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yonadave · 3 months

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T'ruah's Antisemitism pamphlet

I wrote this a year ago, and I think that since the war, we all see the increase rise in Antisemitism in progressive places, which is really hard for Progressive Jews who do not want to betray their people. I was glad to see T'ruah did not go in the path of evil organization like JVFP. So I translated it into English:

One of the advantages of living in Boston is that you don’t get “Olam Katan” in the synagogues here and if I'm interested in some Doom Scrolling I have to wait until Saturday night to go on Facebook or Twitter and see other people who read the bulletin and complain about it (rightfully so). But because on Shabbat I took the kids to a non-Orthodox synagogue and saw that “God hath made even the one as well as the other” - a short leaflet of an organization of rabbis called 'T'ruah' which explains about anti-Semitism. Now, you can see that these are good people who want to increase the good in the world, but their little pamphlet clearly shows that “love covereth all transgressions” and it is very unpleasant for them to say some of the things they write about anti-Semitism from the left.

The leaflet starts with some very positive points but as soon as I got to the 'anti-Semitism outside of Christendom' section I realized What I’m actually reading. Although this is about the anti-Semitic history of the Arab world, you can really hear the pain of the writers that they have to write about. I can only assume that with every sentence they wrote down, their right hand started to hurt until they slowly discovered the inscription 'I mustn't tell lies'. Here you can find the usual oriental view of the situation of the Jews in Arab countries during the last thousand years. So it is true that they had to pay a special tax, and it is true that in some places they were obliged to live in ghettos (sorry, designated areas for Jews), and it is true that occasionally they had to wear clothes that mark them as Jews, and it is true that occasionally there were violent attacks against them just because they were Jewish. But is that a valid reason to say it was terrible? We do not need to exaggerate. It should be understood that the description 'not as bad as in Europe' is accurate but it is not something to be proud of. And then we come to the Arab reactions to the establishment of the State of Israel and specifically what happened to the Jewish communities in these countries.

And this is what they:

The situation changed in the 19th century, in large part due to European imperial expansion, which brought with it European antisemitism that combined with existing Islamic traditions. In the 20th century, Zionism—perceived in the Arab world as inextricably linked with Western colonialism—exacerbated tensions. Many Muslim-majority countries began adopting anti-Jewish measures.

Most Jews left these homelands—some willingly, some by expulsion, some under duress after their property was confiscated—with many emigrating from the Arab world to Israel, and others to Europe or the Americas.

So what do we have here?

First of all, the blame is of course in the connection between Zionism and Western colonialism. What is the relationship between Jews in another part of the world and the Jews in Arab countries and how can this relationship be defined in a way that is not anti-Semitic? After all, blaming people who didn't do something because of something someone else from the same ethnic group did is bigotry. And then the description that clarifies that some Jews left of their own free will, of course others were forcibly expelled, fled from fear or after taking all their possessions and then they 'immigrated' to Israel, Europe and America. Every other case of a minority whose absolute majority disappears from a geographic area under threats of violence, forced deportation and systematic persecution will be called by T'ruah rabbis as ethnic cleansing and the victims will never be called immigrants because they are refugees. And so the word “many” carries a lot of weight here. Because it may be that hundreds of thousands were deported and became refugees, but there are also many immigrants, even a hundred people can be considered a 'many' after all they did not write “a majority”.

The next part is a description of anti-Semitism in the USA. Although the focus is on anti-Semitism from the right side of the map, we must give credit to the fact that they do go into detail and describe anti-Semitism from the left. Including criticism of Israel that ,ove into anti-Semitic areas and mention the multiple attacks on Jews Ultra-Orthodox. Their explanation is that the Jews are the only ones who stayed in neighborhoods like Harlem and became the face of the 'white man' for the minorities who live there, but they claim that it is not connected to the political right and left (and that is a valid argument that is based on solid foundation).

The next part is the heart of the booklet, antisemitism and criticism of Israel. After a brief description of how terrible the State of Israel is, much like adding the sentence “Not that there's anything wrong with that”, they arrive at the definition of anti-Semitism. I'll wait with that, because I think that's the main purpose of the booklet. The next part is examples of when criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic and they bring quite a few examples and then cases of legitimate criticism of Israel and a discussion of BDS which remains very theoretical and can be summarized in two points: if the boycott is against Israel and not against Jews, and if the movement adheres to non-anti-Semitic criticism of Israel according to what we discussed, it's fine. This is a total Cop out, after all the BDS movement is not a vague Platonic ideal, it is an organized movement with a website and spokespeople and a presence on social media. It seems to me that the pamphlet does not make a principled statement about the BDS movement because it is afraid of what it will find if the writers actually check what the activists, founders and founders of the movement say and how they actually operate. After all, in one of the examples of legitimate criticism, they mention BDS in a call for anti-Israel demonstrations and actions that do not harm innocents, from this it can be understood that the BDS movement does not encourage harm to Israeli citizens, but can this assumption stand the test of reality?

The booklet ends with a general direction reading on how to fight anti-Semitism with five points: contain emotional intelligence (this is a group of meaningless words), education, build relationships of trust (in practice, if we want Minority A to help us, we must also help them), take legal action into account And finally - don't ignore the problem. On the one hand, this is an 'action plan' at the level of a first-year student, on the other hand, it is not as if there is a real solution to anti-Semitism that we can compare to.

And now we need to return to the definition of anti-Semitism, because in my opinion the entire pamphlet might as well have been written only for this short section, and its effect on the BDS movement and other allies of the T'ruah organization. They begin by describing the IHRA definition of antisemitism and say that the use of this definition is used to harm freedom of expression in cases of criticism of Israel. They come out against the codification of this definition as law using the words of Kenneth Stern, one of the people responsible for this definition. He says that the definition should not be codified into law. But right after this sentence they bring competing definitions. These manipulations and mental gymnastics prove beyond any shadow of a doubt that this is indeed a group of rabbis who are, like almost all rabbis, pushing the text for their own agenda. After all, Stern did not want his definition to be part of a written law because the definition is flawed, but because it is impossible to legislate definitions for anti-Semitism in the same way that things that are said orally are forbidden to be written down. The problem is of course the codification of a description of a social phenomenon. But T'ruah's rabbis take advantage of this statement to replace the IHRC's definition of antisemitism by The Jerusalem Declaration and The Nexus Document definition of Antisemitism. Now, it's hard for me to say why exactly these documents are the proper definition, they say that the JDA is more detailed and accurate than the IHRC but we don't get anything more. According to what they did say about the IHRC, their problem is the definition of a double standard against the State of Israel as anti-Semitism. Because that's the only real negative thing they say about the IHRC. And I think if we really remove the double standard from the definition of anti-Semitism, we can define a lot of voices on the left as not antisemitic, and I think it's safe to say that the T'ruah organization considers a lot of those voices as allies. To be clear, I feel that the booklet is really intended to do something positive, to whitewash the fight against anti-Semitism in those circles and to show that here, it is possible to fight against anti-Semitism as if there is no State of Israel and to fight against the State of Israel as if there is no anti-Semitism. It may not be something I like, but it is undoubtedly better for us to deal with anti-Zionists who are careful not to be anti-Semitic and 'only' advocate a double standard towards Israel.

The deep problem here is that they do not have the ability or the courage to look at their allies and wave to them the simple and important leftist call to “Do Better”. Do you want to criticize Israel? First of all, make sure you don't have an anti-Semitic bias. Adorn [keshot] yourself and afterward adorn the State of Israel, not the other way around. Of course, as one who believes that double standards against Israel are inherently Antisemitic, I must also say that it is not as if the right-wing counterparts of the map have enough courage to criticize their allies in the US for their anti-Semitism. And just as the bad in this pamphlet demands criticism, so does the good in it demand praise. The last few years have been very difficult for many in the Jewish community in the US, regardless of political affiliation and I am happy that at least on the side of T'ruah there is the beginning of an awakening regarding the left and anti-Semitism. I really hope that this is their first and not their last step in their attempts to arouse the progressive side in the US to fight anti-Semitism. And who knows, maybe one day the American Jewish right will also wake up and fight anti-Semitism on the part of their allies.

