Halakhah for Shabbat 238:1

Kaddish is unique in that it deals primarily with God’s honor (kevod Shamayim), and therefore, one’s response must be with intense kavana, and one certainly should not chatter during its recitation (SA 56:1; MB 1). The Sages say that anyone who answers “Amen, Yehei Shemei Rabba Mevorakh…” (“May His great name be blessed…”) with their full powers of concentration will cause a judgment of even seventy years against him to be torn up (Shabbat 119b; Talmidei Rabbeinu Yona). They further say that when Jews enter the synagogues and recite “Yehei shemei rabba mevorakh..” aloud, harsh decrees against them are nullified (Tosafot ad loc., citing Pesikta). Additionally, they say that the answer to Kaddish arouses mercy for Jews in exile. When Jews enter synagogues and batei midrashot and respond, “Yehei shemei rabba mevorakh…,” the memory of those in exile ascends before God, and He shakes His head in pain, so to speak, and says: “Fortunate is the king who was glorified this way in his house,” and the desire to redeem Israel awakens before Him (see Berakhot 3a).

The Sages teach (Shabbat 119b) that one who recites Va-yekhulu in the Shabbat evening prayers becomes like a partner with God in creation. God purposely created the world incomplete so that we could become His partners in its repair. Our partnership begins with belief in the Creator, and from there we work to rectify the world and express His glory.

One must hire a tutor for their son unless they are teaching them themselves...But the son of one's fellow - one is not obligated to pay for him on his own, but rather the community of residents is to make a Talmud Torah, as I have written. And we force him to pay his son's teacher. And if the father is out of town and has means, if we can, we inform him that he needs to pay, and if we can't inform, we take from his account and hire a tutor for his son .And for one's grandson, great-grandson - we force him to pay for his studies when he is able to and the child's parents are not able to, or if he doesn't have parents...And thus, we force all city residents to establish/maintain a Talmud Torah, to place tutors there to teach the poor and orphan children. And we force this that everyone should give a donation or from the communal fund. And every city that does not have a Talmud Torah - it's end will be in destruction and we should separate from it...And this was the custom across all of Israel - that there would be Talmud Torah schools, and the poor and orphan kids would go there, and the school would feed and dress the kids until they matured.