UPDATE - July 29, 2026 (EST)

Dear Readers,

It's close to two years since I did anything with this website. In fact, the whole website was a state of stasis since September 13 of 2024. One could have even gone as far to say that this site was dead.

But I'm reviving it.

What happened the past two years? Well, among other things, I focused on completing my coursework for my M.A. in the Bible and the Ancient Near East program at the Rothberg International School of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Without dwelling on the details, the studying and workload that came becoming a post-graduate student devoured most of my time, and I sadly neglected this site during that time.

I have not technically finished my degree program yet. HOWEVER, I completed all the coursework for the program, and I am wrapping up the final requirements necessary for me to officially graduate.

With more free time on my hands, I decided that this summer I would finally resume updating this website.

And what better date than today, July 29, the day that, three years ago, I first saw "Barbie"?

Now, to be fair, it is actually July 30, 2026 in Jerusalem, where I am currently writing this. HOWEVER, when factoring in the time zone difference between Jerusalem and the U.S. East Coast, about now is the time that, three years ago, I saw "Barbie" in theaters.

Given the themes of spirituality, religion, gender, and individual exaltation that I have explored both in this website and my graduate studies, it seems intuitive for me to share some of the essays I wrote for classes that I took in the past two years.

So, as part of today's resumption of this website, I'll be posting two essays that I wrote earlier this year. The first was written for a class titled The Jacob Cycle in the Book of Genesis and focuses on the character of Dinah in Genesis chapter 34. The second was written for a class titled Expectations of the End in Late Second Temple Judaism and explores different ancient forms of Messianism.

Now, will I be regularly updating this website?

Maybe.

Honestly, I'm not committing myself to anything - It's been close to two freakin' years since I touched this website, so I'm not promising anything to anyone in regards to the site.

Regardless, I do plan to continue keeping this site and adding content to it (at whatever pace I choose to).

Seeing "Barbie" and the character of Blonde Ken had a notable effect in my decision coming to Jerusalem to studying the history and origins of the Biblical texts and the religions that developed out of them. I am writing with a view of the Old City of Jerusalem to my left. As I write this and glance towards the Temple Mount, I can't help but think that I perhaps wouldn't be here right now if I hadn't seen "Barbie" by a sort-of-accident three years ago (if it weren't for the "Barbenheimer" phenomenon, I wouldn't have bothered to see it).

But I did see it, and here I am.

I'm not sure what my future entails, but let's see where I end up going.

Wishing you all the best,

D.S. 

Daniel Silverman

1:20 am, July 30, 2026 Jerusalem Time/

6:20 pm, July 29, 2026 EST