Atonement Series #1: By What Means Did the Repentant Nations of Jonah's Day Receive Atonement For Their Sins?

"In b. Sukkah 55b...we read that the seventy bulls that were offered every year during the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot; see Num. 29:12-34) 'were for the seventy nations,' which Rashi explains to mean, 'to make atonement for them, so that rain will fall throughout the world.'  In this context--and in light of the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70 c.e.--the Talmud records the words of Rabbi Yohannan:  'Woe to the nations who destroyed without knowing what they were destroying.  For when the Temple was standing, the altar made atonement for them.  But now, who will make atonement for them?" (pgs. 152-153 of Michael Brown's "Answering Jewish Objections").

Why was Yohannan getting so worked up?  After all, we don't really need the Temple according to Rabban Johanan b. Zakkai:

"It once happened that Rabban Johanan b. Zakkai was leaving Jerusalem and R. Joshua was walking behind him, when the latter saw the Temple in ruins.  Said R. Joshua:  'Woe to us that this is in ruins--the place where the sins of Israel were expiated!'  Rabban Johanan b. Zakkai replied:  'My son, be not grieved, we have a means of atonement that is commensurate with it.  Which is this?  It is the performance of lovingkindness, as it is said, 'For I desire loving kindness and not sacrifice'" (ibid, pgs. 111-112).

And this latter view is now official halachah in Orthodox Judaism.  According to Orthodox Judaism, the whole Temple system was just a big miscommunication.  G-d never really commanded blood sacrifices (but even if He did we have some really good back-up options that make the Temple irrelevant).  So it doesn't really matter that the Temple was destroyed.  In Zakkai's words, "be not grieved."  Don't sweat it.

Is that really the truth?

In the next post I'm going to breakdown this subject and talk about what the Torah really says about the necessity of blood sacrifice to effectuate forgiveness of sins.

STAY TUNED....

Answering Jewish Objections to [Yeshua] by Michael L. Brown

I wanted to do a post today on the issue addressed in Michael Brown's book "Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus, Vol. 2, Theological Objections" about whether we really need a blood sacrifice or whether there are alternative means of atonement (e.g. Maimonides says, "At this time, when the Temple is not standing and we do not have the altar of atonement, there is nothing but repentance; repentance atones for all transgressions").  But I'll get to it tomorrow and we'll have a good discussion.

This is very important.  In light of recent apostasies, I think it's important that we get back to some basic Messianic Apologetics.  

Until then...

--Peter

I Love This Midrash...

"Enjoy life with the woman whom you love all the days of your fleeting life which He has given to you under the sun ; for this is your reward in life..." (Ecclesiastes 9:9)

To the single men out there...

If I were a secularist, I would encourage you to get married by telling you that if you do not get married then nature will unapologetically weed your genes out of existence.  But since I am a man of faith (and as an Italian), I will encourage you to get married because there is nothing more fulfilling in life than family!  And, if you have the good fortune to have a daughter, there is nothing better in this life than hearing a little angel from HaShem say "Daddy!" and rest her little head against your arm.  Oh, and hearing her say "Shabbat Shawom!"

Anyway, here's a classic rabbinic midrash.  Yes, it contains hyperbole but you gotta love how the rabbis support everything they say with Scripture:

"The Midrash says:  'And the Lord God said:  It is not good for Man to be alone....R. Jacob taught:  every man who has no wife lives without good, without help, without happiness and without forgiveness... 

...without good, as it is written, 'it is not good for man to be alone.' [Genesis 2:18]
...without help, as it is written, 'I shall make him a helpmate for him.' [Genesis 2:18]
...without happiness, as it is written, 'And you shall rejoice, you and your household.' [Deut. 14:26]
...without blessing, as it is written, 'To bring blessing to your household.' [Eze. 44:30]
...without forgiveness, as it is written, 'And I shall forgive you and your household.' [Lev. 17:11] 

R. Simon said in the name of R. Joshua Ben Levi:  Even without peace, as it is written, 'And peace will be with you and peace will be with your household.' [Isaiah 25:6] 

R. Joshua of Sichnin said in the name of R. Levi:  Even without life, as it is written, 'See life with the wife that you love' [Ecc. 9:9] 

R. Hiyya bar Gamda said:  He is not even a complete person, as it is written, 'And He blessed them and He called their name Adam.' [Gen. 5:2] 

And some say:  He even diminishes the Divine Image, as it is written, 'For man was created in God's image,' [Genesis 9:6] and immediately afterwards it is written, 'And multiply.' [Genesis 9:7]"

