Why I love Jerusalem
Last night I was on my way to my knitting group and I looked in front of the bus and saw a Police Van blocking the street. Arrgh a "Chafetz Chashud" (suspicious object), I thought…I’ll be stuck waiting for an extra 20 minutes. Then the van moved and I saw a crowd of people.
It was a "Hachnasat Sefer Torah" (the bringing of a new
torah into a synagogue). There was a "mitzvah mobile"–a small car with a lights in the shape of a crown, blasting music. People dancing with torches, and to top it all off, the driver opened the door and some sefardi ladies did some uvulating and threw in some candies.
It was well worth the five minute delay. A few teens on the bus asked what was going on and I told them. Their reply was "for what do they need to do this? (Bishvil ma tzarich et zeh?) It was the one downside to the event. How do you explain to a secular youth the importance of the torah? I think the best answer I could have given (but didn’t) would just be to say–it is just another reason to celebrate.
