Glossary
Aishes Chayil – a song in praise of the Jewish woman
Aliyah – the honor of making a blessing over the Torah reading in the synagogue
Amud – a small lectern located toward the front of the synagogue where the person leading the prayers stands
Arovos – two branches of a willow tree used ritually on the holiday of Sukkos
Arvus - the responsibility one Jew has for his fellow Jew
Ba'al Teshuvah - a returnee to observant Judaism
Badeken – the Jewish wedding’s veiling ceremony in which the groom confirms that the bride is his intended and lowers the veil over her face
Bar-Mitzvah – when a Jewish boy reaches the age of thirteen and becomes obligated to perform all the commandments of the Torah
Bashert– the spouse G-d has designated for a particular person
Bas-Mitzvah – when a Jewish girl reaches the age of twelve
and becomes obligated to perform all the commandments of the Torah
Beis Medrash – a study hall where the study of Torah takes place
Bentch Licht – Yiddish for “Blessing the Lights”, referring to the ritual of lighting candles at the start of the Sabbath and the Festivals
Bencher – a small booklet that contains religious songs and commonly said blessings over food
Bikur Cholim – visiting the sick
Bimah – a small, bounded-off platform in the center of the synagogue where the Torah reading takes place
Birkas Hamazon – Grace after Meals
Bracha – a blessing
BT - Ba'al Teshuva
Challah – braided loaf of bread that is used for Shabbos and holiday meals
Chol Hamoed – intermediate days of the Sukkos and Pesach Festivals
Chometz – leavened bread and other grain-based items that are forbidden during the week of Passover
Chosson – a groom
Cholent – a traditional Shabbos food that consists of meat, potatoes, barley, and beans slow cooked together
Chumash – the Five Books of Moses
Chupah – the wedding canopy
Conversion - when a gentile undergoes a halachic process to become a Jew
Davening - Jewish Prayer
Derech Eretz – basic good manners and politeness
Diaspora – anywhere outside of the Land of Israel
Erev Shabbos – Friday before sundown
Esrog – a citrus fruit that is one of the Four Species which are ritually waved on the holiday of Sukkos
FFB - Frumm From Birth
Frum - an observant person
Gadol (Plural - Gedolim) – one of the leading rabbinic authorities of the era
Gemarah – completed in Babylonia 1,500 years ago, a compilation of Jewish legal and ethical discussions that comprise a major component of the Talmud
Gentile – a person whose mother is not Jewish, and has not converted!
Hachnosas Orchim – The Mitzvah of hospitality
Hadasim – three branches from a myrtle tree used ritually on the holiday of Sukkos
Haggada – a book used at the Seder to retell the story of the Exodus from Egypt
Halacha - Jewish Law as part of the chain of tradition from Sinai.
Halachically – performed in a manner which conforms to Jewish Law
Hamotzie – the blessing recited over bread at the beginning of a meal
Hashgachah - rabbinical supervision
Havdallah – a short prayer recited at the close of the Sabbath over wine, fragrant spices, and a braided candle
Intermarriage - when a Jew marries a non-Jew
Jew - a person born of a Jewish Mother
Kabbalah – the mystical tradition of the Torah
Kabbalas Panim – the reception at the beginning of an observant Jewish wedding
Kabbalas Shabbos – the Friday evening prayer service when we greet the arrival of the Sabbath
Kaddish – a short prayer that is commonly recited in memory of departed relatives
Kallah – a bride
Kashrus – the Jewish dietary laws
Kesuba – the Jewish wedding contract
Kiddush – a blessing over wine recited at Sabbath and Festival meals
Kiruv - Hebrew term for bringing another Jew closer to Torah observance.
KofK – one of the large kosher supervisory agencies in North America
Kohein – a Jew who is a descendant of Aaron the High Priest
Kollel – a select group of Yeshiva students who receive a small stipend for their Torah scholarship and who have dedicated themselves to full-time Torah study
Kosher - food that is permitted to be eaten after all biblical and rabbinical prohibitions are taken into account.
L'shem Shomayim – for the sake of Heaven, to the exclusion of any ulterior motive
Lubavitch – a group of Hasidic Jews headquartered in Brooklyn, New York, known for their extensive outreach activities
Lulov – a palm branch used ritually on the holiday of Sukkos
Maariv – evening prayer
Mazal Tov – congratulations
Mechitzah - structural separation between men and women in a synagogue
Megillas Esther – the biblical Book of Esther read from a parchment scroll both evening and day on Purim
Menorah – the candelabra used on the eight nights of Chanukah
Menucha – rest
Mezuzah – a parchment with two sections from the Torah affixed to doorposts in an observant family’s house
Mikva – ritual bath used to attain spiritual purity
Mincha – afternoon prayer
Minyan (Plural – Minyanim) – A quorum of at least ten Jewish men required for public prayers
Mishna – compilation of the Oral Law by Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi circa 200 CE
Mitzva – a commandment of the Torah
Musaf – additional prayer recited on the Sabbath and Festivals
Neilah – the final prayer recited on Yom Kippur
OK – one of the large kosher supervisory agencies in North America
Orthodox - a term we are not going to use (see Observant)
The term, Orthodox, will not be used in this booklet because its sociological meaning is unique to the last 100 plus years in America; it was used to contrast the more religious Jews from their brethren who were conservative and reform adherents.
