Beit Ariel Messianic Jewish Congregation

03/09/2026

Healing and Teshuvah
Rabbi Jan Uhrbach, Director of the Block / Kolker Center for Spiritual Arts

The Talmud in Masekhet Yoma 86a makes an extraordinary statement:
אָמַר רַבִּי חָמָא (בַּר) חֲנִינָא: גְּדוֹלָה תְּשׁוּבָה שֶׁמְּבִיאָה רִפְאוּת לְעוֹלָם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: “אֶרְפָּא מְשׁוּבָתָם אוֹהֲבֵם נְדָבָה
Rabbi Hama bar Hanina said: Great is teshuvah, as it brings healing to the world, as it is stated: “I will heal their backsliding. I will love them freely” (Hosea 14:5).
While possibly an example of rabbinic hyperbole intended simply to emphasize the significance of teshuvah, nevertheless the connection of teshuvah (the central spiritual task of the High Holy Days) with refuah (healing) is intriguing and inviting of inquiry.
For one thing, what kind of healing is being referred to? Perhaps it is spiritual healing only, and specifically the costly residue of sin. But the text itself neither defines nor limits healing, and the reference seems quite broad. Commentators have understood it to encompass healing of bodily illness or injury, as well as emotional or spiritual woundedness and, indeed, suffering or brokenness of all kinds: whether personal or societal, in the world as we know it, and in mystical realms regarding which we may only sense an inkling.

Healing and TeshuvahRabbi Jan Uhrbach, Director of the Block / Kolker Center for Spiritual Arts The Talmud in Masekhet Yoma 86a makes an extraordinary statement:אָמַר רַבִּי חָמָא (בַּר) חֲנִינָא: גְּדוֹלָה תְּשׁוּבָה שֶׁמְּבִיאָה רִפְא...

03/09/2026

The Story of God's Hagar By Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Girzhel
How an Egyptian slave, noticed by YHWH, became the mother of a mighty nation.
The story begins with Sarai, the wife of Abram, who had long lived with the pain of infertility. Genesis earlier describes her as ‘aqarah (עֲקָרָה), “barren” (Gen 11:30). In the ancient world, where childbearing was closely tied to family continuity, inheritance, and social standing, Sarai’s condition carried enormous emotional weight, especially in light of God’s promise that Abram would become the father of a great nation.
After years of waiting, Sarai proposed a culturally recognizable but emotionally dangerous solution. She gave her Egyptian slave woman, Hagar, to Abram so that a child might be born through her (Gen 16:1–3). Genesis strikingly says that Sarai gave Hagar to Abram l’ishah (לְאִשָּׁה), “as a wife,” even though Hagar continued to occupy the subordinate status of Sarai’s slave woman.

The Story of God's Hagar By Dr. Eli Lizorkin-GirzhelHow an Egyptian slave, noticed by YHWH, became the mother of a mighty nation.The story begins with Sarai, the wife of Abram, who had long lived with the pain of infertility. Genesis earlier describes her as ‘aqarah (עֲקָרָה), “barren” ...

03/09/2026

PARASHAT NITZAVIM VAYEILECH
- נִצָּבִים־וַיֵּלֶךְ
Deuteronomy 29:9-31:30; Isaiah 61:10-63:9, John 12:41-50

The Greatness of Repentance
Why is there more joy in heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine who don’t need to repent?
A person should repent every day. No one is so holy and righteous that he does not need to repent. Neither is any person so lowly and sinful that he cannot repent.
Moses told the children of Israel that when they returned to God, He would return to them:
Return to the LORD your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you today, with all your heart and with all your soul. (Deuteronomy 30:2)
The concept of returning to God is called “repentance” (teshuvah). It is one of the most important messages of the Bible. Repentance is a central thrust of Yeshua’s teaching and the Gospel imperative. Yeshua’s message was “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). What is true repentance? https://www.beitariel.org/single-post/parashat-nitzavim-vayeilech-%D7%A0-%D7%A6-%D7%91-%D7%99%D7%9D-%D7%95-%D7%99-%D7%9C-%D7%9A

03/09/2026

Our High Holy Days Schedule of Events

Leviticus 23:4
These are the appointed feasts ( מוֹעֲדֵי יְהוָה) of ADONAI,
holy convocations (מִקְרָאֵי קֹדֶשׁ ) which you are
to proclaim in their appointed season.

