The Refiner's Fire was originally created in 2001 to reveal the beauty of Torah to Christians and introduce Jews to the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua. As the years passed, and as challenges flowed in from around the word, our site began to turn into a full-fledged Messianic Apologetics website, defending the Netzari/Messianic faith. While no one can honestly say they have cornered the market on Truth, The Refiner's Fire website presents what we call "Biblical Truth" from a "Hebrew", rather than a "Greek" mindset and attempts to show, through scripture-only teachings, the errors of man's flawed "religiosity".
What makes our ministry different? First of all, there are no donate buttons because we don't want anyone's money! Never have, never will. (After all, Yeshua didn't charge for HIS ministry!) Secondly, unlike most other Messianic or Hebrew Roots ministries, we don't teach "feel-good theology" peppered with opinions. We present solid, no-nonsense Biblical teachings from the Hebraic viewpoint, that steadily concentrate on the Truth of YHWH/Yeshua/Torah!
The Refiner's Fire (in partnership with the Messianic Jewish Rabbinate) does not have a "staff" - it is basically a "Maw and Paw" operation run by a husband and wife team - Tom and Carmen Leannah - who simply love God and the Bible and wish to share their knowledge with the world. There are no"donate" buttons, because the goal is not to make it "about us" nor is it to profit from YHWH's Word; rather, it is to present scriptural evidence that there is more to God and the Bible than we have been taught in our churches and synagogues. The goal is to get people to think for themselves using what Scripture actually says, instead of mindlessly following the doctrine or dogma of man-made "religion"....
What are our qualifications? Simply a love for YHWH and His Divine Messiah, interspersed with plenty of knowledge and common sense. The teachers at The Refiner's Fire are highly educated and and have actual teaching experience in various fields. Details below:
Messianic Teacher Carmen Welker Leannah and her husband Tom Leannah are co-hosts of The Refiner's Fire. Tom is a retired Texas businessman and former Torah/Bible teacher at a small Messianic congregation; and Carmen is an Associate Professor of Messianic Apologetics at the Messianic Jewish Rabbinate, where she received her smicha lerabbanut (rabbinical ordination). She is a former U.S. Army Sergeant Major who served 22 years as a journalist and newspaper editor, administrator and German language translator. Originally from Germany, she came to the United States at age 10 in 1960 when her mother married an American soldier.
Carmen has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of the State of New York and is a graduate of Mid-America Business College (Springfield, Missouri); the Defense Information School (journalism) at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana; and the prestigious United States Army Sergeants Major Academy in El Paso, Texas, where she also worked as a lesson developer and instructor.
A former Bible study teacher and leader in the prison ministry "Friends in Transition," she is now a Hebraic Faith/Netzari teacher and author who had the distinct privilege of being the editor/proofreader of the 1st edition of the Aramaic English New Testament. She has also authored several books designed to lead the world to YHWH/Yeshua/Torah. Please take a few minutes to read Carmen's amazing testimony about being a little German-born Jewish girl who eventually found her way to Yeshua (Jesus)after her retirement from the US Army.
DECEASED: The Refiner's Fire was co-hosted for two decades by Carmen's late husband Lt. Col (Ret) William "Bill" Welker, who passed away in May 2021. This website would not have been possible without Bill's expertise in astronomy, the sciences, computers and calendars. Bill had Master's Degree in Engineering Physics, and during his Air Force service, he worked on space-based lasers and commanded two Air Force detachments operating sensors on satellites. He also had the privilege of being selected as an alternate for the Department of Defense (DoD) Group 2, Astronaut (Manned Spaceflight Engineer (MSE) program) in the Eighties. After retirement from the Air Force he served the DoD as a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP).
The Refiner's Fire is in partnership with Professor Rabbi Brian Tice's Messianic Jewish Rabbinate (MJR). Rabbi Tice is Professor of Bible & Languages and Acting President of MJR. He obtained his B.Sci. in Bible, Youth Ministry, and Ancient Languages from Cornerstone University and his M.Sci. in Higher Education with an emphasis on Classical Hebrew Andragogy from Kaplan University. He also studied Music and Modern Languages at Kalamazoo Valley Community College, Pastoral Studies at Grand Rapids Theological Seminary, and Middle Eastern History at Tel Aviv University.
Professor Tice has taught Hebrew, Hermeneutics, Tanakh Exegesis, and Apologetics for Cornerstone University (as a Graduate Assistant) and Take Hold Ministry School. He also developed a number of courses for International Messianic Torah Institute and Messianic Jewish Rabbinate as well as teaching homeschool music and cantillation courses in the Grand Rapids area (Michigan). Rabbi Tice's latest book, Reflecting on the Rabbis: Sage Insight into First-Century Jewish Thought, is now available at Amazon. (Click here for more about Rabbi Tice, and be sure to check out the informative articles on his website, Emunah biY'shua/Faith in Y'shua.)
Aramaic and Hebrew scholar Andrew Gabriel Roth has been a friend and colleague of The Refiner's Fire since 2007. Andrew's writing of faith-based books began with his first book, Signs of the Cross, published by Xlibris in 2001. He then followed up with two more books on the Aramaic origins of the New Testament in 2002 and 2004 - and he ultimately realized that his historical and linguistic studies, which had been a private matter up until this moment, needed to be shared with the world.
Following years of discussions with Bible scholars and enthusiasts, Andrew slowly started putting together a translation of the New Testament from Aramaic sources into English and after ten years of labor the Aramaic English New Testament was first released in 2008. He also founded One Faith One People Ministries after traveling and teaching for years between his secular job, and produced and broadcast a regular Bible show on God's Learning Channel, As it is Written, in 2011 and 2012.
By 2019, having done extensive research into many biblical topics and connecting them with archeological information and getting access to incredibly old manuscripts, he decided to start from scratch with all his books with updated information. His newest book, Kidnapped From God: The Call to Come Home (released in February 2021) is the first project that he co-wrote with his wife, Jaye. Andrew has become an international speaker having taught in Israel, Canada, South Africa and across the United States. He may be contacted for speaking engagements at: onefaithandrew@gmail.com.