Spring is epic movie time on television. Each year, you can be assured that you will have an opportunity to see the classic Cecil B. DeMille version of The Ten Commandments. There will also be broadcasts of movies telling the Christian stories of the death and resurrection of Jesus, such as The Robe.

What these epics have in common – indeed, what Judaism and Christianity have in common – is a reverence for a book. That book is the Bible. Jews and Christians differ as to what constitutes the Bible. For Jews it is the Tanakh, an acronym meaning Torah, N’vi’im (Prophets), and K’tuvim (Writings). For Christians, it is what they consider the Old and the New Testaments. But all Jewish and Christian denominations agree that the Bible forms the foundations of their faiths.

Franklin has a wonderful tradition of interfaith dialogue and discussion. This month, we are taking that to a newer and higher level. Six houses of worship are coming together to learn about the Bible from an engaging Jewish teacher.

Dr. Joel Hoffman is known for his “fresh insights and interpretations about religious life in the 21st century.” He holds a Ph.D. in Linguistics and has served on the faculties of Brandeis University and Hebrew Union College. I have seen him teach, and he always connects with his audience.

He will be speaking about how “The Bible Doesn’t Say That.” As he says, “The Bible has been reinterpreted and misinterpreted almost from the day it was written, so most people reading the Bible now have very little sense of the original text.  We’ll peel back 2,000 years of revisionism and take a look at the Bible as it originally was.”

His presentation is cosponsored by our Temple and five churches here in Franklin: St. Mary’s Roman Catholic; St. John’s Episcopal; the United Methodist Church; the First Universalist Society; and the Franklin Federated Church. This will be a unique opportunity for Jews and Christians to learn together from a great teacher.

Dr. Hoffman will speak at the Franklin Federated Church on Monday, April 11, at 7:00. Please join us for this special evening for our community.

Then when you watch The Ten Commandments, you can see how accurate it might or might not be.

Eileen joins me in wishing all of you a zissen Pesach, a sweet Passover celebration.

Rabbi Tom Alpert