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Shabbat custom - blessing of the children
Shabbat is, above all, a time for the family. In some families, Friday night is the one night of the week that all members of the family have a dinner together. There are many customs and rituals that happen at the Shabbat table that are family oriented. One of these is the blessing of the children by the parents. The blessing is said either after lighting the Shabbat candles, or just before Kiddush. Both customs are common. Parents, either mother or father, put their hands over the children's heads for the blessing. The boys are blessed: "May Hashem make you like Efraim and Menashe." The girls are blessed: "May Hashem make you like Sarah, Rivka, Rachel and Leah". This custom is believed to originate from the blessings Isaac gave his sons Jacob and Esau (Genesis 27:49), as well as from the blessings Jacob gave to Joseph's sons Ephraim and Menasseh (Genesis 48:20). The Blessings strengthens the link between parents and children.
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