Shalom,  

My name is Stephen Otto. I was born and raised in New York City as a Catholic. However, when I was about 20 years old, I became an agnostic. In 1978, I married Salina Polizzi, who was also raised Catholic. One day in 1984, I made a flippant comment to my wife, saying that the Bible belonged in the fantasy section of Barnes & Noble. She challenged me to prove for myself whether or not God exists. I eagerly accepted her challenge, which led me to a six-month study. This included examining the doctrines of the Catholic Church, various Protestant denominations, as well as those of the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Mormons. 

When I completed my studies, I found myself compelled to acknowledge that God does exist. However, I was surprised to discover that many doctrines of mainstream Christianity are not supported by the Scriptures. Ultimately, my wife and I decided to join the Worldwide Church of God (WCG), a Sabbath-keeping church with foundational doctrines that we found fundamentally sound. We attended services there for eight years, during which time we grew in both faith and knowledge. 

In the meantime, my wife and I welcomed our older daughter, Corey, in 1985 and our younger daughter, Tamara, in 1987. Both daughters are married and have families of their own. I am very proud of them, as they are both faithful believers. They have also assisted me with various faith-based projects over the years. 

In 1992, my wife and I discovered that the WCG had a somewhat tarnished past, which led us to leave in disillusionment. I refer to this period of my spiritual journey as my “wilderness experience,” similar to what the children of Israel experienced in the Sinai Desert after leaving Egypt. During this time, I came to know God on a deeper, more personal level. As a result, I dedicated my life to studying and meditating on the Scriptures. I believe that God responded to my efforts by revealing many wonderful truths to me (Proverbs 25:2). Eventually, I felt compelled to share what I was learning, so I launched a website called lettherebetruth.org in August of 2011.

At that time, my family and I began considering a return to a fellowship. We were aware that after we departed, the WCG had abandoned its original beliefs and transformed into a Protestant denomination in 2009. We visited one of their splinter groups, but after a couple of visits, we didn't feel that God was leading us in that direction. We were seeking something with less baggage and more truth.

Over time, we realized that many former members of the WCG had been inspired to join the Hebrew Roots Movement, which encourages believers to study the Scriptures from a Hebraic perspective. This movement is grassroots in nature and does not have established local congregations. To address this gap, I created a Facebook group in May 2013 called Hebrew Roots Restoration. This group was designed to connect with former WCG members and other like-minded believers who were motivated to deepen their faith. The platform proved to be more effective than my website, which I discontinued in January 2016. Five years later, on December 21, 2021, I launched a website under the same name as the Facebook group, "Hebrew Roots Restoration," and have been continuously developing it since then.

Please join me in praying that God will continue to bless my efforts for the sake of His glory, His Kingdom, and the salvation of His people, remnant Israel, the Body of Messiah. Amen! Amen!

​יהוה bless and keep you. יהוה make His face to shine on you, and be gracious to you. יהוה lift up His face toward you, and give you peace.

Stephen Otto