Jerry Pollock is the author of seventy-five scientific publications. His background includes both a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Pharmacy from the University of Toronto, a Ph.D. in Biophysics from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, and Postdoctoral training in Microbiology at the New York University School of Medicine. Dr. Pollock is currently Professor Emeritus in the Oral Biology and Pathology Department in the School of Dental Medicine at the State University of New York at Stony Brook on Long Island. Jerry’s first writer of the arts book, Divinely Inspired: Spiritual Awakening of a Soul, was a spiritual memoir originally published in 2003. The second edition of Divinely Inspired will be reissued in Paperback on Jan. 1, 2009. His ‘not so fictional’ novel, Messiah Interviews: Belonging to God, due out also on Jan. 1, 2009, is Jerry’s way of giving back to the Creator. Jerry is married to Marcia, his bashert or destined one. They reside in Florida.
For more about Jerry and his work, please visit http://www.shechinahthirdtemple.org/
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Ever since the Creation of Adam and Eve, man has grappled with knowing whether life exists after death. Because humans achieve the possible, while God accomplishes the impossible, only the Creator knows our fate and destiny at the End of Days. Scientist Jerry Pollock weaves his Messiah Interviews story of an imperfect life on Earth with an imaginative account of being interviewed in Heaven to be the Messiah. The writing becomes a testament to Divine morality, and to finding truth and sincerity in one’s heart.
As readers embark on a journey of knowledge and understanding, they’ll join Jerry on an exploration of the implications of biblical history on our modern world. Through a series of unexplainable events, Jerry empowers readers to decide if an additional personal spiritual effort is worth making in this life, in order to possibly gain entrance to an uncertain futuristic Garden of Eden, the Messianic Age. In a process of the dreamlike interviews with biblical personalities―the angel Gabriel, Methuselah, Chanoch, Seth, King David, Moses, Jacob, Abraham and the prophet Isaiah―Jerry is forced to bear his soul and his own hidden demons.
As human beings, we are all flawed. That’s how the Creator made us. During the course of reading the book, readers have the opportunity to ponder the improvement of their own imperfections, in order to meet the requirements set out in the Messiah Interviews for admission into a future blissful life at the End of Days. The book is God-centered and discusses, briefly or at length, various topics, including The Ten Commandments, Creation, Evolution, Good and Evil, Primal Therapy, Bipolar Disorder, Resurrection, Aging, Twelve Tribes of Israel, Monotheistic Religions, Third Temple, Messiah, and the Messianic Age.
EXCERPT:
The Archangel Michael is speaking in Heaven:
“We have deliberately chosen a sinner: you, Yoseph, who has knowingly cheated in science. Yet, you have publicly repented and confessed your sins to your Stony Brook University administration; and sent letters of apology to the former institutions that you attended. Moreover, you have expressed your heartfelt remorse and your sincere regrets for all of your sinful actions in your published book, Divinely Inspired: Spiritual Awakening of a Soul, for all to see. We have intentionally chosen someone who has suffered horrifically, yet has the potential through his suffering to look inside and understand human nature. We also have especially not chosen a tzaddik, the wisest, most righteous, and perfect of men. We are testing the potential of a simple imperfect man. If you succeed in answering our questions, you will become King Messiah, and return to earth to take your place at the End of Days. If our assessment of you is that you are not the person, we had in mind, then we will have failed once again in finding the true Messiah.”
I had the chance to interview the author and this is what he had to say:
Could you please tell us a little about your book?
I appreciate this interview with Zensanity on my book, Messiah Interviews: Belonging to God.
Thank you for the opportunity to share with your readers.
The Messiah Interviews is a spiritual fiction and brings a message of hope for the future, and not Armageddon. Ever since the Creation of Adam and Eve, man has grappled with knowing whether life exists after death. Because humans achieve the possible, while God accomplishes the impossible, only the Creator knows our fate and destiny at the End of Days. The Messiah Interviews tells the story of the book’s main character, Yoseph, an imperfect human being living an even more imperfect life on Earth, who finds himself transported to the Third Temple in Heaven for the sole purpose of being interviewed to be the Messiah. Joseph is a scientist. He is also a believer struggling to fulfill his spiritual mission.
