Psalm 121 (Hebrew - English)
Psalm 121 speaks of God's protection of those who trust in Hashem. God's ever-present hand, a shadow besides traveler. שִׁיר לַמַּעֲלוֹת אֶשָּׂא עֵינַי אֶל־הֶהָרִים מֵאַיִן יָבֹא עֶ...
Welcome to Jewish and Biblical Studies by Pinchas Shir
"Learn the Rules..." Picasso
> “Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.” > Pablo Picasso Learn the rules...0:00/0:591×Rules are not bad by default. Some rules should not be broken unless we wish to face some dire consequences. But Pablo Picasso was right,...
Rethinking Jewish Spirituality and Mysticism
This is a lecture by Rachel Elior, a Professor of Jewish Philosophy and Jewish Mystical Thought at the Hebrew University, a talk given in front of an audience of peers. Her research is insightful and often challenges the status quo academic thinking. In this segment, she raises questions of definitions...
The Sign of Jonah (~3hrs)
What is this Sign of Jonah? The traditional thinking is that it's Jesus' resurrection, three days and three nights... But the passage may not be so simple as it appears on the surface. Interested to take a deeper look and discover another way of reading the text?...
What is Judaism?
This is a lecture by Shaye J. D. Cohen who 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. His lectures often probe deep...
Psalm 150 in Hebrew (with English Translation)
Psalm 150 in Hebrew is a song of praise that should ring in the hearts of all who live and move. The very breath we breathe is the breath of Hashem who made us alive. הַלְלוּ יָהּ הַלְלוּ־אֵל בְּקָדְשׁוֹ...
Jesus: Nazarene or Nazarite?
After reading the gospels some people walk away thinking that Jesus was a Nazarite. “And came and lived in a city called Nazareth. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “He shall be called a Nazarene.” (Mat 2:23 NASB) The writings of the Apostles, the New...
03 Hanukkah in First Maccabees Audio
This lesson on Hanukkah was recorded live with audience participation. Flavius Josephus describes the days before the Maccabean Revolt. His version is not that different from the book of First Maccabees, which paints those events as a story of heroic struggle for the survival of Jewish ways of life and...
02 Hanukkah in Josephus Audio
his lesson on Hanukkah was recorded live with audience participation. A late first century CE Jewish writer, Josephus Flavius, describes the history of the days before the Maccabean Revolt. How and why did Antiochus IV get involved in Israel’s cultural landscape, and why did he decide to force Israelites...
