Handwashing in Judaism

Jewish law today prescribes several kinds of hand washing (Hebrew:, netilat yadayim):

In two of these hand washings, water is poured out over one’s hands with the aid of a vessel, viz., 1) whenever one wakes from his sleep, and 2) before eating bread. These hand washings are nearly always accompanied with a special blessing prior to concluding the actual act of washing (see infra). Although the minimal quantity of water needed to fulfill one’s religious duty is 1/4 of a log (a liquid measure of capacity equal to the bulk or volume of one and half medium-sized eggs), and must be sufficient to cover at least the middle joints of one’s fingers, water poured out in excess of this amount is considered praiseworthy in Jewish law. The hand washing made when one leaves the lavatory or latrine, or when one touches his privy parts, or sweat, may be done simply with running tap water (faucet).

The most developed and, perhaps, important of these washings is the washing of hands before eating bread. Such washing of hands is called in Hebrew, netilat yadayim, meaning “the lifting up of the hands.” It is looked upon with such rigidity, that those who willfully neglect its practice are said to make themselves liable to excommunication, and bring upon themselves a state of scarcity, and are quickly taken out of the world.

To continue reading this Bible article, click here.

Author: Wikipedia

Keywords: Handwashing, Ablution, Ritual washing, Washing, Washing with water, Baptism, Water baptism, Wash, Washed, Water ablution, Ceremonial washing, Bathe, Bathing, Washing hands, unwashed hands, Hygiene, Hygienic, purify, purification, ritual purification, unclean

Bible reference(s): Leviticus 15:11, 2Ki 3:11, Mat 15:2, Mar 7:2-5, Luk 11:38, Heb 9:10

Source: This article uses material from the Wikipedia article “Handwashing in Judaism,” which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.

Page indexed by: inWORD Bible Software.