Why We Keep the Traditions

I am often invited to speak at churches about Judaism, Jewish traditions, or the biblical Holy Days. When I begin to share, I like to start with the following story to set a foundation for my teaching. 

A newly married couple are about to have their first Shabbat dinner together. They completed their grocery shopping and are in the kitchen of their new home together. As they begin preparing the food, the young man gets out a pot for the roast they purchased, as the young lady removes the roast from its packaging. 

After she takes the roast out of the wrapping, she places it on a cutting board and slices the end of the roast off of one side, turns the roast on the board, and cuts the other side off. At this point, the husband stops his wife and asks his wife why she is cutting the ends off the roast. After all, it seemed wasteful to him to remove good meat from the roast. 

His wife answered, “I don’t really know why, I just know that this is how my mom taught me to cook a roast.” The husband, made more curious by her answer, asked her to call her mom to find out. After all, if they ate roast every Friday evening, over the years, they would waste a lot of money. So, the young lady called her mom and asked why they cut the ends off of the roasts before they put them in the pot. 

Her mother thought for a moment and then replied, “I don’t really know why. I just know this is how my mom taught me to cook a roast. If you want to know, why don’t you call your grandmother?” 

The young woman calls her grandmother and asks her, “Why do we cut the ends off of our roast before we place them in the pot?” Her grandmother, without hesitation replied, “I don’t know why you cut the ends off of your roast before putting in the pot, but I never had a pot large enough to fit a full roast.”

This story, while funny, demonstrates very well the same reasons why many people do the things they do as they walk out their faith. There are so many things believers do simply because it was what their parents, grandparents, and great grandparents did. They simply unquestioningly follow their examples. They hold onto the traditions that were handed down to them, not really knowing exactly why beyond the simple “that’s what my parents did.”

In 2 Thessalonians 2:15, Paul wrote:

“So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold on to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by our letter.”

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This is one of many verses strongly promoting the keeping of the traditions we were taught. However, while it is important to keep traditions, it is also very important to know why. 

Why do we gather to worship and when? Why do we get baptized or immersed? What Holy Days and/or holidays do we celebrate? The list of traditions is long and many of our traditions are biblical and strengthen our connection to our faith, whether Judaism or Christianity. Unfortunately, some traditions are not biblical, and may even contradict what the Bible teaches.

It is not only important, but vital for us as believers to know not only the traditions we follow, but why we keep them, as we read in 2 Timothy 2:15:

“Make every effort to present yourself before God as tried and true, as an unashamed worker cutting a straight path with the word of truth.”

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Because when we stand before G-D, we can’t just say, “I don’t know why I do this; it’s how my mom and dad did it.” 

It’s not just about knowing why we do what we do. It is also about knowing if what we do strengthens our faith and testimony or weakens our faith and testimony. And if that alone isn’t a good enough reason to study and to know, consider that one day your child is going to ask you why. Don’t you want to be able to provide a solid answer?