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Dictionary definition: Synagogue
- Article from:
- The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions
- Author:
Copyright© The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions 1997, originally published by Oxford University Press 1997. (Hide copyright information)
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Synagogue
(Heb.,
bet
keneset
). Jewish meeting house and place of worship. The synagogue, in embryonic form, may perhaps date back to the period of the Babylonian
exile
. By the 1st cent. CE, the synagogue emerges as a well-established institution. With the calamity of 70 CE, the synagogue became the main focus of Jewish religious life. Many of the rituals and customs of the Temple were adopted in the synagogue (e.g. the times of the Temple
sacrifices
became the times of the synagogue prayers), and the synagogue also performed the function of a community centre. Different patterns of architecture have been followed in synagogue buildings. Many modern Orthodox synagogues have a small ...