Nehemiah

The Ignorance and Arrogance of Rabbi Avi Shafran I was not surprised by the vile views expressed by Rabbi Avi Shafran, spokesman for Agudath Israel of America. I was surprised that he decided at this most sensitive time to publically blame Jews for the crime of trying to pray on the Temple Mount. There is no doubt that such an attitude both legitimizes and strengthens Arab violence with a rabbinic stamp of approval! In my eyes, Shafran’s comments border on the criminal and he should be…

The formation of a valid contact becomes useful in ways that allow individuals to have written verification of what was said, what has been agreed upon, and for how long if a time frame is presented. In the process of forming a contract all individuals involved have to realize that a valid contract includes agreements, consideration, contractual capacity, and legality. Beginning with agreement, “an agreement to form a contract includes an offer and an acceptance,” according to Roger Miller. An…

The slave quarters were usually hidden behind massive oak trees, out of the sight of the big house residents and their visitors. In most situations a skilled carpenter on the plantation spent his time constructing slave cabins in the quarters. Nehemiah Caulkins, provided testimony that indicates that slaves built their…

Introduction How many times have we all heard the saying, “it’s a woman’s’ prerogative to change her mind”? In looking at the Ancient Israelites and the journey they took through the Old Testament I see a lot of swaying back and forth in being close to God and then far away from God. So if there’s anyone else that can be likened to this indecisiveness of changing ones mind, it is the Ancient Israelites. Body The Old Testament is full of people’s relationship with God . Genesis is the…

Nehemiah von Hautsch Professor Rudin HIST 114 - 23492 Midterm Essay, First Draft 13 October 2017 Edge of Ethics Kabul, 1919. British aircraft bombed the city of Kabul, after declaration of independence from King Amanullah Kang. Although war had been going on for a while, Britain had purposely targeted civilians. Would Britain have done the same thing in 1819? It is hard to answer, because modern weapons didn’t exist yet. One thing is for sure, Britain proved time and time again that it did not…

Nehemiah, a Persian official, helped the Jews rebuild the city of Jerusalem. Ezra was a scribe and priest. They sympathized with the Jews in Judah who strayed from traditional worship, contributed in reforming, reorganize the Jews. Ezra collected essential…

In Nehemiah 8:1-18, there are not many questions that one can have; it is very straight forward. One question that one may have is why Ezra would demand that the people stop weeping out of repentance, and instead they should celebrate and feast as a community. At first glance it seems strange that Ezra would stop the Judeans from repenting. The most likely explanation for this seemingly strange demand is that it was the festival of trumpets, which is a celebration of God’s mercy towards the…

Jaeyoung Jeon, “The Visit of Jethro (Exodus 18): Its Composition and Levitical Reworking”, Journal of Biblical Literature, 136.2, 2017, 289-306 According to Jaeyoung Jeon Exodus 18 contains redactions by a Levitical scribe/scribal group. He intends to prove this claim by discussing the narrative of Jethro’s visit and how it connects with Exodus 3-4. After that he plans to look at verses 8-11 of Exodus 18 to look at the possibility of a reworking by comparing its language with that of later…

The author begins this chapter by writing about the usage of the book of Esther. How it it is read at the Feast of Purim in the twelfth month. It is interesting how Ruth is mentioned in the New Testament but there is no further mention of Esther neither are there any quotation from Esther used in the N.T. The author immediately highlights that the early church struggled to find value in the book of Esther. Quoting Martin Luther, the author writes, I am so hostile to the book [2 Maccabees] and to…

The Bubonic Plague was arguably the most devastating epidemic of the mid-fourteenth century, sweeping across Europe and wiping out one-third of the population. This epidemic was detrimental to schools, businesses, and families all across Europe. This also transformed into a time when God became ever present in the lives of those struck with fear of this mysterious, pestilent affliction. Surprisingly enough, even though the majority of people had procured this spiritual-mindedness, there were…