Thank you so much for your question. Jewish people do eat food on Shabbat. It is central to the festival! In traditional communities, Shabbat begins with a Friday night dinner and concludes with a “third meal” or Seudah shlishit in Hebrew.

If a fast day falls on Shabbat, the fast day is pushed to the Sunday. There is only one exception to this rule: Yom Kippur (The Day of Atonement). Because Yom Kippur is such an important day in the Jewish Calendar, observant Jewish people would still fast on Shabbat.

Best,

Hannah

Hi,

Thank you for submitting your question to the Jewish Museum Learning Team.

According to Judaism, there ar 613 mitzvot. ‘Mitzvot’ literally translates to ‘commandments’, but is commonly used to refer to general ‘good deeds’. The mitzvot, in the traditional sense, have been given to the Jewish people to help them live a good life.

In the Orthodox community, many people will live their lives in accordance to the mitzvot and try to observe these commandments as much as possible. This means, for example, many Orthodox Jews will obervantly adhere to the Food Laws (e.g. not eating pork or shellfish) , Shabbat Laws (e.g. not using electricity on Shabbat) and the other laws of the Torah. Not all 613 of the mitzvot are easy to adhere to today, however, as some are more specifically linked to the times of the Torah – for example, some laws are about agriculture, farming and land.

In the Reform community, many people will be inspired by the mitzvot in their daily lives but may interpret these laws to compliment their lives in modern day society, as opposed to sticking to the traditional interpretation from the Torah and Talmud.

Why not listen to our podcasts interviewing an Orthodox Rabbi and Liberal Rabbi, to see their understanding of the mitzvot.

Hope this helps!

Hi there!

Thank you for your question.

Judaism is a monotheistic religion (that means, a religion that believes in one G-d) that dates back over 4,000 years ago. It is believed that this religion was born in the Middle East but now, there are Jewish people all around the world!

Judaism is one of many Abrahamic religions. Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, are religions that believe Abraham, and the stories surrounding him, are very important.

Judaism is a religion that celebrates many different festivals, most of which are rooted in the Torah (the Jewish people’s holy scroll – and first 5 books of the Hebrew Bible!) Some Jewish Festivals include Passover, Rosh Hashannah, and Yom Kippur. In Judaism, many people also practice Shabbat – the Jewish day of rest which happens every Friday evening to Saturday evening.

There are many different Jewish communities and synagogues including Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Liberal.

Check out our website and Learning Portal to find out more about Judaism.

Hi there,

Thank you for submitting your question.

Music plays an interesting role in Judaism.  In many ways, Jewish worship is very much intertwined with music. Often, prayer is chanted and sung by the congregation. In many synagogues, there is a cantor/chazan. The cantor is someone who leads the chanting in worship services at the synagogue. Typically, the cantor is musically trained and ordained. In some synagogues, you will find a choir too.

In Reform and Liberal Synagogues, singing is, at times, accompanied with instruments. However, in the Orthodox community, the playing of instruments in the synagogue is discouraged on Shabbat and other festivals.

There are many specific songs sung and prayers/dedications chanted during special Jewish Festivals. Some of them include:

Maoz Tzur – sung on Hanukkah

Kol Nidre – chanted on Yom Kippur