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An expos'e on the Hebrew Roots / Sacred Name Movement 

Intro:
 

His Name is Wonderful!! ...  Or is it??:

Have you found eternal salvation through the lovely name of our Lord Jesus Christ?  Have you found true deliverance from your old sinful past, the world and it's pleasures, in this most precious name?  What about the reality of the peace of God, and the assurance nothing can separate us from the love of God?  Have you seen lives changed, miracles wrought, families restored, and others responding towards God, at the preaching of this Name above every other name?

What if someone came along and said this Name you have been saved and set free by, is not the correct name at all but a misnomer?  What if someone came along and said the wonderful name of your Saviour was a corrupt Greek name, derived from a false god called Zeus?  How would you react?  What would you response be?

This is exactly what is happening in some spheres of Christendom today, through sources of the Hebrew Roots teaching, as it validates itself into the Body of Christ.
 

Why and how?:

The Old testament was written in Hebrew for the chosen Jewish Nation.  The New Testament was written in Greek where the partition between Jew's and Gentiles was broken down so we could all become one new man in Christ.

Back in the early eighties not long after we left the established church, Don Stanton of Maranatha Revival Crusade was a dear brother in Christ we came to respect and receive much encouragement from, even sharing in our home and supplying much of our literature for witnessing and growth.  After being such a blessing to my wife and myself, along with our friends, I became very alarmed when his ministry took a turn for the worse when he switched to substituting Hebrew names for many important biblical names, along with a passion for following Jewish feasts and customs as part of our Christian faith.  He even re-wrote the Bible replacing our Saviour's name with Hebrew equivalents and today is entrenched in something our Lord Jesus came to set us free from.

This following three part article is written in response to this tragedy, along with the many people who have e-mailed me in recent months, trying to persuade myself over to the Hebrew Roots Camp.  Generally I have found these people to be varied in their opinions in regards to doctrine; some moderate (scripturally still believing in the Trinity) and others into complete heresy omitting the name Jesus Christ from their faith.

The sincere majority of these people have used the gentle diplomatic approach in their argument to win us across, where a few others have been aggressive, and down-right rude and even abusive, when we wouldn't skip to their tune.  On all occasions have I found them very persistent, rabbinic centred, and usually attacking the sacred name of our Lord Jesus Christ one way or another.

An in-depth study will prove the teachers who are fanatically entrenched into this movement are deliberately discrediting, tainting, and replacing the precious name of our Saviour, and attempting to lead bible believing Christians out of Christianity.
 

From another name to occultic leanings:

Part One of this address is a simplified way of exposing their Hebrew Roots Movement and how believers have been seduced away from the New Testament written in Greek (the universal language of the day) and providentially translated into English (the universal language for the closing hours), with the sole purpose restoring these folk back to the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

This is  followed-up  by Part Two by Barb Aho, which is more of an in-depth study exposing the sources and occultic connections to this Movement, which is no doubt part of the Great Falling Away delusion in this final hour, even more subtle and dangerous than the false Signs and Wonders Movement, the Word of Faith Movement, and Dominion Theology.

However, we need to make it quite clear from the start this does not mean we lump into one all advocates of the HR Movement  as deliberately being into, or promoting the occult.  What we are doing is exposing the teaching links to these sources which are deliberately leading believers away from our true root ...  Christ Jesus our Lord.

Part Three is a simplified round-off of Part One and Two.

Unlike it's Gentile counterpart the Alexandrian School of Thought, which throws doubt on finding the right source of the Greek, giving it's Scholars the final authority in interpretation, the H.R. Movement has been successful in discrediting the Greek New Testament and replacing it with the so-called Hebrew / Aramaic "originals".  This places the final authority in regards to interpreting scripture in the hands of it's rabbinic teachers.  Once achieved, then the sacred name of our Lord Jesus Christ comes under scrutiny.

