Archive for March, 2009
We wanted to update everyone with more details regarding our April 24-26, 2009 annual meeting of United Israel World Union in Charlotte, NC, which is less than a month away.
We are extremely excited about our plans and program and we hope everyone will make every possible effort to attend this year. This is an event you will not want to miss. We will hold our meeting at the Doubletree Guest Suites in South Park, just as we did last year. This location in a prime area of the city, with shops and restaurants conveniently located within walking distance. There is no registration fee to attend this meeting and all are welcome. We were also able to get an exceptionally reasonable rate for rooms, see details below.
Here are the program highlights:
This year marks the end of 65 years of UIWU history and as part of our celebration we will have a special Open House and Reception at our UIWU offices here in Charlotte with many of the priceless and historic archives on display for the first time. These are materials related to the life and career of David Horowitz, our founder, as well as the history of UIWU itself.
James Tabor will conduct an in-depth class titled “The Three Greatest Chapters of the Hebrew Bible”
Ross Nichols will conduct an in-depth class titled “The Three Greatest Chapters of the Hebrew Bible”
Ralph Buntyn will present an illustrated lecture on “Our Incredible American Hebrew Heritage”
Joseph Good will teach a class titled “Amazing Treasures from the Mishnah”
Hanoch Young will lead a session on “Let Him Go Up: Connecting to Israel in our Time,” that will include input from John Carlson and a stunning special media production by artist Carin Carlson
A musical program hosted by David and Patty Tyler, including an “sneak peek” at the forthcoming “Ephramite” CD that is being produced by musicians in our movement
A special “Surprise Announcement” by James Tabor
Our formal program begins Friday evening at 5pm and concludes at 5pm on Sunday, however, we encourage any who can to stay over Sunday night so we can continue to spend informal time together through the evening in the lovely hotel setting. We have also planned more break time and leisure time this year to allow for socializing and informal meetings and discussions.
For those flying in we will try to arrange airport pickups. Please let Timothy Thompson (twt@embarqmail.com) know your schedule and he will be in touch with you about arrangements.
Hotel Details: We have blocked off a limited number of rooms (one bedroom suites with kitchen) for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights at the special low rate of $99.00 per night. You can get single, double, triple, or quad all at the same low price. If you want Thursday night before, or Monday night after you can ask the booking person and perhaps be able to work out the same rate as well but the three nights are guaranteed. Call the Doubletree at 704-364-2400, ask for reservations, tell them you are with the group “United Israel.” Be sure you get this special rate. Our agent, if you have any problems, is Cameron Hall, but you don’t need to speak to her to make reservations.
The Doubletree Guest Suites is located at:
6300 Morrison Boulevard
Charlotte, NC 28211
Web site:
Today brings the New Moon or a new month, but not just any new moon. According to the Torah, “This month (literally “new”) shall be to you head of the months…Exodus 12.
Today is the beginning of Nisan or Aviv, the biblical name of this new moon/month.
Even though the focus on the 1st day of the 7th month is dominant among many, and has been picked up even in our culture as “Rosh HaShanah,” the Jewish “New Year,” the power of YHVH’s word here to Moshe can not be gainsaid. This is indeed the beginning of the “Sacred” year, not the civil year, and the return of the cycle of Sabbaths, New Moons, and Festivals…
If you do a bit of study for the terms “first day” of the “first month” in the Tanakh you might be surprised at how often this “New Year” signals a new beginning, renewal, and new life, including here in the time of Moshe at the Exodus. It is also called the turning of the year, and has to do with the sprouting of the barely, and with what we call “spring,” but on a deeper level it is more than that. For all of us may it be a time of “turning,” and yes, “Here comes the sun!”
Here is a detailed study of what the Bible calls “The Times and the Seasons”:
Blessed be the Name of God
From everlasting even to everlasting!
For wisdom and might are His;
And He changes the times and seasons.
