Copyright 2014 Theresa Harvard Johnson
In the Voices of Christ, we often talk about a beautiful ceremony called “Siyum” in Hebrew. The word itself means “completion or to complete” and is used specifically to describe the completion of sacred writings, and in this instance the Torah. For those who’ve taken our classes, we talk about the grueling but honorable training scribes endured in the times of old. We discuss the rituals they had to undergo and the amount of time they dedicated – spiritually and naturally – in the preparation for and task of writing Torah.
While we do not practice the Siyum ceremony per se, we can draw from the wisdom, the example and the obedient heart that many of them worked from in the midst of their journey. When they completed copying the Torah, it was a tradition to host a celebration to HONOR GOD in its completion. This included praise, worship, prayers, conversation and even a covenant meal with those who honored the Word, honored God and honored the servants who – without complaint – completed the task. THOUSANDS of people would participate in these ceremonies. They were excited about the continued PRESERVATION of the Word and the legacy it represented. Just thinking about this stirs the prophetic scribe in me with the fire to honor God with my obedience to write and publish what He gives me.
