Editing Synagogue (section)

=== Talmudic period ===
Following the destruction of the Temple, the synagogue became the focal point of Jewish worship and communal life.{{sfn|Cohen|1999|p=298}}{{sfn|Levine|2005|p=175}} Over time, prayers, rituals, and customs once performed in the Temple were adapted for synagogue use.{{sfn|Levine|2005|p=4}}{{sfn|Cohen|1999|p=320}} Traditional forms of synagogal worship, including sermons and the reading of scripture, were preserved, while new forms of worship, such as {{lang|he|[[piyyut]]}} and organized prayer, developed.{{sfn|Levine|2005|p=5}} Rabbinic instruction, however, maintained that certain practices should remain exclusive to the Temple.{{sfn|Cohen|1999|p=322}} The Mishnah directed prayers toward Jerusalem, and most synagogues face the Temple site rather than mirroring its orientation, establishing them as extensions of its sanctity, not replicas.{{sfn|Cohen|1999|p=321}}

During [[Late antiquity]] (third to seventh century CE), literary sources attest to the existence of a large number of synagogues across the [[Later Roman Empire|Roman]]-[[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] and [[Sasanian Empire]]s.<ref name=":0">{{Citation |last=Levine |first=Lee |title=Jewish archaeology in late antiquity: art, architecture, and inscriptions |date=2006 |work=The Cambridge History of Judaism: Volume 4: The Late Roman-Rabbinic Period |volume=4 |pages=526–527, 539–542 |editor-last=Katz |editor-first=Steven T. |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/cambridge-history-of-judaism/jewish-archaeology-in-late-antiquity-art-architecture-and-inscriptions/6C63D4648446995D245ACBBE9D7427CA |access-date=2024-05-06 |series=The Cambridge History of Judaism |place=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-77248-8}}</ref> Archaeological evidence indicates the presence of synagogues in at least thirteen places across the diaspora, spanning from [[Dura-Europos]] in [[Syria]] to [[Elche]] in [[Hispania]] (modern-day [[Spain]]). An especially sizable and monumental synagogue dating from this period is the [[Sardis Synagogue]]. Additionally, many inscriptions pertaining to synagogues and their officials have been discovered.<ref name=":0" />

In the Land of Israel, late antiquity witnessed a significant increase in synagogue construction, in [[Galilee]] and [[Golan Heights|Golan]] in the north and the [[Hebron Hills|southern hills]] of [[Judea]], in the south. Each synagogue was constructed according to the means and religious customs of the local community. Notable examples include [[Capernaum]], [[Kfar Bar'am synagogue|Bar'am]], [[Beth Alpha]], [[Maoz Haim Synagogue|Maoz Haim]], [[Meroth]] and [[Nabratein synagogue|Nabratein]] in the north, and [[Eshtemoa synagogue|Eshtemoa]], [[Susya]], [[Anim synagogue|Anim]], and [[Maon Synagogue|Maon]] in the south.<ref name=":0" />