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Not many people have read the Talmud. Why? Because though it is a monumental work of Jewish literature it is comprised of 63 tractates and 523 chapters, totaling around 2 million words. It's like an encyclopedia with various contributions that span more than 1800 years. And its language
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Dr. Brad Young is head of the Gospel Research Center and author of several books on Jesus' parables and ministry in their Jewish context. In this lecture, Dr. Young discusses why rabbinic literature is, unfortunately, so often dismissed as a valuable source for understanding Jesus’ teachings. A common response
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The Gabriel Revelation is an inscription on a stone found in Jordan dating back to around the beginning of the Common Era, roughly to the time of the birth of Jesus. It is the subject of a book by Israel Knohl, Messiahs and Resurrection in the Gabriel Revelation, published in
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This is a lecture by Daniel Boyarin, who taught at Hebrew University, Yale, Harvard, Yeshiva University, and now lectures at Berkley. Besides being a prolific writer, Professor Boyarin constantly challenges conventional scholarship with ideas that seem provocative but always well-researched. In this lecture, he proposes that Judaism is not an
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Shaye J. D. Cohen is a Professor of Hebrew Literature and Philosophy in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University. He is a well-known historian who also holds rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary. This book (link here) is one of my favorites. If you
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It's not a secret that even surface familiarity with biblical languages opens a doorway to a better understanding of ancient texts. Recently, I ran across some videos by The Greek Academy that teach how to read Greek! I peeked inside, and almost right away, I fell in love
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A few years ago, Israeli archaeologists unearthed a beautiful and ancient stone in the city of Tiberius in Galilee. It is an impressive piece of basalt rock with an image of a seven-branched menorah. Menorah is a special temple lampstand that the Bible describes in detail. It is one of
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I remember the first time I heard someone use the word "Beelzebub" in a sentence. It was a joke or pun of some sort, and everyone around me was laughing. Only I was not. I was clueless about what that word meant and clueless about why the comment
Mighty Romans are gone, but Roman roads remain all over the Mediterranean and in Israel. Originally, the roads ensured the smooth movements of troops and military equipment, but one can imagine the ancient highways came in handy in many situations. The history behind the Roman roads in Israel goes back
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According to researchers of antiquity driving away bad luck, the evil eye, and, in short, envious people—this was one of the purposes of mosaics in Ancient Rome. You may know of amulets, incantations, but art and specific mosaics were also used to ward off evil. Ancient literary sources and
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Though I am interested in other religions beyond Judaism and Christianity, I rarely talk about them because they are outside of my area of expertise. I came across a video that explains how Muslims view the Quran in a very succinct and genius way. I was impressed with how Matt