I am now facilitating a Zoom class for my congregation Temple Israel Long Beach, California. The class is meeting every Monday morning, Pacific Standard time via Zoom from 9:45 to 10:45 am.
This is the first time I have facilitated a group like this and I’m excited about it! Until Temple Israel’s Tanach class decided to read the New Testament, I had not wanted to look at it due to the fact that I had been forced to read it once and never really understood it. The words seemed like gibberish to me.
Now it is good to read it with others who may want to explore it in a non-threatening environment. The temple’s Tanach class studied all four gospels and Acts, but didn’t want to study further, so I asked the temple’s education director if I could facilitate a class that continued what had been started. We are beginning in Romans.
The class description is as follows:
“Jews and Christians read the same stories differently. Explore and discuss the New Testament from a Jewish perspective and learn more about the Jewish roots of Christianity.”
Below is a summary of what went on during the first class in the form of some emails I sent to the new study group.
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Hi New Testament From a Jewish Point of View group!
Our first study, today, Monday, October 11, 2021, went well and was quite fun.
It was really great to have Debbie from Tel Aviv, Israel join us even though she had to leave early. Debbie has been recovering from a recent surgery.
Athena joined us briefly too. She has applied to be a professor at CSULB, so maybe we will actually see her in person at Temple Israel if the university is interested in her application.
My husband Dan was able to join us today and gave us a summary of what the Tanach study already studied and read: The four gospels and Acts. Unfortunately, we won’t have Dan with us again until after he retires at the end of November, but I will try to get some input from him to share before each study every week. I call my husband “A walking Encyclopedia!”
Dan said this to summarize:
“The four gospels and Acts present the story of Jesus of Nazareth and his disciples. The theme is why Jesus did what he did and why and what happened to him happened is the basics of Christianity. The big deal is that Jesus came to “Save.” But save us from what? Sin. Why did Christianity and Judaism become separate “isms?” Because Christians said the Torah, the sacrifices, the Temple were no longer adequate to save from sin. They said Jesus’ death and resurrection proved that.”
Today we read the first chapter in Romans. We learned that Romans is a very long letter Paul wrote to the gentile Christians in Rome.
We discussed how to look at this as Jews. We discussed how in evangelical churches what is read in Paul’s letters is looked at as a guideline to life. We learned that the verse that starts with “I am not ashamed of the gospel…” was and is the reason we see evangelists preaching with such fervor.
Secular people don’t look at these books at all. Today’s world seems to be filled with all the types Paul described and he even said that they deserve death. I mentioned that maybe this is where today’s Death Penalty comes from when someone commits murder. Dan said deserving death by not following God and doing evil is also mentioned in the Torah though.
We noticed that probably churches that don’t like homosexuality got that idea from what Paul said in this first chapter. We also perhaps understood why there are mega churches out there with leaders that can influence thousands.
The majority of us in this group have never read the New Testament or never thought, as Jews, we should even look at it. We discussed how upsetting some of what is said in the New Testament is for Jews and how anti-Semitic some of the things said in some of the books are. Dave mentioned that the book of Hebrews is very anti Semitic and Dan said that the book of Romans is less anti Semitic.
I really thought it was interesting that Dave also mentioned that Christians don’t really read the New Testament, but listen to pastors talk about what is said in it in the sermons they listen to. Dave mentioned as Jews that when we read it that we don’t have to interpret anything it says.
Dave also showed us a recent photo from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem where Christians were praying on top of a tomb where tradition says Jesus was washed before he was buried. We wished Debbie, who is a tour guide in Israel, could have told us more about that site, but she’d already left our Zoom meeting. Dave says he has actually seen it.
Karen answered the question on what spiritual gifts are: special abilities from God. I commented that Jews don’t usually use that term.
Renee was fascinated with the impact Paul has had on the world.
If anyone in this email thread wants to add more to my summary of today’s study, please do! Or..if you have anything to add to what was discussed or should be discussed, please email this entire group and share your thoughts and input.
Thank you for coming and please share the Zoom link with others at Temple Israel might like to join in.
My goal is for us to have fun and discuss the New Testament in a Jewish style!
Have a great week!
JO ANN
Added note: If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me via email.
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From my husband Dan:
Romans, chapter 1
Writer: Paul the Apostle, aka Paul of Tarsus
What’s it about? Paul is writing to the Christians in Rome, people he’s not met living in a place he’s never been to. He’s heard good things about the Roman Christians and says he hopes to visit them to encourage them and vice versa.
As a way of warming up to these Christians, Paul quotes an early Christian saying which may be one of the earliest Christian sayings (before the Gospels, before Paul’s writings) which states that Jesus became the “son of God with power” at the time when God raised him from the dead.
Paul says that everyone, Jew and Gentile alike is “without excuse” for disobeying God – saying that nature itself tells everyone what is right. He described a list of sins which famously includes homosexuality and other sins from gossip to murder, and says those that commit those sins deserve death. Pretty much means that everyone deserves death.
