My Christmas Poems #9-12 (2012-2016)
Two Quick Old Testament Proofs for the Oral Torah
Photo by rolf neumann on Unsplash
In the Torah (first five books of the Old Testament), nothing can be found in Mosaic Law forbidding the carrying of objects from one's house on the Sabbath. Yet according to the prophet Jeremiah, God willed that Jerusalem be destroyed for not abiding by this oral tradition and command:
Jeremiah 17:21-22, 27 (RSV) Thus says the LORD: Take heed for the sake of your lives, and do not bear a burden on the sabbath day or bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. [22] And do not carry a burden out of your houses on the sabbath or do any work, but keep the sabbath day holy, as I commanded your fathers. . . . [27] But if you do not listen to me, to keep the sabbath day holy, and not to bear a burden and enter by the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem and shall not be quenched.
Thus, the written revelation of the Old Testament referred to the oral Torah, given to Moses (according to Jewish tradition) on Mt. Sinai at the same time he received the written Law. It even says that God "commanded" this stipulation for the Sabbath. Since it isn't found in the written Torah, then it had to come from the authoritative oral Torah.
Surprisingly enough, the written Torah never specifies that Jerusalem would be the central place of worship, or that a temple was to be built there (neither the words “temple” — in this sense — nor “Jerusalem” ever appears in the Pentateuch or Torah: first five books of the Bible). It's never taught in the Torah that a permanent temple would replace the tabernacle (extensively dealt with in the Torah) as the central place of worship. If God didn't authoritatively reveal His plan concerning a future temple to Moses, then all of the sacrificial worship of Israel from the time of Solomon was invalid. Therefore, the command had to be in the oral Torah.
Jesus and Paul followed the mainstream pharisaical Jewish tradition, which included acceptance of the oral Torah. Paul called himself a Pharisee twice (Acts 23:6; 26:5).
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About the Author
Dave Armstrong (see Facebook & Twitter pages) has been an apologist since 1981 & has defended Catholicism since 1991, when he was received into the Church. He has written for the Catholic periodicals, National Catholic Register (regular columnist since 2016; over 300 articles), Catholic Answers Magazine, Envoy Magazine, The Catholic Answer, Seton Magazine, The Michigan Catholic, The Catholic World Report, & others. Dave has written over 4,500 articles & 53 books (see book and purchase information), including A Biblical Defense of Catholicism (Sophia Institute Press, 2003), The Catholic Verses: 95 Bible Passages That Confound Protestants (Sophia, 2004; published also in Portugese), The One-Minute Apologist (Sophia, 2007), 100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura (Catholic Answers Press, 2012; also in Portugese), & The Word Set in Stone: How Archaeology, Science, and History Back Up the Bible (Catholic Answers Press: March 15, 2023). He has been happily married to his wife Judy since 1984, with four children & three grandchildren.<
