Members only New Testament Insights Unexpected Encounters: Jesus and the Canaanite Woman Jesus is surrounded by his students while teaching when a woman suddenly interrupts, asking him to heal her daughter. We naturally expect him to immediately heal a child with care and compassion. However, his response is an unexpected curveball.
Mysticism and Spirituality Developing the Soul - Mussar Series. Part 2 ▶ In this session, we look at the concept of Derech Eretz, also known as "Decency" or customs and manners. Derech Eretz is defined as, then ancient Jewish principle that refers to the decorum, dignified behavior, and gentlemanly conduct that should characterize a Jew at all times.
Paid-members only Mysticism and Spirituality What Is A "Baptism of Fire?" What did John [the Baptist] mean when he said Jesus would 'baptize with fire'? The answer can be found in the Kabbalah, and is surprisingly practical for understanding some more complex metaphors in the Bible.
Mysticism and Spirituality Featured Accepting Insults With Joy Want to learn a quick method for spiritual elevation? In this article, we'll learn how doing nothing might be the best step for your growth
Mysticism and Spirituality The Light of the Moon In an ancient Midrash, the moon approached the Creator, asking how it should find its place amid the sun's brightness. The Creator's instruction provides insight for us today as to how we might best fulfill our purpose in life.
Mysticism and Spirituality Developing the Soul - Mussar Series. Part 1 ▶ In this series, we will explore the discipline of Mussar and understand how it is a vital component of spiritual development. In the first session, we introduce the concept, the history of the late movement and how it is anchored to the Biblical texts.
Members only Mysticism and Spirituality The First Adam and Second Adam: Adam Kadmon and the Logos With this article, we will start to cover some of the more complex concepts that are featured in the New Testament. Hopefully, we'll lay a foundation to understand ideas many see as controversial and/or a major departure from Jewish thought.
Mysticism and Spirituality Gneivat haDaat - Giving a False Impression It is not for nothing that this world has been nicknamed the "Olam HaSheker", which means the World of Lies (in Hebrew). However, this is not meant to be defeatist or pessimistic but simply to reveal the presupposition that truth (Emet) is the essence of a different realm, not this one.
Mysticism and Spirituality All The Life In The World To Come Among the many brilliant statements in the work known as The Ethics of the Fathers, a beautiful and profound statement brings us very close to understanding the 'meaning of life'.
Paid-members only Mysticism and Spirituality Why Can't Christians and Jews Agree on Isaiah 53? A recurring theme throughout this website is the push for readers to become aware of the prevalence of Jewish mysticism throughout the New Testament. For many reasons, understanding the texts through this lens will unlock new insights, and correct some
Members only New Testament Insights The Pharisees Who Wash the Outside of Cups Though it can lead to flawed conclusions, reading the Gospels and Epistles without understanding the complicated and technical discussions of Jewish law behind them is simple. We should know that these knowledge gaps are not inconsequential and can result in oversimplified interpretations.
Mysticism and Spirituality Rethinking Money The wisdom of the Bible calls us to view our lives through a different logic than we may be accustomed to. Instead of viewing actions and experiences as isolated or disconnected singularities, we are challenged to hold a more holistic view. This is especially true when it comes to money.
Members only Thoughts Finding Value In Our Mistakes When you are on a spiritual journey, it is easy to look back on past memories and resurrect old feelings of guilt for decisions you made at an earlier stage of development. In this space, one might invest time, overthinking how they might have acted differently today, given the same situation.
Paid-members only Wellness Creating an Inner Space for Meditation In this article, we're going to look at a simple yet effective way to develop an 'inner space' of your own, a place you can visit mentally when meditating, praying, getting away for a quick reset, or brainstorming solutions for problems.
Mysticism and Spirituality The Scholar and the Merchants In this short story, we're given a glimpse at the multi-dimensional way one may read the Biblical texts through the system of Pardes. See how a story functions on a simple level while simultaneously concealing a higher truth.
New Testament Insights Paul's Eagerness to Celebrate Shavuot Did you know that Paul was adamant about keeping the festival of Shavuot at the Temple in Jerusalem? If not, it is likely because many English translations have obscured this account.
News Book Available on Amazon - Into the Orchard. "Into the Orchard" is a book that is designed to fast-track the learnings and correct the misunderstandings one may encounter when trying to understand the Jewish context of the New Testament.
Torah Messiah Much of the New Testament relies on a reader's pre-knowledge of the Jewish Oral Torah, often referred to as the "Mesorah". From this, we derive ubiquitous concepts like, Messiah, the World to Come, Sin, heaven and Hell.
Members only New Testament Insights A Lamp Under a Basket Understanding Biblical metaphors and multi-faceted imagery is vital to unlocking the hidden dimensions of interpretation. In this article, we will unpack a few layers to reveal a deeper message in a familiar passage from what is called, "the Sermon on the Mount".
Paid-members only Mysticism and Spirituality Confronting Our Shadow We should recognize, there is a difference between rectifying your imbalanced character traits and rectifying the cause of the imbalance. For this, we need to confront our shadow.
Members only New Testament Insights The Cursing of the Fig Tree There is a bizarre story that seems to be out of place in the hagiographical flow of the Gospels. It is the story in which Jesus takes his vengeance out upon a random fig tree on the side of the road. This story concludes with many rightfully scratching their heads,
Paid-members only Mysticism and Spirituality King Without a Crown The Creator is always sending us hints if we are open to hearing them. Listening to music last week, "King Without a Crown", by Matisyahu, cycled through my playlist. I realized the answers are hidden in these lyrics.
Members only New Testament Insights Rolling Away the Stone After the crucifixion narrative, the Gospel writers record that the large stone used to cover the tomb of Jesus was rolled away, opening the tomb. There is an idea in the Zohar that might give us insight into new meaning
