My research is focused on the interpretations of biblical texts in the contexts of ancient culture, languages, and history.
The video below is a lecture given at Lanier Theological Library early in 2020 on a most intriguing topic, the interaction of Rabbis in the Talmud with early followers of the Nazarene. The lecturer, Joseph Shulam, grew up in Jerusalem, where he was introduced to the New Testament in high...
In Matthew’s Gospel Jesus said to his disciple Peter, “I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matt 16:19). A couple of...
One of the books I often recommend is "The Jewish Gospels" by Daniel Boyarin. A short but provocative book written by an eloquent and erudite professor who taught at Hebrew University, Yale, Harvard, Yeshiva University and now at Berkley. The book presents a cogent academic take on the...
In our parsha, Vayera, we read the story of Sodom and Amorah, the story of true sinners in the hands of an angry God. Only things are a bit different. In Torah we see Abram and how he graciously pleads for the evil people of Sodom, imploring God not to...
The role of the prophet is not to predict what is to come, but to speak into their present moment, so how does Revelation fit into the prophetic category? We also discuss how the author uses imagery to connect the dots between the ideas of a suffering Messiah and a...
Have you been fascinated by the Book of Revelation but felt that something must be missing in modern interpretations of this anti-Roman, Jewish document? In this week's episode, we explore what books like Enoch or Baruch or what geography and the Torah have to do with interpreting the...
What is apocalyptic literature, and how does it change the way we read Revelation? What were the cultural developments that birthed the apocalyptic genre, and is that genre a Greco-Roman or Jewish style of literature? This week we talk about the overall context of Revelation and why pop culture has...
The story of Hanukkah is epic, much more epic than the books of Maccabees paint it. Yes, it’s the story of the Jewish wars against the mad and tyrannical Antiochus IV. But the Seleucid king himself was entangled in a series of wars that began long before he was...
Many people know what Hanukkah is like based on how it is celebrated today. But not many know how the ancient people viewed it. Hanukkah is over 2000 years old! Peek into some old perspectives on Hanukkah....