Just found out about a pretty cool place when I was checking out an apartment to rent in Sydney. The guy showing me around the unit said he was leaving for Japan. I saw he had a bicycle and I’ve been wanting one, so I asked him what he was going to do with it when he left the next week. His explained how he had built the bike out of free parts at a place in Redfern/Newtown and he’d bring the bike back there for someone else to make use of.

So I’ve checked out the place online. It’s called the Bike Club and they call their project something like Cycle Re-Cycle Club. It is a place for people to drop off their old bicycles and where others can come if they perhaps cannot afford to buy a bike and would like to build their own from spare parts.

I think this is a very cool idea because it is in line with what I did for my Eagle Scout project. For those of you not familiar with an Eagle Scout Project, one of the requirements to earn Eagle Scout (the highest rank achievable in United States scouting) is to manage a service project totaling over 100 hours of work done by volunteers. This does not include the work you, as the Eagle Scout applicant, do.

For my project I organized the collection of used bicycles. Volunteers then fixed them up and we gave them to people in the community who could not afford to buy a bike.

Anyway, I hope to check out this place in Sydney and maybe build myself a bicycle… Maybe even a unicycle!

Speaking of unicycles, I’ve still been working on the project to unicycle 1000km in Israel. It’s been coming along and it looks like I will be joining with Save a Child’s Heart to fundraise for their organization.

For more about the Bike Club and Cycle Re-Cycle Click HERE.

I’ve got a lot of things I’ve been meaning to post about recent adventures, but since I only have a few minutes right now, I thought I would post a small SuperBowl tribute to my maternal grandfather, whom I always affectionately called my Pepa.

I could write a long post about sports games from a religious Jewish perspective, but that’s not my goal for the moment. You see, something incredible just happened: The Giants won the SuperBowl!! From the other side of the world, I watched the game with my parents, who put their TV on video chat.  I felt like I was in the room with them and all their friends who have been coming over for SuperBowl parties every year for as long as I can remember.  For me, it’s less about the game and more about the memories and the closeness we experienced as a family (and friends!) when we cheered for our teams, passed around the chips, and celebrated with ice cream cake after the game.

But this year it was especially special. Not only did I join in a SuperBowl party with my family from the opposite side of the world, but the Giants won!!!!!!! The Giants were my Pepa’s favorite team.  He is smiling down from Heaven now and enjoying watching his team celebrate.  I felt like both Pepa and I were back in the United States in my parents’ living room as we watched the game together.

This is something we can learn about our relationship with Judaism, also.  If we make positive associations with the activities associated with our Judaism, we will make any effort necessary to return to it, even if we have to reach out across the entire world to do so.

Thanks for all your lessons and all your love… I miss you, Pepa! And GO GIANTS!!!

Recently I posted a quick book review by my friend Rabbi Eli Cohen. Eli works hard running Jews for Judaism in Australia, where Jews for Jesus also works hard trying to catch Jewish souls. Over the last ten years Eli and I have had many discussions about organizations such as Jews for Jesus, Messianic Jews, and the like.

Eli asked if I could post this review on TravelingRabbi.com, though first I’d like to share an experience I had in New Zealand regarding this “Kosher Jesus” matter.

On my first trip to New Zealand in 2001 I ran into some Israelis who were going to stay at a family’s home who were part of H.I.T., which stands for “Hosting Israeli Travelers.” After paying a $35 membership fee (at the time) you’d get a booklet with around 300+ families who open their homes to Israeli travelers. I called to find out if I could join, saying, “I’m not Israeli though I’m a young Jewish Rabbi.” I was granted membership and then spent a few nights with families from the Hosting Israeli Travelers program.

It became obvious to me that it was run by a Christian (probably Baptist) organization trying to convert Jews to programs like ‘Jews for Jesus,’ or ‘Messianic Jews.’ The families I stayed with were very nice, warm, and welcoming and I had a good time, but there was that undertone of ‘I want to convert you.’

Some of the Israelis I spoke with were fully aware of what the program was trying to achieve but they did not care. They were strong in their beliefs and said, “we’re just using H.I.T. for the free accommodation.” However, some Israelis (may G-d protect us), do get caught up in their organization.

I remember how in one home that was part of Hosting Israeli Travelers, I took note of the screen saver on the computer. It flashed pictures as follows: the Western Wall, a menorah, Jesus on a cross, and then an Israeli flag. There was also the general overtone of items around the house like Jewish books mixed with Jews for Jesus books. Menorahs and crucifixes and a map of Israel on the wall alongside a picture of Bethlehem.

