Jewish How-To



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Dating Jewish

Dating a Jewish or someone from another religion can be a difficult and very challenging situation, even when the couple is deeply in love. Religion plays an important role in relationships, even if we don’t want to, the differences in opinions in faith will always come out because it is through religion that we create our beliefs, our tradition, and our ...

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Kabbalah! Cult or religion?

During the 6th and 13th century, the Jews in some parts in Europe developed kabbalah. With it’s less than two dozens spelling, Kabbalah or Qabalah to some, from the Hebrew letters qof-bet-lamed means to “receive” or to “accept”.According to tradition, when man received the written law (the 10 commandments) from god, it was said that God also gave man an oral law, ...

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Jewish Comedy

Humor is a part of every culture and religion including Judaism over the last century. In the United States and Canada, it started with Vaudeville, (Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill. Types ...

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Proper Care of the Torah and Other Religious Books

Proper care of Torah will definitely extend the life of these sacred scrolls. Careful use of the Torah is also a sign of respect to God and his teachings. It is therefore important to take good care of the Torah as well as other religious articles.Keep the Torah and other Jewish prayer books in a clean shelf, away from dust or ...

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Elul: A Time for Reflection

Elul is a time to come closer to God.  This is a time of repentance in preparation for the High Holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. According to the Talmud, the Hebrew word Elul is taken from the Songs of songs 6:3, “I am my beloved’s and my Beloved is mine.” It is also believed that the word Elul means search in Aramaic which means ...

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The Ha-motzi Blessing – Acknowledging God As Our Provider

Ha-motzi is a blessing said before eating bread. It is one of the most said blessings and is usually recited on Shabbat and other Jewish holidays. Here’s how to say the blessing for the challah:Everyone present must wash their hand for the bread. The head of the household will make the blessing for everybody.The challah must be covered both on ...

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The Shabbat Guest

Have you been invited to a Shabbat meal? If it is your first time to have a Shabbat sleep-over, you may wonder the hows and whats of being a Shabbat guest. Here are a few tips to become a good Shabbat guest:It is best to inform your host ahead of time for any food restrictions you may have (special diet ...

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How to Say Birkat Hamazon

Birkat Hamazon or bentching (Grace After Meal) is a set of Hebrew blessings recited after ordinary meals and chanted aloud on special occasions like Shabbat and Jewish festivals. Grace After Meals is a prayer expressing our appreciation to God for providing us our needs.During Shabbat and Yom Tov, start by singing the Shir Ha-ma’alot before saying the bentching.Before saying Grace ...

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How to Say the Kaddish

The Kaddish is a Jewish prayer usually recited at funerals. Sons are required to say Kaddish for eleven months after the death of a parent. The Kaddish is also recited at morning and evening prayer services, during Shabbat and other holidays, and on days of fasting.Kaddish which literally means sanctification is a prayer affirming God as the sole ruler of ...

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How to Achieve Your Rosh Hashana Resolutions

Rosh Hashana is a great time to make positive changes in our life. It is during this time of the year that we go through a process of introspection and commit ourselves to better thoughts and actions for the year to come. Here’s how you can keep those resolutions and make them work for you.Live for today. Reflect on the ...

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Jewish Mother and Four Children Rescued from Arab Village

Click to EnlargeYad L’Achim has pulled it off again. The anti-missionary and anti-assimilation organization was able, within hours of receiving word of a Jewess trapped in an Arab village with her four children, to rescue the five and find them a safe haven outside Israel.The story began just a week ago, when a tearful man arrived in Yad L’Achim offices ...

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How to sit Shiva

The thought of death always makes people uneasy and uncomfortable. In Judaism, sitting Shiva is a week long period of mourning done immediately after the funeral of a close relative. Close relative includes the father, mother, siblings, sons, daughters and spouse, they assume the role of “Halakhic” from the Hebrew word, which means mourner.In Jewish laws and customs, certain traditions ...

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