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Judaism
The Synagogue.
The Synagogue

The Synagogue is the Jewish holy place.

The word synagogue means meeting place.

It is used for worship,
learning ,weddings
and festivals.
The Rabbi.

The Rabbi is the person who is in charge of the
Synagogue.

He carries out
a similar job to a priest
in a Christian church.
Inside the synagogue.

Inside the synagogue on
the western wall facing
the holy city of
Jerusalem, is the Ark.

This contains the Torah
scrolls on which the Holy
scriptures are written.
The Torah scrolls.

The scrolls are taken out of the ark each time
they are read in the synagogue
The Torah scroll.

The Torah scrolls are dressed in a velvet jacket
called the MANTLE.

The mantle symbolises
the robes worn by the
Temple priests in ancient times.
The Torah scroll.


When the Torah is being read the mantle is
removed.
As the scroll is so sacred it is not allowed to be
touched by hand.Therefore a YAD is used this
is a silver pointing instrument.
The 10 commandments.

Near to the Ark you can see the Ten
commandments written on tablets of stone.

The scriptures tell that
when they were first given
to Moses by God on
Mount Sinai they were
written on tablets of stone.
The 10 commandments.

In the Synagogue ,however, the tablets only
show the first two words of each
commandment in Hebrew ,the traditional
language of the Jews.
Ner Tamid.

Above the ark is a light
that is always kept burning.
This reminds Jews of the
light that was always kept
burning in the temple in
Jerusalem hundreds of years ago.
It symbolises the presence of God,which Jews believe
is always around them.It is called the NER TAMID
Seating arrangements.

In most synagogues men and women sit
separately.With women sitting in a area called
the gallery and the men sat in the main area
below.

In some synagogues
called REFORM synagogues
families are allowed to sit together.
What happens at the Synagogue?

The synagogue is used for many special
occasions as well as for worship.
Jewish weddings.

Most Jewish Weddings take place in the
synagogue.

The Bride and Groom stand under the huppah
or wedding canopy.
Bar Mitzvah.



Bar mitzvah ceremonies also take place in the
synagogue.
This is a ceremony that takes place when the
Jewish boy is 13.
After the service the boy is responsible for his
own faith.In the synagogue he has now
entered adulthood.
Bat Mitzvah.

A Bat Mitzvah is the ceremony that takes place
when a Jewish girl is 12.
Bat Mitzvah.



A Bat Mitzvah can only take place in a
REFORM synagogue.
The Girl is then accepted as an adult.
IN BOTH ceremonies the
boy and girl must read from
the torah in Hebrew in front
of all their friends and family.
FESTIVALS.

The synagogue is also the place where many
Jewish people meet to celebrate their festivals
such as Rosh Hashanah,which marks the start
of the Jewish new year.
Special clothes.


In the synagogue special clothes are worn for
prayer.
These clothes are very symbolic and are often
given as gifts for Bar / Bat mitzvah ceremonies.
What are the special clothes?



Jewish men and Women all wear a prayer shawl called
the TALLIT.The fringes symbolise the 613
commandments.
They also wear TEFILLIN
leather straps with small boxes
around their forearm and
forehead it contains extracts
from the Torah.
They also where a KIPPAR
A small head covering
OUR VISIT.
ENJOY YOUR VISIT TO THE REFORM
SYNAGOGUE.
LOOK OUT FOR ALL THE THINGS YOU
HAVE LEARNT ABOUT.