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To Embrace
Hebrew Roots: Part III
The Talmud
& Jesus Christ
Please note: Research into the Hebrew
Roots & Messianic movements constitutes research into
Judaism as well as the occult. We fully respect each persons
right to believe or utilize what resources they choose. We
however, see a clear distinction in believing the Messiah has
come versus utilizing resources which still await His coming.
That is how and why we must evaluate all to Christ and the New
Testament as well as the Tenach. We do not wish to edit or
criticize Judaism, but recognize it as distinct from our
Christian beliefs, just as many in Judaism also see a
distinction and separateness from our beliefs, and we jointly
have mutual respect for our differences and each other.
Since we are
asked to embrace the teachings of the Talmud and various other
writings and teachings of the Jewish people, we should start
by inquiring as to what these teach about our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ.
I John 5: 10- 13
"He that believeth on
the Son of God hath the witness in himself; he that
believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth
not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the
record, that God hath given us eternal life; and this life
is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that
hath not the Son hath not life. These things have I written
unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye
may know that ye have eternal life; and that ye may believe
on the name of the Son of God."
From a Jewish article about
Jesus we learn that the Talmud slanders our Savior, Jesus
Christ.
"... the Jewish
Encyclopœdia admits that Jewish legends concerning Jesus
are found in the Talmud and Midrash and in " the life
of Jesus ( Toledot Yeshu) that originated in the Middle
Ages. It is the tendency of all these sources to belittle
the person of Jesus by ascribing to Him illegitimate
birth, magic, and a shameful death. " 1.
Upon scrutiny one also finds
that Jesus is maligned as a false teacher:
"… He [Jesus] is
referred to in the Talmud as Otho Isch- "That
man," i.e. the one who is known to all. In the tract
Abhodah Zarah, 6a, we read: "He is called a
Christian who follows the false teachings of that man, who
taught them to celebrate the feast on the first day of the
Sabbath, that is, to worship on the first day after
Sabbath…Talui, -"The one who was
hanged"…" 2.
Many people believe that the
name for Jesus in Hebrew is Jeschua or Yeshua. However, the
complete,
"…name in Hebrew
would be Jeschua Hanotsri--Jesus the Nazarene. He is called
Notsri from the city of Nazareth… In the Talmud Christians
are also called Notsrim. (Amongst other things). 'Since the
word Jeschua means 'Savior,' the name Jesus rarely occurs in
the Jewish books. It is almost always abbreviated to Jeschu…"3.
In the Talmud, the name
"Jeschu [Ieschu]" can apparently be
translated:
"…as if it were
composed of the initial letters of the three words Immach
SCHemo Vezikro-- (meaning)- -'May his name be blotted
out.'" 4.
That translation could only
be accomplished by the use of Gematria a tool of Kabbalists.
Hebrew Roots proponents might say that these teachings are in
the past. However, a review of various sources reveals the
same or similar teachings.
The Talmud and Cabala
teachings of the Toledot Yeshu-- (or Tolodoth Ieschu or Sepher
Toldoth Jehoshua) represent various teachings regarding
Christ, which may be shocking to many. A brief overview of
these teachings refers to writings that quote the Talmud,
(treatise Sabbath, folio 104, treatise Sanhedrim, folio 107,
and Sota, folio 47) which presents this falsified account of
Jesus:
"...the Toledot Yeshu
relates with the most indecent details that Miriam, a
hairdresser of Bethlehem,4. affianced to a young man named
Jochanan, was seduced by a libertine, Joseph Panther or
Pandira, and gave birth to a son whom she named Johosuah or
Jeschu. According to the Talmudic authors of the Sota and
the Sanhedrim, Jeschu was taken during his boyhood to
Egypt, where he was initiated into the secrets doctrines of
the priests, and on his return to Palestine gave himself
up to the practice of magic. 5. The Toledot Yeshu,
however, goes on to say that on reaching manhood, Jeschu
learnt the secret of his illegitimacy, on account of which
he was driven out of the Synagogue and took refuge for a
time in Galilee."
"Now, there was in
the Temple a stone on which was engraved the Tetragrammaton
[YHWH] or Schem Hamphorasch, that is to say, the Ineffable
Name of God; this stone had been found by King David
when the foundations of the Temple were being prepared and
was deposited by him in the Holy of Holies. Jeschu, knowing
this, came from Galilee and, penetrating into the Holy of
Holies, read the Ineffable name, which he transcribed on to
a piece of whom parchment and concealed in an incision under
his skin. By this means he was able to work miracles and
to persuade the people that he was the son of God
foretold by Isaiah. With the aid of Judas, the Sages of the
Synagogue, succeeding in capturing Jeschu, who was then lead
before the Great and Little Sanhedrim, by whom he was
condemned to be stoned to death and finally hanged."
Such is the story of Christ according to the Jewish
Kabbalists ..." 5.
This false witness to the
person of Jesus in the Talmud is also confirmed by Rev. I. B.
Pranaitis in his online report, The Talmud Unmasked: The
Secret Rabbinical Teachings Concerning Christians, and
other sources" 6.
More importantly Daniel Lapin,
an Orthodox Jewish Rabbi, stated in "Protesting Gibson's Passion
Lacks Moral Legitimacy":
"...Do we really want to
open up the Pandora's Box of suggesting that any faith may
demand the removal of material that it finds offensive from
the doctrines of any other faith? Do we really want to return
to those dark times when Catholic authorities attempted to
strip from the Talmud those passages that they found
offensive? Some of my Jewish readers may feel squeamish about
my alluding to the existence of Talmudic passages
uncomplimentary toward Jesus as well as descriptive of Jewish
involvement in his crucifixion. However the truth is that
anyone with Internet access can easily locate those passages
in about ten seconds. I think it far better that in the name
of genuine Jewish-Christian friendship in America, we allow
all faiths their own beliefs even if we find those beliefs
troubling or at odds with our own beliefs. This way we can all
prosper safely under the constitutional protection of the
United States of America..." [September
22, 2003;
Rabbi Daniel Lapin, "Protesting Gibson's
Passion Lacks Moral Legitimacy"; President, Toward Tradition;
www.towardtradition.org/article_Mel_Gibson.htm]
In his email
circulated article, "Some Disturbing Aspects of
the So-called 'Hebrew Roots' Movement and Their
Implications" Andrew Gould presents the Hebrew Roots
doubtful view concerning the validity of the Gospel account of
Jesus.
