A MEZUZAH BLESSING AT PHOEBE'S

On September 7th we had another interesting experience with our elderly Jewish friend, Phoebe. Our church was invited by her synagogue to attend the “mezuzah blessing” that they were doing for her, to acknowledge the wonderful new home she is now living in and to ask God’s “shalom” (complete abiding peace) to be present in it. They scheduled this event after our Sunday worship so we could be part of this special service.

More than a dozen of us from Hilmar Covenant went to Phoebe’s home and were warmly welcomed. Some of the people from the synagogue were already there, and Phoebe was rather nervous, trying to be the perfect hostess and make food for us to eat--even though these arrangements had already been made by the members of Congregation Beth Shalom! More and more people arrived until the house was quite full. Then Joyce Gandelman, the current president of the synagogue, led us in the service of blessing.

Perhaps you don’t know what a mezuzah is.


Here is its reference in Scripture:

“Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. WRITE THEM ON THE DOORFRAMES OF YOUR HOUSES and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)




A mezuzah is a small piece of parchment contained in a decorative container inscribed with these verses from Deuteronomy. The first verse, verse 4, is the Jewish prayer known as the Shema (“Hear, O Israel”), the most important prayer in Judaism which is to be recited twice daily at all morning and evening Jewish prayer services. In Hebrew, it sounds like this:

“Shema Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad.”

Mezuzahs (plural: mezuzot) are affixed to the doorframes of Jewish houses to fullfill the biblical commandment to inscribe the words of the Shema “on the doorposts of your house.” Many families place a mezuzah on the front door only, but observant Jews put one on every doorway in the home, apart from bathrooms and closets too small to qualify as rooms. The parchment is prepared by a qualified scribe and the verses are written in indelible black ink with a special quill pen. The parchment is rolled up and placed inside the case before being put in place. Then the mezuzah is attached to the doorpost on the right side of the door, as one enters the house, its top slanted inward, at approximately shoulder height.

This is what we experienced and participated in at Phoebe’s that day. Joyce passed out a sheet of paper with information and with the service of blessing and then took us through it step by step. She explained the meaning and purpose of putting up the mezuzah, showed us the parchment and teeny tiny writing of the Deuteronomy verses, placed the parchment in the case, and had Keith Waterson nail the mezuzah to Phoebe’s doorframe as we all watched. We spoke the prayers of blessing together, in Hebrew:

“Baruch ata Adonai Eloheinu melech ha‘olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu likboa m’zuzah.”
(Blessed are You, Eternal God, King of the Universe, You hallow us with Your mitzvot, and command us to affix the mezuzah.)

While the important part of the mezuzah is the "klaf," or parchment, and not the case itself, designing and producing mezuzah cases has been elevated to an art form over the ages. Mezuzahs are produced from an endless variety of materials, from silver and precious metals, to wood, stone, ceramics and pewter. In fact, the beauty of many of these cases has led some to forget that the important part of the mezuzah is the parchment. Phoebe’s case was of “Tigger” (from “Winnie the Pooh”), because of her affection for cats! It also included the Hebrew letter “shin,” for “Shaddai,” one of the biblical names of God, which is always present somewhere on mezuzah cases. Shaddai also serves as an acronym for “Shomer Delatot Yisrael” (guardian of the doorways of Israel).

After the service, it was time to celebrate! Celebrate Phoebe’s new home, celebrate the coming together of our two congregations to do such a wonderful “mitzvah” (good deed), celebrate God’s presence in our lives, celebrate the meaning and purpose that comes from living out our faith in Jesus, as Scripture teaches us (“care for widows and orphans...”), celebrate the ongoing relationship we now have with Phoebe. There was food and drink, laughter and conversation, a foretaste--for sure--of what it’s going to be like in heaven when we are feasting together with people “from every nation, tribe, people, and language.” (Revelation 7:9)

And to think that all of this became possible from a simple act of kindness last November: washing windows--on a Sunday!

Why am I writing about this event in my blog? For several reasons:

--It once again brought together two of the most significant parts and influences of my life: Hilmar and Jerusalem/Israel! Everywhere I went during my sabbatical with “Bridges For Peace,” I saw mezuzot: in restaurants, stores, banks, the Jewish homes where we did our home repair work, and even in the apartments where I lived. At every worship service I attended, we chanted the Shema together--just as Jesus surely did when he was alive on earth! Since returning from Israel, I have put up my own mezuzah on the doorway into my home (look for it next time you come by). However, I have never participated in the service of blessing that is such an important part of this activity. It was wonderful to experience it--right here in Hilmar!

--It was a tremendous sign of the ongoing friendship and relationship that Congregation Beth Shalom wants to have with Hilmar Covenant Church, and of the cooperation that can happen between people of different religious beliefs when we don’t allow faith to separate us. Rather, the beliefs we hold in common can bring us together to do great good. This is an essential aspect of the God Whom we worship: His goodness.

--It verified for me, once again, the vitally important part that monthly “church service” opportunities play in the life of our congregation. It is so important that we continue to grow in our understanding, awareness, and practice of what “worship” is--biblically, theologically, and in practice! As we gain a deeper appreciation of the fullness of “worship,” our relationship with Jesus will deepen, becoming more alive and engaging, our witness to Christ will be increased, and our relationship with the community around us will be strengthened in ever more positive ways.

