My Site Visit On Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, And The Jewish Sabbath

As displayed by Revealing World Religions, Judaism contains many sects, and Hasidic and Reform Jews are perhaps the most contrasting. Reform Jews use their religion as a segway to adapt traditional beliefs to today’s world. Their form of Judaism serves as a middle ground between modernism and tradition. Hasidic Jews are entirely different in that they utilize their religion as a means by which to form a direct connection to God. This is done by the strict observance of Jewish laws which as a result segregate them from modern life.

When I visited my first Jewish synagogue, I expected it to be very different. My previous experience with religious ceremonies was limited to a few visits to Baptist churches. The most surprising thing for me at this one was, oddly enough, its similarity to Christian services and rituals. I went into the religious visit expecting an enormous difference in the customs and perhaps even in the attitudes of the people attending the service. What I found instead was a religious ceremony very reminiscent of the Christian ones I’ve been to before.

My finance and I attended a Friday night Shabbat service. Shabbat is the Jewish Sabbath day; their day of rest. It begins on Friday and concludes Saturday evening. Shabbat allows time for members to focus on what it is important and that is: worshiping, reflecting on the week, and growing together. Depending on the day (Friday or Saturday) and week (1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th), the service may vary including the content of worship, it’s timing and style. The Shabbat service we attend took place on the second Friday of the month; it involved music, prayer and a sermon. As we entered Shir Takvih, we felt very welcomed; everyone was polite and answered any questions we had. After we received a copy of their translated prayer book (machzorim) we were directed to the designated place, where we were told that we could sit anywhere we like. The white painted room which was surrounded by big round windows had several roles of wooden fold up chairs. Not wanting to be a disturbance we sat in the back row. At the front of the room there was a bimah with an assortment of musical instruments on one side and a podium

At the front, there were three Rabbis; two male and one female. This was the first evident sign that this temple was reformed, on the grounds that in Orthodox and some Conservative Judaism, leadership by a female is not permitted. Each of the three rabbis wore the talit, and one of them was the Cantor. He played a guitar and sang a song and the style reminded me of the praise and worship songs we sing at my church. He continued singing as people found seats. The service started with some singing in Hebrew. The lighting of the candles for Shabbat occurred next along with the reading of a blessing. Some more readings and songs followed that. A decent amount of the service was in Hebrew, particularly the singing, however there were also times that English was also spoken. Since the books were in Hebrew, which reads from right to left, the books opened in reverse. This took some getting used to; however, there were English translations. The following segment of the service is what I describe as a parade of the Torah. The Torah,

My site visit took place on the first of February 2013 I had the privilege of attending the candle lighting ceremony of the Judaism religion. To bring in the day called Shabbat ( a sacred day to the Jewish community) at the Chabad Center of Kendall and Pincrest they lit candles, sang songs, and recited words from the Torah that reminded them of the historical story of Shabbat. The Shabbat is the equivalence to the Christian tradition of the Sabbath, where the religious community stops to rest and ponder on the holy one. This establishment is a well-respected and reputable Chabad Lubavitch branch of the Jewish

All Jewish sects share the common belief that their teachings originated from the revelation Moses received on Mount Sinai from God, called the Torah (Graber, 2013). It is from here that the differences between the Orthodox and Reform Jews begin to take place. The two movements differ in the application of the Torah, particularly in how rigid the laws contained within should be followed. These differences can be broken down into three primary differences: God’s Revelation, services, and religious practice.

One interesting concept that I learned was to stand the book straight up on the next available chair, instead of faced down or in any other position to accentuate the importance of the scriptures and prayers that the books consist of. The service started promptly at 9:00 pm in which the members of the Jewish Synagogue were already wearing a tallit, which is a prayer shawl that represents the six hundred and thirteen commandments, and silently prayer with a swaying motion incorporated. After asking the congregate that was aiding the observers throughout the service, he explained that Jews usually sway, rock, or shake because it is stated that the physical act is a way of connecting spiritually to God while praying along with other justifications within the Torah. My initial feelings regarding the acceptance of me as a visitor was kind of unsettling because I was the center of attention along with the two other observers. Some congregates would greet us warmly offering any help, while some others often discretely talked among their other fellow congregates about our attendance with some people staring for portions of the service. Besides, the interaction of the congregates to the clergy was very divided in the aspect of gender roles due to the fact that the table that two intricate cased Torahs were brought out on could only be seen by the men and recite by men only. As far as the division of roles, I found it interesting that some of the women explained to us that it was not a form of disrespect or act of degrading because they play their specialized role in the congregation, which is often misunderstood and in their perspective more liberating than most portray it to me. It was also explained to me that women are seen as separate but equal when stated throughput Jewish

At 10:00 on April 30th, I visited Temple Israel for the Shabbat service. It is a Jewish Synagogue in Canton, Ohio. The Shabbat service included praising God and honoring it as a day of rest for people and for God. Before I walked into the actual room of worship there was a table of Kappa’s. They are the little white hats you wear on the back of your head. I learned that it’s custom in Judaism to cover your head before going into the sanctuary as a sign of respect. There were also programs of information what’s going on in the synagogue. There’s also a rack of Tallit’s, Jewish adults wear these and before they put it on they say a prayer. In the actual sanctuary, there were pews, a Bimah which is the stage, an ark which faces Jerusalem where the Torah is held, and a light called Ter Namid which is an eternal light that is always on to represent God’s eternal watchfulness over his followers. In front of the pews there were Siddurs which is a Jewish prayer book. It contains daily and Shabbat prayers. They are in Hebrew and in English and since I am a non-Jew, I followed along in the English side that is printed alongside the Hebrew side. The Rabbi calls out what page they are on during the service in this book. This is similar to what priests do at church. There is also a Chumash which is what includes the five books and I learned that it is commonly the same book as the Torah. Out of a sign of respect, I had to stand whenever the Ark was opened or whenever the Torah was

Torah Scrolls: This object is the most significant to the Synagogue, which is made up of the five books of Moses hand written by a pious scribe. The scrolls are kept inside an Ark of each synagogue and are read aloud in all synagogues four times a week.

