The Book: The Unified Body | The Blog: Am Echad | |

 

"It is better to take refuge in Adonai than to trust in human beings; better to take refuge in Adonai than to put one's trust in princes." -Tehilah 118:8-9



The Unified Body

I am pleased to announce that The Unified Body is now online. I'm not talking about the blog that you're reading right now; I'm talking about the booklet that started it all.

Nearly a year ago, my mother and I sat down to discuss the idea of putting online the small booklet she had written almost ten years ago. The booklet, a mere 24 pages, was what I have now dubbed "the thesis of her faith." In it, my mother uses scripture after scripture to explain the truth of Messianic Judaism that was revealed to her through a Ruach-filled study of the Word:
...ONE BODY of Messianic Jews and Spiritual Messianic Jews (gentiles) where the balance of Old and New Covenants exist, where the Lord's Feasts are celebrated, and where faith is practiced according to scripture rather than according to ideas of men.
To my mother, who was never one to toy with the truth, the olive tree connection spoken of in Romans 9-11 sounded so simple, so easy. Yet, to the world, especially to the majority of the believing community (in both the Church and the Messianic sphere) that olive tree continues to prove the hardest to grow.

I hopped online and did some research into the Messianic movement and the believing community, to see if The Unified Body would prove to be as timely a read today as it did in 1997. Months spent following Messianic chat forums, often membered largely by those who consider themselves within the framework of the Messianic "mainstream," showed me that the community had been sitting in spin cycle for the past ten years and was slowly wringing itself dry. Not only was there no interest in the message, there was no groundwork, no foundation to even build upon for dialogue. So many of these people, the majority of them in their 20s, didn't have a solid understanding of what being a Messianic Jew meant. How could they even begin to understand the unity of the body when they didn't fully comprehend the tri-unity of Adonai?

I Googled some more. Months of researched turned up a number of Messianic spinoffs, ranging from Rabbinic Messianic sects to groups that practice variants of replacement theology. In my crash-course on the Messianic movement, I quickly learned that the Messianic world has as many "denominations" as mainstream Christianity. Although they all share a belief in Yeshua as the Messiah, the un-Biblical theology and religious practices of these groups often proves as divisive as their Christian counterparts. I would often walk away from these websites feeling confused and disinterested- and I am a believer! G-d forbid what an outsider would think of this mess!

Yet, my research did not prove fruitless. I clicked into a handful of congregational websites, ministries, and individual blogs (a number of which are linked on this site) that encouraged me to pursue the work of putting The Unified Body online. Here were solid believers, both Jew and gentile, seeking to understand and live out their faith in Yeshua the Messiah in accordance with His will and teachings. These were the few who had escaped the real "spirit of religiosity" that is running rampant throughout the body of believers, dividing and conquering along the way. These few congregations, organizations, and people not only understood Rav Shaul's teaching in Romans 9-11, they sought to live the olive tree connection in their halacha with HaShem. This was my audience, these people and the millions like them who Google "Yeshua" on a daily basis, only to be left blinded and frustrated by the doctrines of men in their search for HaShem. These are the people with "eyes to see and ears to hear" and they deserve to have something to call on for education, and especially for encouragement.

Yeshua instructed, Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest in your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matt. 11:29-30) Yeshua's use of the term "yoke," as a metaphor for halacha mirrors the prophet's use of the same term in Jeremiah 5:5 "...I will go to the prominent men, and I will speak to them; for they know the way of Adonai and the rulings of their G-d." But these had completely broken the yoke and torn the harness off.

In searching out scriptures for this entry, I was amused to find that just before Yeshua declared his halacha to be easy, He praised His Father for concealing these things from the sophisticated and educated and revealing them to ordinary folks. (Matt.11:25) The Unified Body may be the vision my mother, a humble housewife and former nurse, received from the Word, but she did not author it. It is a gift that began in the beginning, that has been made free to "all who have ears to hear," and who love HaShem with "all their heart, soul, mind, and strength." The teachings of Yeshua, His prophets and His talmidim are not a complex set of dicta crafted and controlled by the "prominent men," rather, the word is very close to you, in your mouth, even in your heart; therefore, you can do it! (D'varim 30:14)

Therefore, since, truly, "nothing is new under the sun," I both bless and charge you who read The Unified Body with the words of Rav Shaul:
Proclaim the Word! Be on hand with it whether the time seems right or not. Convict, censure and exhort with unfailing patience and with teaching.

