MINHAH

also spelled Minha, Mincha, or Minchah, Hebrew Minha (offering), in Judaism, the second of three periods of daily prayer. Minhah prayers are offered in the afternoon; to facilitate attendance at the synagogue, the afternoon service is often scheduled so that the evening prayers (maarib; Hebrew: ma'ariv) can follow as soon as night has fallen. The morning period of daily prayer is known as shaharith (Hebrew: shaharit). Minhah consists essentially of the statutory prayer called the Amidah (Hebrew: 'amida, standing). On the Sabbath and on fast days (including Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement), a portion of the Torah is read. The minhah service, the institution of which is traditionally ascribed to Isaac, is considered to be a substitute for the meal offering (Leviticus 2) made at dusk in the Temple of Jerusalem before its destruction in AD 70.