Kosher Mezuzah Parchments


I was kind of flabbergasted. I know a Judaica dealer in downtown Jerusalem who's not observant (yet). I asked him where he gets his 7 cm mezuzah scrolls. The 7 cm mezuzah is hard to procure; it's quite small and most sofrim (scribes) are not trained to write that small. "Yehuda writes all of these...

What makes a mezuzah case kosher?


What makes a mezuzah case kosher? The simple answer is nothing, it doesn't have to be kosher. The whole issue is the mezuzah parchment. In theory, you don't need a mezuzah case at all. In certain times and places in Jewish history, the mezuzah parchment was inserted into a crevice made in the doorpost, and...

Mezuza Q&A


Does a mezuza have to contain a parchment handwritten by a scribe, or is a printed scroll also acceptable? A printed scroll, in this case, is hardly worth the paper it's written on! A mezuza definitely must be written on specially prepared parchment by a trained scribe. For a fuller answer, see "The Inside Story." Is...

The Blazing Mezuzah


by Brian Silvey In the midst of a fraternity party, my Jewish spark was unexpectedly ignited. The Hebrew school I attended taught me how to read Hebrew, to say Shema, and that a mezuzah is placed on the doorways of Jewish homes. I remember one Hebrew school project when I made a mezuzah by writing the...