Let’s take to heart the admonition that Jesus gave when he was asked which commandment is the greatest, and what must one do to inherit eternal life. Jesus quoted the Shema! The Scripture that is now on the doorpost into Phoebe’s home:

“’The most important one,’ answered Jesus, ‘is this: Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.’” (Mark 12:29-31)

Perhaps we who follow Jesus would discover something new, fresh, and important about our walk with our Lord if we took to heart the Jewish admonition to recite the Shema twice a day. Think of how it would center our lives on God if we began each day with this testimony of Who He Is, and how restful our sleep would be if we acknowleged this reality as we ended each day:

Shema (a three part word) — listen, or hear and "act on"
Yisrael — Israel, in the sense of the people or congregation of Israel
Adonai — often translated as "Lord", it is used in place of the unspoken name of God, found in Exodus 3
Eloheinu — our God, the word “El" or "Elohei" signifying God and the plural possessive determiner suffix "nu" or "einu" signifying "our"
Echad — the Hebrew word for the absolute number 1

And from Psalm 62: “My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress; I will never be shaken.”

May you experience the deep shalom of God in your life this week!

Many people from both congregations gathered to participate in the mezuzah blessing.


Joyce reading the Shema from the parchment--notice how small it is!


Rolling up the mezuzah parchment.

Placing the parchment in the mezuzah case.


Reciting the service of blessing.



Nailing the mezuzah to Phoebe's doorpost.


Phoebe's delight!

It’s Friday, September 5th--the end of the last week of my summer routine. The fall season is here. Traditionally, this is the time when everything “kicks in” here at HCC: Sunday School resumes (we have three adult classes this year!), choir and bells begin again, youth and children’s ministries start their weekly meetings, and people take on new activities, programs and studies. A new nine week worship series from the book of Acts is set to begin too.



However, as I stand here, at the beginning of my 29th season of ministry, on the edge of regular ministry “kicking in,” I’m feeling unsure about what lies ahead. I wish I could just do everything the way I’ve always done it! Having weeks of worship planned out in advance, choirs and ensembles in place and music selected through Christmas, special events scheduled, and the comfortable security of knowing how everything unfolds--and that I can manage it.



But times are different. The congregation is different. “Life” is different! People’s choices and ideas and routines are more complex and diverse. The dynamics in our church and community are more complex and diverse too. I’m aware that there are a multitude of feelings about Sunday worship flying around out there--many different preferences, attitudes, concerns, and emotions. I have talked to a number of people about the fall, who are already feeling overwhelmed with schedules, activities, responsibilities, and commitments. Handbell choir looks good; the ringers are all returning and ready to start practicing again. Unfortunately, choir numbers were already down last spring, and now some singers are not going to be able to continue this fall. Unless new participants join us, I’m wondering how we’re going to be able to sing regularly in worship. Because the Veritas seminar is going to be so important for our congregation in deciding how we are going to move ahead this fall, Bruce and I have not been able to do our usual long-range worship planning, because the results of Veritas will impact our worship life as well as other aspects of our church life. This leaves me feeling unprepared and rather directionless--because I’ve never done it this way before!

I know that all of this is just another sign of what is occurring in churches across America. Rather than writing about all of this again though--about what too often is taken as depressing or negative or frightening, regarding the Church and culture today--I’d like to let John Weinrich offer some insight and wisdom about this situation, through his blog. John heads up revitalization ministries (like Veritas) for our denomination. Listen to what he has to say:

John's Blog


I’m excited about tomorrow; about Veritas, and how our congregation is going to walk through the process of truth-telling to gain clarity about the future of our church and its mission. And in spite of what I wrote above, I’m really excited--and at peace--about what lies ahead in church this fall. I actually feel more free! More flexible (most of you know I’m already extremely physically flexible--now I feel more flexibility in my spiritual walk with Jesus too)! More ready to embrace whatever it’s going to take to “re-tune” as a church. To me, it is all very energizing, refreshing, renewing. More uncertain, perhaps; less predictable, and definitely more messy--but oh! Think of the potential! The opportunities! The extremely positive aspects of embracing we’ve never done it that way before instead of putting up roadblocks against new things. I believe many in our church are chomping at the bit for revitalization and fresh ways of “being” Hilmar Covenant. This came through in most of the prayer items that people wrote down last week during worship (thanks to all of you for your input!).

So I guess I really am ready for the fall season. It may be completely different from the past 28 years, but I am truly O.K. with that. I know the Holy Spirit can be trusted to take us where He wants us to go. We have to be willing, in the wonderful words of Dorothy Peterson, to “let go and let God.” Some have a hard time with this, I know, but it is definitely our hope for the future. I think we all know that this is what must happen too, for just as a physical body must grow and change and adapt to its surroundings, so must the spiritual Body of Christ, the Church, grow and change and adapt. When bodies stop growing, flexing, stretching, exercising, and keeping healthy we all know what happens. We grow fat, complacent, compulsive, muscles turn weak and flacid, deterioration sets in, and...we die. It’s a fact of nature--physical and spiritual. We at HCC prefer the first scenario, right?


See you in the morning--at Veritas!