Simchat Torah

Simchat Torah is the last Sabbath of the Feast of Sukkot or Feast of Tabernacles. The Feast of Tabernacles is the third and final fall feast (Feast of Trumpets or Rosh Hashanah, lit. head of the year and Yom Kippur, lit. Day of Atonement are the other preceding fall feasts). It declares the goodness of God through His abundant provision and care during the wilderness wanderings of the Jews.

I had the privilege of attending Sinchat Torah at a Jewish Synagogue in Portland with a Chinese student from George Fox on this night. Two strangers:  an Irish/German and a Chinese guy walking into a Jewish synagogue --- sounds strange enough doesn't it. But they were very welcoming and gave us directions so as to not offend. 

First, the yamacha's were placed upon our heads. My Chinese friend had really high poofy hair so it looked a little weird on him but it went well with his plaid tennis shoes. 

Next, assigned seating -- men on the leftt, women on the right, separated by a wooden partition with glass at the top - very traditional and happens in many orthodox churches. 

We were given two books. One was the songs to sing as we closed out Simchat Torah and the other as we began the bereishit bara - the new cycle of reading through the Torah again. 

Almost the whole service was in Hebrew. I took this in Seminary and can still read it (somewhat) but it was a whole other experience hearing it spoken and sung. Like any foreign language I wanted to stop the service and say, "Slow down" but since I was a guest I didn't think it prudent. Every once in a while the young rabbi would call out a page number and we faithfully turned - proud that we were able to participate in some small way. 

The service was short - only 45 minutes in total. It was not their full Shabbot service which is 3-4 hours including a lunch. It speaks to community that often is lacking in Protestant churches. There were no instruments in the church - only the voices of worshippers. Not always on key or in timing with each other but they lifted up their communal voices as best they could. I had gift envy. If only the Holy Spirit would give me the gift of tongues I could have sung with them. But alas, the heavenly fire did not fall. 

The sermon was short - maybe 5 minutes. As he began to introduce Genesis he said that it was a book of lessons, lessons about righteousness. "Although a righteous man falls seven times he will rise but the wicked are brought down by calamity," says Proverbs 24:16. Righteousness has to do with a man's ability to rise in the midst of his failures. Righteousness is the obedient pursuit of the law. I wept inside. 

Torah will never be able to make a man righteous. It will make him a good, moral, man, but it cannot make him right before God. Deuteronomy 27:26 says, "Cursed is the man who does not uphold the words of this law by carrying them out." We are all cursed because we cannot carry out all the law. It is why Paul tells us in Galatians 2:13, "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree' (Deut. 21:23)." Jesus was cursed not just because he was murdered and hung on a tree like a common criminal (which he was) but because he was an innocent man who, indeed, did keep all the commandments and become our substitution. We were cursed and should have been the one identified as the criminal but he stepped in and deflected the wrath of God by letting it hit him. 

Second Corinthians 5:21 tells us so wonderfully that "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." It's not in deeds that we become right with God but in responding to the finished work of Jesus. 

My prayer is the same as the Apostle Paul - that some day the Jewish people will recognize their Messiah and come to know the true Word, Jesus, as their Lord and Savior.