Visitor's Guide
Order of ServiceSpecial Notes
Dictionary of Terms
Order of Service
• “How lovely are your tents, Oh Jacob; your dwelling places, Israel.” (Num. 24:5)
| o REMOVAL OF THE TORAH FROM THE ARK "When the Ark would travel, Moses would say, Arise Oh L-RD, and let your enemies be scattered! Let those who hate you flee from your Presence. From Zion will go forth your Torah, and the Word of the L-rd from Jerusalem. Blessed is He, who in His holiness did entrust His Torah to his people, Israel….”(Num. 10:35; Isaiah 2:3) | |
| o SHEMA - "Hear, Oh Israel! The L-rd is our G-d, the L-rd is ONE.” (Deut 6:4) - “Blessed is His Name, Whose glorious kingdom is forever & ever.” - V’Ahavta: And you shall love…. Deut 6: 5-9, Leviticus19:18 | |
| o TORAH WALK | |
| o MIDRASH (5-minute sermonette) on the Scripture that will be canted | |
| o TORAH READING IN HEBREW (canted) | |
| o CONGREGATIONAL RESPONSE TO TORAH READING "This is the Torah that Moses placed before the Children of Israel, given by G-d, through Moses’ hand….” (Deut. 4:44; Num. 9:23; Prov. 3:16-18; Is. 42:21). | |
| o RETURNING THE TORAH TO THE ARK - "And when it rested he would say, ‘Arise, Oh L-RD, return to your resting place, You and the Ark of your Might. Let your priests be robed in righteousness, and your faithful with joy. Forsake not thy servant, David; reject not your anointed.’ - 'I have given you good teaching, forsake not My Torah. It is a Tree of Life to those who hold it fast. Everyone who upholds it is happy. Its ways are ways of pleasantness and all its paths are peace’. - ‘Turn us to You, Oh’ L-RD and we shall return. Renew our days as of old.” - (Num. 10:36; Psalms 132:8-10; Prov. 3:17-18, 4:2; Lam. 5:21) |
Special Notes
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THE PERSONAL NAME FOR GOD—When God appeared to Moses at the burning bush, He revealed his personal name, I Am [YHWH] (Gen. 3:14). Some time between Moses’ time and New Testament times, the Jewish community came to believe that it was irreverent to utter God’s personal name; only the priest who entered the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement spoke the name of God, and only on that one occasion. For that reason, the Jewish community developed alternate terms to use in place of God’s personal name: In keeping with this tradition, and out of reverence to God, the Messianic Jewish community commonly removes the vowels of words that refer to God when writing in English (i.e., “L-rd,” “G-d”). TORAH WALK—During the Jewish worship service, the Torah scroll is removed from the Ark (a cupboard in the front of the synagogue, used to symbolize the Ark of the Covenant). The scroll is then carried in a procession among the congregation before it is placed on a stand and the Scripture passage for the day is read. (Some liturgical Christian denominations retain a form of this tradition by walking down among the congregation to read the Gospel lesson.) During this procession, it is common for the people to touch and even kiss the Torah scroll out of reverence to God, who gave the Torah to us. King David declared that God’s law was more precious than pure gold and sweeter than honey (Ps. 19:10). The psalmist also exclaims, “Oh, how I love your law (Torah)! I meditate on it all day long,” (Psalm 119:97) and expounds on how blessed those are who “walk according to the law of the LORD,” (Psalm 119:1, cf. Psalm 119:2ff). The tradition of kissing the Torah scroll is centuries if not millennia old. It is highly possible that the Lord Jesus Christ (Yeshua the Messiah) kissed the scroll during a similar procession. The Apostle Paul claimed to have strictly adhered to the traditions of his fathers (Acts 28:17, cf. Acts 21:20-24). In the Messianic community, kissing the Torah is also considered a way of showing love to Yeshua the Messiah, who is “[t]he Word [that] became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14). ALTERNATE TERMS FOR "CROSS"—In the Messianic Community, it is common to use the words “tree” or “execution stake” in place of the word “cross.” Centuries of persecution under the symbol of the cross by those who called themselves “Christians” have caused the word “cross” strikes fear in the hearts of most Jews. We desire that Yeshua himself be the only stumbling block to Jewish nonbelievers. |
Dictionary of Terms
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Adonai—Literally “my L-rd” Aliyah—The process of going up to the bema (front platform) and reading from the Torah; this term is also used for immigration to Israel. Aaronic Benediction—Priestly blessing [Bir’kat Cohanim] (Numbers 6:24-27) Ark—Cupboard in front of the synagogue the Torah scrolls are stored. This symbolizes the Ark of the Covenant in which was stored a copy of the Ten Commandments that God gave to Moses (Ex. 25:16; Deut. 10:3-5). Baruch HaShem—Bless the Name (of G-d) Brit Hadashah—New Covenant, New Testament Chaverah—Fellowship Drash—A mini sermon on the weekly Torah portion given before the reading Haftarah—Weekly reading from the prophets Kaddish—Mourner’s Prayer expressing praise for G-d Kehilah—The congregation Kippah—Head covering (yarmulke) Meshiach—Messiah (Christ in Greek) Mezuzah—A small box containing a small scroll that list the Shema; G-d commanded (Deut 6:9) that the Shema, (according to Jesus, representative of the whole Torah – see Mathew 22:37-40), be written on the doorframes of our houses to remind believers of the commandments He gave through Moses. Parashah—Weekly Torah portion Shabbat Shalom—Peaceful Sabbath (greeting) Shema—The central affirmation of Judaism (Deut. 6:4-9) Tallit—Men’s prayer shawl worn as a reminder to observe all G-d’s laws (Num. 15:37-41) Tanakh—The Old Testament; also called the Hebrew Bible. Tanak is a Hebrew abbreviation for Torah, Nevi’im, and Ketuvi’im [the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings], which is how the Jewish community organized the Old Testament books. Jesus referred to this in Matthew 7:12 when He spoke of the “Law and the Prophets.” Torah—The first five books of the Bible, also known as the Five Books of Moses and the Pentateuch. While “torah” is commonly translated as “law,” it has a broader meaning closer to that of “teaching.” Torah Walk—The procession each Shabbat carrying the Torah Scroll around the synagogue for worshippers to see and touch. Yeshua became the living Word and dwelt among us. Tzedakah Box—Literally “righteousness box;” charity. The boxes between the entry doors used for depositing tithes and offerings. Yeshua (Jesus) preached, “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them…[but] when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret,” (Matt. 6:1-4). Yeshua—Jesus. “Yeshua” is the Hebrew form for “Jesus,” which is Latin (there is no “J” sound in Hebrew). Jesus’ Jewish mother, “Miryam,” called her Jewish son “Yeshua.” |
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