Facing East: Jewish Question

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Luz_Maria

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Shalom!

It has been a while since I posted a question for my Jewish brothers and sisters! You were such big help the last time! In turn, I have been able to do more for my friend and for her grandchildren. Thank you each so much!

Well, here I am again with a question. I have asked my Jewish friends, they chuckled nodding yes, and told me they did not know. Now am here :).

When we get together at a home, we pray facing East. If we were East of the . . . location where the Temple used to be (Wailing Wall now? :confused:), would we face West to pray?

I guess the direction the person praying in the rebuilt Temple would depend on the orientation of the Temple. I vaguely remember reading in the Bible the instructions to build the Temple and thinking, “Wow! These are architectural instructions!” Then “what an interior decorator!” However, I cannot remember if the Temple’s orientation was given or even where to find this information now in the Bible!

Thank you again for all your help. The Lord bless you and keep you! The Lord let His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you! The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace!

Luz Maria
 
A few years ago I flew from Toronto to Tel Aviv , Israel, and on board the flight a group of Jewish men stood up and wearing traditional clothes prayed looking out on the left hand side of the plane. Now that would be towards the west.
 
Basically, it’s towards Israel (Jerusalem if you’re already there etc).

I Kings 8:48:

. . . and they pray to you in the direction of their land which You gave to their fathers, of the city which You have chosen, and of the House which I have built to Your name . . .

inevitably, being Judaism, you can get all obsessive-compulsive if you want to. 🙂
 
There is an error in my previous post as the plane would-be flying South East, and therefore
Praying would be towards the East as they were looking out of the windows on the left hand side.
 
Yeah…because God won’t hear you if you face the wrong direction…:rolleyes:
 
Thank you, Kaninchen. That is interesting.
Tim_D said:
Yeah…because God won’t hear you if you face the wrong direction…:rolleyes:
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No one said that. So what, do we take music out of the liturgy, get rid of priestly vestments, dispose of all use of incense, not care about art, simply because they don’t change whether God hears us?

Ancient Christian custom is to pray facing East.
 
Tim_D said:
Yeah…because God won’t hear you if you face the wrong direction…:rolleyes:
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So, do you realize that Roman Catholic (I do not know about other Rites) churches until recently were built with the entrance at the Western end and the Altar at the end of a long aisle to the East? Roman Catholics face East at Mass. The Presiding Priest before the Mass was changed used to face East – he was not giving his back to the congregation! Even some recently-built churches are oriented (no pun intended) East! We have much to learn from our Jewish elder brothers and sisters! As a matter of fact, my very wise Pastor has Jewish friends and guides himself by them to begin the Easter Vigil Service.
 
Kaninchen said:
Basically, it’s towards Israel (Jerusalem if you’re already there etc).

I Kings 8:48:

. . . and they pray to you in the direction of their land which You gave to their fathers, of the city which You have chosen, and of the House which I have built to Your name . . .

inevitably, being Judaism, you can get all obsessive-compulsive if you want to. 🙂
Click to expand...
Thank you so much, Kaninchen!

I notice the “facing East” (using a compass to make sure) at my friends’ homes, but all appears just “normal” at the Synagogue . . . is that because the building is built so that the People face toward Jerusalem?

Catholics can also get all obsessive-compulsive! There are many “rules”! My Pastor got really angry with me years ago because I broke one of them! Blessedly, we have great communication and all was well again after I apologized and he realized I had no idea I had broken “the rule”. He also apologized to me and we went on doing our work.

Thanks again!
 
Luz_Maria said:
My Pastor got really angry with me years ago because I broke one of them! Blessedly, we have great communication and all was well again after I apologized and he realized I had no idea I had broken “the rule”. He also apologized to me and we went on doing our work.

Thanks again!
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To be honest, I’m shocked that he got really angry with you. Was it a very important rule?(Don’t answer that if you’d rather not).
 
paperwight66 said:
To be honest, I’m shocked that he got really angry with you. Was it a very important rule?(Don’t answer that if you’d rather not).
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Do not be shocked. He did not show his anger in front of any one else. My Pastor and I are also friends and we are each able to be ourselves with each other. I am human and made a mistake out of ignorance (only a mistake). He is human and got angry. As human beings, we spoke, resolved the matter and went on with our respective work. I am always glad to help him in any way I can.

