Out of Zion

Dr. Susan Michael: When was the last time you went dancing through the aisles of your church, rejoicing over the Bible, the gift of the word of God? The synagogues do this each year. I want to welcome you to this week's Shabbat Shalom devotional when I seek to share just a little inspiration and bring a little peace to the close of your very busy week.

The seven-day Feast of Tabernacles is followed by an eighth-day assembly called Shemini Atzeret. It is a Sabbath day and it's a time of another holy convocation. Over time, this eighth-day assembly became the day when the annual reading through the Torah came to an end and the new cycle began again. It became known as Simchat Torah, or rejoicing of the Torah. It's on this day that the last section of the Torah from Deuteronomy 34 is read, followed by the first chapter of Genesis, as the annual reading through the Torah begins again.

In synagogues, when the ark where they store the Torah scrolls—it's like a big cabinet or closet at the head of the synagogue—is opened to take the Torah scrolls out for these readings, the worshippers leave their seats to dance and sing with the Torah scrolls in a joyous celebration that can last for several hours. What a wonderful and meaningful tradition to express their joy of having been given the word of God.

The Apostle Paul said that one of the chief responsibilities of the Jewish people was to be the custodians, the keepers of the oracles of God. They received them from God Himself, they recorded them, they protected them, and they cherished them. They made sure that they were copiously transmitted and passed on from generation to generation. We have the Bible in our churches because of the Jewish people's love of the Torah and their care for it.

Be back here next week when we are going to join the Jewish community and read through the Torah with them this year. On Simchat Torah, they will end on Deuteronomy 34 and together we're going to begin reading at Genesis 1. Plan to join us here each week on the Shabbat Shalom devotional when I'll share a little thought of inspiration from that week's Torah reading. This is the same Torah reading that Jesus did, that Paul did, and that the early believers did each week in their synagogues. Let's adopt this love for the word of God that we find in Simchat Torah. And with that, I wish you a Shabbat Shalom.