For the time is coming when people will not have patience for sound teaching, but will cater to their passions and gather around themselves teachers who say whatever their ears itch to hear. Yes, they will stop listening to the truth, but will turn aside to follow myths.

But you, remain steady in every situation, endure suffering, do the work that a proclaimer of the Good News should, and do everything your service to G-d requires.
[II Timothy 4:1-5]
May you be strengthened in the reading of The Unified Body. May it encourage you in your halacha with HaShem and in your search for Yeshua. Most of all, I pray that it will act as yet another signpost to the kehilat of believers that, through the ultimate atoning sacrifice of Yeshua, we are all one, just as Adonai is Echad.

For it was by one Spirit that we were all immersed into one body, whether Jews or gentiles, slaves or free; and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
I Corinthians 12:13

Kol Tuv

, , , , , , ,

posted by Shoshana @ 9:20 PM




Shabbat Shalom!

Nothing feels as good as Shabbat. Okay, well, not many things feel as good as Shabbat. Shabbat is definitely in the Top Ten.

Having spent the first ten years of my life in Christian churches and the second 9 in Messianic shuls, I was never afforded an opportunity to really understand the true meaning of Shabbat until I stopped going to congregations altogether, not by choice, but by chance. Travelling to college and speeding through a Bachelor's and a Master's program in five years just didn't afford me many opportunities to make it to Sabbath services. I was literally consumed with work. However, that didn't mean that I didn't have time to make HaShem a part of my life.

Before going off to college, a fellow congregant of one of my old kehilot took myself and a peer out to lunch as a sort of "going away" celebration. One of the things she emphasized to us was, "It's great to be able to worship G-d corporately, but you've got to be able to do it for yourself. You've got to be able to get into that place with G-d on your own." It wasn't until I was literally on my own that I realized how right she was. Gathering together to praise HaShem, study His Word, pray, and rest in His Ruach as a body of believers is both Biblical and wonderful. (In fact, it's wonderful because it's Biblical.) The corporate is at the heart of the Jewish faith; however, so is the individual. Our scriptures are filled with stories of HaShem using individuals (D'vorah, Yhoshua, Moshe, David-- YESHUA) to save and bless the nation of Israel. How can we be expected to contribute to the corporate if we are constantly feeding off of the corporate? What can we bring to the group if we cannot receive, learn, and grow as individuals?

I travelled for my Master's degree. Eighteen-hundred miles away, knowing no one, I developed a habit of kindling the Shabbat candles that rested in the travelling Sabbath candlestick holder my mother had given me before I left. I would cover my head with my makeshift tallit (a scarf that read "Shalom" in Hebrew) , draw the flame to my face, and recite the blessings, thanking Adonai for Shabbat and Yeshua for salvation. I would make a point to read scripture, to praise HaShem in song, and always to pray. In those two years of individual worship, I was able to draw near to HaShem and grow in Him in powerful ways. The relationship we had developed not only gave me the strength I needed to get through trying times as an individual, it also allowed me to develop the knowledge I needed in order to write this blog now.

As one Israeli Rabbi put it, "We live as individuals in order to serve and build our nation." Never fear the quiet times. Never fear walking alone with HaShem. Dovid haMelekh spent how many years in the wilderness, surrounded by vagabonds and criminals, only to take the throne of Eretz Yisrael! Use the alone time HaShem has given you to cultivate your relationship with Him and to grow closer to Him, not as one of the talmidim, but as a talmid. Trust that in being alone, you are far from lonely.

I encourage you all to take some time this Shabbat to rest in oneness with Adonai Echad. Take a few minutes just to be with Him, to thank Him for Shabbat and to invite Him to rest with you. Praise Him alone, so that you both may rejoice in the kehilat together. And remember: your one-on-one relationship with Him is a living testimony to His power that will be evident to all those around you, and it is something through which the entire community will be blessed.

"We have heard His voice coming from the fire, and we have seen today that G-d does speak with human beings, and they stay alive." -D'varim 5:24

Shabbat Shalom mishpocha!

, , , , ,

posted by Shoshana @ 10:42 AM




What is Messianic Judaism? Part One: The Jewish Reaction

I've had a variety of experiences with introducing myself as a believer to Jewish people, Christians, and gentiles in general. Most gentiles, by and large, take as much interest in my faith as they do in their own--zip. I have, however, come across very distinctive reactions from both the Jewish and the Christian camps to my Messianic Jewish faith.

