Though not especially religious, my Jewish parents still observed some of the major Jewish holidays like Passover, Rosh Hashanah, and Yom Kippur. It was a way in which they hoped to pass down awareness of both heritage and identity to their children.
After I came to faith in Jesus the Jewish Messiah in my teens, I began to get a sense of the “why” behind God’s command in Leviticus 23 to the Hebrew people to observe a weekly Sabbath and six additional yearly festivals. As a community, these God-appointed times called them to recount and participate in his story about who he is and who they were called to be from generation to generation.
In our plugged-in, 24/7/365 world drumming to an insistent, unvarying beat every single day, we are prone to miss the cadence of eternity. As I studied the story of the Jewish festal calendar found in Scripture and learned the history of the church-year calendar that emerged from it, I was struck by the way in which God has invited us into rhythms of restoration and celebration. Even better, I’ve discovered that participating in holy days is a way in which multigenerational discipleship happens naturally. In addition, it infuses our everydays with meaning beyond our own personal calendars and agendas. Eternity, then, shapes our experience in real time. This isn’t a recommendation for another “to do” on your list, but an invitation to take a step toward considering a more intentional approach to your moments and days.
Michelle Van Loon is the author of Moments & Days: How Our Holy Celebrations Shape Our Faith (NavPress). She’s written four books and has been a regular contributor to CT’s Her.meneutics blog. Connect with her at MichelleVanLoon.com, via Facebook, or on Twitter.
