Why Did 347 Homes Burn Down?

347 homes have burned to the ground in Colorado Springs, the town I've lived in and loved to live in.  The homes that burned were in a beautiful neighborhood that I'd visited and enjoyed.  Two people also died in the fire.  The city's wonderful happy place, the Flying W Ranch, is gone.

I don't get it.  I prayed and prayed for a miracle; instead my faith in God grew weaker instead... 
 

Book Review: Seed of Avraham - The 4000 Year History of the Jewish Family

A Jewish friend of mine recommended Seed of Avraham - The 4000 Year History of the Jewish Family by Othniel Seiden to a Jewish Women's Social online discussion group. I knew I would find it interesting since I love historical fiction.

This book perhaps should be called "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Judaism, Jewish People, and Jewish History." Fictional stories are mixed with facts.

I feel I now have traveled through time. I've been through World War 2 and the Holocaust; I've been through the Crusades; I've seen the pogroms in Russia; I've been to Germany where Reformed Judaism began; I've walked to Palestine with a Jewish couple who wished to escape Jewish persecution in Russia; I've seen anti-semitism in its worst forms; I've seen a young Jewish boy ask to be exempt from singing Christmas Carols in public school; I've seen Jewish families deal with eating non-Kosher foods and not observing the Sabbath; I've met the Judge Deborah; and I've even seen David kill Goliath. I've met the Baal Shem Tov who founded Hasidic Judaism and I've even met Rabbi Akiva and learned about the Nazarenes and "Joshua the Messiah."

Yes, Seed of Avraham is an amazing read and is a "page turner" at times. There were also times I had to go back and read entire chapters again since there is so much information in this book. I wanted to understand everything and I learned so much.

The book tells historical stories through the eyes of average Jewish people that could or may have been my relatives. The book skips from thousands of years ago and moves to the present, then goes back hundreds of years, and then moves to the present, and then goes back two or three thousand years. What a great way to travel through time and to learn at the same time!

In addition, certain Jewish words and terms and names are highlighted in bold throughout the volume. I was surprised how many of those words and terms and names I already knew!

Here's some examples of the stories told in Seed of Avraham:

The story of King David is told through the life of a friend of David's who's father was the armor bearer to King Saul. Other stories like the Inquisition, the Holocaust, and Columbus' journey are also told. I found out the many people think Columbus might have been a secret Jew!

The reader "hears" the stories because they are told through the eyes of people who were "there."

The book will be of interest to people of all faiths, but people who are Jewish will especially enjoy it because this book is the story of any Jewish family. Since my grandmother may have left Russia for a better life in the USA like some of the characters in the book, I especially related. There were stories my dad told me about his life as a young boy in the USA that were similarly told in this book.

I also related to the "search for something more" that occurs for a character named David. Although his secular life provided great fulfillment, at the end of the book David realizes that his desire to serve and know G-d was and is very real. I'm wondering how many Jewish people may experience something similar.

Another wonderful point the author makes is that Jewish people are truly a connected family. How great that is!

Readers should know this book is very, very long, and there are some typos in the book, but it is a great read.

Movie Review: Letters to God

Last night, I wanted to watch a movie on my Kindle Fire, and came across "Letters to God."  

The movie is based on a true story.

The story is about a little boy named Tyler who is dying of cancer.  Every day, Tyler writes letters to God.  His faith is sweet and innocent.  He doesn't give up, although those around him want to give up.

What his family is going through is horrible and also, some of the people around him are also facing horrible things.  Faith and prayer is what keeps many of the characters in the movie going.

Tyler even sends a loving letter to a boy that bullies him about his illness because he wants to love others the way God does.  That boy does change his attitude.

Tyler gets others to look at their own lives.  They call out to God and then their lives do change.

I had no idea, when I started watching the movie, that is was a Christian movie.  In fact, many of the "good people" in the movie seemed to be gentile church-goers.  There is nothing wrong with gentile church-goers, that just caught me by surprise.  There seemed to be no Jewish people in the movie.

Although there were no Jewish people in this story, I found myself relating to so much that went on.  There are times when I cry out to G-d.  There are times I don't understand why things happen.  There are also times when it seems like everyone around me is happy, but I feel so alone and seek G-d for answers.

The story is supposed to inspire, but for me, it confirmed that I just don't belong in a "church-like" world.  The God in this movie is a different God than the Jewish God.

Humanistic Judaism

Humanistic Judaism combines Jewish identity and culture with a human centered approach to life.

Humanistic Jews celebrate Jewish identity and use poetry and prose to express that connection. Humanistic Jews sing Jewish songs in English, Hebrew, and Yiddish.

I wish I could visit a Humanistic Jewish congregation and see what it is like. I'm not sure such an approach to Judaism is for me since from what I've read, Humanistic Jews don't believe in God.

I do believe in God so very much.  I just can't seem to be able to seek God alone, and God seems to be farther and farther away from me lately.  This is also why I haven't written much on this blog in the past month or so.  I need some sort of spiritual recharge...

Easter Versus Passover - A Very Funny Video!!