As readers embark on a journey of knowledge and understanding, they’ll join Yoseph in an exploration of the implications of biblical history on our modern world. Through a series of unexplainable events, readers will get to decide if an additional personal spiritual effort is worth making in their lives, in order to possibly gain entrance to an uncertain futuristic Garden of Eden, the Messianic Age. In a process of the dreamlike interviews with biblical personalities―the angel Gabriel, Methuselah, Chanoch, Seth, King David, Moses, Jacob, Abraham and the prophet Isaiah―Yoseph is forced to bear his soul and his own hidden demons. The interviewers serve as advisors to God, Who is the keeper of the scorecard on the moral choices and decisions we make in our lives. It is God Who decides Yoseph’s fate and ultimately the lot of all of us.
As human beings, we are all flawed. That’s how the Creator made us. During the course of reading the book, readers will be empowered, like Yoseph, to exercise their free will to improve their moral character, in order to meet the requirements set out in the Messiah Interviews for admission into a future blissful life at the End of Days. The book is God-centered and discusses, briefly or at length, various topics, including The Ten Commandments, Creation, Evolution, Good and Evil, Primal Therapy, Bipolar Disorder, Resurrection, Aging, Twelve Tribes of Israel, the Lost Tribes, Monotheistic Religions, the future Third Temple on earth, the Messiah, and the Messianic Age. The book is full of biblical and modern wisdom written in layman’s terms, and is for anyone willing to begin or continue their journey down the spiritual road. It is also meant for the humanist, agnostic or atheist who has chosen a different road. God gives us a lifetime to return to Him.
Did something specific happen to prompt you to write this book?
I was kind of hoping someone would ask me this question. Something did happen that prompted me to write the Messiah Interviews but the happening actually first occurred in 1982. I am going to describe The Voice chapter (it’s relatively short) for your readers. I wrote these words in my first Title, Divinely Inspired: Spiritual Awakening of a Soul which was published in 2003 and will come out as a paperback second edition on January 1, 2009. Because, I talk about additional Divine experiences in Messiah Interviews, I include this Voice happening in the Messiah Interviews, due out also on January 1, 2009).
"By the late fall of 1982, I had divorced Rhea, been promoted to full professor at Stony Brook University, and was planning to marry Marcia on Christmas Eve of the following year. My life focused around Marcia, our five children, scientific research, and Primal Therapy. I was heavy into my feelings, now that the therapy was so much a part of me. For the previous year, I had recorded all of my feelings, and by the fall of 1982, I had filled up seven research laboratory notebooks with my handwriting, each book consisting of three hundred pages. There was a lot of repetition and I seemed to have reached a plateau in terms of making further progress. In an unusual display of frustration, I brought the seven notebooks to the edge of my Poquott loft and proceeded to throw all of them in one thrust onto the floor below. I felt like Moses smashing the first set of Tablets on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed. Moses had become enraged when he came down Mount Sinai and discovered that the Israelites had built the Golden Calf. The sounds of the books crashing were subdued by a loud and strong male voice that was definitely external.
I heard the words very clearly, "And you shall be Mine." I remember being both startled and afraid, because I neither knew whose voice this was nor could I figure out how the voice got into my cottage. There was no bipolar disorder or manic depression back then, so I couldn’t blame the voice on the illness. It was about two weeks later when I heard the voice again. This time the words were slightly different: "And you shall have." Could this be the true voice of God, I thought. However, I didn’t dare tell anyone what had happened, not even Marcia, until ten years later. I simply ignored these mysterious events and went on with my life, but the words of the voice never left me. Why did this happen? I had no explanation. I kept the books, recording my Primal feelings, for many additional years before dumping them in the garbage along with my three Primal Therapy textbooks. I was to discover twenty years later that I would need these books again."
In late 1998 and early 1999, as well as scattered visualizations for several years subsequently, I was blessed with incredible Divine experiences that prompted me to write Divinely Inspired in 2003. The Voice that I heard twice in 1982, I heard a third time in January of 1999. I won’t give you the details and spoil your fun but the Voice said, "This is not of me." For some of the other spiritual experiences I did not understand in 2003, I bring you new interpretations in 2009 in the Messiah Interviews. Divinely Inspired is like a prequel for the Messiah Interviews and I would recommend reading Messiah Interviews first. During womb regression in 2007, I was blown away when I experienced surviving my own abortion. I was saved by Divine intervention which you can read about in the Messiah Interviews.
