the box containing the decalogue's tablets, in the Holy Temple of old; and the cabinet for Torah scrolls in modern synagogues

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16
votes
3answers
490 views

Why do we bow down in the direction of the ark?

This is a question I've had for many years, to which I've never received a satisfactory answer: In Hebrew school, we were taught that idolaters bowed to a idol of their god. They would claim that ...
10
votes
2answers
115 views

Source for kissing an aron

I've seen people kiss an aron kodesh (cabinet holding Torah scrolls) when they approach it and, if they were standing near it, before they leave it. Does this have any written source; or, are there ...
6
votes
2answers
245 views

Can you turn your back to the Aron HaKodesh?

I'm quite certain that it is mentioned in the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch that one should not turn one's back to the Aron HaKodesh (ark which holds the Torah Scrolls). Can anyone tell me where this is ...
6
votes
2answers
155 views

What do I do when asked to “open the Aron” or “take out the Torah”?

If I'm in synagogue and someone asks me if I can "open the Aron" or "take out the Sefer Torah," what will I be expected to do, and when?
5
votes
3answers
201 views

Of Rats and Hemorrhoids

The Plishtim or Philistines captured the Ahron Kodesh from the Jews (Shmuel I Chapter 5), then they returned it with a gift of golden rats and hemorrhoids as that was what they were punished with for ...
4
votes
1answer
59 views

When do we change back the ark-cover etc from white to the rest-of-the-year colour?

When do we change back the proches (ark-cover) etc from white to the rest-of-the-year colour? I would have thought right after Simchas Torah or possibly Isru Chag?