(Heb. Birkhot ha-Torah). Special benedictions recited daily in the Morning Service or when called to the Reading of the Law in the synagogue. Each Morning Service contains a sequence of three introductory benedictions "on studying the Torah" which were formulated by the rabbis (Ber. 11b). These benedictions praise God for the bestowal of His precepts and the privilege of "occupying ourselves with the words of Torah," pray that gaining and spreading religious knowledge may be a pleasant duty for "the house of Israel," and thank God for having assigned the Torah to His Chosen People. The second benediction, Ve-ha'arev na, expresses the hope that all study of Torah may be performed li-shemah--- "for its own sake" (see Altruism), namely, to gain wisdom rather than some fancied merit. The third benediction in this sequence is identical with the initial blessing pronounced by someone who has been called to the Torah reading (see below). The blessings recited each morning are complemented by sections from the Pentateuch (Num. 6:24-26), the Mishnah (Pe'ah 1:1), and the Talmud (Shab. 127a).
When summoned to the Reading of the Law, a worshiper first recites the Barekhu invocation and then repeats the congregational response. In the Sephardi, Oriental, and Italian rites, a person called to the Torah recites an additional formula before Barekhu---Adonai immakhem ("The Lord be with you!")---to which those standing next to him reply, Yevarekhekha Adonai ("The Lord bless you!"). This exchange of greetings is a direct quotation from the Book of Ruth (2:4) (see also Responses, Liturgical). After the reader (using a Yad or pointer) has indicated the place in the Torah scroll, the individual called touches that section of the parchment with the edge of his prayer shawl (or with the Torah binder), kisses it, and then (if the scroll is mounted on staves) grasps both wooden rollers, winds them together, recites Barekhu and the first Torah blessing, and unwinds the scroll for his portion to be chanted. Once this reading has been completed, he again winds the rollers together and holds them as he recites the second, concluding benediction. It is at this point that the father of a boy who has just been called to read the Torah for the first time, as a bar mitzvah, recites the Barukh She-Petarani formula.
The first benediction over the Torah emphasizes God's choice of Israel as His holy nation (cf. Ex. 19:5-6; Deut. 10:15, 14:2) and the recipient of His Torah. In the second benediction, emphasis is laid on Israel's thankful acceptance of God's Law and of Judaism's spiritual responsibilities. According to Jacob Ben Asher, the phrase "Torah of truth" stands for the Written Law, while "eternal life" refers to the Oral Law. In most prayer rites, the wording of each separate benediction is identical. Two exceptions should, however, be noted. Sephardim and other Oriental Jewish communities modify the text of the second blessing to read, "Who gave us His Torah, the Torah of truth." In the case of the first blessing, Jews belonging to the Reconstructionist movement, which has theological objections to the concept of a Chosen People, read: "Who has brought us close to His service" in place of "Who has selected us from among all peoples."
