The Vision

 

The Forgotten Messianic Texts

Resurrection is central to Jewish and Christian hope and belief. Vine of David is dedicated to resurrecting the voices of Messianic luminaries and bringing back forgotten Messianic texts of the past. The mission of Vine of David is to reveal Yeshua as the light to the nations and as the glory of the people of Israel.

Through Vine of David we want to create a vehicle through which the brilliant scholarship and unique perspectives of the Messianic pioneers can be transmitted to today's readers. Most of their works were written in German or Hebrew and require translation.

Their work and their stories provide the modern Messianic Jewish movement with a much-needed sense of rootedness. It reminds us that we are not just a late-twentieth-century, North-American phenomenon, but rather the result of God's Spirit moving for more than a century. They remind us that we have our own scholars, our own heroes, and our own saints.

Liturgical Resources for Today

Vine of David is also dedicated to the creation of Messianic liturgical resources. The Messianic movement has generated copious amounts of adapted liturgies for Sabbaths, Passover Seders, and so forth. Though these have been important contributions to a fledgling movement, we have yet to see serious works which address the breadth of traditional sources, follow consistent translation standards, integrate ancient apostolic traditions, provide competent commentary, and publish to a high standard of quality.

Too long we have sojourned in the valley of photocopied liturgies, power-point prayers, and erratically truncated prayer books. If we are ever to be taken seriously or even to take ourselves seriously, we need to begin producing quality resources that can span across our congregational divides. Moreover, we need to be looking toward developing liturgical resources for the distinctive points of Messianic expression such as burial, immersion, resurrection, lifecycle events, etc.

Vine of David will offer us the venue to begin to develop these types of resources. We will endeavor to keep these resources as theologically neutral as possible so that they will prove to be an asset to all factions within the Messianic Jewish movement. We want Vine of David to provide common ground in the divided world of Messianic thought and practice.

Messianic Apologetics

Vine of David is eager to rise to the defense of the Messiah by answering legitimate questions about Yeshua, Jewish objections to the Gospel, and criticism of the New Testament. The early pioneers of modern Messianic Judaism labored to demonstrate the validity of Yeshua's claim as Messiah of Israel to their fellow countrymen. Today's Messianic movement is built upon their efforts, but recently, anti-missionary propaganda has begun to take its toll on believers in Messianic Judaism and Christianity both. Vine of David will restore and reprint classic refutations of anti-missionary teaching.

Additionally, we hope to expand this website and our resources to provide biblically sound answers to questions being raised today. Unlike Christian apologists, we are able to answer Jewish objections to the Gospel from the context of traditional Jewish sources and from a theological perspective that is in concert with Jewish sensibilities. To that end, we freely marshal a vast array of Jewish sources, including texts like the Talmud, the Midrash, the classic commentaries, and even mystical works like the Zohar to prove that the message of the Gospel is consistent with the teachings of classical Judaism.

Eventually, we hope to have the funds available to write point-by-point responses to anti-Yeshua material published today and even to retain a dedicated staff-member who can work specifically with people and congregations in the Messianic movement who find themselves troubled by criticisms of the New Testament. Vine of David exists to reveal Yeshua as the light to the nations and as the glory of the people of Israel.

Download the White Paper

Read more about our Vision in the white paper:
The Vision of Vine of David