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The Holiday when we become the Torah's "Dancing Feet"
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On Simchat Torah, the Torah, too, wants to dance, so we become the Torah's dancing feet...
30 Comments Posted
I felt very compel as I read about Simchat Torah
because I have never seen it in my congregation. On the other hand I hope that one day I could see it with my own eyes to feel what I just felt just by reading about it.
I hope thay my comments are appropiate and in order as well.
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Really appreciate these articles. Helpful in explaining to children and friends who are curious, about the month of holy days. Thank you.
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This is an amazing website!!! I used this information to make a report and my teacher said that I did a great job!!! Thank you so much.
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This website helps me expose judaism to jewish student in the middle of the caribbean who have never experienced Jewish holidays. It helps me bring out the Jewish flame inside all of them. Thank you for your support!
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As above so below!!
Having married a wonderful Jew i confess that Chabad helps me explain to my entire extended family the importance of maintaining kosher and keeping the covenants: it helps us keep our household fruitful with many a blessing and many a festival to celebrate the love of our common source of Divine Love, our Father, our God who art iin the heavens ....
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Every day I feel happier and more contented because Chabad has come into my life. My goal is to share the goodness Chabad teaches with others and in a small way to help make the world a better place.
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Do you read the entire Vezoth Ha-Berachah and then the first lines of Bereshiyth on Simchat Torah? Or is Vezoth Ha-beracha read on Shabbat Chol HaMo-eid in addition to Exodus 33:12-34:26, etc?
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There is no "Parshat Shavua" on Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed., just the reading for Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed. On ST, we read all of Vezot HaBeracha, plus the first section of Breishit. The following Shabbat, we return to reading Parshat Shavua and read all of Parshat Breishit. Hope this helps.
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As far as I understand, Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah are not "compacted" into one day in Israel. Rather, they are celebrated as one day, as commanded in the Torah. But outside of Israel, the celebration is split out between the two days. In other words, it is the one-day celebration in Israel that is properly normative, and the two-day celebration in the Diaspora that gets exceptional treatment -- NOT the other way around.
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I WISH that "all" were called to the Torah -- women are not in Orthodox shuls. And I wish that women danced with the Torah in most Orthodox shuls. Unfortunately, "all" seems to mean "all men". I grew up reading "all" and thinking it meant me too. After alI, I am a Jew. But it turns out that "all" isn't all-inclusive. It makes me sad!
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Indeed on Simchat Torah we read the entire portion of VeZot Habracha as well as a portion of Bereishit, the first part of Genesis which records the creation of the world.
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to women who think they cant dance before the L-rd, Hashem wants you too. He wants your worship too, sometime man needs to move over, women have such a sweet spirit, let them pfaise the L-rd.
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I always believed that when G-d said "all" through out the Torah, women were included. So why would that not be true in this rejoicing?
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Ilana! So BE a JEW where Jewish women are treated properly! Find a shtibl where women and men worship together. Those orthodox men don't make all the rules, and where the rules contradict this, the "rules" are WRONG.
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I believed that almost my whole life. The Orthodox men don't make the rules for *everyone*. If they make unjust rules, then the rules are wrong. And I davened in a "shteibel"-like shul that is fully egalitarian. But these shuls and movements are not managing to sustain Judaism over generations. There are fewer Jews in every generation and they are less observant. So now I don't know what the rules should be.
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It makes me very sad to read so many are not in understanding of the role of women. throughout the torah women played life saving roles, especially as messengers or in the lessons of compassion. I would not change my role for anything in the world. who would do my essential work in the home or with the children or nourishing the creation with compassion, light, and mercy? to me the separation of the sexes is absolutely basic and the love between them as sacred as the tree of life. how can you love G-d and question Him so?? would you want the man to bear the children? have you not gone to the very gates of heaven to have yours? such a blessing to be a woman. thank you, G-d, for making me a woman.
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Sharon, I am happy to be a woman and to be raising my children. It still makes me sad that in Orthodox shuls I don't get called to the Torah for an Aliyah and that in most the women don't dance on Simchat Torah.
Maybe you don't care about dancing on Simchat Torah. But for me it was an uplifting, joyful, wonderful, satisfying holiday -- because I loved the dancing. But this is not usual practice in Orthodox shuls. What a loss of a holiday! So many Orthodox women do feel "left out". Imagine going to a wedding and just watching. Women want to dance and celebrate too.
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when king david was dancing before the torah, the women laughed at him and made fun of him.
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The Art Scroll Machzor for Simcha Torah includes all the songs (with English translations) for the Hakafots....could you please include all those songs on your wonderful web site.
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Why do women as well as men who are egalitarian in their worldview insist that others who are Orthodox in their views adhere to their perspectives? Their are movements who have changed or adopt different perspectives. I encourage those who are not Orthodox to stop trying to changing Orthodoxy.
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i think there may be a misunderstanding...
when David Hamelech danced with the Aron HaKodesh on the way to Jerusalem, he danced with all of his heart. his wife, Michal, was concerned that the way in which he danced in front of all the women on Israel was not modest. however, the sages teach us that David is praised for dancing the way he did.
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when did these flags appear and for what reasons ?
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yes! David was an inspiration to all of us. and that is why we celebrate this glorious occasion and why we, too, dance at the bimah. but, the women are denied doing so, in my most humble insight, because it was the women who questioned Davids actions. He never went in to Michal, again. G-d was very angry with the women. I accept this. I look on with an unspeakable joy, instead,.
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The custom of dancing with flags is hundreds of years old and they do so much to enhance the festive atmosphere of the holiday dancing, as well as give the kids a real role to play.
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In the UK 1930 as a child i remember going round with the flag having an apple stuck on top and a lit small birthday candle stuck into the apple top !! health and safety now forbid the lighted candle
flag dancing comes from the chinese 1000s of years ago
old paintings of simchat torah festivities1850+ have children,no flags
when could one first buy them
so when did the custom of simchat torah flag dancing come about ?
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Women are equal to Men. Traditions can put us in touch with our souls to experience the divine, but when the traditions are exclusionary they can be harmful, and lead us to feel divided in within our souls and isolated from the group - when this happens, and people blindly follow and ignore the truth informing their own voice and turn deaf ear towards the hurting voices of others - this is sad and tragic. Women should not be discouraged from dancing. This is wrong and it speaks for itself.
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I am 79 yrs old and I danced in New York City with an American flag with an apple on top. No candle. It was a joyous occasion remembered fondly. Yes, girls were allowed to dance even though the shul was orthodox.
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"It is customary for the children to carry flags with lit candles during the Hakafot." (Yalkut Minhagim) Reason: In accord with the verse, (Is 24:16): With lights give honor to Hashem."
-- Rite and Reason, 1050 Jewish Customs and Their Sources by Shmuel Pinchas Gelbard
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I am 80 years old. I also live in Bar Harbor, Maine and would love to meet Anonymous from Bar Harbor. We seem to have some background in common and who knows what else. Sharon, please share my email address and ask this person to email me. Thank you.
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In the UK lighted candles are no longer permitted as a fire risk and new health and safety regulations.
far fewer apples are now seen on the top of flags as the flag poles are weak plastic and have no extension above the now plastic flag top.
DANCING IS ENTHUSIASTIC,as always, men and women separately
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