Although Divinely Inspired, a spiritual memoir, was prompted by these spiritual experiences, Messiah Interviews was not. Once I had those experiences in late 1998 and early 1999 in both Long Island, NY and in South Florida, I began my spiritual journey. I have been crawling up the spiritual ladder and as my knowledge and creativity has grown and developed, I saw a need to write the Messiah Interviews. The book allowed me to bring the Bible to life and to relate it to our modern world and the future world of the Messianic Age. I did not want to use the Messiah Interviews as a platform to preach. Rather, I wanted to empower the reader to improve his character in this life in order to be admitted into a second Garden of Eden, the Messianic Age. I wanted the reader right there with me answering the same question as Yoseph, the main character being interviewed to be the Messiah.
I am a Professor. I am never short on words. My apologies to the reader and to Zensanity.
Who or what is the inspiration behind this book?
A short answer. The Creator Who we know as God.
Who is your biggest supporter?
My wife, Marcia.
Your biggest critic?
Me.
What cause are you most passionate about and why?
God. I am a scientist and a lot of scientists are not believers because of their rational logical minds. You need to abandon your intellect if you want to have faith. Once you do, your intellect and reason can stand alongside your faith. I have unshakable faith in God. I literally owe my life to Him. I feel I have this great relationship with Him even though I’ve never had conversations with Him and He has barely spoken to me. I heard His Voice three times. If you go back in biblical times when God spoke to Moses or Abraham for example, you will see that G-d does not address individuals with noise or a lot of fanfare. There is one exception to this of course. God spoke to 600,000 plus Israelites at Mount Sinai when He gave the Israelites the Ten Commandments. It’s my belief that He will do this at the End of Days or the End Times when this world is over and the Messianic Age begins. I am passionate about God’s Third Temple being built then as it will be a House of Prayer for all peoples as the Prophet Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible describes.
The Messianic Age will be the Age of God, and a Messiah, Jewish or Christian, will lead God’s charge. It is said that God knew the name of the Messiah before Creation but He isn’t yet sharing. Whether, it’s Jesus or a descendant of King David’s lineage according to the Hebrew Bible is very important for one’s personal belief. However, it won’t matter to us if God chooses not to admit us into the Messianic Age. God is all knowing and I believe that there is accountability for the privilege of entering the bliss of the Messianic Age. God give us a lifetime to improve our moral character.
In the last year have you learned or improved on any skills?
I am still a flawed human being, but I continue to improve in the area of becoming more God-centered and less ego-centered.
Do you have any rituals you follow when finishing a piece of work?
I like to read over what I’ve accomplished and I do it more than once. There’s nothing wrong with feeling good about yourself. We all need some ego. You cannot separate the material world from the spiritual world.
Who has influenced you throughout your career as a writer?
As a university research scientist for 30 years, I wrote scientific articles and research grants. Being in science is great preparation for writing, but it’s different from writing a spiritual novel. The research training also comes in handy for doing research on a book. I am currently Professor emeritus in the Department of Oral Biology & Pathology at the State University of New York at Stony Brook on Long Island. My training is as a pharmacist, biophysicist, and microbiologist. No one in particular influenced me as a writer except my Department Chair, Milton Salton, of the Microbiology Department at the New York University School of Medicine in New York City. I was a Postdoctoral Fellow and then an Assistant Professor in Milton’s Department between 1969 and 1973. Professor Salton asked me to contribute to his research grant. I was amazed that he didn’t change a single thing of what I wrote. It was amazing to watch Dr. Salton write long discourses with only slight revision. His first draft became his final draft. I write like this as well.
What is the most important thing in your life right now?
My wife, Marcia and getting out the messages of Divinely Inspired and Messiah Interviews. When I was in my career as an academic, I worked for myself and my family. I feel now that I work for the Creator.
What are you currently working on?
Not any new titles right now. I’m too busy marketing my two books. The book world and getting recognition for your work or getting your message out is not easy. If readers only knew. I am not complaining.
Do you have any advice for writers or readers?
For writers, I say the most important part is sticking with your article or your book. I’m fortunate, I don’t have writer’s block ever as you can see how I’m rattling all this off. I always told my kids. Do something that you like and that is easy for you. I think it’s still sound advice today.
For readers, I ask that you give my books a chance. If someone can’t afford the books please email me at jerrypollock@bellsouth.net and we’ll work something out. I have spent so much money so far that I stopped counting. There is very little profit in book writing unless you are a best selling author. I’m not. Most authors spend much more than they earn.
