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The Shabbat Service
- 1. The Virtual Synagogue TheShabbat Service
- 2. This is arepresentation of a Shabbat morning service, intended to introduce the non-Jew to the worship experiences of Judaism. It is not exactly like any actual Shabbat service – for one thing, no observant Jew should be computing on Shabbat! There are several audio portions available to help you experience as much of an actual service as possible. Or, in English, Shabbat Shalom.
- 3. The origin ofthe synagogue is an academic puzzle, but it is clear that by the time the Temple was destroyed in 70 C.E., the synagogue was already an established reality for Jews, both in Judea and in the Galilee. Evidence from the Mishnah and the New Testament indicates that prayer was part of the role of the synagogue, at least by the end of the first century. Synagogue from Capernaum, 1st century C.E.
- 4. Over the next1900 years, the synagogue has been a fixture of Jewish life, a center of worship, learning, and social connection – and a public reminder of the presence of the Jews. Model of Warsaw synagogue, destroyed in 1943.
- 5. Each synagogue is distinct,as the two American synagogues on this page demonstrate. Synagogue in Rhode Island, 1760 Synagogue in New Orleans, 19th century
- 6. A Jewish gatheringwill typically look like a cross-section of the wider society: old, young, dark, light, wealthy and not – and a visitor could easily be surprised to find a co- worker or teacher they never knew was Jewish. Jews of Kaifeng, China “In the Shul”, painting by Stephan Zanger Ethiopian Jew
- 7. Traditionally, Jews gatherthree times daily for prayer. The Torah is read three times during the week at those prayer services – Tuesday, Thursday, and Shabbat (Saturday) morning.
- 8. In all branchesof Judaism, the congregational prayer is standardized and published in the Siddur (“Order” of worship). Hamilton Siddur, published in Spain, 13th century
- 9. There are sixmajor sections in a Shabbat Torah service: • The Blessings • Verses of Praise • The Shema: The statement of God’s oneness • The Amidah: The standing prayer • The Torah Reading • The Conclusion Mah tovu (“How good are your tents, O people of Jacob”) is the song the commonly opens the blessings section. A wide variety of songs are used in the praise section of the service, such as Shochen ad (“The one who abides forever”).
- 10. In preparation forthe Saturday morning Shabbat service, the men will put on their prayer shawls, wrap themselves with tefillin, and wear a kipah (also known as a yarmulke). Putting the tefillin on the forehead – the bands on the man’s left arm are the tefillin for the hand.
- 11. The tallith isthe prayer shawl, and following the commandment of Deuteronomy, it has affixed the tzitzit (fringes). Tallith with kipah. There are 613 knots tied in the fringes, representing the 613 commandments in Torah. (PAY SPECIAL ATTENTION TO THIS DETAIL!)
- 12. The typical prayerservice is led by a rabbi, often with a cantor leading the singing. However, any male who has become a bar Mitzvah (that is, responsible for the commandments), may lead the prayers. In Reform and Conservative traditions, there is an increasing number of female rabbis as well.
- 13. One familiar symbolin the synagogue is the menorah. Menorahs were used in the Temple, and are a symbol of Judaism itself. Note that the menorah has seven lights – the Chanukiah is a special menorah used only at Chanukah, with nine lights instead of seven. 4th century menorah Seal from ancient Palestine (date uncertain)
- 14. There are threedaily services in the synagogue: Shacharit (or Morning Prayer); Minchah (Afternoon Prayer); and Ma’ariv (Evening Prayer). The most basic element of each is the Shema. The Shema is composed of three passages from the Torah: Deuteronomy 6:4-9, and 11:13-21; and Numbers 15:37-41. In the first passage, God commands the Israelites to hold these words constantly before them.
- 15. Hear O Israel,the LORD is our God, the LORD is one. from http://artmuz.com/Jewish_Art_4_MAIN.htm
- 16. The synagogue’s Torah isstill written on scrolls, not in a book. The scrolls are kept in the ark, a cabinet at the front of the congregation. This ark brings the Temple of Jerusalem together with the beyt hakeneset (house of the gathering). The Ark of the Torah in an Anaheim synagogue
- 17. When removed fromthe ark, the Torah scroll is processed by the rabbi through the congregation. The Torah is the Word of God – an incarnation of God himself. The procession is not symbolic, but actual: God is moving in the midst of the people of Israel. People will touch the scroll with their prayer books or tzitzit as it passes, joining their prayers with the presence of God. Golders Green Beth HaMedresh in London
- 18. Members of thecongregation are called up to the table to say blessings over and read portions of the Torah. While not every member of the congregation can understand Hebrew, each person who is bar or bat Mitzvah has learned how to vocalize it. The Torah scroll is read using a yad – the text itself is not touched with the hands.
- 19. The Torah isread on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday mornings. A different series of readings is appointed for each of the days, so that by year’s end (Rosh Hashanah in the Fall), the complete Torah has been read.
- 20. Seven readings are includedin the Shabbat service. For each, a member or family is called to the reading table to say a blessing (called an “aliyah” or “ascension”) before and after the reading.
- 21. Following the Torahreadings is the Shemoneh Esreh – the Eighteen Petitions. This is an individual prayer, but spoken within the community. By the time the Mishnah was compiled ca. 200 C.E., this prayer was already in place. It is actually 19 petitions – the additional petition added in the face of Christian denial of the Law, calling for God’s vindication over the heretics. Jewish woman praying at the Western Wall
- 22. Other petitions includea desire for repentance, the rebuilding of the Temple, the return of the exiles and the restoration of the Davidic kingdom. But, fitting the spirit of Shabbat joy, only the first three petitions (praising God) and the last three petitions (thanking The temple’s western wall, with Islam’s Dome of the Rock on the Temple mount above and departing from God) are spoken. Also called Amidah (“Standing” prayer) or simply Tefillah (“the Prayer”) this is traditionally spoken facing the Temple mount of Jerusalem.
- 23. The service closeswith the Aleinu (“It is encumbent upon us…”), a prayer that traditionally was attributed to Joshua.