This is a very funny video comparing Easter and Passover. Enjoy!

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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My Book Review: Called to Controversy - The Unlikely Story of Moishe Rosen and the Founding of Jews for Jesus

I just finished reading Called to Controversy - The Unlikely Story of Moishe Rosen and the Founding of Jews for Jesus.

I must admit that I had not planned to read the book at all since I thought I already knew everything about Moishe Rosen and more than I wanted to know about Jews for Jesus.

I also have tried very hard for the last six months to bury most of my memories of Jews for Jesus.  I had decided to keep some doors to that group open, but just slightly through contact with just a few people associated with that organization.

I had come to the conclusion that I like being Jewish.   My family is Jewish.  I love being Jewish and seeking God as a Jew.    

What changed my mind about reading the Called to Controversy book was my daughter Annabelle's Amazon Kindle Reader. Our family was away for this past weekend in the mountains, and I realized I wanted to read before going to bed, but I had not brought a book to our vacation home.

Available electronically:

Annabelle showed me how to use her Kindle and I started browsing the Kindle Bookstore. Wow, what a wonderful invention the Kindle is!

 (Moishe would have loved having one by the way...he loved gadgets, I know...)

I discovered that having a Kindle is like being inside the best library or bookstore and being able to browse while laying down on a couch or bed.  How cool is that!?

Anyway,

I discovered that I could read a sample of the book about Moishe's life for free, and felt that I might as well since it would be good bedtime reading.

The "sample" turned out to be quite long and complete. I learned things about Moishe's early life that I never had heard about before. I was intrigued.  I wanted to read more.  The next morning, I clicked on "Buy This Book" and kept reading.

Now some background about my relationship with Moishe:

Unlike some readers, I actually know many of the people Ruth Rosen talks about in Moishe's biography. I've been inside of Moishe's house and have been inside of Jews for Jesus Headquarters many, many times. I took Ceil Rosen (Moishe's wife) ice skating several times and I recall helping his grandchildren ice skate too.  Moishe gave my husband Dan, and I, a beautiful Mezzuzah case to put on our doorpost of our home when we moved to Colorado over twenty years ago.  When my son, Joel, was born, Moishe gave me a coin that said, "For This Child I Prayed."  To celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary, Moishe officiated when we renewed our wedding vows under a traditional Jewish wedding Chuppah.

Moishe also spent hours talking on the phone, emailing, and chatting with me online in 2003.  As time passed, we did not communicate as frequently, but once in awhile he looked at videos of my children and praised their skating.  I have ate meals with Moishe.  And yes, he did touch and affect my life.

Some background on my relationship with Moishe's daughter Lyn and son-in-law Alan:

Shortly before my mother passed away in January of 2011, Moishe's daughter, Lyn, and his son-in-law, Alan, took the time to see me when I was visiting my mother in the Chicago area just before my mom died. It was December 26, 2010. We went to Panera bread and must have been together for at least two to three hours. Lyn brought her daughter Bethany's wedding album and shared it with me.

After they dropped me off at my mom's hospital room, I reflected on that encounter. Lyn's love of God radiated out of her, and also, I felt that some part of Moishe lived on through her. Alan also shared a love and concern for me and cared about what I was going through because of my mom's illness.  I was so, so moved.  Moishe had died only about six months before.

I also remember Lyn mentioning that the biography on her dad was almost ready to be published.  There was excitement in her voice as she talked about the book.

Background on my relationship with Moishe's daughter Ruth:

About a year before I met with Lyn and Alan, Moishe's other daughter and the author of Called to Controversy,  Ruth Rosen, had "unfriended me" on Facebook.

Sometimes I don't notice when I'm "unfriended," since I have so many "friends" on Facebook, but I noticed that I was no longer Ruth's friend on Facebook almost right away because Ruth had been posting updates on Moishe's health.  All of a sudden, there were no updates coming through my Facebook newsfeed.

I was genuinely interested in what was going on and asked Ruth if the "unfriending" could be undone, but Ruth explained that she really did not know me well enough to keep me linked to her as a Facebook friend during the time her father was dying.  I eventually accepted being unfriended.

Then, about four months ago, Ruth wrote to me again and told me she'd started a public page on Facebook and I could interact with her there if I wished.  I wrote her back and told her that I had come to the conclusion that I didn't want to hear about what people in Jews for Jesus were doing every time I opened Facebook.  In fact, I had taken the time to Unsubscribe most Jews for Jesus people from my Facebook newsfeed for that reason.  I told her I decided that I could never be part of Jews for Jesus again, but if I saw her or someone else that was part of that ministry, I could possibly hug them and move on just as Jacob and Esau did when they reunited and reconciled.

I did not think I would ever read her book, but I did not say that in my email.  Ruth wrote me a nice note back.

Now for my review of Called to Controversy - The Unlikely Story of Moishe Rosen and the Founding of Jews for Jesus:


I give it 3.75 Stars


Most people who have been a part of Jews for Jesus know the stories that are told in Ruth's book, but there were some stories I had not heard or don't remember hearing and have now heard again from another point of view.

