_Abot_ was read varied in different communities. In Germany, there
were _kehillot_ in which it was recited during the winter as well as
during the summer. In some communities it was read from Passover to
the Feast of Tabernacles (_Sukkot_), in others from the Sabbath of
_Parashah Yitro_ (Ex. XVIII, 1-XX, 26) to the Sabbath of _Parashah
Masse'e_ (Num. XXXIII, 1-XXXVI, 13), that is, from the Sabbath on
which is read an account of the giving of the Law until the Sabbath
preceding the beginning of the reading of the "repetition of the Law,"
_i.e._, Deuteronomy. In many orthodox congregations to-day this
practice is still adhered to, and _Abot_ is read on Sabbath afternoons
during the summer, or from the Sabbath after Passover to the Sabbath
before the New Year (_Rosh ha-Shanah_).

A number of reasons have been suggested for the custom of reading the
_Abot_ in the synagogue, the most likely being that it was introduced
to occupy the minds of worshippers during the long wait, on a summer's
day, between the afternoon and evening services. Whatever the reason
for this custom may have been is immaterial and unimportant; but what
is of importance is that, by this excellent practice, a whole body of
moral dicta--each one summing up with remarkable conciseness a life's
experience and philosophy, each one breathing the spirit of piety,
saintliness, justice, and love for humanity--has sunk deeply into the
innermost heart and consciousness of the Jewish people, exerting such
an influence that the principles set forth in the _Abot_ have been
eternally wrought into the moral fibre of the descendants of the
Rabbis. To the lips of the Jew, these maxims spring spontaneously; to
those who know them they are a safe and secure guide through life;
they are not only heard in the synagogue, but are quoted and applied
at home and abroad. Such are the fruits of a benign custom, which
Israel will do well to prize and preserve.