The Bible and Beyond Podcast Episode
The Jewish World of Jesus: A Modern Rabbi’s View
An Interview with Rabbi Evan Moffic
Rabbi Evan Moffic
Rabbi Evan Moffic, senior rabbi at a vibrant Reform Jewish congregation in northern Illinois, thinks Christians can understand Jesus’s words and works better – and Jews and Christians can understand each other better — by considering the Jewish world of Jesus more fully. In this podcast interview, he explains Jesus’s relationship to his students, why Jesus himself was not apocalyptic, the Jewish origin of his ‘Lord’s Prayer,’ and the spiritual purpose behind his miracle acts and healings.
Rabbi Evan Moffic is “one of the country’s most truly charismatic and thoughtful young leaders” (Dr. David Ellenson). His books, public speaking engagements, and podcast interviews are ubiquitous. Since 2009, Moffic has served as the spiritual leader of Congregation Solel in suburban Chicago. Committed to interfaith relations and sharing Jewish wisdom with the world, Evan lectures and teaches at churches and interfaith institutions around the country. He also writes for the Huffington Post and Beliefnet.com. One of his books, What Every Christian Needs to Know about the Jewishness of Jesus, is especially pertinent to this podcast interview.
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This podcast is a part of our series, “The Jewishness of Jesus.” For the series index, click here.
The Apocalyptic Kingdom of G*d in 1st Century Judaism
Mk.1:4,Mt.3:1-2/ John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness and proclaimed to everyone: Return to G*d. Repent of your sins and be baptized, for G*d’s Kingdom is about to arrive.
Mk.1:14-15,Mt.4:17/ After John was put into prison, Jesus went into Galilee and proclaimed the Good News from G*d: The time has come! Repent now! G*d’s Kingdom is at hand! Believe the Good News.
Mk.1:38-39/ Jesus told his followers: We must go to the nearby towns, so that I can proclaim to the people the Good News [G*d’s Kingdom will be here soon]. This is why I have come.
Mt.10:5-23/ Jesus sent out the twelve apostles with these instructions: Stay away from the Gentiles and don’t go to any Samaritan town. Go only to the people of Israel, because they are the lost sheep. As you go, announce that the Kingdom of Heaven will soon be here. I am sending you out like lambs into a pack of wolves. So be wise like a serpent and innocent like a dove. When people mistreat you in one town, hurry to another one. I promise you that before you have gone to all the towns of Israel, the Son of Man will come.
Mk.3:20-30,Mt.12:22-29,Lk.11.14-20/ Some Pharisees accused Jesus of using the power of satan to cast out demons. Jesus said to the people: Listen to me. Evil does not cast out evil. It is G*d’s power casting out demons to show you that G*d’s Kingdom is coming upon you.
Mk.8:38-9:1,Mt.16:27-28,Lk.9.26-27/ The Son of Man will come in his Father’s glory with the Holy angels. He will render unto everyone according to their deeds. If you are ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of you. In truth I tell you, some of you standing here today will not taste death. You will see the Son of Man coming with G*d’s Kingdom.
Mk.13:1-30,Mt.24:3-34,Lk.21:7-32/ [After Jesus described the Final Apocalypse and The Great Tribulation, he told the followers]: If you remain faithful, right up to the end, you will be saved. Then the Son of Man will be seen coming in the Heavenly clouds with great power and glory. He will send his angels to gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the Heavens. In truth I tell you, some of you now living will see all these things happen.
Lk.17:20-21/ Some Pharisees asked Jesus: Where is G*d’s Kingdom? Jesus answered them: You cannot point to the Kingdom of G*d. You cannot say: Look, it is over there, or Look, it is up there. For behold, you are in the midst of G*d’s Kingdom.
Romans.13:11-12/ You know what sort of times we live in, and so you should live properly. It is time to wake up. You know that the day when we will be saved is nearer now then when we first put our faith in the Lord. Night is almost over, and day will soon appear.
1.Cor.15:51-52/ I will explain the mystery to you. Not all of us will have died by the time the transformation arrives. It will happen suddenly, quicker than the blink of an eye. Then at the sound of the last trumpet, first the dead will be raised, and then all of us will be transformed together, never to die again.
1.Thess.4:15-18/ For this we tell everyone by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain alive until the coming of the Lord shall not precede those who have died. The Lord himself will descend from Heaven, give a loud command with the voice of an angel, and the righteous followers who have died will rise first. Then we, who remain alive, will be taken up into the clouds to meet our Lord in the sky, and we will be with our Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Phil.4:4-5/ Always be joyful because of the Lord! I say again, Be joyful! Be kind and gentle with one another because the Lord will be here soon.
Thank you, Shirley, for this contribution to Jewish-Christian dialog and understanding! My friend and colleague Rabbi David Zaslow, who is also involved in interfaith work, has written a book called Jesus, First-Century Rabbi. In this book’s section on The Jewishness of Jesus, Zaslow provides a breakdown of every line in the Lord’s Prayer, indicating the source of each (from the Torah, Talmud, etc.); the book is filled with gems like this, and I highly recommend it — for any Christian interested in understanding the Judaism practiced by Jesus (Yeshuah) and the world in which he lived. In my book, Seven Words to Freedom, Eight Days a Week: The Healing Power of Living Prayer, I take a deep dive into the original Hebrew of the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4) from an interfaith perspective — for Christians and Jews (and anyone in between) who want to carve out a more meaningful, practical faith.
Shirley, I just loved this podcast. There is so much new information, for me, and it is fascinating. You do find terrific scholars to interview and these conversations introduce topics that I think are important for all Christians to understand. I don’t have the scholarly background to add depth to the discussion, but you have piqued my curiosity! I also am impressed with the number of ancient languages Rabbi Moffic is able to read! Wow!
Shalom Rabbi Moffic and Dr. Paulson,
Thank you for this most interesting and courageous interview.
During a visit to Chicago earlier this month, I was able to visit the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures (ISAC) on the University of Chicago campus. This free exhibit was truly fascinating, especially from the perspective of the written word. The current special exhibit focuses on Akkadian speakers in Babylon, circa 1750 BCE, that had developed schools in order to preserve the Sumerian language. Rabbi Moffic, you mentioned that Jesus spoke Aramaic. The ISAC exhibit displays Jesus words in Aramaic from the Peshitta, the earliest writings of Jesus teachings in any language.
Also, thank you for your insights on the Lord’s Prayer, Rabbi Moffic. Chicago is home to thousands of native Aramaic speakers including Mandean, Assyrian, and Chaldean. The world needs to know about the significant contribution of the Jews to preserve Aramaic as well. God bless you for your work.
ܦܘܫ ܒܫܠܡܐ (Peace in Aramaic),
Roy Gessford
Author, Preserving the Chaldean Aramaic Language
Founder, Let in the Light Publishing
Rabbi Moffic’s interview contained so many insights and reminds me of an experience I had with Jewish Bible scholar Amy-Jill Levine. While I was directing a nonprofit in New England sponsoring scholars’ presentations on the Bible for the public, one of those scholars was Amy-Jill Levine. When she arrived for the weekend, the first request she made was to visit the local synagogue, so we set up a time with she could meet with them. The gist of her forthright message to them was that if they wanted to learn about first-century Judaism, they need only read the New Testament gospels as a primary source.
And I would highly recommend The Jewish Annotated New Testament (based on the NRSV translation) edited by Levine and Marc Zvi Brettler. From the back of the book: “Senior Jewish scholars–New Testament experts, Greco-Roman social historians, theologians, and others–jointly contribute to a complete New Testament with introductions to each New Testament book, annotations on every page of the text, and significant essays on New Testament backgrounds.” In fact anything that Amy-Jill Levine has written is accessible and full of insights.
Thank you Shirley for all that you accomplish on your wonderful website!