koberstein
Active member
THE MOST FAMOUS PRAYER IN JUDAISM IS THE SH'MA, whose opening paragraph
reads: "And you shall speak of them [the Torah's laws] when you sit in your house,
when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up...And you shall
write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gates" (Deuteronomy 6:7,9).
The Hebrew word for doorpost is mezuzah, and for thousands of years Jews have posted
small boxes, also known as mezuzot, on their doorposts. Inside each box is a small scroll,
which must be written by a scribe. It contains the first and second paragraphs of the Sh'ma,
including the commandment concerning mezuzah. When a Jew enters his house, he sees
the mezuzah and is thereby reminded how he should act in his home. Likewise, when a
Jew leaves the house, the mezuzah reminds him of the high level of behavior he is expected
to maintain wherever he goes.
To ensure that the mezuzah is always visible, it is attached to the upper third of the doorpost,
at a slant. Every room in the house, except for the bathroom, should have a mezuzah on its
doorpost. When a Jew moves into a new home, he or she is expected to put up a mezuzah
immediately, or at least within the first thirty days. A special blessing is recited when the
mezuzah is installed: "Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who has sanctified
us with His Commandments, and who has instructed us to put up a mezuzah." Many Jews
kiss the mezuzah when they pass it, generally by touching it with a finger and then kissing
the finger. An unkosher mezuzah is one that was not written properly by a scribe, or one in
which a word or letter has become erased. To avoid having unkosher mezuzot, many Jews
have their scrolls periodically checked by a scribe.
Shalom
reads: "And you shall speak of them [the Torah's laws] when you sit in your house,
when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up...And you shall
write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gates" (Deuteronomy 6:7,9).
The Hebrew word for doorpost is mezuzah, and for thousands of years Jews have posted
small boxes, also known as mezuzot, on their doorposts. Inside each box is a small scroll,
which must be written by a scribe. It contains the first and second paragraphs of the Sh'ma,
including the commandment concerning mezuzah. When a Jew enters his house, he sees
the mezuzah and is thereby reminded how he should act in his home. Likewise, when a
Jew leaves the house, the mezuzah reminds him of the high level of behavior he is expected
to maintain wherever he goes.
To ensure that the mezuzah is always visible, it is attached to the upper third of the doorpost,
at a slant. Every room in the house, except for the bathroom, should have a mezuzah on its
doorpost. When a Jew moves into a new home, he or she is expected to put up a mezuzah
immediately, or at least within the first thirty days. A special blessing is recited when the
mezuzah is installed: "Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who has sanctified
us with His Commandments, and who has instructed us to put up a mezuzah." Many Jews
kiss the mezuzah when they pass it, generally by touching it with a finger and then kissing
the finger. An unkosher mezuzah is one that was not written properly by a scribe, or one in
which a word or letter has become erased. To avoid having unkosher mezuzot, many Jews
have their scrolls periodically checked by a scribe.
Shalom