#judaism #antisemitism

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kyloandtheknights · 3 years

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Just saw that you are writing a young flip blurb right now! I am so excited! I would love it if it could be really fluffy and from flips perspective. I just want to know how he feels about me! Thank you so much and I am so excited for your work :)

in which… flip is nervous and y/n loves to knit

a/n: hello darling! i love me some flip, so here’s some fluff for you, all from his perspective. just a lil sumn sumn where he admires you for the absolute GODDESS you are! have an amazing day!

pairing: young!flip zimmerman x reader

summary: flip doesn’t want to admit what he is nervous about… or who

warnings: swearing, y/n is not jewish, fluff fo’ dayyys, pining and desperation from flip because i luv it when men struggle ;)

word count: just under 1k (she’s an itty bitty one)

Flip was not the type of person to get nervous. Sure, he had been nervous before in his life-he wasn’t a robot. But when it came to feeling anxious about a situation, he was not the type to fuss. And when it came to people, he was most definitely not nervous. Usually, unless it was a family member or one of his few friends, he was more so annoyed that they had disturbed his peace or alone time to bother him with silly small talk and questions.

The bottom line was: Phillip Zimmerman did not get nervous.

So the clammy fidgeting hands that are constantly being wiped against his trousers, the giant lump in his throat and the erratic stuttering of his heart were definitely not because he was nervous, because he doesn’t get nervous. No- it must have been all of the coffee he had drank before he left with his parents and got into the car to go to temple. And, hypothetically speaking of course, if he was nervous, (which he most definitely was not), it definitely wasn’t because he walked past her while entering the synagogue, watching her wave goodbye at what Flip presumed to be a friend of hers who got lost in the crowd of people entering the temple, before plopping down on a picnic blanket splayed over the front grass in the driveway and pulling out her knitting needles and yarn from her bag, already halfway through another scarf in a pretty lilac colour- her camp set up to wait her friend out until the end of the session so that they could hang out afterwards.

No- he definitely wasn’t nervous because he didn’t know if she was pleased with his formal attire and hair when she gave him a once over and a gentle friendly smile- it was probably out of pity. An insanely pretty girl just minding her own business with a freakishly tall boy around her age just staring her down, dress shirt and formal trousers clad, topped off with reddened cheeks and ear tips, making direct eye contact for only a second before immediately looking away towards the floor, quickly nodding to her to show he acknowledges her presence before turning and walking inside.

She must think he was such a maniac. Why the fuck didn’t he smile at her? Why did he just nod? What was all that about? His mother had taught him proper manners, so why was it that as soon as he saw her, everything else he was thinking about or had ever known faded into nothingness and was replaced with small things he picked up about her. The part of her hair, the shape of her eyes, the sweet colour of her skin, the small moles and scars from old pimples that had faded with time. Every time he saw her, he seemed to walk away with a new fact about her. Her accent, her lip shape, the natural creases her face holds. Every single time.

He was snapped back into reality when his mother sitting next to him nudged his arm with her elbow, and when he looked to her, her face held a stern look that told him to pay attention to the rabbi, which she probably noticed he wasn’t doing after watching him stare off at the stained windows on the walls to check if he could possibly see her through them, even though he knew it was almost impossible with the opacity of the windows being damn near opaque with the intensity of the colour and due to her positioning on her picnic blanket being so close to the ground. God, he was crazy for even trying to see if he could spot her through the window. Why was he like this? It wasn’t like him to be actively looking for someone, let alone a girl. Nor was it like him to be fidgety and nerv-

No… he was not nervous. What did he have to be nervous about? He was Flip fuckin’ Zimmerman for God’s Sake. He scares men older than him with his strength at the lumber mill he worked at, chopping log after log with his trusty axe, his flannel off revealing his muscles, which flexed and glistened with his movements in his sweaty wife beater and jeans. Girls frothed over him. Guys wanted to be him. He was hot, he was stoic, he was strong and he was tall. And most importantly, he didn’t have to act like he cared about it, because he didn’t care about it, which somehow racked his appeal up even more.

But as he walked out of the synagogue and watched you, your brow furrowed behind your glasses that you had put on while he was inside, legs criss crossed as you continued to work on your knitting before meeting his eyes, he knew that none of it mattered. None of the “Flip Zimmerman- Hot Guy” mattered. Because it didn’t matter to her either. She didn’t know him. And that made him want to be with you even more.

So, he would never admit that he got nervous- but there’s a reason as to why he has watched her wait outside the synagogue for three months but has never said a word.

#flip zimmerman x reader #flip zimmerman #flip zimmerman blurb #young!flip #blurb #young!flip x reader #anon request #anon reply

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ruffboijuliaburnsides · 3 years

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Hi! Obviously ignore this if I'm asking something too personal, but you've mentioned that you're in the process of converting to judaism and I've been wondering how did you start? I've done a good bit of research and think it's something I'm interested in, but I have no idea what the actual process of conversion looks like, much less where to begin. Obviously feel free to ignore, or send me towards someone else, but thought I'd ask!

Hey no worries, anon! So, I will preface this by being forthcoming and saying I got partway through the conversion process, was forced to move, and ended up in a different part of the country with only one shul nearby whose rabbi (and community) are… very unfriendly to converts. They don’t SAY they are, but a few months of attendance and a handful of meetings with the rabbi with regards to conversion really hammered home that neither my wife nor I felt even remotely comfortable converting here, considering it’s a very personal and often vulnerable process, and wherein you have to actually like… trust and communicate with the rabbi you’re working with. So my conversion, while I still consider it “in progress”, is in an indefinite stall until we can move somewhere else or can reliably get to the next closest shul, which we currently cannot for various reasons.

ANYWAY. I started by doing a lot of research. Mostly I was just looking into… all kinds of religion, including Islam actually, because I missed the community and the structure and the spiritual anchors of my very conservative evangelical christian upbringing, but I didn’t like or want to return to the actual, y’know…. beliefs and tenets of Christianity. I found Judaism and just… the more I read and researched about the beliefs and the general culture of questioning and grappling with things within it, the more I felt like I’d found a people who I could understand, and a religion that understood me and would allow for me to be uncomfortable and question why things are taught certain ways and so forth. Which was one of many things that drove me away from Christianity, as I was not good at the whole “blind faith” thing. (they insist it’s not blind, but if you’re not supposed to question god then… what else IS it?)

At that point we were living in upstate new york, and the nearest reform shul was very small, did not have a permanent rabbi (there was one for a number of local communities that cycled around every few weeks), and really while they were officially reform they seemed to as a community have a practice and beliefs a lot closer to something like reconstructionist or humanist Judaism. I went to shabbat services on fridays there for a few months, and they were very nice but said they were very much not a usual reform congregation and that I should probably actually convert somewhere with a permanent rabbi and that was a bit more traditional, but that in the meantime they were more than happy to have me attend services and events with them. They were very sweet and I did appreciate that opportunity to accustom myself to the general pacing and content of a friday night shabbat service.

At that point we get to the part that you’re actually asking about, and I’m sorry if you’re just like “OH MY GOSH MAGS PLS JUST GET TO THE POINT” which is when we moved back down to Florida and I actually properly started the conversion process with a rabbi! I started out emailing the local shul and saying that I had just moved to the area, I was not Jewish but was interested in possibly converting and had been attending services at a very small shul up north, and is it all right if I attend a few shabbat services while I consider converting? I will say, I have never been told “no please don’t attend” about going to shabbat services, but especially with the world the way it is, and me being new and not knowing anyone in the community or having anyone to vouch for me, I prefer to ask beforehand so that they know to expect someone new who is reaching out and less likely to be a threat.