"…It has been
widely accepted in "Hebrew Roots" circles that
Jesus spoke Hebrew and that the Gospels were originally
written in Hebrew. Most "Hebrew Roots" ministries
have been influenced in this notion by the output of a body
called the Jerusalem School Of Synoptic
Research, [JSSR] and
most especially due to the widespread influence of the book
"Understanding The Difficult Words Of Jesus"
published by David Bivin (Director of the JSSR) and his
partner Roy Blizzard in 1984 and reprinted in 1994 and
1995…" 7.
According to the JSSR, there
is a more authentic Life of Jesus than the gospel accounts:
"… There was an original
Hebrew 'Life of Jesus', from parts of which our
canonical Greek Gospel Texts are mere compilations and
translations. The individual words of the Greek texts that
we have are standard Greek equivalents used to translate
Hebrew documents into Greek, therefore we can retranslate
back into Hebrew to discover what Jesus really said. Failure
to appreciate the Hebraic origins of the Gospels has led to
mistranslation, misinterpretation, spiritually damaging
error and doctrinal confusion." 8.
Toledot Yeshu, with its
various components, is one of the Hebrew or Jewish views of
Jesus for those who rejected him as God come in the flesh. It
has been established that the original manuscripts for the New
Testament were composed in Greek. If one accepts Jewish
thought regarding who Jesus was according to Judaic writings
and teachings, then Jesus was not divine. It is also conveyed
that He was not viewed as divine by his disciples, but was
viewed as the human Messiah. This subject will be pursued in
the next section on Jewish Thought.
Sir James Frazer, author of
The Golden Bough, mentions that to cast doubts on the
historical reality of Jesus, would be hardly less absurd than
it would be to doubt Mohammed and so on. Other historians
reiterate that the existence of Christ is an historic fact.
However, Rene' Guenon,"who writes with inside
knowledge" of Theosophy in Le Theosophisme (1921),
cites a reference to the occultic Le Lotus of 1887
which states that Jesus Christ of the New Testament never
existed, but the Jesus of the Talmud did exist:
"... Madam
Blavatsky's writings, on the person of Christ, ... 'For me,
Jesus Christ, that is to say the Man-God of the Christians,
copy of the Avatars of all countries, of the Hindu Chrishna
as of the Egyptian Horus, was never a historical personage.'
Hence the story of His life was merely an allegory founded
on the existence of the 'a personage named Jehoshua born at
Lud.' But elsewhere she asserted that Jesus may have lived
during the Christian era or a century earlier 'as the Sepher
Toldoth Jehoshua indicates.'
"And Madame Blavatsky
went on to say of the savants who deny the historical value
of this legend, that they- 'either lie or talk nonsense. It
is our Masters who affirm it. If the history of Jehoshua
or Jesus Ben Pandera is false, then the whole of the Talmud,
the whole of the Jewish canon law, is false. It was the
disciple of Jehoshua ben Parachai, the fifth President of
the Sanhedrin since Ezra, who re-wrote the Bible .... This
story is much truer than that of the New Testament, of which
history does not say a word." 9.
Is it possible that Jehoshua
Ben Pandera of the Talmud, who was initiated into the secrets
doctrines and gave himself up to the practice of magic, is
Jehoshua or Yeshua or Jeschu whom the Hebrew Roots ministries
worship?
Please
note, the question was asked in regard to the Talmudic
descriptions. Yeshua [short form]
for Joshua or Yehoshua [long
form], translates into Greek as Iesous. Jesus is a
transliteration of Iesous [Greek] and it came about from the
Hebrew/Aramaic. We have no problem with the Name Yeshua, as it
means Salvation in Hebrew.
What we
have a problem with, is those who try to deny the Name of
Jesus, a Name that billions have attained salvation using, and
try to tell other believers that YAHshua, or numerous other
variations, a name that is not even found in the Old
Testament, is the only name of the Messiah. For more on
the sacred name movement please see the series Taking
the Name, the Mark and the Number.
For an in-depth discussion from a
reader about the various Names, please see:
Yahshua,
Yehoshua, Y'shua, Yeshua, Iesous, Iesus, or Jesus The Sacred
Name or True Name
The following is a portion
of an e-mail exchange dated 1/28/99 between the writer and Uri
Marcus of Nehemiah Trustee Covenant Fund:
Vicky Dillen:
The name Jesus Christ is known world wide and synonymous
with Christianity. That is a historical fact.
Uri Marcus:
Today, yes. 200+ years ago it was synonymous with nothing.
How naive you are of history...
Vicky Dillen:
The Jewish people reject that Jesus Christ was divine and
believe that He was not God come in the flesh. I believe on
the other hand that He is all of that. Where do you stand
Uri? In the Jewish belief or in what Christ himself said and
what is taught in the New Testament?
Uri Marcus:
I believe in the Jewish belief. But your definition is
somewhat lacking. Doesn't look like you would understand it,
since its already been explained, and it just goes right
over your head.
From the La Science des
Esprits, by the 19th century occultist, Eliphas
Levi, we learn that the Cabalistic Toledot Yeshu and similar
Talmudic teachings were purposely hidden from Christians.
"…the Toledot Yeshu,
or the Sepher Toldos Jeschu, described here as originating
in the Middle Ages…belongs in a much earlier period.