 

Part One ...  The pure Name  

Pure language for a pure name:

During the last hours of these last days (when English would be the universal language of the world) the Lord in His manifold wisdom has chosen this language to represent His Word, to be written as the plain, simple, uncloistered and easily comprehended words of His gospel to the world at all levels of class and culture.  God foresaw this language would be the 'world language' in the closing hours, presenting His pure, preserved and inerrant autograph with the message ...  whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Zep. 3:9.  For then will I turn to the people a pure language that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent.
 

Why Elizabethan period English:

The above scripture was prophesying a day after the Dark Ages when the Lord would choose a pure language for people to call out to His Name, whether Jew or Gentile, where they could serve the living God with one consent.  This came about in the day of King James when English as a secular and non-religious language, was established in it's purest form, just prior to the great British Empire, when English would be set to become the universal language of the world, prior to Jesus' second coming.  This Great Book, namely the Holy Bible, brought freedom to millions, was responsible for the Reformation (although exploited for political gain), and the great missionary thrust of Protestant America and Protestant Great Britain.

God is not a God of confusion; He makes Himself known by one name through His revealed word, namely the Holy Bible.  As He has placed His word above all His name, then the one who would be audacious enough to replace or change His word would be the one who would be audacious as to replace or change His name.  This is presently occurring in Christendom, as the Great Falling Away (from His word) process intensifies, and mankind is conditioned to receive another name ...  the name of the False Christ of the New Age:

John  5:43.  I (Jesus) am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.
 

His Name under siege:

Is. 9:16.  For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.

The most subtle attack of this process is coming through the Hebrew Roots Movement.  The New Age goddess, namely Gaia, is too obvious for the fundamental Christian to be deceived.  If (for argument sake) the Holy Bible is only a rehash of the originals (as the "hath God said school" declares), and not an inspired translation from the preserved Greek 'Received Text' (where the Authorized Bible derived from), then whoever is instigating the notion of "getting back  to the Hebrew roots", and can impart this notion to others, creates a ready- made audience to present the "originals" in his own light, therefore making himself the Higher Critic ...

"the Greek is a perversion of the originals ..."   "better and more reliable manuscripts say ..."   "better knowledge has come to light ..."   "according to extra biblical commentary ..."   "the Hebrew root word for this passage is ..."   "more truth is now attainable ..."   And thus and so ... 

 ... placing the Higher Critic above your God given English version (thy word is truth), and making him an instrument of "divine revelation" instead of the Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth.

Therefore, more digging is required as things get more complicated, and more credentialed professionals are necessary to unravel the language and cultural barriers, along with the secrets hidden in the past.

It starts off very innocently, as the gospel is presented in it's true context to be of relevance to the Jewish people (as it is for all people) and win them to Christ; the following verse fitting a sincere motive:

1 Cor.  9:20.  And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law ...

So the Greek title (translated to English) JESUS, translates back to the Hebrew title 'Yashua' and is presented to relate to the Hebrew speaking people.  Christ becomes the Messiah they are hoping for as 'Ha Mashiach' in Hebrew.  For this we can rejoice and praise God for, as many Jewish people have found, or are finding Messiah Jesus as Saviour through this revelation, as many other nationalities are finding Him through the Bible being translated into their language.

However, any truth taken to extreme ends in error ...  as Hebrew in many circles has been promoted as the favoured language above the language of the complete 1611 inspired translation, and given supreme importance as justified through the Old Testament (as well as the New in their case) being originally written in Hebrew, and the Jewish people being the original chosen people of God.  Therefore, everything Jewish is being seen as being of God, and importance is placed on the Torah (the Jewish book of laws, or whatever content is recommended by the sages) on a par with the New Testament, as Gentile believers find themselves fallen prey to this type of reasoning as the Galatians were at the beginning of  the New Testament era.

Paul (a Jewish believer from the strictive of the Jewish sects) made it clear ...  you can't have one and the other, as the new has cancelled out the old:

Heb. 8:13.  In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.

Gal. 1:6-7.  I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:  Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.

Paul clarified it was the Jewish religion he was saved from, that was responsible for this falling away in his day, and was warning the Gentile Galatian Believers not to be entangled with it:

Gal. 1: 13-14 . For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it:  And profited in the Jews' religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers.