What are some of your long term goals?
Thank you. A chance to plug my website. Go to either www.thirdtempleinfo.com or www.shechinahthirdtemple.org if you want to know about our nonprofit organization and about me. I’m 67 years of age and a bit too old to learn how to blog but I’m trying. Shechinah means Divine Presence. The book links are on the website and the blog.
What do you feel has been your greatest achievement as an author?
I’m not sure I have an answer for this question. I think the jury is still out on my contribution to this world. God did not create one useless thing in this world. All who add, they add to Him.
What do you feel is your biggest strength?
What a question. I would have to answer that I’ve always since childhood thought that I was a good person. However, I am flawed like every other human being.
Biggest weakness?
A dangerous question that deserves an honest answer. By the way, the Messiah Interviews is about truth and sincerity in one’s heart. There is a quote in the Bible that basically says that you can’t fool God, Who sees into your heart and into the crevices of your mind. Even religion doesn’t necessarily make you a good person according to the Creator looking in. I have a lot of faults. My biggest weakness is that I do learn from my mistakes but not all my mistakes. Following the Ten Commandments is my biggest weakness.
What do you feel sets this book apart from others in the same genre?
I’m not being arrogant when I say this. There is no other book out there like mine for public consumption. There is 10 years of research and climbing the spiritual ladder in the Messiah Interviews.
You know the scenario – you’re stuck on an island. What book would you bring with you and why?
I didn’t give it a second thought. My wife Marcia, whom I love dearly. She is my soul mate, my bashert or destined one. She is one amazing woman. She has her own little chapter in the Messiah Interviews. And of course I’d bring my own written books, Messiah Interviews and Divinely Inspired. I would also bring the Torah (first five Books of 24 in the Hebrew Bible). We Jews are supposed to read the Torah for a year and then begin again each year. Your interpretations and insights can change with each reading like your feelings are supposed to.
If you could go back and change one day, what would it be?
You can read about it in my books. I have suffered a lot in my life beginning with an unwanted pregnancy and abortion attempt, growing up in a dysfunctional family with neurosis, anxiety, and physical pain and then topped off with Bipolar Disorder and suicide attempts as an adult. I reached bottom but there is not one day of all of it that I would change. The worst was being locked up in psychiatric wards and knowing that you may never get out into the world again.
No regrets because all of this has brought me to the place I’m at. I know who I am and I know where I am going. I don’t need to search anymore. I found my enlightenment in God and by solving my emotional upheaval in Primal Therapy and combining my emotions with spirituality, I’m within a ladder’s reach to Heaven and inner peace. I feel so grateful. It’s easy to be grateful when all is well in your life. It’s only the rare individual who can continue to sing when he or she is crushed and beaten. A biblical commentator wrote this last statement.
Are you a different person now than you were 5 years ago? In what ways?
I’m different each day because I’m a feeling person. Twenty-five years of Primal Therapy has done that for me. I am very in touch with my feelings. Five years ago, I was in touch but I’m much more so today. Once you feel, you feel for life.
What is the most important lesson you have learned from life so far?
That you need spirituality when a major crisis hits. Many people today face this because of the economic times. When I didn’t have spirituality during my Bipolar Disorder, I wasn’t prepared to deal with the crisis. Trying to take your own life means that you have reached the most desperate stage on your life.
Is there anything you regret doing/not doing?
Yes, the Viennese Waltz and the Hustle. It’s probably neurotic seeking Mommy’s love. Maybe sailing also. I can still do this if I can ever come up from under these books.
What is your favorite past-time?
Walking outside. In Florida, you can do this because the weather is great.
Is there anything else you would like to share with us?
You and the reader must be sick of me. Okay, one more thing. If you are really hurting because of the economy, take a walk if you can and ask for God’s help. You might be surprised by the response from God. In the Torah, it’s written that God says to Moses that He will show mercy and kindness on whomever He wishes, even to a sinner who is not deserving. I know. I am that sinner.
Take care and thanks for allowing me to share. If I can help anyone, please email me. Ghandi said it best. "I shall only walk this way but once. Let me therefore not defer any kindness or good that I can do for another human being."
WIN PRIZES!!!
The MESSIAH INTERVIEWS VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '09 will officially begin on January 5 and end on January 30. You can visit Jerry's blog stops at http://www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com/ in January to find out more about this great book and talented author!As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors' blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available.
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