Orthodox Synagogue Observation Report

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.

Everybody looked very cheerful and benevolent. It felt like one big family gathering. We entered the synagogue and there were plush chairs and carpet embellished with nature like colors and leaf designs. The roof was high, there was a lot of light, gold accents, a stained glass window, wooden beams that were exposed, as well as a wooden bureau, which housed the Torah. There were also candles and podium/table from which the rabbi spoke.

The Tucson Jewish Community Center (JCC) is a hub for both Jewish and non-Jewish members of the Tucson community to interact through a number of different activities such as sports, art classes, and summer camps. The primary industry for the JCC is the Civic and Youth Organizations industry which has a NAICS code of 81341. Currently, the industry is in the decline stage of its life cycle with an expected annual decline of 1%. The JCC faces macro-competition through the AAU Junior Olympics and International Youth Olympics, and faces micro competition through the Tucson Soccer Shootout and NYS Tucson (For more details see Appendix A and B). The JCC faces macro-competition through the AAU Junior

When it comes to the classroom, there are several differences between girls and boys. There are physical differences in the way their brains work, differences in the room temperature that is best for boys and girls, and differences in how girls and boys respond to various tones of speech (Sax, 2006). While girls prefer soft-spoken teachers, Sax (2006) notes that boys prefer to be spoken to “loudly and in short, direct sentences with clear instructions” (p. 195). According to Sax (2006), “the ideal ambient temperature for boys is about 69 degrees and about 75 degrees for girls” (p. 193-194). Further differences involve how boys and girls learn. McNeil states that “boys may learn better under pressure and when allowed to move around...while girls may perform better in group situations and with a lot of encouragement” (McNeil, 2008). Because of these many differences, it would stand to reason that boys and girls would benefit from being in separate classrooms. According to Hughes (2007), “the teacher would be able to concentrate on the learning-styles of each sex and use the styles to bring out the academic best in each students. Lessons and activities could be designed with a single-sex in mind” (p. 11). As Principal John Fox states, “the single-sex environment enables you to actually focus on the particular needs of each gender, and those needs socially and

Throughout the world, there are billions of people that profess belief in a religion that most adequately answers the questions that most people ask regarding the origination of life to the self-purpose. Furthermore, within society their holds many people that believe in different religions that can cause for people to become biased and ethnocentric when evaluating certain aspects of a different religion. Due to this task of delving into research of a religion outside of your own, I chose to further my understanding through observing a service at an Orthodox Jewish Synagogue. In being that I am a Christian, I will be observing from a perspective in which I am informed about some of the scripture, but puzzled when it comes to many of the

Today, I went on a guided tour of the Lloyd Street Synagogue. This synagogue was the first synagogue built in Maryland by the Hebrews in 1845. It is also, the third-oldest synagogue remaining in the country. The Greek Revival style building was designed by architect Robert Cray Long, Jr. In 1861, due the Synagogue had to be expanded by architect William H. Resin due to the growing number of members needing additional space. The original interior and exterior décor was not affected. The building is pink in color. The outside did not have any visible Jewish symbols so the building did not appear as a Jewish structure and was less distinctive. The star of David, the ten commandments, nor Hebrew saying adorned the exterior of the building as it does today.

I visited the Beth Samuel Jewish Center, in Ambridge Pa. While I was there I meet up with Barbara Wilson, who is a Congregational Administrator at the synagogue. Before taking the tour she let me know some of the background information about the synagogue. First she explained to me that the Beth Samuel Jewish Center was the only synagogue on Beaver County, where it is located. She then went on the explain that they have families from all over the county coming to their religious services. I then asked if the synagogue was more conservative or reformed. This is when Barb explained that since Beth Samuel is the last synagogue left in the area they have to cater to both sides of the spectrum. Barb explained, “On different days of the week we have

In this drawing (Figure 1), the exterior of the building is depicted and once can see what looks to be the portico and steeple. The steeple served as a cupola, or light source, and was an inherently Protestant Church element. This mimicry helped to eliminate any distinction between the Jewish synagogue and the surrounding Christian churches. In fact the steeple is nearly the same neoclassical spire that can be found atop the Saint Michael Episcopal Church built in the 1760’s on Broad Street, Charleston. This was important for the reform Jews who sought to fit in and mark their place with the rest of Charleston’s society, who were majority Christian. Other elements of the synagogue mirrored Charleston’s Protestant churches. Features such as a “Palladian window, a bull's eye window, and quoins” (Waddell 11) in addition to a total of 24 compass-headed windows in double rows which lined all four façades of the synagogue. The building itself was constructed from brick, covered in stucco and then painted over. Situated off of Hasell Street between King St. and Meeting St., the synagogue measured 70 feet long and 40 feet tall at its ridgeline (Ackermann

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The edifice in itself was rather imposing. It was a large construction similar to European cathedrals. From the point of view of the religious feeling, I considered it to be more appropriate than catholic churches that resemble more to museums and are extraordinary in their art. Usually in catholic churches the edifice is impressive in its shape and construction and the first thought is to associate it to a pierce of art rather than a place of prayer. By comparison, this Orthodox Church was not that lavishing in details or artistic nature and the outside paintings set a religious feeling as I entered. A cemetery or a place for holy burials such as the former priests that served at the Church surrounded this church. This is not mandatory to happen but most of the times, Orthodox churches have in the vicinity the cemetery.

The three of us arrived at the church about 30 minutes before the service started. I noticed as I waited for everything to start that this church had a phenomenally diverse range of attendees. There was your typical grandmother with her

The Paradesi Synagogue hold most the ritual objects gathered during the duration of the Black and White Cochins of India. Whether given or created by the affluent Indian-Jewish community, it had been secured within the Synagogues. According to the Jewish Museum, the Torah Case finial had been discovered during the 18th and 19th century. The uniqueness of their Torah Case Finial is the usage of Gold to create it, which indicates the Indian influence within Judaism, one of the reasons why this certain Finial was displayed in the museum because of its golden decor. The significance of this ceremonial object was to dress the Torah, which represented the law of God. The Jewish religion follows the Torah in order to remain a good

My first impression was the passionate kindness coming from everyone. I could tell the sense of community and respect coming from each attendee. Comparing it to the Catholic Church I go to back at home, it was a very different feeling. I could automatically tell that each person was fully present in the worship that was about to happen. I ended up sitting in the back to get a full perspective of the service. As I sat there waiting for the service to start almost every person who walked past my pew either smiled or

One thing that stood out to me when I first walked in was that there was absolutely no art what so ever inside the chapel. There were very few paintings in the hallway depicting Christ, however, inside the chapel the wall were completely blank, even at the “front” where the people spoke. This was extremely surprising to me since in the very few churches I’ve been to (to go visit) there has always been some sort of art inside the chapel, whether it was a statue or paintings, or painted windows.

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.