“Judaism is a faith not confined to synagogues. Within the comfort and familiarity of our homes, we also strive for spirituality. A mezuzah mounted on the doorpost designates the home as Jewish, reminding us of our connection to our faith and our heritage.”

We offer the 6cm mezuzah scroll, kosher and hand written on parchment by a skilled Sofer. The prayer enclosed in a protective sleeve snaps onto the back of the mezuzah case.

The short blessing recited during the installation of the mezuzah, and simple instructions on how to affix the case to the doorway, nails included, are enclosed.

“Whenever I felt the… antagonism, there was home—that magical threshold where a mezuzah on the doorpost was a gateway to a world steeped with Judaism inside.”

Fred Zeidman, on building a Jewish life in the South

When our daughter Sophia was called to read from the Torah, to become a Bat Mitzvah, it was very important to us that she have her own Torah Pointer. The Yad stays with each child into adulthood and becomes a treasured keepsake, a wonderful remembrance of his or her personal connection to the Torah.

“When I go to the synagogue today, there is a deep feeling that this is my heritage, this is my people. I am very much moved. It brings me back to the little boy who was bar mitzvahed.”

Abe Vigoda

Chanukah, the Festival of Lights, is a time of joy and celebration during the darkest part of the year. Every winter we celebrate the miracle of the Maccabees and marvel at the small amount of oil that somehow burned for eight long days. In daily recognition of this miracle, each night we light an additional candle, lit by the shamus, the helper candle. As we approach the final night of the holiday, the Menorah is aglow with the light of the eight candles, and the loyal shamus stands proudly aside reviewing its work.

“Arkady was the only Jew I ever shared a cell with in the gulag. We celebrated Hanukah together in Chistopol prison in 1980, lighting pieces of wax paper we had stashed away for months and hoping they would last long enough for us to say the prayers over them.”

Natan Sharansky, on Chanukah in prison, Siberia

No other holiday expresses the entirety of the Jewish experience, past, present, and future, as does Passover. Each step in the Seder brings into focus the wonderful story of redemption and freedom, and a promise for the future. The Seder plate and its symbols are the source of discussion for the entire ceremonial meal. From childhood through old age, we cherish each explanation.

“And then one day we had Passover at the Hotel Forum and we invited the whole cast and crew to come. The Israeli actors all came in and sat around me with the Haggadahs, and then all the German actors playing the Germans came in. And the Israeli actors took the German actors and shared their Haggadahs with them; they took them through the entire Seder.

I sat at the head of the table and I just cried like a baby… I was wrecked by that… The fact that the German actors took it upon themselves to come to a Seder and sit with the Israeli actors and learn about the holiday was an epiphany for me. ”

Steven Spielberg, recalling a Passover Seder during the filming of Schindler’s List

For six days, we give ourselves to work and other practical matters. Friday evening, minutes before sunset, we are called upon to reflect and refresh; this is a time to focus on family as we gather to light the Shabbat candles.

Jewish wisdom explains that Shabbat is, “the desire of all days and the spiritual place which all the other days lean towards.”

“What I remember most vividly about my Jewish upbringing was my mother lighting Friday night candles.”

Melissa Manchester

Lighting the candles and performing Kiddush ushers in the Sabbath. However, it is the spice box, or Besamin, that provides a means of comfort as the Sabbath draws to an end.

Dried cardamom, cloves, orange and lemon peel, evoke our sense of smell, the most spiritual of the senses. The fragrant spices, wafting from the Besamin chamber, help make the transition from a day of rest, to the workweek ahead.

“Being a Jew is like walking in the wind or swimming: you are touched at all points and conscious everywhere.”

Lionel Trilling

Tzedakah, helping others and performing acts of loving kindness, connects us all to the Jewish concepts of righteousness, charity and justice.

A Tzedakah box is found at home and in the synagogue. Its top is slotted so that coins may be collected. When the box is full, the money is donated to a worthy cause.

We grew up with a blue and white pushke or Tzedakah box in our kitchen. When you felt the jiggle of coins in your pocket, and saw the pushke on the counter, the response was automatic: clink—clank into the Tzedakah box.

The family Tzedakah box nourishes a powerful connection, both personal and spiritual, between the individual and the community.

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”

Anne Frank, from her Diary

After the candles are lit, the Kiddush blessing is said over wine sipped from any cup, but it is customary to use a special ceremonial cup or goblet. The words of the Kiddush blessing sanctify the six days of creation. Jewish wisdom tells us, “for God’s resting on the seventh day, he gave the world a soul.”

“I shall never forget Shabbat in my town. When I shall have forgotten everything else, my memory will still retain the atmosphere of holiday, of serenity pervading even the poorest houses; the white tablecloth, the candles, the meticulously combed little girls, the men on their way to the synagogue.”

Elie Wiesel

At the turn of the twentieth century, the Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts in Jerusalem produced masterpieces of modern Judaica. Many examples now grace museums and cherished collections the world over. Included in our offering, we have reproduced the exquisite carpets that were crafted in the ateliers and weaving rooms of Bezalel.

Each carpet tells a story complete with Jewish symbolism, recalling scenes from the bible, historic sites in the Holy Land and imagery of a new Jewish identity. Woven by hand, knot-by-knot, using the finest handspun wool and all natural dyes, this collection captures the spirit and beauty of the original carpets of Bezalel.

“Symbols point to something beyond comprehension, yet they continue to emerge as the familiar.”

Timothy Dukes