First book on this important find - the symbol that many feel was the "logo" of the first Messianic church, headed by James, brother of Jesus, on Mount Zion. Reviews the historical and archeological background of the seal, and its potential spiritual significance. Soft, 100 pages, with color photographs of the artifacts. Review: By Philip F. Woodward I found this book fascinating with an historical insight I didn't learn in seminary. The first Christian Church was Jewish, connected to Mount Zion where the Upper Room had been built over King David's tomb, and the first Christians used a symbol that combined the Menorah, Star of David, and Fish into one pattern. Within a few centuries, this symbol was reduced to just the Fish in the wake of Rome's purging of all Jewish characteristics out of Christianity. The book contains pictures of archeological strikes of the symbol that have been found - findings that have been suppressed by both Jewish Orthodox and Roman Catholic leaders. The first part of the book traces the backdrop and development of the Essene community, its Messianic connection with the House of David, and the elimination of its influence by the time of the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D. The second half of the book shows the significance of each part of the triune symbol and its meaning for Jews and Christians today. If the foundation of Christianity is Messianic Judaism, this book is central to an understanding of the Church's identity and future and rightly calls for a reconciliation of Jew and Gentile believers.

Author: Reuven Efraim Schmalz & Raymond Robert Fischer