Part I: The Jewish Reaction

The Jewish reaction could best be described as tacit, followed by the inevitable question, "So, you're a Jew for Jesus?"

No, I am not a Jew for Jesus.

Myth #1 Dispelled: Messianic Jews are NOT "Jews for Jesus."

For those not in the know, "Jews for Jesus" is a missionary organization. They do not represent the entire body of Messianic believers, despite the fact that their name has become a slang term for Jewish believers in Messiah Yeshua. While many "Jews for Jesus" members will identify themselves as Messianic Jews, not all Messianic Jews identify with the "Jews for Jesus" group. This is because, to many Messianic believers, "Jews for Jesus" does not accurately uphold or represent the tenants of Messianic life. In fact, a belief in Yeshua as the Messiah is about the only thing which the "Jews for Jesus" organization and many Messianics have in common.

As I said, some "Jews for Jesus" members will identify as Messianic Jews. Some will, however, identify themselves as "Hebrew Christians" or "Christians". A cursory reading of their publications reveals that they adhere to many Christian practices, including the celebration of Christmas and Easter, and tend to market themselves more to Evangelical Christians than Messianic Jews or Jewish people in general, despite their goal to "make the Messiahship of Jesus an unavoidable issue to our Jewish people worldwide." The actions and many of the beliefs held by "Jews for Jesus" regarding faith in Messiah simply do not match up with a Jewish lifestyle. The most importance of these relates to Torah observance.

The greatest difference between "Jews for Jesus" and the Messianic movement as a whole is that "Jews for Jesus" does not actively promote Torah observance within its ranks. In fact, in reading "Jews for Jesus" literature, it is clear that the J4J organization promotes the idea that the believer is "free" from the observance of the mitzvot found in Torah.
Jews for Jesus affirms Jewish believers who, for the sake of honoring our heritage and developing a Jewish testimony, choose to give up some of what grace allows to conform to dietary standards and various other Jewish practices. As long as such practices are not presented as incumbent upon others in the body of Messiah, Jewish or Gentile, we hope to be an encouragement to those who desire to uphold their Jewish identity in this way. Havurah, Fall 2003
In other words, "Jews for Jesus" adheres to the Christian doctrine that "grace" (Messiah's sacrifice) has cancelled out "the law" (Torah). This teaching contradicts both Torah and the very teachings of Messiah; it was Yeshua Himself who said, "If you want to obtain eternal life, observe the mitzvot." (Matt. 19:17) Yeshua gave stern warnings about those who had faith in Him but were unwilling to follow Torah:
Not everyone who says to me, "L-rd, L-rd," will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, only those who do what my Father in Heaven wants. On that Day, many will say to me, "L-rd, L-rd! Didn't we prophesy in your name? Didn't we expel demons in your name? Didn't we perform miracles in your name?" Then I will tell them to their faces, "I never knew you! Get away from me, you workers of Torahlessness!" (Matt 7:21)
Through living a life in accordance with Torah, we both honor HaShem and validate ourselves and our own actions; the mitzvot are the works that testify to our faith:
Therefore, observe them; and follow them; for then all peoples will see you as having wisdom and undertanding. When they hear of all these law, they will say, 'This great nation is surely a wise and understanding people.' For what great nation is there that has G-d as close to them as Adonai our G-d is, whenever we call on Him? (D'varim 4:6-7)
What is Torah, but the system of teachings that separates us from the pagan gentile world and sets us apart for HaShem? The Messiah could not contradict this truth, and in fact, He did not:
Do not think I have come to abolish the Torah or the prophets. I have come not to abolish, but to fulfill. Yes indeed! I tell you that until heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah-- not until everything that must happen has happened. So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot and teaches others to do so will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever obeys them and so teaches will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. (Matt. 5:17-19)
So, you see, according to scripture, an integral part of being a Messianic Jew is living a Torah observant lifestyle. In their cancelling out of the Torah, "Jews for Jesus" is effectively cancelling out their Jewish identity. Therefore, they are not a Messianic Jewish organization, so it is wholly incorrect to associate Messianic Judaism with the "Jews for Jesus" group.

After that is explained, the next question that inevitably arises is, "Okay, so you do Torah. For what? You're still going to try and convert us, right?"

