Hello Mishpocha ! Family ! Genesis 12:3 says of Avram (Abram), “in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed”. Now that’s the family I want to address in this letter.

Welcome to December 2006 newsletter to our visitors, old and new. Many things have been happening since we last wrote a newsletter and we are hoping that all those who received the previous letters will get this one too. One of the greater highlights is this new website. Our lead guitar player Doug Goodall (see The Band Page) is also a prime webmaster, he makes a living at it and this site is a flagship of his design. Doug has a vision to expand a web family of believers, Messianic and Christian within his organization, Intuzen. The plan is to host many sites under “Faith Tree” which is a Messianic term basically. Please feel free to browse our site as information grows and contacts and events and interests. You can also subscribe which means you’ll get these update regularly.

Joanne and I are now the Music Directors at Kehilat Ariel in San Diego under Rabbi Barney Kasdan, author of God’s Appointed Times and God’s Appointed Customs, two very popular Messianic Jewish books. We joined KA immediately after moving to San Diego from Colorado with the hope to make this place our home base yet God had BIG plans for us to be a major part of this vital ministry which has been here for 25years. In fact, November 18 th, Kehilat Ariel will be celebrating it’s 25 Year Silver Anniversary Fundraiser night on the Spirit of San Diego in the harbor. Wow, what a great event that will be as we gain ground to purchase our own Messianic Synagogue here in San Diego . As part of the Jewish community we will also be featured in a Community event in Old Town San Diego for a Chanukah Celebration (See the Gospel of John, Chapter 10). KA is fully committed to sharing the Jewish Gospel to this whole area. Please consider supporting this group, especially in prayer!

Another reason we moved here was to be with Eric’s Father and Mother in their latter years. Dad and I had always talked about moving to Oregon and living near each other but I wound up in Colorado for 21 years. After three years of assisting their lives (blessing’s on Joanne for being an adopted daughter for them, it wasn’t easy!) on December 30 th Margaret Eleanor Kragenbrink passed away. That same day Eric Jack Kragenbrink went into a comma and later died January 8. Although we couldn’t tell dad that mom was gone, I think he knew. I spent as much time as possible with both of them, reading scripture and singing to them (and the rest of the hospital). Sixty five years of marriage and they both left within a week of each other. It’s a new chapter in our lives and I am glad to have been there right to the end. Praise to The Mighty One—El Gibor!

We’ll have some great sections to enjoy in this newsletter. Joanne will be sharing Hebrew Gems, some tidbits that may draw you with fascination to the Godly language of scripture. It’s downright mystical. She will also share some recipes for the season, which may introduce some readers into what is Biblically Kosher. I will be sharing about The Goor Band and some Golden Nuggets of scripture. Deeper meanings from the mindset of The Chosen People (a special treasure) who learned it from God Himself. Far out!

Golden Nuggets. Did you know that the L-rd did not create the world in vain? (Is. 46:18). Some translations say void or that He made it for inhabiting. The word is toe’ hoo or confusion. Now curiously, in Gen 1:2 it says the earth was without form and void (to’ hoo). The idea is chaotic or chaos existed even though in Isaiah it says He didn’t create it that way. Now in reference we see in Jeremiah 4:23 “I beheld the earth and indeed it was without form and void”. So since He didn’t create it that way it must have become that way. Is that logical? Well it is in Hebrew logic! Most believers I know believe that in Genesis 1 God created all there is or the whole universe. Genesis or Beresheet means beginning. Strong’s says” the first, in place, time, order or rank (specifically a firstfruit): - beginning, chief (-est), first (-fruits, part, time), principal thing.” So is Genesis the first of everything or the first fruit, the fruit of the Oracles of God given through the Chosen People. In order for the world which God made to have become chaotic or confusing something upset that order. That is supported in that the bible begins with the Hebrew letter “Beit” which is the second letter of the Aleph-Bet. The argument is something existed before that, which makes sense as God always previously existed and He has His Kingdom of Heaven which is everlasting, like Him. One of His traits is that He is infinite, so what does beginning mean? So the beginning of all creation or of the whole universe, whatever extent that is if there is a limit, that is what began with the letter “Alef”. Woe…now things get interesting. Real deep (Ps 42:7). Back to Isaiah (Yeshaiyahu) where we started the Lord says to gather, draw near, counsel together…”a just God and a Savior, there is none besides Me. Look to Me and be saved, all you ends of the earth!” He is a Savior or Yeshua, the name of Jesus in Hebrew. That’s right, every time you see save or salvation the name of Yeshua is there. All through the Tenach or Old Testament. In fact, we can find Him, the savior, earlier than this recording. How early? Try the forth word in Gen 1:1. Remember when Jesus or Yeshua said I am the Alpha and Omega? Rev 1:9. Well in Hebrew, His language, that would be the “Aleph and Tav” or the first and last letters. This forms the word “et” and is found throughout the Hebrew scriptures. Every where there is hardly a page without it. It’s called a specifier and Yeshua said He is “et”. So what is the fourth word? Et. And the fifth word is Heaven or HaShamayim. The Savior of the Heaven who rids the earth of chaos, confusion and makes it inhabitable. Yeshua is where it’s “et”.

