Jewish Facts
What is the Torah?
A) The first five books of the Hebrew Bible, also known as the Five Books of Moses.
B) A Jewish prayer shawl.
C) A collection of Jewish folktales and stories.
D) A ceremonial bread eaten on Shabbat.
A. What is the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, also known as the Five Books of Moses.
1. In what direction is Hebrew read?
A. Left to right
B. Right to left
C. Alternating lines of left to right and right to left
D. Top to bottom
B. What is right to left?
This Foundation grantee is the longest running active synagogue in the city of Detroit. What is its name?
What is the Downtown Synagogue or Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue.
OneTable, a grantee of the William Davidson Foundation, empowers Jewish young adults to create meaningful experiences around which Jewish tradition and practice?
A. Passover Seders
B. Shabbat dinners
C. Hanukkah celebrations
D. High Holiday services
What is Friday night Shabbat dinners?
To whom exactly did God give the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai?
A. The highest bidder
B. Moses
C. The entire Jewish nation
D. Charlton Heston
Answer C: What is the entire Jewish nation
Approximately how many Jews live in the world today?
A. 5 million
B. 15 million
C. 50 million
D. 500 million
B. What is 15 miliion?
"Bar Mitzvah" refers to what, exactly?
A. A male Jew who is at least 13 years old
B. The synagogue service where a male Jew says the Torah blessing for the first time, no matter how old he is
C. A Jewish person's 13th birthday party
D. The Torah reading a 13-year-old Jew participates in for the first time
D. What is the Torah reading a 13-year-old Jew participates in for the first time?
The William Davidson Foundation funded the creation of a digital archive preserving over 100 years of Jewish Detroit history. What is this archive called?
A. Detroit Jewish Chronicle Online
B. The Davidson Digital Collection
C. William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History
D. Michigan Jewish Historical Records
C. What is the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History?
Which national organization, supported by the William Davidson Foundation, focuses on connecting Jewish young adults to meaningful Jewish experiences on college campuses, including MSU and other Michigan campuses?
What is Hillel or Chabad International?
Why do Jews stay up all night studying Torah on Shavuot night?
A. Too much coffee
B. To show eagerness to accept the Torah, unlike our ancestors who slept when God came to give it
C. Because God commanded all Jewish men to stay away from their wives before the Giving of the Torah
D. To pray in the morning at the earliest possible time
Answer B: What is to show eagerness to accept the Torah, unlike our ancestors who slept when God came to give it?
4. What was the day-to-day language of Jews from Central and Eastern Europe (Ashkenazim) before they began assimilating after WWII?
A. Aramaic
B. Ladino
C. Yiddish
D. Hebrew
C. What is Yiddish?
Why do Jews eat latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (donuts) on Chanukah?
A. That’s what our ancestors ate when they left Greece
B. Tastes great
C. Less filling
D. To remember the miracle of the oil
D. What is to remember the miracle of the oil?
The William Davidson Foundation supports initiatives to foster collaboration between Detroit’s Jewish education and engagement organizations. Which local collaboration is often mentioned as a key strategy for Jewish educational growth in the region?
Answer: What is The Detroit Jewish Education Collective, or The Collective?
The Wexner-Davidson Foundation Fellowship is designed to develop the next generation of Jewish professional leadership. Which of the following best describes the fellowship’s focus?
A. Supporting Jewish artists in Israel
B. Training Jewish administrators for day schools
C. Investing in high-potential Jewish communal professionals
D. Funding synagogue renovations with growing memberships
C. What is investing in high-potential Jewish communal professionals
How can you make sure that a product you buy at the local supermarket is certified kosher?
A. Ask a Rabbi to bless it
B. Look to see if it has a kosher symbol
C. Check to see if it costs double the price of other brands
D. All products that have no pork in their ingredients are kosher
Answer B: What is to look and see if it has a kosher symbol?
Where did many Sephardi Jews settle after being expelled from Spain in 1492?
Answer choices (multiple choice):
A) Poland
B) Morocco
C) Ethiopia
D) China
B. What is Morocco?
What food(s) are forbidden to Jews during Passover?
A. Any grain that can be made into flour and leavened
B. Wheat only
C. Anything with yeast
D. Anything ground, including coffee
A. What is any grain that can be made into flour and leavened?
Which are the four Detroit-based day school(s) has received significant support from the William Davidson Foundation to enhance its educational offerings and Jewish learning?
What are Hillel Day School, Frankel Jewish Academy, Yeshivah Beth Yehuda, and Farber Hebrew Day School?
The William Davidson Foundation has supported the Shalom Hartman Institute, an organization known for its commitment to which of the following key objectives?
A. Preserving ancient Jewish manuscripts
B. Advancing Jewish pluralism and thought leadership
C. Building new synagogues across North America
D. Providing direct financial aid to Jewish day schools
Answer B. What is advancing Jewish pluralism and thought leadership?
Mr. Davidson and our board all identify as strong Zionists, and we fund through this lens in both our US and Israel grantmaking. What is the primary goal of Zionism?
A. To promote Jewish cultural festivals worldwide
B. To support the ancestral Jewish homeland in Israel
C. To translate ancient Jewish texts into modern languages
D. To encourage Jewish dietary laws (kashrut) and the spreading of Judaism worldwide
B: What is to support the ancestral Jewish homeland in Israel?
How many commandments are there in the Torah?
A. 5780
B. 248
C. 606
D. 613
D. What is 613?
According to the Torah (i.e., 5 Books of Moses), which two foods must never be mixed?
A. Chocolate and peanut butter
B. Hamburger Helper and Milk of Magnesia
C. Oil and water
D. Roast beef and American cheese
D. What is roast beef and American cheese?
This WDF partnership organization strengthens Jewish education and community in Europe and now the United States through a network of Jewish day schools.
What is the name of this organization?
What is the Lauder Foundation / The Lauder Impact Initiative?
The William Davidson Foundation is a major supporter of Sefaria. What is the primary purpose of Sefaria?
a) A travel guide for Jewish communities to access kosher food and Jewish life
b) A digital platform offering free access to Jewish texts and commentaries
c) A marketplace for Jewish ritual items to enrich Jewish practice
d) An online matchmaking service for Jewish singles to find a spouse
Answer b: What is a digital platform offering free access to Jewish texts and commentaries?
The William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education at the Jewish Theological Seminary was established with a $15 million endowment. What is one of its primary goals?
A. To train Jewish educators across denominations
B. To fund archaeological digs in Israel
C. To publish Jewish historical novels
D. To support Jewish culinary arts programs
Answer: A. What is to train Jewish educators across denominations?