Ceramic Kiddush/communion cup with coaster in bright hand painted colors features "Old City" Jerusalem design on the coaster and is inscribed Cup of Redemption as a reminder of the shed blood that bought our freedom. Cup stands 7.75" high and coaster is 7.25" diameter. Hand wash and dry. Made in Israel.

Following the success of My First Hanukkah Board Book and My First Passover Board Book, My First Shabbat Board Book is a unique, bright, and engaging way to show preschoolers the meaning behind the Jewish Sabbath and the ways it is celebrated. Preschoolers will delight to see children making challah bread, lighting candles, and sitting down to a special meal with family, all the while learning why it is important to set aside one day a week to rest and reflect. Recommended for ages 3 to 5.

An inspiring how-to guide to every aspect of Shabbat, including:

• History and meaning
• How to prepare
• Rituals, prayers, and blessings (step-by-step)
• The Sabbath day
• Havdalah
• Songs and prayers in English, Hebrew, and Yiddish (with clear transliterations)
• Recipes for traditional and modern foods to spice up the Shabbat menu
• Family activities to enhance the experience

Enriched by real-life voices sharing practical suggestions and advice, this creative resource helps us to reacquaint ourselves with time-tested traditions and discover old and new ways to celebrate Shabbat, including biblically-inspired songs and games, Shabbat-related crafts, and more family-tested ideas.

This book is part of the Art of Jewish Living Series, a project of the Federation of Jewish Men's Clubs and the University of Judaism. It is designed for adults and families seeking to enter into the center of Jewish life. Each features real Jewish families reflecting on their experiences with Jewish practice, along with detailed information and instruction on the performance and meaning of Jewish celebration.

Dr. Ron Wolfson is Fingerhut Professor of Education at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles and a cofounder of Synagogue 3000. He is author of Hanukkah, Passover, and Shabbat, all family guides to spiritual celebrations; The Spirituality of Welcoming: How to Transform Your Congregation into a Sacred Community; A Time to Mourn, a Time to Comfort: A Guide to Jewish Bereavement and Comfort; and, with Rabbi Lawrence A. Hoffman, What You Will See Inside a Synagogue.

Elegant, passionate, and filled with the love of God's creation, Abraham Joshua Heschel's The Sabbath has been hailed as a classic of Jewish spirituality ever since its original publication--and has been read by thousands of people seeking meaning in modern life. In this brief yet profound meditation on the meaning of the Seventh Day, Heschel introduced the idea of an "architecture of holiness" that appears not in space but in time Judaism, he argues, is a religion of time: it finds meaning not in space and the material things that fill it but in time and the eternity that imbues it, so that "the Sabbaths are our great cathedrals."

• What is the Sabbath?
• When is the Sabbath?
• Should the Sabbath be kept?
• Whom is the Sabbath for?

This book addresses these questions and other controversial aspects surrounding Shabbat, the Sabbath. It is a helpful guide for observing the Sabbath, including suggested recipes, blessings, and songs. This book will challenge you to have a Sabbath of peace...even into eternity. 46 pages, Softcover.

After her conversion from Orthodox Judaism to Christianity, Lauren Winner found that her life was indelibly marked by the rich traditions and spiritual practices of Judaism. She set out to discover how she could incorporate some of these practices into her new faith.

Winner presents eleven Jewish spiritual practices that can transform the way Christians view the world, and God. Whether discussing attentive eating, marking the days while grieving, the community that supports a marriage, candle-lighting, or the differences between the Jewish Sabbath and a Sunday spent at the Mudhouse, her favorite coffee shop, Winner writes with appealing honesty and rare insight.

Lauren Winner shares the spiritual practices she has adopted in her quest to reconcile Judaism and Christianity.

Despite her conversion from Orthodox Judaism to Christianity, Lauren Winner finds that her life is still shaped by the spiritual essences of Judaism--rich traditions and religious practices that she can't leave behind. In Mudhouse Sabbath, Winner illuminates eleven spiritual practices that can transform the way we view the world, and God. Whether discussing her own prayer life, the spirituality of candle-lighting, or the differences between the Jewish Sabbath and a Sunday spent at the Mudhouse, her favorite coffee shop, Winner writes with appealing honesty and rare insight. Unabridged. 3 CDs. 3 hours. Narrated by Kate Reading.

Recollections from Jewish grandmothers and great-grandmothers all over the world remind us of life as it once was, and riveting oral histories, ancient legends, shtetl folktales, aphorisms, and proverbs throughout will delight and inspire the baker in us all.

There is a special urgency to record, learn, and pass on culinary history if we are to preserve our traditional foods and customs. How fortunate that Maggie Glezer has taken the challenge. 320 pages, hardcover.

Sabbath: The Ancient Practices

By Dan Allender / Thomas Nelson

Does resting on the Sabbath mean to cease all activity? In his new book Dan Allender presents an insightful and fascinating look at the origins and purpose of the Sabbath day. Serving as volume three in The Ancient Practices Series, Sabbath examines the key issues of this oft-misunderstood day of the week.