How successful are they in convincing Jewish Israelis that Jesus could be kosher?

It’s hard to say, but unfortunately they do have some success as I know personally one Israeli boy who caught up in the whole thing.

I’ve written this post to create some awareness of the matter.

And now here is Rabbi Eli’s book review on Kosher Jesus:

“Kosher Jesus” – A Book Review
In his new, highly controversial book, Kosher Jesus, Shmuley Boteach sets the stage by describing the strong overtures of Christian love towards Israel and the Jewish people. Boteach views this development as a positive step in the Jewish – Christian relationship; however, Boteach points out, there is still a sticking point between Jews and Christians, and that is Jesus. [1]

Boteach’s book presents a solution [2] that he believes will allow both Jews and Christians to overcome the barrier that stands between them. [3] Boteach proposes that instead of Jesus being the issue that divides us[4], we should allow him to serve as a bridge that unites us in the common interest of promoting Judeo – Christian values.[5]

Setting the bar in his introduction, Boteach boldly claims to know the “authentic story” of Jesus of Nazareth[6]. Virtually all historians and scholars agree that when trying to reconstruct the life of the “Historical Jesus” one is crippled by the lack of surviving evidence outside of the Gospels (records which Boteach himself disqualifies.)[7] This leads the reader to wonder how Boteach is going to make his case convincing.

Basing himself on the works of Hyam Maccoby, Boteach insists that although the Gospels cannot be accepted as authentic or reliable, they have nevertheless retained traces of a Jewish Jesus who did not teach against the observance of the Torah[8] and who never claimed to be God. Boteach sees Jesus as a patriot who fought against the occupying Romans; a struggle which cost him his life.

Boteach recognizes that Maccoby’s works alone – which argue that the real Jewish Jesus was radically different than the “Christian” Jesus – have not convinced Jews (or Christians, for that matter) to re-evaluate their deeply ingrained vision of Jesus. Boteach is intent on presenting a more persuasive case with “historical underpinnings”.

In order to vindicate his view of Jesus, Boteach questions the reliability of the Jewish and Christian sources about Jesus, asserting that the truth has been obscured on both sides. In this book, he puts forth the fruit of his “twenty years of in-depth study of Christianity and the New Testament”.[9]

According to Boteach, Jesus is actually an impressive scholar and a visionary[10] who never claimed to be divine. He is someone with whom the rabbis “have no problem whatsoever”.[11] [12] Boteach’s Jesus rebels against the Romans and is crucified by the Romans. End of story. Boteach hopes that by presenting Jesus as a Jewish freedom-fighter and sage, Jews will now embrace the impressive scholar and visionary he sees in Jesus.[13]

Boteach urges his Christian readers to focus on the humanity of Jesus.[14] In Boteach’s view, Christians, who are staunch supporters of Israel and the Jewish people should be able to get past the Jewish rejection of the “Christian Jesus” and expand their view of Jesus to include a Jewish Jesus, who fought for his country and was killed by the Romans.

Boteach’s retelling of the Church’s infancy offers little new information except for his views about Peter[15] who he claims is the author of an anti-Semitic document.[16] The resurrection claims of Jesus’ early followers are conspicuously missing in “Kosher Jesus”[17], an omission that would raise the eyebrows of his Christian readers.[18]

When turning to Paul, Boteach emphasizes that Paul distorted what the real Jesus stood for.[19] In a chapter entitled “Paul the Convert”, Boteach asserts that Paul’s claim of being a Pharisee is highly suspect. “The belief that Paul was a convert to Judaism dates back to the time immediately following Jesus’ death. The Ebionites, the remnants of the Jerusalem Church under the leadership of James (whom the New Testament and Josephus say was Jesus’ own brother), insisted that Paul was a non-Jew who had converted to Judaism”.[20] In reality, however, this is a theory that Maccoby himself (Boteach’s only source for this) admits is not a historical fact but rather something based on a single questionable fourth-century document.[21]

Boteach is understandably upset with Paul for distorting the message of Jesus. But in his zeal to discredit Paul he shoots himself in the foot.[22] Boteach mistakenly combines two of Paul’s teachings[23] in order to accuse Paul of misquoting and giving fraudulent meaning to a verse from Deuteronomy 21:23. [24]

Boteach also exposes the Gospel writers for their ineptitude in stitching together the data.[25] For example, he calls out the Gospel of John for being inconsistent with the synoptic Gospels by placing Jesus’ crucifixion on the second day of Passover instead of the first. Boteach found this mistake ironic since in temple times there was only one day on which the Pesach sacrifice was offered and eaten.[26]

