Yizkor: On Shabbat?

Can Yizkor be recited on Shabbos or only on Holidays?"

Shalom!

Thank you for your question.

Yizkor is an Ashkenazi custom, the Sephardi custom is not to recite it.

Yizkor was first instituted to be recited on Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur often falls out on Shabbos, and hence, as one can see, there is no problem to recite in on Shabbat.

I suspect that the reason for your question derives from the general principle that one is not permitted to recite personal supplications on Shabbat. It is primarily for this reason that the weekday Shemoneh Esrei is not recited on Shabbat as it is full with personal requests. Yizkor, however, is not considered a supplication, but rather, a blessing, therefore permitted accordingly.

Another reason why Yizkor is appropriate for Shabbat, when the holiday Yizkor is recited on falls out on Shabbat, is because Shabbat is the day of rest. The dead, too, are at rest on Shabbat, as the deceased are given rest from Gehinnom (“hell”) on Shabbat.

There were actually a number of Shabbat related customs relating to Yizkor. For example, there was an ancient custom to recite Yizkor on the Shabbat before the Yahrzeit of one’s loved one, and some even did so every Shabbat for the entire first year following the death of a loved one. There was also a custom to recite it for anyone who was buried that week.

Generally, Yizkor is recited on Yom Kippur, the last day of Pesach, on Shavuot (the second day of Shavuot outside of Israel) and on Shemini Atzeret. But as one can see, there is no inherent ban on reciting Yizkor on Shabbat, and it is recited on Shabbat if any of these holidays fall out on Shabbat.

OC 284 with commentaries; Shibolei Haleket 8; Knesset Hagedola 307:8; Shaarei Ephraim 10:33; Ketzot Hashulchan 83 footnote 12.