Are all synagogues exactlty the same if not how can they be different?

Answer 1

Synagogues may differ in many ways: What prayerbook do they use? Each of the major streams of Judaism publishes at least one prayerbook, and there are older editions and competing prayerbooks to contend with. Then, there is the matter of local tradition. A classic Jewish in-joke is "I went to the synagogue down the road. They use the exact same prayerbook we do, but they stand up at the wrong time, sit down at the wrong time, and use all the wrong tunes!" That's true, since most Jewish prayerbooks only give the words, not the melodies, of the parts of the service that are traditionally sung. Then, there is the issue of gender roles. Orthodox synagogues separate men and women and do not allow women to lead services where men are present, while liberal synagogues generally do not segregate by gender. Finally, there is the question of language. Outside of Israel, most Jewish prayerbooks are bilingual, printed in Hebrew and the local language. But how much of the service is in Hebrew? Traditional Jewish law permits praying in one's native language, but some synagogues do everything in Hebrew -- usually Orthodox synagogues use more Hebrew, while Liberal synagogues use more of the local language, but there are exceptions.