a lesson in being kosher

Having spent many years in the south, Christianity is very much a part of the culture. Here in NYC, there is a large Jewish population. I have come to learn that the practice of Judaism comes in many forms. Currently I share office space with some orthodox Jews from Israel. They observe strict kosher laws, which means that they adhere to the Old Testament laws of not eating meat and dairy together. These practices are referred to as "kosher" dietary practices.

Over the course of our working relationship I have come to find out some interesting things about kosher practices. For instance, one time we had to postpone a birthday party celebration because some of the men forgot about it and had meat for breakfast. According to kosher laws, 6 hours must pass before dairy can be eaten after eating meat, or vice-versa. For this reason some Jewish people just avoid dairy altogether. In kosher homes there is often 2 dishwashers - one for dishes that have touched dairy and another for dishes that have touched meat. There is also a strict observance of the Sabbath, which is from sundown on Friday until temple worship on Saturday. It is for this reason that many Orthodox Jews will leave work early on Friday because they have to be at home before sundown. I have also been told that Orthodox Jews don't use electricity until after temple on Saturday. Some of them have timers on their television sets so that if the TV just "happens" to come on, they aren't actively using electricity. I have also been told about the presence of elevators that stop at every floor. This is so that they are not actively using electricity either.

Last week at work, I made a comment to my co-worker that the coffee pot was abnormally full for a given Tuesday. She responded that some people weren't drinking the coffee that week. I just shrugged it off because I had a lot of work to do. 

I came to find out that people weren't drinking coffee because someone had thought that possibly the dish sponge that had been used to wash the dishes of the non-kosher practicing people had also been used to wash the coffee pot that everyone used. One of my co-workers is the main one who washes the coffee pot every day, and she always uses paper towels to clean the pot, but no one could be sure if the sponge had been used to clean the coffee pot on the rare occasions that she was out of the office. 

Therefore, next week the coffee pot is getting replaced, as well as the dish sponge, so that those who observe kosher dietary practices can drink their coffee with peace of mind once again! I consider this my first lesson in being kosher.