Roots of Faith

Archive for the ‘Notes’ Category

We are constantly working to expand the features of Roots of Faith and the Synagogue Without Walls in an attempt to create an on-line community, a cyber-based fellowship of believers all oriented towards Torah Faith.

We are using technology to spread the Torah Faith message across the globe. Our weekly classes are broadcasted over the web every Saturday morning via www.shma.tv. Participants can watch our morning service and engage with others from around the globe through the chat feature. This has enhanced the dialogue portion of our service and is becoming more popular every week as is evidenced by the increased number of attendees. My teachings of the weekly Torah portions are posted on iTunes as well as on my main website (www.rootsoffaith.org) and are available for download at no charge.

We continue to broadcast on special occasions such as Holy Days to provide those that are interested with a place to go to celebrate these appointed times. I will be sending out more information on our plans for the High Holy Days soon.

We recently added interactive Hebrew classes on the Synagogue Without Walls site. Johnny Powell, my own Hebrew teacher is leading these classes. He already has several students, and has made it clear that all are welcome regardless of their skill level in Hebrew. If you have ever wanted to learn Hebrew, now is an excellent opportunity. All one has to do is join the “Learning Torah Hebrew” group on SWW. Class is every Wednesday night at9:00 PM EST. We are still working to improve the class. We currently utilize the chat feature on the SWW site and last week we added a SKYPE feature to allow students to hear one another as well as the teacher. We will continue to get better as we experiment with various options.

I have set up Facebook pages for the Synagogue Without Walls as well as Roots of Faith and I encourage you to follow us there. You can also find me on Facebook as well as Twitter. I am making every effort to reach the masses through the social media and these popular sites provide us with an excellent outreach platform to spread Torah Faith. I encourage you to find and follow us and join us in our work.

We do not charge for any of our teachings or features. The work is fully supported through the prayers, efforts and faithful voluntary contributions of those who believe in what we are doing. The goal is to work on continuous improvement at every turn – doing the best we can with what we have. As we have more, we seek to do more. So far, as our costs have gone up, the contributions have met the challenge.

If you are able to contribute, we have several ways to do so. We have set up “donate” buttons on our sites. These allow you to donate whatever amount you wish.

We have several bills that are due every month and here are some examples in case you want to specify where your contribution goes. Some may wish to make a contribution to cover one or more of these expenses.

1 month of internet at the Synagogue – $65
1 month of usage for the SWW site – $50
1 month for our Livestream channel – $350

Recently it was requested that we set something up to allow people to subscribe for recurring donations through PayPal. This is now active and is a good way to help us on a regular basis without the hassle. Those desiring to set up to contribute have options here as well. One way is to select a set amount per month ($15, $20, etc) from the drop down menu.

The other choice is for those who follow the custom of donating in increments of 18. This custom is based upon the idea that the Hebrew word chai (life) has a numeric value of 18. Some choose to donate in increments of 18, thus symbolically sending our outreach efforts “life” in that your financial help literally brings life to others.

Whatever you can do is greatly appreciated and your help in this matter allows us to continue to provide our teachings at no charge to any who wish to receive them and also provides us with the necessary funding to maintain and improve our features.

You can send check or money order to us at the following address:

Roots of Faith
PO Box 695
Saint Francisville, La. 70775

Or on-line at www.rootsoffaith.org/support

Thanks for you prayers and continued support and interest in Roots of Faith and the Synagogue Without Walls!

Shalom, Ross

copyright 2010 – Ross K. Nichols

My local newspaper’s Religious section just put in a request for response to some key questions about Christianity. I was encouraged by a friend to send them my answers, but I fear that my answer may be more than they have room to print so I will post my article here on my blog.

Here are those questions:

• What does it mean to be a Christian?
• Can one follow Christ and not be a Christian?
• Does a Christian have to support everything the Church teaches and does?

The word Christian occurs 3 times in the New Testament (Acts 11:26, Acts 26:28 and I Peter 4:16). It comes from the Greek khris-tee-an-os, which in turn comes from khris-tos and means “anointed”.  So Khrist-tos, or Christ originally meant the Anointed One and a Khris-tee-an-os or Christian was a follower of Khris-tos or the Anointed One (i.e., Christ). But if this all seems like Greek to you…. think again, because these ideas are Hebraic in origin and NOT Greek!

