Holidays, Again

Deuteronomy 16

            We have read about Israel’s three great holidays several times now. Two things really stood out to me this time around. First, when Moses lays the festivals this time, it is after he has talked about Israel’s one place of worship (ch. 12). So, a new wrinkle this time is that these festivals have to be celebrated wherever the Lord places His name, that is, wherever the Tabernacle is (or later, in Jerusalem). Second, in the case of two of the holidays, Moses explicitly calls for joy (vv. 11, 14).

            I was thinking about how inconvenient these holidays would be for Israel. They have to travel across the country. At its very largest, Israel encompassed maybe 400 miles north to south, but for the vast majority of its history it was more like 120 miles north to south. Almost no one was more than 60 miles from Jerusalem. That made it about a 3-day walk. 6 days of travel, 7 days there, 3 times a year. Israel would have to more than a month in these three festivals. That’s not counting weekly Sabbath obligations, too. Religion was supposed to be a dominant feature of Israel’s life!

            Yet, at the same time, Moses tries to tamp down the obligation/burden aspect of the thing and He underscores the celebration aspect. For Moses, it’s less, “We must go,” and more, “We get to go!”

            I understand that we live very different lives than ancient Israel did. I understand that they were an agrarian society and that farm life, especially if you’re crop farming, has a different pace than working in a factory or an office. Still, you have to wonder about contemporary American Christians, many of whom look at simple church attendance as an obligation or even a burden. “I guess we better go to church this week…” I remember a story my wife told me year’s ago. A child in one of her classes had a bad week behaviorally, and she told my wife that her mother was going to make her go to church because she had been naughty…

            Whatever happened to, “I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord” (Psalm 122:1)?

            And why would we rejoice to go to the house of the Lord. Each.and.every.week! Well, because God shows up there. Each.and.every.week! Because He appears there with gifts of mercy and grace and comfort and forgiveness. Each.and.every.week! Because God’s people are there. Each.and.every.week! Because it’s a cause for rejoicing. Each.and.every.week! It would be good if we, as contemporary American Christians, escape from the sense of obligation and could embrace the joy of being where God has placed His name—each and every week!