Preparing video...
0:00 / 0:00

Jews should dance this Simchas Torah (even if it's uncomfortable)

512 views
Rabbi Josh Zebberman avatar
Rabbi Josh Zebberman

Transcript

Auto-generated transcript. Not time-synced to the video.

okay so the big question everybody's asking this year is should we dance this year on Sim Tor Sim Torah this year is the yite is the anniversary of the Hebrew on the Hebrew calendar of the October 7th Massacre maybe we should tone down the dancing and the truth is and it this may sound ironic but we should be toning up the dancing we should be upping our game we should be dancing even more now why how is that respectful to the lives that have been lost how is that appropriate how could we be in the mood to dance this really goes down to understanding what Simas Torah is actually celebrating Sim Torah essentially is celebrating the connection that a Jew has to God and His Torah I mean we dance on Simas Torah with the Torah closed it's not like we celebrate plus Torah our connection to Torah through reading the Torah as we would on on other occasions but through dancing with the Torah because it's not just the academic connection academic connections are are you know vary from person to person there's there's quite a range of diversity to our academic relationship with God but it's a deeper relationship with God it's a relationship with God that is I'm I'm connected not based on what I understand but it's just a deep part of who I am and that's going to be expressed in every part of me not just my mind and heart but even my feet so I'm going to dance with the Torah it's not just a connection I have with the Torah it's what I have to offer to the Torah the Torah is God's sacred values it's God's vision for Humanity it's God's road map for how he wants the world to look and on its own it's it's spiritual it's that's nice it's important it's it's holy but what the Torah needs is human beings to implement it and that's why we dance with the Torah and Sim Torah we are the legs of that Torah what Hamas tried doing on October 7th and what the world tried propagating since October 7th is that the Torah God's vision for Humanity is not relevant and it's our job to pick up the Torah to infuse it with Vitality to infuse it with life and to dance with the Torah if there's a yearim t in history where we need and should where we should be dancing this is the year every single one of us are needed it's not just like do I need to dance you are needed to dance it's not about whether you need it you are needed it's necessary the Torah needs you in order for the Torah and its Vision to go to disperse to inspire to influence it needs your feet it needs your legs every single one of us are needed to dance so it's not just a question of should I be dancing do I need to be dancing am I in the mood is it respectful it it's something that we are needed to do it's necessary the Torah needs it God God needs it because there's a vision and purpose here and God needs us to experience and share that joy that joy that we experience on Sim is a taste a sample of what we're going to be experiencing when Messiah comes in the Messianic era and it's that joy that actually ushers in that era hopefully really soon friends