Unfortunately, Boteach will find himself guilty on the same charge he brings against the author of the Gospel of John. In John, Jesus is not crucified on the second day of Passover; he is reportedly crucified on the day before Passover, at the precise time that the Paschal Lamb would have been brought to the Temple in accordance with Jewish Law. [27]

In trying to help his readers understand why Jews must reject Christian doctrines such as: original sin, the virgin birth, the messiahship of Jesus and the deity of the messiah, Boteach refutes these doctrines, appealing to logic as well as the Jewish scriptures.[28] He apologizes to Christians for doing so[29] making it clear to his audience that he has no problem with Christians believing these things[30], but for Jews he says, these doctrines are not acceptable.[31]

Bible-believing Christians may view this as hypocrisy, since Boteach’s assurance is that “Jews want Christians to observe Christianity”.[32] But then in a fiery response to his Jewish critics, he writes that he is trying to spread the Noachide covenant as per the wishes of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. [33] Surely Boteach is aware that according to the view of Maimonides[34] and the Lubavitcher Rebbe[35], a Christianity that worships a man as God (a practice Boteach strongly rejects[36]), has no place in the Noachide covenant.

At the same time, Jews will also have problems with Boteach’s propositions.[37] Judaism will never view Jesus as a prophet[38] and a holy man.[39] Does Boteach honestly expect the Jewish community to re-examine and learn the teachings of Jesus? [40] This suggestion contravenes rabbinic enactments against the study of non-Jewish sacred texts including the Christian Scriptures.[41] [42] Jews have never been, nor will they ever be quick to buy into anything that is associated with Jesus or with the Christian Scriptures. Since Boteach acknowledges that the teachings of the Christian Scriptures in their current form are unacceptable, his proposal to Jews is all the more perplexing.

In summation, despite Boteach’s good intentions, this book is a poor stab at presenting a scholarly view on Jesus. Boteach’s recommendations are an affront to Jews and Christians and will only appeal to those who are uninformed in matters of religion and history.

This review was prepared by Rabbi Eli Cohen of Jews for Judaism Australia.

Lately, we have been discussing Rabbi Shmuley Boteach’s new book, “Kosher Jesus.”  We also questioned whether Jesus really was kosher – meaning, did Jesus keep kosher?  I have always understood that although Jesus was something of a renegade rabbi, he still followed the laws.  That would mean that he did indeed keep kosher. I don’t know if that means you could call him a “kosher Jesus” – maybe he was more of a “Jesus kosher!”

Something I have always found interesting is the concept of the “Last Supper.”  From everything I have learned (and I did go to a Christian school before I became religious, so I learned something there!), Jesus did keep kosher.  I also learned that the Last Supper was really a Passover meal.  In fact, having done some research into it, it does appear that the Hebrew dates for when Jesus died indicate that his last meal would have been a Passover seder.

Because Jesus and his disciples kept kosher, he would have also followed all the laws of the Passover seder.  He would have eaten matzah and drunk wine. He would not have had any bread.  I know there are many paintings of the “Last Supper” out there and some seem to show him eating matzah while others show him eating bread.

Detail of the Last Supper painting in Peru, showing Jesus eating bread, guinea pig, and drinking chicha (corn liquor)

When Rabbi Ben and I were in Peru, we walked past the area there that houses the famous cathedral. Inside the cathedral is a famous painting of Jesus’s last supper.  This is a South American version and in it Jesus is definitely not kosher!  It shows Jesus eating a meal of bread and guinea pig, and drinking chicha (a kind of corn liquor).  All of these foods are very popular in Peru.  However, at the real “last supper,” “kosher Jesus” would certainly not have eaten any of these things! He would have had matzah instead of bread, lamb instead of guinea pig (which is not a kosher animal, ever!), and wine instead of corn liquor. (Just as an aside, it looks to me like he also has some local cheese on the table – and kosher Jesus would never have had cheese and meat on the same table at the same time and eaten them at the same meal!)

This just goes to show that how people interpret Jesus and his actions varies from culture to culture and place to place.  People want to feel “closer” to him, so they decide that he did the same kind of thing they would do.  It is very interesting to see that in Peru, people think Jesus would have been eating the same things as them, which guinea pig wasn’t even available in Israel at the time!

At any rate, Jesus probably did keep kosher, so this painting (and many other of the “Last Supper” paintings out there) are woefully inaccurate.

With all the talk in the media about Rabbi Shmuley Boteach’s new book “Kosher Jesus,” I got to thinking… What about the other way round, ‘Did Jesus keep kosher?’