Eliphas Levi asserts that 'the Sepher Toldos, to which
the Jews attribute a great antiquity and which they hid from
the Christians with such precautions that this book
was for a long while unfindable, is quoted for the first
time by Raymond Martin of the Order of the Preaching
Brothers… This book was evidently written by a Rabbi
initiated into the mysteries of the Cabala 1.'" 10.
History reveals that The
Talmud itself was put on trial and ordered to be burned, by
King Louis IX in June of 1242, because of the various slanders
against Christ, and Christianity. It was stated that The
Talmud contained such things as it being acceptable to deceive
a Christian without any scruple; that it was permitted to
break a promise, and so on.
The stories contained in
Toledot Yeshu and similar teachings were known in Jewish
circles, but did not come into the hands of 'Gentiles' or
'Christians' until Raymond Martin translated the Toledot Yeshu
into Latin. Later, Martin Luther summarized it in German under
the name Schem Hamphorasch and his expose can be found
in French in Gustave Brunet's, Evangiles Apocryphes. 11.
According to Geschichte
der Juden, by Jewish historian Heinrich Graetz, the image
of Jesus Christ is simply as an offshoot of Essenism and Jesus
was just performing what any adept in the mysteries could do.
"…Thus the Jewish
historian Graetz declares that Jesus simply appropriated to
himself the essential features of Essenism, and that
primitive Christianity was "nothing but an offshoot of
Essenism"2" 12a.
Nesta Webster summarizes the
Christ of the Talmud:
". . . So after
representing Christ as a magician in the Toledot
Yeshu and the Talmud, Jewish tradition seeks to explain
His miraculous works as those of a mere healer-an idea
that we shall find descending right through the secret
societies to this day… if the miracles of Christ were
simply due to a knowledge of natural laws and His doctrines
were the outcome of a sect, the whole theory of His divine
power and mission falls to the ground…" 12.
Many sources state that when
the teachings regarding Jesus Christ in the Toledot Yeshu and
other Jewish books were discovered in the early 1600's, there
were serious repercussions. A Jewish synod in Poland in 1631,
ordered the offending passages to be expunged, to be replaced
by circles which the Rabbis were to fill in orally when giving
instructions to young Jews. This is documented by P.L.B Drach:
"Drach, op.cit.
I.168, 169. The text of this encyclical is given in Hebrew
and also in translation, thus: " This is why we enjoin
you, under the pain of excommunication major, to print
nothing in future editions, whether of Mischna
or of the Gemara, which relates whether for
good or evil to the acts of Jesus the Nazarene, and
to substitute instead a circle like this O,
which will warn the Rabbis and schoolmasters to teach the
young these passages only viva voce. By means of this
precaution the savants amongst the Nazarenes will have no
further pretext to attack us on this subject. Cf,
Abbe'Chiarini, Le Talmud de Babylone, p. 45 (1831)."
13.
These passages are said to
have been reinserted since then, although such offensive
passages would not necessarily be in any English translations
or newer editions. 14.
These then, are some of the
Hebrew Roots - a significant part of which are the teachings
and thought within the Talmud regarding our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ.
Some might say, that the
views presented from the past regarding Jesus Christ do not
apply today, or have no effect on our studying Jewish
tradition, teachings or thought within the Hebrew Roots
movement. That perhaps, the above information is no longer
taught. We must ask ourselves, then, what was and is today,
Jewish thought regarding the Messiah, salvation, sin, the Son
of God, and the divinity of Christ? Do these Jewish terms mean
the same as what we think?
John 14:6
"Jesus saith unto
him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh
unto the Father, but by me."
Acts 4:12
"Neither is there
salvation in any other: for there is none other name under
heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."
In his volume, The Talmud,
Joseph Barclay confirmed the writings of Drach, a talmudist
turned Catholic whose writings were never refuted by Jews,
that Jesus was a sorcerer:
" … Abominable
calumnies on Christ and Christianity occur not only in the
Cabala but in the earlier editions of the Talmud. In these,
says Barclay - "Our Lord and savior is "that
one", "such an one", "a fool",
"the leper", "the deceiver of Israel",
etc. Efforts are made to prove that He is the son of Joseph
Pandira before His marriage with Mary. His miracles are
attributed to sorcery the secret of which He brought in
a slit in His flesh out of Egypt. He is said had been first
stoned and then hanged on the eve of the Passover. His
disciples are called heretics and opprobious names. They
are accused of immoral practices, and the New Testament
is called a sinful book. The references to these
subjects manifest the most bitter aversion and hatred."
15.
Knowing that there is
much diversity of thought inside Judaism with four [some say
three, under different terms] basic groups: Orthodoxy,
Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist Judaism, it is
difficult to present their respective ideas as being in
agreement with one another. However, there are some underlying
beliefs that appear to remain constant and accepted by most
Jews regarding Christ, the Messiah, salvation, sin, and so on.
Dr. Lawrence J. Epstein,
considered a Conservative Jew, explains some of today's
thinking pertaining to "The Differences between
Judaism and Christianity":
In "THE JEWISH VIEW OF
JESUS", Dr. Epstein gives Jesus credit for being a good
teacher, but not God:
"To Christians, the
central tenet of their religion is the belief that Jesus is
the Son of God, part of the trinity, the savior of souls who
is the messiah. He is God's revelation through flesh. Jesus
was, in Christian terms, God incarnate, God in the flesh who
came to Earth to absorb the sins of humans and therefore
free from sin those who accepted his divinity. To Jews,
whatever wonderful teacher and storyteller Jesus may
have been, he was just a human, not the son of God
(except in the metaphorical sense in which all humans are
children of God). In the Jewish view, Jesus cannot save
souls; only God can. Jesus did not, in the Jewish
view, rise from the dead." 16.
The "Jews for
Judaism" web site explains Jesus as a false prophet
predicted in the Old Testament.