Anyway after a couple of weeks at that shul, I already loved the people and could tell I would get on pretty well with the rabbi, so I emailed her again about setting up a meeting to discuss converting. We had the meeting, talked about why I wanted to convert, what would be required of me, etc. She got me set up with a book list and some books from the shul library, gave me a reading assignment and asked me to write down any thoughts or questions I had, along with some other things that were kind of reading comprehension stuff, and told me to email her when I had finished so we could have another meeting. She also stipulated that she would have me live and practice through a full year of the Jewish calendar at minimum before she’d declare me ready to go to the mikvah, and we’d meet regularly, I’d do a lot of reading, I needed to attend a beginning hebrew class for adults that would be starting again over the summer, attend services (both weekly and holiday) as much as possible, and engage as much as possible in the community. (I really loved them. I was a soloist in the Purim spiel that year and I had friends and once I’d finished converting and could join the synagogue I’d already been needled to join their tiny choir and it was just a great group of people.)

Aaaand then we had to move due to things outside our control, and I couldn’t attend as often due to being a heck of a drive away (in a car with no A/C, in Florida, in the summer) so I tried to shift over to a closer shul whose rabbi my old rabbi knew, but it was High Holy Days and then he was travelling for some studies and couldn’t start doing anything like conversion until that was all over, and then we had to move again and now we’re here and have a very unfriendly rabbi and congregation, so we don’t attend services right now.

…………all this to say: you’ve done some research and you think you’re interested. Next step is to find the nearest shul that is of the movement you want to convert in, and call or email them and just let the rabbi know where you’re at and ask if you can attend some services respectfully to see if you still feel drawn to Judaism when engaging with it directly. If so, let the rabbi know, set up a meeting, and go from there. It’ll take time, a year at the LEAST and usually longer even if you DON’T have the sort of issues I’m currently having, but if HaShem is calling you home, it’s worth it.

(and if your rabbi requires to you take any classes or what-not, most organizations that run them that require you to pay some kind of fee offer scholarships or reduced tuition if you’re not financially able to enroll in them initially, so be sure to reach out about stuff like that, too.)

#i use ‘calling you home’ specifically bc #one of the books i read talked about how all jewish souls were at sinai at least metaphorically #it’s just some of them weren’t born into jewish families #and that every convert is just a wandering jewish soul coming home #and i really really liked that #talked about it a lot with rabbi T back when things were on track #but that IS what it’s been like from start to finish #it’s felt without reservation like coming home #in a way nothing else in my life ever has #so y’know #jewish stuff #judaism #conversion stuff #sorry that this got so long and rambly #i’ve been having The Feels lately about my stalled conversion #it’s very frustrating and i think I just needed to get it out a bit heh

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tolstoyamericanrevolution · 3 years

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The Seixas Brothers; Jewish Patriots

A family of Portuguese origins and first generation colonial Americans- The Seixas family had a powerful influence on the Jewish communities of New York, Rhode Island and Philadelphia- particularly through the eldest two surviving sons. Moses & Gershom.

Being of Portuguese origin the family were Sephardic Jews. Sephardic Jews being Jews from Iberia and later the Middle East, post inquisition. They had different customs to the modern culturally dominant Ashkenazi Jews, Jews from Northern and Eastern Europe- an elder contemporary of the Seixas brothers would be Moses Mendelssohn who was a Berlin based Ashkenazi Jews who helped the cultural integration and gaining of civil rights for Jews in Germany then Prussia.

Religious customs between the two groups differed significantly particularly in language with Sephardic synagogues mainly being in Portuguese or Ladino when not speaking Hebrew. The Sephardi Jews also were seen as more refined and educated than the Ashkenazi Jews, as well as wealthier, in internal community dynamics. Hence the saying that the Sephardic Jews were the descendants “of Poets and Philosophers” see Judah Halevi or Maimonides as examples of a Sephardi Poet and Philosopher, from Spain and Egypt respectively. In Europe these communities were often segregated from each other, internally, seeing inter community involvement outside of business as distasteful. This included prayer & marriage.

The situation for American Jews were quite different. The community of the Seixas brothers was small roughly 2,500 people barely a tenth of the population. Practising it was Sephardic due to the influence of the Dutch Jews, yet it was majority Ashkenazi in cultural and ethno-religious make up. Leading to a community that was small, spread out, cultural mixed and frankly too modern for the European rabbinical practises.

Now; to the Seixas brothers themselves. Born and raised in Rhode Island by Issac Mendes Seixas; born originally in Portugal and raised in London by Abraham and Abigail Seixas who were Marranos (Jews converted to Christianity, who continued to practise Judaism in secret due to the Inquisition) and Rachel Levy born in London, she was an Ashkenazi Jew related to the important Levy-Frank’s family. Her marriage caused such an uproar that many Sephardi members avoided it. As you can see like many Sephardic Jews their marriages were from across the world, and like many York City Jews they began the intermarriage of Ashkenazi and Sephardi. You can see more of their records in the image of the family register attached below.

Sexias family register

The ideologies of Moses and Gershom were shaped by the world around them, Great Britain had one of the most lenient policies towards Jews however this included the fact that they could not attend university, own property in the form of land or practise the law. The Jews rights bill in England would not come til the mid 19th century. Anti-Semitism was often seen in the writers of the day including Voltaire and English politicians. The Seixas brothers were of Portuguese origins which conducted the inquisition that oft burned Jews alive for either not converting or being secret converts, post expulsion. In the 18th century this continued in Goa, India & Brazil.

Russia conducted pogroms, which devastated the Jewish community until the early 20th century (although Soviet Anti-Semitism was by no means better post 1920s). This was also the era of the Pale of Settlement in which Eastern European Jews were restricted to modern day Belarus, Lithuania and Ukraine unable to trade or live in any main city without a letter. Prussia, had begun the process of integrating Jews, however both sides were extremely cautious of the other.

The Middle East was mixed, on one hand it was more tolerant than Europe with Thessloniki being named the Shabbat City as it was mainly dark on Friday nights due to observance. Yet; Jews were also mistrusted in the Ottoman Empire having to be identified by dress often a yellow hat or a type of shoe (this identification also existed in different forms in East Europe). Religious persecution varied from region to region.

This was the time where Proto-Zionist thoughts were beginning, but it was mainly aimed at integrating in the current society. The idealogy popular among the American Colonial Jews (those with Wiggish leanings) was that the new state would allow for religious and economic freedoms in which they could be active, equal citizens of a country founded on the right of man to govern himself over a Christian or Muslim Monarch whose country saw them as deplorable. This is a bit of a history lesson but essential to understanding the context, in which these first generation Jews acted in who were likely spurred on by the revolutionary ideals and attitudes of the time, as well as their own.

Moses was born March 26th 1744 and married Jochebed Levy also of Newport. He was a merchant, operating from the city and a proud follower of the patriot cause, his main influence being post the war in his encouragement of Washington to uphold the religious freedoms promised. He frankly; asserted it, rather than requesting it.

Moses was a civic and religious leader, being an educated man who was apart of the Freemason’s in Rhode Island. He believed such institutions allowed natural brotherhood between men, no matter their background. Moses later became leader of the King David’s Lodge. He was also the warden of the Touro synagogue in Newport, one of the oldest in the country, founded in the 1760s. Warden was a civic leadership role in a religious community. He often spoke at community sermons, including reading his letter to Washington in 1790 aloud to the man and the community. He also wrote letters addressing Washington as a fellow freemason. Outside of religious and civic duties he also post war co-founded the Rhode Island Bank.

"a Government, which to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no assistance – but generously affording to All liberty of conscience, and immunities of Citizenship: deeming every one, of whatever Nation, tongue, or language, equal parts of the great governmental Machine." - Moses Mendes Seixas in his famous letter to Washington.

An interesting detail on Moses’s religious involvement, despite not being Hazzan like his brother, is the fact that in the 1770s he was entrusted by the Newport community to be the Mohel; The man who preforms circumcision on the eighth day of a Jewish boy’s life. He received instruction only by letter, and circumcised his own son successfully. It shows how well trusted he was in the community and also how Jewish communities in America often divided duties among each other due to the lack of Rabbinical influence and population.