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On Sunday, October 10, 2021, 11:19 AM, Jo Ann Schneider Farris <joannfarris@yahoo.com> wrote:
Below is the link for the new Temple Israel class: New Testament From a Jewish Point of View
9:45 — 10:45 am Mondays Pacific Standard Time starting 10/11/2021
(I will open the room up early every week at 9:30 am for us to just talk and visit before.)
The Zoom link is in the Temple Israel email blasts, so I am not sure who else might just show up. I expect our group may start out small. Feel free to pass this link on to anyone in the temple who might like to join in.
Any New Testament is acceptable to use.
We will be starting with the Book of Romans since the Thursday Tanach Study already read all four gospels and Acts. My husband Dan will be there this coming Monday morning 10/11/2021 for our first class, and will give us a short summary of the gospels and Acts.
JO ANN Schneider Farris
Please STOP the hate and embrace diversity, very sad and disgusting your consumed with so much hate.
JO ANN
I think the main thing to consider about Deborah Feldman is that this book is mostly a work of fiction. Her mom didn't leave home when she was young, her parents lived on the first floor of the same building with her grandparents, her mom just got divorced about a year or so ago from her father, she had a sister she never mentioned, she was frequently escorted to the PUBLIC libraries with her neighbor's kids, she attended a "liberal" orthodox school (with a secular curriculum) for many years before she was kicked out for repeatedly talking with the other girls about sexual reproduction and the female anatomy and she only spent 4 years at a Satmar school which was generous enough to take in this trouble child after some major arm twisting from her "evil" aunt Chaya. Oh and the murder she detailed wasn't really a murder it was a suicide, the 13 year old boy was a troubled 20 year old and the police and coroners reports (which she claimed didn't exist) do not mention severed penis. Other than that...
After reading every book review, excerpt, interview, commentary and blog I could find on this topic (including the one Ms Feldman wrote "anonymously" and used as the basis of this book) I decided not to actually read the remainder of her book. I know that is generally frowned upon in this forum, but I really truly did my research on this subject before commenting on it.
Take care--have a joyous PURIM!!
By the way, did you read the book? The experience Deborah Feldman describes at her first time at the Mikvah is especially upsetting. I plan to ask my study partner from Partners In Torah about that when we study in the coming week.
Best,
JO ANN
Ms. Feldman exaggerated (invented may be more accurate) many of the "restrictions" on women in the Satmar world. I am not sure if she did it for spite, poetic license, or to spice up her book to increase sales, but the fact is there is no curfew on women, people wear seat-belts, women eat in restaurants, etc. She misstated many laws and traditions and has been called out on this not only by other Orthodox Jews, but by others who have left the community as well.
Many of the stories and claims in the book have been debunked by people who know her, grew up with her and went to school with her. Claims about her education and her family have also been proven to be false by many independent sources. Then there is the rumor that she printed in her book. There is no evidence of a murder taking place or a cover-up. The case was investigated by the State Police, it was ruled a suicide by the coroner, a death certificate was issued and there was no mention of a severed penis. Everything Ms. Feldman claimed was proven to be false (SEE LINKS BELOW FOR DETAILS). And all she managed to do by printing this salacious rumor was cause further harm to an already grieving family. After viewing the evidence everyone should be able to acknowledge this terrible lack of judgment on her part. She owes this family and the community a heartfelt apology for repeating this false claim in a book. Personally I feel a libel suit is warranted against her and her publisher for the harm they caused by purposely printing an unsubstantiated rumor.
Here are independent sources for you to check out.
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/pageviews/2012/03/the-second-coming-of-james-frey-hasidic-jews-charge-that-one-of-their-own-has-publ
http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/new_york/unorthodox_authors_claim_cover_up_countered
http://blogs.forward.com/sisterhood-blog/151489/
http://failedmessiah.typepad.com/failed_messiahcom/2012/03/more-evidence-deborah-feldman-lied-678.html
Someone who is a product of a stable home and is honest about their background, upbringing and community (Ms. Feldman is none of these) could have written a much better account of this community. I would advise anyone reading this book to view it as fiction and take her claims as they would something written by Dickens or Hemingway.
If you don't stop harassing me saying "I am consumed with hate", I WILL report YOU to Amazon!!! For YOU or anyone else that reads this...I DO NOT HATE THE SATMARS OR ANY JEWISH PERSON!!! I am Jewish myself, my father in law was a Holocaust survivor. I have NO problem with the Satmars either.....everyone is entitled to their beliefs....they want to live their lives their way, that is fine. I don't choose to live my life that way and neither does Ms. Feldman, and that is FINE too!!!
