What are those black boxes and leather straps Jewish men wear?
They are called “tefillin” (mentioned in the Torah as “totafos”, and often seen in English translations as “frontlets”). They contain parchments with verses from the Torah. During the weekday morning service, one of the boxes (the “Hand t’filluh”) is placed upon the left arm so that it rests against the heart, and the suspended leather strap is wound around the left hand, and around the middle finger of that hand. The other box (the “Head t’filluh”) is placed upon the head, above the forehead, so as to rest upon the cerebrum. This is in fulfillment of the Torah commandments. If you go to a traditional shul and lack tefillin, you can be sure that someone will lend you his and assist you in fulfilling this mitzvah. Note that the actual commandment is to wear them anytime, all the time. That is, anytime a day for a moment to fullfill the obligation, and all the time to fullfill the non-obligatory commandment. The rabbis forbade wearing them at nightime (except under very specific circumst
