About Steven

I was born in Amityville, NY and moved to Commack (on Long Island) when I was 8. I went through high school there (Commack North) and to college at Temple University (Philadelphia) where I received a Ba in History.

I went straight into the Marine Corps as a 2nd Lieutenant, and at the end of the next 3 1/2 years was a First Lieutenant, Company XO in the Combat Engineer Battalion. The only Jewish officer in the Battalion, I may add. That meant that I was assigned the Officer of the Day every Christmas. Bah, Humbug!!

After my Honorable Discharge I spent about 12 years on Wall Street as a suit, managing different departments and ending up a Bank Officer writing programs for the Securities Processing Division at Marine Midland Bank.

I left there to run a successful business; after all, I had gone to school at night for 5 years to get my MBA and figured I should use it. I also thought that being close to home would save my (first) marriage.

I was wrong on both counts: the business never took off, but my life savings did, and the marriage ended up in divorce, as well. After almost 30 years of trying to be friendly and helpful, all I have received back is spiteful hate from the “ex”, and due to her influence, my children have been turned against me and both have rejected me.

I went from Wall Street to Sales, and I was very successful at it (once someone trained me correctly.) In 1995 I met Donna McGill, and a few years later we married. This one is the one! On August 26, 2015, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of our first date (the date from hell, I might add) and this February 7 (2024) we have been married 26 years. To this day, every kiss with Donna is like the first kiss.

Dad passed in August 2005 and in January 2007 Mom went to tell him all that he is doing wrong, wherever he is. I took the inheritance, which was enough for me to change careers, and applied it to get Microsoft and CompTIA certified as a computer technician and systems engineer. I was doing help desk and network administration, and despite the fact that I loved the challenge of the work, I was more than ready to retire, which I did as of 1 January 2017. I am now a retired “gentleman of leisure.”

Well, OK- let’s just leave with I am retired.

In 1997 I decided it was about time I made a decision about God. I had always felt something missing in my relationship, which was more of a non-relationship. I studied, talked to many people, and God sent many mature Christians, who understood that Jews don’t want to hear about Jesus, but Jesus is who all Jews need. I ended up accepting Yeshua (his real name) as my Savior and discovered Messianic Judaism, where I have grown in my faith and am more Jewish in both worship and practice than I ever was before. I have taken classes and have a Certificate of Messianic Studies, which would allow me to call myself a Messianic Minister (if I paid dues to the school, which I don’t).

I served at Temple Beth Emanuel in Northeast Philadelphia for 17 years, as Ministry Head for a few different ministries, and Rabbi Pro Tem (along with my other Council members) for a few years while looking for a new Rabbi after the Rabbi who really built it all up went into a different ministry (Jacob’s Hope) , which is helping thousands of Jews in the worst places in the world for Jews to live to make Aliya (return to Israel).

In May of 2013, Donna and I moved to Melbourne, Florida and we haven’t looked back. We are happy here; God provided the job I needed and in 2015 I found a place to worship where I felt right at home. It was a Hebraic Roots church, and in January 2016, they asked me to join the Council. I served in a role similar to what a Cantor would do and often would “fill in” for the Senior Pastor when he needed someone to deliver the message on Shabbat. That church had to disband in 2017 and I have concentrated on this ministry since.

Donna and I are tremendously blessed.

I wrote my first book, “Back to Basics: God’s Word vs. Religion” while living in Philadelphia and since then have written three other books: one on Prayer, one that is a commentary on each of the 54 weekly Torah readings called “Parashot Drashim“, and my most recent book called “The Good News About the Messiah for Jews- Debunking the Traditional Lies About the Jewish Messiah“.  You can find them under the heading “Books” on the Home page.

If you are interested in my Testimony, here’s is a really bad version of a really old video done over 29 years ago by the Assemblies of God, who used to help sponsor the Philadelphia Messianic Synagogue.