–Daniel 2:20–
One of the most fascinating areas of Biblical study is that of chronology. YHVH is a God of history, of times and seasons. He alone is the One who was, and is, and is to come. He alone determines the outcome of things, knowing the end from the beginning (see Isaiah 46:10). The Torah is full of fascinating indications of how, and particularly when He acts in bringing forth His Divine Plan of the ages. In other words, the Torah gives us insight into what we might call the Divine Counsel or “Strategy.” Much of this chronological material in the Torah is written in coded form and has to be “dug out” with some care. However, the effort is well rewarded as we gain insight into some of the “wondrous things” hidden therein. Remember the prayer of David:
Open my eyes that I might see,
Wondrous things out of Your Torah! (Psa 119:18)
One of the most intriguing examples of God’s strategic chronological Plan in history are the events surrounding the Call of Abram and the birth of Isaac. To follow this study you will need a good literal translation of the Torah in English, a Hebrew text if you have it, and materials for notes.
As you know, Isaac was a wondrous child of promise, born when Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90 (Gen 17:17). A year earlier, when Abraham was 99, we have an important set of references to what was ahead. YHVH and the two heavenly messengers appeared to Abraham at Mamre and revealed to Abraham and Sarah that they would have a son. Note the precise language:
I will certainly return to you when the season comes around, and lo, Sarah your wife shall have a son (Gen 18:10).
Is anything too hard for YHVH? At the set time I will return to you, when the season comes around, and Sarah shall have a son (Gen 18:14).
Two precise Hebrew expressions are used here, lending strong emphasis to the precise timing of the birth of Isaac. There is great meaning in all this. The first phrase, “when the season comes around,” (ca`et chayah) is literally, “at the time (or season) of life.” It is a reference to the new year in the Spring, in the month of Abib or Nisan (see Exodus 12:2). It is significant to note that precisely the same phrase is used in the Haftorah reading for this very section of Torah (Vayerah). There we read of another extraordinary birth, that of the son of the Shunammite woman during the time of Elisha (2 Kings 4:16). Truly this month of Nisan is a month of miracles and “new birth” as we shall see. The second phrase, “at the set time,” (lamo`ed) stresses the exactitude of the timing of this important event. It will come at a precise time or season. These are not merely superfluous passing references. Three chapters later we read:
And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him (Gen 21:2).
What we learn here is that Isaac was born in the Spring of the year, likely in the month of Nisan, at a “set time” of great importance to the plan of YHVH.
Anyone who is a talmid(ah) Torah, a student of Torah, will immediately think of the miraculous birth of yet another child, which also took place in the Spring of the year, in this very month of Nisan. I am speaking of the birth of the nation of Israel, brought out of Egypt at the first Passover. Regarding that pivotal event YHVH Himself declares:
Israel is My son, My first-born,
and I have said unto you: Let My son go (Exodus 4:22).
When Israel was a child I loved him,
And out of Egypt I called My son (Hosea 11:1).
We all know that this coming out of Egypt, this birth of a nation happened at a precise time, even a precise day according to the Plan of YHVH. Exodus 12:40-41 makes a fantastic claim of great significance. Note it carefully:
Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who dwelt in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass, at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the very day [i.e., Passover], it came to pass that all the host of YHVH went out from the land of Egypt.
Note that the language is exact and absolute. The reference to the very day is to the 15th of Nisan, the evening of the Passover Seder. But what about this intriguing reference to 430 years? Scholars have disputed over the meaning of this chronological note. It should be noted that the verse, when properly translated, does not say that Israel was in the land of Egypt for 430 years, but rather the that the time of their “sojourning” was 430 years (see KJV for a correct rendering). What event happened, 430 years earlier, to the day, from Israel’s Exodus from Egypt?
Many would begin this 430 year period of “sojourn” with the Call of Abraham in Genesis 12. Others have counted the 430 years from the circumcision covenant with Abraham, when he was 99 years old (Gen 17). Still others have begun the 430 years with the birth of Isaac in Genesis 21. The Rabbinic source Seder Olam preserves what I think is the best solution to this problem.
In Genesis 23:4 Abraham tells the children of Heth, from whom he purchases the burial cave of Machpelah in Kiriatharba or Hebron, “I am a stranger and a sojourner” with you. Have you ever noticed this? Abraham calls himself a ger (stranger) and a toshav (sojourner), even though this very Land had been promised to him! Abraham never received the Land of Promise; he remained a “sojourner” until the day of his death. The same is true for Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and the 70 who went down to Egypt. The question is, precisely when did this “sojourning” of the people of Israel begin? According to Seder Olam it begins not in Genesis 12, with the Call of Abram to leave his father Terah’s house in Haran, but five years earlier, when he left Ur of the Chaldees (Babylon)! Note carefully, when Abram leaves Haran he is 75 years old (Gen 12:4). But according to Genesis 11:31 “they went forth . . . from Ur of the Chaldees” some years earlier. This is the actual beginning of their wandering or sojourning. There is a strikingly significant reference in this regard in Genesis 15:7:
And He said to him: “I am YHVH that brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.”
