14
votes
Accepted
Who could have watched the veil of the temple tear when Jesus died?
The Holy of Holies, or the Most Holy Place, was separated from the outter room (the Holy Place) by the veil. Only the High Priest could go beyond the veil into the Most Holy Place, but other priests ...
13
votes
Accepted
How do believers in post-mortal consciousness respond to objections by the Jewish Encyclopedia article on the immortality of the soul?
How do believers in post-mortal consciousness respond to this article?
First, by comparing it to this article from JewishEncyclopedia, which disagrees. We'll call the article cited in the OP "...
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12
votes
How do Christians respond to the criticism that Jesus of Nazareth did not bring world peace?
How Christianity and Judaism interpret Isa 2:4 differently
Christianity and Judaism interpret Isa 2:4 differently. For Christians, the condition described in Isa 2:4 will happen only when everyone ...
- 22.2k
11
votes
Accepted
What is the basis for the belief that Christianity and Islam worship different gods?
The answer to your question lies in what each religion teaches about who God is.
Islam
From The Truth About Islam by Dr. David R. Reagan*:
God — The Koran asserts that the god of Islam is the God of ...
- 723
9
votes
Accepted
Why did God spare Abraham's child but not Jephthah's?
Jewish and Christian scholars alike present many opinions and interpretations of the story of Jephthah and his daughter. The ambiguity of the text and the fact that her sacrifice is not described in ...
- 334
8
votes
Was Jesus a carpenter or a rabbi?
2000 years ago in the Roman occupied Jewish world, people who were called rabbi generally had real jobs on the side.
There were no organized rabinnic seminaries back then, but leading rabbis ...
8
votes
Accepted
Was each "Book" of the Old Testament on a separate scroll prior to the second century A.D.?
The answer appears to be «usually» but «with some exceptions», and also «the experts aren't completely sure».
We can divide the sources adduced into indirect evidence (references to scrolls in ...
- 4,322
8
votes
Where did Jesus' belief in the devil come from?
In Judaism, there most certainly is a devil, first alluded to in Genesis 3. The serpent mentioned that deceived Eve is known to be the devil, and we can specifically see a more direct reference to the ...
- 99
8
votes
Why was Jesus not welcomed and carefully tested by the Jews if they were (and are) actually waiting for Messiah?
He was tested
The Jews living in the time of Jesus did try to discern whether Jesus was the real Messiah that they had been yearning for, because they disliked living under Roman rule and wanted to ...
- 22.2k
7
votes
Was the washing of feet of the disciples by Jesus, part of a Jewish tradition?
On the contrary, the towel and basin were there for feet to be washed by themselves (Genesis 18:4 & 19:2, Judges 19:21, 1st Samuel 25:41 and others). In that culture (and as an externality of ...
- 226
7
votes
Accepted
Was Joseph Smith interested in and familiar with Kabbalah?
In short:
Do we know if he had access to and was familiar with Kabbalah writings?
There is no documentation of him having access to the Kabbalah writings.
Did he study them in the original ...
- 8,745
7
votes
According to Reformed Theology, why did the 70 Jewish translators include the Apocrypha?
It is true that the Jews ultimately did not accept the apocryphal books you listed in their canon, in a gradual process over several centuries at least spanning 1st century BC and 1st century AD. ...
- 22.2k
7
votes
What evidence is there that God as father was a common concept for Jesus's first century Jewish audience?
The concept of God as Father to the nation of Israel was not new when Jesus spoke of that in, for example, Matthew 6:9 where he instructed prayer to God to be addressed, "Our Father who is in ...
- 27k
6
votes
Accepted
What evidence is there that the Jews thought leprosy was due to sin?
Disease in general
Most scholars and Biblical commentaries agree that it was a common belief among the Jewish people of Jesus' day that leprosy and sickness in general was caused by sin. In the Old ...
- 7,743
6
votes
Accepted
Who were the "scribes" whom Jesus often disputes against in the canonical gospels?
