Reflection for February 13

A young rabbi was stunned by a heated debate that erupted at his new synagogue on his first Shabbat about whether one should stand or sit during the reading of the Ten Commandments. The rabbi went to visit the oldest member of the synagogue—who was in a nursing home—to find out what the synagogue’s custom had been. After hearing about the contentious debate, the old man replied, “That is our custom” (Beliefnet.com, January 6; quoted in the Christian Century, February 8, 2011).