Satellite Minyanim

Barry Katz vents:

Okay, forget the zman issue, as that is for another day. What gets my goat is that many people make their own minyanim for maariv in their apartments or houses so that they can be lazy and not go to shul.

I don't understand the mentality. First of all, I've seen many sources that it's better to daven in a shul than in a non-shul. You have the sefer Torah, the shul atmosphere that is more conducive to davening, and most likely, a bigger crowd, which is better because berov am hadras melech.

But the other issue is about attitude. I see fathers take their sons to these house-minyanim and I think to myself, what the heck kind of chinuch is that? You're essentially saying, davening is one of those necessary evils, and luckily we have a way to do it, get it over with, and be done with it without going to shul.

Now if you want to tell me that it's good for an old man who otherwise couldn't walk to shul, fine. Then just get ten. But I've seen these types of minyanim with thirty participants. Who's buying the cheap excuse?

Now I go to shul every motzei Shabbos despite the guys seeing me leave the building, and looking at me like I'm crazy. But it's not the first time I've been mocked trying to do the right thing...

Furthermore, I see black-hatters - who wouldn't walk into a shul sans a black hat if you gave them a thousand bucks - stroll in not only without a hat, but without a jacket either! Does that tell you that they treat the motzei Shabbos maariv as a joke, or what?

So let's put an end to these ridiculous minyanim that do way more harm than good. And a little schar halicha is good for you once in a while.

For the past two Friday nights, with our Rav away on vacation, attendance at my shul's minyan has been very schvach. Usually, the minyan is packed and the davening very inspiring. For the past two weeks the energy of the davening reflected the half empty sanctuary.

While a number of people are away on summer vacations, I suspect that that accounts for only a small percentage of the absentees. I think that in the Rav's absence many mispallilim are choosing to attend so-called satellite minyanim of the kind that Mr. Katz deplores.

Satellite minyanim are minyanim that are held at people's homes, usually on Friday nights and Shabbos afternoons (but ocassionally on Shabbos mornings as well). These are different from breakaway minyanim in that the people who daven there are members in good standing of other local shuls but choose to daven at the satellites for the sake of convenience.

There are three basic types of satellites. The first is the roving minyan where the location of the minyan changes every three weeks or so to another home. The sefer Torah, Aron, siddurim and chairs all make their way from home to home. The second is the permanent satelite. In this case one family sets up their basement as a 'shul'. They own a sefer Torah and Aron and purchase the requisite number of siddurim and chairs. The third, the full-time pemanent satellite minayn is a variation of the second, only they meet on Shabbos morning as well. This type of minyan is more akin to a breakaway minyan than a satellite minyan.

How did satellite minyanim start? Growing up, it would never have even occurred to my father, zzg, to go to another, closer shul, let alone a minyan in a house. He was a one-shul person and there was nothing to talk about. The idea of saving a couple of minutes by going to a closer shul would have been as strange to him as the idea of going to the local church (l'havdil). Many of my friends' fathers had the same philosophy. On the other hand, a number of people I knew would go to their main shuls on Shabbos morning and a closer shul (often a shteibel) on Friday nights and Shabbos afternoons. In those days it was unheard of to go to a home to daven.

The first time I heard of a local satellite minyan was when we moved to the Five Towns around 18 years ago. I understood that it was not sanctioned or approved of by the Rav of the shul to which I (at the time) and virtually all the participants belonged but he was powerless to do anything about it (and, I suppose, felt it wasn't worth the battle). When we moved to a different part of town there was a satellite minyan waiting for us as well.

I never particularly liked these minyanim because they were crowded and noisy. The advantages were that they were close and fast. Also, as Mr. katz points out, you can get on with your motsai Shabbos activities (presumably not a melaveh malkah) at the very nanosecond that Shabbos is over. I stopped going about 8 years ago when I switched shuls and found the davening at my new shul worth the extra walk.

Halachic issues aside (including, schar halicha, is it proper to daven in a home; is it proper to daven in a room with a TV and video hookup or that is used for other things that may be viewed as inappropriate? As always, I defer to Simcha), the question is: "Are these minyanim good, bad or neutral?". On the one hand, one could argue that more people daven with a minyan because of the convenience of these minyanim. Those who would not be prepared to walk ten minutes to shul might be willing to to walk down the block. On the other, as Barry notes, it could be viewed as pretty bad chinuch for our children, delivering the message that tefilah is something to 'get over with'. And, as I pointed out above, it can certainly take away from the energy that would otherwise exist in a shul whose attendance is impacted by the satellites.