Free Republic

On Thursday, the third intermediary day of Passover, Levites gathered in Jerusalem to reenact their musical role in the Temple. A group of about two dozen Levites gathered in the Old City to practice their singing while wearing garments designed for use by the Temple musicians in the Third Temple. Singing led to dancing, celebrating the joy of the Biblical feast. The Levites also blew silver trumpets that had been prepared for use in the Third Temple. Traditionally, Temple musicians were selected from the tribe of Levi. The Zohar explains that the Levites were selected to sing in the Temple...

Joe Biden showed his bigoted side on April 23 when he spoke in Tampa, Florida about the glory of abortion. It wasn’t abortion, per se, that got him going—it was those whom he identified as pro-life that set him off. To be specific, he railed against Donald Trump’s pro-life stance, saying the former president made “a political deal” with “the evangelical base of the Republican Party to look past his moral and character flaws.” Fifty percent of all the money raised by the Democrats comes from Jews. Yet no one is going to say that Biden made a “political deal”...

Victor Davis Hanson, a historian and professor emeritus of California State University, Fresno, pushed back on criticism of Israel on the American Right, adding that recent comments by right-wing pundits like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens do not represent the conservative movement or the American Religious Right. Hanson, who has frequently appeared as a guest on Carlson’s now-cancelled Fox News show, “Tucker Carlson Tonight”, and his current, independently-produced “Tucker Carlson Uncensored,” spoke with Megyn Kelly on Wednesday regarding the rise in anti-Israel rhetoric on the American Right. Ignorant Arguments about Christians and Israel“Most of the evangelical community I know is...

AP) – The Vatican has issued a new document rejecting the concept of changing one’s biological sex – a setback for transgender people who had hoped Pope Francis might be setting the stage for a more welcoming approach from the Catholic Church. Around the world, major religions have diverse approaches to gender identity, and the inclusion or exclusion of transgender people. Some examples: Christianity The Catholic Church’s disapproving stance toward gender transition is shared by some other denominations. For example, the Southern Baptist Convention – the largest Protestant denomination in the United States – adopted a resolution in 2014 stating...

Daniel and Revelation as Book EndsMatthew 5:17 At that time Yeshua said to his disciples: Do not think that I came to annul the Torah, but to fulfill it. 18 Truly I say to you that until heaven and earth (depart) not one letter or dot shall be abolished from the Torah or the Prophets, because all will be fulfilled.The Prophets are telling us that time is up! The great tribulation is rapidly approaching, buckle up!When I was growing up my Mother told me that the book of Revelation was about the future, so I read it over and over...

An Indiana court has ruled that the state's abortion ban violates the religious freedom of several Jews and religiously unaffiliated people who might seek abortions as the law's supporters remain confident it will withstand scrutiny from the Indiana Supreme Court. Indiana Court of Appeals Judge Leanna Weismann published an opinion Thursday siding with five anonymous plaintiffs and the group Hoosier Jews for Choice. The plaintiffs asserted that the state's 2022 law prohibiting almost all abortions with exceptions in cases of a fetal anomaly or where the life or health of the mother is at risk violated the state's Religious Freedom...

Every year, tens of thousands of Christians visit the Garden Tomb – that is, the empty tom – in Jerusalem to reflect on the life, death, and miraculous resurrection of Jesus. But this year, with Israel engaged in brutal war against Hamas in Gaza for almost six months, more and more Israeli Jews than ever before are wrestling with existential questions. They’re asking about life and death and life after death – and even whether Jesus of Nazareth might, in fact, be the Jewish Messiah. And that’s the focus of this week’s Easter Special Edition of THE ROSENBERG REPORT on...

"My Brain is the key that sets me free.""No prison can hold me; no hand or leg irons or steel locks can shackle me. No ropes or chains can keep me from my freedom.""What the eyes sees, the ear hears, and the mind believes.""Never tell the audience how good you are, they will soon find out for themselves.""Never try to fool children, they expect nothing, and therefore see everything.""An old trick well done is far better than a new trick with no effect."More quotes at:https://www.azquotes.com/author/6929-Harry_HoudiniHarry Houdini (March 24, 1874 -- October 31, 1926) Resting place -- Machpelah Cemetery"And although Houdini...

Purim and Yom Kippur appear to be complete opposites but the ancient rabbis say they are really two sides of the same coin.>>>Yom Kippur has many Hebrew names, including the pluralized form: Yom HaKippurim. While the word kippurim literally means atonements, if we adjust one vowel and read it as kappurim, then its meaning becomes “like Purim.” This is a clue, says the Zohar, to the future purpose of Yom Kippur when it will become a day not of affliction, but of delight — just like Purim.>>>The ancient rabbis noted that Purim and Yom Kippur are the only holidays about...

God disciplines those He loves. For the nation of Israel, this time of correction is called Jacob's Trouble, or the Tribulation. In Israel and the Tribulation, Amir Tsarfati looks at Israel's rebellion against God before the period of correction begins, the peace and the horror the nation will experience during that time, and the spiritual restoration that will take place when the seven years conclude. Israel abandoned the relationship that God loved for religion which He hates. It is the remnant that survives the Tribulation who will return once again to the relationship the Lord wants. You can find a...