Did you catch it? We might have expected, on the basis of Genesis 12:1-3 (Lech Lacha), for YHVH to say “who brought you out of your father’s house,” i.e., from Haran. But here we learn a crucial point, supported also in Rabbinic tradition, that the ultimate “Call” of Abram was out of Ur in Babylon, not from Haran. In other words, the wandering, or “sojourning” of Abram begins before his call from Haran at age 75. Also, the Hebrew word here is crucial. The phrase here translated “brought you out” is from the verb yatz’ah. Perhaps you remember the same crucial phrase in Exodus 20:2 when YHVH thunders from Sinai:
I am YHVH your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
This is the dramatic introduction to the giving of the Ten Words (Commandments). The verb “brought you out” is identical in both passages: Genesis 15:7 and Exodus 20:2. This is crucially important. It strongly indicates that the call of Abraham from Ur of the Chaldees was 430 years to the day from the Exodus of Israel from Egypt! Think about that for a moment. That would mean that Abram left Ur, which was his own personal “Exodus” from idolatry and paganism, on the very same night, Nisan 15th, which later becomes the Passover! This timing is certainly no accident. In both symbol and actuality the deep significance of this point is obvious.
The exact chronology of the Hebrew text confirms this. Note carefully the following references and numbers (the years are given as AM, “after Man (i.e., Adam),”which correspond to the standard Jewish years since Creation):
Abram leaves Ur Abram 70 Year 2018 AM (Gen 11:31)
Abram leaves Haran Abram 75 Year 2023 AM (Gen 12:4)
Birth of Isaac Abram 100 Year 2048 AM (Gen 17:17)
Birth of Jacob Isaac 60 Year 2108 AM (Gen 25:20)
Israel to Egypt Jacob 130 Year 2238 AM (Gen 47:9)
Exodus 210 yrs later Year 2448 AM (Ex 12:40)
The total years from Abram leaving Haran at age 75 (2023 AM) until Jacob going down to Egypt (2238 AM) are 215. To this we add the 210 years of Egyptian slavery for a total of 425 years: from Abram leaving Haran, until the Exodus in the year 2448 AM. But, what about the all important reference to 430 years of “sojourning” in Exodus 12:40-41? Here we have only 425 rather than 430. The five additional years are obviously the time Abram spent in Haran. Accordingly, he must have left Ur at age 70. Thus, the total years of “sojourning of the children of Israel,” is precisely 430 years, from the Abram’s “going out from Ur” at age 70 (2018 AM), until Israel’s “going out of Egypt” in the year 2448 AM. The harmony and significance of this parallel can hardly be overstressed.
One important additional note here. Why would Exodus 12:40 speak of the sojourn of the “children of Israel” as 430 years when this period begins with Abram? The answer is that Abram stands for the whole people. The term “Israel” is both a name and a title which includes Abraham and his entire line through Isaac and Jacob. The Covenant with the Jewish people begins with Abraham. It is worth noting that the name ISRAEL in Hebrew is spelled Yod, Shin, Resh, Alef, Lamed. These five Hebrews letters are the first letters of the names of the Patriarchs and their wives. Note: Yod=Yitzak (Isaac) and Yaakov (Jacob); Shin=Sarah; Resh=Rebecca and Rachel; Lamed=Leah! Surely this is no accident! Accordingly, when we speak of the “children of Israel,” we begin with, and certainly include, Abraham.
