Deut 6:4 is known as the Shema. The words of the Shema proclaim, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one!”

(In transliterated Hebrew, it is said: Shema Yisroael, adonoi* elohaynu, adonoi echad! )

Every one of the larger acrylic paintings begins with the Shema. If it is a painting that includes a sunset or sunrise, the whitest portion of the sun is created by using the letters from the Shema as strokes.

There are also small Shema paintings created only using the words (letters of the Shema). Currently the prints of these paintings are available as eBay Exclusives, through the UnGraven Image eBay Gallery and Studio store.

The Shema was given to Moses on Mount Sinai . Moses included it in his farewell address to the Israelites. Jews have been saying the Shema of all Shabbats and festivals, as commanded in Deut. 6:7, at the beginning of the day when one arises and at the end of the day.

Throughout written Jewish history, since the giving of the Ten Commandments, the Shema has been the most important prayer in Jewish life. Most Christians are quite familiar with the Ten Commandments, but do not realize the importance of the Shema.

It is well known that the early Christian writers were communicating with their contemporaries. They assumed a common culture and understanding. If Jesus, or later Paul who is credited with writing much of the Christian New Testament, were to have changed the customs regarding the Shema, it would have been commented on in the Gospels or writings on the New Testament, probably more than once as it would have been astoundingly revolutionary! Moreover, if Jesus was bent on our not saying the Shema in the customary ways, it would have had to be included in the Sermon on the Mountain, Last Supper discourse, or some other notable place. Nowhere in any of the writings about Jesus, including the Gnostic gospels and other writings not included in the Christian Testament, is this mentioned.

It is well known that the writers of the New Testament were writing for their contemporaries. They assumed a common culture and understanding. If Jesus, or later Paul who is credited with writing much of the Christian New Testament, were to have changed the customs regarding the Shema, it would have been commented on in the gospels or writings on the New Testament, probably more than once as it would have been astoundingly revolutionary. Unthinkable.

Moreover, if Jesus was bent on our not saying the Shema in the customary ways, it would have had to be included in the Sermon on the Mountain, Last Supper discourse, or some other notable place. No where in any of the writings about Jesus, including the Gnostic gospels and other writings not included in the Christian Testament, is this mentioned.

February 6, 2006