This "day of delight," as instituted by God, has become a dirge for millions of believers. For many, it is simply a break from the busyness of the work week. So, what keeps us from properly understanding, sanctifying and celebrating this important day? Allender looks at not only the history of this discipline, going all the way back to ancient Israel, but also at the modern manifestations and misunderstandings of its practice. Drawing upon the Hebrew word Menuha, Allender bases his premise upon the forgotten definition for this word (best translated as joyous repose, tranquility, or delight) and what it truly means to rest.

A Day Apart: How Jews, Christians, and Muslims Find Faith, Freedom, and Joy on the Sabbath

By Christopher D. Ringwald / Oxford University Press

"I cannot recall reading anything on the three faiths that so deftly engages them in robust conversation without any watered-down, 'Oh, we're really all the same' vapidity. Amazingly learned, Ringwald marshals arresting facts. His subjects are people serious about Sabbath-keeping,"---Christian Century. 336 pages, softcover. Oxford University.

Publisher's Description

The Sabbath is the original feast day, a day of joy and freedom from work, a holy day that allows us to reconnect with God, our fellows and nature. Now, in a compelling blend of journalism, scholarship and personal memoir, Christopher D. Ringwald examines the Sabbath from Creation to the present, weaving together the stories of three families, three religions and three thousand years of history.

A Day Apart is the first book to examine the Sabbath in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. A marvelously readable book, it describes the three weekly holy days--the Muslim Juma on Friday, the Jewish Shabbat on Saturday and the Christian Lord's Day on Sunday--and introduces us to three families, including Ringwald's own, and shows how they observe the holy day and what it means to them. The heart of the book recounts the history of the Sabbath, ranging from the Creation story and Moses on Mount Sinai to the teachings of Jesus and Muhammad, the impact of the Protestant Reformation and the Industrial Revolution, and the rise of the modern weekend. Ringwald shows that the Sabbath instinct, to observe a special day of withdrawal and repose, is universal. Indeed, all religions and philosophies teach that life is more than toil, that time should be set aside for contemplation, enjoyment and culture.

In today's frantic 24/7 world, the Sabbath--a day devoted to rest and contemplation--has never been more necessary. A Day Apart offers a portrait of a truly timeless way to escape the everyday world and add meaning to our lives. 

To explore Jewish perspectives, Weiss looks to the Rabbinic and Qumranic texts, Samaritan texts, and the writings of Philo and of Josephus. To illumine early Christian attitudes, he offers analyses of the Synoptic Gospels, the Gospels of John and Thomas, and the letters to the Galatians, the Romans, the Hebrews, and the Colossians. Weiss uses each text as a window upon the sociological constructs and theological perspectives figuring in early Jewish and Christian thought about worship and rest. He suggests that such perspectives reflect larger theological postures because, as an element of the creation story, the Sabbath became an important cosmological fixed point and a source of eschatological speculation.

With insights gained from his examination of the texts, Weiss identifies the concerns animating Sabbath disputes. He marks out in the beliefs of Jews and early Christians overarching similarities between the two faiths as well as variations within each.

A native of Montevideo educated in Argentina and in the United States, Herold Weiss is professor emeritus of religious studies at Saint Mary's College in Notre Dame, Indiana. For many years he was also an affiliate professor of New Testament in the Hispanic program of Northern Baptist Theological Seminary. Weiss is the author of Paul of Tarsus: His Gospel and Life. He lives in Berrien Springs, Michigan.

Sabbath Keeping: Finding Freedom in the Rhythms of Rest

By Lynne M. Baab / Inter-varsity Press

Six months in Iran and eighteen months in Israel, where all activity stops on every seventh day, began Lynne M. Baab's twenty-five-year embrace a rhythm of rest - as a stay-at-home mom, as a professional writer working out of her home, as a student and as a vocational minister of the gospel. With collected insights from Christian history and sabbath keepers of all ages and backgrounds, Sabbath Keeping offers a practical and hopeful guidebook for all of us to slow down and enjoy our relationship with the God of the universe.

Marva Dawn issues both a timely challenge and a ceaseless invitation to participate in the life of the church. For in that place of service we will find joy and fulfillment. She warns that America has become like the late Roman empire, a place where poverty and immense wealth stand side by side and compassion is drowned by entertainment. Let Dawn's call for social justice and compassion move you to action.

In the end, you'll be equipped with a deeper theological understanding of Sabbath, as well as down-to-earth ways to live it out in your daily life. Living the Sabbath will appeal to clergy and laypeople alike who are seeking ways to discover the transformative power of Sabbath.

Via the Sabbath, we find an alternative to society's rhythm of achievement and escape. We pace ourselves and discover a balance between the conflicting demands of worship, play, rest, work, community, and ministry, integrating both the contemplative and the active into our daily routine. 178 pages, softcover.