Mexican Jews Laugh It Up During Havdalah

Long before Laughter Yoga hit North American shores, Jews in Mexico understood that a good giggle is one of the best ways to start the week. To that purpose they created a custom that I would like to name

HA-HA-HAvdalah. It goes like this: before the head of the house recites the blessing over the spices, the entire family laughs out loud. It’s their way of welcoming a happy week. When I asked “Why laughter?” the Mexican woman who told me about this custom broadly smiled and replied: “Laughter helps you accept your life.” Sounds good to me. After all, haven’t we all been told at one time or another to “laugh off” whatever bothers us? And aren’t there studies indicating that laughter is the best way to relieve stress, feel happy, strengthen your immune system, diminish pain and more? If there’s one thing that’s contagious that each and every one of us wants to catch, it’s a good laugh. Laughter is the only medication that doesn’t cost a penny and is guaranteed to make you feel better immediately. So here’s what I’d like to suggest: Lighten up your students’ life by jump-starting the week with a small dose of laughter. Whether it’s Sunday Religious School or Monday back to school, begin the day with a roaring Shavua Tov ritual. Adapt the Havdalah service to the classroom, share it with your colleagues and let the school shake with gales of laughter.

Repeat after me: HA-HA-Havdalah, HA-HA-Havdalah, HA-HA-Havdalah.

Shavua Tov…Tami

Combine a Kibbutz Rosh Chodesh Custom with Shabbat Rosh Chodesh and You have the Makings of a Wonderful Kaballat Shabbat

A good friend of mine used to live on Kibbutz Sa’ad – a B’nei Akiva kibbutz located in Israel’s southern region. Sitting next to her in synagogue yesterday on Shabbat Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan, I asked her if the kibbutz had any special Rosh Chodesh customs. She longingly licked her lips, remembering the yummy fresh rolls given to each kibbutz member for the Rosh Chodesh meal. My mind immediately began to hyper wander. First to my Rosh Chodesh post last year, where I mentioned that in days of yore Rosh Chodesh was celebrated through a delicious feast. Then I thought of the numerous specialty rolls sold on today’s market – seven-grain, plain, seeded, tomato herb, onion, marble and so much more, each topped with an equal amount of unusual seeds and grains. Many rolls are even braided. Finally, I started thinking about Kabbalat Shabbat and how to integrate this custom into the classroom. The answer came on Motzei Shabbat when I Googled Rosh Chodesh, only to discover that in many Sephardic communities there is a custom for women to light candles without a blessing. “There it is,” I said to myself. Combine the Kibbutz custom of a mouth-watering roll with the Sephardi candle lighting custom and you have the ingredients for a wonderful classroom Kabbalat Shabbat Rosh Chodesh. After all, the next Shabbat Rosh Chodesh is only four months away. Adar Aleph (this is a Jewish Leap Year, with two months of Adar) starts on February 5th – another Shabbat Rosh Chodesh. Add some hot chocolate for the winter weather and you’ll be set.
Chodesh Tov…Tami

In Lisbon, Hakafot Have a Sense of Military Efficiency

Zvuvi has decided to go on vacation this week, so that I can send out a Simchat Torah custom. This time we’re going to Lisbon, Portugal, where Hakafot are somewhat akin to a military operation – in kinder words, Yekke efficiency, Sephardi style.
Hakafot in Lisbon are strictly an evening activity held on Erev Simhat Torah. The sense of a military operation comes with the organization of the event. There are approximately 30 Sifrei Torah standing on a bench dedicated to them. Each male member of the congregation receives a card ahead of time, informing him which Sefer Torah he is to take and for which Hakafa. For instance, your card says that you are to take Sefer Torah #26 for the 3rd Hakafa. The Hakafa seems to be a personal event, with one person at a time holding a Sefer Torah going around the Bima only once. When the Hakafa is finished you return to the Sefer Torah bench, waiting for the next “soldier.” When he takes his Hakafa turn you remain at the bench, standing guard over the Sifrei Torah until the next rotation. The epitome of Rules & Regulations, this custom can be easily adapted to the classroom in a variety of ways. I leave it up to your imagination.