Klein's: צִמְצוּם m.n. MH 1 compressing, condensing, contraction. NH 2 restriction, reduction, limitation. [Verbal n. of צִמְצֵם (see צמצם), coined by Rashi (1040–1105).] The tzimtzum or tsimtsum (Hebrew: צמצום ṣimṣum "contraction/constriction/condensation") is a term used in the Lurianic Kabbalah to explain Isaac Luria's doctrine that God began the process of creation by "contracting" his Ohr Ein Sof (infinite light) in order to allow for a "conceptual space" in which finite and seemingly independent realms could exist. This primordial initial contraction, forming a ḥalal hapanuy "vacant space" (חלל הפנוי‎) into which new creative light could beam, is denoted by general reference...

The Red Heifer, the Third Temple and End Time Prophecy “Red cows.” Hamas leaders say that was the reason why they massacred innocent Israelis on October 7th. According to the Bible, a perfect red heifer is required to cleanse the Temple and the priests. Jerusalem doesn’t have a Temple but it has the Temple Institute and it has red heifers thanks to a Texas rancher who is a Christian. Biblical explanation: In the book of Numbers chapter 19, Israel’s priests were commanded to take a perfect red heifer outside of the camp and slaughter it. Then they were to burn...

A white rainbow composed of mist was spotted in northern Israel on Friday by Nadav Yisraeli, an ornithologist at the Society for the Protection of Nature. As the name suggests, this is phenomenon is very similar to the colorful rainbow we normally see but is formed in fog rather than rain. Because of the very small size of the water droplets in the fog – less than 0.05 millimeters – the colors in such a rainbow are very weak and you can see mainly the color white, with a little red on the outside and a little blue on the...

Nuclear War, 1 Tevet 5785?1 Tevet 5785, the seventh day of Chanukah, a new moon, also January 1, 2025.Nuclear war in the scripturesShir Hashirim / Song of Songs3:6 Who is this ascending from the desert with palm-like pillars of smoke; in a cloud of myrrh and frankincense, of all the powders of the perfume seller?Palm (tree) pillars of smoke, better description than a mushroom cloud.Isaiah 34:1 Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it.34:2 For the indignation of YHVH...

>Yeshua’s unconventional ministry brought Him face to face with many colorful characters not often otherwise encountered by typical rabbis of His day. He engaged readily with the people of the land in many animated instances. Be they fellow Jews or the occupying Romans, whether religious or just trying to make it through another day, His interactions with the populace ran the spectrum of characters expected to be confronted in first century Israel. Without prejudice Yeshua spoke publicly of the Kingdom of Heaven and called any who would so desire to unite under that singular and everlasting reign to worship the...

Rabbis since the Middle Ages onwards have sought to prove the validity of the Torah and our belief in G-d from the story of G-d’s revelation to the whole Jewish people at Mount Sinai. As explained by Rabbi Judah Halevi in the Kuzari, the logic goes like this: If G-d had not actually appeared to all the Jewish people, then it would have been impossible for someone to write a book that would be adopted as truth by those people. Because Jews of previous generations accepted the Torah as truth and passed it down to subsequent generations, and ultimately to...

Law enforcement characterized the crimes as “swatting,” efforts to provoke unwarranted SWAT team responses. Someone emailed threats of bombings and shootings to schools and Jewish communities across Minnesota. On Wednesday, police received word of the intimidation at such Jewish organizations as Rochester’s B’nai Israel Synagogue, ultimately finding no evidence of danger. So far at least nine Jewish groups and 25 schools received threats. Investigators say they used almost identical language and characterized them as “swatting” wherein someone seeks to harm their target by triggering an unnecessary deployment of a SWAT team. The Minnesota jurisdictions affected by the crimes include Aitkin,...

... along with Moses' specific time ("about midnight") for the time of the Exodus.Backgound:On a mystical level, the number 600,000 is identified with the number of souls comprising the Nation of Israel. The Talmud teaches that the arrival of the Messiah will transpire when all these souls are "complete."The Nation of IsraelWe know that the Torah actually has 304,805 letters, so why would our Sages say it has 600,000? [And even prove it by saying “Israel” (ישראל) stands for yesh shishim ribua otiot l’Torah (יש שישים ריבוא אותיות לתורה), “There are 600,000 letters in the Torah.”] The answer, as is...

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana’s Court of Appeals questioned attorneys this week on exceptions to the state’s abortion ban in a case involving residents who are suing on grounds that it violates a state religious freedom law. The class action lawsuit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana on behalf of five anonymous residents and the group Hoosier Jews for Choice, argues Indiana’s abortion ban violates the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act that was approved by Republican lawmakers in 2015. The suit was originally filed in September 2022 and a county judge sided with the residents last December. Indiana...

Revelation 17, coming into focusRevelation 17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sits upon many waters:2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. 3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven...