Hi Shmuel, wonderful to hear from you! You and all the other curators should be commended for the wonderful work you have been doing, especially over the last 2 months. So great to have Master Profiles that are touched by just a few; bravo!
About Biblical/Jewish projects…
Oh, there are so many I would like to see and be a part of (after the first of the year. Am busy getting my latest book published at present); perhaps some have already been done, while others might be impossible to clarify. Here are just a few for those of us captivated by the story of the Jewish Diaspora of the 1st Century CE (not all listed involve the 1st Century though)…
1. I would like to see information about Sarah, Queen of the Desert (wife of Abraham, said to be a convert by some), and Ishmael & understand what came of their children, from a historical point of view. This might edify the connections and differences between the Line of David and the Line of Mohammed. Many of us descend from both; which brings to mind the relationship between Solomon and Sheba, too. It seems that those of us who are Semitic through both traditions are affected by this major power couple too.
2. Some believe, James Tabor for one, me for another, that Jesus’ brother James was his successor, teaching Jews to live by the Noahide Rules and the teaching of Jesus, denying the rites of Pauline Christianity. Some feel that James, as well as Jesus, married and had children. This would be a fascinating project to undertake, but major up-to-date knowledge of archeology and language would be a must! This tree, of course, would involve Mary of Magdala, as well as Jesus, Mother Mary, Jose, Salome, Simeon, etc.
3. Chart the “70”: the cousins, close family and friends that traveled with Jesus for the last year and a ½ of his life. This group was founded after the death of John the Baptizer, for protection and a sense of belonging.
4. Find and chart the ONE Ashkenazi woman (DNA testing has proven this one woman actually existed) who fled the destruction of the 2nd Temple, fled to Lebanon and became the original Mother of the Druze, a complicated closed society that is, by creed, obsessed with genealogy. They worship Sarah, Queen of the Desert, and Abraham as their “original parents”. Women make up the majority of their Priest Class, for which they have been persecuted for 2,000 years, by Jews, Christians and, especially, by Moslems.
5. Chart the founders of Kabbalah in the 2nd Century CE. These founders created the foundation for modern Judaism after much of our laws and social structure were obliterated in the destruction of the 2nd Temple. To watch their journey through the centuries would be fantastic! Watch how they traveled through the Levant, to the Black Sea, down the Danube to Italy and Germany, others through the Ukraine and points north.
6. Would LOVE to see how the Jewish Gnostic movement of the 1st and 2nd Century CE Palestine & Egypt became the Gnostic “Christians” (non-Pauline) of Southern Europe, influencing the Cathare and the entire Occitan strip. Different from the Merovingians, they are a mystery indeed!
7. Study Nostradamus and his family. His grandfather converted under Queen Isabella (yes, she’s a grandmother too). Understanding how Nostradamus combined traditions of Kabbala, Sufism, pharmacology and magical elements gathered during the crusades, to form an Oracle system, only surpassed by the Torah Code.
Just a few off the top of my head; curious minds would like to know…
Thanks for the note, Shmuel, and once again, thank you for all your hard work on our behalf! Hope you and your family are well.
Kol Tuv,
Michael
