Bank - The Everything Judaism Book : a Complete Primer to the Jewish Faith-From Holidays and Rituals to Traditions and Culture

THE
EVERYTHING
JUDAISM
BOOK

A complete primer to the Jewish
faith from holidays and rituals
to traditions and culture

Richard D. Bank

Copyright 2002, F+W Media, Inc.
All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher; exceptions are made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

An Everything Series Book.
Everything and everything.com are registered trademarks of F+W Media, Inc.

Published by Adams Media, a division of F+W Media, Inc.
57 Littlefield Street, Avon, MA 02322 U.S.A.
www.adamsmedia.com
ISBN 10: 1-58062-728-5
ISBN 13: 978-1-58062-728-3
eISBN 13: 978-1-44052-245-1
Printed in the United States of America.

10 9 8 7 6

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Bank, Richard D.
The everything Judaism book : a complete primer to the Jewish
faith--from holidays and rituals to traditions and culture /
by Richard D. Bank.
p. cm. (Everything series)
Includes index.
ISBN 1-58062-728-5
1. Judaism. I. Title. II. Series.
BM561 .B27 2002
296 dc21 2002008429

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the
American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations

Illustrations by Barry Littmann.
Photos courtesy of 2001 Brand X Pictures and Joshua Marowitz.

This book is available at quantity discounts for bulk purchases.
For information, call 1-800-289-0963.

Visit the entire Everything series at everything.com

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These handy, accessible books give you all you need to tackle a difficult project, gain a new hobby, comprehend a fascinating topic, prepare for an exam, or even brush up on something you learned back in school but have since forgotten.

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We now have well over 100 EVERYTHING books in print, spanning such wide-ranging topics as weddings, pregnancy, wine, learning guitar, one-pot cooking, managing people, and so much more. When youre done reading them all, you can finally say you know EVERYTHING!

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THE EVERYTHING Series

Dear Reader,
If demographic projections hold true, the communit y of American non-Orthodox Jews may disappear in fifty years. Moreover, in absolute numbers, there are fewer Jews in the United States now than there were when I was a kid growing up in the fifties! Though I a m not a ver y obser vant Jew, I am proud of being Jewish and feel an over whelming sense of loss as our community diminishes.

One way to keep Judaism and Jewish culture alive is through knowledge. We cannot reject Judaism without first tr ying to know and understand it, and we have to give the same opportunity to future generations. The Talmud says that whoever teaches his son also teaches his sons son and so on, to the end of generations. We owe it to our grandchildrens grandchildren not to leave them uninformed about Judaism.

Jews are called the People of the Book because for 4,000 years they have venerated learning. The EverythingJudaism Book is an opportunit y to share in this knowledge. If, along the way, it will help some of you fortify your Jewish identit y, all the better.

In Memory ofSophie and Ludwig FrankDavid and Celia Bank

Contents

Jewish Humor

Acknowledgments

The daunting task of doing a book covering everything about Judaism was made possible only with the invaluable help of my consultants, Rabbi Robert S. Leib and Rabbi Jacob Rosenthal. Credit for the birth of this concept belongs to my editor, Gary Krebs, and my gratitude, as always, goes to Carol Susan Roth, my literary agent, who brought me to the project. It was a pleasure to work with Kate Epstein, of the editorial staff, who always answered my questions and made everything seem to work.

Introduction

Despite the fact that Jews comprise 0.02 percent of the worlds population, Judaism has made an indelible impact on world history over the past several thousand years. Judaism introduced the concept of monotheism, the belief in one God, and served as the foundation for Christianity and Islam. Given its long history, its endurance, and its amazing ability to survive while remaining true to its essence, Judaism merits study.

Regardless of whether you are Jewish, you will find something of interest in Judaism. Perhaps you are a Gentile (a non-Jew) who has fallen in love with someone who is Jewish. Maybe your son or daughter has married a Jew and you would like to know more about Judaism. Maybe you are a Christian or Muslim who is interested in learning more about the origins of your own religion.

Then again, perhaps you consider yourself a Jew but know next to nothing about Judaism. If this is the case, you have no reason to be embarrassed. Today, many of those who identify themselves as Jews are unaffiliated with any Jewish institution. Possibly, you grew up in a household where being Jewish was defined in terms of what you didnt do, like not celebrating Christmas or not going to church. Conceivably, you may not have attended Hebrew school or participated in the rites of passage like bar or bat mitzvah.

Or you may have had a Jewish education when you were young but would like to revisit your studies with a mature mind. Another possibility is that you may be active in Jewish communal life but do not know much about the religious aspects of Judaism. Finally, you may be concerned about your children or grandchildren who are growing up uninterested in Judaism, and you want to be in a position to speak intelligently to them about it. If any of the above rings true (and, clearly, the list is not exhaustive),