Well I think he did, because he was a rabbi and an observant Jew. The New Testament says that Paul (one of the disciples of Jesus) did away with the law. Prior to this all of Jesus’ disciples kept kosher.

For me the whole Jesus story is quiet simple. Jesus was a rabbi who wanted to have mixed seating in the temple. Well actually it’s hard to know one way or the other, but basically Jesus wanted to start the Jewish conservative movement. At the time only Orthodox Judaism existed and he wanted things to be a bit more laid back. Thus the rabbis chucked him out. But Jesus had some followers and the story of Christianity began.

From the Jewish point of view there really is not much to the whole thing. Debating whether or not there could be a kosher Jesus… As in, could Jesus be ‘kosher’ as in ‘acceptable’ to Jews is just nonsense. From a Jewish theological standpoint the whole thing is rubbish and the only reason why Jews were ever debating could Jesus be kosher, is because they were forced by the church throughout history. Today we need to be aware of ‘kosher Jesus issues’ because of the many groups like ‘Jews for Jesus,’ Messianic Jews, and the like that try and entice Jewish people.

As for Shmuley Boteach using the title “Kosher Jesus,” I’d be willing to bet he himself did not want to use the tile, though “Kosher Jesus” works well from a marketing point of view. Consider Shmuly’s other books like: “Kosher Adultery,” “Kosher Sutra,” and “Kosher Sex.” However, Boteach still has many other books with other titles and perhaps could have kept the word kosher away from Jesus.

 Read more about Rabbi Shmuley Boteach’s new book, “Kosher Jesus” in my post from yesterday!

My last post was about Jews for Jesus in Australia. My friend Rabbi Eli Cohen in Sydney has been actively working for Jews for Judaism and doing counter-missionary work. I just finished discussing with him Rabbi Shmuley Boteach’s new book “Kosher Jesus.” Eli mentioned that he wrote a few thoughts of what he thinks about the book and agreed I could share it on Traveling Rabbi.

So here it is from Rabbi Eli Cohen:

My “personal” thoughts after reading the book “Kosher Jesus” cover to cover.

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach should have had more foresight into the public reaction to his book that was coming his way.

The title and the synopsis that Shmuley chose to use to promote his book was reckless and damaging. The immediate impression it has given the public is one that has caused irreparable damage.

The book’s suggestion that Christians have misunderstood their “savior” will undoubtedly offend many Bible-believing Christians; nevertheless, they may also see this book as an opportune tool for Jewish evangelism. The next time a Jew is approached by a missionary the question will be “what do you think of “Kosher Jesus”” ?
Many unsuspecting Jews upon hearing about this new book “Kosher Jesus,” written by an orthodox Rabbi, may suffice themselves with the title and a brief excerpt or synopsis available online and glean from it that Jesus is now “Kosher” without bothering to read the inside of the book. This is a real concern that Shmuley seems to have either overlooked or failed to fully appreciate.

HOWEVER, if you actually read the inside of it you’ll see that the content inside the book is not THAT bad/heretical (although I personally wouldn’t give it to anyone Jewish not already caught up with Christianity). I also wouldn’t say that Judaism needs to look further then its own sacred teaching to find moral and ethical values without any additional help from Shmuley pointing to the quotes recorded NT (which may or may not have been quoting Jewish sources) for confirmation.

His “scholarship” leaves much to be desired as he has made a number of serious mistakes both in regards to Judaism and even more so with regards to his understanding of Christianity and the NT.

His latest “Fiction Novel” (which is what I would call it) is a compilation of his personal opinions sprinkled with his fanciful imagination that he has vocalised at his debates with Christians. These view formed by Shmuley are inspired by the views of a British Jewish scholar of the University of Leeds, Hyam Mccoby OBM, and Shmuley’s obsession with “universal religious ethics”. In other words in Shmuley’s mind, Jesus and Shumley as so like-minded it’s frightening.

I personally would consider giving the book to “messianic” friends of mine that have a good sense of humour.

As someone who is in the anti-missionary field, I have a different concern. If Shmuley’s “Fiction Novel” is looked to as an authority for the Jewish response to Christianity, the Christians will make a laughingstock of the book and say “is this is the best response to Christianity that Judaism could come up with? Another “DaVinci Code”? The mistakes in the book reveal that author is lacking any serious familiarity with and understanding of both Christianity and the NT.”

As usual though, Shmuley does make some traditional and valid arguments against Christianity which are already well known by anyone who has ever dealt with this issue.

One remark to Shmuley, had you come to me or anyone else in this field, you could have received constructive criticism that would have helped the book pack a serious punch.