Life in the Temple: The Mishnah

One of the sources I used as background information in my book entitled Advent Journeys is the Mishnah, a Jewish volume which has been called various things including Oral Tradition.  The Mishnah indeed contains some of the oral tradition of the teachers of Jewish law, but these collected writings also contain some writings intended to keep the Jewish tradition alive after the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans.

History records that the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed and rendered uninhabitable by Titus in 70 AD.  At that time the Jews including priests and the sanhedrin were expelled from the city.  Jerusalem lay in ruins until about 130 AD when Hadrian decided to rebuild the city.  In the process it became a Roman city called Aelia Capitolina.  THe Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt also occurred during this time period.

I am sure that after the destruction of the Temple on Tisha B'Av there were hopes that worship would be restored within seventy years as it was after the Temple fell to Nebuchadnezzar on the same day.  Hopes remained alive until Hadrian completed Aelia Capitolina with a temple to Jupiter on the site of the altar.  At that time members of the Sanhedrin realized all Jewish practices and tradition would be forgotten if not written down.  Rabbi Judah the Prince is credited with finalizing the writing of the Mishnah.

The Mishnah is actually six books of collected writings organized into what is sometimes called tractates.  These tractates are called and contain the following: Zera'im (Seeds) dealing with prayer; Mo'ed (Festival), pertaining to the Sabbath and the Festivals; Nashim (Women) concerning marriage and divorce; Nezikin (Damages) about civil and criminal law; Kodashim (Holy things), including sacrifices, the Temple, and dietary law; Tohorot (Purities) contains laws of purity and impurity.

Of great interest is that the Mishnah, written approximately 150 AD, contains relevant Jewish tradition and culture from the time of Jesus and the New Testament.  The Mishnah contains details of the construction of the Temple, the daily activities of the Priests, and much more.

It is interesting to note at this point that our faith and practices are fragile.  They will only endure for a generation if we fail to pass them on to our children.  A journal (such as this blog and my books) can hold the information and our passions for many generations.  The Advent project which produced both Advent Journeys  and Advent traditions for my family was intended to do both.

Finding Jesus of the First Century

   I was destined to be different.  I could not help it, for you see I was born into a Jewish home.  And while Heinrich Heine said, "The Jews are like everybody else only more so," we all know this is not exactly true.  While I was raised in a home of faith I was always taught to question and examine the beliefs of my people in order to fully understand each concept.  In this way I learned my faith.

   One point in my faith which escaped me was how to know 100% for sure that my name was written in the book of life.  I learned a process of seeking to be right with man and with God, but still, assurance was lacking.  Christian friends tried to tell me of how Jesus died for my sins, but I pushed them away ... until ... I read Psalm 22.  Within the words of this Psalm I saw Jesus on the cross in my scriptures.  Then I understood His sacrificial death and resurrection were the assurance of forgiveness and acceptance by God that I sought.

   At the age of 17 I condemned myself to really be different: I joined (and remained in) the Baptist church.  It should be fairly obvious that Reform Jews and Southern Baptists are both different.  And while on the surface I created an image to seem like a Southern Baptist, I continued to follow in the pattern developed in me since childhood: question and examine to fully understand each concept.

   It is not that I lived two lives, I simply learned to fit into the culture of the people with whom I lived, whether Jewish or Baptist, or Floridian, or Midwestern, or Western or Southern.  Even when I go on mission assignments, I seek to relate to people according to their preferred style so as not to create barriers.  I listen a lot (in order to learn), and seek to communicate so people can understand.

   In matters of faith I sought to put together the parts of my old faith and my new faith.  I learned from the people I was around, so I could share in a relevant way as a Baptist, and understand both Old and New Testament against the background of my Jewish heritage.  I met many people along the way who sought to break out of their faith by destroying all they had learned in order to come to something new.  I continued in my faith, never really finding a reason to destroy the faith because it worked for me.  Both Jewish and Baptist where they agree and disagree, I continued to question and examine and learn.

   In the process of my learning I checked a book out of the library called the Mishnah.  This volume could be called a preservation of Jewish tradition from the times in which Jesus lived.  The book contains quotes of the Rabbis and detailed instructions for carrying out the rituals and traditions of the Jews. 

   I began to explore, for my faith is a twenty-first century faith, and their faith was a first century faith.  Some things from both parts of my faith practices I took for granted, like dreidels and latkes at Chanukah did not exist in the first century; neither did yarmulkes, or the hymns in the Baptist hymn book.  I saw in the pages of the Mishnah details I had never seen about the faith of Jesus.  I was fascinated.

   Through reading about the practices of the Levites in the Temple and the Pharisees in the Synagogues I began to enter the world where Jesus lived.  Jesus was Jewish, and the foundation of the Christian faith.  To Him they were not different, but the same.  Jesus came to provide the path of salvation and to lead us to become closer to God.  The words of our New Testament had their origins in the first century faith of Jesus.  As I questioned and examined the words of the New Testament against the culture traditions in which Jesus lived they became even more real.

   I write books to help people understand the world of the first century, and the faith of Jesus.  I want Jesus to become alive for people so they can share in the reality of His love.