The origin of these Greek terms is to be found in the Hebrew verb mashach (to rub or smear with oil). Many have lost the original understanding of the term and think of Christ as a title or even a name for Jesus of Nazareth, but according to the original and thoroughly Biblical concept of anointing, there have been many “anointed ones” throughout the ages, each with a special purpose or task. The ancient anointing oil and its application, set an object or person apart (consecrating them) for a special purpose or task. See for instance Exodus 30:22-33. The priests were anointed (Exodus 28:41; 29:7; 40:15 & Psalm 133), as were Israel’s Kings (1 Kings 1:34-39; I Samuel 10:1, 16:13, 24:6). The Patriarchs are referred to as “anointed ones” in Psalm 105:13-15 and even the Gentile Persian King Cyrus is an “anointed one” according to Isaiah 45:1. The Hebrew equivalent to the Greek Christ is Messiah or mashiach in Hebrew (based upon the Hebrew verb mashach).  Thus, Biblically speaking, the examples above can technically be called “messiahs”.

Apart from the many “messiahs” of the Hebrew Scriptures, a picture of a future eschatological figure began to emerge from the Hebrew prophets. This coming figure was believed to be “The” Messiah – a son of the famed King David who would usher in a golden age often referred to as the Messianic age. He is sometimes assisted by a priestly figure (see for instance Zechariah 6:9-12). Opinions from antiquity were varied. Would there be one or two messiahs? The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls revealed that these questions were being discussed in the Second Temple period. The Qumran community favored an interpretation and an end time scenario involving two messiahs; one a priest and the other a king.

With this background in mind one can’t avoid noticing that John the Baptist is presented as a descendant of Levi (priest) while Jesus is presented as a descendant of David (King). The fact that their “ministries” overlap is also of interest. According to the New Testament writings however, John and his role would decrease while that of Jesus would increase. The writers of the New Testament, particularly the gospels are attempting to show and prove from the Hebrew Scriptures that Jesus of Nazareth was the long awaited and prophesied Messiah par excellence – a son of David.  Christianity was destined to become a faith with room for only 1 messiah. The priestly role would be handled nicely by an obscure reference to a “priest after the order of Melchi-tzedek” (Genesis 14 and Psalm 110) eliminating the need for the Levitical messiah. Jesus would declare the search for the messiah as ended from his hometown synagogue appealing to a passage in Isaiah 61 (see Luke 4:16 ff). Those who accepted his claim to the title would have been messianists in that they would have believed that based upon their understanding of the ancient criteria laid out in the Hebrew Scriptures, Jesus fit the bill.

The various forms of Christianity today are far removed from the original and thoroughly Jewish faith of the first followers of Jesus of Nazareth. The first followers of Jesus were apparently first called “Christian” at Antioch by others and not by themselves (Acts 11:26). All of the first followers were Jews as was Jesus. In fact, though shocking to some, it is fair to say that Jesus was not a Christian. “Christianity”, at first, was not a separate religion, but was comprised by Jews who believed that Jesus of Nazareth was the prophesied Messiah of the Hebrew Scriptures. From the outset of his ministry, Jesus called for disciples (students) to follow him (see Matthew 4:16 ff). In a sense they were a traveling school, following their teacher or rabbi – a common experience in ancient Judaism. Jesus and his first followers attended services in the synagogue on the Sabbath (Saturday) where they read from the Law and the Prophets (Luke 4:16-22; Acts 13:15). Though largely ignored by those who claim to follow Jesus today, it seems that this was supposed to continue (Acts 15:21 ff). They believed in the eternal validity of the Hebrew Scriptures (Matthew 5:17-21), and used these Scriptures to define every aspect of their faith and practice. It was the only Bible they had. I once read that the two things the New Testament did not have when it began were a (1) New Testament and (2) a Church.

For nearly 2,000 years, the followers of Jesus have functioned quite separately from their Hebrew roots. The teachings of Jesus have been interpreted, understood and taught from a Gentile platform, void of proper context.