"…Jesus the
Nazarene, who imagined that he would be messiah and was
killed, is alluded to in the book of Daniel, as it is said,
`And the sons of the transgressors among thy people will
rise, in order to establish a vision, and will stumble'
(Dan. 11:14). Can there be a greater stumbling then this?
All the prophets said that messiah will be a redeemer and a
savior to the Israelites, will bring together their
outcasts, and will strengthen their obedience to the Divine
precepts, but he (Jesus) caused destruction by the sword
to Israel, the dispersion of those left, and their
humiliation. He changed the law, and misled many people to
worship a being beside G-D…." 17.
Rabbi Hyam Maccoby, in Revolution
in Judaea, written in 1973 and still proclaimed accurate
today, defines the Jewish view of Messiah as an anointed one,
and angel or king, but not divine:
"The title "Messiah'
(Greek-Christos) was not a divine title among the
Jews. It simply means ' anointed'. It was given to
two Jewish officials, King and the High Priest… every
Jewish king of the house of David was known as Messiah, or
Christ…" 18.
"The 'Son of Man',
was not a Messiah. He was an angel identified with the Guardian
Angel of Israel, with Metatron, with the angel who
guided the Children of Israel in the wilderness…" 19.
"…There is hardly
any reference in the Prophetic writings of the Old Testament
to the Messiah as a person. There is no splendid shining
figure judging mankind, sitting at the right-hand of God and
coming very near to eclipsing God Himself by His
glory." 20.
"Messiah…in
Jewish eyes, belonged to royalty, not divinity. Even the
title 'Son of God" was to Jews (but not to the
Gnostics) a human title applied at various times in
the Hebrew Scriptures to Kings such as King
David…"Son of Man" also was not a divine
title…far better known as a mode of address to a
prophet…to mean simply 'human being'." 21.
The Jews for Judaism web
site explains the historical "Jewish Belief in
Messiah," from the Mishna (Torah) by Maimonides:
"... In his
monumental work Mishneh Torah, Maimonides (1135-1204)
spelled out the fundamental Jewish concept of the messiah as
it was handed down to us, generation after generation,
from the time of the prophets…"
"…from the Mishneh
Torah, Hilchot Melachim XI - XII. The King Messiah will in
some future time come, restore the kingdom of David to its
former power, build the Temple, bring together the scattered
of Israel, and all the ancient laws will again be in force.
Sacrifices will be offered, and years of release and
Jubilees will be kept as prescribed in the Torah. Whoever
does not believe in him, or does not hope for his coming,
shows a lack of faith not only in the prophets, but also in
the Torah…" 22.
Many Jews have believed
there would be many Messiahs. At the time of Christ, Hyam
Maccoby states:
"… Any leader who
succeeded in driving out the Romans and setting up an
independent Jewish state would have little difficulty in
being recognized as the Messiah. His very success would
prove his claim. Thus Bar Kochba was recognized as
the Messiah by Rabbi Akiva even though there was no
evidence of his descent from David." 23.
From the Jewish Guardian
of 1924, we read that the great messianic prophecy, Isaiah 53,
refers to the sufferings of Israel, rather than Christ:
"… an article in
the Jewish Press,… according to the teaching of the
"Liberal Jewish Synagogue," the beautiful passages
in the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah concerning " the
Man of Sorrows acquainted with grief, "usually supposed
by Christians to relate to the promised Messiah, are
interpreted to modern Jewish youth as relating to Israel and
signifying that Israel's " sufferings were caused by
the sins of other nations," who thus "escaped the
suffering they deserved." Consequently, "Israel
was offered for the sake of the whole world.2. " 24.
According to Dr.
Lawrence J. Epstein, current Jewish teaching excludes Jesus
because it is unanimously believed that the Messiah will bring
peace:
"Jesus is not seen as
the messiah. In the Jewish view, the messiah is a human
being who will usher in an era of peace. We can tell the
messiah by looking at the world and seeing if it is at
peace. From the Jewish view, this clearly did not happen
when Jesus was on Earth or anytime after his death."
25.
Hyam Maccoby considers Jesus
to be a rebel, but misrepresented by the gospel accounts out
of fear of reprisals by Rome:
"…Jesus was
executed as a rebel, against Rome, not as a blasphemer
against the Jewish religion, and that the Gospel's
misrepresentations on this point are politically
motivated--I regard as strongly established…" 26.
Hyam Maccoby, author, is
considered a classical scholar and Rabbi of Reform Judaism,
and has in recent years been director of the library at the
Leo Baeck College of Judaistics in London. His books appear to
present accepted ideas regarding Christ, Christianity and the
New Testament and the Jewish thought. Clarifying the various
Jewish thought and Christian misconceptions redefines Jesus'
mission:
"…The phrase 'the
kingdom of God'…meant the reign of God (not His
heavenly territory) and referred to a projected return to
a Jewish system of theocracy…" 27.
"….He [Jesus] had
campaigned among 'the lost sheep of Israel', calling them to
repentance, because he felt that the coming of God's Kingdom
was being held back by Israel's sin's. Pharisee writings
often stress that God's promises to Israel are not
automatically fulfilled; they depend on Israel's
worthiness and co-operation ... " 28.
"…Jesus' mission
as a prophet was exclusively directed towards the Jews, not
towards the Gentiles. The idea that Jesus rejected the
Jews and transferred the Old Testament 'promises' to the
Gentiles was a later invention of the Gentile-Christian
Church…" 29.
"… Some believed
that the Messiah would inaugurate a new era for the whole
world; that the nations of the world would acknowledge the
One God and his Temple in Jerusalem; that the Jews would be
revered as the chosen priests of the One God; and that an
era of world peace would begin when, in the words of
Isaiah's wonderful internationalist vision, the
swords would be beaten into plowshares and the wolf would
lie down with lamb. Some, however, did not believe that the
coming of the Messiah would necessarily bring about an era
of international peace. There might be many Messiahs - many
more sorrows and comfortings, defeats and victories - for
the Jewish people before that happened. After all, there had
been Messiahs before and none had brought everlasting peace.
