Israelis tend to take their history seriously, and it is not unusual for students to assist archaeologists to excavating, for example, the remains of a Jewish settlement dating to the Second Temple period. A group of Jerusalem high school students were searching the past to help finance their future. In...
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...
Peek into the life of a prophet caught between exiles, navigating through divine visions and relaying a timeless message of hope and restoration amidst judgment. In this lecture, originally delivered to a class at a Christian college, I explore how Ezekiel's unique position defies traditional prophet categorizations and...
Listen as an Orthodox Jewish teacher introduces the content of all 24 books of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible). This is a quick and to-the-point walkthrough across pages and pages of Jewish sacred texts that focus only on the key highlights. It's an excellent introduction for someone who does...
Jewish holy texts suggest the practice of meditation on the sacred words. This is a different type of meditation from transcendental techniques practiced in Buddhism. The goal is not to empty the self but to fill the self and to hear the voice. Not the inner voice of self, but...
Psalm 27 offers us an enteral truth: God is our light and our salvation. External resources cannot harm us unless the Almighty allows them. Our response to adversity should not be fear but moving ever closer to the Lord. That is the message of this song inspired by Psalm 27....
People have diverse ideas about atonement because the topic is so multi-faceted. In this particular lesson, I highlight some foundational truths that center around the imagery of "cleansing" and "purification." However, the questions I get most often about Atonement are tied to Jesus and the role...
A lecture for the freshmen class on the "Intertestamental Period" and 400 years of silence between the "Old Testament" and "New Testament." A quick overview of biblical books, what's in them, and how they are typically grouped. Then a discussion about all...
Hanukkiah is a special lamp used during Hanukkah celebrations. Though it comes in all shapes and sizes today, it was modeled on a seven-branched Menorah that once stood in Jerusalem Temple. But what did the Temple Menorah look like, and what did it seek to convey? In Talmud, we are...