What about the James Ossuary? Read this link and let me know what you think

The following is a link to an article about the James Ossuary. I had kept up with the reports for a while. I had no idea it was on trial for being a fake Shame on some people. Anyway the link has some real good information.
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/mar/25/opinion/la-oe-burleigh-bible-ossuary-forgery-20120325

Jewish Cowboys in the Early West...now this is something

http://www.jewishmag.com/178mag/jews_out_west/jews_out_west.htm

Jerusalem Diggs.....I King 3 Solomon's Wall You have to see this

 http://youtu.be/VH9ZDHUyu7A

Shabbos Tov

Praying a good Sabbath rest to those who have been working so hard this week. In English we say....Thank God it's Friday! Thus we know it is time for personal time and time with the Lord and our families. We have worked so hard this week and the weekend is to look forward to. We don't do it out of a commandment but out of a heart that is turned toward home and the Lord. People ask me all the time if we should keep the Sabbath. The answer is always to have a good conscience toward God and man. Hold what you feel the Bible is telling you and let the Lord be the judge. Some will have to work as their jobs require it. To those I say do not feel guilty. Go on and serve the Lord in gladness and choose a day to rest and give to Him. Just be sure you do. Some say every day is the Sabbath....sadly to some every day is. They never work. God gave each tribe a job to do when He gave the commandments. Some feel there are only ten. Others know there are more. We need to keep what the Lord has given us and press forward into perfection. This life is just a dressing room for eternity. Let us endeavor to enter into that peace He has prepared for us. What a wonderful thought.....Shabbos Tov to everyone!
    To those who are celebrating tonight the Shabbos before Chanukah I pray you are feeling the joy set before you. This brings us right into the celebration of the feast of dedication. Jesus celebrated this as He stood on Solomon's porch.




22 And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter
 23 And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. 24 Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly.¹ 25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me. 26 But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any [man] pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave [them] me, is greater than all; and no [man] is able to pluck [them] out of my Father's hand. 30 I and [my] Father are one.

Ask yourself a question?

     What would be the greater loss, doing more and being safe or doing less and coming up short? Think about it. What if you had been born a Jew in ancient times when we had to sacrifice at the Temple? Would you have had the same attitude? Possibly the pressure of seeing the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night is an awakening. Possibly viewing the great mountain as the children of Israel did would wake up some.We will again see the glory of the Lord in such a divine manner.
    
    

Early Christian Documents

Having read all of Shem Tov's Matthew and realizing that it was written in the rear of a book not made for public viewing and possible was his own personal translation, it strikes an awareness
within one to consider primacy of ancient documents. There are many arguments for Greek primacy of the Christian New Testament book of Hebrews. I have to wonder though...why would an apostle write a letter to a congregation of Hebrews in the Greek language? Ever thought that thought? If you have then you are not alone. Truth can stand the crucible of fire. It is better to have a refined truth than to be sold deceptiveness. If something is a translation then it's a translation. So be it. It is not going to be discredited if it is a translation. If we felt that way we would not appreciate the Bible being given to us in the English language. Just some thoughts.

Contributions of Great People to the World in Which We Live!

I just finished today the book, "Unorthodox," by Debra Feldman. I have to admit it sounds a great deal like the lives of some Ultra Orthodox Apostolic Women. No offense because truth is truth but to never have a say so in your life as an adult is a tragic thing. Education is important not only in Biblical Education but other areas as well. I cannot judge for another culture but I look at the plight of women world wide and it saddens me. We have made great progress in education and other areas. Why not many more area? One of the greatest women who ever lived was Theresa of Calcutta. Her religion heralds her as a saint. Where would we be without the sacrificial marriage of Pierre and Marie Curie? I wonder where medicine would be had Pierre said to Marie....you can no longer work in your field of expertise...you are not a man. Are we not all made in the image of God? Male and Female made He them. We are not made incomplete. We are not born one creature that has been torn into two. We are called sons and daughters. That is not to mean we need to take on a manly image but we are not spiritually and physically inadequate in any field. Our brains may be wired differently but we all have equal contributions to give the word and the Congregation. I pray for the day that the daughters of God get the recognition they deserve. I would love to see little girls raised to know their fullest potential that they may never feel they have to push their way to the top. Help us Lord to know
our purpose and let us be able to have the freedom to fulfill it.
View this video of Marie in her lab. Thank God for the work of this woman. She sacrificed her life for the work she felt was important.
http://www.nobelprize.org/mediaplayer/index.php?id=1389

Dana Klein

The Jewish Wedding

     Over the years there have been a multitude of books written on Jewish weddings.Christians have researched this subject to try and understand the New Testament and most particularly the passages in the book of Revelation. There are some particularly funny parts that those not familiar with the culture miss. One of them is that within the Hasidic Community the marriages are arranged by the relatives.There is a big push to have your offspring marry well. There is the pre-engagement interview in which the mother in law and family members meet the young woman. It can be quite comical in many cases and seem like the purchase of a cow instead of a wife for the son. The son might not have much to bring to the table yet his family inspects the life and physical attributes of the young woman as though he were head of state. Can you imagine being the young woman? What if they find you unacceptable? Surely the community won't gossip when they kick you to the curve and find you a husband in Israel instead.
     Here sits the young woman dressed to the nines. She is wearing the finest clothes her family can afford.
Sitting on pins and needles enduring a panel much akin to an FBI investigation to be accepted or rejected by the family of a man she will have to serve all the days of her life. Whatever happens to her, she will have to accept as the will of God for her life. She may or may not meet the young man at this time.It may just be that the meeting takes place at the actual engagement party.
    Does this happen in America? Yes it does. You may visit the Spertus Institute in Chicago, IL and see some wonderful pictures on display that show a wedding within the Hasidic Community. Is this an arranged marriage on display? Probably. Seems far fetched and outdated? Depends on your point of view. What ever the case it is an interesting study. One of the things I find most interesting is that many of the practices we find when we view the Biblical story of Issac and Rebecca. Thousands of years of customs still in practice.

