House of worship. The institution of the synagogue may date back to the 6th Century BCE and the *exile in Babylon. After the destruction of the Second *Temple in 70CE, the synagogue became the focus of Jewish community life. Many Temple rituals were incorporated into synagogue worship and the times of the services (*Shaharit, *Minhah, *Maariv and *Musaf) reflect the times of the Temple *sacrifices. A synagogue is built pointing towards Jerusalem. The *scrolls of the *Torah are kept in the *Ark.
Generally a reading desk is placed in front of the Ark and the *bimah (dais) is in the centre. In *Orthodox synagogues, men and women sit separately—the women generally behind a *mehiza (screen) but in *Progressive synagogues, men and women sit together. Frequently a synagogue will have a smaller chapel—known as a *bet ha-midrash for study and weekday services and in modern times synagogues tend to be large complexes with community halls, classrooms, offices and counselling rooms. In the United States, *Reform synagogues are known as Temples. Salaried officials belonging to the synagogue include the *rabbi, the *hazzan and the *shammash, but *liturgical services are often led by the lay members of the congregation. Most synagogues belong to a larger group which controls rabbinical training, but they are self-governing institutions with an elected council. Attendance at synagogue is meritorious and most services cannot even take place unless a full *minyan of ten adult (post *bar mitzvah) males are present. The *rabbis taught that *God becomes angry when he comes to the synagogue and does not find a minyan.
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