It does not matter if it was an important rule or not. What matters is that he, the Pastor, did not want it so. That is all. 😉 🙂
 
Luz_Maria said:
Thank you so much, Kaninchen!

I notice the “facing East” (using a compass to make sure) at my friends’ homes, but all appears just “normal” at the Synagogue . . . is that because the building is built so that the People face toward Jerusalem?
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Yes-ish, ideally.

The thing is that, historically-speaking you’d find some old eastern European synagogues facing east when they should be facing south-east, south etc (my ancestors were German and Italian Jews but I’ve been reading about the East recently which makes me absolutely no expert, however). As long as one prays with one’s heart facing Israel/Jerusalem, I suppose.
 
Luz_Maria said:
So, do you realize that Roman Catholic (I do not know about other Rites) churches until recently were built with the entrance at the Western end and the Altar at the end of a long aisle to the East? Roman Catholics face East at Mass. The Presiding Priest before the Mass was changed used to face East – he was not giving his back to the congregation! Even some recently-built churches are oriented (no pun intended) East! We have much to learn from our Jewish elder brothers and sisters! As a matter of fact, my very wise Pastor has Jewish friends and guides himself by them to begin the Easter Vigil Service.
Click to expand...
I find a number of people today say things like this in ways that overstate what was the reality. Every altar, assuredly, did not face east “before the Mass was changed.” Very far from it. The altars in the parishes nearest me, in my long ago childhood and before I began my studies for the priesthood, faced south and west while our cathedral’s altar faced north. One church out of the five parishes near me actually faced east.

When one is in Rome, one sees that, in fact, the churches there – and let us be clear, from across the centuries – are oriented in every direction of the compass.

That is not to say the east is without meaning – it is to say that it should not be overstated given the facts and realities of our history.
 
Don_Ruggero said:
I find a number of people today say things like this in ways that overstate what was the reality. Every altar, assuredly, did not face east “before the Mass was changed.” Very far from it. The altars in the parishes nearest me, in my long ago childhood and before I began my studies for the priesthood, faced south and west while our cathedral’s altar faced north. One church out of the five parishes near me actually faced east.

When one is in Rome, one sees that, in fact, the churches there – and let us be clear, from across the centuries – are oriented in every direction of the compass.

That is not to say the east is without meaning – it is to say that it should not be overstated given the facts and realities of our history.
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Careful, Father; you are going to burst the balloons of those who think that everything before Vatican II was consistently the same and unchanged throughout the centuries well into the Middle Ages.
 
Wesrock said:
Thank you, Kaninchen. That is interesting.

No one said that. So what, do we take music out of the liturgy, get rid of priestly vestments, dispose of all use of incense, not care about art, simply because they don’t change whether God hears us?

Ancient Christian custom is to pray facing East.
Click to expand...
No, we need to stop getting hung up on things that we think are essential to being part of the Church of Christ and truly practice the faith instead.
 
When we get together at a home, we pray facing East. If we were East of the . . . location where the Temple used to be (Wailing Wall now? ), would we face West to pray?
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If you were in the East - such as in the United States - you would pray towards the East in the direction of Jerusalem.
I guess the direction the person praying in the rebuilt Temple would depend on the orientation of the Temple. I vaguely remember reading in the Bible the instructions to build the Temple and thinking, “Wow! These are architectural instructions!” Then “what an interior decorator!” However, I cannot remember if the Temple’s orientation was given or even where to find this information now in the Bible!
Click to expand...
If you were standing in front of the Temple in Jerusalem, you would be facing West. The Temple ran East-West with the Holy of Holies in the West.
 
Thank you, Kaninchen, for all your help. I really do appreciate it very much . . . and the Jewish ways. Thanks again.

Thank you, Father Ruggero. I do know that not every single Catholic church building is built now or built in the past with the Main Altar to the East end for the building and the entrance at the West end. There are also churches built in all kinds of shapes, which does not make them less of a church, but make it a little more . . . for people who know the “traditional” ways the churches were (not know if it continues the same) built in our countries. What got me is that “Tim D” being. . . ! Thanks again, Father.

Thanks again, my Jewish brothers and sisters, and please PM me if you have any other comment because I have the information I need about the Jewish way and will not be returning to this thread 👋.

G-d bless you and keep you. May He shine His face upon you and keep you safe.

Orah Miriam
 
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