Myth #2 dispelled: Messianic Jews do not follow Torah in order to "mask" their faith. Messianic Jews follow Torah in order to live out their faith.

I should make it clear at the outset that there are a variety of positions on Torah observance within the Messianic community. In fact, there are as many views on Torah observance within the Messianic world as there are within the Rabbinic world. Some Messianics believe Torah to be optional, while others believe it is required. Some Messianics feel that only born Jews who become believers in Messiah are required to maintain Torah, while gentile believers who enter the movement are not required to maintain Torah. Yet still, others believe that both born-Jewish and gentile believers who are grafted into the body of Messiah should seek to adhere to Torah.

I cannot and do not claim to speak for any of these organizations here. Instead, I speak only for myself what I know to be true, based on my own education and experiences: Torah observance is an integral part of being a Messianic Jew, because it is an integral part of being Jewish. As I previously explained, our Messiah, our Rabbi, instructed us to obey Torah and walk in its ways. This is because He is the Living Torah, "the Word made flesh who dwelt among us," (Yochanan 1:1-5, 14) and the fulfillment of the promises and prophecies in the Torah, Prophets, and Psalms (Luke 24:44). Therefore, no, Messianic Jews (at least not this Messianic Jew) do not observe Torah in order to "mask" our faith in Yeshua. Torah is not a technique we use to "weasel into" the lives of non-believing Jews. We observe Torah because we have faith in Mashiach and want to please Him and walk in His ways, in accordance with His will.

Myth #3 Dispelled: Jewish people do not "convert" to Messianic Judaism, because Messianic Judaism is just that, Judaism.

As to the question of "conversion," Messianic Jews do not believe that Jewish people "convert" or change when they become believers in Yeshua. We believe that Yeshua is the promised Jewish Messiah; in believing this, how could we even think that Jewish people would somehow "change" their faith or their identity if they became believers?

The concept of "conversion" is a Christian concept, not a Messianic Jewish concept, which leads me to Myth #4.

Myth #4 Dispelled: Messianic Jews are NOT Christians.

Christianity is a religion consisting of ritual observances, rooted in paganism, that are used to express faith in a Jewish Messiah. What we call "Christianity" today did not begin with the arrival of Messiah, His death, or His ressurection. In fact, today's Christian Church finds its beginnings in the 4th century of the Roman Empire, a fact I will delve into further in Part Two of this post. Suffice to say here that the only truly Biblically correct aspect of Christianity is faith in Yeshua the Messiah. The doctrines and practices of the Church are not rooted in scripture but are, instead, rulings of pagan priests who essentially established a new religion when it became politically ordered and socially acceptable to do so.

Messianic Jews, on the other hand, find their history in Moshe. Today, Jewish scholars who do not believe that Yeshua is the Messiah will attest to the fact that He was born a Jew and lived a very Jewish life. (Some will go so far as to grant Him the status of Rabbi, prophet, and even Leader of a Zionist movement that sought to rebel against Roman rule.) Yeshua's followers (talmidim) continued to practice as Jews after His death and ressurection.

In opening their faith to gentiles, the talmidim of Yeshua did what Jews had been doing for centuries; the Rabbis teach us that it was Abraham who was the first to act as a missionary to the goyim about HaShem. When the talmidim spoke to the gentiles about Yeshua, they were speaking from a Jewish perspective and introducing them to a Jewish Messiah and a Jewish way of life that was made open to everyone from the time of the covenant with the mixed multitude at Mt. Sinai. In fact, in discussing how to introduce believing goyim into Jewish life, the Jewish followers of Yeshua automatically accepted the fact that these new believers would practice as they did, attending synagogue on a weekly basis. In attending synagogue, the gentile believers would learn to be good Jews: "For Moses [the Torah] has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath." (Acts 15:21)

The practices, and many of the doctrines of the Christian Church are not the practices nor the teachings of Messianic Judaism. In fact, the two religions are so entirely different that they are just that-- two separate ways of practicing a mutual faith in Messiah.

"Right, so you're not a Christian. You follow Torah and you live a Jewish life. That doesn't make your faith in Yeshua a Jewish thing."

