Five Golden Books?

   

Happy Fifth Day of Christmas!  On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, F-I-V-E GOLDEN RINGS!  I love that part of "The Twelve Days of Christmas." I must admit, translating the five golden rings into "Cinco anillos de oro" throws the rythm of the song off.  In the "Twelve Days of Christmas"  the five golden rings which every child young and old loves to belt out, represent the first five books of the Old Testament, commonly referred to as the Torah by followers of Judaism. 

 The books of the Torah are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.  The Torah is believed to have been revealed to Moses by God at Mount Sinai.  Based on it position in holy scripture, the Torah takes us back to the beginning of all things, from creation, Adam and Eve's fall, Noah's Ark, Egyptian slavery, the call of Moses and the exodus of the Jews from the land of bondage.  The excitement pretty much ends in the book of Exodus.  The books of Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy are a litany of laws including the Ten Commandments, which God gives to the Israelites.  These laws were given because the nation of Israel was God's holy and chosen nation.  These laws covered a myriad of things from corporate worship, what could and could not be consumed, the proper presentation of sacrifices to God and the list goes on and on.

Many times people argue that the Old Testament, or the old covenant is not as significant to the  post-modern church, after all Jesus came to fulfill the law, right?  My response is that Judaism and the laws of the Torah are equally important as the promises and prophecies of the New Testament.  It shows the relationship that God has with his people, and how the people responded and at times rebelled against God.  There are some parts of the Torah that are not so warm and fuzzy to read, but are gifts that God has given us to help us understand the God we serve of eternity past, eternity present, and the age to come.  On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, five golden books.  Embrace the jewish heritage and mystery of our christian faith.

Christmastide Blessings and Peace,
Karsten