Shalom,
Dana Klein

Discussing the Different points of Aramaic Language

I am reading a blog today by a priest who is studying Aramaic. He has some interesting perspectives on the language. 


http://christhum.wordpress.com/2012/12/01/carols-from-hertford-college-oxford/

Today has been an awesome day of research. I have been so tied to it that I hardly have been able to blog.

Searching for Ancient Hebrew and Aramaic Fonts

     In searching for Ancient Hebrew and Aramaic Fonts I came up with this website:
http://www.omniglot.com/links/fonts.htm

     I personally think writing is beautiful. Some fonts have so much art included in the communication. Thank God for the internet and the communication and education it affords but the simple handwritten artistic writing from a thousands of years ago is quite impressive to me.
     One of my favorite trips of all times has been to a small museum that is virtually unknown. For scholars if you should happen to drive through a small area of the country known as
Anderson Indiana. The address is as follows:
Anderson University
 1100 East Fifth Street Anderson, IN 46012
1-800-428-6414
    
     I may not agree with their Theology in all areas but one of the Professors traveled to the Middle East a great deal and has many artifacts in a small Museum on Campus. I did not find a link to the Museum but have visited it personally and found it on campus not far from the administrative offices. My husband and I  have traveled all over the USA and to many foreign countries. One of the first things He and I do is find the nearest Synagogue and then the nearest Theological Seminaries. It is worth the visit just for some of the places we have found. Such as the time we were visiting friends in Merchavia Israel and found the Great Courtyard  Museum at the Kibbutz that pays tribute to Golda Meir and her contributions to Israel.

May I encourage you to do a bit of research today while you still have breath and good eye sight and a sharp mind. I speak to many people and they put things off. Let us work while it is still day before the night comes and there is no time left.

Shalom,
Dana D. Klein
    

Unorthodox? Debra Feldman...Divine PROVIDENCE ?

Last night working on texts, and viewing reading material I happened to stumble across some very interesting books about women who have come out of the Hasidic community. I haven't really done much research in this area. I just take the Hasidic community as a matter of fact. Many are very dedicated to the study of Torah within the Hasidic group. I have always found them very fascinating. Well I got to googling up some video's and came upon one of Debra Feldman being interviewed by Barbara Walters on the view. Her story was a desire for education. She had a great desire to better herself. They began to show things that go on within the Hasidic community. Some made comments such as....some of these people have never watched tv or a movie. We aren't shocked by it. We stopped watching tv at home both of us before we were married. It is a time stealer. If you want to view the news you can watch it on the internet. I am not a legalist and don't condemn others who do sit there for hours on end but I know my house would be ten times dirtier if I had tv on. Then it went on to say how many children most of them had etc. So what they do other things besides watch tv. It is kind of nice to see families not thinking children are a burden in the world. Must be great to not have to preach against abortion or have the prochoice in one corner and pro life in another. It seemed a picking apart. Just because you don't share a certain culture it is such a wrong thing to judge them by your own cultures standards. These are people trying to obey the Laws of God. One of the Rabbi's while being interview shared that their moral code is much like the morality of the 1950's American values. So if they are happy living as such I say...live and let live. It is not the business of American women to try to change the value of a culture. I do not condone the abuse of anyone but to say that not watching tv is abuse is hardly a reason to have a sit in. In fact it is refreshing to see a group of people trying not to be corrupted by societies ills. They so reminded me of the Amish culture on the movie staring Tim Allen, " For Richer or Poorer." Here was a man and women fully in debt and involved in building barns and bigger barns...then one day the IRS said," You soul will be required of you." I am not a movie buff and I have to admit it was a VCR tape and I only saw it last week. I am sure it came out in the 1990's or so. I just don't care for tv or movies. I was told about it and since my husband used to manage an Amish Restaurant years ago it perked my interest. He still bakes great pies but they burned him out..lol... He would rather I bake the pies. It just might be we can learn some things from these cultures. We may not take it to the depth many of them who are so passionate about it do but some change is good for us. Possibly, we could learn to live less off of
Wal-Mart's staples,  and be more reliant on God's good earth. So yes, I do talk about God. One commentator on a particular blog told the writer not to ruin the blog, by mentioning the name of God. His opinion however does not deter me. I write what I want to write. The constitution itself gives me freedom of speech. In the words of that hilarious band on the tv show," Duck Dynasty", 'It you don't like it don't watch.' In my case it is, if you don't like it don't read my blog." That's a fact Jack!"
   Anyway, getting back to the book. I went to Amazon and looked for Debra Feldman's book called, Unorthodox. I clicked on it and put it on my wish list to run it by Bruce in the morning. Not that things are so tight here I need an okay. We just have so many books in our house and I needed to be sure he had not already purchased it. That was my last chore for the evening before retiring for bed. I had a class this am in Lafayette. My son Joseph came along as he was out of school today due to a teachers training session. When we returned this afternoon on my desk sat Debra's book. I cannot believe my eyes. Dr. Klein had picked it up at a book sale last week before I even found such a book on Amazon. I say it is providence that I read this book. I began to read it before I blogged this evening.
  I am not going to judge Debra or her situation or the whys or how's of her personal choices. I am however going to sit down and read her book as I feel it is providence. I cannot say I recommend it yet but education is always recommended. The Apostle Paul instructed Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15 divine words when he said, 


2Tim 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

I have taken this as a personal command in my life as well. My own sweet husband is such a good example of this. We encourage each other to study the Bible. Two definitely are better than one.

Shalom,
Dana D'Artez Klein