Shidduch Dating: Gila Manolson on the Traditional Jewish Approach to Dating

I had Shabbat dinner one time at an Orthodox rabbi's home.  As I was leaving, the Rebbetzin said something like "You should bring your daughter next time.  You never know, maybe she and our grandson will make a good shidduch!"  I was struck by how welcoming they were toward a non-Jew like myself (and by how welcomed I felt, something I hadn't experienced at a UMJC synagogue) but, most of all, I was struck by how determined Jewish mothers must be to make a match for their children and grandchildren!  I mean, we were talking about four-year-olds for crying out loud!  : )

So what is a shidduch anyway?  It denotes a match made between a man and a woman (though if I'm not mistaken it connotes peacefulness).  But really it refers to a whole system of dating based on traditional Jewish values (which really used to be universal values up until the last century).  Here's a quick overview:  

"Shidduch dating has four characteristics.
    First, it assumes you're ready to get married.  That means you're reasonably mature, know who you are, and have some idea of where you're heading and the kind of person you want.  You also know what's negotiable and what isn't.  This concept of being thought out, even to the point of having a mental 'shopping list' of qualities you're seeking, may offend some.  (Funny how rationalism in relationships bothers us, as if using your head means you have no heart.)....
     Second, a shidduch is arranged through a third party.  He or she must understand you, be fairly wise and perceptive, and be able to introduce you to someone fundamentally compatible....
    Finally, shidduch dating includes no touching--being shomer negiah.  While ridiculously difficult if you intend to hang out together for a few years, this self-control is definitely feasible in a shorter-term, marriage-oriented relationship.  Many insist, of course, that 'trying things out' helps determine compatibility in marriage.  All the evidence indicates they're dead wrong, for theirs is a pitifully shallow conception of sexuality.  True sexuality expresses not only who you are, but your feelings for your partner and the quality of your relationship....Strange as it may sound, postponing physical contact is actually the best way to assess compatibility.  It promotes objectivity, letting you see the other without the illusions frequently created by physical closeness.  It fosters a genuine, person-to-person (rather than body-to-body) connection.  It helps you discover if you can appreciate the other not for how good he or she makes you feel but for who he or she actually is.  Being shomer negiah is therefore essential in acquiring perspective on the big question:  'Is this the person I want to spend the rest of my life with?'....
     Dating for marriage, using an intermediary, doing research, and being shomer negiah all help you put your head before your heart, and constitute 'religious dating,'....The purpose of religious dating is to reach the point of knowing, 'This is the person with whom I want to, and can, make a relationship work,'" (from "Head to Heart" by Gila Manolson).

The Eishet Chayil (Woman of Valor): Why is She Compared to a Candle?

"...Her lamp does not go out at night," (Prov. 31:18)

Question:  Why is woman compared to a candle?

"Woman is compared to a candle and man to the flame [Rashi].  Although the flame is what gives the light, it is the candle which holds the flame and gives it the material it needs to burn.  The candle of the Eshes Chayil does not stop feeding the light of her husband's Torah and his shining deeds even at 'night,' when times are dark.  She does not lose her ability to be a source of illumination for others..."  from Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller's "More Precious Than Pearls".

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Questions From a Christian Teacher (Continued)

I'm having the best on-going discussion with a Christian teacher about the Torah.  He just keeps agreeing with everything!  He could at least have the decency to disagree once in a while!  : )

Recently, he asked about the purpose of the commandments.  Here's that brief response in case anyone might find it helpful:

"This is called "ta'amei hamitzvot" (the reasons for the commandments) and is a very deep subject.   

At a most basic level, the two purposes of the Law are to help turn man from idolatry and help him reorient to the G-d of Israel (and integrate into this family). 

Of course, this reorientation process involves many different Biblical commands, each with its own specific rationale (which is in addition to the aforementioned general rationales). 

There are two types of commandments, the mishpatim and the chukim.  The mishpatim have rationales which are very easily discerned as they contain basic principles of righteous living.  The chukim (e.g. kashrut, blood atonement, moedim, etc) also have rationales but we don't always understand them fully.  However, we do understand most of them:  kashrut law (Lev. 11) is about eating those things designed for human consumption; the laws of Temple purification have a symbolic and inherent significance; the laws of the moedim (appointed times) help us to identify with Israel (e.g. when we taste the bitter herbs of the Passover seder, how can we not identify with the ancient Israelites?) and to learn more about Yeshua and what He accomplished.  

In summary, each mitzvah has, in addition to its general rationale, a specific rationale."

