iacisrmma: Yay I had all of these revelations today about this. At first I felt very passive aggressive defensive about your post. Then I thought about the context of yes 80-100 years ago.
First of all, what does it mean to celebrate the completion of the Torah? Well certainly someone who invested in studying all year round would have likely built up more appreciation and anticipation of the completion. So the person who dances at Simcha Torah with joy and participation can be a reflection on how much simcha he takes in Torah learning. That’s one thing.
The next thing is the context. You said Europe 80-100 years ago. Surely there was anti-Jewish tensions outside of the community. It’s possible that to be openly dancing with the Torah scrolls and being loud was something that some people dared not participate in due to fear of retaliation against Jewry. While this is a generalization, I do believe that those who were bold and resilient in their Torah study brought that zest into Simchas Torah.
So thank you for elaborating 🙂
Also also: What does this mean for today’s time? Those that relish in Torah today will merit the depth of joy in Simchas Torah. For those who may have not studied yet simcha-ed with fervor, maybe that expression demonstrates that they at least contribute to the joy and support those who do study.