I read Deborah's book and I liked it.....this is the story of a woman's courageous journey from a very tight knit community and she decided to leave it because it WASN'T for her. No problem with that but yet some people on this site seem to think that it's a problem because this woman doesn't want to be a part of that particular community. Leave the girl alone already. She doesn't want to be a Satmar Jew, OK so no big deal. She has nothing against the Satmars or any of the Jews. She is still Jewish but she just chooses to live her life in a different way!! Live and let live!!! For those of you that just keep saying how she lied, how bad she is, this and that, etc., you are just making it worse for yourselves as it proves to me, that in your "community" everyone has to be like you are. Just remember, everyone is different, unfortunately the Nazi's didn't think that and wanted everyone to be the same....blond hair, blue eyes......the world would be quite boring, if we are all the same. We are all flowers in life's garden and we are all part of ONE race....THE HUMAN RACE!!!
Btw, I do not know Deborah Feldman at all....I only heard of her a few weeks ago when a family member of mine posted a link on FB to the article in the NY Post....so I decided to read her book. Most of it was familiar to me as I am familiar with the ways of the Orthodox Jews as other family members are very Orthodox. It's unfortunate that I have to defend myself on a website which I will not be doing anymore. Mr. Jason K.....if you harass me ONE more time, I WILL REPORT YOU!!!! You are entitled to your opinions, but LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!!!
Your statement only confirms even more that Feldman Lied because Baila is from Satmar and writes perfect English not like Feldman stated that Stamar women have a 4th grade education level, just like Hella Winston who is NOT even an Orthodox Jew, failed Messiah and many former satmars will attest that Feldman did lie in her book.
To Sandi,
So far you or anyone else who trolls on Feldman Facebook has yet to bring proof of what Feldman writes is true, Feldman is coming out to be more and more the new James Frey. it is no wonder a Holocaust denier such as Michael Hoffman would endorse this book. it is very sad your consumed with so much hate.
I really liked your comments. I felt they came from your heart. And were not mean spirited like many of the reviews here.
The one thing I disagreed with is on your assumption that Debrah Feldman was truthful. I am curious as to why you would take her word over your friends in Chabad and Partners in Torah and Torah Mates?
Ms. Feldman exaggerated (invented might be a more accurate term) many of the "restrictions" on women in the Satmar world. I am not sure if she did it for spite, poetic license, or to spice up her book in order to increase sales, but the fact is there is no curfew on women, people wear seat-belts, women eat in restaurants, etc. I am not a woman, so I cannot say firsthand, but I have heard many women enjoy the Mikvah experience. In my Hasidic community women are CEOs, Corporate Attorneys, Anesthesiologists, Doctors, etc. There are no restrictions on reading, English or anything else. They CHOOSE to live a modest lifestyle according to the Torah because they prefer this lifestyle to the secular lifestyle. They are not being held back or being held hostage. No one is forcing them to do anything they don't want to do.
Ms Feldman misstated many laws and traditions and has been called out on this not only by other Orthodox Jews, but by others who have left the community as well. Many of the stories and claims she made in the book (the murder, her "4th grade education, etc.) have been debunked by people who know her, grew up with her and went to school with her and her sister (whom she doesn't mention in the book).
Reading her words in interviews, from the book and her "anonymous" blog (which appears to be the base from which this book is formed), I have surmised that Ms. Feldman is a very gifted writer with an uncanny ability to twist reality to fit perfectly with her thesis. I can also see instances of an immature, self-centered, petulant and somewhat materialistic person peak out through her writings. The way she treated people who tried to help her both in REAL LIFE and in her book is upsetting.
Someone who is a product of a stable home and is honest about their background, upbringing and community (Ms. Feldman is none of these) could have written a much better account of this community.
My advice would be to take the claims made in this book with a grain of salt and continue to learn with your friends and see the reality behind Ms. Feldman's fantasy world.
http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/bestoftv/2012/03/02/exp-point-feldman-unorthodox-two.cnn#/video/bestoftv/2012/03/02/exp-point-feldman-unorthodox-two.cnn
http://startingpoint.blogs.cnn.com/2012/03/02/author-deborah-feldman-explains-why-she-left-the-satmar-sect-of-the-hasidic-jewish-community/
You really should get your facts straight Baila....just saying. Ohhh and I agree with Betty 100% about your campaign to discredit Ms. Feldman....especially since in one of your posts you admit to NOT even reading the book. I always wondered how someone can critique a book when they never even read it.....hmmmm quite interesting!! Amazing...LOL!!
http://failedmessiah.typepad.com/failed_messiahcom/2012/03/more-evidence-deborah-feldman-lied-678.html
The second coming of James Frey?:
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/pageviews/2012/03/the-second-coming-of-james-frey-hasidic-jews-charge-that-one-of-their-own-has-publ
And to top it all, check this site out:
http://deborah-feldman-exposed.blogspot.com/
I'm sick to my stomach that we were duped by Feldman.