Biblical Law

On occasion when I meet a group not from Jewish descent, I get asked to give the Priestly Blessing after I talk.  The first time this happened I asked why, and the answer was that this was a common practice, and that teachers do this all the time.  I will admit I was surprised because this is unheard of in the Jewish world.  When I declined, I was asked why.  My answer is based on wording in the text.

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What exactly is blasphemy and why is it so bad?  Listen in on a segment of our weekly group bible class as Yoel answers these questions and explains the severity of the punishment in the case of the Blasphemer in Leviticus 24:10-16.

The term בין הערביים –Beyin Ha’Arbayim is temporal construct form used to describe a specific time of day, and found in several places in the Bible.  One of the most important places it is used is in connection to the time of the Pesach sacrifice as prescribed in Exodus 12:6.  This term has created many arguments over when to do things, and in fact has raised the question of how does the Torah understand time in overall.

A question which I deal with every year, but do not have a conclusive answer:  How old did the Pesach lamb have to be?

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Take a detailed stroll through the opening verses of Exodus 12 as Yoel teaches this Passover text to the weekly group Hebrew Bible Class.  You will hear the Hebrew text read, translated and explained according to the ancient culture.

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Yoel explains the three Hebrew words for leaven used in Exodus 12:15 in this fun and informative debut broadcast with Jono Vandor at Truth2U.org.

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Shabbat Prayer:  Yoel presents the history of the Siddur (prayer book) and traditions of praying, as well as a few of his favorite Shabbat songs/prayers: “Baruch She’amar”, “Nishmat Kol Chai”, the “Kaddish” (mourner’s prayer), “Yigdal Elohim Chai”, and the “Hallel”.

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Yoel and Jono walk us through the traditions of preparing for and observing a typical Jewish Shabbat.

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The gravity of Shabbat necessitates consistency in one’s interpretation and observance of the commandment.  Jono and Yoel examine gray areas of heat, dairy farm practices and hobbies, as well as what happens if you know something is forbidden and you do it anyway?

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What does the word “Shabbat” mean? Is the prohibition of kindling a fire about the fire itself or the labor of producing it?  After discussing certain practices in the stricter observances of Judaism, Jono and Yoel enter into this 4-part series on Shabbat, explaining the mindset of the rabbis behind the rulings on keeping shabbat.