Shabbat Evening Home Ritual

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Setting the Table
Lighting Candles
Evening Services
Blessing for the Children
Kiddush
Washing Hands
Ha-Motzi

Setting the Table
The sabbath table should be set with at least two candles (representing the dual commandments to remember and observe the sabbath), a glass of wine, and at least two loaves of challah. The challah loaves should be whole, and should be covered with a bread cover, towel or napkin.

Lighting Candles
Candles should be lit no later than 18 minutes before sundown. For the precise time when shabbat begins in your area, consult the list of candle lighting times provided by the Orthodox Union or any Jewish calendar.

At least two candles should be lit, representing the dual commandments to remember and to keep the sabbath. The candles are lit by the woman of the household. After lighting, she waives her hands over the candles, welcoming in the sabbath. Then she covers her eyes, so as not to see the candles before reciting the blessing, and recites the blessing. The hands are then removed from the eyes, and she looks at the candles, completing the mitzvah of lighting the candles.

Barukh atah Adonai, Elohaynu, melekh ha-olam,
Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the Universe,

asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav, v’tzivanu
who sanctifies us with his commandments, and commands us

l’had’lik neir shel shabbat (Amein)
to light the candles of Shabbat (Amen)

Evening Services
Evening services should be attended in the synagogue or performed in the home between candle lighting and dinner on the evening of the sabbath.

Blessing for the Children

Before dinner, it is customary for parents to bless their children. Traditionally, they lightly place their hands on the child's head while reciting the following blessing:

For Sons:

Y'simcha elohim k'efrayim v'chim'nasheh

For Daughters:

Y'simcha elohim ksarah rivkah rahel v'lei'ah

For all children:

Y'varech'cha adonai v'yishm'recha
Ya'eir adonai panav eilecha vihuneka
Yisa adonai panav eilecha v'yaseim l'cha shalom

Kiddush
Kiddush is recited while holding a cup of wine or other liquid, no less than 3.3 ounces. If wine or grape juice is not used, you should substitute she-ha-kol niyeh bidvaro (by whose will all things come to be) for borei p’riy ha-gafen (who creates the fruit of the vine).

Vay’hiy erev vay’hiy voqeir yom ha-shishiy
And there was evening and there was morning, a sixth day

Vay’khulu ha-shamayim v’ha-aretz v’khol tzva’am
The heavens and the earth were finished, the whole host of them

Vay’khal Elohiym ba-yom ha-shviyiy melakhto asher asah
And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made

vayishbot ba-yom ha-shviyiy mikhol melakhto asher ashah
and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made

Vayivarekh Elohiym et yom ha-shviyiy vayiqadeish oto
And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it

kiy vo shavat mikhol melakhto asher bara Elohiym la’asot
because in it he had rested from all his work which God created and done

Barukh atah Adonai Elohaynu melekh ha-olam, borei p’riy ha-gafen. (Amein)
Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine. (Amen)

Barukh atah Adonai Elohaynu melekh ha-olam
Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the Universe

asher qid’shanu b’mitzvotayv v’ratzah vanu
who sanctifies us with his commandments, and has been pleased with us

v’shabat qadsho b’ahavah u’v’ratzon hinchilanu, zikaron l’ma’aseh v’reishit
You have lovingly and willingly given us Your holy shabbat as an inheritance, in memory of creation

Kiy hu yom t’chilah l’miqra’ey qodesh, zeikher liytziyat mitzrayim
The shabbat is the first among our holy days, and a remembrance of our exodus from Egypt

Kiy vanu vacharta v’otanu qidashta mikol ha’amiym
Indeed, You have chosen us and made us holy among all peoples

v’shabat qadsh’kha b’ahavah u’v’ratzon hin’chal’tanu
and have willingly and lovingly given us Your holy shabbat for an inheritance

Barukh atah Adonai, m’qadesh ha-shabat. (Amein)
Blessed are You, who sanctifies the shabbat (Amen)

Washing Hands
After Kiddush and before the meal, each person in the household should wash hands by filling a cup with water and pouring it over the top and bottom of the right hand and then the left hand. Before wiping the hands dry on a towel, the following blessing should be recited.

Barukh atah Adonai, Elohaynu, melekh ha-olam,
Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the Universe,

asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav, v’tzivanu al n'tilat yadayim
who sanctifies us with his commandments, and commands us concerning washing of hands.

Ha-Motzi
Immediately after washing hands and before eating, the head of the household should remove the cover from the two challah loaves, lifting them while reciting the following blessing. The challah is then ripped into pieces or sliced and passed around the table, so that each person may have a piece. The family meal may then begin.

Barukh atah Adonai Elohaynu melekh ha-olam
Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the Universe

ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz. (Amein)
who brings forth bread from the earth. (Amen)

 Source: Judaism 101 and Cardin, Rabbi Nina Beth. The Tapestry of Jewish Time. NJ: Behrman House, 2000.