Finding Our Way Through Nicaea: The Deity of Yeshua, Bilateral Ecclesiology, and Redemptive Encounter with the Living God
The Question and its importance A few years ago a controversy erupted in the Israeli Messianic Jewish movement over the question, “Is Yeshua God?” some leaders had publicly answered the ques- tion with a definitive “no!” Their refusal to call Yeshua “God” ignited a firestorm. In the eyes of many, these dissenting leaders had denied…
Read MoreThe Life of the First Jewish U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Louis Brandeis: Exploring “Privacy Issues” and Ancestral Cultic Connections
Introduction: The Scope In 1890 the Harvard Law Review published an article by samuel Warren and Louis Brandeis, entitled, The Right to Privacy.1 The article was precipitated by the observation and concern that “what is whispered in the closet shall be proclaimed from the housetops.”2 Brandeis and Warren were outraged by the press overstepping its…
Read MoreHalakic Authority in the Life of the Messianic Community
First of all, I would like to express my thanks to those who have not refrained from making their voice heard in public. I would also like to thank those who refused to allow gossip and rumors to determine their agenda. I am also grateful to all those who were unwilling to let provocations sway…
Read MoreFrom the editor – Issue 34 – Israel at 70
This year Israel proudly marks seventy years as an independent state in the ancient Jewish homeland, and Kesher joins the commemoration with a penetrating look at theological, pastoral, and socio-political issues that come to the fore on this historic anniversary. We lead off with “The Besorah, Jerusalem, and the Jewish People,” by Dr. Mark Kinzer,…
Read MoreThe Besorah, Jerusalem, and the Jewish People
Almost all Messianic Jews are Zionists. We take seriously the land-promise given to the patriarchs and matriarchs. According to our post-supersessionist understanding of the teaching and work of Yeshua, the Jewish people—the genealogical descendants of the patriarchs and matriarchs—remain recipients of an irrevocable covenant. That covenant includes the promise of the land. In light of…
Read MoreThe Fulfillment of Israel’s Land Promise and Hebrews: “Transformed” or “On Hold”?
The following reassessment of the traditional view of the Land Promise in Hebrews, namely that it becomes spiritualized and universalized, fits within the wider context of post-supersessionist interpretation of the book as a whole.1 It focuses on the intra-evangelical debate over whether Israel’s Land Promise from the Lord continues into and through the New Testament.2…
Read MoreWhat Should Messianic Jewish Leaders Say about the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?
Hillel used to say: If I am not for myself, who will be for me? And if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?1 The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is inevitably polarizing, and seems to have become even more so in recent years. For instance, the New York Times headlined a…
Read MoreSparks, Kenton L. God’s Word in Human Words: An Evangelical Appropriation of Critical Biblical Scholarship. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008.
Setting the stage for his own stance toward Scripture, Kenton Sparks begins by noting three approaches to navigating faith and Bible: secular, traditionalist, and constructive. Secular approaches do not regard the text as Divine at all. Traditionalist approaches de-emphasize the human element and tend toward harmonization and acceptance of early authorship. Constructive approaches integrate critical…
Read MoreThe New Nationality Law and Israel’s Constitutional Framework
Golda sat among the Jewish leaders—twenty-three men and one other woman who would sign the document that day. Wearing an unaccustomed tie and jacket, David Ben-Gurion rapped his gavel sharply as the clock struck four. The stillness became absolute. That was the moment when the orchestra in the gallery was scheduled to play the national…
Read MoreA Messianic Jew Looks at Luther
For five years now Luther’s writings and impact on the Jewish people have burdened me. I have visited Wittenberg three times to protest at the continued offence of the Judensau (Jew-Pig) sculpture on the wall of the Stadtkirche where Luther preached.1 I have written two books, the recently-released Luther and the Jews: Putting Right the…
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