Q&A: A Question About the Machzor
Originally published:
This is an English translation (via GPT-5.4). Read the original Hebrew version.
A Question About the Machzor
Question
In the Yom Kippur machzor, in the Shacharit prayer the paragraph "When there is no advocate of merit" comes before the paragraph "May He yet remember,"
but in Musaf the order is reversed — "May He yet remember" comes before "When there is no advocate." What is the reason for the change?
Answer
I have no idea.
I think it is connected to the fact that the words "and vindicate us in the judgment, O King of justice" are an introduction to the piyyut "He who grasps the attribute of justice in His hand," which is said only in Musaf and not in Shacharit.