Read Acts 15: 5-24 and you will see the church made a distinction between the old and the new with this final conclusion:

Acts 15:24.  Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment:

Therefore,  the Name Jesus (derived from Joshua - Jehovah saves) as Christ, the English name taken from the Greek (as the New Testament was written in Greek, the universal language of its day) is the hallowed name of God coming in the flesh.  The same Name exalted as the Name above every other name, the only name whereby man can be saved, as the true and relevant name today ...  that whosoever shall call upon this Name, shall find salvation and favour with his Maker.

Yes!! ...  Jesus is His name!

 
Which name:
 
Mal. 1:11.  For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts.

Whose name do we call out to when we want to be saved?   In whose name are we sent?  In whose name do we pray, preach, teach, and exercise divine authority?

Is it ...  Jeshua, Yeshua, Yeshuah, Yehshua, Yehshuah, YESHUA, YESHUAH, YEHSHUA, YEHSHUAH, Yeshouah,  Y'shua, Y'shuah, Jeshu, Yeshu, Yehoshua, Yehoshuah, YHVHShua, YHVHShuah, Yhvhshua, Yhwhshua, YHWHShua, YHWHShuah, Yhvhshuah, Yhwhshuah, Yahvehshua, Yahwehshua, Yahvehshuah, Yahwehshuah, Jahshua, Jahshuah, Jashua, Jashuah, Jahoshua, Jahoshuah, Jehoshua, Jehoshuah, Yashua, Yashuah, Yahshua, Yahshuah, YAHSHUA, YAHSHUAH, YASHUA, YASHUAH, Yahushua, Yahushuah, Yahoshua, Yahoshuah, Yaohushua, YAOHUSHUA, Yaohushuah,  Iahoshua, Iahoshuah, Iahushua, or Iahushuah??

Matt. 28: 18-19.  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost ...

What name have believers been commanded to teach and baptize in? ...   The same name of the Person whom all power in heaven and earth was given to ...  a Jewish man named JESUS!    In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, is the name of Jesus which is Christ, God's anointed one who came in the flesh.

Proof? ...  Then go to the Book of Acts (where the words of Jesus were being demonstrated by the apostles and early church) and you will see every baptism of the true Way was done in the name of Jesus, as was the preaching, teaching, deliverances, healings and miracles.

Deut. 28:10.  And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.

Still not convinced!? ...   Then tell me why the name presented and exalted in the Authorized 1611 English bible is the most attacked name in society.  Why is it the most degraded and spat upon name around the world, uttered as a malignant byword by millions, over and over again, every single day?  Why don't you hear the name of another god being continually down graded?  Why is not the name Yah being cursed, consciously or unconsciously, by the worlds masses?

Because Jesus' name is the most precious name in heaven and earth, and should be treasured above all names, as the only name behind the Person who rendered Satan powerless and broke the chains of sin and death.  It is the only name where life and death hang in the balances between whether we deny Him or confess Him.  It is the only name where freedom or bondage is in the power of praising His Name or cursing it.

Matt. 1:21.  And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
 
His name is JESUS!

 
The Cult's pagan connection:

Jer.  23:27.   Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal.

If God's word has been lost (or forgotten) then it can be justified that His Name has been lost (or forgotten) also.  And it would take so-called knowledgeable men who could put us right, so the notion goes.

However, because God has given us His book, with every scripture given by Divine inspiration, we only need to go to His Book to find the Name which is above every other name, the only name by which men can be saved.  The cult of Yah have got it wrong because it's roots are not Jewish at all in the scriptural sense, but pagan, and behind the scenes it's mystics have infiltrated Christendom (as it did with Jewish teachings through the Cabbala) leading people astray.

Jude 1:4.  For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jehovah becomes Yahweh.  Jesus becomes Yashua.  Hence, God is now G-d being referred to as Yah or Jah which broadens the name and isolates God from Jesus Christ who came in the flesh.  This suits the mystics, the secret societies, the covens, along with the ecumenicals (who like rallying names) and trendy new agers.

