{"id":15031,"date":"2026-02-26T16:53:19","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T16:53:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.torahmates.org\/jewish-resources\/?p=15031"},"modified":"2026-02-26T16:54:24","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T16:54:24","slug":"should-i-bring-my-young-son-to-shul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.torahmates.org\/jewish-resources\/should-i-bring-my-young-son-to-shul\/","title":{"rendered":"Should I Bring My Young Son to Shul?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ask the Rabbi with Rabbi Chaim Mintz<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n

My young son expressed interest in coming with me to shul (synagogue). Is it appropriate to bring young children, who don\u2019t yet know how to pray, to shul, just for them to watch and experience the davening<\/em> (prayers)? And what if there is no one else at home to watch them? Can I bring them with me to shul so that I can pray with a minyan <\/em>(quorum of ten men), or should I daven <\/em>at home?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Rabbi Chaim Mintz responds<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Severity of Disrupting Prayer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Under no circumstances\u00a0may\u00a0children\u00a0be brought\u00a0to shul\u00a0if\u00a0they\u00a0will\u00a0disrupt\u00a0the\u00a0prayers<\/a>.\u00a0If that\u00a0means\u00a0staying home and\u00a0forgoing\u00a0praying with a\u00a0minyan<\/em><\/a>,\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0what must\u00a0be\u00a0done.\u00a0When\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0the only one available to watch your children and\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0not\u00a0yet\u00a0ready to sit quietly\u00a0in\u00a0shul, staying home is your\u00a0way of\u00a0serving Hashem\u00a0in that\u00a0situation.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The prohibition against disturbing others\u2019 prayers is so severe that if your child starts making noise, you must stop\u2014even in the middle of your own Shemoneh Esrei<\/em> (Amidah prayer)\u2014to quiet or remove him. As a rule, a person must not interrupt his Shemoneh Esrei<\/em>, even if a king greets him or a snake is wrapped around his heel (Mishnah Berachot<\/em> 5:1<\/a>), as long as it is clear that his life is not in danger. Yet for a child who is disrupting the congregation, one must stop immediately. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Reality of Bringing Young Children<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even if your child sits quietly at first, it won\u2019t last long. Since he is not yet able to engage in the prayers in a meaningful way, once the novelty wears off, he will quickly become bored and look for something else to do. He will find other children to play with and soon begin running around and making noise. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Child\u2019s Experience Matters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even\u00a0if you can\u00a0ensure\u00a0that your child will not\u00a0disturb others,\u00a0it is not\u00a0beneficial\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0young\u00a0child to\u00a0have him sit through\u00a0the whole\u00a0davening<\/em>.\u00a0He\u00a0will not enjoy sitting for so long and will become bored and frustrated.\u00a0The last thing we want is for him to associate\u00a0davening <\/em>in\u00a0shul with\u00a0such\u00a0negative feelings. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Better Approach<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Rather than bringing him for the entire prayers, have him attend for a short time, when something exciting is happening. For example, he can be there when the Torah is being removed from the Ark, and you can bring him over to kiss it. Or he can come to watch it being held aloft during hagbahah<\/em> (the lifting of the Torah scroll). Alternatively, he could come toward the end of the davening<\/em>, answer amen <\/em>to the Kaddish<\/em> (prayer to sanctify God’s name), and then stay for the kiddush<\/a><\/em> afterwards. These short, exciting experiences can give him a positive connection to shul without overwhelming him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Short<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Children should not be brought to shul if they will disrupt the prayers, and you should stay home and miss davening <\/em>with a minyan <\/em>rather than disturb the prayers. If a child is not yet able to pray and enjoy the prayers, have him come for a short time to experience exciting moments, like kissing the Torah or watching it being lifted. Or he can come for the end of davening <\/em>and stay for the kiddush<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
Learn more about praying in synagogue with a study partner. Sign up to TorahMates today!<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Written by Rabbi Aaron Shapiro<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have another question to ask a rabbi<\/a>? You can ask Rabbi Mintz your own question by joining Ask the Rabbi Live on Tuesdays at 9PM ET. You can also submit your questions to asktherabbi@oorah.org<\/a>, or head to oorah.org\/asktherabbi\/<\/a> to watch the latest Q&As.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ask the Rabbi with Rabbi Chaim Mintz My young son expressed interest in coming with me to shul (synagogue). Is it appropriate to bring young children, who don\u2019t yet know how to pray, to shul, just for them to watch and experience the davening (prayers)? […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":15038,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sfsi_plus_gutenberg_text_before_share":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_show_text_before_share":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_icon_type":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_icon_alignemt":"","sfsi_plus_gutenburg_max_per_row":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[598,702,8,551],"tags":[252],"class_list":["post-15031","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ask-the-rabbi","category-jewish-philosophy","category-judaism-101","category-prayers","tag-ask-the-rabbi"],"yoast_head":"\nShould I Bring My Young Son to Shul? - Jewish Resources<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Should you bring a young child to shul? 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