The
tradition goes back a long way. Here’s
a story from the Book of Nehemiah, about 444 BCE, or let’s say 2500 years ago in round numbers.
-
8:1 Now all the
people gathered to the square near the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the
scholar to bring the scroll of the Teaching of Moses, which God had commanded
Israel.
-
2 And Ezra the
priest brought the Teaching to the congregation, both men and women, and all
who could hear with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month.
-
3 He chanted it
in the square near the Water Gate from first light until midday in the presence
of the men and the women and those who understood, and the ears of all the
people paid attention to the Scroll of the Teaching.
That’s the story. There are others. This
is the oldest.
Let’s dive into some calculations to try to figure out whether this was
possible.
What time did Ezra start chanting? What
time did he end? How many hours did he take to chant the Torah?
Time yourself doing this exercise:
-
Read a few random
verses (sentences) from the Torah (you choice of language).
-
Make sure you
read loudly and clearly.
-
How many verses
did you read?
-
How long did that
take?
-
So what is the average
time (in seconds) it takes you to read one verse?
If
you know a few things about the Torah, you could now estimate how long it would
take you to read it. How many verses are there? You can consult Google or for a quicker answer click here.
Do
a little multiplication to calculate the number of seconds it would take. Then convert
the total numbers of seconds to hours.
After
finishing this calculation, most people think there is no
way he could have chanted the entire Torah. So what do you think he did
chant? One book only? If so, which book? He had five to choose from. Why would
he choose one specific book? Which book is a recap or second telling of the
other books? Would that be the book to choose?
Discuss
whether you think it is important to keep up the tradition
of public reading of the Torah.