From time to time, I hear beautiful spiritual teachings drawn from the apostolic writings that are sadly misunderstood by modern readers of the New Testament. Misunderstandings repeated often enough eventually harden into “obvious truths,” and over time, they can even become official theological doctrines that define entire religious traditions and
Many people have heard an excuse: “The devil made me do it.” The great tempter, the Adversary, is often blamed for humanity’s weakness and moral collapse. The story of evil and sin usually begins in the Garden of Eden, where the serpent persuades Chava to eat from the forbidden
War is among the darkest realities of human existence. It leaves cities in ruins, families divided, and generations marked by trauma and loss. No sane person celebrates war, and few emerge from it unchanged. Yet history repeatedly reminds us of an uncomfortable truth: war is sometimes unavoidable. Nations invade. Empires
If you read the words of Moses' Prayer (which was probably also a song), you will see how the lyrics are thoroughly inspired by his poetic verses. God's unique name Adonai Maon is somewhat mysterious, but to me it brought a sense of realization that everything, including
Holy Spirit is a special term that arose and became common at a certain time in history. It is often associated with the New Testament and Christianity, and not with Judaism. But we know that God’s Spirit is simply inseparable from God, and it should not surprise us that
A buried treasure of nine well-preserved bronze Byzantine coins found by archeologists during an excavation near Highway 1 serves as evidence of the Persian invasion of Jerusalem at the end of the Byzantine period, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced.
I stumbled across this animated video on the historical developments of Cannan and was impressed by how simply and easily the author covered the events of history that we know so little about. I loved it, so I decided to
The Book of Baruch (ספר ברוך, Sepher Baruch), also known as 1 Baruch, is a non-canonical text attributed to Baruch ben Neriyah (ברוך בן נריה), a scribe and close associate of the prophet Jeremiah. The current version of the
For many people, Hanukkah is the Jewish Christmas. The Western (Christian) world has Christmas, so Jews have something similar, the holiday they call Hanukkah. Simple, right? I know that many of my readers and subscribers know better. In case you
It' December... To all my subscribers who celebrate Hanukkah, may Hashem continue to do miracles as he did for our ancestors so long ago. And may your light burn ever brighter! To all my subscribers who celebrate Christmas, may
Not long ago, archaeologists in Israel might have identified Jezreel winery featured in the Bible. The ancient winery was first discovered in 2013 and then explored in several seasons of excavations in the following years. The ancient production facility consists
How many of us have a hard time saying "No"? How many of us say "No," only to hear back – "Why?" In our modern culture, saying "No" is completely out of style.
This is an amazing high-resolution video walk-through of one of the most beautiful archeological ruins in Israel. The views of the 2000-year-old Herodian aqueduct and the detail in this video are amazing. It's almost
Most of us like it when someone values us. It feels good to know when we are appreciated. And it is not because we have some exigent need to be recognized. Many gifted and talented people do amazing things and
Psalm 3 is a desperate cry for help, praise from the lips of David. God rescued him from the grip of his foes as they sought his life. This poem is full of hope and assurance in God’s miraculous
This is a fairly long but very informative lecture by Dr. Mika Ahuvia from the Jewish Studies Department of the University of Washington. It focuses on the Jewish difference and how this notion has been historically perceived and treated by
Shiloh (שִׁלֹה) is a historic town situated in the lot of Ephraim, where Israel assembled under Joshua during the war of conquest (Joshua 18:1). It served as the location for the distribution of territories among the seven