But there is much more. Remember, Isaac is born at a “set time,” when the “season of life” comes around. We have already seen that this is a reference to the beginning of Spring, or the month of Nisan. It seems likely that Isaac, as a miraculous child of promise, was actually born on Nisan 15th or Passover! The festivals and holy days of Israel, fully set forth in the Torah in Leviticus 23, were known and significant in various ways in much earlier times (Gen 1:14; 8:13). For example, there is a fascinating reference to Lot preparing “unleavened bread” or matzos, for the heavenly guests prior to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19:3)! Why matzos? In the previous chapter Abraham has been told that Isaac will be born “at this season next year” (18:14). So, we know we are in the time of Nisan, when Abram is 99, a year before Isaac’s birth. Is it possible that God rescued and removed Lot and his family from Sodom around, or even on, the very night of Passover? This would certainly make sense. The text contains several Passover motifs. The angels keep urging Lot and his family to leave, to hurry, and not to delay. In a similar way the Israelites make haste to leave Egypt, not even allowing their bread to rise.
Putting all this together we learn some interesting and fascinating things about how YHVH acts in history. Abram left Ur with its idolatry and paganism, on the very night of Passover, and Israel left Egypt on the same day, 430 years later. Isaac is born this same time of year, at a “set time,”(probably Passover), while Lot leaves Sodom just one year earlier at the same “set time,” or season of the year. Each of these events is closely connected in both time and theme. The Passover season is a time of birth and new beginnings, a time for leaving behind the old and beginning the new, a time of rescue and mighty deliverance, a time of miracles and dramatic demonstration of the power and greatness of YHVH!
Click the link below for a Printable version of the Study Notes
To hear the podcast of this week’s class click here.
VaYakheil
Exodus 35:1-38:20
1 Kings 7:40-50
22nd Torah Reading, 10th in Exodus
(122 verses)
Pekudai
Exodus 38:21-40:38
1 Kings 7:51-8:21
23rd Torah Reading, 11th in Exodus
(92 verses)
Overview / Commentary
This week two portions are combined; VaYakheil (and he assembled) and Pekudai (accounts). We also complete the Book of Exodus (Shemoth) this week. This Sabbath is also one of 4 special Sabbaths around Purim. Shekalim and Zacor come before Purim and Parah and this week’s special reading HaHodesh come after.
This special Sabbath gets its name from the opening words of Exodus 12:2 - HaHodesh hazeh – The verse literally translated says, “This month is to you a head of months; it is a first one to you - for months of the year“. I love this time of year. The flowers are in bloom and all of nature sings that newness is in the air. Time for Israel, was to begin with their freedom.
The special section of the Torah that is read on this Sabbath HaHodesh is Exodus 12:2-20. It tells of Pesach (Passover) and contains the command to keep Passover and Unleavened Bread.
As George Robinson notes in his work, Essential Torah - A Guide to the Five Books of Moses, those who are following the weekly Torah portions are now in the heart of the cycle just as the Children of Israel are in their heart of their journey.
The word heart is a key word in the Torah readings this week.
The events of this week’s Torah portions are:
(1) the carrying out of the instructions given to Moses in Exodus 31:1-11 (Construction of the Mishkan) and
(2) Exodus 31:12-17 (the charge to keep the Sabbath).
When Moses presents these instructions to the children of Israel, he presents the Sabbath BEFORE the details of the Mishkan.
This is especially interesting since the children of Israel are about to embark on a most holy work. The Hebrew word translated work - melakah, occurs numerous times in this week’s lesson as if to say that while they are creating a Sanctuary on earth - a place of true holiness, they must remember to maintain a sanctuary in time - Shabbat! It should be remembered that the Sabbath is the very first thing called holy in the Hebrew Bible.
The work for which they have been tasked was to create what the Torah calls a Mikdash. This Hebrew word is based upon the root word Kadosh – holy or separate.
In Exodus 25:8-9 we read that the purpose of the Mikdash was to create a place where God could dwell with the Children of Israel. The principle Hebrew word translated as Tabernacle is mishkan. The root word shekan means to dwell. Many have heard of the Hebrew word Shekinah. This too is based upon the same root.
A few other passages to read for further study:
Exodus 24:16
Ezekiel 43:9
Zechariah 2:10-12 (14 - 15 Hebrew)
Furthermore, we read in Exodus 25:9 that the Mishkan in its entirety was to be made according to a pattern shown to Moses in the mount. This same idea is found in several other passages (Exodus 26:30, 27:8, Numbers 8:4).
