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124:) must preferably be made over the wine first in order to sanctify the Shabbat. This is followed by the blessing over the bread (challah), which begins the meal. However, in the hierarchy of blessings mandated by the Sages, the blessing over bread should precede the blessing over wine. In order to preserve the priority of the wine, and not to "shame" the bread which should be blessed first, the bread is “removed” by concealing it from view with the challah cover.
77:
85:
112:. They are sometimes adorned with fringes interwoven with silver or gold thread. The challah cover must be large enough to cover two braided loaves without allowing the bread to be seen through the sides, and opaque enough so that the loaves cannot be seen through the fabric. Store-bought challah covers often bear the inscription לכבוד שבת קדש ("To honor the holy Shabbat") or לכבוד שבת ויום טוב ("To honor Shabbat and Yom Tov").
240:"Of course," replied the baker. "Every child knows the answer. When there are many different foods on the table, the first blessing is always made over the bread, after which no other blessing need be made. On Friday night, however, the first blessing has to be made over the wine. In order not to shame the challah, who expects the blessing to be made over her, we must cover her over until after the sanctification of the wine."
17:
243:
Rabbi
Yisroel looked at the baker incredulously. "Why do your ears not hear what your mouth is saying?" he asked. "Do you think that our Jewish tradition does not understand that a piece of dough has no feelings and would never become embarrassed? Understand that our laws are trying to sensitize us
212:
times, food was served to banquet guests on three-legged trays rather than tables. These trays were brought to each guest by waiters. On
Shabbat, the trays would be brought out only after the Kiddush, to show that the meal was being served in honor of the Shabbat, which had just been sanctified by
164:
told the people about the manna, he said that it would fall for them every day of the week. However, in deference to the holiness of
Shabbat, the manna would not fall on that day. Instead, two portions of manna would fall on Friday, enough for that day and for the Shabbat
233:
As he ushered his esteemed guest into his house, he shouted at his wife, "Why are the challahs not covered? How many times must I remind you to cover the challahs?" The poor woman, recognizing her distinguished guest, hurried to cover the challahs with tears in her eyes.
213:
the recital of the
Kiddush. Today, Ashkenazi Jews set the table with the challah, but cover it until the time when it would have been carried in, in Talmudic times. This demonstrates that the meal only begins after — and because of — the Kiddush.
229:
for
Shabbat. Everyone wanted to host him, but he chose to spend the Shabbat at the home of a baker who had no children to feed, so he would not take away anyone's portion of food. The baker was an observant Jew but hardly a man of intelligence.
216:
Covering the challah so as not to "shame" it while the wine is being blessed has been cited as an object lesson for the importance of not shaming one's fellow humans. The following story is told about Rabbi
264:
are also covered. Ashkenazi Matzo covers differ from challah covers in that they can contain three "pockets" into which the three matzos (set out at the beginning of the Seder) are inserted.
169:
16:22-26). This is given as the reason for the use of two braided loaves at
Shabbat and holiday meals, as the challot represent the double portion of manna that fell in honor of Shabbat.
283:(עוני) can also be construed as "answers," yielding, "bread upon which answers are spoken." Thus, the matzos are uncovered during the telling of the story of the Jews' servitude in
180:
Thus we see that the dew fell upon the ground and the manna fell upon it, and then dew fell again upon this, and so it was as though it were carefully packed in a chest (Rashi on
144:
The placement of the challah under the challah cover and over the
Shabbat tablecloth (or over a challah cutting board) also recalls the Biblical scene of the
237:
When the baker asked Rabbi
Yisroel to do the honors by reciting the Kiddush, the Rabbi first asked him, "Can you tell me why we cover the challahs?"
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92:. The inscription on the top cover says "To honor Shabbat and Yom Tov". The inscription on the bottom says "To honor the holy Shabbat".
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Each morning the
Israelites found the manna in the fields, encased in two layers of dew to preserve its freshness.
