A year has gone by, and Yom Kippur is here again. Last year Ynet asked 10 leading architects to select the most beautiful synagogues in Israel .Tens of thousands of readers who enjoyed the project suggested other impressive temples.
This year we decided to repeat the project, this time with the synagogues mentioned most by our readers, each accompanied by a picture and an ID including details about the nature of the prayers at each site on Yom Kippur. May you be inscribed in the book of life!
1) Beit Tanchum Synagogue
4 Hakalaniyot Street, Tirat Hacarmel
Synagogue for Caucasian immigrants (Photo: Avishag Shear-Yeshuv)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 5 pm, the morning prayer – 4:20 pm, the afternoon prayer – 3 pm, and the closing prayer – 4:30 pm.
Version: Sephardic-Jerusalemite.
Cantor: Rabbi Yehuda Yaakobov.
Number of seats in the synagogue: 220.
Women's gallery: Located on the second floor.
Cost of chair: None.
Accessible to disabled people: No.
2) Gvurat Mordechai Synagogue
32 Herzog Street, Givatayim
Religious community service and synagogue (Photo: Yaron Brener)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 5:20 pm, the morning prayer – 7:30 am, the afternoon and closing prayer – 3 pm.
Version: Sephardic.
Cantor: Local.
Number of seats in the synagogue: 500.
Women's gallery: Located on the top floor and bottom floor.
Cost of chair: NIS 750 (about $199) for two.
Accessible to disabled people: Yes.
3) Abuhav Synagogue
Abuhav Alley, Safed
Synagogue names after Rabbi Yitzhak Abuhav (Photo: Avihu Shapira)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 5 pm, the morning prayer – 7 am, the afternoon prayer – 2:30 pm, and the closing prayer – half an hour before sunset.
Version: Sephardic.
Cantor: From the community.
Number of seats in the synagogue: 100.
Women's gallery: Upstairs.
Cost of chair: None.
Accessible to disabled people: No.
4) Shaar Harahamim Synagogue
Ephraim Luzon Street (Nahal Ashan neighborhood), Beersheba
Beersheba's religious community center (Photo: Herzel Yosef)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 6 pm, the morning prayer – 6 am, the afternoon prayer – 3 pm, and the closing prayer – 5 pm.
Version: Sephardic-Jerusalemite.
Number of seats in the synagogue: 600.
Women's gallery: Upstairs.
Cost of chair: None.
Accessible to disabled people: Volunteers take the handicapped people up.
5) Belz House of Study
11 Dover Shalom Street, Jerusalem
Belz Hasidic dynasty's school of thought (Photo: Gil Yohanan)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 6:30 pm, the morning prayer – 6 am, the afternoon and closing prayer in the afternoon hours – no regular time (about half an hour before the sun sets).
Version: Ashkenazi.
Cantor: The Hasidic leader leads the "Kol Nidrei", "Mussaf" and closing prayers. Rabbi David Meir Weiss leads the morning prayer.
Number of seats in the synagogue: About 6,000.
Women's gallery: Located on three galleries – one on each side: North, south and west.
Cost of chair: NIS 400 (about $106).
Accessible to disabled people: Yes, there's an entrance from the north side with a special ramp for handicapped people which leads all the way to the synagogue.
6) Or Torah Synagogue
13 Kaplan Street, Akko
Tunisian synagogue (Photo: Avishag Shear-Yeshuv)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 6 pm, the morning prayer – 7 am, the afternoon prayer – 2 pm, and the closing prayer – 5 pm.
Version: Sephardic.
Cantor: From the community.
Number of seats in the synagogue: 300.
Women's gallery: Upstairs.
Cost of chair: None.
Accessible to disabled people: No.
7) Algarbia Synagogue
Golomb Street, Ofakim
Synagogue of community which immigrated from Djerba, Tunisia (Photo: Herzel Yosef)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 10 minutes after the beginning of the fast, the morning prayer – 7 am, the afternoon prayer – 3 pm, and the closing prayer – half an hour before the end of the fast.
Version: Mizrachi.
Cantor: From the community.
Number of seats in the synagogue: 400.
Women's gallery: Downstairs, in the back.
Cost of chair: None.
Accessible to disabled people: Yes.
8) Kiryat Shmuel's Central Synagogue
11 Torah Veavoda Street, Kiryat Shmuel
Kiryat Shmuel's synagogue (Photo: Avishag Shear-Yeshuv)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 5 pm, the morning prayer – 7 am, the afternoon and closing prayer – 3 pm.
Version: Sephardic.
Cantor: From the community.
Number of seats in the synagogue: More than 600.
Women's gallery: Upstairs, surrounding the synagogue, and downstairs for women who have trouble walking up.
Cost of chair: Annual members fee of NIS 450 (no additional cost on the holiday).
Accessible to disabled people: Yes.
9) Moshav Nevatim's Synagogue
In the center of the community
Cochin culture and heritage center (Photo: Herzel Yosef)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 5 pm, the morning prayer – 5:30 am, the afternoon and closing prayer – 2 pm.
Version: Sephardic (Livorno).
Cantor: Eliyahu Meir.
Number of seats in the synagogue: 350.
Women's gallery: Upstairs.
Cost of chair: Free.
Accessible to disabled people: None.
10) Ohel Moed Synagogue
5 Shadal Street, Tel Aviv
Great Sephardic synagogue (Photo: Yaron Brener)
Prayer times on Yom Kippur: "Kol Nidrei" – 5 pm, the morning prayer – 7 am, the afternoon prayer – 3 pm, and the closing prayer – 5 pm.
Version: Sephardic-Jerusalemite.
Cantor: Rabbi Daniel Nachum.
Number of seats in the synagogue: 350.
Women's gallery: Some on the side, some upstairs.
Cost of chair: None.
Accessible to disabled people: None.
Yoav Friedman contributed to this story