The vision of Isaiah was acknowledged by every Pharisee, as
the word of God but it was not necessarily attached to the
expectation of the coming Messiah who would defeat the
Romans." 30.
In The Traditions of the
Jews, from the Talmud (treatises Baba Bathra folio 74b,
Pesachim folio 32, Bekhoroth folio 57 and Massektoth Ta'anith
folio 31), J.P Stehaln presents a glorious scenario of the
Messianic era - without Jesus Christ as the Messiah:
"… when the
Messianic era arrives. After the return of the Jews from all
nations and parts of the world… the Messiah, we are told
in the Talmud, will entertain them at a gorgeous banquet,
where they will be seated at tables and regaled with wine
from Adam's wine-cellar. The first course is to consist of a
roasted ox named Behemoth, so immense that every day it eats
up the grass upon a thousand hills; the second of a
monstrous fish Leviathan; the third of a female Leviathan
boiled and pickled; the fourth of a gigantic roast fowl
known as Barjuchne, of which the egg alone was so enormous
that when it fell out of the nest it crushed three hundred
tall cedars and the white overflowed threescore villages.
This course is to be followed up by "the most splendid
and pompous Dessert," that can be procured, including
fruit from the Tree of Life and "the Pomegranates of
Eden which are preserved for the Just."
"At the end of the
banquet "God will entertain the company at a
ball"; He Himself will sit in the midst of them,
and everyone will point Him out with his finger, saying:
"Behold, this is our God: we have waited for Him, we
will be glad and rejoice in His salvation." 31.
Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned,
and come short of the glory of God."
From "The
Differences between Judaism and Christianity, we see the
great partition between Jewish and Christian thought on sin
confirmed.
"Judaism does not
accept the notion of original sin, the idea that
people are bad from birth and cannot remove sin by
themselves but need an act of grace provided by the
sacrificial death of Jesus as atonement for all of
humanity's sins. For Christians, there are no other forms of
salvation other than through Jesus." 32.
Dr. Epstein goes on to
explain that Jewish thought about sin and atonement. The
sinner may seek forgiveness from God through human works:
"He [Jesus]
also did not absorb the sins of people. For Jews,
sins are removed not by Jesus' atonement but by seeking
forgiveness. Jews seek forgiveness from God for sins against
God and from other people (not just God) for sins against
those people. Seeking forgiveness requires a sincere sense
of repenting but also seeking directly to redress the wrong
done to someone. Sins are partially removed through prayer
which replaced animal sacrifice as a way of relieving sins.
They are also removed by correcting errors against others.
" 33.
Hyam Maccoby explains:
"... There was no
concept of a Suffering Messiah who would die on the cross to
purge mankind of sin…. To the Jews salvation was a
physical not a purely spiritual concept. The Messianic age,
to the Jews, was to be the culmination of human history on
earth. 34.
Also, regarding prayer
Maccoby believes that it is possible for man to approach God
in a sinless condition:
"…The belief in the
efficacy of prayer was very strong among the Pharisees….
Only the most concerted beam of concentration, directed from
Gethsemane to God, could obliterate the traces of the sins
of Israel, and bring about the hour of redemption. Jesus
alone was not sufficient…This explains why Jesus
narrowed down his company to the Twelve on that night. He
wanted the company of those on whom he could most rely, for
the power of sinless prayer would be far more important
than the strength of mere number." 35.
The writings of Dr. Epstein
present the Jews' overly spiritualized and less severe view of
the afterlife:
"...Traditionalists
gave the name Gehenna to the place where souls were
punished. Many Jewish thinkers noted that since,
essentially, God is filled with mercy and love, punishment
is not to be considered to be eternal. There are,
similarly, many varying conceptions of paradise, such as
that paradise is the place where we finally understand the
true concept of God. It is also possible that there is no
separate Heaven and Hell, only lesser or greater
distance from God after death. In addition, punishment
might be self-determined on the basis of suffering in
kind the suffering the person brought about. That is,
Judaism doesn't have a clear sense of Heaven and Hell, with
different places in Hell for different punishments. Rather,
the idea is that God uses the afterlife to provide ultimate
justice and for the wicked to seek some sort of final
redemption." 36.
Note Scripture says:
Romans 6:20-23:
"For when ye were the
servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit
had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? For
the end of those things is death. But now being made free
from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit
unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. For the wages
of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord. "
Hebrews 9:27:
"And as it is
appointed unto man once to die, but after this the judgment.
Dr. Epstein summarizes
the Jewish doctrine of "oneness" as opposed to the
"Trinity" or Christian doctrine of three Persons in
one God.
"Judaism insists on a
notion of monotheism, the idea that there is one God. As
Judaism understands this idea, God cannot be made up of
parts, even if those parts are mysteriously united. The
Christian notion of trinitarianism is that God is made up of
God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Such a
view, even if called monotheistic because the three parts
are, by divine mystery, only one God, is incompatible with
the Jewish view that such a division is not possible. The
Jewish revolutionary idea is that God is one. This idea
allows for God's unity and uniqueness as a creative force.
Thus, for Jews, God is the creator of all that we like and
all that we don't. There is no evil force with an ability to
create equal to God's. Judaism sees Christianity's
trinitarianism as a weakening of the idea of God's oneness."
37.
Peter Michas, of Messengers
of Messiah, asserted in an email discussion this belief in the
"oneness" doctrine.
"… Yet the minute I
saw the Hebrew thinking of the oneness and the rest
of it, it was never unclear to me again." 38.
In his book, THE ROD OF AN
ALMOND TREE IN GOD'S MASTER PLAN, Peter. Michas expands upon
his approval of the Hebrew viewpoint of God and the Trinity.