Moishe Rosen's childhood and teen years were fun to read about.  I thought it was "so cool" that he met Ceil when she was only 14 years old.  I loved looking at a photos of Ceil and Moishe at 15.

I didn't know that Moishe stopped his occasional shoplifting to please Ceil.  I didn't know that he lied about his age (when he was only 16) to spend the summer in the National Guard and beat up his commanding officer when his Jewishness was attacked.

I didn't know that Moishe worked for Gart Brothers Sporting Goods.  I could imagine him selling sporting goods.  It was fun to see a photo of Moishe and Ceil as a young married couple too.

Reading about their conversion to Christianity made me very uncomfortable.

They immediately started going to church and dived right into the Christian world.  It was not easy for them to tell their immediate families, and I was sad to hear that Ceil's adoptive family cut off all ties.

I never knew that Moishe had a real experience of feeling called by God to Jewish missions.  He felt God had called him just as Paul the Apostle had been called.

The middle section of the book tells about Moishe's life after he left Denver to become a minister with the ABMJ (American Board of Missions to the Jews).  That section of the book is NOT an easy read and is so very boring in my opinion.  It seemed as if every single person who Moishe met and worked with was listed and mentioned.  That section of the book was not only boring, but it seemed that Moishe was bored and discouraged during that time.

I vaguely recall hearing that Moishe and Ceil had lost a baby, a son, during that period.  The book gives more details of that loss.  For a year after the stillborn baby died, Moishe only went through motions and the book says that his connection to God was gone during that time.

It was fun to read about Lyn and Ruth as babies, tots, young kids, and then teens.  I found out that Ruth almost didn't make it when she was a newborn baby.  I found out that Moishe wondered how he was going to pay Lyn's hospital bill.

It sounded like Ceil kept a wonderful home and I could picture the family having a wonderful time together at dinner.  I was impressed that Moishe took the time to make sure a store owner apologized to Lyn and a friend for falsely accusing the girls of shoplifting, but still got everyone home in time for dinner.

The last part of Called to Controversy is the best.  Maybe it is only the best for me since I know and knew so many of the people mentioned and was "there" when some of the things mentioned actually happened.

The early days of Jews for Jesus were exciting ones because the group started because hippies thought "Jesus was cool."  Moishe decided to minister to those hippies and "those hippies" were excited to serve God with Moishe and do radical things.  In 1977, I read a book called Jews for Jesus that Moishe wrote and was convinced after reading it that I wanted to join that "cool" scene.  Although I know that story well, it was fun to read it again in Ruth's book.

As Ruth discussed the 1970s to the 1980s and 1990s, I knew more and more of the people she mentioned in the book.

I found myself especially teary-eyed when I read how Moishe helped Sally Klein-O'Connor start Improbable People ministries and paid for her first album.  I remember being "there" when that happened.

Then, I broke down completely when I read how Moishe wished he could have been "there" or done something for someone he had once been close to who had been involved with Jews for Jesus whose child died of a heart condition.  I know who Ruth was talking about, and I never knew that Moishe cared at all for that family.  It broke my heart that they never could reconcile.

Reading about when Moishe gave up his position as  Executive Director was also interesting.  Moishe had shown me some of his online ministry tactics in 2003 and I even knew the person that was mentioned as helping him with that.

The end of the book also had me in tears as I read of Moishe's failing health and discovery that he had terminal cancer.  Reading about how his family was around him in his last days made me feel that I, and others who knew him, got to be there too.  I feel so privileged to personally know the members of his family and also some of the other people that were there for his family when he died.

I give this book 3.75 stars (not 4 or 5)  because, the middle section of the book is just so boring and is such a tedious read.  I can't believe anyone could really read that section without skipping to the end, but my Kindle made that hard to do.

I am glad I read Called to Controversy- The Unlikely Story of Moishe Rosen and the Founding of Jews for Jesus because I know that Moishe Rosen touched many, many lives, including mine.  Some people were touched in a positive way; others were not, but this story needed to be recorded somehow and somewhere.

Further Reading:

• My Memories of Moishe Rosen - By Jo Ann Schneider Farris, May, 2010
  

Circle Chant

I love ta song called "Circle Chant" from the Celebrate Passover CD.

Circle Chant

Music and Lyrics by Linda Hirschhorn

Circle round for freedom,
Circle round for peace.
For all of us imprisoned,
Circle for release.
Circle for the planet,
Circle for each soul.
For the children of our children,
Keep the circle whole.

It's a Passover song. The song shares the message of passing traditions on. I've been listening to the song every day for a week!

I think this is what the message of Judaism is. It is about the "Circle of Life." At Passover, I think about how it is so important for me to continue to pass some traditions on to my children. Hopefully, when they grow up and have their own families, that they will remember the Passovers they celebrated when they were young.

Also, it is mind boggling to think of how many years Passover has been celebrated by the Jewish people. The idea that it's been celebrated since the time of Moses "blows my mind!"

The 2nd half of the video below shows a Jewish choir singing the song: