Dear synagogue architect:
I am writing to request that you design shul sanctuaries so that the siddurim are placed towards the rear of the room. I have been greatly disturbed as of late, to discover that siddurim are placed towards the front of the shul, forcing latecomers and novice shul attendees to walk through the entire minyan in order to reach a siddur or chumash. As a frequent latecomer to shul, I have noticed that when I retrieve my siddur everyone stares at me, making me rather uncomfortable. I can understand that many shul sanctuaries lack the room to place the siddurim in the back, however, I have come across some shuls that place the siddurim outside the sanctuary and this is better than having them inside near the front.
I mentioned that novice synagogue attendees such as Baalei Teshuvas, gerim or even those once a year types with the scarf talesim have issues with the front of shul siddur placement as well. These groups of people are stared at anyway upon entering a shul, why should their shame be multiplied as they step over people in order to reach a siddur? What if they cant find the siddur they are looking for, but in their haste, they pick up the wrong one?
Please, if you can, design shuls so that the siddurim and chumashim are placed in the back so as not to publicly embarrass those who do not come on time or have a makom kavuah in that shul.
Thank you
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{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
Maybe they are placed in the front to encourage you to come on time?
and public embarrassment if you don’t! What a great kind of… “Judaism” to encourage. I mean shaming people for just coming to minyan isn’t against any halacha, right? With a Shul like that, better to just stay home.
while your at it it would also be nice if people with fixed places could have their names visible on their, so that you don’t come to a shul find a place and start davvening only to have someone come along and tell you its their place as if you were supposed to have known b’ruach hakoidesh or something.
I shall do a post on the makom kavuah stuff it can get crazy sometimes
I think makom kavuah in most shuls (i.e. ones that may have visitors) ought to be assur!!!
Why?
Makom kavuah is fine if the “owner” comes more or less on time. After that, it should be up for grabs. I left a shul years ago when during laining someone came in and told me I was in his seat and I should move to another.
heh
The one who does that in our shul is named Avrumy. Though it’s more of a “move your chair” than “move from my chair”
My rabbi said that if someone misses barchu (at shacharis) his makom kavua is no longer his for that service on the grounds that he didn’t show that day.
BYOB: Bring Your Own Book
on Shabbat?
Setting: Not Your Usual Shul
Time: Last Friday Night
Man enters
Man “Rabbi where are the siddurs?”
Rabbi “Right by the front door. You’d know this if you came more often”
===
That was me and the reply was said with a smile
People sit in my makom kavua almost ALL the time and I have a shtender WITH my name on it and my talis bag within.so the issue is deeper than unmarked spots.
Mark is right, but so is uppermidwest. If it’s not obvious that the seat is reserved, don’t be an ass and make someone new feel unwelcome. On the other hand, if you’re the new guy, pay attention to your surroundings. Though when it’s screwing around between friends, anything goes.
My shul had siddurim on the side. Fortunately the rabbi and gabbayim got sick of people walking back and forth next to bima, it’s in the middle, to get a siddur and had them moved to the entrance.
In my shul, the siddurim are outside the room where we daven. There are also some inside, but the large shelves with siddurim and chumashim are outside each entrance (men, women, other).
In my parents’ shul, if you want a makom kavua you have to have paid for the seat, and then extra for a “Reserved” plaque, and then it’s only reserved up to 45 minutes after the start of davening. After that, if you’re not there, you have to find someplace else.
In my shul, there aren’t that many people who really have a makom kavua, but those of us who do, understand that if we come in late, and someone’s sitting there, it’s not really a reserved seat, and find someplace else.
I suppose, if a visitor came at 8:30 (start of davening), and you came in at 8:45, you might be somewhat upset that your seat is taken, but well, it’s not really reserved.
1. gerim dont have the late problem. A conservative shul in a small town was surprised to have a minyan ten minutes before start. Turns out it was all the non-Jewish invitees to a bar mitzvah.
2. Architectural issue. How to design a shul so the front rows are not empty? I hear that this is a running problem for extra credit on which no one has ever collected.s
actually i know quite a few gerim and BT’s who didn’t have the late problem at the start but with time they became like FFB’s (i.e talking during davvening etc) and so consequently come late as well.