Biblical Heritage Center Blog

There are lots of stories we could tell about things that happened on our almost three decade’s long journey together ( Jeffrey Leynor and Jim Myers ). In my religion, Christianity , we spend a lot of time talking about “ going to heaven ” after we die and spending eternity there. In Jeffrey’s religion, Judaism , people talk about “ the world to come ,” but not with any details.   Read the complete story at -- http://www.tovcenter.org/tov-stories.html

Paul formed a community around his ideas and beliefs. In his community he was the only apostle , he preached a different gospel , and “ righteousness had nothing to do with doing acts of tzedaqah. ” Read the complete blog at -- https://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2019/05/jesus-or-paul-part-5-and-then-paul.html

Using Meme-Structure Models is a very important skill to learn for two reasons – they give you a way to visual things that only exist in the neural networks of human brains and they give people a unique way to discuss them. And, since all beliefs are memes , it gives us new options for discussing one of the most polarizing subjects in our culture. Read the complete blog at –  http://www.tovcenter.org/all-about-memes.html

Doing acts of tzedaqah are so much greater than just giving food, drink, clothes, etc. They were all done by one person for another person and they were also face-to-face experiences, acts of acceptance, acts of love and even more . Read the complete blog at -- https://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2019/05/jesus-or-paul-part-4-only-what-people.html

Making the “ right to live ” a reality requires “ loyalty to the community” by God and people . Leaders and members of the community are responsible for creating and maintaining that environment. We see this in the second definition above. The entire community is charged with the responsibility of “ the elimination of anything breaking the shalom .” This is the cornerstone of human justice. Read the complete blog at -- https://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2019/05/jesus-or-paul-part-3-breaking-of-shalom.html

Almost thirty years ago I (Jim Myers) met a rabbi (Jeffrey Leynor) and we began discussing our BS (Belief Systems). I was a preacher and pastor of a nondenomination Charismatic church , while Jeffrey was a rabbi of a Conservative synagogue . Our Religious Belief Systems both contained an institutional truth called “ monotheism ” – “the belief that only one God exists.” Read the complete story at -- http://www.tovcenter.org/tov-stories.html

An important skill for personal empowerment is Belief Systems Transparency . Developing this skill requires the following knowledge and then lots of practicing the skills in real life situations. Read the complete article at – http://www.tovcenter.org/transparency.html

Philosophers have been talking about “ realities ” for centuries. Neuroscientists are just now beginning to enter the discussions. Many of the discussions about realities come down to answers to two questions: ● What is real? ● What actually exists? Our answers to the above questions may surprise you. Read the complete article at – http://www.tovcenter.org/realities-101.html

Perhaps the harshest reality of human existence is death. Intellectually, we all know that some day we will die, but we in the West tend to ignore this reality as long as possible. Our culture is devoted to materialism, youth, and power. We put our old people into homes where they often die abandoned and alone. Many build their lives on models that do not take into account “ the fact of death .” Read the complete blog at -- https://tovcenter.blogspot.com/2019/05/thoughts-about-death.html

Jesus or Paul? Making People’s Lives Right or Making People’s Beliefs Right? Part 2 The Hebrew Meaning of צדקה ‎ ( tzedaqah ) Jumping from back and forth from one language to another can be a little confusing. But, simply using the traditional translation of the Hebrew word above “ righteousness ,” may be more confusing. The word “ righteousness ” is code word – a religious word lots of people are familiar with but rarely, if ever, use in their daily conversations with friends or in commercial transactions . When was the last time you used it? Learn what tzedaqah meant to Jesus at -- https://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2019/05/jesus-or-paul-part-2.html

The Biology of Beliefs is the part of discussions about belief systems that is missing from most conversations because science is just now beginning to understand it. Everything humans think or do begins in the brain -- that makes having a basic awareness of how the brain processes information a top priority . Learn more now at http://www.tovcenter.org/biology-of-beliefs.html

Jesus or Paul? Making People’s Lives Right or Making People’s Beliefs Right? Part 1 What difference does it make in the real world if Christians, non-Christians or anyone else follow the teachings of Jesus or Paul? This may be a confusing question for some, because for readers of English translations of Bibles, it appears that Jesus and Paul spend a lot of time teaching about the very same thing -- “ righteousness. ” Read the complete blog at --  https://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2019/05/jesus-or-paul-part-1.html

All of the Jewish Scriptures and the teachings of Yeshua (the real Jesus) focus on answering one question – “ Am I my brother’s keeper? ” I have spent a lot of time for over the past thirty years trying to understand those answers. For many of those years, Dr. Ike Tennison and Rabbi Jeffrey Leynor have been involved in that research with me. In this blog, I am going to give you a 21 st century reconstruction of the story that is responsible for that famous question. After Adam failed to guard and protect Eve’s life from a walking, talking religious snake in the Garden of Eden, God evicted them from their luxurious home -- which also cut them off from a life in which God provided everything for them . How many times sitting around the campfire times do you think Adam was reminded of how “ he ” really messed up a good thing! Now Adam and Eve had to find water, grow crops, make clothing, find shelter and do all of the things required just to survive. But, somehow, in spit...