen quietly?  Or did he ask the classmates to focus, listen, and in some way participate?  We don’t know. 

 What would you like to be asked to do if you were a classmate in that situation?  Would you prefer to be given the option of learning something else or talking quietly while Rebbe works with one child for a while?

 Yes, I suppose I would prefer that but I also understand that sometimes it’s hard to let children do various different things in a classroom setting.  It’s hard because if you let one child do one thing and another child wants to do something else that he thinks is a similar thing but it’s really not similar but he doesn’t understand what’s not similar about it and that leads to something else and once you start that ball rolling it’s really hard to stop it.

 That last expression may sound familiar to you.

 The Mechaber in Orach Chayim, Siman 124:4 writes that during chazoras hashatz, everyone should be silent, and focused on the brachos being said, and to answer amen.

 Here’s the wording in the Mishna Brurah note 17: Therefore you must be careful not to say tehillim or learn during chazoras hashatz.  Even those who answer amen properly are doing something harmful, because if the learners turn to their learning the unlearned will learn from them that it is not necessary to pay attention to the shliach tzibur and they will engage in idle talk, chas v’sholom, nimtzahu machte-im es harabim.   

 That’s how far the ball rolls, and it’s really hard to stop it.

 But it’s very hard for me to focus on the chazoras hashatz.  Maybe it’s because everything has become so fast-paced and attention spans are shorter.

 It is hard.  You’ve heard it more than 400 times before, you know it already, so it’s hard to focus.

I can’t imagine that in 16th century Cairo there was much talk of shrinking attention spans and New York minutes, yet the Radvaz was asked to address this very issue of staying focused on the chazoras hashatz.  (Shaalos u’Teshuvos Radvaz Hashalem, vol 2, shaala 1079)   More recently, the Aruch Hashulchan wrote: One may not learn or say tehilim during chazoras hashatz even if he answers amen at the end of each bracha and one who does [learn or say tehilim during chazoras hashatz] should be rebuked.

 Learning in a sefer, “texting,” during chazoras hashatz, is worthy of rebuke according to the Aruch Hashulchan, and the Mishna Brurah warns that it is chas v’sholom, nimtzahu machte-im es harabim.   Yet it is prevalent.

 Rabi Preda would, I imagine, would want us to understand that there is nothing better to do than what our poskim have asked us to do and to work harder at it.  Isn’t that what we ask of our children?  We, their manheigim and poskim, ask them to do many things even when they don’t see the value in it, and even when it’s hard for them to do.  Chazoras hashatz is an important opportunity to model self-discipline for our children and everyone else to learn from us.

 Note: The Pischei Teshuva (cited in Shaarim Mitzyunim ba’Halacha on Kitzur Shulchan Aruch, vol 1, siman 20, note 1) brings a very limited situation in which it may be permitted to learn during chazoras hashatz.   Be as careful to seek leniency for your children as you are for yourself.

 Rabbi Yitzchak Shmuel Ackerman is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor with specialties in marriage, relationships, and parenting.  He works with parents and educators, and conducts parenting seminars for shuls and organizations.  He can be reached at 718-344-6575.