Beit Ariel invites our community, their families and friends, to come together in reflection, prayer, and celebration
for the upcoming
HIGH HOLY DAYS SERVICES

Schedule of Festivals

🍎 Rosh HaShana/Yom Teru’ah – Jewish New Year/Trumpets

• Erev Rosh HaShana | Friday, 11th September at 18h15

• Rosh HaShana morning service Saturday, 12th September at 10h00

⚖️ Yom Kippur - The Day of Atonement

• Erev Yom Kippur (Kol Nidre) | Sunday, 20th September at 18h15

• Yom Kippur Morning Service | Monday, 21st September at 10h30

🌿 Sukkot – The Feast of Tabernacles

• Erev Sukkot | Friday, 25th September at 18h15

• Sukkot Morning Service | Saturday, 26th September at 10h00

📜 Shmini Atzeret/Simchat Torah – Rejoicing in the Torah

• Shmini Atzeret (Morning Service) | Saturday, 3rd October

• Simchat Torah (Evening Service) | Saturday, 3rd October


Wishing you and your family a sweet, healthy,
and blessed New Year.

27/08/2026

First Fruits of Zion - New Torah Club Study
Commencing on October 4th 2026

Shalom from Jerusalem,

Registration is now open for the 2026–2027 Torah Club. This year brings an exciting new study track,

The Narrow Path - Yeshua’s Teachings That Lead to Eternal Life.

Who is this study for? As disciples of Yeshua, we need only look to 1 John for the answer:

“By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.” (1 John 2:3–6)

You may believe you know Him, but John says the proof of knowing the Messiah is obedience, and the proof of abiding in Him, is walking as He walked. That is the test every disciple faces.

Do we know Yeshua’s words well enough to obey them, well enough to walk as He walked in an ordinary week, in ordinary relationships, under ordinary pressure?

The Narrow Path was designed to answer those questions.

It moves past just information about the Jewish Jesus and into the practical demands of following Him: how we live, how we speak, how we treat one another, how we remain faithful when the culture around us pulls the other way. It’s Yeshua’s words studied until they become obedience.

John 6:68 - “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

Friends, that is a narrow path indeed. You don’t have to walk it alone.

The new cycle begins this October. Join us on the narrow path.

Grace and Peace,
Boaz Michael
Founder and Director
Jerusalem, Israel

(Our Torah Club near Durbanville has been running for over eight years and currently, we meet online every Wednesday evening from 7.00 pm – 9.00 pm. Our members are local plus other from America, the U.K. and Israel.

If you are interested in joining our Torah Club, or you have any questions, you can contact me on [email protected])

27/08/2026

Friday 28th August - Bring 'n Share supper

This coming Friday, 28th September, is the final service of the month of August, and therefore, we will enjoy a bring 'n share meal after our service. Our meals are 'milchik' i.e. no meat and chicken products.

Bring a platter of ready made sandwiches (egg, cheeses, tuna etc). Bring salad sticks with dips. Bring vegetable samosas, a fruit platter, assorted cheeses with crackers.Bring fruit juices etc etc Remember, it is a finger styled supper and so, no cutlery is provided.

Leigh will lead the worship and Mandla will bring the d'rash (sermon). All are welcome to join us for a time of fellowship.

Erev Shabbat Service commences at 18h15

27/08/2026

The Misunderstood Messiah Michael A. Youssef

Palm Sunday is often called the Triumphal Entry—but in truth, it was a deeply sorrowful entry. As Yeshua rode into Jerusalem, the crowds shouted “Hosanna!” with great expectation. Yet while they envisioned a conquering king, Yeshua saw something very different—the ex*****on stake that lay ahead. Their cries for salvation imagined a throne; He saw nails, thorns, and sacrifice.
This is the tension of Palm Sunday: gladness mixed with grief.
Luke tells us that as Messiah approached the city, He wept. He wept because the people did not understand what would bring them peace. They wanted a political deliverer—but Jesus came to deal with something far deeper:

THE BO***GE OF SIN.

The Misunderstood Messiah Michael A. Youssef Palm Sunday is often called the Triumphal Entry — but in truth, it was a deeply sorrowful entry. As Yeshua rode into Jerusalem, the crowds shouted “Hosanna!” with great expectation. Yet while they envisioned a conquering king, Yeshua saw something v...

