JEWTALK

JEWTALK \joo-tok\ n. 1: vocabulary employed by those of Mosaic heritage.  2:  Specific words meant to convey affiliation with religious group.

Here is a short list:

Temple is out.  That is reform.  Synagogue is in.  That is conservative.  Shul is in or out.  could be orthodox or conservative.  Shteibel is also out, micro-Hasidic.

Prayer is out.  Having its roots is the French, prier (to beg) we are now in a more worldly understanding of God and our connection ans to the Deity. Davenning is in.  It carries a resonance that touches the soul.  See also tefilah.

Skullcap has bitten the dust along with prayer shawl (the only people that use that are wannabes who do not know any other names).  The words are kippa or yarmulke; tallit or tallis.

Cholent was killed by cardiologists.  Other decedents are gribinets and veronikas.  May their memory endure as a blessing.

Blintzes.  When will the French finally admit that a crepe is a fancy word for blintze?

Tefillin.  Now is making a comeback after decades of vacillating with phylacteries (really?  Most people cannot even pronounce the word.  Sounds like a communicable disease).

Happy New Year, is repeated twice yearly (am I really getting older at twice the rate?).  Shanah Tovah has an authentic ring to it.  The Yom Kippur analogue, g’mar tov, is lagging way behind.

Krishma sounds suspicious if not downright blasphemous  We think of toga toting zealots with pony tails.  Yet, in years past this was how they referred to kriat shma, or just plain old shma.

Pentateuch sounds like a five-sided tuchas.  Definitely out.  You will not even find this one on Jeopardy!

Tzedakah wins.  Charity loses.  Charity is hierarchical; superiors doling out help to inferiors.  Tzedaka, coming from Hebrew tzedek, means justice.  Prediction: charity will continue to be used until Neil Sedaka makes comeback.

Passover is edging toward Tabernacles and Pentecost (both of which sound more Christian than Jewish).  Pesach and Shavuot are in.

On Coming into a Synagogue

On the Jewish Laws of head coverings:

Men: Nowhere in the Torah does the Law indicate that males must cover their heads.  Most likely, people living in the environs of such hot climes wore some kind of protection from the fierce heat of the sun.  Yet, a yarmulke or kippa is not indicated.  The word kippa simply mean ‘covering’.   Yarmulke, on the other hand, comes from an amalgamation of yareh Elokim, ‘fearing God’. 

One famed Talmudic rabbi, Nachman bar Yitzhak, would never venture forth without first covering his head out of “fear of the Lord.”  From that distant time it gradually evolved that wearing some kind of covering over one’s head showed appropriate reverence for God. 

Women: Unlike the custom with men, a woman covering her head has more ancient roots that began with married women wearing a covering over their hair to show both modesty and an identification that they were married (a ring was a later introduction).

How to enter the Synagogue:

When entering the doors of the shul, we are supposed to pause, gauge our new surroundings, and leave any baggage outside the doors.  One Hasidic Master said that when entering into a holy space, we should feel as if we area passing over a border into a new country.  That is why, perhaps, we are supposed to recite the Mah Tovu prayer to ourselves as we first come in.  The Mah Tovu was first uttered by an outsider names Balaam who was struck with the awesomeness of God.  In the same way, we imagine and galvanize ourselves to gaze at the face of the Almighty.

On choosing a seat:

It is a definite help to choose a place where you feel most comfortable.  Questions to be considered:  Can you see what you need to see?  Can you hear the Torah being read?  The prayer that are being recited?  Some like to be near the door, others proximate to the Bima.  Whatever the place might be, stay in the same general location whenever you return.  You may find that the space choose you.  Comfort and familiarity are important.

At the same time, it is good to be seated around people who are like-minded. There is nothing so distracting as sitting near talkers.  Find a place that feels and is right for you.

On putting on a Tallit (tallis):

A Hasidic Rebbe once said that the time a woodcutter spends sharpening his axe is as important as the time he spends cutting down the tree.

1. Make sure that the stings in the four corners (tzitzit) are intact).
2. Place the Tallit over the head and cover the face with the cloth.
3. Ask God to protect and envelope you with care.  “In Your light, may we see light,” is a traditional prayer.
4. Utter the berakha (blessing) in the prayer book, page 2.
5. Drape around shoulders.