Speaking of the classroom, I thought it might be interesting to find out when the holiday of Simhat Torah as we know it first began. All it took was a little Googling and I discovered the interesting facts behind an evolutionary holiday: The Jews of Babylonia invented this holiday, its name and the dancing associated with it. In the 12th Century, the French added the Attah Horeita verses. At the beginning of that same century, Spain’s Jews began reciting the beginning of Bereishit by heart. Ping Pong back to the the Jews of France who at the time instituted the concept of Khattan Bereishit reading the beginning of Bereishit. By the early 15th century, evening Hakafot were instituted in Ashkenaz. How did the number of Hakafot reach 7? The ARI and his students in sixteenth-century Safed were responsible for that addition, making sure the Hakafot should be around the Bimah – most probably copying the bride’s circling her groom seven times under the khuppa. All this illustrates that customs do not stay stationary, they evolve. If you have a new and interesting Simhat Torah custom, please share it with us.
Chag Sameach…Tami

Good Samaritan. Great Sukkah!

It takes a good Samaritan to come up with a creative solution on how to commemorate holiday customs while at the same time avoid persecution. That’s exactly what happened with the Samaritans’ building of a Sukkah. However, before I divulge this unusual custom, let’s first examine the origins of today’s Samaritans.

While the phrase "A Good Samaritan" is commonly associated with Christian beliefs and a kindly person in a Jesus parable, Samaritans – Shomronim in Hebrew – actually hail from Samariah, or as it is called in Israel, the Shomron. The Samaritan religion is an ancient form of Judaism. It is monotheistic, believing in the God of Israel and the Five Books of Moses, in addition to adhering to the ways of the Torah. In fact, the Samaritans claim that they are the real thing – their faith is the true religion of the ancient Israelites. Despite the Babylonian Exile, they remained in the Land of Israel, practicing the religion as laid down in the Torah, while Diaspora Jews developed their own Talmudic codes.

The Samaritans started out as a large people but their numbers shrank, especially under Byzantine rule when they were severely persecuted. It is precisely at this point that they began their unusual Sukkah tradition. In order to avoid persecution and vandalism by their neighbors, the Shomronim resorted to building their Sukkot indoors. A tradition that started out for reasons of safety has today evolved into an event of exceptional beauty. Today’s Samaritans – all 700 of them – continue to build their Sukkot inside their homes, with many erecting permanent wall and ceiling mounts for assembling the sukkah frame. The ceiling mount is especially strong since Samaritans create the most unusual and breathtaking, enormous ceiling fruit montages from large, colorful, succulent fruits. Picture themes are developed, with each Sukkah decoration connected to an associated topic. In essence, a Samaritan Sukkah is a spectacular work of art and a major attraction for Israelis who come to enjoy the colorful setting and experience warm Samaritan hospitality. Israelis who do not want to travel beyond the Green Line need not go to Samariah for such an event. Since 1954, half of the Samaritan community has been living in Holon – a city adjoining Tel Aviv. The remaining half live in the village of Kiryat Luza on Mount Grizim, above the West Bank city of Nablus (in Hebrew, the biblical Sh’khem).

Can you adapt this custom to your classroom? Absolutely. All it takes is a little creativity. Since you can’t mount live fruit montages of Samaritan magnitude, how about making fruit montage sculptures based on a specific theme and hold a Sukkah exhibit? Alternatively, have your students draw wall hangings of fruit montages and display the fruits of their labor. If not this year, then next, and may your creative juices bear the fruits of your labor.
Chag Sameach…Tami

What Happens When Yom Kippur Falls on Shabbat? Ethiopian Jews Have Created A New Custom.

