Judaism

====Shabbat====
{{Main|Shabbat}}
[[File:Shabbat Challos.jpg|upright=1.15|right|thumb|Two braided Shabbat [[challah|challot]] placed under an embroidered [[challah cover]] at the start of the Shabbat meal]]
''[[Shabbat]]'', the weekly day of rest lasting from shortly before sundown on Friday night to nightfall on Saturday night, commemorates God's day of rest after six days of creation. It plays a pivotal role in Jewish practice and is governed by a large corpus of religious law. At sundown on Friday, the woman of the house welcomes the Shabbat by lighting two or more candles and reciting a blessing. The evening meal begins with the Kiddush, a blessing recited aloud over a cup of wine, and the Mohtzi, a blessing recited over the bread. It is customary to have [[challah]], two braided loaves of bread, on the table. During Shabbat, Jews are forbidden to engage in any activity that falls under [[39 categories of activity prohibited on Shabbat|39 categories of ''melakhah'']], translated literally as "work". In fact, the activities banned on the Sabbath are not "work" in the usual sense: They include such actions as lighting a fire, writing, using money and carrying in the public domain. The prohibition of lighting a fire has been extended in the modern era to driving a car, which involves burning fuel and using electricity.<ref name="JEsabbath">{{JewishEncyclopedia|author-link1=Emil G. Hirsch |last1=Hirsch |first1=Emil G. |display-authors=etal |title=Sabbath|url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12962-sabbath}}</ref>