Tonight, after mashed potato and chicken Shabbat dinner, we’ll gather as a congregation of children and adults, and all ages in between, to begin our Shabbat, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, and Consecration service. That’s a lot, and we can, at least in terms of time, be grateful that we do not incorporate services also for the
Fast of Gedalia
, or
Shemini Atzeret
in our TBD custom.
These former Jewish Holy days are all related to each other, however, and even more so, go hand in hand with our new students’ milestones in their Jewish journey- Consecration.
Consecration is a traditionally Reform event. According to historian
Michael Meyer,
the ceremony can be attributed to
Rabbi David Einhorn
, one of the early leading figures during Reform’s creation in Germany and later in the United States. Rabbi Einhorn was a proponent of placing spirituality over halachah (Jewish law), and so he suggested replacing circumcision with a consecration ritual as the opening event that would confirm a young boy’s life in the Jewish community.
We have since progressed. Consecration services often take place at the end of the
High Holy Day
season, usually as part of the congregation’s celebration for the holiday of
Simchat Torah
, meaning ‘rejoicing of the Torah.’ The word “consecrate” in religious circles means an association with something holy, and throughout our tradition Jewish learning is considered a sacred task. What an appropriate time, then, to celebrate this milestone in a young person’s life.
Indeed tonight we'll see the entire synagogue community joins in the hakafah (processional of the Torah) and Torah scrolls are unrolled for all to see. New students will see the importance and centrality of this ancient and holy sourcebook. They also have the opportunity to see Judaism as a tradition that is interactive, celebratory, and engaging.
A textual basis for Consecration’s placement on this day might come from a custom of calling all in the community to hear the Torah on
Sukkot
, which is itself based on Deuteronomy 31:12. The text reads as God’s instructions to Moses: Gather the people – men, women, children, and the strangers in your communities – that they may hear and so learn to revere Adonai your God and to observe faithfully every word of this Teaching”.
Our TBD Sukkaht Shalom is a shelter of peace, while Sukkot is also a celebration of the harvest. Our children are our seeds for us to cultivate, to form roots, branches, and harvest their fruit, an analogy to good deeds to be harvested.
And why are we combining all on
Shabbat
? Shabbat is the Holy day, which differs from the mundane. Shabbat is the day of dressing nicer, eating better, resting more, reflecting deeper, and gathering as a congregational family in front of our clergy, the eternal light, and the Torah. We consecrate at TBD on Shabbat because we stress on the holy act of learning at religious school. Those who join us tomorrow, will serve our congregation as endorsing those sweet children who enter their beginning steps into Jewish learning, in their new home- Temple Beth David.
And as for our children, chances are, they will continue to claim they did “nothing” when picked up from Religious School, even though we are embracing the beginning of Holy learning. While most of our young people might not fully comprehend the magnitude of this milestone, we hope that they will look back on the occasion in the years that follow with a new understanding. Consecration, like so many other rituals in our tradition, is about coming together as a community to welcome new students and new families. Wherever the ceremony is celebrated on the calendar, we affirm our commitment and dedication to educating our young people in Jewish tradition. And, as we see the hope and spirit in our young people, we renew in ourselves a passion for Jewish learning that we hope to transmit to our children, LeDor VaDor.
Chag Sukkot Sameach,
Gal Kessler Rohs,
Education Director