Moses takes an offering (terumah) from the people. This offering was a matter of the heart. Several times we see the word heart in this week’s class. Here are some examples:
Exodus 35:5 - nediv libo - where nediv is best translated into English as willing or generous - the root of libo is lev and translates as heart. So the offering comes from those with a ‘willing heart’.
35:10 - And let all who are wise of heart – chacham lev
35:21 – And they came, every man whose heart was lifted - nesa o libo
….and every man whose spirit was willing - nadva ruacho
see also vv. 22, 25, 26, an 29 for other examples of ‘heart’ in these passages.
In Exodus 28:3 we see that to be ‘wise of heart’ is the result of being filled with the Spirit of Wisdom. Despite what one may have heard or even read in later religious literature - people were filled with the Spirit of God long before the advent of Christianity!
A good example of this is Betzalel. He is filled with the Spirit of God - in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge and in every work.
Here are some things that I gleaned from this week’s Torah lesson:
1. Any undertaking worthwhile begins with an awareness of and observance of Shabbat - remember and keep! There is plenty of work to do. Recall that the word ‘work’ occurs frequently in this week’s lesson. Shabbat is the first thing called Holy in the Bible. Whenever we seek to bring about true holiness we must never forget to sanctify our time.
2. We must be led by the Spirit of God. The creation story begins with the Spirit of God. No matter what it is that we seek to ‘create’, it must be established upon the gifts of the Spirit given to Betzalel. I would go so far as to call wisdom, understanding and knowledge - the roots of the Spirit. Did you realize that these three words are directly tied to God’s creative activity in the book of Proverbs 3:19-20.
3. Communal participation is required, but only those whose heart is:
a. Willing
b. Stirred or lifted
c. Wise
We should all use our gifts, talents and callings. We should give according to our means. This is not always money, but can apply to abilities.
Torah Studies with Ross Nichols
Roots of Faith 2009
Waiting in hope, I surely waited in hope for YeHoVaH!
He stretched out toward me; He listened to my scream!
He pulled me up from the pit of waste; from the miry mud,
He set my feet upon a rock, made my steps firm.
He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our Elohim.
Many will see and they will fear and they will put trust in YeHoVaH.
Happy is the man who sets in YeHoVaH his trust! (Psalm 40:1-5)
Bless my life-breath YeHoVaH! And all inside me his holy Name!
Bless my life-breath YeHoVaH! And don’t forget all His retributions:
The One excusing all your wrong doings; The One healing all your illnesses;
The One buying back your lives from the pit of destruction;
The One who wreathes your head with Chesed and Rachamim (faithful love & mercies);
The One who satiates you with the good;
Of your ornamentation he makes new like an eagle your youths. (Psalm 103:1-5)
Today’s Torah reading is called, in Hebrew, Ki Tissa’ and includes: Exodus 30:11 through 34:35. The reading from the Prophets is 1 Kings 18:1-39, the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal. The link seems to be the account of the “Golden Calf,” which the Israelites made while Moses was on Mt Sinai for 40 days. There are many other fascinating topics and subjects covered in this week’s reading. We invite you to delve into these texts and join with the worldwide Torah community of Jews and non-Jews who are thinking on these things.
If you would like a simple study guide and recorded teaching on these readings week-by-week you can go to Roots of Faith and hear Ross Nichols in his new series by clicking this link:
Ki Tissa’
Enjoy our study and your Sabbath of rest and refreshment!
On the occasion of the Purim holiday, I’d like to share something I have read in a number of sources over the years and find fascinating to this day. It is the strange and captivating connection between the Megilla Esther story and the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials in 1946.
Those of us familiar with the story of Esther (478-464 B.C.) know how she was instrumental in bringing deliverience to the Jews living in Persia who did not return to Jerusalem after Cyrus’ decree. The defeat of the wicked Prime Minister Haman whose lies were intended to bring destruction to the Jewish people is still celebrated today as the Feast of Purim. More on that later.
On October 16, 1946, ten of the highest-ranking Nazi officers of Hitler’s Germany were put to death. Three more were given life sentences (Rudolf Hess, the last surviving relic of the trials, died in Spandau Prison in 1987 at the age of 93), four were imprisioned for up to twenty years, and three were acquitted.