Moses’s letter to Washington 1790

Last but not least, Gershom. I know the most about him due to what is avalible on his life, I have to admit this post is quite long so I will do a seperate one going into more detail about the younger brother.

Gershom Mendes Seixas was born a year after his brother and became Chief Hazzan of the New York community synagogue at the early age of 23. Despite being young for a role which was the nearest they had to Rabbi, he was voted unanimously which demonstrates the breadth of knowledge and charisma the man had. Hazzan, as Jews canted their songs, tended to lead the singing and the reading of the Torah in synagogue, especially without a Rabbi.

As a Hazzan he was simply revolutionary. Not just in his politics. He was the first Jew to have a sermon in America in English, with the majority of his sermons from there onwards being in English. He pressed for the reconciliation between England and the Colonies, however his tone notes a man who clearly saw England in the wrong and the Colonies as having bargaining power over their overlord.

From the start he was an interfaith leader, many of his friends being Tory Christians, he resumed many of these correspondents post war with those who remained. In 1776 he was extremely active, including writing a prayer in Hebrew for the reconciliation of the colonies, as referred above. When invasion of New York by the British came near, his emotive words convinced the entire congregation to board up the doors of the Synagogue with many leaving the city. During this time, his wife Elchalah suffered a miscarriage. He escaped to Connecticut with some of his followers, bringing the religious ceremonial items with him including the scrolls.

With the take back of Philadelphia he was offered the role of Hazzan there which he served until 1784, there he actively argued against Protestant lawmakers who proposed changes to the constitution such as ensuring that only Christian’s could follow it and that it was impossible for those of other faiths to comprehend, like his brother he civilly fought these matters stating that it was "unjust to the members of a persuasion that had always been attached to the American cause and given a support to the country, some in the Continental army, some in the militia, and some by cheerfully paying taxes and sustaining the popular cause."

He would be present at Washington’s inauguration as apart of the significant fourteen religious leaders that supported him, he was the only Jew.

Post the war he would continue to actively be involved in Jewish ceremonies, having an annual Thanksgiving sermon back in New York where he returned afterwards. He became the first Jewish member to be elected a trustee of Colombia collage. He would also create a Jewish charitable organisation in 1802 called Hebra Hased Ve Amet.

To this day descendants of both brothers serve as leaders of America’s remaining Sephardi community.

Portrait of Gershom Mendes Seixas 1784

#turn washington's spies #turn amc #American revolution #revolutionary history #Jewish history #Gershom Mendes Seixas #Moses Mendes Seixas #The Seixas Brothers #my American jewish history rants #please enjoy #this means a lot to me #if you have any information feel free to add #also I did totally listen to the old man's back again as I wrote this #turn washingtons spies

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jewishshadowhunters · 5 years

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Judaism 101: Places of Worship

Terminology, Functions and Organization, and all you need to know about Jewish Places of Worship.

First: The Temple; what do Jews mean when they refer to “the Temple”

When Jewish people speak of The Temple, we speak of the place in Jerusalem that was the center of Jewish worship from the time of Solomon to its destruction by the Romans in 70 C.E.

This was the one and only place where sacrifices and certain other religious rituals were performed. It was partially destroyed at the time of the Babylonian Exile and rebuilt.

The rebuilt temple was known as the Second Temple. The famous "Wailing Wall" (known to Jews as the Western Wall or in Hebrew, the Kotel) is the remains of the western retaining wall of the hill that the Temple was built on. It is as close to the site of the original Sanctuary as Jews can go today. You can see a live picture of the Kotel and learn about it at KotelCam. The Temple was located on a platform above and behind this wall.

Today, the site of The Temple is occupied by the Dome of the Rock (a Muslim shrine for pilgrims) and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Dome of the Rock is the gold-domed building that figures prominently in most pictures of Jerusalem.

Traditional Jews believe that The Temple will be rebuilt when the Mashiach (Messiah) comes. They eagerly await that day and pray for it continually. In Jewish tradition, Jesus is NOT the messiah. I will talk another day about “Jews for Jesus” and “Messianic Jews” that are Christian sects appropriating Jewish culture and traditions and trying to convert Jews to Christianity.

Modern Jews, on the other hand, reject the idea of rebuilding the Temple and resuming sacrifices. They call their houses of prayer "temples," believing that such houses of worship are the only temples we need, the only temples we will ever have, and are equivalent to the Temple in Jerusalem. This idea is very offensive to some traditional Jews, which is why you should be very careful when using the word Temple to describe a Jewish place of worship.

Terminology

Throughout our posts, I have mainly used the term “synagogue” to refer to the Jewish house of worship. However, there are several other terms used to describe it, and those terms can tell a lot about the religious background of the Jewish person using them.

The Hebrew term is beit k'nesset (literally, House of Assembly), although you will rarely hear this term used in conversation in English.

The Orthodox and Hasidim typically use the word "shul," which is Yiddish. The word is derived from a German word meaning "school," and emphasizes the synagogue's role as a place of study.

Conservative Jews usually use the word "synagogue," which is actually a Greek translation of Beit K'nesset and means "place of assembly" (it's related to the word "synod").

Reform Jews use the word "temple," because they consider every one of their meeting places to be equivalent to, or a replacement for, The Temple in Jerusalem.

I, a Sephardic European Jew, have always used and always heard the word “synagogue” being used, with some rare exceptions.

The use of the word "temple" to describe modern houses of prayer offends some traditional Jews, because it trivializes the importance of The Temple. The word "shul," on the other hand, is unfamiliar to many modern Jews. When in doubt, the word "synagogue" is the best bet, because everyone knows what it means, and I've never known anyone to be offended by it.

Functions of a Synagogue

At a minimum, a synagogue is a beit tefilah, a house of prayer. It is the place where Jews come together for community prayer services. Jews can satisfy the obligations of daily prayer by praying anywhere; however, there are certain prayers that can only be said in the presence of a minyan (a quorum of 10 adult men), and tradition teaches that there is more merit to praying with a group than there is in praying alone. The sanctity of the synagogue for this purpose is second only to The Temple. In fact, in rabbinical literature, the synagogue is sometimes referred to as the "little Temple."

A synagogue is usually also a beit midrash, a house of study.

Contrary to popular belief, Jewish education does not end at the age of bar mitzvah. For the observant Jew, the study of sacred texts is a life-long task. Thus, a synagogue normally has a well-stocked library of sacred Jewish texts for members of the community to study. It is also the place where children receive their basic religious education.

Most synagogues also have a social hall for religious and non-religious activities. The synagogue often functions as a sort of town hall where matters of importance to the community can be discussed. In addition, the synagogue functions as a social welfare agency, collecting and dispensing money and other items for the aid of the poor and needy within the community.

Organizational Structure

Synagogues are, for the most part, independent community organizations.

In the United States, individual synagogues do not answer to any central authority. There are central organizations for the various movements of Judaism, and synagogues are often affiliated with these organizations, but these organizations have no real power over individual synagogues.

Synagogues are generally run by a board of directors composed of lay people. They manage and maintain the synagogue and its activities, and hire a rabbi and chazzan (cantor) for the community.

Yes, you read that right: Jewish clergy are employees of the synagogue, hired and fired by the lay members of the synagogue. Clergy are not provided by any central organization, as they are in some denominations of Christianity.

However, if a synagogue hires a rabbi or chazzan that is not acceptable to the central organization, they may lose membership in that central organization. For example, if an Orthodox synagogue hires a Reform rabbi, the synagogue will lose membership in the Orthodox Union. If a Conservative synagogue wishes to hire a Reconstructionist rabbi, it must first get permission from the USCJ.

The rabbi usually works with a ritual committee made up of lay members of the synagogue to set standards and procedures for the synagogue. Not surprisingly, there can be tension between the rabbi and the membership (his employers) if they do not have the same standards, for example if the membership wants to serve pepperoni pizza (not kosher) at a synagogue event.