We will use the term “Observant” which more accurately describes the scope of our tradition over the past 3,500 years.
OU – the largest kosher supervisory agency in North America
Pesach – the Jewish holiday of Passover celebrating the liberation of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt
Pidyon HaBen – a ceremony involving a first born son in which money is given to the Kohein after the thirtieth day of the boy’s life
Rashi Script – an alternative font for the Hebrew alphabet
Rebbe - a teacher who imparts Torah knowledge and tradition
Satmar – a group of Hasidic Jews headquartered in Brooklyn, New York
Schlugged Kaporos – an ancient Jewish custom of waving a chicken over one’s head then donating it to charity, as an atonement before Yom Kippur
Schtick – when guests, intent on making the bride and groom happy, perform all kinds of amusing dances and tricks
Seder – a evening full of ritual, reenacting the exodus from Egypt, conducted on the first two nights of Passover
Sefer Torah – a parchment scroll of the Five Books of Moses usually stored in a special closet called an “Aron Kodesh” (Holy Ark)
Semicha – Rabbinical ordination that certifies an individual competent to render decisions in matters of Jewish religious law
Seudah – meal
Shabbos or Sabbath - the 25 hour period from sundown Friday to approximately one hour after sundown on Saturday
Shabbosdik – an aura reflective of the special quality of Shabbos
Shacharis – morning prayer
Shadchan – matchmaker
Shalach Manos – gifts of food given to friends on the Jewish holiday of Purim
Sholom Aleichem – a song welcoming the angels that accompany a Jew home from synagogue on Shabbos eve
Shatnes – a mixture of linen and wool biblically forbidden in clothing
Shavuos – the Jewish festival celebrating the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai
Shemonah Esrai – the silent devotion - a prayer that is the core of the Jewish prayer service
Shmini Atzeres – a festival that is celebrated the eighth day after the onset of Sukkos
Shofar – ram’s horn that is sounded on the Jewish New Year
Shomer Shabbos - Sabbath observer according to the Torah
Shul - synagogue
Shulchan Aruch – the principal code of Jewish Law compiled in the sixteenth century by Rabbis Yosef Karo and Moshe Isserles
Siddur – a Jewish prayer book
Simchas Torah – the yearly celebration of completing the public reading of the entire Torah
Sofer – a scribe who is certified to write the parchments for holy writ e.g. the Sefer Torah, Tefillin, and Mezuzah
Streimel – a fur hat that Jews used to wear in Eastern Europe and that some Hasidic Jews still wear in modern times
Sukkah – a temporary booth-like dwelling Jews live in during the seven day Festival of Booths
Sukkos – the seven day Festival of Booths
Synagogue – a Jewish house of prayer
Tachlis – the Hebrew word for “purpose”, with regard to matrimony used to convey the idea that observant dating ought to be purposeful and marriage-oriented
Tallis Katan – a four-cornered fringed garment, where the fringes are called tzitzis, worn by Jewish males in fulfillment of a biblical commandment
Talmid – disciple or student
Talmud - the written transcription of the entire oral law
Tanach – an acronym for Torah (The Five Books of Moses), Nevi’im (Prophets) and Ksuvim (Holy Writings), which together comprise the Jewish Bible
Tefillin – leather boxes containing holy writ parchments, attached to leather straps that Jewish adult males wear on their arm and head every day
Tenoim – an agreement, signed before the wedding ceremony, between the families of the bride and groom, proclaiming that all outstanding financial obligations of both sides have been met
Tisha B’av – the ninth day of the Jewish month of Av, the Jewish national day of mourning commemorating the destruction of both the first and second Temples in Jerusalem approximately 2,400 and 2,000 years ago respectively, it is the saddest day in the Jewish calendar
Torah - the Five Books of Moses and the Oral Tradition from Sinai
Treif - not kosher
Tzitzis – the fringes of a four cornered garment Jewish males are required to wear
Tz'nius - or "Jewish Fashion" the concept of modesty not only in dress but in behavior as well.
Ultra Orthodox - See Orthodox
Yarmulke – a head covering worn by Jewish males
Yeshiva - school where Torah is taught
Yichud – with regard to the marriage ceremony, when the newlywed couple is escorted to a private room where they will share their first few moments together as husband and wife before rejoining their guests at the wedding banquet
Yom Kippur – the Day of Atonement spent by Jews in fasting and prayer
Yom Tov – a Jewish Festival
Zemiros – religious songs that are commonly sung together at the Sabbath table
