Congrats, Tooky!
Thanks 🙂
Reminder to everyone to sign up for Secret Santa. Seriously. Do it. Please.
I need at least 8 people to make it worthwhile, but at least 12 is ideal.
Ack, Secret Santa! Thanks for the reminder!
Ahhhhhhh Who else celebrates Hanukkah?
I don't but I do know what it's about. 🙂
Same as Ariel. I know what the story is but don't celebrate. It's a good holiday though especially for someone with Jewish heritage. I know someone from here who is a practicing Messianic Jew and she observes Hanukkah and Christmas, one holiday to remember when God gave Isreal literal light and one holiday to remember when God gave everyone the Light of the World. 🙂
Well, sad. It is an awesome eight-day holiday. XD Not that it is in the Bible, for it isn't, but why does the Bible have so many awesome fun week-long or longer holidays.... and Christians don't celebrate them?!
Soon to be a happy Hanukkah to you all!
Wellllllllllllllllllll, actualllllyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, Hanukkah is mentioned in John 10:22-23, right? Isn't it the "Feast of the Dedication" that takes place in winter?
@jesusgirl4ever
True. It is mentioned. However, I meant that it is not one of the feasts the G-D told his children to follow. 🙂
Yeah, I knew that. 😀
I think the reason that most Christians don't celebrate the Jewish holidays is because those holidays were foreshadowing Jesus and what He would do, kinda like the furniture in the Tabernacle. Passover symbolized Christ sacrificing Himself to save the lives of His people, Unleavened Bread symbolized "cleaning out the old leaven" (1 Corinthians 5:7-8), First Fruits, Christ being the "first fruits of those who are asleep" (1 Corinthians 15:20-23), Pentecost, the unity of the Church (since the Holy Spirit came on Pentecost), Trumpets, Israel being regathered to prepare for the final day of atonement, Day of Atonement, Israel repenting and looking to the Messiah one day (also, Jesus being our atonement), and Booths, the families of the earth will celebrate and they won't have rain if they don't go. Yeah (Zechariah 14:16-19).
*takes deep breath*
That was a lot. And I think it got deeper than I thought it would. 😉
(Also, most of the credit goes to my study Bible and the wonderful chart on the subject. I did not come up with that on my own. Well, not all of it.)
Okay then. 🙂 Very accurate.
I am not trying to condemn, but I guess people don't realize these things: God never changes. This means he still wants us to follow his holidays. Yeshua celebrated the holidays, as did his disciples. And they didn't stop after he died. God tells us not to follow the traditions of Man, but of Him. :shrug: I still respect people's beliefs, but I don't understand why the "children of God" disobey so much.
Not that I think this subject in particular will get us in or out of heaven, it is just that I am like, "Hey people, God didn't say to do this, and he did say to do this. What are you thinking?" 😛
It doesn't matter. 🙂
I think it's still important for Christians with Jewish Heritage to remember their feast days, after all, they still are God's Children in a slightly different way then gentiles are.
But I think that they're optional for gentile Christians because we don't have the heritage that Jewish Christians do. Gentiles don't have the history of being lead out of slavery that Passover commemorates, nor are we entitled to the fields that the feasts of booths is thankful for. Granted, I don't think it's /wrong/ for Gentile Christians to celebrate those holidays because they still celebrate aspects of God that are still true, but we don't have the history of the events that they celebrate.
But yeah, it's an interesting discussion.
I also think that a large part of it is that these commands were given to Israel, not the Church. During the Church Age, celebrations more tied to Jesus, like Easter and Christmas, became more common.
Also, Jesus and his disciples were Jews. Most of the Church (including me) are Gentiles. In Acts 15, the Council at Jerusalem came to the decision that the Gentile members of the Church didn't need to become Jews in order to be saved. They specifically mention that the Gentile believers don't have to keep the Law of Moses.
Romans says that we aren't under law but grace (though that is not an excuse for sin), and Matthew says that Jesus came to fulfill the Law. I don't think the Church is obligated to keep the parts of the Law aimed specifically at Jews.
Two more things, then I'm done. Promise. 😉 Colossians does say that the festivals we keep don't matter. Chapter 2, verses 16-17, in case you're curious. So, like you say, I don't think these things will keep us out of heaven.
Two, just want to make it clear that I'm not trying to start an argument. I'm just trying to present my point of view on this issue. I don't really know how my tone sounds to others, so I wanted to say that.
Edit: Yeah, what Tooky said, too.
I think Jaygee and Tooky pretty well covered what I would have said, especially where the matter concerns the looking forward to Christ's first coming in contrast to looking back on it (ie: His fulfillment of God's promises).
I might as well also bring up culture differences too. Christmas is not in the Bible nor are we told to celebrate Christ's birth, and yet the Western world in particular makes it quite a big deal. Of course, this doesn't mean that one can't celebrate Hanukkah or Purim or Rosh Hashanah or what-have-you outside of a Jewish culture or family (or, conversely, that one necessarily shouldn't celebrate Christmas). Even for those not opposed to observing Jewish holidays, some may consider doing so just as "un-normal" as, say, celebrating Chinese New Year with only the most appropriate foods and the giving of money in little red envelopes to children (yes, I know, the Jewish holidays are so much richer in every way, but so far as culture goes, I think the point still stands).
That said, I will say that there is something pretty special about celebrating Easter at the Passover table. That particular Easter was probably the most... "alive" isn't quite the right word, "forefront in my mind" I've ever had. Christ's death and resurrection is more than amazing as it is, but consciously comparing the events and feast of Passover to Easter on the day of adds an extra "wow" factor, so to speak. And it's an experience I'm thankful to have had and often look back on.