It is worth noting that a synagogue can exist without a rabbi or a chazzan: religious services can be, and often are, conducted by lay people in whole or in part. It is not unusual for a synagogue to be without a rabbi, at least temporarily, and many synagogues, particularly smaller ones, have no chazzan. However, the rabbi and chazzan are valuable members of the community, providing leadership, guidance and education.

Synagogues do not pass around collection plates during services, as many churches do. This is largely because Jewish law prohibits carrying money on holidays and Shabbat.

Tzedakah (charitable donation) is routinely collected at weekday morning services, usually through a centrally-located pushke, but this money is usually given to charity, and not used for synagogue expenses. Instead, synagogues are financed through membership dues paid annually, through voluntary donations, through the purchase of reserved seats for services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur(the holidays when the synagogue is most crowded), and through the purchase of various types of memorial plaques.

It is important to note, however, that you do not have to be a member of a synagogue in order to worship there. If you plan to worship at a synagogue regularly and you have the financial means, you should certainly pay your dues to cover your fair share of the synagogue's costs, but no synagogue checks membership cards at the door (except possibly on the High Holidays mentioned above, if there aren't enough seats for everyone).

Ritual items at the Synagogue

The portion of the synagogue where prayer services are performed is commonly called the sanctuary. Synagogues in the United States are generally designed so that the front of the sanctuary is on the side towards Jerusalem, which is the direction that we are supposed to face when reciting certain prayers.

Probably the most important feature of the sanctuary is the Ark, a cabinet or recession in the wall that holds the Torah scrolls. The Ark is also called the Aron Kodesh ("holy cabinet"), and I was once told that the term "ark" is an acrostic of "aron kodesh," although someone else told me that "ark" is just an old word for a chest. In any case, the word has no relation to Noah's Ark, which is the word "teyvat" in Hebrew.

The Ark is generally placed in the front of the room; that is, on the side towards Jerusalem. The Ark has doors as well as an inner curtain called a parokhet. This curtain is in imitation of the curtain in the Sanctuary in The Temple, and is named for it.

During certain prayers, the doors and/or curtain of the Ark may be opened or closed. Opening or closing the doors or curtain is performed by a member of the congregation, and is considered an honor. All congregants stand when the Ark is open.

In front of and slightly above the Ark, you will find the ner tamid, the Eternal Lamp. This lamp symbolizes the commandment to keep a light burning in the Tabernacle outside of the curtain surrounding the Ark of the Covenant. (Ex. 27:20-21).

In addition to the ner tamid, you may find a menorah (candelabrum) in many synagogues, symbolizing the menorah in the Temple. The menorah in the synagogue will generally have six or eight branches instead of the Temple menorah's seven, because exact duplication of the Temple's ritual items is improper.

In the center of the room or in the front you will find a pedestal called the bimah. The Torah scrolls are placed on the bimah when they are read. The bimah is also sometimes used as a podium for leading services. There is an additional, lower lectern in some synagogues called an amud.

In Orthodox synagogues, you will also find a separate section where the women sit. This may be on an upper floor balcony, or in the back of the room, or on the side of the room, separated from the men's section by a wall or curtain called a mechitzah. Men are not permitted to pray in the presence of women, because they are supposed to have their minds on their prayers, not on pretty girls.

That separation is also present in Sephardic synagogues, at least the ones I am aware of. The synagogue I attended at my grandparents’ as a child had women and children on a balcony.

I will discuss the Role of Women in Judaism in another post coming up later.

Non-Jews Visiting a Synagogue

Non-Jews are always welcome to attend services in a synagogue, so long as they behave as proper guests.

Proselytizing and "witnessing" to the congregation are not proper guest behavior. Would you walk into a stranger's house and criticize the decor? But we always welcome non-Jews who come to synagogue out of genuine curiosity, interest in the service or simply to join a friend in celebration of a Jewish event.

When going to a synagogue, you should dress as you would for church: nicely, formally, and modestly. A man should wear a yarmulke/kippah (skullcap) if Jewish men in the congregation do so; those are available at the entrance for those who do not have one.

In some synagogues, married women should also wear a head covering. A piece of lace sometimes called a "chapel hat" is generally provided for this purpose in synagogues where this is required.

Non-Jews should not, however, wear a tallit (prayer shawl) or tefillin, because these items are signs of our obligation to observe Jewish law.

Be careful to know what kind of synagogue you’re attending, and follow the sitting arrangements there. If women and men are separated, you should follow the rule of the congregation.

During services, non-Jews can follow along with the English, which is normally printed side-by-side with the Hebrew in the prayerbook. You may join in with as much or as little of the prayer service as you feel comfortable participating in. You may wish to review Jewish Liturgy before attending the service, to gain a better understanding of what is going on.

Non-Jews should stand whenever the Ark is open and when the Torah is carried to or from the Ark, as a sign of respect for the Torah and for G-d. At any other time where worshippers stand, non-Jews may stand or sit.

For trans people attending a synagogue:

I would recommend checking with your friend (if you’re attending with a friend), or the synagogue itself if you will be able to sit with your gender. It would avoid for you to be on the receiving end of transphobic ideas and experience some difficult times, and maybe dysphoria.

I cannot promise you that all synagogues will be open to trans people sitting with people of the same gender as they identify as.

Modern Judaism tends to accept trans people and allow them to wear kippot if they identify as men. It does also sometimes allow women to wear traditionally “male” garments like kippot, tefillin or tallit.

#judaism 101 #temple #synagogue #jewish life #original #mod A #resources

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fear-god-shun-evil · 5 years

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Devotional Diary: How to Know God? There’s a Key Question

January 10, 2018 Wednesday Overcast

When practicing spiritual devotion after getting up this morning, I saw these words in the Bible, “And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed there. And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished, and said, From where has this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brothers, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us? From where then has this man all these things? And they were offended in him. But Jesus said to them, A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country, and in his own house” (Matthew 13:53-57). Then I turned to the Book of Luke, chapter 4, which also records the matter that the Lord Jesus was rejected by people when preaching in the synagogue of His hometown: “And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him to the brow of the hill where on their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong” (Luke 4:28-29).

These passages of the scriptures allowed me to see a fact: The people in the Lord Jesus’ hometown all thought the Lord Jesus standing before them was an ordinary person and was the son of the carpenter Joseph; they didn’t believe the Lord Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah. With this in mind, I couldn’t help but fall thinking: If we had been born in the Age of Grace, when we saw the Lord Jesus standing before us, who was an ordinary and normal person on the outside and also lived and ate with people, would we have also denied and rejected Him as these people had done? It’s really hard to say!

January 12, 2018 Friday Cloudy

After getting home from work this evening, I opened the Bible and wanted to see who in the Bible recognized the Lord Jesus was the coming Messiah and how they made it. When turning to the Book of John, I saw the conversations between the Lord Jesus and the Samaritan woman: “Jesus answered and said to her, Whoever drinks of this water shall thirst again: But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman said to him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come here to draw. Jesus said to her, Go, call your husband, and come here. The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said to her, You have well said, I have no husband: For you have had five husbands; and he whom you now have is not your husband: in that said you truly” (John 4:13-18). “The woman then left her water pot, and went her way into the city, and said to the men, Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?” (John 4:28-29). When seeing the Lord Jesus for the first moment, the Samaritan woman also thought He was a common Jew. But when the Lord Jesus said she had five husbands, as she felt the secret hidden within her heart was something that nobody could know and that only God inspects people’s hearts and knows people’s secrets, she recognized from the words of the Lord Jesus that He was the Christ, the coming Messiah.

Then I turned to the Book of John, chapter 1, and read verses 45-49, “Philip finds Nathanael, and said to him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And Nathanael said to him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip said to him, Come and see. Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile! Nathanael said to him, From where know you me? Jesus answered and said to him, Before that Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you. Nathanael answered and said to him, Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” These scriptures again put me in a thoughtful mood: When hearing of the Lord Jesus, Nathanael was of the view that Nazareth was a small town, so there might never have been a famous people. As a result, he didn’t believe a word of what Philip said. However, after the Lord Jesus talked with him, to his surprise, the Lord Jesus could actually see through his thoughts and speak out his true identity. Because of this, he firmly believed that the Lord Jesus was just the coming Messiah, and then he followed the Lord.

