There are a number of branches of Judaism. The Orthodox are very strict in exactly how they practice what they believe to be the requirements of their faith. If you have heard about Jews who will not even turn on a light or use a car or an elevator on the weekly Sabbath, they were likely members of this branch of Judaism.
Those who are part of the Conservative branch of Judaism are slightly less rigid in their practice, but still are very careful about such things as observing the Kosher laws regarding food, and not working on the Sabbath.
Those who are part of Reformed Judaism recognize very few strict requirements for daily living, and if they follow such practices as avoiding pork and shellfish, they may view their actions as merely part of a cultural way of life rather than as binding commandments from God.
Material in this series of articles on Jewish customs refers in particular to either Orthodox or Conservative Jewish practices. For simplicity, the customs are described as they are scheduled in Israel--outside that country, every annual holy day as described in the Bible (except for the "fast day" of Yom Kippur), is traditionally observed for two days in a row. For an explanation on the reasoning behind this practice, see:
http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday0.htm
Unnoticed by many people who don't pay attention to religious trends, the past three decades have seen a surprising surge of interest in Protestant Christian circles in the topic of the biblical weekly Sabbath, annual Feasts, and Holy Days. Up through the 1960s, a Christian who mentioned that he observed these days might expect to be met with a puzzled look and a question why anyone who was not Jewish by birth would want to celebrate "Jewish holidays." There seemed to most people to be no intersection between Jewish custom and the "Christian Bible."
Of course, there have been "Messianic Jewish" believers, teachers, and congregations in the United States since at least the late 1800s. The notion that someone who had grown up Jewish, then come to believe that Jesus was the Messiah, might continue keeping some of the customs of their childhood wasn't too surprising. But to think that a non-Jewish Christian believer would find any reason to pay attention at all for instance, to the Sabbath, or the Passover, seemed a foreign idea.
This began to change in the
1970s. In 1978, the founder of the national Jews for
Jesus organization, Moishe Rosen, and his wife Ceil
wrote a book titled Christ in the Passover.
Moishe Rosen had grown up in a Jewish home, and
converted to Christianity as a young man, eventually
becoming a Baptist pastor. His desire to reach back and
share his faith with those who shared his Jewish
heritage led to the founding of the Jews for Jesus
ministry in 1973.
The primary objective of
Jews for Jesus has been to bring the message of
salvation through Jesus as Messiah to Jews. And thus the
thrust of their efforts up to that time had been in
particular toward those in the Jewish community.
But the Rosen's 1978 book introduced a new facet to the Jews for Jesus outreach ... to clarify to Christians that most of the New Testament of their Bibles had been written by Jews, who were immersed in a Jewish culture in the first century, and who referred in their writing to many beliefs and customs that were unfamiliar to twentieth century Christians.
From Christ in the Passover (back cover)
You are reading along in your Bible--no problems. You come to a part about the Passover, or leavening, or the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Your mind slides over the words. You lose interest.
Part of the problem may be that you do not know enough about the Passover celebration. If, however, you were an Orthodox Jew, your knowledge of the Passover could help you relate to what you are reading.
Christ in the Passover does not make you an Orthodox Jew, but it does give you interesting information about the Passover so that you can relate to references to it--instead of sliding over them. And the information can also help you to see Christ, the Messiah, as the Passover Lamb.
In fact, not only have many Protestant Christians never known much about Judaism as a religion, they often have little working knowledge of the contents and concepts regarding the Sabbath and annual Feasts right in their own Bibles. For the Sabbath, Feasts, and Holy Days themselves were not just human cultural institutions, "invented by Jews for Jews." They were introduced by God Himself through Moses, and His words about the matter are recorded in the writings of what is referred to in Christian Bibles as the Old Testament. When they were introduced, God did not say to the Israelites, "These are your feasts," but rather "These are my Feasts."
A study of all of the scriptures, both from the Old and New Testaments, related to these observances makes it clear that they were not, ultimately, just for the purpose of providing the ancient Israelites with a suitable opportunity to give thanks to God for good crops. The Rosens clarified this point for their readers in the beginning of the Passover book. In the Preface, they wrote:
Events and teachings in Scripture often have more than one meaning. There is the obvious contemporary event to which there can be one or more prophetic counterparts, and there can also be a spiritual application. The ancient feasts of Jehovah, which He gave to Israel, cast the shadow of a future greater reality. There was a threefold aspect to these annual festivals: first, the seasonal celebration based on the agrarian culture of hte time; second, the historical remembrance of God's dealings with the nation; and third, a future fulfillment.
Even as God orders the universe and commands the seasons of nature, so He has ordained times and seasons to bring about His order and plan of salvation for the human race. Israel's feasts of Jehovah portray the stages of God's dealings with man, which will culminate in the completion of that plan.
Immediately after this statement came a chart. It listed all the Feasts and Holy Days, and offered an explanation of how each had the three aspects mentioned above. Next to each was listed the "Temporal Significance for Israel Under the Law," then "Future Significance For All God's People Under Grace," one or more relevant scriptures, and finally the "Event" that had been or will be connected to the fulfillment of the particular Feast or Holy Day.