This last argument is the expression of a personal belief. I, myself, cannot change your mind for you. I can only speak what I know to be true and encourage you to seek out the truth for yourself. My faith in Yeshua--the Messianic Jewish faith-- is grounded in the belief that Yeshua fulfilled the Messianic prophecies found in the Torah, Prophets, and Psalms. My faith is also grounded in my belief that He fulfilled the requirements outlined in Torah for sacrificial atonement. I'll use the account of Avraham's near-sacrifice of his son Yitz'chak (Isaac) to explain what I mean.

In Genesis 22, Adonai orders Avraham to, "Take your son, your only son, whom you love, Yitz'chak; and go to the land of Moriyah. There you are to offer him as a burnt offering on a mountain that I will point out to you." (Gen 22:2)

It is here, in the Torah, in the story of the Patriarchs Avraham and Yitz'chak, that we are given the first Messianic paradigm. Just as Avraham was ordered to sacrifice his only beloved son, so it was spoken of Yeshua, "And a voice from Heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love: I am well pleased with Him,'" (Matt. 3:17) and, "For Adonai so loved the world that He gave His only and unique Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life" (Yochanan 3:16).

It should be noted that Yitz'chak was no mere child; at this point, he was roughly in his mid-30s.

It is noted in Luke 3:23 that Yeshua was "about thirty years old when He began His public ministry." Therefore, both Yitz'chak and Yeshua were adults with the full ability to choose whether or not they would be sacrificed. Both evidenced faith in Adonai and in their fathers in electing to become the sacrifice.

The story continues,
Avraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on Yitz'chak his son. Then he took in his hand the fire and the knife, and they both went on together.

Yitz'chak spoke to Avraham his father: My father? He answered: "Here I am, my son." He said, "I see the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" Avraham replied, "Adonai will provide the lamb for a burnt offering, my son," and they both went on together. (Gen. 22:6-8)
Of course, right as Avraham was ready to kill his son on the altar, an Angel of Adonai appeared to him and stopped him, saying,
"...I now know that you are a man who fears Adonai, because you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me." Avraham raised his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in the bushes by its horns. Avraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering in place of his son. Avraham called the place Adonai Yir'eh (meaning: "Adonai will see to it")..." (Gen. 22:12-14)
It is interesting to note that, although Avraham says, "Adonai will provide the lamb," it is a ram that HaShem provides for Avraham that day. Yet, look at the meaning of the name Avraham gave to the sacrificial site: "Adonai Yireh." Often translated as, "G-d provides," the Hebrew Adonai Yireh is most accurately translated to read, "G-d will see to it." But, what will He see to? Hadn't the substitution for the sacrifice already been made? Hadn't the ram already appeared to take Yitz'chak's place?

When the Angel of HaShem spoke to Avraham, the text reads, "Avraham raised his eyes and looked." The Hebrew term used to describe this action not only describes the physical action of looking upward, it also carries a spiritual implication; in looking up, Avraham had what we could term "a heavenly insight." Therefore, the future provision Avraham spoke of through the title Adonai Yireh was just that, a provision for the future revealed to him in that instant. Indeed, HaShem would provide a lamb for the sacrifice, just as Avraham had said to Yitz'chak. Indeed, a lamb would be provided to act as a substitutionary sacrifice, in accordance with the Torah teaching in Leviticus 1:1-8 and 17:11. That lamb would unwittingly be identified by those He came to redeem:
The next day, Yochanan saw Yeshua coming toward him and said, "Look! Adonai's lamb! The one who is taking away the sin of the world!" (Yochanan 1:29)

When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing but rather that a riot was starting, he took water, washed his hands in front of the crowd, and said, "My hands are clean of this man's [Yeshua's] blood; it's your responsibility." All the people answered, "His blood is on us and on our children!" (Matt. 27:24-25)
In the account of Avraham and Yitz'chak, we not only draw parallels to the account of Messiah, we can see that Avraham himself was given knowledge of the Moshiach, the ultimate sacrifice, before the laws regarding blood atonement had even been written. In naming that place "Adonai Yireh," and in declaring that HaShem would provide the sacrificial lamb, Avraham went from Patriarch to prophet. Through Yeshua, that prophecy was fulfilled.

There are many other passages in the Tanak that speak of Yeshua, all of which I hope to employ in future writings. As for now, I will leave you with one prophecy, a chapter from the book of Isaiah, in order to encourage you to seek out for yourself how Yeshua fulfilled the words the prophet spoke:

Who believes our report? To whom is the arm of ADONAI revealed?