Personal Update

I didn't blog any this past week because I started a new job.  Had to learn some new things (an understatement).  But now I'm up to speed and ready to resume blogging!

The next post is going to cover a section of a Dr. Michael Brown book dealing with atonement, specifically the question:  "Do we really need a blood atonement?" [NOTE:  it's amazing how G-d works because I got online just now and saw that Rob Roy had suggested we cover Dr. Brown's books!]

After that, there's some obscure Jewish books on marriage that I read a long time ago using inter-library loans.  I'll try to share some of the highlights from those.  Such wonderful insights into the mysteries of love!

Blessings to all who dwell in the House of the Father,

Peter

Important Post at Kineti L'Tziyon

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Apostate Teachers and Spiritual Food Recalls

Is it "disloyal" to call out an apostate Messianic teacher by name?

Imagine you're a reporter and you find proof that a food producer has been producing tainted food.  Considering that tainted food will make people sick (or worse), do you have a duty to the public to let them know about the tainted food?

The answer to that question should be obvious.

And it's the same with apostate teachers, purveyors of tainted spiritual food.  Yes, I called out Gene because he has poisoned many people and these people have a right to know that they've been poisoned.

But the question we should all be asking right now is this:  how does Messianic apostasy happen?

We should ask this so we know how to prevent this from happening again.  But the usual suspects with whom Gene collaborated have no interest in doing a postmortem.  They don't want to study the epidemiology of Gene's apostasy because they're afraid that the underlying causes might implicate their own ministries and teachings.

I say it's time to discuss this publicly!  I have no problem discussing this because I have no multi-million dollar ministry at stake---just a free Blogger account.  I receive no money whatsoever from this.

So I want to know your opinion on Messianic apostasy:  What are the causes?  How can we prevent these causes or deal with them once they occur?

The Social Identity Function of Israelite Feasts

"Festivals are powerful instruments for creating and maintaining social cohesion in the participants present.  One of the ways this happens is by linking them to their shared history.  Taking part in a feast fosters and maintains a sense of identity with all those understood to have performed the same rituals and eaten the same foods in the community's past.  Moreover, the images of the distant past, whether actual or constructed or some combination thereof, serve to legitimate the present order.  At some uncertain point in Israel's history, the historicization of the three main agricultural festivals contributed to this connection with the past.  Formative aspects of Israel's Heilsgeschichte--the story of departure from Egypt, wilderness journey, and Sinai covenant--were mapped onto these festivals, which thereby became the occasions for recounting the master narrative of escape to freedom and for affirming its associated values.  As a dramatic departure from the tedium of daily routines, Israelite feasts surely provided the occasion for storytellers...to regale the participants with the rousing songs and tales that conveyed their mnemo-history, the substance of their collective cultural memory.  In a world without television, newspapers, or the Internet, feasts were the setting in which collective memories were transmitted, maintaining and solidifying group identity and values in the process.
    Not only the recited festival narratives but also the foods themselves served as important vehicles in that process.  As is the case in many cultures, food and memory are powerfully interrelated.  Food is a material substance that both embodies and structures our relationship with the past in socially meaningful ways.  The special foods of a feast--and here the meat, unleavened bread, and bitter herbs associated with the exodus are the best examples--provided direct sensory engagement with the...Ur-experience said to have produced the first Passover.  Festival foodstuffs serve as material mnemonics, connecting people to their remembered past and to one another.  Food, memory, and religious ritual intersect, with 'ritual as a key site where food and memory come together.'  Cultural identity is thus powerfully reinforced in the sensory materiality, especially the food, of community feasts.  The recurrent sharing of a special meal commemorating a significant past event joins people together into what is called a communitas (people who share an intense sense of commonality and a heightened feeling of togetherness).  Commensality itself thus 'plays a central role in constructing and reinforcing social bonds,' with the culinary event serving as a medium for integrating people into social units, whether based on real or constructed kinship," (pgs. 157-159 of Social Theory and the Study of the Israelite Religion, Olyan).

Countdown to Nuclear Iran: One Month?

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Gene Shlomovich, UMJC-Trained, FFOZ-Collaborator, Turned APOSTATE

I started this blog for one reason:

Boaz Michael (of First Fruits of Zion) and Gene Shlomovich were conspiring to take down the One-Law movement.  Their plan:  get these One-Law Messianics alone in a room with Gene and Boaz and slowly brainwash them.

That made me mad.

I could see Satan working through these guys, see them trying to fight what the Spirit of G-d is doing around the world through the One-Law movement.

