317. What Not to Say in Davening

Tefillah u’Birkas Kohanim 9:6

The verses recited before and after Kedusha along with their Aramaic paraphrases are called “the order of Kedusha.” Afterwards, various prayers and verses of mercy are recited, followed by kaddish with its usual responses, after which the congregation departs.

Tefillah u’Birkas Kohanim 9:7

If one says in his prayers, “May the One Who showed mercy on a bird’s nest by prohibiting us from taking the mother with the chicks…” or “…slaughtering an animal and its calf on the same day likewise show mercy on us,” or other statements to this effect, he should be silenced. This is because these mitzvos are God’s decrees, not signs of mercy. If they were intended to be acts of mercy towards animals, God would prohibit slaughter altogether. Similarly, one should not use excessive adjectives to describe God, saying, “The great, mighty, awesome, powerful, dauntless, strong God,” because it is not possible for a person to recount all of God’s praises. Instead, we only mention the praises that were recorded by Moses in the Torah.