In a world in which cross-culturalism is as easy as clicking on a youtube video, one would expect many people around the world to break out of their own cultural shell and explore other walks of life. This certainly does happen, however, not as often as one might think. While clicking on a youtube video and exposing one’s self to a sound byte from a different culture is accepted, delving into and learning seriously about another culture, is often reserved for the academic field in colleges and universities, where professors who are not necessarily coming from the culture that they are teaching, share a removed academic look into the kaleidoscope of cultures across the globe. To really get a feel for understanding a culture one should seek out masters of that culture, people at the very heart and root of it,  and get the information from the source.

An organization aptly named Root Source is doing just that, by providing online courses taught by Israeli Jews, who are well versed in their respective fields. These courses are geared towards Christians who wish to gain a deeper understanding of the spiritual roots of Judaism, and hence a deeper understanding of the daughter religion, Christianity.

The organization’s website states that their mission is to create a forum wherein; “Knowledgeable, Orthodox Israeli Jews teaching Christians around the world online about Jewish concepts, ideas and thought, to more deeply understand the roots of their faith, in an informal and loving manner.”

The aim of Root Source, which was co-founded by an American Christian and an Israeli Orthodox Jew, is to create a dialogue and relationships between Christians and Jews, while empowering Christians to learn like Jews have been learning for centuries.  Root Source gives the Christian student access to world-class Jewish biblical teachings online. The program is aimed to help the students learn on a deeper level while striving to reach deeper levels of connectivity with their own faith. The opportunity is also provided to ask any question openly.The style of learning is of a paramount importance but so is the relationship that is created between the teachers and the students.

“Our Israeli Jewish teachers know you are a Christian, and respect your identity and your faith,” reads the website, and indeed that has proven to be the case.

Bob Odell, one of the founders of Root Source told Breaking Israel News that the big change in modern history in the relationship between Christians and Jews is that; “Israeli Jews are taking the initiative and reaching out to make the connection to Christians.” Israelis are becoming interested in what the rest of the world thinks about them and about Jews, and are therefore making an effort to create stronger bonds and relationships with the Christian world.

Root Source is at the heart of that change, and hopes to continue to strengthen and promote this relationship as well as a true understanding fro Christians as to the Jewish roots of their faith.