"The unity of Yeshua
HaMashiach with God the Father and the Holy Spirit has never
been clearly understood from the doctrine of the
Trinity..." 39.
"To understand the
true relationship of God the Father, God the Son, and God
the Holy Spirit, it is essential to preserve the
concept of oneness..." 40.
"The aspect of the
Father may be simply understood as the Will of God. The aspect
of the Son may be understood as the Word of God. The aspect
of the Spirit of the Holy One may be understood as the
Power of God..." 41.
"To say God is
three 'persons' opens the door to misunderstanding God.
God is Spirit and cannot be reduced to the concept of a
person..." 42.
"The Spirit of the
Holy One is the very essence of the power
of God the Father and not some separate entity." 43.
Peter Michas refers to the
Godhead as three "aspects" and the Holy Spirit as an
"essence" rather than a Person. It is already
established by the Jewish people themselves that the Judaic
teachings reject the doctrine of three Persons in one God.
They do not believe God would manifest in the flesh as Jesus
Christ nor do they believe that He is God. Their oneness
doctrine is that there cannot be a Father, Son and Holy
Spirit, which means the rejection of Jesus Christ as divine
Savior and Lord.
There is no Trinity concept
in Judaism, unless, however, one embraces the Jewish Kabbalah.
"M. Vulliaud quotes
Isaac Meyer's assertion that, "the triad, of the
ancient Cabala is Kether, the Father; Binah, the Holy Spirit
or the Mother; and Hochmah, the Word or the Son." But
in order to avoid the sequence of the Christian Trinity this
arrangement has been altered in the modern Cabala of Luria
and Moses of Cordovero, etc." 44.
The Jewish Encyclopœdia
clarifies that the Cabalistic trinity is not to be confused
with Christianity.
"... The Jewish
Encyclopœdia…goes on to say that what appears to be
Christian in the Cabala is only esoteric doctrine." 45.
2 John 7:
"For many deceivers
are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus
Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an
antichrist."
2 John 9:
"Whosoever
transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ,
hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he
hath both the Father and the Son."
Jewish people
characterize Christians in terms different from what we may
think.
Avi ben Mordechai states
that Jews are specifically called to proselytize:
"… He said to go
out into all the world (as you go) and make talmidim of
all the goyim. …we are His talmidim or students of His
Oral Traditions which is the proper definition of the term
"Gospel." We are to follow His Mishnah and
Gemara, i.e., His Talmud, and take it to the goyim, teaching
them to observe all that He commanded us!…" 46.
Isn't this precisely the
ministry of Peter Michas,
Jacob Prasch
and other Hebrew Roots
teachers: taking the Talmud to the goyim. The term
"goyim" which Mr. Mordechai uses needs to be
understood in its historical context. Citing information from
the Kabbalistic book, the Zohar, a part of the Jewish
mysticism which Avi ben Mordechai teaches, we note:
"… the Chosen
People…forms the basis of all Talmudic and Cabalistic
writings. …According to the Zohar, "All Israelites
will have a part in the future world," and on arrival
there will not be handed over like the goyim (or non-Jewish
races) to the hands of the angel Douma and sent down to
Hell.5. Indeed the goyim are even denied human
attributes." 47.
According to The Emek ha
Melek, the work of the Cabalist Naphtali, a disciple of
Luria, the goyim are of the devil:
"…Thus the Zohar
again explains that the words of the Scripture "Jehovah
Elohim made man", mean that He made Israel. 6. The
seventeenth-century Rabbinical treatise Emek ha Melek
observes: " Our Rabbis of blessed memory have said:
"Ye Jews are men because of the soul ye have from the
Supreme Man (i.e, God). But the nations of the world are
not styled men because they have not, from the Holy and
Supreme Man, the Neschama (or glorious soul) but they
have the Nephesch (soul) from Adam Belial, that is the
malicious and unnecessary man, called Sammael, the Supreme
Devil." 7" 48.
Another way of saying or
spelling goyim, is Goi. Rev. I. B.
Pranaitis, in his online work, The Talmud Unmasked,
notes that this term has been removed from recent editions:
"Goi
- Race, or people. The Jews also call a man a Goi - a
gentile; they call a gentile woman a Goiah. ... It is mostly
applied to non-Jews, or idolators. In Jewish books
which treat of Idolatry, worshippers of idols are often
called by this single word Goi. For this reason, in more
recent editions of the Talmud the use of the word Goi is
purposely avoided and other words for non-Jews are
substituted.
It is well known that in
the Jewish language, the Jews call Christians among whom
they live, Goim. Nor do the Jews deny this.
Sometimes in their popular
magazines they say that this word means nothing harmful or
evil. But the contrary can be seen in their
books written in the Hebrew language. For instance, in
Choschen Hammischpat (34, 22), the name Goi is used in a
depraved sense:
"Traitors and
Epicureans and Apostates are worse than Goim"49.
Indeed the whole idea of
gentiles or "goyim" studying the Jewish oral law as
suggested by Jacob Prasch, Peter Michas, Avi ben Mordechai and
others, is in direct disobedience to the proclamations in the
Talmud. Even a Christian who is found studying the Law of
Israel merits death. Sanhedrin (59a) states:
"Rabbi Jochanan says:
A Goi who pries into the Law is guilty to death. "Even
a Christian who is found studying the Law of Israel merits
death."
It seems very perplexing
indeed that leaders of the Hebrew Roots movement would direct
our thoughts to the teachings of the sages in the Talmud,
Mishna and Midrash, when these same sages have been teaching
the Jewish people to destroy the writings of the Christians
including the New Testament.
"Shabbath 116a. Jews
must destroy the books of the Christians, i.e. the New
Testament."
The organization, Jews
for Judaism, "the Worlds foremost countermissionary organization",
insinuates that the Jews are not fooled by Christians who
assume a Jewish image to proselytize them. Even Jews recognize
the great divide between Judaism and Christianity.
