Synagogue Life: A Study in Symbolic Interaction

by Samuel C. Heilman

Via a participant-observer approach, Synagogue Life analyzes the three essential dimensions of synagogue the houses of prayer, study, and assembly. In each Heilman documents the rich detail of the synagogue experience while articulating the social and cultural drama inherent in them. He illustrates how people come to the synagogue not only for spiritual purposes but also to find out where and how they fit into life in the neighborhood in which they share. In his new introduction, Heilman discusses what led him to write this book and the process of personal transformation through which he, as an Orthodox Jew, had to go in order to turn a disciplined eye on the world from which he came. Rather than using the stranger-as-native approach of classic anthropology, he had instead to begin as a native who discoverd how to look at a once-taken-for-granted synagogue life like a stranger. In the afterword, arguing for the efficacy of this approach, Heilman offers guidance on how natives can use their special familiarity and still be trained to distance themselves from their own group, making use of the disciplines of sociology and anthropology. Synagogue Life offers a fascinating portrait that has something to say to social scientists as well as all those curious about what happens in the main arena of Orthodox Jewish community life.

350 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1976

Reviews

[Michael Lewyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A case study of a small Orthodox synagogue (apparently on the strict end of modern Orthodoxy) in the early 1970s; although the location is not identified, the author leaves a variety of clues suggesting that it is in a transitional neighborhood in the west side of (I think) Philadelphia. Heilman discusses interpersonal relationships, worship, study and other activities of this congregation.

Parts of Heilman's portrait seemed familiar to me; others didn't quite describe what I personally was familiar with, but nevertheless seemed like a plausible description of the congregation involved. I was a little surprised by how sexist and ideologically homogenous the synagogue seemed to be- but the first makes sense given that the book was written in the 1970s (before feminism had begun to influence even Orthodoxy) and the second makes sense given that it was located in Philadelphia (a bigger city than where I live, and thus one where congregations can appeal to a much narrower slice of the Jewish pie). It reads little too much like a dissertation to my taste- by which I mean, it was quite dry.

[Amir · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is basically Heilman's doctoral thesis from 1973 put into book form. Unlike his more recent books which are fun to read in and in storytelling form, this one is quite dry and mechanical. Definitely not worth a read, *unless* you go to Lower Merion Synagogue or YIML and want a window into the community of 40 years ago.