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Bring a card with cash or a check, give between $36 and $180 depending on how close you are, and dress modestly if the service is at a synagogue. That covers most of what people worry about. A bat mitzvah is a girl marking the age of religious adulthood, usually at twelve or thirteen. The gift standard is the same as for a bar mitzvah. The rest of this page answers the questions people are actually nervous about asking. How much to give Your relationship Common range Her classmate or school friend $36 to $72 Family friend or colleague $72...

Most people give between $36 and $180 for a bar mitzvah, depending on how close they are to the family. A casual connection gives $36 to $72. Close family and grandparents give $180 or more. Cash or a check is normal and expected. Nobody thinks less of you for giving money at a bar or bat mitzvah. The amounts are usually multiples of 18, and there is a reason for that worth knowing before you write the check. Why multiples of 18 In Hebrew, letters double as numbers. The word chai, חי, meaning "life," adds up to 18. So giving...

"One who trusts in Hashem is surrounded by kindness." That is the meaning of וְהַבּוֹטֵחַ בַּה' חֶסֶד יְסוֹבְבֶנּוּ, said v'ha-BO-te-ach ba-Hashem CHE-sed y'so-v'VE-nu. It comes from Tehillim, the book of Psalms, chapter 32, verse 10. The full verse contrasts two ways of moving through the world. The first half describes the sorrows that pile up for a person who is not aligned. The second half, the part people engrave, is the promise on the other side of that. What the verse actually says Hebrew Transliteration Means וְהַבּוֹטֵחַ v'haboteach and the one who trusts בַּה' baHashem in Hashem חֶסֶד chesed kindness,...

"This too shall pass" in Hebrew is גַּם זֶה יַעֲבֹר, said gahm zeh yah-ah-VOR. Transliterated it is written Gam Zeh Ya'avor. Hebrew reads right to left, so the first word, גַּם (gam), sits on the right hand side. That trips up a lot of people copying it into a design. Israelis use this phrase in ordinary conversation. It is not archaic or ceremonial language. Breaking the phrase down Hebrew Transliteration Means גַּם gam also, too זֶה zeh this יַעֲבֹר ya'avor will pass The verb comes from the root ע־ב־ר, which is about crossing over or passing through. It is the...

The King Solomon ring story goes like this. A king wants a sentence that will be true in every season of his life, so his advisors give him a ring engraved with "this too shall pass." When he reads it in grief, it comforts him. When he reads it at a celebration, it humbles him. One sentence, doing two opposite jobs. The story is real folklore. The ring itself is not a historical object, and no ancient text records Solomon wearing one. The oldest version is Persian, not Jewish The earliest written form comes from 12th century Persian poetry. Attar...

No, "this too shall pass" is not in the Bible. It does not appear in the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Hebrew Tanakh, the Talmud, or the Midrash. It is one of the most commonly misquoted sayings in English. People attribute it to Solomon, to Proverbs, to Ecclesiastes, and to Paul, and none of those are correct. The real trail leads to 12th century Persian poetry, then into Jewish folklore, then into English through a Victorian poet. Why so many people think it is scripture Three things push it that way. It sounds biblical, it is attached to King...