I am sure you were not expecting me to send out a Yom Kippur custom. After all, isn’t its observance universal, with little room for unusual traditions? The answer is yes and no. Yes, there is a standard ceremonial pattern. No, not everything is the same when this holy of holy days falls on Shabbat. Yom Kippur is also known as Shabbat Hashabbatot – the Sabbath of Sabbaths. Because it is prohibited to fast on Shabbat, all other fast days in the Jewish calendar are postponed to another day if they fall on Shabbat. Not Yom Kippur. It stays put regardless if it falls on Shabbat – as it does this year. What to do? Ask our fellow Jews from Ethiopia. When they lived in the land of their birth, they strictly adhered to the “no fasting on Shabbat” decree, and so they did eat something. Now that they are living in Israel they have created a new twist, as reported in a recent article appearing in the New York Jewish Week. They recite the Shabbat Kiddush, but let a child taste the wine. By developing this new practice they honor the Shabbat without violating the practice of fasting.
You may want to pass this custom on to your class and use it as a segue for learning more about Ethiopian Jewry.
Have an easy fast…Tami

Indian Jews Greet the New Year

Let’s travel to Calcutta – a bustling port city in India where 5,000 Jews once lived. Today the community numbers in the tens, but their traditions are still carried out by descendants living across the globe. Custom had it that on Rosh Hashana, Jews hosted each other for an afternoon reading of the Book of Psalms together with a light meal of fruit and sweets. A collection of 150 psalms, this is the longest book in the Bible and a good starting point for the self reflection that Rosh Hashana is all about. As for the traditional Rosh Hashana greeting – the Jews of Calcutta focused on longevity. Tizku L’Shanim Rabot – May You Merit a Long Life – is the Calcutta Rosh Hashana salutation answered by Tizke V’Tehiyeh – May You Merit and May You Live.

How to apply this to the classroom? A mini-feast of sweets and fruits is easy to put together and perfect for the Rosh Hashana wish of a sweet year. Next, have each student write his/her own 2-line psalm around a theme found in the Book of Psalms, such as creation, wisdom, justice, war, peace, etc. Discuss why each of their psalms is appropriate for Rosh Hashana. Follow this by a “parade” of traditional Rosh Hashana greetings. Let each student pick the greeting of his/her choice and explain why. Here are some sample greetings:
· Shana Tova – A good year
· Shana Tova Umetukah – A good and sweet year
· Ketiva ve-chatima tovah – May you be written and sealed for a good year [in the Book of Life]

My greeting to you: Shana Tova Umetukah Ve Harbei Bri'ut – a good year, a sweet year and a year full of good health.
Tami

A Rosh Hashana Custom that’s in the Cards

In the same way that email has revived the art of letter writing, the electronic age has revitalized the custom of sending Rosh Hashana cards. It’s difficult to pinpoint when and where this custom began, but one thing is for certain – it crossed all geographical boundaries.

Sent either just before Rosh Hashana or during the ten days between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, the message is always clear – wishes for a healthy, happy, prosperous, and depending where you live, safe New Year. Take for example the card on the upper left hand side. It dates back to the early 1900’s and depicts Russian Jews gazing at their American relatives, urging them to come to the U.S. My guess is a history of pogroms is behind this message. Of course, not all opted for America. For many, The Holy Land was the obvious choice, and the card on the upper right hand side bearing a family photo with different Holy Land locations in the background was the commonly sent Rosh Hashanah greeting in the 1930’s.

Still, many in Eastern Europe led a good life and were determined to convey a message of love and prosperity, as seen in the next card. Printed in Germany, it was sent in 1931 from Jews in Poland to relatives living in America.

By the 1950’s, 60’s & 70’s, Rosh Hashanah cards with the popular motifs of apples & honey, a shofar, the Book of Life, and round loaves of challah, abounded. But let’s transition to our e-age and the fact that both the school year and Rosh Hashanah are just around the corner. Developing a set of Rosh Hashanah greetings (sent via e-mail) for these turbulent times could be the e-sense of your first school project.

Wishing you lots of creative quality time with your students and children…Tami