In Ancient Judaism, preserving and accurately copying the scriptures was a task considered to be of the utmost importance. As such, an official Temple position dedicated to this task was created. ...
- 7,743
6
votes
Accepted
What are the theological reasons some Protestants are Zionists?
It would be wrong to think that a majority of Protestants are Zionists, but Christian Zionism is nevertheless a substantial movement, especially in the United States. There is a belief among some ...
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6
votes
Accepted
Could a Christian remain in the sect of the Pharisees?
What biblical evidence there is, suggests that there may have been a small window in history (~30-35 years) when this was indeed possible. As well as the verse you've already cited, the Apostle Paul ...
- 12.5k
6
votes
Was Joseph Smith interested in and familiar with Kabbalah?
It is certain that Joseph Smith was influenced by Kabbalah.
In his 1992 Book The American Religion: The Emergence of the Post-Christian Nation Harold Bloom writes:
What is clear is that Smith and his ...
- 8,051
6
votes
Accepted
Why is the Bishop of Jerusalem still Greek?
As you further explained your question in various comments, you seem to be asking why the Bishop (Patriarch) of Jerusalem is Greek, rather than "someone who is ethnically Jewish, and practices Judaism ...
- 5,637
6
votes
Were any of the Apostolic Fathers Jews?
Were any of the Apostolic Fathers Jews?
The short answer is yes!
St. Ignatius of Antioch
It is piously believed by many Catholics that St. Ignatius of Antioch was of Jewish origin. In fact, there ...
- 67.9k
6
votes
Accepted
Were Jews in Jesus' day binitarian?
Segal's Persepective and its Reception
That book by Segal was one of the first to advance that argument, and has been fairly influential since then (e.g. Heiser, 2004; Boyarin, 2001. McGrath and Truex ...
6
votes
Accepted
Does Nehemiah Gordon self-identify as a Christian?
I found an article that examines the beliefs of Nehemiah Gordon and briefly mentions that although brought up in an Orthodox Jewish family, he converted to Karaite Judaism after he moved to Israel in ...
- 29.8k
6
votes
What is the basis for believing that 40 lashes would be deadly (especially in Roman law or jurisprudence)?
What is the basis for believing that 40 lashes would be deadly (especially in Roman law or jurisprudence)?
This is a false assumption!
For one thing, the Romans were not limited in the number of ...
- 67.9k
6
votes
Do Protestants believe it is easier for New Testament believers to fulfill the moral law than it was before Christ?
Welcome to the group. I'm new here myself.
Do those verses show that the Christian is more able to fulfill God's commands than the old testament believer was? No, they do not, but maybe not in the ...
- 339
6
votes
Is Christianity an ethnic religion?
After his resurrection, Jesus commanded his disciples to preach to and convert people throughout the entire world.
18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven ...
- 31.3k
6
votes
Accepted
What is the origin of the Pharisees and Sadducees?
Finding information on the origins of the Pharisees and the Sadducees has proved difficult. There are claims from the Pharisees that their origins stem from the time of Moses and the establishment of ...
- 29.8k
5
votes
Is it likely that Christianity was born from Judaism?
Yes, Christianity was born out of Judaism. Jesus was, as far as we know, born in Bethlehem, near Jerusalem, and was crucified in Jerusalem and on the third day rose from the dead.
Judaism may not ...
- 14.4k
5
votes
Accepted
What is the Testament of Hezekiah? I know it exists, but I can't locate it
After a bit more research, I found reference to the "Testament of Hezekiah." It appears, that it a component of the larger pseudegraphical text, "Ascension of Isaiah." Perhaps why I couldn't find info ...
5
votes
Accepted
Is Matthew 17:24 a reference to the Fiscus Judaicus?
The tradition of giving half-a shekel to the Temple of God dates back to the times of the book of Exodus, as we see at Exodus 30:11-13 (RSVCE):
The Lord said to Moses, “When you take the census of ...
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