January 4th, 2010
Jewish Holiday Gifts: My Favorites
Jewish holidays are often a celebration that involve large dinners and lots of company. It is a mitzvah, or good deed, to have guests over for Jewish holidays, especially on the Sabbath (any of the three meals throughout Friday at sun down and Saturday at sun down).
It is generally customary to bring an appropriate gift to show gratitude towards your host, which leaves many guests wondering about the best Jewish holiday gifts to bring.
Jewish Holiday Gifts Ideas
Here are some great Jewish holiday gift ideas for the Sabbath:
- A Bottle of Kosher Wine- you can never go wrong with simple Mogan David red wine, which is the most common Kosher wine known for its sweetness. If you want to get more creative, just make sure that the wine is Kosher.
An Israeli rabbi once warned me from bringing wine as a gift to the Shabbot dinners that I attended while staying there. He said that many religious Jewish people who observe Shabbot regularly tend to be very particular about the kind of wine (white or red or certain labels) they drink on Shabbot.
Consequently, it would not be polite to put your host in the obligated position of drinking a wine they do not prefer.
- Flowers and Wine- it is a common combination and a pretty safe way to go. Preferably the flowers will not require any immediate cutting of the paper or stems, as religious Jews do not use scissors (more specifically, cut anything) on the Sabbath.
- Loaf of Challah- an airy and ‘eggy’ bread that comes braided in a straight line or a circle. It is important to purchase your challah from a Kosher bakery, where you know that they followed the rules of Kashrut (cleaning standards and blessings).
- Most likely your Sabbath host family keeps Kosher, although not all Jews who celebrate Shabbot do. However, it is better to be safe and purchase a Kosher challah.
* All Kosher products can be recognized by a ‘K’ inside a small circle or a ‘U’ inside a small circle. There are other symbols, but these are the most common. You should also be conscious of those families who are Glatt Kosher, which means they eat foods that pass an evens stricter preparation process in the kitchen.