Christianity

The Lord’s Supper (aka communion), a solemn ceremony that echoes throughout Christian communities, has, over time, become an almost weighty and alien ritual, far removed from what’s described in the Jewish writings of the New Testament. I can’t speak for its observance elsewhere, but in Israel, this event often becomes…

Martin Luther was a German theologian and religious reformer who initiated the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century. Regrettably, the reformation did not bring about a reformation in attitudes toward Jews. In fact, the animosity toward the Jewish people was reinforced and intensified by the reformers’ writings, especially Martin Luther,…

Antisemitism, or hostility and discrimination towards Jews, has a long and complex history within Christianity. While Christianity emerged from Judaism and Jesus himself was a Jew, over the centuries, many Christians have harbored deep-seated prejudices against Jews and Judaism. These attitudes have often been fueled by religious and political ideologies…

Christianity argues that God was fed up with Israel, revoked his covenant and replaced Israel with Christianity…Christians teach that God broke his covenant with Israel.(Rabbi Moshe Rat)[i] Have you ever strolled through a museum admiring paintings only to notice that Jesus and his disciples are depicted with distinctly European features?…

My 2019 book, “Refuting Rabbinic Objections to Christianity,”  addressed Judaism’s most common objections to Christianity. Therefore, I will only briefly address Judaism’s two most significant objections to Christ in this book. The first objection concerns the triune God and the divinity of Christ, while the second is the claim that…

The wrath of God can be allegorically likened to a loving father who sternly warns his child against touching a hot stove. The father’s prohibition is not borne out of anger or hatred but rather out of love and a desire to protect the child from harm. Yet, if the child disobeys and touches the stove, they inevitably get burned. This painful consequence is not a direct infliction by the father; rather, it’s a result of the child’s choice to ignore the father’s warning. The burn is not a symbol of the father’s wrath or anger but rather a natural consequence of the child’s disobedience. The father doesn’t delight in the child’s pain; instead, he takes this opportunity to help the child learn an important lesson. Similarly, God’s wrath is not about Him punishing us out of anger but about the natural consequences of our actions when we choose to ignore His guidance. He, like the loving father, hopes we learn and grow from these experiences, drawing closer to Him and understanding His will more fully.

One can study theology – that is, about God and of God – just as a science enthusiast learns about nature or the stars – in a way that leaves him awestruck. Theology can be pursued just like a lover ardently investigates and learns everything possible about their beloved partner.

The Golden Rule, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Matthew 7:12), is a principle found in various forms across different cultures and religious traditions.
In light of this, what makes Jesus’s teach about love so radical?

At first, during the first century, the distinction between Jews and Christians was not as clear-cut as it is today. Christianity initially emerged as a Jewish movement from within Judaism, with many of its early followers, including Jesus and his disciples, being Jews.

God is not soft on sin, but His judgment intertwines with mercy, aiming to rebuild and elevate the individual. This approach highlights the perfect balance between justice and compassion, ultimately seeking the spiritual growth and redemption of those who have faltered.