Pondering these scriptures, I suddenly saw the light: Both the Samaritan woman and Nathanael heard and knew the voice of God from the words of the Lord Jesus, thus recognizing the Lord Jesus was the Christ. It seems that in our belief in God the most important thing is to pay attention to Christ’s words and work. If we only look at Christ’s appearance, it will be quite easy for us to deny and oppose Him. Thank the Lord! I’ve gained a lot through reading the Bible today, which allowed me to have some practical paths of how to welcome the coming of the Lord.

February 8, 2018 Thursday Sunny

Today, on my way back home after work, I met my old school friend—Lin Tao unexpectedly. He is also a Christian. We chatted for a while. When we talked about our own spiritual condition, he gave me a book. I asked him in great surprise, “What book is this?” He replied with a smile, “The words in this book can resolve problems that we have when it comes to our faith in God. After getting back home, you can have a look, and then you will know it.” I happily took the book and then went home.

After getting home, I began to read it eagerly. Then I saw the following passage, “If man sees only His external appearance, and overlooks His substance, then that shows the ignorance and naivety of man. External appearance does not determine substance; what’s more, the work of God has never conformed with the conceptions of man. Did not the outward appearance of Jesus conflict with the conceptions of man? Were not His appearance and dress unable to provide any clues as to His true identity? Was not the reason why the earliest Pharisees opposed Jesus because they merely looked at His external appearance, and did not take to heart the words that He spoke?” (Preface). After reading these words, I was extremely astonished, for they have spoken of the underlying reason why the people of that time resisted the Lord Jesus. At that time, the Lord Jesus came to work as an ordinary and normal image of the Son of man. Just looking at the surface, He was an ordinary normal person. Besides, what the people then saw was that He had not only parents but also brothers and sisters, etc. It was because they only focused on His outward appearance that they began to wantonly convict, reject and blaspheme Him, and in the end, they nailed Him to the cross, committing a heinous crime. Nevertheless, the Samaritan woman and Nathanael heard the Lord Jesus’ words were extraordinary—being able to expose things hidden in people’s hearts, and as a result, they recognized that He had come from God. In addition, other disciples who followed the Lord Jesus also saw that His words and work had authority and power and came from God; thus they recognized that He was the Christ, the coming Messiah, thereby following the footsteps of the Lamb.

Thinking of this, I suddenly recalled what the Lord Jesus said, “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come” (John 16:12-13). These scriptures showed: At that point, the Lord Jesus still had something else to say, but the people couldn’t receive or bear them, due to their small spiritual stature, so He didn’t speak out; when the Lord comes in the last days, He will expose every truth and mystery, letting people know and understand them. Now the prophecies regarding the return of the Lord have basically all been fulfilled. In the matter of welcoming the coming of the Lord, I remembered the Lord said, “And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him” (Matthew 25:6). So, in the last days, when people testify that the Lord has returned, I need to be the wise virgin to focus on listening to the voice of “Bridegroom” and to actively investigate and differentiate God’s voice; otherwise, I’ll be liable to miss the opportunity to be lifted up upon the Lord’s return, becoming the foolish virgin who is abandoned and eliminated by the Lord. At that time, it will be too late to regret.

Then I read the following passage, “Since we are searching for the footprints of God, we must search for God’s will, for the words of God, for the utterances of God—for where there are the new words of God, there is the voice of God, and where there are the footsteps of God, there are the deeds of God. Where there is the expression of God, there is the appearance of God, and where there is the appearance of God, there exists the truth, the way, and the life. While seeking the footprints of God, you ignored the words that ‘God is the truth, the way, and the life.’ So when many people receive the truth, they do not believe that they have found the footprints of God and much less acknowledge the appearance of God. What a serious error that is! The appearance of God cannot be reconciled with the conceptions of man, much less can God appear at the behest of man. God makes His own choices and has His own plans when He does His work; moreover, He has His own objectives, and His own methods. It is not necessary for Him to discuss the work He does with man or to seek the advice of man, much less notify each and every person of His work. This is the disposition of God and, moreover, should be recognized by everyone” (“The Appearance of God Has Brought a New Age”).

Contemplating these words, I felt them so deep and meaningful. Right! God is almighty and God’s wisdom is above the heavens. He will have His own plan and choice when He does His work. He doesn’t need to ask us men for advice and He doesn’t even need to explain to us in advance. Moreover, the appearance of God will certainly not fall in line with our thinking. Take, for example, the work of the Lord Jesus in the Age of Grace. The prophecy said very clearly, “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel” (Matthew 1:23). But when the Lord came, He was called Jesus; furthermore, He put on an ordinary mortal flesh to do His work. If man didn’t seek the truth in his heart, it would be really hard for him to accept. The words in that book clearly tell us that to seek the footprints of God and to welcome the Lord’s return, we must pay attention to seeking the new words of God and hearing God’s voice. No matter what God says or in what ways He works, we ought to maintain an attitude of seeking and obedience and can’t analyze and research them based on our notions. This is the only attitude that every person who truly believes in the Lord ought to possess. Just as the Bible says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). It is thus clear that if we wish to welcome the Lord’s return, we have to seek the truth humbly; only in this way can we obtain God’s enlightenment and illumination and see the appearance and work of God.

#the Son of man #son of god #Lord Jesus #The Bible

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bldgrelationshipwgod · 4 years

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The Trinity – a Pagan invention, or an ancient Jewish idea? TuviaPollack

A common Jewish objection against Christianity or against Messianic Judaism is that the theology of the Trinity is a gentile idea, developed in the 4th century by Catholic scholars, & that there are no Jewish sources for these beliefs.

However, anyone who has digged around in the sources of the early church fathers knows that the decisions that were made in the 4th century were mostly just an affirmation of the doctrines & the New Testament canon that had already been established organically during the past few hundred years.

There were discussions about the nature of Jesus as God & man, etc, but the basic ideas of the trinity & Jesus being God were already established. The discussions were about the exact nature.

Why were these doctrines so basic already? Because they are very clear in the New Testament. “Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,” “Me and my Father are One.”

An objection we often hear is that there are historic sources pointing to the Evionites as a sect of Jews who believed in Jesus as the Messiah, but didn’t see him as divine. The claim is that these were Jesus’ original followers, but that they eventually died out, and that the gentile church with their pagan-inspired trinity theology took over. It’s a nice story if you don’t believe in Jesus, but it doesn’t hold up.

First of all, we know from the New Testament that Paul fought against false prophets and Judaizers. We shouldn’t be surprised that sects of Jews who believed in Jesus but denied his divinity existed. The fact that they existed doesn’t mean that they were Jesus’ original followers. Second of all, who says that the idea of trinity didn’t exist within Judaism before Jesus? The doctrine is actually present in the Old Testament if you only know where to look for it.

Why can’t we find any Jewish sages speak of it? That is expected. Following the split of Christianity, that doctrine must have been scrapped and censored. However, there are a few remnants. A number of clues in ancient writings that seem to point to the idea of the trinity being present in Jewish thought before Jesus, and even lingering on a few hundred years after.

After reading a number of books on the subject, such as “The Great Mystery, or How Can Three Be One,” by Rabbi Tsvi Nassi (1800 – 1877), and “The Messiah in the Old Testament,” by Dr. Risto Santala (available to read for free online), I was myself convinced that the idea of the trinity had existed long before Jesus, at least in some form or another.

I used the knowledge from these books to write parts of a chapter in my book, “The Secret Scroll of Magdala,” where one of my main characters, Daniel, sits together with his wife Naamah and studies Torah together with their rabbi, Yishmael. Daniel and Naamah are Nazarene Jews (Christians) while Yishmael is a Pharisee.

Since it seems that it will be a while before my book gets published, I thought I’d share a small part of this specific chapter with you. It takes place in the synagogue of Jericho in the spring of year 68 AD, just a few weeks before the Romans sacked the city.

