Biblical Heritage Center Blog

The oldest Egyptian leather manuscript has been found in the shelves of the Egyptian museum in Cairo, where it was stored and forgotten for more than 70 years. Dating from the late Old Kingdom to the early Middle Kingdom (2300-2000 BCE), the roll measures about 8.2 feet long and is filled with texts and colorful drawings of the finest quality. Basically a portable religious manuscript, the more than 4,000-year-old roll, contains depictions of divine and supernatural beings which predate the famous drawings found in the Book of the Dead manuscripts and the so-called Netherworld Books from the New Kingdom onwards (1550 BCE onwards). See pictures and read the complete article at -- http://news.discovery.com/history/archaeology/oldest-and-longest-ancient-egyptian-leather-manuscript-found-150914.htm

Tonight starts the Jewish High Holy Days with Rosh Ha'Shanah (literally, the Head of the year ). Many people mistakenly think this is the New Year on the Hebrew calendar. Actually the Jewish new year or first month happens in the spring. The Hebrew month of Nisan , begins the Hebrew/Jewish calendar. People will greet you with Happy New Year, but this is the seventh month. Maybe this time period had some agricultural or fiscal importance in ancient times. The Hebrew greeting, L'Shanah TOV ah , To a Good Year, a TOV year! Remember, TOV also means, “ Words, Thoughts and Actions that Preserve Life, Protect Life, Make Life More Functional and Increases the Quality of Life .” But the TOV doesn't stop there! Read Rabbi Leynor’s latest blog at -- http://tovcenter.blogspot.com/2015/09/tov-to-left-of-me-tov-to-right-of-me.html

His name is Ali Khamenei, and he has a lot to say about Jews. With the return of Iran to the world scene, he will emerge as the symbol of hate like never before. Ben Cohen’s article about the currents that flow beneath the surface of the current controversy over nuclear reactors is well worth reading -- http://www.thetower.org/article/global-anti-semitism-now-has-a-leader/

Southwest Jewish Congress  Weekly Update 09/13/15 Gil Elan After covering the (mostly) disconcerting political, diplomatic, security and domestic news about Israel and the Middle East over the past year, I've decided that my first column of the year 5776 will be dedicated exclusively to positive and uplifting stories about how Israel is making the world a better, safer, healthier, happier and more secure place for everyone, through technology, ingenuity, initiative...and maybe a little chutzpah. Read Gil Elan’s article at by clicking here . 

Rosh Hashanah, the   Jewish   New Year,   is celebrated in 2015   from sundown on Sept. 13 to the evening of Sept. 15. In the   Hebrew calendar it falls on 1 and 2 Tishrei 5775. Though   Rosh Hashanah   literally means "head of the year," the holiday actually takes place on the first two days of the Hebrew month of Tishrei, which is the seventh month on the Hebrew calendar. This is because Rosh Hashanah, one of four   new years in the Jewish year, is considered the new year of people, animals and legal contracts. In the Jewish oral tradition, Rosh Hashanah marks the completion of the creation of the world. Read complete article and watch short video at -- http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/rosh-hashanah-2015-the-jewish-new-year-begins_55f36590e4b077ca094f3f14

A t first glance, the nature of prophecy would appear to be a relatively marginal feature of Jewish thought. In fact, discerning prophecy’s essence was critically important to leading medieval Jewish philosophers, including Saadiah, Maimonides, Yehuda HaLevi, and Ibn Ezra. Their ideas on the topic, many of which are not widely known, are complex, and are often very distant from the popular notion of God speaking directly to the prophet. Prophecy may be viewed in the two ways:  is it a natural phenomenon, stemming from a human being’s innate ability to encounter the divine, or is it more of a supernatural phenomenon, representing God’s active involvement in communicating with humans? To put it differently, what is God’s precise role in the prophecy? Read the complete article at -- http://thetorah.com/what-is-prophecy/

This coming weekend we will say goodbye to the Jewish year 5775 and welcome 5776 with our traditional wish: "Let a year and its curses end, let a year and its blessings begin". Unfortunately, events in the Middle East over 5775 portend that the "curses" of this year - masses of refugees fleeing Syria and Iraq, political instability, ISIS, al-Qaeda, terrorism and Iranian nukes will not only spill over into 5776, but will grow, strengthen and expand in ways that, according to many experts and analysts, will change the so called "world order" as we know it (or think we know it) today. I want to make it clear at the outset that when I use the phrase "New World Order" I'm not referring to Illuminati conspiracy theories, biblical prophesies, Woodrow Wilson's post WWI "fourteen points" or H.G. Wells' 1940 book of the same name. I'm referring to the geo-politic changes that are happening right now in the Middle East and Europe,...