For instance, next to the Passover was:
Temporal Significance: Redemption from Bondage in Egypt
Future Significance: Believers in Christ redeemed from bondage of sin
Scriptures:
1 Pet 1:18-19 "Ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold... but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." (Redemption)
I Cor 5:7 "Purge out ... the old leaven, that ye may be a nnew lump ... For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us." (Sanctification)
2 Cor. 5:21 "[God] made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." (Justification)
Event: The Crucifixion
As stated on the back cover, there was no real effort to persuade Christians to actually observe the Passover, but primarily to educate them about the biblical background of the Passover in general, and the customs of the Jewish Passover ceremonies in particular. In the decades since the publication of the book, local representatives of the Jews for Jesus ministry all over the country have presented "Christ in the Passover" presentations in many Protestant churches, usually consisting of setting up a typical Jewish Passover seder dinner table, and re-enacting all of the traditional ceremony of the Passover night as it would be conducted in a Jewish home. Throughout the seder, they point out elements that may have relevance as shadows of the connection between the Passover and the provision of salvation through the blood of Jesus.
Around the same time in
the mid-to-late 1970s, popular Messianic Jewish teacher
Zola Levitt began sharing some of the same concepts on
his television show and in his writings. (Levitt and
Rosen were friends over the years and mutually promoted
each other's ministries.) Zola would also provide a
seder table on his television program's set, re-enact
the rituals of the Passover evening, and point out the
shadows of Jesus he believed to be in the customs and
symbolism. As with Rosen's book, Zola primarily
presented these lessons as something for non-Jewish
Christians to learn about, but not necessarily
participate in.
A decade later in 1987,
another Messianic Jewish writer with Jews for Jesus,
Mitch Glaser (along with wife Zhava) wrote a book titled
The Fall Feasts of Israel which took the topic
further than Rosen and Levitt had in their early years.
This book elaborated on the same multiple significances
of the Feasts, this time with an emphasis on the Day of
Trumpets (Yom Teruah/Rosh Hoshanah), the Day of
Atonement (Yom Kippur), and the Feast of
Tabernacles (Sukkot).
Chapters described the Feasts in their biblical context, how they were celebrated in the time of Christ, how they are celebrated by modern Jews, and what lessons can be drawn from all of this for Christians.
And yet this book, also, stopped short of advocating that non-Jewish Christians actually observe these days in any way. It seemed to be enough to just explain their significance.
In 2001, an even more elaborate presentation regarding the symbolic significance of the Feasts of the Bible was created as part of the attractions of the new Holy Land Experience theme park in central Florida near Disneyland.
Park founder and planner Marvin Rosenthal was also a Messianic Jew. The mission of his ministry, Zion's Hope, is described on the ministry website:
At Zion's Hope, we communicate the truth of God's Word to both the Jewish people and the world God so loves. Our desire is to be evangelistic in fervor, conservative in doctrine, and loving in attitude as we tackle topics on Israel and prophecy.
Zion's Fire Magazine is one of the major ministry outreach tools of Zion's Hope. The pages of Zion's Fire are designed to supplement the worldwide missionary outreach of Zion's Hope, provide spiritual food for the hungry and light for those in darkness, and present Christian truth to the Jewish people and the Jewishness of the Bible to Christian people.
In the autumn, one of the most popular attractions at the park is a lecture on the Christian significance of the Feasts of the Bible, with an emphasis on the possible prophetic significance of the Fall Feasts. The theme is continued with a dramatic production held in the courtyard in front of the replica of the Jerusalem Temple in the time of Christ. Mixed in with a reenactment of a Temple ritual (complete with live lamb carried by a man in full High Priest regalia to the altar in front of the Temple) and a variety of inspiring Israeli-flavored music and dance numbers, is the booming voice of a narrator over the loudspeaker system, assuring the audience that the fulfillment of the Fall Feasts will finally come with the Return of Christ.
Although again there is no overt attempt to advocate that Christians ought to physically observe the biblical Feasts, the park's gift shop does include a number of books on the topic, suggesting ways for Christians to actually celebrate those days with a Christian emphasis.
One of the earliest such volumes to be written for the
popular market was the 1981 Celebrate the Feasts of
the Old Testament In Your Own Home or Church by
Martha Zimmerman. Unlike the previous authors mentioned
above, Mrs. Zimmerman is not a Messianic Jew, but the
wife of a Presbyterian minister.
The book was updated with a
new edition in 2004 retitled Celebrating Biblical
Feasts in Your Home or Church, and is still carried
as a current item in bookstores and such online outlets
as Christian Book Distributors (CBD.com) and Amazon.com.
Since the publication of Zimmerman's book, there have been numerous authors, representing many religious backgrounds, who have written volumes about this topic and have advocated the Christian observance of the annual biblical Feasts and Holy Days, along with the weekly seventh day Sabbath. Such material is becoming more and more common, and is widely available now at Christian book stores throughout the nation. Many stores, as well as on-line booksellers such as Christian Book Distributors (CBD.com) and Amazon.com have whole sections on the topic.
