It only took me until I became a young senior citizen and a worldwide pandemic to learn how to properly wash my hands. I’ve always been a splash–washer—dab of soap, splash some water over my hands to get rid of the soap, and dry off. If it took more than 3–seconds, then my hand must have slipped off the faucet because there was soap still on it.
I used to joke with people at the double sinks in Cracker Barrel who meticulously washed their hands. “Going into an operating theater?” I’d ask. Sometimes they’d chuckle, but most times they had no idea what I was talking about.
But with the virus we’ve been strongly encouraged to sing “Happy Birthday” or “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” twice to complete the hand washing in 20-seconds. I’ve changed the tune to “Our God is an Awesome God” which, if sung twice, will get you just past the 20–second rule. I’m only able to do it once. By then the soap is gone and I’m afraid I’ll start washing off skin.
Long before Global Handwashing Day (October 15), hand–washing champion and enthusiast, Florence Nightingale, and Ignaz Semmelweis—the father of hand hygiene, the Jewish religion promoted the washing of hands more for rituals, but it also had practical, hygienic purposes as well. Washing hands prior to eating bread originated with the rabbis of the Talmud. You might recall some religious leaders livid with Jesus because his disciples didn’t wash their hands.“Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat” (Matthew 15:2). But, like in many things for all of us, these guys took this to extremes. Supposedly, a talmudic sage equating not washing hands before eating with having sex with a prostitute. Really?
For ritual hand washing the custom was to pour water from a vessel twice on the right hand and then the left, unless you were left–handed. Hasidic custom has one pouring three times on each hand.
Probably the most infamous hand washer was a Roman prefect by the name of Pilate. He was doing so not because he was about to eat, but symbolically to suggest he wasn’t accepting any guilt over handing Jesus over to be crucified. That didn’t work.
But I should backup to Jesus lambasting the Religious Leaders for their hand washing before meals. Was He against personal hygiene? No. He was railing against the ridiculous and onerous rules they were forcing on people. Washing the outside of the body had its place, but the inside is what mattered from a spiritual standpoint.
Perhaps we could kill two birds with one stone by praying while we wash our hands. A slow rendition of the Lord’s Prayer would work, but just communicating with God would be healthy—physically and spiritually.
'Twas The Real Night Before Christmas
12/17/2020 11:16:00 AM by: Russell T Allen
Christmas Catalogs
11/14/2020 7:01:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Cancel This!
10/3/2020 6:08:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Don't Judge By Its Cover
9/8/2020 5:54:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Our Plans Trumped by God
9/5/2020 11:44:00 AM by: Dan Allen
We Fall Down
8/5/2020 6:49:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Battle with a Bug
7/13/2020 3:59:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Be Sure Your Sin Will Find You Out
7/3/2020 12:25:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Setting the bar too low
6/25/2020 7:05:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Good is Evil, Evil is Good
6/9/2020 5:05:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Misguided Freedom
6/4/2020 3:56:00 PM by: Dan Allen
A Preaching Nightmare
5/9/2020 12:54:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Restaurant and/or Church Possible
5/2/2020 5:11:00 PM by: Dan Allen
A Good Dose of Cloistering Going On
4/15/2020 1:43:00 PM by: Dan Allen
So, Where is God in All of This?
4/14/2020 1:50:00 PM by: Dan Allen
I Finally Learned How to Wash My Hands
4/13/2020 1:47:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Fire Truck - Glory Train
4/16/2019 12:17:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Some Sins Seem to Do More Damage
4/16/2019 12:16:00 PM by: Dan Allen
The Canopy is Gone
12/15/2018 3:02:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Brushing Teeth with Iced Tea
11/5/2018 7:56:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Never in Danger, but Could Have Been
11/4/2018 7:53:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Another Festival
11/3/2018 7:50:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Cow Town
11/2/2018 7:47:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Dressing Down
11/1/2018 7:45:00 AM by: Dan Allen
#MeToo
10/25/2018 4:07:00 AM by: Dan Allen
All Alone Among 1.35 Billion People
10/24/2018 4:04:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Does Anyone Know What Time It Is?
10/23/2018 4:01:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Time To Be Spiritual Weather Forecasters
10/22/2018 3:58:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Words Change . . . But Someone Gets the Final Word
9/4/2018 3:17:00 PM by: Dan Allen
To Cremate or Not to Cremate
7/15/2018 10:41:00 AM by: Dan Allen
I Want to Hold Your Hand
7/4/2018 12:47:00 PM by: Dan Allen
I Finally Caught a Foul Ball . . . Sort of
6/8/2018 11:02:00 AM by: Dan Allen
I Can Only Imagine
6/1/2018 10:59:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Do Panhandlers Have Regulars
4/8/2018 9:50:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Can't Good Dogs Go To Heaven?
4/3/2018 9:49:00 AM by: Dan Allen
At the Taj . . . in pictures only
1/24/2018 12:59:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Cold, But Warm Inside
1/22/2018 12:14:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Don't Remove the Plastic
1/12/2018 11:53:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Put Your Big Boy Pants On
1/9/2018 11:46:00 AM by: Dan Allen
In the Spirit . . . or not?
1/3/2018 11:52:00 AM by: Dan Allen
You Could Cut It With a Knife
1/1/2018 2:21:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Personal Message Boards
11/24/2017 2:42:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Men Acting Badly, err Should We Say---Horribly!
11/18/2017 1:03:00 PM by: Dan Allen
History of Bible Fellowship Church of Ephrata
8/29/2017 7:47:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Large Crowd Diversion
6/19/2017 11:01:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Bikes, Bikers, and Trying New Things
6/18/2017 10:59:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Lessons from T-Ball for Churches
6/17/2017 10:56:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Authenticity of and in Jeans
5/11/2017 2:25:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Don't Let Me Fall
4/22/2017 5:06:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Have We Lost the "Awe-factor," Wonderment?
4/21/2017 6:48:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Bumped - Not Bumbed
4/13/2017 5:01:00 PM by: Dan Allen
Go Fly a Kite
1/18/2017 1:43:00 AM by: Dan Allen
What's In Your Bag?
1/17/2017 1:37:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Cultural Faux Pas
1/13/2017 2:30:00 AM by: Dan Allen
The Three Hour Trip Ends Up 23 Hours
1/12/2017 2:25:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Walking Headrest Cover
1/9/2017 11:02:00 AM by: Dan Allen
The Gift that Keeps Giving
12/17/2016 9:52:00 AM by: Dan Allen
Let's Keep Things in Perspective
8/1/2015 9:59:20 AM by: Dan Allen
I've Got the Nine
6/26/2015 9:02:25 AM by: Dan Allen
God Often Works in Mysterious Ways
6/5/2015 3:37:49 PM by: Dan Allen
I'm From Negadelphia
3/24/2015 2:19:23 PM by: Dan
Positive Spin
2/16/2015 12:00:01 AM by: Dan Allen
