Teaching Team
Got Hebrew Skills?
Over the last couple of years at FFOZ, we have been publishing a few articles in messiah magazine about Orthodox Jews from the 19th Century who came to faith in Messiah and maintained their Jewishness. In a lot of ways these guys were the forerunners of the modern Torah movement. What is most exciting is that many of them left us writings that are unparalleled in today’s movement. They had a way of infusing Rabbinic and Chassidic thought into the teachings of Yeshua and the apostolic writings that is in some ways beyond our reach.
One such believer was Rabbi Yehiel Tsvi Lichtenstein. In the latest issue of messiah magazine #96 Daniel Lancaster devoted an entire article to Yeheil. He grew up in an Orthodox Jewish home and received a thorough education in rabbinical studies. After coming to faith in Messiah he wrote many works that sought to express Messianic faith through a fully Torah lens. One of his most famous works is Limudei haNeviim.
“He set out to write a commentary on the books of the prophets that would combine the mystical concepts of Chassidic Judaism with the words of the Gospel. The result was the as yet un-translated Limudei haNeviim (The Teachings of the Prophets). He published it himself in 1868, but its mystical content and devout Torah approach made it unappealing to the Jewish mission societies who might have benefited from it.” (Messiah Magazine 96)
This is a gold mine of Messianic thought that has remained untapped by us today. Copies of Limudei haNeviim have survived, but unfortunately for most of us English speakers, it is in Hebrew.
In the coming years FFOZ desires to, God willing, translate and publish many of these works into English, making them available for the modern Torah movement. If you are skilled in Hebrew translation and would like to help with projects like Limudei haNeviim or others, please e-mail me at toby(at)ffoz(dot)org for more details.
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Visitor Feedback:
Wow that is really cool, eh? Or should I say oiy!
Anyhow, if you are familiar, we have a Hebrew class studying from "The First Hebrew Primer." It is a very good resource (which I would recommend for complete beginners). I would love to do some translation work, but I probably need another 6 months or a year before I would be able to even read the Hebrew well, let alone translate it into English.
Just wanted to say again that this is a very cool project, and could provide some priceless historic insights.
I really value the type of work that y'all (@ FFOZ) bring for us.
Cliff | August 6, 2007 3:14 PM
This is just what we need, especially for presenting a legacy of our faith. This is similar to the Chassidic stories of the great sages and rabbis, but so much greater to include the teachings of the Master and how those have been put into practice throughout the centuries. My children love to hear such tales of real people living out a real faith. We will eagerly await this forthcoming work. Is it too early to pre-order?!
Sarah Croswell | August 6, 2007 5:57 PM
I'm very excited to. I would preorder it myself if I could. The hard part is that we need to find someone to translate it.
Toby Janicki | August 7, 2007 8:32 AM
If only...
I have been studying Hebrew for several years, but would still be very inadequate for such a task. Translating requires such understanding of every way a word is used.
Is there any way we could contribute to a translating fund? Getting a native speaker willing to do the translating would be a great opportunity to lead that person to the truth.
FFOZ is priceless! There is no other group out there like you all. Blessings!
Danuta
Danuta Lesko | August 7, 2007 8:31 PM
I would like to express a word of concern about the Hassidic and Mystical aspects of Jewish thought. First let me say that I am not the world's expert on Jewish Mysticism, but I am quite familiar with Greek Orthodoxy which, shares the same philosophical Greek roots of Platonus, a neo-platonist. The poison of Greek philosophy is that it sound so good, but has a fundamentally corrupting effect. It introduces small lies that work like viruses throughout the entire system. Hassidic thought is rife with Kabbalistic, neo-platonic thinking. It is very dangerous, very enticing, and not for the uniformed as it weaves and bobs between truth, experience, and reality. If these works are translated there should be an emphasis placed on helping the reader to understand the implications of Kabbalah and Hassidic thought, prior to giving the green light to swim in safe waters. Let us not allow the Torah movement to be poisoned by these thoughts, by not properly informing the readers.The above comments only state the positive, which there may well be, but with out a word of caution. It is important to have an understanding Jewish though in this genre, in order to identify neo-Platonism and it's dark origins. As well as being able to separate out some of the good thinking that the author may be communicating.
Randal Weidenaar
Athens, Greece
***Toby's Response: Randal Thanks you for your comment. You make some good points and ones that we have considered. Lichtenstein was a beliver and will have a diferent take on this than others. The commentary is full of the words of Yeshua and the Apostles. Rest asured we will not just give people the green light but if God willing we publsh this it will have a foward, glossary, etc. explaining what the reader is getting into.
Ran | August 9, 2007 12:32 AM
Just a thought, but perhaps you guys could set up an "Aaron Eby Apprentice Program"... perhaps some of the kids who've grown up with Hebrew could begin to learn translation skills under Aaron's guidance?
Connie | August 9, 2007 4:31 PM
Are you still looking for someone to translate Limudei haNeviim?
If so, I have someone in mind. She is a Jewish woman with a love of Torah, personal relationship with God (but not a believer), now a rabbi at the reformed synagogue in Shreveport, Lousiana, and has a doctorate in Linguistics. If she had the time, she would probably enjoy the project and it may open her eyes to the Messiah.
**Toby's Response:** We did find someone to do this but perhaps we can use her for other things. Send me an e-mail at toby @ ffoz.org
Stacie | October 12, 2007 1:04 PM