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I wanted to share with you a Morning Prayer and, more specifically, a musical piece I created based on it. The words of this song are inspired by the words of the traditional morning blessings found in the Siddur (Jewish Prayer Book). The person who is praying in the early
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During the Second Temple Period, many Jews lived outside of Israel. And the city of Cyrene in Northern Africa was one of the major Jewish Diaspora centers. You may not have heard much about this city because its glory has disappeared from the pages of history, and it stands in
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I would venture to say that, depending on your unique interests, each one sometimes struggles with things that pull us in and captivate us completely. These interests could be good things, even very positive and honorable things. I am simply wondering if those are the things we need to focus
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There is no Passover without Matzah. If you're not familiar with it, it's what Jews call the unleavened bread, a tradition dating back to the days of Moses. Every year, Passover is commemorated by eating this simple bread - Matzah (מַצָּה) and also by
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A few years back, the Gospel Herald reported that according to a BBC poll, 25 % of Christians in Great Britain said, “Jesus’ resurrection was not real.” It turns out that according to the survey results, one in four of those who considered themselves Christians in Great Britain do not truly
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The resurrection of the dead techiyat hametim (תְּחִיַּת הַמֵּתִים) has always been a belief that some embraced and some rejected. Historically, while some Jews were very optimistic about such prospects, others were doubtful of them. Pagans for the most part have not seen resurrection
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A new Tzur Natan neighborhood construction in central Israel was preceded by a dig. The excavation unearthed a rare written record. It points to a Samaritan business from 1600 years ago. The Greek inscription mentions a wealthy landowner, ‘Master Adios’. In the 5th century, the heartland of Israel was populated
The themes of ruin and restoration are at the core of the Jewish apocalyptic genre. Even the most bitter laments are accompanied by hope when one is tethered to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. That is precisely what you will find in The Books of Baruch. This edition
Over the years of teaching, I have often referred my students to the books of Enoch. But most of the time, I did so with some reservations. I knew that the broadly distributed copies they would likely come across would be littered with archaic and hard-to-digest language. Finally, between 2023
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Do you like to listen to your books? I am excited to announce that thanks to my partnership with Amazon and Audible, some of my new translations are now available as audiobooks! The Apocalypse of Abraham HERE and The Apocalypse of Moses HERE. I personally love holding paper books in
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The New Testament records that some Jewish followers of Jesus from Cyrene were responsible for the first Gentile converts in Antioch (Acts 11:19-21). Indeed, the Jewish inhabitants of Cyrene were fully engaged in world affairs and closely connected to Jerusalem and other Jewish communities throughout the Mediterranean. Yet, sadly,
In Isaiah Chapter 28, God speaks of his people, Israel, poetically painting them as his vineyard. Isaiah 28:10 says, “the fortified city is left alone, a deserted settlement and abandoned like the desert. Calves graze there, lie down, and eat from its branches.” The fortified city that Hashem speaks
The Book of Sirach, also known as Ecclesiasticus or Ben Sira, is a Jewish wisdom text from the Second Temple period, written by Jesus ben Sira around 180-175 BCE in Jerusalem. It is part of the Apocrypha in many Christian traditions and is included in the Septuagint, though it is
A portion of Psalm 103 paints a powerful reality that calls all of us to join the praises of angels and all of God's creation. They already praise the Almighty, so why can't we join them? Below is the song and the words to another musical
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The books of Enoch preserve many curious visions. At times, they present ideas not mentioned by anyone else. And what always amazes me personally are all the rich details that Enoch texts include. Take this seemingly typical scene where Enoch describes what he saw in heaven, "I saw a
Marvin R. Wilson is an experienced educator who invites his readers to rediscover the Hebrew foundations of Christian beliefs and practice as he attempts to bridge the worlds of Judaism and Christianity with clarity, depth, and warmth. Wilson presents Christianity as rooted in the story of Israel, the covenant with
What comes to mind when you hear the word "angel?" Most people visualize some sort of human-looking figure with wings. Yes, some angels do have wings, but wings are not their most common feature. Best we can tell, there are many types of angels, and their duties, not
The Prophets tells us a story of extraordinary friendship that tests the strengths of family loyalty against true friendship. Samuel’s books tell us that Jonathan loved David deeply as a friend: “he loved him as his own soul.” They have been friends ever since David killed Goliath. Jonathan and
To put things simply... Because ancient stories about the inner workings of the divine realm, the angels, both fallen and faithful, the origins of corruption, sin, and forbidden knowledge, the visions of the Messiah, and the coming judgment are scattered across ancient books like Enoch. These stories were never meant
I wish to share with you a curious ancient discussion about the inner workings of the temple that once stood in Jerusalem that I came across. Apart from the slaughter of the animals and the smoke that carried the flavor of sacrifices to the heavens, the Jerusalem Temple was a
I would venture to say that most of us have never seen angels, or maybe we have, and we had no idea we even had such an encounter. That, of course, all depends on what you think angels are and what you expect them to look like. The writer of