Structure of the Jewish Service
Kabbalat Shabbat
On Shabbat, we preface our evening service with this "warm-up". Traditionally, Kabbalat Shabbat is a collection of Psalms. Here, we use niggunim (wordless melodies), songs, and story telling to help bring us into the appropriate mood for Shabbat. This concludes with L'cha Dodi, as we officially welcome the Sabbath bride into our midst.
Candles, Kiddush, and Blessing the Children
These three components of our service would typically be done in the home and not in the synagogue at all. Nevertheless, many people find these beautiful and meaningful when done in the context of the community.
There are many parts to this section of the service:
Amidah/Sh'monah Esreh/T'filah
Traditionally, this section of the weekday services contains 18 blessings. The first three and last three are formulaic and relate to how we might approach God as the One who hears our prayers. The middle 12 are petitionary in nature. These twelve, though, are eliminated on Shabbat as we believe that our lives are complete on Shabbat. The only petition that remains is the prayer for peace. In the place of the others, we add a prayer about the holiness of Shabbat.
Traditionally, this section of the service is done silently. We generally do it as a community with a short silent prayer at the conclusion.
Seder K'riat ha-Torah - The Service for the Reading of Torah
This is the climax of the service. We see the Torah, touch the Torah, and read from this covenant with God that has been lovingly preserved by our people throughout the ages. As the climax, this is the most highly choreographed part of the service. It usually ends with a sermon. Traditionally, the sermon would have been specifically related to the Torah reading for the week. We tend to use this time for a variety of purposes.
Concluding Prayers - Aleinu, Kaddish, Closing Song
Aleinu calls upon us to recognize God's sovereignty. We do this as we stand at the ark and bow in God's presence. This continues with a prayer that calls upon us to repair the world. Kaddish, which we heard earlier in the service in an abbreviated form, serves as a punctuation mark betwen various sections of the service. Here, it also serves as the prayer that mourners recite for deceased relatives, and for all the martyrs of our people who have helped make the world better. As such, this is a highly emotional part of the service.
Oneg Shabbat
We are commanded to rejoice on Shabbat. We do this by sharing food and community, wishing each other a Shabbat Shalom.
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