Friday night

[cellio]

At the oneg I received a rather effusive compliment on my torah reading on Rosh Hashana. I'm impressed that this long after the event someone sought me out to praise me. Nifty.

During the service I realized why I have a reaction that I do to one small bit. Our service leaders almost always face the congregation. There are points in the service where one is supposed to bow toward the ark (which is at the back of the bimah); the norm is for the leader to turn around at that point and do so. Someone on our bimah (not my rabbi) sometimes does the bow but doesn't turn around (so bows toward the congregation). This bugs me. I understand why it was happening (the reasons no longer apply but the pattern persists), but it still bugs me.

Last year after the Sh'liach K'hilah program there was a discussion in comments in my journal about which way the chazan faces, though not this particular detail. The article I'd read (that started the discussion) asserted that when the chazan faces the ark (to lead much of the service, not just these bowing bits) it facilitates more private prayer than when he's facing the congregation. That may be true, but it's just part of it.

When the chazan stands in the front of the room, faces the ark, and bows, he is leading us in prayer. He is our representative, our sh'liach tzibur, almost our stand-in, before God. Whose representative is he when he bows toward us?

I had this epiphany Friday night. It is as if the person bowing toward the congregation is representing God in the transaction. And that's just wrong. We do not presume God's participation and response in our prayers.

I don't mind the chazan conducting most of the service facing us; I understand how seeing a back for the entire service could be alienating to some. But there are parts where I'd rather the person turn around and be our representative.

Comments

[cellio]

The ark isn't actually the focus; it's the place-holder and marker. We pray facing a certain direction, and we place the ark on that wall to make things easy.

The layout where I lead morning services provides an interesting illustration. The ark is in the center of the back wall; there are two reading desks at the front of the bimah, one on each side. If I simply turn and face the ark, I'm at an angle to the congregation -- which helps the sound bounce to them better. (There's a mike on the reading desk, but if I turn around I don't get that benefit.) Now as I understand it we're supposed to face east, not face the ark, so what I end up doing is pointing my body straight toward the wall but turning my head toward the ark enough to get the bounce off that nice hard wooden door. Sometimes I visualize a billiards table. :-)