"… Though Hebrew
Christianity claims to be a form of Judaism, it is not… It
deceptively uses the sacred symbols of Jewish observance
(i.e. community Passover seders, menorahs, messianic
services, etc.) as a cover to convert Jews to Christianity,
a belief system antithetical to Judaism… Hebrew
Christianity is not a form of Judaism and its members, even
if they are of Jewish birth, cannot be considered members of
the Jewish community. Hebrew Christians are in radical
conflict with the communal interests and the destiny of the
Jewish people. They have crossed an unbreachable chasm
by accepting another religion. …"
"… practice of any
other religious tradition has been understood to lead to the
loss of rights to full participation in the Jewish
community…Our history has clearly shown that when
confronted with a group of Jews which has adopted another
faith and seeks to convert others, we must stand firm in
asserting that this other faith is not Judaism and that its
adherents have forfeited their privileges as Jews. Jewish
tradition believes that the opportunity to return to
participation in the Jewish community is always open. When
this occurs, all privileges are restored." 50.
This repudiation of those
who apostatize from Judaism is stronger in the Talmud
teachings of the Oral law of the sages. Hilkhoth Akum (X, 2)
states that defectors must be killed.
"These things [supra]
are intended for idolaters. But Israelites also, who lapse
from their religion and become epicureans, are to be killed,
and we must persecute them to the end. For they afflict
Israel and turn the people from God." 51.
Non-Jews or converted Jews
who affect a Jewish demeanor or compromise Christian doctrine,
meaning inclusion of New Testament doctrine, to appeal to the Jewish mindset are surrendering the precious
pearl of Jesus Christ who alone leads to salvation. The
ecumenical approach does not lead Jews to Jesus Christ, but
patronizes their religion of dead works, and results in the
Christian's acceptance of religion on Jewish terms.
Galatians 5:1-8
"Stand fast therefore
in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be
not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I
Paul, say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall
profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is
circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ
is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are
justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. For we
through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by
faith. For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any
thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey
the truth? This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth
you.
Contemporary Jewish thought
reflects the same aversion to Jesus Christ as historical
Judaism:
"Jews vary about what
they think of Jesus as a man. Some respect him as an ethical
teacher who accepted Jewish law, as someone who didn't even
see himself as the messiah, who didn't want to start a new
religion at all. Rather, Jesus is seen by these Jews as
someone who challenged the religious authorities of his day
for their practices. In this view, he meant to improve
Judaism according to his own understanding not to break with
it." 52.
Hyam Maccoby sums up Jewish
thought regarding Jesus as this:
"With the
composition of the Gospels, then, a fictitious Jesus was
created, suitable for the needs of the Hellenistic
Gentile-Christian Church. The Prophet King, human and
Jewish, who was revered but not worshiped by the
Jewish-Christian Church was turned into a Divine Sacrifice. Jesus,
who was, in reality, an apocalyptic Pharisee rabbi who
claimed the titles of Prophet and King, was turned into a
pagan god." 53.
Dr. Epstein concludes:
"Whatever the Jewish
response is, one point is crucial. No one who is
Jewish, no born Jew and no one who converts to Judaism, can
believe in Jesus as the literal son of God or as the
messiah. For the Jewish people, there is no God but
God." 54.
We could elaborate further
on the Jewish thought regarding the New Testament, the
writings of Paul, who was viewed as a heretic, and the
disciples. We could expand the idea that many Jews believe
that James and Peter were Pharisaic Rabbis, who believed in
the Jewish idea of the Messiah-- that Jesus was not divine.
We could expand on the
theory that James, believed to have been the head of the
Nazarene movement, was not in any way in conflict with the
teachings of the Pharisees, but was devout in promoting them.
We could expand on the Jewish idea that Paul, not Jesus, is
viewed as the originator of Christianity, of the concept of
Jesus being divine, and that notion came from Greek paganism.
We could, but one only has to go to Jewish sites and see that
their beliefs are diametrically opposed to Christianity.
Sadly, we would also see the denial of the virgin birth and
condemnation of all connected to Christ. They are devout in
their convictions.
While the Hebrew or
messianic movements urge us to embrace "our foundational
Hebrew roots", Scripture tells us that our foundation is
none other than Jesus Christ:
I Corinthians 3:11:
"For other foundation
can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
"
If Jewish teachers or
teachings cannot entertain the idea of a divine Christ or
Messiah, sin, salvation, eternity, and other issues, what
then? How are we to learn the 'True Meaning' of Scripture from
them, unless we reject the very truths of Jesus Christ,
salvation, sin and the rest of the New Testament?
As stated above, "No
one who is Jewish, no born Jew and no one who converts to
Judaism, can believe in Jesus as the literal son of God or as
the messiah."
Jewish convictions proclaim
a Christian cannot be considered Jewish or adopt the Jewish
beliefs, rituals and ceremonies, and still remain a Christian.
It would be like becoming a Christian Muslim or a Christian
Mormon -- an impossibility.
Romans 2:28-29 :
"For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither
is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is
a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the
heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is
not of men, but of God."
Galatians 3:2
"This only would I
learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the
law, or by the hearing of faith?"
We cannot be both. Cultural
heritage and genealogy cannot take precedence over our faith
and obedience to Christ. If it does, we are not serving Him,
as we should.
If the Talmud and other
Jewish works are upholding the doctrines as described above,
from the past and today, what business do Christians have
embracing these teachings, rituals and ceremonies and the
reasons for them?
Reason tells us that the
theology of the Jewish Rabbis and teachers, which are opposed
to the very foundations of our beliefs, influences every
aspect of their sacred books…and their teachings. We need to
explore the instructions within the Talmud further.
