Shabbos Blog

Kippoth and Umbrelloth

Sun, 3 Jan 2010 22:47:44 +0000

I always keep my kippa (Jewish skullcap) in my right jacket pocket and my (foldable) umbrella in my left.

Friday evening I realised that this means that in my right pocket I keep my kippa, to show my love and respect for G-d, while in my left pocket I keep my umbrella, because I don’t trust Him.

The shabbath evening service was cancelled this Friday because of the snow outside the city. It was a less than ideal day.

When is Hanukah?

Tue, 1 Dec 2009 18:41:59 +0000

Every year people ask me when Hanukah is.

Hanukah is always, every year, on the 25th of Kislev.

This year the 25th of Kislev corresponds to December 12th. Therefor Hanukah begins this year at sundown December 11th with one candle lit.

Swine Flu

Sat, 15 Aug 2009 19:04:16 +0100

Swine Flu is not a problem, except that we must get Chicken or Turkey Flu instead.

Also, if we get either one, we must not get Milk Flu or any of the Cheese flues at the same time.

Rabbinical authorities would argue that one must wait at least four hours before contracting Milk Flu.

Two - Creation

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 21:56:23 +0100

See this article on my Not A Linguist Blog.

One

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 22:17:38 +0100

(This article is an expanded version of the introduction of another article on the subject in my Not A Linguist Blog.)

The number one is an important concept in Judaism.

אדוני אלהינו אדוני אחד

“Adonai eloheinu, adonai echad.” (“The lord is our god, the lord is one.”) is the Jewish declaration of faith. (Usually the name is written and “adonai” is read, but I have here written “adonai” to avoid confusion.)

The full declaration is part of a prayer called the “Shema”:

שמע ישראל אדוני אלהינו אדוני אחד

ברוך שם כבוד מלכותו לעולם ועד

ואהבת את אדוני אלהיך בכל לבבך ובכל נפשך ובכל מאדך

“Hear, oh Israel, the lord is our god, the lord is one.
Blessed the name of his glorious kingdom to all and ever.
And thou shalst love the lord thy god with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.”

(It goes on a bit.)

The prayer is said in morning and evening services every day, or, in less orthodox communities, in shul on Erev Shabbath. :-)

The Islamic declaration of faith is similar:

לא אלה אלא אללה מחמד רסול אללה

(I won’t even try to type it in Arabic letters. I don’t know if writing the sentence with mistakes is offensive or not.)

“La ilaha ila allah, machamad rasul allah.” (“No god but the god, Muhammed is messenger of the god.”)

I must say the first part of the sentence is a linguistic master piece. A sentence of four words all written with the same three letters, Alef, Lamed and He, and most of the words based on the same root too.