Ark of the Covenant

- the cupboard where the Torah and other scrolls are stored in synagogues

Bar Mitzvah

- marks a boy coming to maturity in religious terms

Bat Mitzvah

- marks a girl coming to maturity in religious terms

Bimah

- a raised platform in the synagogue where the Torah is read from

Challah

- a plaited loaf used at the Shabbat meal

Covenant

- the promise made by God to care for the Jewish people

Exodus

- the mass flight from Egypt led by Moses

Hanukkah

- an eight-day festival of lights

Havdalah

- the blessing ceremony at the end of Shabbat

Idol

- a statue worshipped as a god

Judaism

- the religion of the Jewish people

Ketuvim

- books in the Tenakh including Psalms, Proverbs and the book of Job

Kippah

- a head covering worn by Jews

Kosher

- food seen as pure and acceptable by Jews according to the Torah

Menorah

- six-branched candlestick

Messiah

- 'the anointed one', a king that will be sent from God at the end of time

Mezuzah

- scroll containing the Shema

Monotheism

- belief in only one God

Nevi'im

- the writings of the prophets and historical books in the Tenakh

Orthodox Jews

- Jews who follow all the laws of the Torah closely and uphold Orthodoxy

Patriarch

- founding father of a faith

Pesach

- Hebrew for Passover, the festival that reminds Jews of how God rescued them from slavery in Egypt

Rabbi

- ordained Jewish religious teacher and leader

Rosh Hashanah

- the Jewish New Year

Shabbat

- Jewish name for the holy day also known as the Sabbath

Shalom

- Hebrew word for peace and wholeness

Shema

- a prayer used by Jews affirming belief in one God

Synagogue

- Jewish place of worship

Tallit

- prayer shawl used by Jews, which includes 613 tassles to remind them of the laws in the Torah

Talmud

- Jewish religious book

Tefillin

- leather boxes used by Jews in prayer

Tenakh

- the Jewish name for the Old Testament, comprises the Torah, Nevi'im and Ketuvim

Torah

- Books of the Law, the first five books of the Tenakh

Yad

- a pointer used when reading the Torah Scrolls

Yom Kippur

- the Day of Atonement