Simchat Torah
On Sunday, October 8 from 10am-noon in Half Moon Bay, we celebrated the birth of Torah!
It was like a birthday party for the Torah, complete with birthday cake and delicacies from local Israeli chef, Kobi Vardi!
What else did we do?
- We’ll took out the Torah from the ark and read from it.
- We’ll sang some songs.
- We’ll also enjoyed some Israeli dancing
“What is Simchat Torah?” you may wonder. Here are a couple excerpts from My Jewish Learning (lightly modified by R’Moshe) to help explain.
Simchat Torah conveys a clear message about the centrality of Torah in Jewish life. It is both a source of Jewish identity and a symbol of our tradition and values. Simchat Torah is the day on which the whole community gathers to come into direct contact with the Torah and to express our joy in having received it.
Simchat Torah is characterized by joyful dancing with the Torah. The final portion of the Book of Deuteronomy is read in the synagogue followed by the beginning of the Book of Genesis. In this manner, the annual cycle of Torah readings continues unbroken.