After 216 court sessions the International Military Tribunal, convened specially for this purpose, disbanded itself and later in that day the ashes of the men responsible for the Holocaust were scattered into a little brook in Munich-Solln, and thereupon vanished forever. The true horror of Nazism had been revealed to the world every day for almost a year, and now the grimmest chapter in the history of the civilized world was all but closed. While the ashes of Hitler’s top politicians and officers have disappeared into oblivion, not many people are aware of a more divine significance of this historic event, one connected to an episode in Persia over 2,500 years ago.
When King Ahasuerus, then the most powerful man on earth, offered to grant Queen Esther whatever she desired for having saved his life, she replied, “If it please the king, let it tomorrow also be granted to the Jews who are in Shushan to do according to the law of this day, and let the 10 sons of Haman be hanged on the gallows.”
This is a remarkable request since Haman’s 10 sons had already been killed by the sword in the citadel of Susa (Esther 9:6-14). Nevertheless, in accordence with Esther’s wishes their 10 dead bodies were hanged. In the Apocryphal Greek version of Esther, chapter 9 verses 13-14 reads: And Esther said to the king, “Let the Jews be allowed to do the same tomorrow. Also, hang up the bodies of Haman’s 10 sons.” So he permitted this to be done, and handed over to the Jews of the city the bodies of Haman’s sons to hang up.
When the Megilla Esther was written, the names of the 10 sons of Haman who were hanged are enumerated. In the Hebrew text, the letters of the names are several times larger than the regular text. Yet, in the second, eighth and eleventh entry in the list, there are three letters; Tav, Shin and Zayn which are only one-half the size of the regular text. This mysterious order has been followed every since. The numerical value of the three diminished letters equals 707.
The Nuremberg Trials ended on October 1, 1946, which corresponded with the Jewish year of 5706. However, the due process of law meant the sentences of the convicted men could not be passed down until after appeals for clemency, of which there were many, had been heard. Finally, the sentences were pronounced. The Jewish New Year had arrived in the interim-it was 5707.
Twelve Nazis were meant to hang-although the method of execution might equally as well have been the firing squad-but Martin Bormann had escaped at the end of the war and was sentenced to death in absentia, and Herman Goering committed suicide two hours before his destined execution, leaving 10 condemned men.
In the early hours of October 16, 1946 during a 90 minute period, these 10 top Nazis went to their death on the gallows. The guards, with precise, ruthless efficiency brought them in one by one to deliver their last words and die. Only Julius Streicher went without dignity. His appearance happened at 2:11 a.m. He had to be pushed across the floor, wild-eyed and screaming, “Heil Hitler!” Mounting the steps, he cried out: “and now I go to God.” He was pushed the last two steps to the mortal spot beneath the hangman’s rope. Streicher swung around to face the witnesses and glared at them. Suddenly he screamed “Purim Fest 1946!” Then he was hanged.
The Megilla Esther had predicted that just as these 10 sons, descendants of Amalek and enemies of the Jews, were hanged, so again in the year 5707 (1946) would 10 other children of Haman be hanged.
The day of the early morning executions the front page headlines of the October 16, 1946 Late City Edition of The New York Times broke the story of what had just happened. In another strange twist, this was the day of Hoshana Raba.
“…On the seventh day of the Succot Holiday (Hoshana Raba), the judgement of the nations of the world is finalized. Sentences are issued from the residence of the King. Judgements are aroused and executed on that day.”
Zohar Vayikra 31b
Ralph Buntyn
A personal message from Ross Nichols:
I am pleased to announce that beginning March 8th, 2009 at 6:00 P.M. Central, I will begin a new and informative series of teaching that you can listen to live or download for later listening via the Internet here.
Content
The weekly classes in my new series will focus on the Annual cycle of readings followed faithfully by traditional Jews around the world. Each week, according to this cycle of readings, a section of the Torah and the prophets will be highlighted.
Options – Make the experience personal!
You will have the option of listening in live on Sunday night, or if your schedule does not allow you to listen in live, you will have an entire week to download our podcast for study at your own leasure. Some may wish to wait until the Sabbath to listen.
I have also determined through feedback from many of my faithful listeners (and from other sources) that the length of the most effective teachings are under an hour and razor sharp! My goal will be to organize the teaching in such a way to effectively cover the main points of the weekly parsha (Torah section) in a class that is much closer to 30 minutes. This way, most people can download the class and listen to it during an average commute to work or while you run errands, go to the gym, etc.
