Greetings!
ZOOM DISCUSSION GROUP entitled "THE JOY OF TORAH" (Torah is the designation of the first 5 books of the Bible, - attributed to Moses). The 50 weekly sessions (Tuesday nites from 7 - 8:15 PM) will be guided by Rabbi Bradley Artson's book "The Bedside Torah. Wisdom, Visions, and Dreams". It is enlightening while being entertaining. Each week we read 3-5 Torah chapters and a short passage from the Prophets paralleling the Torah reading. I will add a few passages from the New Covenant/Testament that parallel thematically, demonstrating continuity between all four (Torah, Prophets, Writings, New Testament), - to hopefully 'make sense of it all'.
As a bit of a "teaser" It's interesting that when Jesus interacts with the religious leaders, his arguments are always based on Torah/Sinai Covenant faithfulness as per the "Prophets", and "Writings" (Psalms, etc.). If the Torah/"Law" is understood, as Jesus is tested regarding the "woman caught in adultery", she is actually "saved" by Jesus' adherence to, and proper application of the Torah's/Law's legal/judicial requirements. It is NOT Jesus saving her from Torah/Law legalities. Jesus' statement that "he who is without sin shall cast the first stone" is a steel Torah trap. If anyone is "without sin", the one who "picks up e first stone" WILL COMMIT SIN based on multiple Torah/Covenant legal violations incurred if capital punishment (stoning) was carried out on the spot. "SNAP" goes the TORAH TRAP! Oops! (Jesus 1, "testers" 0)
TIME COMMITMENT AN ISSUE? Join weekly as you can, with a goal of 2x per month and/or join for specific Books (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy). I will provide a schedule that provides a start date for each. I would recommend especially Genesis (first book of Moses) and Deuteronomy (last book). As Julie Andrews intones, "The beginning is a vey good place to start, la, la, la...", and Jesus also speaks of "beginnings" as representing foundational understandings that represent God's intentions and goals for us. Deuteronomy summarizes much of the prior books, so it's a "very good place to end....la, la, la".
Life is busy, "complicated" and unpredictable, so participation does not need to be "all or nothing"! Hillel, the great Jewish sage, said, "Do not say, 'when I have leisure I will study, for you may never have leisure." Pretty good insight, - right?! So, let's do some socializing via Zoom and study the foundational scriptures with “open and open minds” (keep the brain and heart active).
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To join, click the zoom link and enter the passcode; "JOT"
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83340042960?pwd=WWJmcEdRU0RMdnB0Szk5Vk05Z2RGdz09
You can call in as well;
Dial at +1 929 205 6099 US (New York) and press the meeting ID; 833 4004 2960