27/08/2026

Mishkan: Being Presence M.J. Rabbi Isaac Roussel
For the Month of Elul
כִּי יִצְפְּנֵנִי בְּסֻכֹּה בְּיוֹם רָעָה יַסְתִּרֵנִי בְּסֵתֶר אָהֳלוֹ בְּצוּר יְרוֹמְמֵנִי
Ki yitzpenenini besukoh beyom ra-ah yestiteini beseyter
ahaloh betzor yerom’meni
“For He will hide me in His shelter in the day of misfortune. In His sheltering tent He hides me: He lifts me up on a rock”

Commentary:
The image shifts suddenly. In the first half of the verse, David speaks of being hidden. God shelters him in a sukkah, conceals him in the secret place of His tent, and draws him near. The language is intimate and protective, like a child gathered into the safety of a parent’s home.
But the verse does not end with hiding. David says, “He will set me high on a rock.”
The same God who shelters also establishes. The same God who hides us for a season eventually raises us to stand on firm ground.
https://www.beitariel.org/single-post/mishkan-being-presence

27/08/2026

Entering Yeshua's Anguish for His People
Rabbi Stuart Dauermann, Shuvah Yisrael, Plainview, New York

Our Focus for the Forty Days of Teshuvah. https://youtu.be/B6miFy_uDaI
We are now in our tradition’s most intensive season of repentance and prayer, the forty days from the first of Elul to Yom Kippur (August 13–September 21). But a moment’s reflection will reveal that this season should not simply be about us and our sins, our forgiveness, and our concerns.

Beyond that, as members of a Kingdom of Priests, we are called to struggle in prayer to help rectify the cosmos, “looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God” (2 Peter 3:12). Beyond praying for ourselves, we are called to pray for the salvation of Israel, the nations, and all that is. Yes, really. Entering Yeshua's Anguish for His People
Rabbi Stuart Dauermann, Shuvah Yisrael, Plainview, New York

Our Focus for the Forty Days of Teshuvah. https://youtu.be/B6miFy_uDaI
We are now in our tradition’s most intensive season of repentance and prayer, the forty days from the first of Elul to Yom Kippur (August 13–September 21). But a moment’s reflection will reveal that this season should not simply be about us and our sins, our forgiveness, and our concerns.

Beyond that, as members of a Kingdom of Priests, we are called to struggle in prayer to help rectify the cosmos, “looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God” (2 Peter 3:12). Beyond praying for ourselves, we are called to pray for the salvation of Israel, the nations, and all that is. Yes, really. Entering Yeshua's Anguish for His People
Rabbi Stuart Dauermann, Shuvah Yisrael, Plainview, New York

Our Focus for the Forty Days of Teshuvah. https://youtu.be/B6miFy_uDaI
We are now in our tradition’s most intensive season of repentance and prayer, the forty days from the first of Elul to Yom Kippur (August 13–September 21). But a moment’s reflection will reveal that this season should not simply be about us and our sins, our forgiveness, and our concerns.

Beyond that, as members of a Kingdom of Priests, we are called to struggle in prayer to help rectify the cosmos, “looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God” (2 Peter 3:12). Beyond praying for ourselves, we are called to pray for the salvation of Israel, the nations, and all that is. Yes, really. https://www.beitariel.org/single-post/entering-yeshua-s-anguish-for-his-people

Entering Yeshua's Anguish for His PeopleRabbi Stuart Dauermann, Shuvah Yisrael, Plainview, New YorkOur Focus for the Forty Days of Teshuvah. https://youtu.be/B6miFy_uDaIWe are now in our tradition’s most intensive season of repentance and prayer, the forty days from the first of Elul to Yom Kippur...

27/08/2026

Saturday 29th August 2026 16th Elul 5786
PARASHAT KI TAVO - כִּי־תָבוֹא - - “When you enter in”
Deut. 26:1-29:9 (29:8 in TaNaCH); Isaiah 60:1-22; Matt 4:13-24

In the days of the Temple, the farmers in Israel were obligated to give an annual tithe to Levites then take a second tithe for festival expenses and sharing with the poor. In addition to the tithes, the farmers of Israel were to offer the first fruits of their produce.

You shall take some of the first of all the produce of the ground which you bring in from your land that the LORD your God gives you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place where the LORD your God chooses to establish His name. (Deuteronomy 26:2)

The principle of offering first fruits means that when God prospers us, we are to show our gratitude by returning a portion to Him in the form of charitable gifts for the poor and financial support for those who do the work of the kingdom.

BEIT ARIEL Messianic Jewish CongregationNG Tamboerskloof, corner Upper Union Street & Kloof Nek Road. [email protected] www.beitariel.org tel 082 339 9944Beit Ariel Acc ABSA, Sea Point Branch Acc number: 4049515399 Saturday 29th August 2026 16th Elul 5786PARASHAT KI TAVO - כִּי...