They brought across the seas their religion and traditions. [1]. This means establishing and maintaining a comfortable distance from the synagogue but participating in some of its events and services. Only 6% of the Russian-speaking Jewish population considers religion “very important,” and another 35% “somewhat important” yet many, including very secular people. They helped established many synagogues in the East Coast spreading across the country. They helped many other people around them have an interest or in a way a conversion to Judaism due to the way the believed in and the way the truly were very holy about it, [2]. “For many others, the strict religious practices of Orthodox Judaism required that they live near an existing Jewish community. Around the turn of the century, nearly one-half of the Jewish population of the United States lived in New York City. There, they would create a world unlike any other in the annals of American immigration”. Also they received a negative side as well from Christians and they were upset thinking they were persuading the people into something bad for not believing the same things they do.

A calm and kind man at the front desk by the main entrance of the synagogue nodded and brightly said “Shabbat Shalom”. I was hesitant and confused on how to answer, but I certainly continued my salutation response in English and further explained the reason for my visit. After introducing myself and indicating the reason of my visit, Warren Snaider, a friendly and very knowledgeable lay leader and one of the synagogue ushers warmly welcomed everyone into the service immediately after passing the main desk person. Mr. Snaider also repeated the same words “Shabbat Shalom,” each time he did this, out of curiosity I inquired about the meaning of “Shabbat Shalom,” which he merely said; it translates as happy or peaceful Shabbat. Mr. Snaider, as I preferred to call him that day, offered everyone a prayer book called “siddur” to be used by all worshippers during the service. This book contained most of the prayers that were used in service. A lay leader, Morris Paula, conducted the proceeding and she was in charge of the service, while several leaders participated performing different roles throughout the service. After everyone was accompanied to their seats, commencing the service, Paula ordered the congregation to stand and sing a song from the hymnbook called “Shalom Aleichem” (Peace Be upon You), which she said was to welcome and bless the Shabbat angels into the service.

On Visit number two I attended a Jewish morning service in a Temple. I went along with Brady and we went to the Temple Beth Israel. We walked in and sat down in the booths. The service was led by Rabbi Bruce Benson. A Rabbi, I learned, is a Jewish scholar or teacher appointed by other Jewish leaders. We had come on what they called Shabbat Morning, it was a special service because it was to celebrate a young girl named Elexis Goldberg on her Bat Mitzvah. A Bat Mitzvah is a Jewish tradition that celebrates a young man or women coming of age.

It is custom for people reach out and touch the mezuzah and then kiss their fingers. In Orthodox synagogues the males and females sit separate from one another, the females usually sit in the upstairs corridor. Reform and many Conservative houses of worship generally have mixed seating. For a service to take place there must be at a minimum of ten Jewish males. Services are conducted entirely in Hebrew and are lead my male rabbis. When entering the synagogue males must wear a skullcap even if they are not Jewish there are ones provided, or if they forgot theirs at home. This cap is a reminder that God is above all. A dedicated minority of Jews prays in synagogue three times a day and some Orthodox synagogues function mostly as houses of worship though some synagogue buildings double as community, educational and cultural centers. An important part of certain prayer services is a reading from the Torah and the Prophets. The Torah has been divided into 54 sections, so that if each of these sections is read and studied for a week, they can cover the entire Torah in a year every

They would put the kneeling board down and do a prayer. Three girls, dressed in white, came out and lite some candles. The service didn’t begin until everyone was in their pews and then came silence before anything else happened. After a while of silence, we got up and sang a hymn. The priest, with the three girls in white, walked down the center aisle as we sang. He then prayed a prayer from a book and one of the students came up to the podium and said the first reading. The student told us what we had to recite back to him throughout the reading. There were about three different readings at different times also each one had a different phrase we had to recite back. The priest read from Luke 6:42 King James Version, which stated “Either how canst thou say to thy brother, Brother, let me pull out the mote that is in thine eye, when thou thyself beholdest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother's eye.” The priest kissed the Bible at the end of the reading. We sang a few hymns and sat down. He stepped off the stage onto the ground and talked about a saint you saved many slaves lives by spreading the love of Jesus. He tried to connect the scripture to the story, but it was semi difficult to understand how they connect. We then kneeled and the priest read another prayer to us. Multiple times throughout the service we would sing a hymn, sit down and listened to readings or the priest, lastly we would kneel and pray. They prepared communion at the front on the stage. Everyone waited in line to get bread to eat in honor of Jesus death. To be able to take communion there were step to be taken also being a part of the catholic church. After communion was taken we sang a hymn and said the Lord’s prayer. It was hard

entering the general area of the synagogue, it looked like a school or a daycare, and then entering they had a simple directory for the main office for the school they held. When entering the building they had three areas where service could be held. When asked we were led, to what appeared to be, the smallest of the service rooms. Before entering the service they had a mini gallery of art pieces, such as sculptures, paintings, and specially designed emblems that they used for worship.