Synagogue Welcome Sign — Warm & Printable

Looking for a synagogue welcome sign? Here is a ready-made wording for a warm entrance sign — a friendly greeting for guests and members, together with respectful house guidelines worded in good spirit. Fill in the shul’s name and the gabbai’s details in the square brackets — then copy it, print it for the entrance, or download it as a Word file.

בס״ד   Welcome to [Synagogue name]   Dear guests and friends, we are delighted to have you with us!   So that we can all enjoy a dignified and pleasant davening, we kindly ask: – Please silence or switch off your phone before entering – Please keep quiet during davening and the Torah reading – Children are welcome with love — under their parents' supervision – Siddurim and chumashim are in the cabinet by the entrance; please return them when davening ends – Guests are warmly invited to speak to the gabbai — we will gladly find you a seat and a siddur   Prayer times are posted on the notice board at the entrance. For any question or request: [Gabbai name], tel. [Phone].   Bruchim haba'im — welcome! The Gabbaim — [Synagogue name]

Fill in the details — the notice updates automatically:

Illustration of a welcoming synagogue entrance with open doors and a welcome sign

An entrance sign that welcomes — and doesn’t push away

The entrance sign is the first thing a guest sees — it sets the tone before the first word of davening. So the most important rule: open with a welcome, not a list of prohibitions. “Welcome — we are delighted to have you with us” at the top of the sign, and only then the requests, worded positively: “please silence your phone”, not “strictly forbidden!”. A guest who feels wanted comes back; a guest who meets a wall of prohibitions at the door — not necessarily. A short list of four or five nicely-worded requests does the job better than twenty clauses.

What does the sign customarily include? The requests every kehilla repeats: silencing the phone before entering, keeping quiet during davening and the Torah reading, and returning siddurim and chumashim to their place afterwards. Two additions that especially brighten the sign: a line that welcomes children (“children are welcome with love — under their parents’ supervision”) and a line that points guests to the gabbai — for a siddur, a seat or an explanation. These are accepted house customs, and every community adapts them to its own spirit: some add a gentle request about appropriate dress, others prefer to leave that to a personal, respectful word.

On the practical side: hang the sign on the entrance door or beside it, at eye level, and print in a large, pleasant font — a cramped sign in small type simply isn’t read. Add the gabbai’s name and phone number for questions at the bottom, and note where prayer times can be found (on the notice board at the entrance). Refresh the printout when it wears or yellows — a worn welcome sign projects the opposite of what it says. A spare copy kept by the gabbai makes replacing it a one-minute job.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do you write on a synagogue welcome sign?

Three layers: a warm greeting at the top, four or five house requests worded positively (silence the phone, quiet during davening, return the siddurim), and a contact line — the gabbai's name and phone number. Opening with a welcome rather than prohibitions is the difference between a sign that draws people in and one that pushes them away.

How do you word the requests without sounding harsh?

In positive, inviting language: “please silence”, “we'd be glad if you returned”, “children are welcome with love”. Frame them as a shared request (“so that we can all enjoy a dignified davening”) rather than a command — people honor requests they feel part of far more than rules imposed on them.

Should the sign include a request about appropriate dress?

It depends on the spirit of the community. Some shuls note it in one gentle line (“we appreciate respectful dress”), others prefer to leave the matter to a personal, respectful word from the gabbai. If you write it — keep it brief and kind, with no detail that could embarrass.

Where do you hang the sign — and what size is recommended?

On the entrance door or the wall beside it, at eye level, so it is seen before entering the sanctuary. A4 in a large font is enough for most entrances; wide entrances often use A3. The main thing: little text, a readable font and generous margins.

What about guests who don't know the house customs?

That is exactly what the line “guests are warmly invited to speak to the gabbai” is for — it turns not-knowing from an embarrassment into an invitation. A gabbai who comes over, offers a siddur and a seat and accompanies the guest does more than any sign. The sign just opens the door to the conversation.

Key Takeaways

  • Open with a warm greeting — the requests come after, not instead
  • Four or five requests in positive language beat twenty prohibitions
  • A line welcoming children and a line pointing guests to the gabbai brighten the sign
  • Hang at eye level, print large, and refresh a worn printout
  • The wording is free — copy it, print it, or download it as Word

Related Templates

All synagogue templates →

And for a welcome that truly impresses: a digital board at the shul entrance displays the welcome greeting, the prayer times and the community announcements — all on one dignified screen that updates from your phone.

Discover digital signage for synagogues by GoMixApp →

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