I want to make clear that these characters and the story are fictional. It is based on ideas from the above mentioned books, but I have also added a lot of my own imagination and assumptions, based on my own personal beliefs.

* * *

Naamah considered herself fortunate. It wasn’t considered proper for women to study Torah, yet her husband, Daniel, was not only supportive, but encouraging her to learn more. Now she was sitting together with Daniel and Jericho’s rabbi, Yishmael, in the synagogue’s study center. The walls were lined with shelves filled with scrolls of all shapes and sizes. There were a number of tables throughout the room. During the day Yishmael would use this space to teach boys and men of all ages who wanted to deepen their knowledge of the Torah. Women were not allowed. That’s why Yishmael had his lessons with Naamah and Daniel in the middle of the night. There was a cold white light from the full moon that shone through the windows. Oil lamps were scattered throughout the room and cast flickering shadows. They were carefully arranged so that they would provide the needed light, but still not be too close to a scroll. One little mishap, and all the scrolls would be lost forever.

* * * (skipping a part of the chapter that is not relevant) * * *

Naamah had been scrolling the Torah scroll backwards a bit while they were talking, and now she had found the part she had been looking for. “Rabbi, can I ask you something? Who is God talking about here?” She pointed to a section of the scroll. Yishmael peered down at it. Naamah wasn’t sure, but didn’t she notice a hesitation? Some sort of insecurity? He slowly read through the section she had pointed out. “See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to what he says. Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your rebellion, since my Name is in him. If you listen carefully to what he says and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you.” Yishmael looked up. “Look… some of the wisest rabbis in the world have discussed who this angel might be for centuries.” “And…? Have they reached a conclusion?” Yishmael took a long breath and closed his eyes. “I am not sure I should tell you.” “Why?” Yishmael didn’t reply. His eyes were closed, and Naamah saw that his lips formed soundless words. He was praying. He opened his eyes and looked at her and Daniel. “Very well. I will tell you. Most rabbis agree that the angel God refers to here is not a regular angel. After all, it says malach – which also means messenger. Since God says that ‘my Name is in him,’ he cannot be an angel, but another type of messenger. Most rabbis agree that this is about… Metatron.” His voice went down to a whisper. A shiver went down Naamah’s spine. “Metatron? ‘Next to the throne’ in Greek? Is that the angel that is closest to God?” “Yes and no. Since no one can see God and live, this Metatron hears God’s words and tells it to the humans that God speaks to. Whether it is Abraham, Moses, Elijah, anyone. No one actually spoke directly to God, but to Metatron. Therefore, Metatron is God. Or rather, he is more God than he is an angel. Some speak of him as the Word of God. Depending which language you speak, it becomes Davar, Mimra, or Logos. In Hebrew, Aramaic or Greek.” “So let me see if I understand. You say this is a messenger of God who actually is God but he is also an angel?” “Well, not really. He is the Word of God, so he is constantly coming out of God. The psalm says ‘You are my son, today I have begotten you.’ Many say that this must be Metatron, since he is constantly begotten of God, as he is always his connection to human beings. One must even draw the conclusion that Metatron was the one who said this to Moses as well. And Metatron was therefore in the pillar of cloud that walked before the people of Israel in the desert.” “I have a question about this,” Daniel said. “This Metatron – was he created by God, or did he always exist as a part of God?” Yishmael went silent again. Naamah thought she could really see how he was thinking back and forth whether to tell them more or not. He got up from his seat and went up to the window. Looking back and forth, to make sure no one was listening. As he came back to talk to them he lowered his voice. “I am not allowed to tell you this.” “Why?” “Because it is too easily misunderstood. Our wise rabbis have decreed that what I am about to teach you must be kept secret unless the student is at least forty years old, and has studied Torah for at least ten years. You are both far from fulfilling these criteria.” “But why those restrictions?” “Because it can be wrongly interpreted as idol worship. People might think that it means that we believe in three gods. Of course we don’t. God is one, and one only. But he is also three. This is what we call raz deshlosha – the secret of the three.” Yishmael was whispering again. Naamah felt a cold shiver tingle throughout her body. They were being told the deepest secrets now, she knew that. Yishmael got up again and went to bring another scroll. He opened it up, and pointed to a section. Naamah immediately recognized that it was the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. “Read this section.” Naamah eyed the part he had pointed to and started to read with a trembling voice. “I will tell of the kindnesses of the Lord, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the Lord has done for us — yes, the many good things he has done for Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses. He said, ‘Surely they are my people, children who will be true to me’; and so he became their Savior. In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. Yet they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. So he turned and became their enemy and he himself fought against them.” Naamah looked up at Yishmael with a puzzled look. Yishmael smiled. “Who do you think is the angel of his presence? Who can that be if not Metatron, right? The one messenger that conveys God’s actual presence. This is Metatron who leads them out of Egypt in the pillar of cloud, redeeming them, lifting them up, carrying them. And then, when the text speaks of how we rebelled against God, which led to the Babylonian captivity, it says that we grieved his Holy Spirit. So we can see three manifestations of God’s presence here. The Father, the Metatron, and the Holy Spirit. This has been a secret knowledge among Pharisaic rabbis for hundreds of years. It has been conveyed from mouth to ear only, never to be written down, due to the sensitivity. If the Sanhedrin finds out that I have told you, I might lose my license to be a rabbi. But I trust you.” “So you are telling us that God is three but still one?” “Exactly. The same God. But in some sort of mystical way, that we can’t fully understand, he is also three. Every day during the prayers we say the Shma, right? Shma Israel, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai echad – Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. We say his name three times, and then we confirm that he is One. Three but still one.” “But how can we know that these are ‘parts of God?’ How can we know that they are not angels?” Naamah wondered. “Well, how did God create the world?” “I’m sorry?” “God created the world through his Word. By saying things. ‘Let there be light.’ So Metatron cannot be a created being. He has always been with God, since eternity. In a way he is God – or at least part of God. Why do you think God said ‘Let us make mankind in our image?’ Why do you think that the very word for God, Elohim, is in plural form in Hebrew? God is so more complex than we can imagine, even if he is One. When God said ‘Let there be light’ – that was the light of Metatron.” Naamah nodded. She loved these late night lessons with Yishmael. She often felt that she got closer to God for every time. Now she felt like she had found gold. This was amazing. She closed her eyes and started to speak slowly. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” As she opened her eyes she realized that Daniel and Yishmael were staring at her in awe. They were stunned. “That… that was beautiful,” Yishmael said. “That is exactly right. This is very deep knowledge about the very nature of God.” Naamah leaned over to Daniel and whispered to him. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” Daniel turned to her. “You mean…?” “Yes. Yeshua is Metatron. He is the son of God. The one who is constantly begotten by God. He is the Word. I must search the other prophets. There must be some sort of clue somewhere that the Metatron and the Messiah are the same.” Naamah admired Daniel for many things. He had studied with Pharisees, Esseans, Evionites and Nazarenes and was very learned. But she had a gift for finding connections in the scriptures that he didn’t posses. “You are wonderful, you know that?” Daniel got up and gave Naamah a kiss on her lips. She kissed him back and smiled at him. She got up and went to the shelf. She grabbed the scroll of the twelve minor prophets. “Looking for something?” Yishmael wondered. “Yes,” she said, as she quickly eyed through the writings of Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah and Jonah. As she reached Micah she exclaimed “found it!” Yishmael got up from his seat and went over to Naamah to see what she pointed at. “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” Yishmael nodded. “Yes, this is a prophecy about the Messiah who will be born in Bethlehem.” “But it says that his origins are from old, from ancient times,” Naamah said. “Yes, that is because the idea and thought about the Messiah in God’s plan is since ancient times.” “But that’s not what it says,” Naamah protested. “It says that he is from old. The Messiah himself is of ancient times.” “What are you trying to say?” “That the Messiah and the Metatron are the same, and his name is Yeshua.” “No!” Yishmael became very assertive. “That is not true. The Messiah is a human being that God will send to be our king. Metatron is not the Messiah, chas veshalom. The Messiah will establish a kingdom of peace. Everlasting eternal peace. He will rule the entire world from Jerusalem. I wish it had been Yeshua, but it wasn’t. He was killed, and all hopes that he was the Messiah died with him. If he really was the Messiah we wouldn’t be living in fear for the Romans now.” Naamah’s mouth became thin and she kept scrolling forward, determined to find something more. Another passage that could confirm to her that the Metatron was the Messiah. She didn’t answer Yishmael’s protests. She knew that those prophecies of the Messiah would be fulfilled at his second coming, but Yishmael didn’t see the distinction between the prophecies of the first and second coming. He had studied in the yeshiva of Jerusalem with some of the most prominent Pharisees. Including Yochanan ben Zakai, one of the wisest and most revered teachers among the Pharisees in Jerusalem. She kept scrolling forward past Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai and Zechariah. Just when she thought she wouldn’t find anything else she found it. “Here! Look! Look what Malachi wrote!” This time Daniel came up to her and read it out loud. “I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come, says the Lord Almighty.” “See?” she said. “The messenger of the covenant. The angel of the covenant. The same as the angel of the presence. It has to be Metatron. Who else could it be? And here it says that he will become flesh. He will come to his temple. It’s crystal clear. Metatron is the Messiah. The Messiah is Metatron. He is the Word that is begotten by God.” Naamah shivered throughout her body and prayed a silent prayer of thanks to God for revealing this to her. Daniel and Yishmael read through the same passage. Daniel embraced her. “You found gold again, honey.” But Yishmael just shook his head. “I don’t know what to do with you two.” He gave them a sad smile. “I am trying to teach you the true Pharisaic teaching, but you only seem to drift further away.” He rolled up the scrolls to put them back in the shelves.