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meal. While its appearance lends a decorative and ceremonial aspect to the set table, its presence serves both a
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Thus, we place the challot beneath a challah cover and over a tablecloth (or challah board) to recreate the
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Challah covers may be made from any kind of fabric or paper. They are often hand or machine-
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to the feelings of human beings, our friends, our neighbors, and especially our wives!"
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Two homemade challot placed on cutting board covered by an embroidered challah cover
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480:'Why do we cover the Challah?' and other articles about the Challah Cover.
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A 'challah cover' is a special cloth used to cover the two braided loaves (
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Chumash with Targum
Onkelos, Haphtaroth and Rashi's Commentary
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At the beginning of a Shabbat or holiday meal, a blessing (
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In the absence of a challah cover, one may use a napkin,
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Shabbat Shalom: Parshat Mishpatim by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin
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Why Do We Cover the Challah Bread on the Shabbat Table?
463:. Vol. 2: Shemoth. Jerusalem: Feldheim Publishers Ltd.
443:
Rite and Reason: 1050 Jewish Customs and Their Sources
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53:) set out on the table at the beginning of an
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204:Old challah cover, Boryslav, Poland abt. 1930
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88:Challah covers for sale outside a store in
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80:A challah cover on a table set for Shabbat
275:According to the Gemara, matzo is called
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192:of the manna at our own Shabbat tables.
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307:Sefer HaChinuch, Positive Mitzvah #155,
176:describes the way the manna was found:
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328:, 271, quoting the Jerusalem Talmud.
279:(poor man's bread); the Hebrew word
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225:Rabbi Yisroel was once stranded in
184:16:13, quoting Mechilta, Yoma 75b).
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29:
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339:"Shabbat Laws: Shabbat On-the-Go"
445:. New York: Feldheim Publishers.
441:Gelbard, Shmuel Pinchas (2000).
131:, tissues, or similar covering.
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459:Silbermann, Rabbi A.M., 1985.
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407:October 20, 2007, at the
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140:Remembrance of the manna
392:Tosafot, Pesachim 100b.
68:and symbolic function.
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933:List of Shabbat topics
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967:Jewish ritual objects
810:Rabbinic prohibitions
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586:Weekly Torah portion
362:Silbermann Chumash.
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116:Halakhic function
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765:Biblical Sabbath
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972:Textile arts
866:Sabbath mode
861:Shabbat lamp
846:KosherSwitch
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663:Gefilte fish
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551:Yedid Nefesh
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347:. Retrieved
343:the original
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249:Matzo covers
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839:Innovations
820:Shabbos goy
775:Electricity
739:Kiddush cup
643:Kosher wine
627:Torah study
556:Lekhah Dodi
431:Beit Yosef.
98:embroidered
72:Description
946:Categories
673:Vorschmack
349:2008-10-29
295:References
289:redemption
277:lechem oni
150:Israelites
148:which the
889:Shabbaton
135:Symbolism
106:appliqued
90:Jerusalem
55:Ashkenazi
917:Havdalah
605:Haftarah
576:Baqashot
420:Pesachim
405:Archived
255:Passover
210:Talmudic
110:tie-dyed
66:halakhic
957:Shabbat
952:Challah
805:Muktzeh
770:Driving
755:Melakha
717:Objects
708:Yapchik
698:Jachnun
693:Kubaneh
678:Cholent
648:Challah
571:Zemirot
566:Kiddush
536:Rituals
533:Prayers
516:Shabbat
372:Tosafot
253:At the
196:History
190:miracle
160:. When
122:Kiddush
102:painted
62:Yom Tov
58:Shabbat
51:challot
35:challah
825:Shinuy
703:Sabich
668:Helzel
600:Maftir
467:
262:matzos
260:, the
182:Exodus
167:Exodus
154:Exodus
43:Hebrew
30:חַלָּה
26:Hebrew
800:Grama
729:Blech
688:Mouna
683:Kugel
285:Egypt
258:seder
227:Kovno
174:Rashi
162:Moses
158:Egypt
156:from
146:manna
129:doily
47:חלוֹת
780:Eruv
748:Laws
636:Food
465:ISBN
422:36a.
521:שבת
326:Tur
281:oni
208:In
108:or
60:or
40:pl.
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