sy:n'agogue
SYNAGOGUE
51:5
quoted by l;fimhi on Gn 1» (Schiirer, GJV ill* SSi/). On disputes liekl there t)y Pulostinian masters with Kiimans and Christians under Doniitian see H. Vogelstein and 1*. Hie^'ur, Gcschichtc dcrjudcn in Iloni, i. [Berlin, IS'.IO] 'Jtl.
4. Form and furniture of the synagogue. — Like tlie Alexandrian Great Synagogue and the Hall of Hewn Stones in the Temple (Yvmil, •25a), the synagogue at Tiherias had the form of a baslliea with a double row of pillars (Midr. Tehillim on Ps 93 [end]). As to the style of the synagogue, as shown by the ruins in (ialilee see Schiirer, GJV \i.* 446; their orientation, however, does not conform to the rule that tliey should be directed towards the East, corresponding with the tabernacle (Nu 3**). However, the same was also the rule for the Church (Apost. Const, ii. 57. 3. 14 ; cf. Tylor, PC, London, 1801, ii. 42(itr.).
The chief furniture was the njn, 'ark' {Me.g. iii.
1, Ta'an. ii. 1), in which the scrolls were kept covered with cloth or put in a case, over which was spread a hnldttrhm (kilah) or curtain {pdrSkcth, Ex -JG" ; Jer, Mecf. IZd, lob). It was placed near the upper end of the synagogue, and in front of it stood the 'delegate of the congregation,' who ofl'ered the praj-er [Bcr. v. 3, 4 and elsewhere). In the centre was the bcniah ( =/S^^a, ' platform ') made of wood (S6ta, vii. 8 ; Suk. 516 ; cf. Neh S-" AV, ' the pulpit of wood'), called in more modern times almcmar, the Muhammadan al-7ninbar {JE, s.v. ' Almemar ') ; upon it stood or sat in a chair called ' the seat of Moses ' (Mt '23= ; cf. art. ' China ' in JE iv. 37*) those who read from the scroll of the Law or other sacred books, which were placed upon the lectern, called after the Greek d>'aXo7fior (see Levy, Worterbuch, s.vu. pi'jJN and nD'3), or the tablets. There were also chairs set for the elders and the scribes (T6s. Suk. iv. 6, INIt 23« and ||). For the candelabra (menOrah) see T6s. Meg. iii. 3, Jer. Meg. 74«.
5. Organization of the synagogue. — The members of a religious community having a synagogue for its centre — and there were, as shown above, often many in the larger cities — were called b'ne hak- kfncseth, ' sons of the synagogue ' (Meg. ii. 5, iii. 1). The number required for the formation of a syna- gogue community was ten (Bekdr. v. 5, Zabiin, iii.
2, TSs. Meg. iv. .3, Sank. i. 6). At the head was a ruler, rush hak-k'ncseth {Yu7nd, vii. 1, SOtcl, vii. 7) = ipXi<Tvi'dyc^o${Uk5-\ Lk 13", Ac 13'= ; cf. Lk8"), whose function was to maintain order in the syna- gogue and to decide who should conduct the service. The subaltern officer, who had to carry out the orders of the former, assisting him in keeping order, hand the sacred scroll to the reader and return it to its place [Siitd, vii. 7, Lk 4-"), take charge of the palm branches of the SukkCth feast {Suk. iv. 4), and give the signal for the service {TOs. Snk. iv. 6, Si/re Nu 39) and for the suspension from work on Sabbath and Holy-day "Evei'Tus. Suk. iv. 12), was called hazzan hak-k'7ieseth = virrip^TT]s (Epiph. Hcer. xxx. 11). He also assisted in the instruction of the school children by showing the passage that was to be read (Shab. 13) and acted as lictor of the synagogue court in scourging oflenders {Mak. iii. 12, TOs. Mak. v. 12). In the course of time, however, he rose in rank while officiating in sm.aller congregations as leader in prayer and as instructor (Jer. Ycb. xii. 13«, Jer. Ber. ix. 12, BabU Meg._ 23h, Mas. SOfcrim x. 8, xiv. 1 ; Pirke d' li.E. xii. [end]). For the various functions of the service itself no permanent official existed in the ancient time, and he who was to lead in prayer was selected by the congregation — mostly through its ruler — as the representative, or 'the delegate of the community,' .ih'iinh zlbbur, and upon being invited in the usual formul.a — at least in the Talmudic period — ' Come and bring
for us the oll'ering,' he stejiped in front of the ark to od'er the ]irayer (Ber. v. 3-5, Jer. Ber. iv. 8i). In Mislinaic times it seems that the functions of reciting the Sh'mu (the proclamation of the Unity of t!od, Dt ()'■", and its <'orollaries l)t 11"-=' anil Nu l.^'"""), with its accompanying benedictions, of reading from the Prophets, and of oHeriiig the Priestly Hlessing at the close of the service were all preferably assigiu'd to one person (Meg. iv. 5) ; hut this was by no means the case originally (see below). Kor the reading from the Pentaleuch dill'erent nuMnbers of the congiegation were called up, on Sal>l>ath seven, on the Uay of Atonement six, on festival days five, on New Moon .and semi- festivals four, anil on the second and lifth week- d.'iys and Sabhath afternoons three (Meg. iv. 1-2), and as a rule Aaronites first and Levites afterwards (GUlin, v. 5). The one who was to translate the text into the vernacular (Aramaic), called metilrge- man (Meg. iv. 4), was, liowever, )iermanently en- gaged. 'The more learned men of the congregation, and especially learned guests, were as a rule invited to read the last portion and some portion from the Prophets, which they afterwards expounded in a sermon. This prophetic portion was called in Aramaic aphtartd (Heb. haphtliurdh — word of dis- missal ; whence the name of the last reader, maphltr [see Levy, Worterbuch, s.v. (tmosn], Tanh. Terumdh, 1 ; Lk 4'«'-).