הושענות - Part 3 - אמירת הושענות בשבת

There is an opinion to the effect that we do not say הושענות on שבת, and we are not נוהג like that opinion [1].

This opinion was held by רב שרירא גאון, who was concerned that children will hear הושענות being said on שבת and will thereby mistakenly think that, just like we say הושענות on שבת, so too we take a לולב on שבת too; but where we don’t say הושענות – it is then clarified to them that we indeed do not take a לולב on שבת. It seems to the טור, however, that since we say הושענות in our places rather than while circling the בימה, the children thereby already understand that it is שבת and we therefore do not take a לולב, in which case there is, in fact, no need to refrain from saying הושענות altogether [2]. Indeed, our מנהג is to say הושענות even on שבת [3].

The לבוש [4], however, confirms that, even though we say הושענות on שבת, nevertheless we do not circle the בימה, since just like we don’t make a זכר למקדש with the לולב since, after all, we don’t take a לולב on שבת – so too we don’t make a זכר למקדש by means of making a הקפה on שבת. In fact, even if the first day of יו"ט is on שבת such that נטילת לולב is then not merely זכר למקדש but rather דאורייתא, still we don’t circle the בימה on account of לא פלוג: since we don’t take the לולב, we therefore don’t circle the בימה either, even without a לולב. To that end, says the לבוש, even on יו"ט שחל בחול one who does not have a לולב should not circle the בימה.[5]

The above is all the מנהג of אשכנזים; ספרדים, however, do not say הושענות on שבת at all [6]. This is based on the חידא [7] who paskens like רב שרירא גאון. It seems, however, that this practice is not universal even among ספרדים, as כף החיים paskens explicitly [8] that each place should hold onto its מנהג (particularly, in the כף החיים's view, since there is no הכרע one way or the other from the אריזל).

In fact, the Syrians [9] and Moroccans [10] historically did indeed say הושענות on שבת. The Moroccans, in fact, even say that day’s ordinary הושענא in addition to the special הושענא for שבת [11]. The Judeo-Spanish Jews have a most interesting tradition in that, specifically on יו"ט שחל בשבת, they then say הושענות before מוסף as the ספרי תורה are being returned to the ארון [12]. This practice is the most similar one that I have been able to find to the opinion of רב סעדיה גאון mentioned here.

The only אשכנזים I know of who do not say הושענות on שבת are חבד [13]. The reason for this seems to be an objection against asking Hashem for our needs (בקשת צרכים) on שבת [14]. I have heard that there are adherents of מנהג הגרא who also do not say הושענות on שבת for the same reason; I have not seen this objection written anywhere, however.

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[1] מחבר או"ח תרס:ג

[2] טור שם

[3] בח שם

It is not initially clear to this writer why we assume that the children will know whether or not to take a לולב based on whether or not הושענות are said: 1) would the adults not have already taken a לולב before הלל, which precedes הושענות in the סדר התפלה? 2) why would the children not ask whether a לולב is meant to be taken that day or not rather than merely presume (wrongly) based on an inference which is not rigorous (perhaps children are not expected to think very thoroughly, but nonetheless)? 3) It seems unusual that we refrain from saying הושענות on שבת (which, seemingly, we otherwise would) merely on account of a potential misunderstanding of children who should have other ways of finding out the appropriate procedure besides for making vague inferences. -?- וצע"ק

[4] שם באמצע סעיף ב

[5] The לבוש seems to pin this מחלוקת on the prior מחלוקת (שו"ע או"ח תרס:ב) of whether one who has no לולב should still circle the בימה or not. ביהגר"א (שם סעיף ג) seems to share this understanding as well.

[6] ערוה"ש שם סעיף ג

[7] ברכי יוסף שם אות ג

[8] שם אות כג

[9] Dobrinsky, Rabbi Herbert C. A Treasury of Sephardic Laws and Customs (Ktav, 1988), pg. 351

[10] Dobrinsky, ibid., pg. 357

[11] ibid.

[12] ibid., pg. 361

[13] סידור אדמור הזקן עם הערות וביאורים חלק שלישי עמ' א'רפח

[14] told to me by Dayan Levi Yitzchok Raskin, author and editor of the aforementioned סידור