Editing Judaism (section)

===Synagogues and religious buildings===
{{Main|Synagogue}}
[[File:Aškenaška_sinagoga_(14143483781).jpg|thumb|The [[Sarajevo Synagogue]] in [[Sarajevo]], [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]]]]
[[File:Jerusalem Great Synagogue05.jpg|thumb|[[Great Synagogue (Jerusalem)]]]]
Synagogues are Jewish houses of prayer and study. They usually contain separate rooms for prayer (the main sanctuary), smaller rooms for study, and often an area for community or educational use. There is no set blueprint for synagogues and the architectural shapes and interior designs of synagogues vary greatly. The Reform movement mostly refer to their synagogues as temples. Some traditional features of a synagogue are:
[[File:Congregation_Emanu-El_of_the_City_New_York.jpg|thumb|[[Congregation Emanu-El of New York]]]]
* The [[ark (synagogue)|ark]] (called ''aron ha-kodesh'' by [[Ashkenazi Jews|Ashkenazim]] and ''hekhal'' by [[Sephardi Jews|Sephardim]]) where the [[Torah]] scrolls are kept (the ark is often closed with an ornate curtain (''[[parochet]]'') outside or inside the ark doors);
* The elevated reader's platform (called ''[[Bema#Judaism|bimah]]'' by Ashkenazim and ''tebah'' by Sephardim), where the Torah is read (and services are conducted in Sephardi synagogues);
* The [[sanctuary lamp|eternal light]] (''ner tamid''), a continually lit lamp or lantern used as a reminder of the constantly lit [[Menorah (Temple)|menorah]] of the [[Temple in Jerusalem]]
* The pulpit, or ''amud'', a lectern facing the Ark where the [[hazzan]] or prayer leader stands while praying.

In addition to synagogues, other buildings of significance in Judaism include [[yeshiva]]s, or institutions of Jewish learning, and [[mikvah]]s, which are ritual baths.