Shaggy

Cursed school presentations? Thank you!

I hate presentations 😂but who doesn’t?

'Good Jewish boy' or chief 'infiltrator'? NJ man spent years as fake rabbi in Israel, groups say

A self-professed “good Jewish boy from New Jersey,” Rabbi Michael Elkohen had come a long way.

In the ultra-Orthodox enclave in Jerusalem where Elkohen now lives, he was often called on to perform marriages, circumcisions and other sacred Jewish rituals. He was even hired to write Torah scrolls, handwritten copies of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, in a task typically reserved for the most devout and highly trained scribes.

But for 15 years, Elkohen was apparently living a lie. The father of five with the black hat, beard and side curls was fluent in Judaic texts and traditions but living a double life: Born Michael Elk in Salem County, he was actually a Christian missionary sent to the Holy Land to convert Jews, according to two anti-missionary groups whose accusations have captivated Israelis in recent days.

Elk’s tale has grabbed headlines across the Jewish state, where religious leaders see a growing trend of covert missionary work by evangelical Christians.

(…)

Elk “was a clearinghouse for missionary activity,” [Rabbi Tovia Singer, director of Outreach Judaism, a counter-missionary group in Jerusalem. ] said in an interview. “He was able to guide missionaries on where to go in Israel. The idea of these messianic groups is to blur distinctions in order to lure Jews who would otherwise resist the Christian message.”

(…)

The revelations have also raised questions about Elk’s late wife, Amanda, who claimed to be the daughter of Holocaust survivors and died of cancer in February. Her ties to the faith also appear to have been faked, meaning her Orthodox funeral in a Jewish cemetery would defy religious law.

Michael and Amanda Elk emigrated to Israel using forged documents and with the help of South Carolina-based Morningstar Missions, according to Beyneynu and Outreach Judaism.

(…)

Elk’s path to missionary work isn’t completely clear, but he appears to have served as a minister for a time in Olympia, Washington, according to Alan Brill, a professor of Jewish-Christian Studies at Seton Hall University. He published an online interview with Elk in 2012.

(…)

Michael Elk eventually ran a yeshiva for Messianic Jews and sought to raise his prominence in the Jewish community, said Beyneynu founder Shannon Nuszen. His five children attended ultra-Orthodox schools, and Elk worked as a scribe, rabbi and mohel, performing circumcisions. He claimed to be a “kohen,” a descendant of Aaron, the biblical high priest.  

All the while, he was working to coordinate missionary work in Israel, according to the watchdog groups. While living as a rabbi, Elk authored a book and anonymous blog posts about his work as an undercover evangelist, according to the Jerusalem Post.

(…)

“He’s the leader of this new variety of infiltrators who portray themselves perfectly as very religious Jews,” Nuszen said. “He teaches them everything from how to pronounce things correctly, how to dress, to the intricacies of Jewish law …. Michael has students and online followers all over.”

She estimates that there are about 30,000 missionaries in Israel, 300 organizations focused on evangelizing Jews and 200 websites dedicated to converting them.

Elk authored a book under the pseudonym “Orthodox Jewish Rabbi” for Morningstar Ministries, based in Fort Mill, South Carolina. In an interview, the group’s founder, Rick Joyner, recalled Elk attending Morningstar conferences and praised his “remarkable” religious knowledge.

“When people hear the word ‘missionary,’ they often think it means someone who is trying to convert them to Christianity, but that was not Michael’s intent,” Joyner said. “He was in Israel to help and to learn.” [Alexis’s note: That’s because that’s LITERALLY the definition of missionary.]

(…)

The controversy is likely to set back efforts to build bridges among Jews and Christians in Israel, said Jonathan Feldstein, a former Teaneck resident whose Jerusalem-based Genesis 123 Foundation focuses on such work.

“The deceit of a Christian family living literally in disguise as Orthodox Jews will only serve to highlight the long and sadly very bad history of Christians persecuting and forcefully converting Jews,“ he said.

i know its the mets, but this is the coolest shit i’ve ever seen a human being do

this blog hates donald trump

Look how many people hate him. I’m pretty damn happy about that 😁😁😁😁😁😁

Crow pumpkin he knows all. Ask him question of all expect where he gets the knowledge. #halloween #halloween2020🎃👻🕷️ #pumpkin (at Trader Joe's-Sarasota,FL) https://www.instagram.com/p/CG3wC_RHTC3/?igshid=cy3ucdkohto1

M-my mom

Child: *complains of mental illness symptoms*

Parents with undiagnosed mental illness: Everyone's like that 😘

Artist Asks!

Do you prefer traditional drawing, or digital?

How long have you been drawing?

How many classes have you taken?

Do you have a DeviantArt, personal website, or art blog?

What’s your favorite thing to draw?

What’s your least favorite thing to draw?

How often do you use references?

Do you draw professionally, or just for fun?

How much time do you spend drawing on an average day?

Are you confident about your art?

How many art-related blogs do you follow?

Is it okay for people to ask you about your process?

Do you prefer to keep your art personal, or do you like drawing things for other people?

Do you ever collaborate with others?

How long does an average piece take you to complete?

Do you draw more today than you did in the past, or do you draw less?

Do you think you’re justified in giving other people art advice?

What are you currently trying to improve on?

What is the most difficult thing for you to draw?

What is the easiest thing for you to draw?

Do you like to challenge yourself?

Are you confident that you’re improving steadily?

Do you draw more fanart, or more original art?

Do you feel jealous when you see other people’s art, or inspired? (Be honest!)

Do you like to draw in silence, or with music?

For digital artists: what program(s) do you use?

For digital artists: how many layers does a typical piece require?

For traditional artists: what medium do you like most? (Pencil, charcoals, etc)

For traditional artists: How do you usually start on a big piece? (Light sketch, colored lead, sketchpaper, etc)

What inspires you to not just make art, but to be a better artist?

Anti anxiety.

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This is the only tiktok you'll ever need, I've made about 13 of these and I'm not stopping anytime soon