For before him he grew up like a young plant, like a root out of dry ground. He was not well-formed or especially handsome; we saw him, but his appearance did not attract us.

People despised and avoided him, a man of pains, well acquainted with illness. Like someone from whom people turn their faces, he was despised; we did not value him.

In fact, it was our diseases he bore, our pains from which he suffered; yet we regarded him as punished, stricken and afflicted by God.

But he was wounded because of our crimes, crushed because of our sins; the disciplining that makes us whole fell on him, and by his bruises we are healed.

We all, like sheep, went astray; we turned, each one, to his own way; yet ADONAI laid on him the guilt of all of us.

Though mistreated, he was submissive - he did not open his mouth. Like a lamb led to be slaughtered, like a sheep silent before its shearers, he did not open his mouth.

After forcible arrest and sentencing, he was taken away; and none of his generation protested his being cut off from the land of the living for the crimes of my people, who deserved the punishment themselves.

He was given a grave among the wicked; in his death he was with a rich man. Although he had done no violence and had said nothing deceptive, yet it pleased ADONAI to crush him with illness, to see if he would present himself as a guilt offering. If he does, he will see his offspring; and he will prolong his days; and at his hand ADONAI's desire will be accomplished.

After this ordeal, he will see satisfaction. "By his knowing [pain and sacrifice], my righteous servant makes many righteous; it is for their sins that he suffers.

Therefore I will assign him a share with the great, he will divide the spoil with the mighty, for having exposed himself to death and being counted among the sinners, while actually bearing the sin of many and interceding for the offenders."


Isaiah 53

Generally, these are the reactions I receive from Jewish people when I talk about my faith and identity as a Messianic Jew. To give a brief review:I hope that this account has helped to clarify what Messianic Judaism is and is not. Whether you are a Messianic believer, a Jewish person, a Christian, or a goy, I hope that this will encourage you to examine these ideas for yourself. As I have said before, my goal is never to cause offense, but to speak the truth of what I believe and pray that my audience may be blessed in the reading of it.

Stay tuned for What is Messianic Judaism? Part Two: The Christian Reaction. Until then, Shalom.

, , , , , ,

posted by Shoshana @ 11:05 AM




Shalom!

Shalom and welcome to The Unified Body, a blog dedicated to:

I was motivated to start this blog after doing a LOT of online research about Messianic Judaism and finding a lot of incorrect teaching, along with a huge amount of stereotyping about my faith. I was also motivated by what I found lacking in regards to a Messianic internet presence, namely a lack of blogs by Messianics about Messianic Judaism. The Jewish blogosphere (J-blogosphere) is massive and diverse, yet it contains relatively little opinion coming from the Messianic community. In the age of the Internet, it is both sad and inexcusable that Messianics do not have much of a virtual presence through which they can communicate with the world on a regular basis.

In establishing this blog, it is my hope that I can both be a voice and connect with other voices in the Messianic world. I also hope that, through this blog, I can help to dispell some common myths and misinterpretations about Messianic Judaism. Finally, it is my greatest prayer that this blog would be a forum through which Messianic Judaism is shaped and defined, not by religious traditions or the teachings of religious leaders, but through the Ruach-filled study of Torah, guided by the teachings of Rav Yeshua haMashiach.

My goal with this blog is not to cause offense, but simply to speak what I know to be true through faith in Messiah Yeshua. In sharing what I have learned about my faith, my culture, and my people, I seek to encourage fellow believers in Messiah in their halacha (walk) with HaShem. At the same time, I also want to encourage Jewish people from all walks of life to seek out the truth of HaShem for themselves, to pray and read Torah and Tanak for themselves with all their "heart, soul, and strength" as is commanded in the V'havata prayer, taken from D'varim (Deuteronomy) 6:4-9. Finally, but certainly not lastly, I hope that this blog provides some insight into Messianic Judaism for all those with questions about and an interest in the faith, whether they be Jew or gentile.

The natural disclaimer that should go before anything of this nature: Please do not take my word for it. Read the scripture for yourself. See if what I am saying passes the test. This is the only way you will know with conviction that what you are reading, whether it is here or anywhere else, is the truth. Please, I am no Rabbi, therefore, never take my word for it.

Todah Rabbah (Thank you, very much) for stopping by and bevakasha (please) come again. Until then, shalom.



, , ,

posted by Shoshana @ 1:52 PM