Celebrating shabbat at home with family and friends creates a warm and wonderful end to your week. Saying or singing blessings over family, candles, wine and challah helps make it sacred. Enjoy this guide from Larchmont Temple, NY. Shabbat Shalom!
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18 Little Things You Can Do For Shabbat
1. Invite friends.
2. Ask guests to prepare a Shabbat blessing, song, or story
3. Set a special table for Shabbat dinner.
4. Use a special tablecloth.
5. Arrange fresh flowers in your home.
6. Polish the silver.
7. Pour a nice wine.
8. Bake or buy a challah.
9. Give thanks for the blessings of the week.
10. Light special candles.
11. Read a Shabbat prayer…then read it again.
12. Say blessings over the wine and challah.
13. Sing some nice songs.
14. Listen to the quiet peace of a dinner at home…without phone, TV, or radio.
15. Take a Shabbat walk.
16. Be open to moments of wonder, of soulful encounter.
17. Pause for a moment as Shabbat ends on Saturday night. Sing havdalah!
18. Look forward to the next week’s Shabbat celebration.
Recommended Reading and Music for Shabbat
Shabbat Anthology Volume II (Book/CD)Composer/Artist:Dunn, J. Mark/Joel N. Eglash, editors
Format:Piano/Vocal/Guitar and CD
$34.95
The long-awaited series is finally here! Shabbat Anthology brings to light both newly composed and older Sabbath music that has never been published, in Piano/Vocal/Guitar format. Shabbat Anthology Volume II includes classic liturgical works from such esteemed composers as Joe Black, Charles Davidson, Paula Goldberg, Sylvia Goldstein, Lisa Levine, Louis Lewandowski, Mah Tovu, Rachelle Nelson, Stuart Rauch, Benjie Ellen Schiller, Sol Zim and many more. Several ‘folk’ pieces are also included, focusing on the music of the Ladino (Judeo-Spanish)-speaking Sephardic Jews. Perfect for those looking to add something new to their worship. Includes CD with all 33 songs, featuring performances by the original artists, as well as Cantors Richard Botton, Erik L.F. Contzius, Jessica Epstein, Mark Opatow, Kari Siegel-Eglash and others.
Invitation to Shabbat, An (with CD) – A Beginner’s Guide to Weekly Celebration
Ruth Perelson
$18.00
Explore Shabbat step-by-step and blessing-by-blessing from candlelighting to Havdalah. Discover the essential elements of tradition along with modern options for enhancing spiritual awareness. Explore the many paths to a satisfying Shabbat celebration through the words of those who began to observe Shabbat as adults. Blessings in Hebrew, transliteration, and English are included, alongside descriptions of rituals, as well as their history and folklore. Rounding out this extraordinary guide are traditional recipes–Ashkenazic and Sephardic–a bibliography, and a CD recording for learning and pleasure that brings to life the music of Shabbat.
A Shabbat Reader: Universe of Cosmic Joy
Edited by Dov Peretz Elkins
$14.95
Share the rich Sabbath experiences of a diverse group of prominent Jewish thinkers. Noted author and anthologist Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkins has mined every vein of Jewish experience to produce a collection of spiritual essays, poetry, and meditations on the transcendent meaning of the seventh day. He culls from a wealth of sources ranging from the traditional to the radical, including among his forty selections works by Sue Levi Elwell, Blu Greenberg, Lawrence Kushner, Michael Lerner, Alicia Suskin Ostriker, W. Gunther Plaut, Gershom G. Scholem, and Elie Wiesel. Sections of the collection explore Shabbat in Classical Texts, Shabbat as the Ultimate Mitzvah, Jews Celebrate Shabbat, and Shabbat in Modern Thought.
“Dov Peretz Elkins is one of the most spiritual people I know. His work continues to be chicken soup for my soul.”
— Jack Canfield, coauthor of Chicken Soup for the Soul
Do It Yourself Shabbat
URJ Department of Lifelong Jewish Learning
$2.25
Prepared by the Family Education Committee of the URJ-CCAR Commission on Jewish Education This guide explains each of the four prayers recited on erev Shabbat and suggests alternate ways to incorporate them into various family settings. The blessings are presented in English, in Hebrew, and in transliteration.
