Judaism - key terms

• Amidah


  Standing prayer
• Ark


  Place where Sifrei Torah is kept
• Avelut


  period of mourning
• Bar/Bat Mitzvah


  Jewish celebration of a boy/girl becoming an adult
• Bimah


  A platform (altar) in a synagogue from where the Torah is read
• Brit Milah


  covenant of circumcision
• Challah


  special braided bread eaten on the sabbath
• Chametz


  Leavened bread that contains yeast or grain
• Days of Awe


  the 10 days that begin with Rosh Hashanah and end with Yom Kippur
• Etrog


  Citrus fruit blessed by rabbis in order to be sacred.
• Halakhah


  Jewish legal decision and the parts of the Talmud dealing with laws
• Huppah


  jewish bridal canopy where bride and groom stand beneath
• Ketubah


  Jewish marriage contract
• Ketuvin


  writings
• Kiddush


  a ceremony of prayer and blessing over wine
• Lulav

  palm branch
• Mezuzah


  A scroll inscribed with verses of the Shema that many Jews fasten to their doorpost.
• Minyan


  The quorum of ten adult males required for Jewish communal worship
• Ner Tamid


  Eternal light that is kept burning in the synagogue above the Ark
• Nevi'im

  The second book of "prophets"
• Pesach


  Festival of Passover, commemorates the deliverance of Israel from captivity in Egypt
• Rabbi

  Jewish religious teacher/leader
• Rosh Hashanah


  Jewish New Year festival
• sanctify


  to make holy or sacred
• Seder Meal


  a Jewish ritual service and ceremonial dinner for the first night or first two nights of Passover.
• Shabbat


  Day of spiritual renewal and rest.
• Shavuot


  a religious feast held in commemoration of the revelation of the law on Mount Sinai
• Shema


  A prayer from the book of Deuteronomy
• Shiva


  7 days of mourning
• Shofar


  a ram's-horn trumpet used in religious ceremonies and as a battle signal
• Shul


  synagogue (school)
• Siddur


  The prayer book that is used on weekdays and on the Sabbath.
• Sukkot


  a festival that recalls the Jews' period of wandering in the desert after their exile from Egypt.
• Tallit


  prayer shawl worn by men
• Tenakh


  The 24 books of Jewish scriptures
• Torah


  The first five books of Jewish Scripture
• Treifah


  non-kosher food
• Yad


  Pointer used to read the Torah
• Yarzheit


  Anniversary of someone's death
• Yom Kippur


  Jewish Day of Atonement- fasting and reflecting on one's sins