* * * (skipping a part of the chapter that is not relevant) * * *

Naamah went home with Daniel tired but happy that night. As the sun was rising and they reached their door, Daniel turned to Naamah and gave her a kiss. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God,” he quoted. “I will never forget those words. Write that down, Naamah. We must have those words written down.”

* * *

This was a part of a chapter from my book “The Secret Scroll of Magdala,” which I am still working on rewriting. It is a duology of two books that have a total of 103 chapters. Only if you read both of them will you find out how come these words that Naamah made up eventually made it into the Gospel of John.

#Nov.18

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pastordavid · 6 years

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Won’t You Come?

It’s that time of year when you go to the mailbox and find out that kids you never even met before are graduating and you are lucky enough to be invited.

I’m pretty sure some people discover relatives they never knew they had about this time every year.

In Matthew 11 Jesus sends an invitation...and it is to every one of us...

But His invitation isn’t sent in hopes of receiving something from us...

His invitation is given in order for us to receive from Him...

Matthew 11:28-30 (KJV)

28 Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Jesus...the Son Of God...is calling people to come to Him...for relationship and fellowship...

He already came to our rescue...and now He says “come into my presence”....He’s wanting to spend time with you.

The invitation is to all who have taken on more than they can handle...as well as those who have been given more than they can handle...

He sees your need...and is calling you to him.

All you who labor and are heavy laden...

Jesus directed His call to those who were burdened...

He calls...even now...those who realize they must come to Him to relieve their need instead of living in self-sufficiency.

According to one commentary...labor implies the burdens we take upon ourselves...

and heavy laden implies the burdens others put upon us...

The sad reality of life is...too often we take on things that weigh us down...and Jesus offers to carry that for us.

I’ll just meddle in your business for a minute...

Much of our stress is brought on by financial problems...usually of our own making.

In the past when I drove cross country...I spent lots of hours listening to Dave Ramsey on the radio.

It changed the way I think about some things...especially debt.

Dave for those who have not heard of him is a financial advisor who helps people get out of debt...and more importantly...at least in my opinion...to live debt free as a lifestyle.

What I found out was the people who called that show...desperate for someone to guide them out of the mess they were in...usually would be in credit card debt that matched their income.

That was above their mortgage and their vehicle debt.

So the people making 30,000 per year owed a years salary on credit cards...those earning 90,000 similarly owed a years salary.

If you make 30,000 you probably think everything would be fine if your income tripled...but in most cases you would be wrong...

because if you don’t live within your means on a small income...you will increase your spending to match your increased earnings as your income grows.

If you are paying the minimum payment on a credit card today, and never buy anything else with that card...in most cases it will take you about 30 yrs to pay it off due to the compounding interest.

That’s why the Bible tells us “the borrower is slave to the the lender”.

Most of us wouldn’t think of volunteering to be anyone’s slave...yet we celebrate getting a credit card or a mortgage or a car loan as if it’s a good thing.

None of those things are evil...but here’s what I know...all of those who are selling loans on these things are willing to let you get deeper in debt than you planned...so be careful.

Some of us even say we’re blessed to take on this debt.

I know most people have to make mortgage and auto loans... but we don’t necessarily have to get in over our heads...trying to keep up with everyone around us.

God didn’t bless you with that debt...you did that...but He will bless you with a solution if you will come to Him and surrender everything to him.

Okay I’ll quit meddling in your business...but that wasn’t random...God wanted someone to hear that before they become enslaved...because getting out of slavery is much harder than getting in.

Heavy laden reminds us of Matthew 23:4, where Jesus spoke against the Pharisees... who bind heavy lburdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders.

That’s more about guilt and shame we allow others to put on us.

Maybe we allow someone to pile their expectations on us concerning our lifestyle...

Jesus said “I will give you rest”.

Religious people will try to impose their rules and their expectations on us...they even did it to Jesus.

He made living a life that pleases Him pretty simple.

Someone said “what’s the greatest commandment?” He said “I’ll make your Christian walk really easy...

First you must love The Lord Your God with all of your Heart, Mind Soul and Strength....(that didn’t leave much room for self)...

And second...You must Love Your neighbor as yourself...all of the law and everything the prophets taught hangs on these two principles”.

If you aren’t following Jesus teaching...you’re probably heavy laden...trying to please men.

I’m not excusing sinful behavior...I’m talking about people adding a few things that God “forgot” when He was giving the scriptures for us to live by.

Matthew 23:4-7 (KJV)

4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay [them] on men's shoulders; but they [themselves] will not move them with one of their fingers.

5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, 6 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,

7 And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

Be wary of those who demand high standards of everyone else...while not holding themselves to the same standards...

Avoid those who love to be the center of attention. Teaching and preaching are for the benefit of the hearer....and not a way to draw attention to the person in ministry.

We don’t promote ourselves...we lift up Jesus.

He calls us to enter into His Rest...

There is no other...who can bring you into His rest...it will not be available through any other source.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

Jesus says:

“Come to work for Me”....

“Learn about Me...Learn to trust Me...learn to live as I ask you to”

All of this learning will reveal that Jesus Is truly meek...and you should give that some thought along with being willing to take on the role of partner as you begin to walk with Him. He’s not looking for people to dominate...He longs for a close relationship of mutual love...

30 For my yoke [is] easy, and my burden is light.

The yoke Jesus is talking about is different than the yokes men put on us...He says it’s an easy task He asks of us...and the load He asks

us to carry is light.

It’s not that there’s nothing you will be asked to do...it’s that whatever He asks you to do...He will empower you to do through His Strength and guidance.

If your yoke is hard and your burden is heavy, then it isn’t His yoke or burden, and you aren’t letting Him bear it. Jesus said it plainly: My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

Sooner or later we will find that the trials of life are heavier than we can bear.

We live in the most medicated society of all time...and still...people are literally dying from stress...or worse yet...they are killing innocent people who have nothing to do with their problems.

We weren’t designed to live the fast paced life our modern society demands.

Just before asking us to come and rest in His presence...Jesus said that all things were given unto Him...

He Loves You so much He’s inviting you to come and share the blessings...

I don’t see how anyone can turn down an invitation like that...

So how about it?

Are you willing to accept?...

Are you ready to bring it all to Him.

Won’t you accept His invitation?

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