Chai Online Dictionary Level 3

|Home|  |Level 1|  |Level 2|  |Level 3|  |Level 4|  |Level 5|  |Level 6|  |Level 7|

aron kodesh
Holy ark; cabinet or niche where the Torah scrolls are kept

 

aveirah
Sin; transgression

 

bal tashchit
Do not destroy; a Jewish value conveying our responsibility to protect the environment, preserve the earth and conserve resources; based on Deuteronomy 20:19

 

 
Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech haolam
Praised are You, Adonai our God, Ruler of the universe..."; the opening sentence of a Hebrew blessing


b'seder
OK; in order

 

Chazak, chazak, v'nitchazek
Be strong, and let us strenghthen one another. Said at the completion of reading a book of Torah


 

chevruta
Small groups or pairs of students engaged in the study of Jewish texts


 

Eilu d'varim sh'ein lahem shiur
"These are the responsibilities without measure whose reward too is without measure”; a prayerbook text based on Mishnah Pei-ah 1:1 and Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 127a

 


 

goreret
Leads to (f.)

 

hachnasat orchim
Welcoming guests

 

kadosh
Holy


 

karov
Near

 

kasher
Fit or suitable according to the laws of kashrut

 


 

kashrut
The system of dietary laws for Jews

 

K'doshim
The parashah that contains the Holiness Code (Leviticus 19)

 

K'dushah
Holiness; name of the third blessing of the Amidah

 

kibud av va-eim
Honoring parents

 

kibud z'keinim
Honoring the elderly

 

k'lal Yisrael
The community of Israel; the Jewish people; the world community of Jews

 

korban
Offering

 

korbanot
Offerings

 

ma'achil r'eivim
Feeding the hungry

 

magen David
Shield of David

 

malbish arumim
Clothing the naked

 

maot chittim
Wheat money; a community fund that provides Passover food to Jewish needy individuals and families

 

m'lachah
The type of work not engaged in during Shabbat

 

mitzvot
Commandments from God (plural of mitzvah)

 

ner tamid
Eternal light that hangs over the ark, representing God’s eternal presence

 

parashah
Weekly Torah portion


 

Pesach
Passover; celebration of the liberation from slavery in Egypt

 

Pirkei Avot
Chapters of the Fathers; a tractate, or section, of the Mishnah containing the wisdom, sayings, and ethical teachings expressed by the teachers of the Mishnah

 

Purim
Lottery; the name of a holiday on which Haman cast lots to determine the day on which he would slay all the Jews of Shushan

 

seder
Order; also the order of the service of the festive meal for Passover

 

Shabbat Shalom
Sabbath peace, Sabbath wholeness; a traditional greeting on Shabbat

 


 

Shabbatot
Plural of Shabbat

 

Shaddai
Almighty; a name for God commonly found on mezuzot because the letters of the word can stand for “shomer d’latot Yisrael,” a phrase which means "guarding the doorways of the Jewish people"

 

shalach manot
Gifts sent to family and friends; a mitzvah for the holiday of Purim (see Esther 9:22)

 

shin
A letter often found on the outside of a mezuzah , representing the first letter of God's name Shaddai


 

Sh'nat Shabbaton
Sabbatical year, the seventh year in which we are commanded to let the earth rest from planting and harvesting crops

 

simchah
A joyous occassion


 

Simchat Torah
Rejoicing in the Torah; a holiday celebrating the Torah on which the annual cycle of reading from the Torah is completed and the beginning of the new cycle begins

 

Sukkot
Festival of Booths; a joyous harvest holiday in which we are commanded to build a sukkah (booth) and dwell in it for seven days

 

Talmud
The comprehensive body of Jewish law, comprised of the Mishnah and Gemara

 

tochecha
Rebuke; term found in Leviticus 19:17

 

Torah
The first five books of the Bible, as well as all Jewish learning and sacred texts

 

Tu Bish'vat
The 15th of Sh'vat, a Jewish holiday that celebrates trees

 

tza'ar ba'alei chayim
Compassion toward all living creatures

 

Vayikra
Leviticus; the third book of the Torah

 

Yisrael
Israel; Jacob's name received after he wrestles an angel in Genesis 32:29; "wrestle with God"