The Shabbat Angels
Maxine Segal Handelman, Illustrated by Joani Keller Rothenberg
$13.95
Something is not right in the home of Chaim Yonkel and his wife, Esther. Usually their home is filled with the smells of delicious foods, the sounds of laughing children, and happy smiles on everyone’s faces. But this Shabbat finds the family fighting, Shabbat dinner unprepared, and the house a mess.
The Talmud tells the story of two angels, Tov and Rah. According to this legend, these angels follow each person home from synagogue on Shabbat and deliver a blessing. If Shabbat is being honored and the home is filled with Shabbat peace, the angel of good, Tov, gets to deliver the blessing that every Shabbat should be like this one. However, if Shabbat is not being honored, the angel of evil, Rah, gets to deliver the blessing, turning the same words into a curse.
This contemporary version of the talmudic tale, illustrated with breathtaking illustrations by Joani Keller Rothenberg, updates the story for today’s families. The Shabbat Angels will delight the whole family while it teaches the importance of Shabbat shalom, Shabbat peace.
Tot Shabbat
Written and illustrated by Camille Kress
$5.95
This board book for toddlers encourages parents and children to share a rich spiritual and sensory Shabbat experience. Artist and author Camille Kress created this story on cardboard for her young son because heavy pages cannot be torn by little fingers. Her warm watercolors depict Shabbat symbols within the home–candlesticks, challah, and a Kiddush cup–and a family celebrating a peaceful Shabbat evening.
“Simple and engaging.”–Booklist
Shabbat Shalom!
Written by Michelle Shapiro Abraham,Illustrated by Ann Koffsky
$6.95
From the author of Good Morning, Boker Tov and Good Night, Lilah Tov, Michelle Abraham’s latest book introduces preschoolers to the joy of Shabbat.
In simple, rhyming language, Shabbat Shalom! tells the story of family celebrating Shabbat. . Filled with prayers and beautiful illustrations, Shabbat Shalom! is a wonderful way to teach toddlers about lighting Shabbat candles, reciting the Kiddush, saying the blessing over the challah and more. Abraham’s educational books for preschoolers are proven successes, making learning fun and exciting. Shabbat Shalom! is the perfect compliment to the Morning/Bedtime Rituals books, creating a strong start to leading a Jewish life.
Calendar of Jewish Holidays
| NOTE: Each holiday begins and ends at sundown on the days listed. | |||||
| Jewish Year | 5772 |
5773 | 5774 | 5775 | 5776 |
| Secular Year | Sep ’11 – Sep ’12 |
Sep ’12 – Sep ’13 |
Sep ’13 – Sep ’14 |
Sep ’14 – Sep ’15 |
Sep ’15 – Sep ’16 |
| S’LICHOT SERVICE | Sep 24 | Sep 8 | Aug 31 | Sep 20 | Sep 5 |
| ROSH HASHANAH |
Sep 28-30 |
Sep 16-18 | Sep 4-6 | Sep 24-26 | Sep 13-15 |
| YOM KIPPUR | Oct 7-8 |
Sep 25-26 |
Sep 13-14 | Oct 3-4 |
Sep 22-23 |
| SUKKOT | Oct 12-19 | Sep 30-Oct 7 | Sep 18-25 | Oct 8-15 | Sep 27-Oct 4 |
| ATZERET – SIMCHAT TORAH |
Oct 19-20 |
Oct 7-8 | Sep 25-26 | Oct 16-17 |
Oct 4-5 |
| CHANUKAH | Dec 20-28 |
Dec 8-16 |
Nov 27-Dec 5 | Dec 16-24 | Dec 6-14 |
| TU BISH’VAT | Feb 7-8 |
Jan 25-26 | Jan 15-16 | Feb 3-4 |
Jan 24-25 |
| PURIM | Mar 7-8 | Feb 23-24 |
Mar 15-16 |
Mar 4-5 | Mar 23-24 |
| PASSOVER | Apr 6-13 |
Mar 25-Apr 1 | Apr 14-21 |
Apr 3-10 |
Apr 22-29 |
| YOM HASHOAH | Apr 18-19 | Apr 6-7 | Apr 26-27 | Apr 15-16 | May 4-5 |
| YOM HAZIKARON |
Apr 24-25 | Apr 14-15 | May 4-5 |
Apr 21-22 |
May 10-11 |
| YOM HAATZMA-UT |
Apr 25-26 |
Apr 15-16 | May 5-6 |
Apr 22-23 |
May 11-12 |
| LAG BA’OMER |
May 9-10 |
Apr 27-28 | May 17-18 | May 6-7 | May 25-26 |
| SHAVUOT | May 26-27 |
May 14-15 | Jun 3-4 | May 23-24 |
Jun 11-12 |
| TISHAH B’AV |
Jul 28-29 |
Jul 15-16 |
Aug 5-6 | Jul 25-26 |
Aug 13-14 |
| NOTE: Each holiday begins and ends at sundown on the days listed. | |||||
The History and Origins of Passover
*The History and Origins of Passover
Pesach, known as Passover in English, is a major Jewish spring festival, commemorating the Exodus from Egypt over 3,000 years ago.