All Scripture Quotes from
the Authorized King James Bible
Footnotes
- Jewish Encyclopædia,
article on Jesus; as Cited in: Nesta H. Webster,"
Secret Societies and Subversive Movements", p. 20;
Omni Publications, 1964
- Rev. I. B. Pranaitis;
The Talmud; Part One, ch.1, Jesus Christ in the Talmud;
holywar.org/txt/talmud_unmasked.html
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- cf. Baring-Gould,
op.cit., quoting Talmud, treatise Sabbath, folio 104, (S.
Baring-Gould, The Counter Gospels, 1874); 5. Ibid., p.55,
quoting Talmud, treatise Sanhedrim, folio 107, and Sota,
folio 47; Eliphas Levi, La Science des Esprits, pp.32,33.
As Cited in Nesta H. Webster, op.cit., p..20
- Rev. I. B. Pranaitis;
op.cit. Part One, Ch. 1, Jesus Christ in the Talmud
- Andrew Gould,
"SOME DISTURBING ASPECTS OF THE SO-CALLED
"HEBREW ROOTS' MOVEMENT, AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS, 1998
- Ibid.
- Rene Guenon, Le
Theosophisme, (1921) p.193, quoting Le Lotus for December,
1887; as Cited in: Nesta H. Webster, op.cit.,p.299.
- Elipha Levi, La
Science des Esprits, p. 40; as Cited in: Nesta H. Webster,
Ibid., p.20.
- The book was
translated in Latin by Raymond Martin; German by Luther
under the name Schem Hamphorasch; French by Gustave
Brunet, Evangiles Apocryphes; as Cited in: Nesta H.
Webster, Ibid., p.21.
- 2. Graetz, Geschichte
der Juden, III. 216-52 as Cited in: Nesta H. Webster,
Ibid., p. 23
- Nesta H. Webster,
Ibid., p.20
- Ibid., p.22.
- Joseph Barclay, The
Talmud, pp.38,39; cf Drach , op.cit I. 167 as Cited
Webster, Ibid. p. 18-19.
- Dr. Lawrence J.
Epstein; "The Differences between Judaism and
Christianity"; The Conversion to Judaism Home page: http://www.convert.org/differ.htm
- Jews for Judaism, http://www.jewsforjudaism.org/javasite/webdocs/messianicjudaism.html
- Hyam Maccoby;
"Revolution in Judaea: Jesus and the Jewish
Resistance"; p. 100; Ocean Books; 1973
- Ibid., p.101-102.
- Ibid.,p.106.
- Ibid.,p. 128.
- Jews for Judaism,
http://www.jewsforjudaism
- Hyam Maccoby, op.
cit., p.100.
- Jewish Guardian for
January 25,1924; as Cited in: Nesta H. Webster, op.cit.,p.
375.
- Dr. Lawrence J.
Epstein, op.cit., http://www.convert.org/differ.htm
- Maccoby, Ibid. ,
acknowledgements.
- Ibid., p. 147-148
- Ibid., p. 194
- Ibid., p. 149
- Ibid., p. 102-103
- J.P Stehaln, The
Traditions of the Jews, II.215-20, quoting from the Talmud
treatises Baba Bathra folio 74b, Pesachim folio 32,
Bekhoroth folio 57, Massektoth Ta'anith folio 31. The
Zohar also refers to the female Leviathan (section Bô, de
Pauly's trans., III.167) Drach shows that amongst the
delights promised by the Talmud after the return to
Palestine will be the permission to eat pork and bacon.
--De l'Harmonie entre l'Eglise et la Synagogue, I. 265,
276, quoting treatise Hullin, folio 17, 82. As Cited in,
Pg. 372, "Secret Societies and Subversive
Movements" by Nesta H. Webster; Omni Publications,
Eighth edition, 1964.]
- Dr. Lawrence J.
Epstein, op.cit., http://www.convert.org/differ.htm
- Ibid.
- Maccoby, op. cit., p.
105.
- Maccoby, Ibid., p.
194-195
- Dr. Lawrence J.
Epstein, op.cit., http://www.convert.org/differ.htm
- Ibid.
- Peter Michas; Ha-Talmidim
Trinity Discussion; also see Rod of the Almond Tree.
- Peter Michas, THE ROD
OF AN ALMOND TREE IN GOD'S MASTER PLAN, WinePress
Publishing, (Mukilteo, WA 98275) Chapter 14. p. 255-56.
- Ibid. p. 256.
- Ibid. p.257.
- Ibid. p.257.
- Ibid. p.257.
- Paul Vulliaud, La
Kabbale Juive: histoire et doctrine, Vol. II. p. 411, as
Cited in Nesta H. Webster, op.cit., p.15.
- Jewish Encyclopœdia,
article on Cabala, p.478; Cited in: Webster, Ibid. p. 15.
- Avi ben Mordechai,
Halacha, www.millenium7000.com/halacha.htm
- Zohar, treatise
Toldoth Noah, folio 59b, (De Pauly trans., I, 347; 5.
Zohar, treatise Lekh-Lekha, folio 94a (De Pauly trans., I,
535); as Cited in: Nesta H. Webster, op.cit.,p.13.
- Zohar, treatise
Bereschith, folio 25a (De Pauly trans. I, 161); 7. The
Emek ha Melek is the work of the Cabalist Naphtali, a
disciple of Luria; as Cited in Ibid.,p.13
- Rev. I. B. Pranaitis;
The Talmud Unmasked; holywar.org/txt/talmud_unmasked.html
- Jews for Judaism, www.jewsforjudaism.org/javasite/webdocs/chalenge.html
- Pranaitis, op.cit.
- Dr. Lawrence J.
Epstein, op.cit., http://www.convert.org/differ.htm
- Maccoby, op. cit., p.
246.
- Dr. Lawrence J.
Epstein, op.cit, http://www.convert.org/differ.htm
Copyright
. All articles are the sole property of SeekGod.ca and Vicky Dillen.
All Scripture King James Version unless otherwise stated.
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