What makes a Jewish house a Jewish Home?

Such things in this category facilitate, instigate, or suggest Jewish ways of being, create and enforce Jewish identities, and serve as reminders that one’s home is Jewish.

What foods are not allowed in Jewish homes?

Prohibited, and hence placed out of sight or otherwise rendered out-of-commission in particular times and places, are in some Jewish homes: cars, money, and fire on Sabbath; bread and flour on Passover; mirrors and leather shoes in the mourner’s house.

What are the three types of Jewish objects?

One could call objects in this category: signs which say “a Jew lives here”; props which say, “I am needed in Jewish life”; or catalysts which say, “my very presence creates Jewish ways of being and doing.” Often they are all three: signs, props, and catalysts.

What did houses in ancient Israel look like?

Wide benches of mud brick or stone for sitting and sleeping, and shelves for storage, were built into the structure itself. Stairs or a wooden ladder led up onto the roof, which was used as an outdoor room that was partly shaded by matting or a ten-like superstructure.

What did people in ancient Israel live in?

Houses in Bible times People in ancient Israel used two types of housing: tents for nomadic or semi-nomadic herders who travelled with their flocks houses, either large or small, in villages or cities.

Where did the Jews of Eastern Europe live?

Many of the Jews of eastern Europe lived in predominantly Jewish towns or villages, called shtetls. Eastern European Jews lived a separate life as a minority within the culture of the majority.

What was the Jewish community like in the 17th century?

In the 17th century, there were many significant Jewish populations in Western Europe. During the period of the European Renaissance and Enlightenment, significant changes occurred within the Jewish community. Jews began in the 18th century to campaign for Jewish emancipation from restrictive laws and integration into the wider European society.

Why was there no discussion of the home in Judaism?

To a large extent, the lack of discussion about the home may be attributed to the fact that the home — in contrast to the beit midrash and the synagogue — was a primarily female space. As women’s voices are virtually absent from early Jewish writings, we can only guess at the actual place of the home in everyday Jewish life.

Which is the most important room in a Jewish Home?

These objects help outsiders identify the house as Jewish and remind the inhabitants of the house of the centrality of Judaism in their home life. Without question, the most important room in a Jewish home is the kitchen.

How does Jewish worship take place at home?

Today, the primary means of divine worship involves having meals at home. Blessings before and after the meal, ritual foods, and family participation transform eating from a mundane activity into a religious experience.