Jews Talk Racial Justice - Ep 56: Simchat Torah, Essential Letters, and Why ALL of Our Life Curricula is Needed

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QUICK EPISODE OVERVIEW

In this week’s episode Tracie and April discuss some of the traditions related to the holiday of Simchat Torah (lit. “Joy of Torah”). The symbolism of the holiday--appreciating the totality of the Torah and starting the cycle anew--illuminates for ways we can do the same with our own life and racial justice curricula. 

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  1. Tracie remembers never going to Simchat Torah services growing up but has since started going as an adult. How did you celebrate Simchat Torah, if at all? What traditions do you have now? 

  2. Tracie uses the ritual her current synagogue has where the entire congregation unrolls their Torah scrolls and then, together, encircles their sanctuary building with it to draw parallels to our own life story, and starting right back up just after we finish. What do you think of this? What does the ritual Tracie describes bring up for you? 

  3. April is particularly interested in the aspect of how instead of turning the scrolls closed, we unroll the entire Torah, especially when we live in a society that stresses a forward push in life. What does it mean then to reach a moment of completion and to then completely unravel it all? What is the parallel to opening up our journeys around racial justice. 

  4. April reminds us that we do this, even though not every part of the Torah resonates with us all, or which may be problematic, and yet we still do it because it is part of the whole story. When you reflect on your life, how does this relate to the parts of your journey you don’t want to look at or remember? What

  5. Tracie recalls a teaching from Rabbi Jonathan that just as when a Torah scroll can longer fulfill its duty even if one small letter is missing, so too with humans. We are all essential. What do you think about this teaching? What does it bring up for you? 

  6. April presses us to wonder what it means to view all aspects of our life’s journey, even the hard and difficult, as essential to our life’s journey and what we need to learn in this life. What do you think of this? What does it mean to witness and take full radical accountability for our missteps? What does it mean to owe our trajectory? 

  7. Tracie shares a teaching about why we recite the Mourner’s Kaddish on the anniversary of a person’s death, rather than birth, because it is on the anniversary of their death that the Torah that was their life became complete. Have you heard this before? How is this resonating with you given the episode's reflection on Simchat Torah? 

  8. April reminds us of the cyclical nature of our growth, and that we often need to repeat lessons, just as the Torah is cyclical. How does this ring true for you? 

COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS?

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