Venturing deeper into the tapestry of Jewish festivals, we encounter Rosh Hashanah, also known as the Feast of Trumpets. Signaling the advent of the autumn festivals, Rosh Hashanah rings in the first day of Tishrei, the seventh month on the Jewish calendar. This festival offers an invitation into a sacred …

As we progress through the Jewish religious calendar, we encounter the Feast of Weeks, known in Hebrew as Shavuot and recognized by many Christians as Pentecost. This distinctive festival, fourth in the series of major Jewish holidays, occupies a special place, distinctively positioned between the spring and autumnal observances. Unlike …

The Festival of First Fruits, known as ‘Bikkurim’ in Hebrew, holds a significant place within the Jewish religious calendar, vividly connected to the cycles of agriculture and life in the ancient Holy Land. Deeply embedded in historical context and spiritual symbolism, Bikkurim offers an extraordinary glimpse into the everyday lives …

As we continue our journey through the biblical festivals, we come to the Feast of Unleavened Bread—Chag HaMatzot in Hebrew—closely intertwined with Passover in both timing and thematic resonance. This seven-day festival begins immediately after Passover, to the extent that the two are often combined or confused. Yet the Feast …

Passover, known as Pesach in Hebrew, is far more than just a historical observance—it is a sacred intersection where the divine narrative of liberation, redemption, and profound symbolism converge. As we journey into its depths, we find it echoing across centuries, speaking powerfully into both Jewish and Christian traditions. At …

This excerpt is drawn from my forthcoming book, The Elephant in the Middle East: The Spiritual Battle Christians Often Miss Behind the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Complete sources, citations, and references are documented within the book itself. Background Israel possesses nuclear weapons and advanced technologies that could have reduced Gaza to rubble …

The Apostles’ Creed is one of the earliest and most enduring confessions of Christian faith. Though not written directly by the apostles themselves, it restates an earlier version or encapsulates their fundamental teachings and has served for centuries as a baptismal creed and a standard of orthodoxy. It likely took …

The story of Israel begins not with a nation, but with a man who would not let go of God. In the midnight struggle by the Jabbok River, Jacob wrestled with the divine until daybreak, and there received a new name: Israel — “the one who strives with God” (Genesis …

The Olive Tree: Grafting, Not Replacing Grafting an olive tree is an ancient agricultural skill used to preserve and strengthen trees. The process involves carefully cutting a branch from one tree and inserting it into a slit in the bark of another. The farmer then binds it tightly so that …

The word Palestine echoes with ancient sounds, but its political sting comes from Rome. In 135 AD, after crushing the last Jewish revolt under Bar Kokhba, Emperor Hadrian sought to erase Judea not only from the map but from memory. With one stroke, he renamed the land “Syria Palaestina,” a …