A growing number of modern Christians however are seeking to understand Jesus and his teachings from a Hebrew perspective. A transformation is underway and the result is a much more Hebrew oriented faith, seemingly more in line with what Jesus and his first followers set out to establish. Most forms of modern Christianity can best be defined as religions “about” Jesus in contrast to the religion “of” Jesus. I propose that one can certainly follow Jesus apart from Christianity (a religion about him) by practicing the faith that he taught through his life and ministry – the religion of Jesus.

According to Matthew, a resurrected Jesus charged his followers with three tasks; (1) To make disciples or students, (2) to immerse them, and (3) Teach these disciples to observe all that he (Jesus) commanded them. Jesus had emphasized doing and keeping the commandments (Matthew 5:17-19). When asked what one must do to inherit eternal life, Jesus said, “Keep the commandments (Matthew 19:16-17).

I am reminded of the statement in I John 2:6. There we read, “Whoever says he abides in him (Jesus) ought to walk in the same way he (Jesus) walked.” Somehow along the way, points 1 and 3 of the “Great Commission” were forgotten. The great commission became the great omission! Those who seek to follow Jesus ought to walk even as he walked. They ought to learn and live by the teachings of his Bible. They ought to eat the same foods that he ate. They ought to keep the same festivals he kept. They ought to proclaim the coming Kingdom as he did. A Kingdom where God’s will is done on earth as it is in heaven.

If Jesus was not a Christian, but rather a Jew – ought not those who follow him look more Jewish than they currently do? As his followers seek to imitate him in their faith, I propose that they will. I further believe that the more they follow him, the less likely they will be to follow modern forms of Christianity. So long as there is a vast difference between forms of faith that talk about Jesus and those that truly seek to follow his teachings, there will be those who claim to follow Jesus but do not call themselves Christian. It is time for those who claim to follow Jesus to “walk even as he walked.”

Ross Nichols is a Bible teacher and the leader of Roots of Faith and the Synagogue Without Walls. He currently leads a weekly Sabbath service every Saturday morning at the Temple Sinai Synagogue in Saint Francisville, Louisiana. His classes are broadcasted live via the internet at 10:30 AM CST (www.shma.tv). For more information about Ross Nichols and Roots of Faith, visit them on the web at www.rootsoffaith.org.

I wanted to take some time today to publish an update on all that is going on with Roots of Faith and the Synagogue Without Walls as well as to request your financial support.

It seems that there is a growing interest in what we are doing and I am pleased that we appear to be meeting a need in the lives of so many people who are seeking truth from the Scriptures.

When I received the keys to the historic Temple Sinai Synagogue in December of 2005, I had no idea what was in store! At that time there were no members, no regular services. All I had was a vision of what could be if I pursued the passion that I believe God placed within me.  Now, we have a growing and thriving global community of people who believe in the One God of Israel and seek to live according to the principles of the Hebrew Bible. We have members from literally all over the world! Some are scholars, some are educated laity, some are Christian / Messianic, some are Orthodox Jews. There are Karaites, Bnai Noach and some who choose not to go by any standard label. Many told me that this would never work; that such a diverse group of people could not come together, but I knew differently. You have proven that we can dialogue when we focus on the things that unite us. While it is clear that there are differences, and some of these differences are on major theological points, the underlying connection is obvious. There is a desire to unite around the core Biblical Message – God, Torah and Israel.

We are now into our fifth year – a year of bearing fruit, and I am excited about what the future has in store for all of us! It is amazing at what we have been able to do with the help of Heaven up this point.

Thus far we have been allowed full use of the Historic Synagogue at no charge. My small local congregation takes care of the building and in exchange, the city allows us to meet there every Saturday morning for the class that has been such a blessing to all of you. We have two computers that have been loaned to us from generous friends at no charge. We were able some time back to purchase a small camera that we use to stream our services live via the web to members every week. We are also blessed to have a creative technical man on our team who has made the most of our current equipment and somehow ties all of the mix-matched pieces and parts into a working studio. Another good friend has kindly offered storage for our websites, and assistance in technical issues, never asking for payment and rarely receiving any for all of his time and effort. We have been very good stewards, making full use of the blessings that have come our way. Up to this point, the bulk of the work has been the burden of a handful of people who have a common vision and goal to provide our teachings to all who desire them at no charge. This is not changing. Our regular costs up to this point have been our Internet bill (approximately $65 per month), a bill due to the city for sewer and water service at the synagogue (approximately $60 per month), and a bill for maintenance of our Synagogue Without Walls site ($25 per month). No one on staff receives any compensation.

