Friday, October 2, 6:30 pm
Please join us for a family-friendly Shabbat Service and Simchat Torah Celebration where we will read from, dance with, and wind the Torah, concluding the service with an oneg and ice cream sundaes.
Simchat Torah – it means rejoicing in the Torah — is a joyous holiday that is celebrated immediately after Sukkot. Simchat Torah is a time for dancing with the Torah, waving flags and carrying banners. The Torah scrolls are taken from the ark and carried by congregants around the synagogue seven times. During these seven circuits, or hakafot, those not carrying Torahs wave the brightly colored flags and sing Hebrew songs.
On this holiday we celebrate the reading of the end of the Torah and then the beginning of the Torah all at once, signifying that for us Torah study never ends. The last word in the Torah is “Yisrael.” It ends with the letter lamed, which makes the “L” sound. The first word of the Torah is B’reishit. It begins with the Hebrew letter Bet, which makes a “B” or “V” sound. Together the two letters, lamed and bet, make the word lev, which means “heart” in Hebrew. We say that the Torah is the Heart of the Jewish people. We hope to see you there!
Please note that there is no Religious School on Sunday Oct. 4; all Religious School families are especially encouraged to attend the Friday evening service and celebration!