By Samantha Agranoff
On Friday night of our shabbaton in Tzfat me and a small group decided to go to the big Breslov shul for services. Keep in mind, I'm an avid people watcher so I will be honest in saying that I stepped into that shul, very different than my shul back home, with the intention of observing but not necessarily having a meaningful prayer experience. I had never been to a shul like this before. The women were on the second floor separated not only that way but with a glass and sheer curtain. On the main floor, instead of benches or chairs there were tables that fit up to 10 people. There were over 30 full tables with men and their children. Many were wearing the large, brown, furry hats with silky robe-like jackets.
During the service, I've never seen so many male children under 13 years old so engaged at a Shabbat service. The women's section was even more fascinating. There were the traditional pew benches like every synagogue I've seen but it was interesting to note where certain women sat and the different clothes the women were wearing. All the women were wearing modest, loose fitting clothing. The younger women seemed to be wearing brighter colors and patterns, they had curled their hair, and wore a full face of makeup. The older women mostly wore muted or dark colors, wore no makeup, and did everything in their power to not draw attention to themselves.
Observing these difference in attire held my attention for almost the entire service. Speaking of the service, it was very hard for me to follow what was going on. I could not hear the man leading the prayers and there were no tunes that could at least give me a hint on where we were in the siddur. Many of the people around me also looked lost. I am happy that I went and was able to see a service so different than what I am used to. However, it was difficult for me to be a part of a prayer service where I was so far away from the person leading the service. I also missed hearing familiar tunes (or any tunes at all) as singing is such an integral part of my usual Friday night Kabbalat experience. The music on Friday night is what connects me to the service so this didn't really feel like a Shabbat experience for me, but more of an observatory time. I definitely learned a lot about a community that I had very little exposure to before and I am thankful for that.
