Halachot of Amen

Richard B. Aiken

Wait for Amen until after Completion of Blessing

Don't say amen to reply to the prayer leader's blessing until he has completely finished the blessing.

Don't Answer Amen within 2.5 Seconds

Don't answer amen if you finish a prayer or blessing within 2.5 seconds after the prayer leader (cantor) finishes the same prayer or blessing as you are saying. However, in these three cases, you may say amen, even if you finish exactly together with the leader:

End of yishtabach;
End of Hallel;
Ma'ariv's shomer amo yisrael la'ad.

Interrupting Your Prayer To Say Amen

You may say amen to a prayer leader's blessing even if you are at a different part of the prayer service, but only at a part that you are permitted to interrupt.

Interrupting Your Blessing To Say Amen

You may not interrupt saying your own blessing in order to say amen to someone else's.

Interrupting Your Amida To Say Amen

When saying the amida yourself, do not say amen or any other replies to the prayer leader's repetition. If he says kedusha or kaddish:

Pause in your own amida and listen without answering or saying anything.
Once the leader has finished kedusha or kaddish, resume your private amida.

Exception: If you finish the final blessing of the amida (“...Ha'mevareich et amo yisrael ba'shalom”) as the leader starts to say the kedusha, and you want to respond along with the congregation:

Quickly say the line, “Yihiyu l'ratzon ....,”
Reply to the entire kedusha (kadosh, amen, and any other words that are said by the congregation) as if you had finished the amida.
Once the leader has said the final blessing of kedusha, say “elohai netzur….”

Saying Amen When You Cannot Hear the Blessing

Answer amen even if you cannot hear the leader saying blessings or prayers, as long as you know when he is finished each blessing.

Saying Amen to Mispronunciation

Do not answer amen if the prayer leader is not saying blessings or prayers correctly, such as mispronouncing words, mumbling, slurring words, etc.

Prayer Leader of 10 Men Should Wait

A prayer service leader for a group of only 10 men including himself should (but is not required to) wait until all 10 men have finished the private amida before he begins the reader's repetition.

Reason: To have nine men replying amen to each blessing.

Note: A minimum of six men must be finished before the reader begins the repetition. If delaying the repetition at mincha will cause the repetition to be finished after sunset, consult a rabbi.

Note: If all nine other men will not (or may not) say amen, the leader should intend that his public amida be a “free-will offering” (nedava); otherwise, his public amida may be a bracha l'vatala. He may not intend to offer a "free-will offering" on days or services that this sacrifice was not offered in the Temple in Jerusalem:

Shabbat
Jewish Festivals
Rosh Chodesh musaf.

Amida with Minyan but with less than Nine Men Answering

On Shabbat, even if there will not be at least nine men answering amen to the reader's repetition of the amida, the reader should say the repetition anyway, without intending that his repetition be counted as a nedava (which can only be offered on weekdays). If less than six men will be answering, the leader must wait before doing the repetition.

Halachot of Amen

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