To finish, what are we saved from? The confusing un-inhabital world that is chaotic because of:

Isa 14:12 How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, who laid the nations low!

Isa 14:13 You said in your heart, "I will ascend into heaven! I will exalt my throne above the stars of God! I will sit on the mountain of assembly, in the far north!

Isa 14:14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds! I will make myself like the Elyon!"

Isa 14:15 Yet you shall be brought down to She'ol, to the depths of the pit.

This one introduced accusal of the brethren, deception, in-fighting that shook heaven and caused divorce of a third of heaven and was cast down to the place we reside. Remember Babel or confusion? His habits are not those of the kingdom yet he rules this world, temporally. So why not circumvent his effects on you by living your life for the Savior now? If not now, when?

Did you know that Woe in Hebrew is usually Oy? Did you know that in the word Torah, is the root word for light or Ohrah? See John (Yochanon) 3:19. The Torah has been called “the light” for centuries. Yeshua, the Light of the World or Ohr Ha Olam. The Living Word of God (Devarim Elohim) that became flesh:

Col 1:15 who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. ß Et Adonai!

Heb 1:3 His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance…(read it all)

Shomer HaEmunah…keep the faith. Eric.

Hebrew Gems

Hebrew, What an incredible language! I have found that there is no other language like it on earth.

A single letter has depths of meaning and gives fullness to the other letters accompanying it. How like our Lord to give us an example of how to live our lives in a letter of the Alef-Beit. Our call is to share our hope with others around us, and in so doing, enliven them and encourage them to better work. And hopefully they will do the same with another and etc.

For the past several years, I have studied the Ancient“PALEO” Hebrew. And through it, the Lord has opened up a whole new understanding of the letters and their meanings. It also came to my attention that Several Universities and Colleges have begun to teach Hebrew using the “Paleo” for the purpose of personal translation. Each letter has it’s own natural meaning, unlike English, and that is why Hebrew is a simple yet profound language. Through “Word Pictures,” associations are made, much like Egyptian heiroglyphics tell a story. Although these Ancient letters may seem vague and indescript to the casual observer, the characterics of the object are part of it’s interpretation. I encourage you to study this out. You will not be disappointed.

In this study I will refer to Ancient word pictures as “NATURAL meanings”

Ancient Hebrew letters were used until the time of the Babylonian captivity of the Children of Israel. (605 BCE) While in Babylon , the letters we use today, were developed. Scholars, and Rabbis who have studied these letters for centuries have also gleaned a more spiritual connotation for the letters. I will refer to these as “SPIRITUAL meanings.”

To begin, take a look at the first two letters of the Alef-Beit:

ALEF is a silent letter, it has no sound without help from vowels. Alef means “OX”. The Ancient Hebrew letter even looks like the head of an ox. The NATURAL meaning follows it’s characteristics:

The SPIRITUAL meaning of ALEF has to do with “God’s Oneness and Mastery” I will reference some books later if you choose to follow these meanings more fully.

You may ask: “So What use is a silent letter?” There are only two silent letters in the Alef-Beit and they are used primarily for proper spelling of words. Hebrew uses a system of “Root Words”. Most are three letter roots and some are two letter roots. To these are added prefixes and suffixes, that expand the meaning similar to our usages for these forms. After we have explored our next letter, I will give an expanded example for you to ponder.

BEIT makes a sound like our English B as in “Bait” (that is the proper pronunciation of the letter as well. )

VEIT is it’s sister letter. It makes a sound like our English V as in “Vine” it looks the same except it doesn’t have the “DAGESH” (dot) in it. DAGESH means “emphasis”. (Hard sound B (emphasis), soft sound V.)

Beit and Veit are used similarly and treated as one letter. Think of them as Brother and Sister.

BEIT means “HOUSE”. The Ancient Hebrew letter even looks like the house or tent. The NATURAL meaning follows it’s characteristics: In/Inside, Into, Family, Within, Amid.

The SPIRITUAL meaning of BEIT has to do with “Blessing/Creation - Duality/Plurality”

So if we use these two letters, We can spell the word Father “AV” or in more familiar terms “ ABA ”.
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(Spelled “Alef - Beit” & “Alef - Beit - Alef “ respectively)

Oh … by the way…. Hebrew is written from right to left.

The Natural meaning of Father could be interpreted: “The Strength Within is the Leader”. God is our strength within and He is the Leader, or humanly speaking: The father of the house is the strong one, he rules the house from within as the leader. Both interpretations are sound. Even the letter ALEF shows strength in it’s silence and BEIT is all about what’s inside. “INNER STRENGTH”

You may see a totally different interpretation, and that’s Ok. Of course all human understanding is subject to corruption, so I purposely look for Godly characteristics in the interpretation.

The Spiritual meaning of Father could be interpreted: “God’s Oneness Blessed Creation w/ Mastery”

What an awesome job He did with the creation of man! The human body alone speaks of unfathomable mysteries. If the Earth were made up of elements, in any other order, it would explode or implode! Now that’s mastery.

Next newsletter two more letters, and the intrigue deepens!

Submitted by

Joanne Kragenbrink