The Land of Milk and Honey: Honey's Significance in Judaism

I have really great memories of experiencing the tastes of honey and apples during Rosh Hashana. It was always a favorite time of year – the start of school, the beginning of fall, the opportunity to see friends you hadn’t seen all summer and the celebration of the Jewish New Year.

I never really thought much about the significance of Honey and Bees to Judaism, but there are many! I was excited to see the many references when I googled honey and Judaism – Israel is referred to the “Land of Milk and Honey” and that the heavenly food that sustained the Jews for 40 years in the desert tasted like “pastry fried in honey”.

Although the honey the Torah references is specifically date honey, the honey bee also plays a significant part in Jewish beliefs. Bees have a sting within them, yet their product is sweet. We are hoping that G-d's attribute of judgment will be tempered by His attribute of mercy, producing a sweeter result.

The Torah teaches us to “use the right side to attract and draw near, and the left to push away.” A bee’s primary function is to produce honey, yet its stinger is a defense to protect its treasure. So, too, our main focus is to “do good,” i.e. the positive commandments; secondarily, “abstaining from bad,” i.e. the negative commandments, helps protect and safeguard the former. Ideally, we try to combine the “left” with the “right."

So, my intrigue with bees and honey made perfect sense to highlight at Oh My Stars! to help celebrate the sweetness of my new endeavor!! We have a whole selection of products that include images of the bee, or can be used with honey that are perfect for celebrations all throughout the year.

We're open this weekend from 10-6, and starting next week we will be open every day from Wednesday to Sunday with the same hours through the last week of December. Come by and see us, you’ll “bee happy” you did!!