The ritual observance of this holiday centers around a special home service called the seder (meaning “order”) and a festive meal; the prohibition of chametz (leaven); and the eating of matzah (an unleavened bread). On the eve of the fifteenth day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, we read from a book called the hagaddah, meaning “telling,” which contains the order of prayers, rituals, readings and songs for the Pesach seder. The Pesach seder is the only ritual meal in the Jewish calendar year for which such an order is prescribed, hence its name.
Blessing the Children: To bless a boy, a girl, or both.
Place your hands on the child’s head and say:
For a boy:
Y’sim-cha Eh-lo-him k’Ephra’im v’chi-M’nasheh.
May God inspire you to live in the tradition of
Ephraim and Menasheh.
For a girl:
Y’si-meich Eh-lo-him k’Sarah, Rivka, Rachel, v’Lei-ah.
May God inspire you to live like Sarah,
Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah.
For both boys and girls:
Y’va-reh-ch’cha Adonai v’yish-m’reh-cha.
Ya-eir Adonai pa-nav ei-leh-cha vi-chu-neh-ka.
Yisa Adonai pa-nav ei-leh-cha v’ya-seim l’cha sha-lom.
May God bless you and keep you.
May God’s light shine upon you, and may God be gracious to you.
May you feel God’s Presence within you always, and may you find peace.
Simchat Torah, Hebrew for rejoicing in the Law
Simchat Torah, Hebrew for “rejoicing in the Law”, celebrates the completion of the annual reading of the Torah. Simchat Torah is a joyous festival, in which we affirm our view of the Torah as a tree of life and demonstrate a living example of never-ending, lifelong study. Torah scrolls are taken from the ark and carried or danced around the synagogue seven times. During the Torah service, the concluding section of Deuteronomy is read, and immediately following, the opening section of Genesis, or B’reishit as it is called in Hebrew, is read.
Purim is celebrated by the reading of the Scroll of Esther
Purim is celebrated by the reading of the Scroll of Esther, known in Hebrew as the Megillat Esther, which relates the basic story of Purim. Under the rule of King Ahashuerus, Haman, the King’s prime minister, plots to exterminate all of the Jews of Persia. His plan is foiled by Queen Esther and her cousin Mordechai, who ultimately save the Jews of the land from destruction. The reading of the megillah is typically a rowdy affair, punctuated by booing and noise-making when Haman’s name is read aloud.
Preparing for the Yamim Noraim
Preparing for the Yamim Noraim
As fall approaches, Jews throughout the world prepare for a unique ten-day period of prayer, self-examination, fasting, and repentance. It is time for the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe, the High Holy Days: Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. These holidays are preceded by a month of reflection: the Hebrew month of Elul. During this time, morning worship includes special penitential prayers and concludes with the blowing of the shofar as a reminder of the approaching season of atonement. In some communities, this is also a time to visit the graves of loved ones.
Shavuot is a Hebrew word meaning weeks
Shavuot is a Hebrew word meaning “weeks” and refers to the Jewish festival marking the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Shavuot, like so many other Jewish holidays began as an ancient agricultural festival, marking the end of the spring barley harvest and the beginning of the summer wheat harvest. Shavuot was distinguished in ancient times by bringing crop offerings to the Temple in Jerusalem.