The Yah / Jah thing has become a trendy word through the 80's and 90's from the "Star Wars" craze, to the Rastifarrians, to off-beat Christian sects.
 
One of these pseudo Christian HRM website states (both accents mine):
 
We believe that:

     Yahweh is God and the only real one,
     Yahshua is His son and that
     Yahshua is our Saviour and salvation, so there is no oneness or trinity.
     The real names are Yahweh and Yahshua.
     There is no so called "Church" or one group, but it is a organism in the hearts of people.
     We observe the weekly Sabbath from sunset till sunset and also the
     Spring and Fall feast, not the "Worldly" feasts.
     A new year starts with the first visible new moon, on or after the spring equinox.
     By obeying any law we will not be "saved", but we have to obey the laws.
     We do not eat unclean food and
     believe in the works of the Holy Spirit.
     The mark of the beast is the sunday, not a barcode on the forehead or a subcutaneous
     microchip!
     But mainly we try to love and help each other and like to do that to people, what we also like
     to experience.

Please don't forget: wisdom is from Yahweh, misunderstanding from men!
 

Let's look at some proof in regards to "Yah's" roots:

Baal was the false sun-god the Jews stumbled over.  Baal, which means lord and substitutes the / our Lord, transposes to many other names depending on the language and the nation it represents such as Horus, Tammuz, Eros, Jupiter, Zeus, Maitreya, and so on.

Masons commonly refer to their deity as the "Great Architect of the Universe" (G.A.O.T.U.) or the Supreme Being. God is further described as Grand Artificer, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge Above, Jehovah, Allah, Buddha, Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, or Great Geometer. (The "G" in the Masonic ring can refer to God; it can also refer to geometry.)  Masons claim that the actual name for God has been lost. [HJB] 

The Apostle John (a Jewish believer) warned  those who deny that Jesus is the only Christ and that He came once and for all in the flesh have embraced the spirit of Antichrist.

Every true Bible believer, in the strictest Masonic view, is therefore hated and despised as a divisive sectarianist.   He who believes Jesus alone is classed a bigot and extremistist.  Other lukewarm believers who are not adamant in this view will largely escape persecution.

Jim Shaw, a former 33 Mason, says that Masonry is not based on the Bible (referred to as "The Great Light"), but on the Kabala (Cabala), a medieval book of mysticism and magic. Masonic authority Henry Wilson Coil also admits that the Kabala's teachings can be seen in some of the mystical and philosophical degrees of Masonry. Albert Pike, the man responsible for virtually rewriting the Scottish Rite degrees into their present form, said that the Masonic "search after light" leads directly back to the Kabala, the ultimate source of Masonic beliefs (Morals and Dogma ). [HJB]

The Cabbala (scrambled as Kabala, Kabbala, Quabbala, Quabala etc.) is Jewish mysticism.  The Oxford dictionary refers to it as Jewish oral tradition; occult lore.  Just as these mystery schools of Jewish occultism have infiltrated Judaism so have these secret societies infiltrated western fraternities, softening them up for the new pseudo "sacred" name.

Part Two will reveal the links between these mystery schools, Jewish oral tradition, and the Hebrew Roots / Sacred Name Movement.  However, this does not mean we are accusing all advocates of the HRM as cabbalists or occultists.  Our intention is exposing both the sources of the Root teachings and the promotion of the "sacred" Yah / Jah  name cult.

The complex Hebraic source promotes / purveys  the name of God as Yah (Jah / Jehovah)  which fits the Masonic god, whereas the Aramaic source purveys God as El Shaddai (woman's breast / life nourisher) fitting the New Age mixed gender god.  It is important that all this is made known to those whose profess to name the Name of Christ, so the true name is honoured, and Christians are aware of the subtleties of being lured back under the law, digressing even further into occult lore.
 

Which God do we serve:

Is it ...  YHVH, YHWH, Yahweh, Yah, Yahveh, Yaveh, