Loaves of Blessing
15th March 2021
For some years now, a Jewish baking practice has served as a kind of kitchen-based healing service, organized largely by women. Following the commandment in Deuteronomy that orders the removal of a small portion of dough and the donation of that piece to the priests, these home bakers separate a ball of dough, recite a blessing, and then—in the absence of bona fide priests—burn this “challah” offering. As they do so, they recite the names of those in need of healing. No one knows quite how this form of the ritual emerged, but for those who practice, it has a logic and a set of rules all its own.