Now behold the REAL "fruit" of First "Fruits" of Zion!

Here's Gene Shlomovich's own words:

"I no longer believe that any of the Greek writings of the New Testament are an inspired "Word of G-d". No, I think these writings are a rebellion to the Word of G-d..." 

"As a Jew, I've never felt closer to HaShem than when Jesus the idol was no longer in-between me and my Maker."

Of course, Boaz Michael is not entirely to blame here.  The UMJC is the organization that trained Gene.  Gene even invited me to join him one time at a UMJC conference.  Glad I decided not to go!  Here's what the UMJC teaches:

(1) the Bible is not a supernatural book:   CLICK HERE FOR LINK

(2) you don't need Yeshua in order to be saved:  CLICK HERE FOR LINK

CONCLUSION

What do you have to say for yourself, Boaz Michael?

What do you have to say for yourself, Carl Kinbar and Mark Kinzer?

NOTE:  Gene, I decided to take this public after hearing what you did to Judah's brother.  I consider Judah to be family.  

Is "Under Law" a Group Descriptor That Describes Only Jews? Or Does It Occasionally Refer to Gentiles?

"Under the law" is a group descriptor (e.g. 1 Cor. 9:20, "those under the law") that primarily describes Jews who remain subject to the penalties for law-breaking (implied from Rom. 6:14, "you are not under the law but under grace").  I say "primarily" because Paul, at times, seems to include Believing Gentiles in the group that was formerly "under the law".

For example, the "we" in "we were held captive under the law" (Gal. 3:23) appears to include Gentiles since in the preceding verse the state of being "under sin" is inclusive of both Jew and Gentile in Pauline writings (see especially Rom. 3:9).  Here's the passage:

"22 But the Scripture imprisoned everyone under sin [hupo hamartian], so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law [hupo nomon], imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed."

But how can Gentiles who are without law ("anomos", Rom. 2:12) be under the law?  The answer is that if sin is a transgression of the law then being "under sin" means that one is subject to a penalty for transgressing an applicable law.

We have to remember that things like Shabbat are written into creation and are universal to all mankind (see Isaiah 66:23).  There is one standard for man because, ab initio, G-d intended mankind to become one--even as He is One.  

Shabbat: Universal to All Mankind or Exclusive to Israel?

Everlasting Sign for Israel:

"It is a sign between me and the children of Israel forever," (Ex. 31:17).

Universal to All Mankind:

"And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord," (Isa. 66:23).

Conclusion:

I think one must consider the possibility that Yeshua will rule a universalized Israel in the Messianic Era.

What is a "Paidagogos"? A Look at Gal. 3:21-25 and the Historical Meaning of a "Paidagogos" as a Preparatory Teacher Rather than a Finalizing Teacher

As I mentioned several posts ago, I recently awoke early one morning and began reading a wonderful article by J.K. McKee entitled "Galatians 3:24-25: 'To Messiah' or 'Until Messiah Came'?"

So I'd like to talk briefly about some things that this article covered.  First, here's the Scriptural passage we'll be examining:

"21 Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. 

22 But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin [hupo hamartian], so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 

23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law [hupo nomon], imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.  

24 So then, the law was our guardian [paidagogos] until Christ came [eis Christon, "to Christ"], in order that we might be justified by faith.  

25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian," (Gal. 3:21-25)

 Here's the Christian vs. Messianic interpretation:

(1) the common Christian interpretation:  the Law was only useful before Christ came, functioning as a strict guardian/tutor.  But now that Jesus is here, we have no use for the Law anymore;

(2) a Messianic interpretation:  a paidagogos, historically, was a preparatory teacher responsible for delivering the child to the finalizing teacher:

"The paidagogos was 'Orig. 'boy-leader'...whose duty it was to conduct a boy or youth...to and from school and to superintend his conduct gener.; he was not a 'teacher'...When the young man became of age, the [paidagogos] was no longer needed' (BDAG).  In a classical sense, the paidagogos was a protector who was to guard young boys on their way to school until they reached a certain age," (from McKee's "'To Messiah' or 'Until Messiah Came'?").

And so the discipline/training instilled by the paidagogos was valuable!  We should never throw away this training.  And Paul even writes in 2 Timothy that the Law is useful for "training in righteousness" ("paideian ten en dikaiosune").  Thus, Gal. 3:24-25 does not question the value of the Torah

So that's a really quick overview.  My apologies to McKee if I butchered the message of the article.  But I recommend that readers purchase a copy of the book from which the article was adapted.  Here's a link to check out:

CLICK HERE FOR LINK