Weekday Prayer (Tefillah)

Jewish communities in the land of Israel and Babylonia developed slightly different versions of the Tefillah described in rabbinic sources. A major distinction between the two is that whereas the (earlier) version of the weekday Tefillah from the land of Israel consisted of eighteen benedictions, in the Babylonian version the prayers for the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the restoration of the Davidic dynasty were separated, resulting in nineteen benedictions. In addition, the Kedushah, a dramatic recitation of the angels’ praise of God inserted into the third benediction, was recited only on the Sabbath in the land of Israel but came to be recited daily in the Babylonian version.