As our outreach has grown, so have our needs. The company that hosts our Synagogue Without Walls site has announced new payment schedules for their services. Based upon the information that I have seen, it appears that this will nearly double by the end of the month to $50. We upgraded to the Premium channel for the live stream video of our weekly services in order to respond to your requests to get rid of the ads. This alone costs us $350 per month.

We are in need of some new equipment; a couple of new microphones for better audio quality, a new camera and better lights are really needed for improved video, and ideally a new computer would be very much appreciated. We have been informed that at some point in the near future we will need to vacate the Synagogue as funds have been collected for the restoration of this historic building. We are hopeful that we will be allowed to return to services here once the restoration is complete, but we are not sure at this point if this will be the case, when this move will need to take place, or for how long we will need to meet in another location. Our goal during this time will be to find a modest place to meet and to broadcast our services to our dedicated members around the world with no interruption.

I am also praying about hiring someone on staff, and want to begin regularly paying for the web server and technical support that is currently being provided at no charge, but is becoming a heavy burden for our faithful, patient and talented webmaster.

Obviously we will only expand and improve as funds are made available. The immediate need is to pay the rising bills of the Synagogue Without Walls website ($50 per month) and the monthly bill for our live streaming video services ($350 per month), and to begin paying for the services of our webmaster. I pray that we are able to meet these needs easily and be in a position very soon to buy some new equipment and then to hire someone on staff.

As we look forward to all that is in front of us, one might feel a bit overwhelmed, but I merely have to look back at how all of this has been taken care of in the past to know that somehow the needs will be met. I maintain that we will always do our part to provide our teachings at no charge for all who want them. Every week, we post our classes on the web as podcasts for download free from iTunes or directly from our site. Several have requested CD’s and or DVD’s of our classes. These will be packaged professionally and will sell for fair prices, making them excellent gifts to distribute to those that you think might be interested in learning from our teaching. We are currently investigating ways to make this a reality and I hope to announce something on this in the coming weeks.

I am also working with my own Hebrew Teacher, Johnny Powell, on a new weekly program for those that are interested in learning Hebrew via the web. I am very excited about this and look forward to announcing the details of this class very soon.

So with all of this I will close by simply asking for your generous support in our time of need. We have rarely asked for your financial help, always believing that God will supply our needs. We still believe that God will provide, but want to make sure that we let all of you know of the challenges in front of us so that those who can help would be given a clear picture of what is needed. I always stress that I never want anyone to feel guilty or pressured to give. Too many religious institutions do that already. Our monthly expenses are indeed climbing, but I believe that we are bearing fruit for our labors. One only has to tune in to the weekly service and participate in the chat to read of all those who are benefiting from Roots of Faith. My belief is that if people will give what they can we can more than meet the challenges in front of us. No gift is too small. I can tell you that all that we have done so far is because a few people have regularly supported us with contributions as they are able. I am humbled that people contribute to Roots of Faith and as always, I promise to use these gifts to further spread Torah Faith across the globe.

There are several ways that you can contribute to Roots of Faith. You can mail a check or money order to our Post Office Box (Roots of Faith, P.O. Box 695, Saint Francisville, La. 70775), or donate through PayPal on the web. You can use the donate links on our websites placed there for your convenience, or you can go to PayPal and send in your contribution using our direct email address for receiving donations (paypal@rootsoffaith.org).

I can say that for my part, I will continue to teach the Bible to the best of my ability. Your help with the financial burden that has presented itself will allow me to do so to more people. Please consider supporting Roots of Faith and the Synagogue Without Walls on a regular basis and thanks for your continued interest in what we have felt tasked to do!

Blessings to you and yours – Ross