Many of these books are produced by ministries which refer to themselves as being part of the "Hebrew Roots movement" or "Messianic movement." For an overview of what these terms mean, see the article What do "Messianic," "Hebrew Roots," and "Torah-Observant" Mean?
The majority of these books, including the 1981 one by Zimmerman, tend to advocate not just the "biblical" observance of the Feasts, but a particularly Jewish-flavored observance. What may not be mentioned clearly enough in some is that many modern Jewish customs and traditions, whether for the Sabbath or for the annual Feasts, do not reflect the practice of Jews in the time of Christ. They have evolved over many centuries and contain elements developed in Jewish communities from throughout Europe in particular. In addition, even those customs and traditions that were in place in the time of Christ do not necessarily have any "biblical" source or commandment behind them. The fact that Jews in the time of Jesus on Earth may have practiced a custom or tradition does not necessarily at all imply His endorsement on that custom. In fact, there are a number of statements in the Gospel accounts in which He spoke disapprovingly of some of the customs of the time, such as this:
Mark 7:1-8
The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were "unclean," that is, unwashed. (The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles.)So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, "Why don't your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with 'unclean' hands?"
He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
" 'These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are but rules taught by men.' You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."
The point of the "washing" in this instance had nothing to do with hygiene. The type of washings that these men were doing were "ceremonial." And these ceremonies were not something that they had gotten out of the Bible, but ones that were invented by their forefathers, and accepted as having "religious authority." Jesus was not being criticized here for going against any commands of the written Torah, but against the "traditions of men" that had been infused with the force of religious requirement for righteousness.
This is not to say that there is anything wrong with developing human traditions, of course. A young couple with a new baby can start a tradition of taking a family walk every Friday evening, and coming home to a special dessert. This tradition may continue as they have more children and the children get older. It might even continue through the grandchildren. The problem comes in when such a tradition is not viewed as a human tradition, but as having within itself the direct endorsement of God--and as being required by Him, when no such tradition is even mentioned in the Bible.
Paul the Apostle mentions the period in his life when he was swept up into this type of tradition.
Galatians 1:14
I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers.
He was later to admit that it was not adherence to such traditions which brought him into a right relationship with God, but trusting in the sacrifice of Jesus.
Christians who come to decide that there might be value in the observance of the biblical Holy Days need to seriously consider the "way" that they decide to go about such observance. There is a freedom available in just how one might best honor God at these times. The Bible itself has little direct guidance on exactly how to "celebrate" these days, in terms of customs or procedures. They are described as times of refreshment, rejoicing, and remembering. (For more details on this, see the Introduction to the 3 Rs section of this Times of Refreshing website.) But there is no detailed formula given for what must be done.
Unfortunately, some teachers who introduce the topic of biblical Feast observance very strongly advocate close adherence to the Jewish customs connected to these days. There is often a subtle--or perhaps not so subtle--implication that one can become a "better Christian" by embracing all the paraphernalia and practices of Judaism, all the trappings of traditional Jewish celebrations. And at the same time there is an earnest effort to find allusions to Jesus in practically every obscure Jewish custom.
The Bible itself makes the connection between Jesus and the Passover lamb. But then again, it was God Himself who established the first Passover, and decreed it should be observed by putting the blood of a lamb without blemish on doorposts. So it is not surprising that the one is a foreshadowing of the other. But to insist that, for instance, there is a foreshadowing of the Trinity in the fact that Jews use three matzos in a stack as part of the Passover seder ... is without any basis in the Bible. This type of straining to find symbolism is at best fanciful "back-forming" to try to force analogies where there may be none. And at worst it can be misleading to Christians, who may become convinced that there is a depth of "spiritual understanding" in Jewish traditions and customs unavailable elsewhere ... that may not be there at all.
This is not to say that it is inappropriate to use certain pleasant Jewish customs, music, decorations, and so on as purely human embellishments to Christian celebrations of the biblical Holy Days. The problem is when human embellishments are mistaken for Divine requirements. A custom can even be "meaningful" and have the effect of focusing one's thoughts on uplifting spiritual principles ... without having God's direct endorsement.
As mentioned in the box at the top of this webpage, the collection of articles in this Jewish Feast and Holy Day Customs portion of the Times of Refreshing website are not offered to encourage Christians to adopt all ... or any ... such customs themselves. However, it is a fact of the current religious scene that most Christians who are attracted to the idea of observance of the biblical Feasts will sooner or later be exposed to a variety of books, audio tapes, video tapes, television programs, and perhaps even personal encouragement from friends to "look into" the Jewish observance of these days. And most of those books, tapes, programs, and friends tend to be either enthusiastically for or rabidly against Jewish customs.
In contrast, the material on the topic
provided on this site
is offered primarily as neutral
information,
so that Christian readers can come to their
own conclusion
on the contribution that the customs of
Judaism
might make to their own practices.
