FEATURE
PART
I
TO BE LIKE
Discipleship and Biblical Spiritualit
In this five-part series, we will be exploring the meaning and method of disciple in ancient times and ask ourselves how we might live better lives as modern dis
Study as Worship: Of Talmidim and Chaverim
F
rom the time of Ezra, the priest and scribe, the Jewish people instituted synagogues as houses of assembly that were led by sages (see Nehemiah 8:1–8) in the Old Testament era and by rabbis (see John 3:2) in the New Testament era. Their purpose was a noble one: to ensure that future generations of God’s people
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Alberta Adventist News
JUNE 2020
would, through systematic and regular study, never again put the nation at risk of exile by turning to other gods out of ignorance and foolishness. Consequently, outside of worship at the Temple, synagogues were established throughout the land for the instruction of the people in holiness to God. By Jesus’ day, Ezra’s
synagogal system was well established, and there is evidence that young and old alike regularly received instruction in Hebrew letters, reading, the study of Torah (the five books of Moses), and the worship of God. Even today, in synagogues around the world, these same traditions of study and worship continue to be
