Our Jewish Roots

This weekend Holly and I explored two worship services in two Messianic Jewish synagogues. Of course there are dramatic differences between Jewish believers and non-Jewish believers... the language, the songs, and the movement (and dancing). I was most enchanted by the beautiful ceremony Satuday morning when the rabbi and his assistants lead the people in singing a blessing to God, a blessing to the Torah, a blessing as the ark (or cabinet) was opened, a blessing as the curtain (*that was torn) was opened, a blessing as the scrolls were removed, a song and dance to celebrate the Torah... (whew...let me take a breath here)... a blessing upon the reader, a singing/reading of the selected reading and then the reading of the English Bible. (All of this demonstrated the intense love of the law...how beautifully exhausting!!!)

Later that night, we were hanging out with Melanie and Erin (who are in town for a conference) and we stumbled upon this Holocaust memorial across the street from the Irish pubs. Although we were shivering from the cold, we were drawn into this captivating series of quotes, facts, stories, and names. It was an appropriate and humbling end to our weekend Jewish safari. Here are some pictures of the exhibit. (Not ours.)