Ritual Objects
When walking into a home, one can often tell right away that a Jewish family lives there. The reason for this is that we see an array of religious and ritual objects connected with Shabbat, holidays, life cycle events and Jewish rituals.
These objects are reminders of Jewish laws and traditions which can go back centuries in time. These objects are precious to their owners, whether they be individuals or synagogues, and, in many cases, are passed down from generation to generation.
Our display of ritual objects connect us to synagogue, prayer, and the Jewish home. Many of these artifacts are priceless in terms of sentimental and spiritual value to their owners.
Tefillin
Russia
My father
These were given to my father by his father. My grandfather received them at his Bar Mitzvah.
Tefillin are important to the Jewish people. We are commanded to wear them in the Shema. They are supposed to remind us of the 613 mitzvot. Performing mitzvot is an integral part of being Jewish.
Tefillin
America
My grandpa
These are the tefillin of my great grandpa, Grandpa Jack Scherling. My grandpa gave them to me. My great grandpa, whom I never got to meet, was a very special man. He used to wear them often.
Tefillin are a big part of prayer in the Jewish religion. They connect us with God and our mitzvot.
When I celebrate my Bar Mitzvah I will put on tefillin for the first time.
Siddur
St. Paul, MN
Grandparents
This siddur was used by my Great Great Grandfather on my mom's side of the family. This is the most memorable Jewish item we have to remember him. My Great Great Grandfather was an Orthodox Jew who used his siddur every day to pray.
This siddur is significant in that it was important to my Great Great Grandfather that the Jewish traditions be passed down from generation to generation. He was committed to his religion and observed Shabbat by walking to shul, not using electricity and using this siddur daily. He modeled his belief in Judaism by attending services everyday while using this siddur. His hope was that future generations would continue to have a Jewish home and celebrate Shabbat.
Tallit and Tefillin
Russia
Mom
We think that this tallit and tefillin are something my great, great, great grandfather brought to this country from Russia.
The significance of tefillin is that they are supposed to connect us to God.
The tallit reminds us of the 613 commandments. Judaism is about living our lives guided by our 613 commandments.
Tefillin
Winnipeg, Manitoba
My Zaida
These tefillin were worn by my Zaida at the time of his Bar Mitzvah. The tefillin were given to him by his father. The bag was hand sewn by an aunt.
Putting on tefillin is one of the most important mitzvot. They connect us with God and mitzvot. We place them so they are on our head, pointing to our heart and wrapped around your finger. We also wrap them around our arm. This makes us think about things with our head, our heart and through our actions. Four important sections of the Torah are written in the tefillin, including the Shema.
Tallit
Israel
Our grandfather
This is our grandfather’s tallit from his Bar Mitzvah. It will be used by us at our B’nai Mitzvah.
A tallit is a Jewish prayer shawl. It is worn over the outer clothes during the morning prayers and worn during all prayers on Yom Kippur. We first wear a tallit at our Bar Mitzvah. The tallit has special twined and knotted fringes known as tzitzit attached to its four corners. The tzitzit remind us of our 613 mitzvot, integral to being Jewish.
Yahrzeit Light
Made in Israel, purchased in Waterloo, Iowa
My Grandma Jean
My great grandmother, Becky Robin, purchased the light to use when someone died. This was instead of using a candle. She passed it on to my Grandma Jean. She used it once a year to remember the death of her father James Robin.
When someone passes away their body leaves us. Their memories and legacy remain, however. One of the things we do to remember them is to light a yahrzeit light for 24 hours on the anniversary of their death. We also observe their yahrzeit by reciting kaddish for them.
Siddur
Great Grandma's house
Mom
This siddur has been passed down from my great grandma to my baube and then to my mom.
The siddur is significant because it represents family and tradition. Prayer is an important part of Judaism.
Many of our prayers have been passed down over hundreds of years. I think it’s cool that I recite some of the same prayers that my ancestors did.