My main goal as a teacher is to encourage you to study the Torah and to learn to apply its principles to your life in a modern world – thus inspiring you to live a more biblically authentic lifestyle. I am trying to make this is convenient for you as possible. I want you to learn!
Over the course of the year we will cover the entire Torah! Your life will be transformed as you drink of the refreshing waters of the God-inspired teaching of Moses.
Why focus on the Torah?
As David said in Psalm 119:18, “Open my eyes and I will look for wonderful things from your Torah”. We will do just that! We will open our eyes and take a fresh look at the Torah.
The final prophetic word in the Hebrew Bible, recorded in Malachi says, “Remember the torah of my servant Moses” (Malachi 4:4 – English Bible). And yet, humanity has drifted far from “the teaching”. The nearly 6.5 billion inhabitants of our planet need to hear the words of this eternal teaching delivered once and for all to the ancient people of Israel. After all, the intent of this teaching was that it would go forth to all nations (Isaiah 2 and Micah 4), and ultimately, in what the Bible calls the New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34), the Torah will be written upon the heart.
Despite what people believe Jesus the Jew taught, it is recorded that he claimed that did not come to abolish the Torah or the prophets but to fulfill – adding further that until heaven and earth passed – not a single letter…not even a stroke of a letter would pass from the torah until all was fulfilled (Matthew 5:17-20)!
I can think of no greater subject matter to devote my time to learning and to helping others learn than the Torah of Moses.
Who Would Benefit from these classes?
I believe that these classes will be helpful for Jews and Christians as my style is unique. I am a bit tough to label as I tend to resist such categories, opting for the simple designation of “biblical”. I will at times draw upon Jewish wisdom, much of which is organized around these very weekly readings from the Torah and Prophets, but I am not Jewish. I will often draw upon texts from the Christian Scriptures, much of which clearly points people to a Torah way of living, though I no longer associate myself with the label of Christian. “Christianity” in its modern sense has long ago abandoned the religion of Jesus for a religion about him.
I hope that you will listen in and that you will encourage others to listen in as well. In addition to the weekly class I will post a blog for download. The intent will be to publish a handsome document for download and printing each week with my own notes on the weekly parsha. You can put them in a 3-ring binder and at the end of the year you will have a complete reference work for your further studies. I hope to expand this as time goes on into a full course, complete with on-line tests and a certificate of completion for those who stick with us.
I am more and more planning to spend my energy developing, with the help of my faithful friend Brian Jones, a virtual community on the web where you can experience fellowship with others who are seeking to live according to the principles of the Hebrew Bible. This “Synagogue Without Walls” is catching on. People from literally around the world are joining up. I encourage you to check it out.
And finally, there is no greater reward than to lead people to a better understanding of God and His ways. As Hillel said, “Be of the disciples of Aaron, loving peace and pursuing peace, loving people and bringing them closer to the Torah”.
We are all disciples and this saying has inspired me in the current direction of Roots of Faith and our ongoing effort to bring people closer to the Torah. I hope that you can join us.
The new series will be called A Parsha Study with Roots of Faith. I believe that you will be greatly blessed by this series.
Shalom, Ross
Roots of Faith
Ross Nichols, founder and director of Roots of Faith introduces something new to his podcast audience this week. Nichols, having just completed an intensive 11 week series of studies on Dr. Tabor’s latest book, Restoring Abrahamic Faith, conducted a half-hour interview with Dr. Tabor about the book, how he came to write it, its essential message, and what how he envisions it contributing to an understanding of biblical truths. Toward the end of the interview Nichols also has Dr. Tabor talk a bit about his forthcoming book on the apostle Paul, scheduled to appear in Spring, 2010 with Simon & Schuster.
You can listen to or download this interview at the Roots of Faith Web site here.
http://rootsoffaith.org/blog-and-podcasts/2009/02/27/ross-nichols-interviews-dr-james-tabor.htm
More details about the book, Restoring Abrahamic Faith, including readers responses and reviews can be found at the publisher’s Web site: genesis2000.org.
You will not want to miss this exciting interview with Dr. James D. Tabor.
United Israel Staff