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Mazel Tov on the Engagement! Now it's time to find a Jewish wedding band! Since ancient times, a Jewish wedding engagement and subsequent ceremony was only considered to be valid when there was a formal acceptance of an object that the man gave to the woman. Jewish wedding bands are also intended to symbolize the bond of a couple with each other, their family, their Jewish community and Israel. This tradition is called kinyan and is symbolized b y the man giving a ring to a woman.

Ages ago, an elaborate communal Jewish wedding ring was often rented and then returned after the service. In its place the bride would then receive a plain gold band from her husband. The concept of the ceremonial ring is coming back into vogue these days. Many couples want to wear a special ceremonial ring during the service that they can also take home and keep as a treasured keepsake of the wedding day. Ceremonial bands can be very fancy and elaborate and are not meant for everyday wear. The rings are dramatic and ceremony specific with some bands reaching several inches in height.

The traditional wedding band worn following the ceremony is gold and has no embellishments such as gemstones. Many Jewish men and women are opting for different metals beyond the traditional yellow gold, such as white gold or platinum. Orthodox Jews will typically have a single metal with no inscriptions. Other sects feels as thought the ring can be engraved, just as long as the ring stays...

Source: Jewish Wedding Bands

Jews have been putting mezuzot on the doors of their houses since biblical days. We read the commandment concerning the mezuzah every time we read the Shema: "inscribe them [these words] on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

The mezuzah reminds us of our relationship to God every time we leave our houses and every time we return.

A mezuzah can be made of practically anything: glass, wood, plastic, ceramic, clay, metal, but no matter what it's made of, the important part of the mezuzah is the parchment inside. The parchment contains two passages from Deutoronomy.

The first passage is the first paragraph of the Shema (Deut 6:4-9), the second is the second paragraph of the Shema (Deut 11:13-21) which is not usually recited in Reform services. Both of these passages contain the commandment for affixing a mezuzah. To be kosher, these passages must be written by hand on parchment. You can get kosher parchments for about $31 from our online store.

The back of the parchment contains the word Shaddai which means "Almighty," but also stands for shomer delatot yisrael: guardian of the doors of Israel. If you place the parchment in the mezuzah case yourself, roll it from left to right so that the word Shaddai faces out. If your mezuzah has an opening, Shaddai should appear in it, otherwise align the word with the front of the case.

The mezuzah goes in the upper third of the right doorpost (as you're going in). The top of the mezuzah should be angled toward the inside, but if the doorpost is too narrow, it can be placed vertically. Before affixing the mezuzah, say the following blessing:

Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu melech haolam, asher kidshanu v'mitzvotav v'tzivanu likboa mezuzah. Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign of the universe, who makes us holy with the mitzvot and commands us to affix a mezuzah.

A Translation of the Text in the Mezuzah "Hear O Israel, G-d our Lord is G-d the Only One You shall love G-d with...

Source: How to install a Mezuzah?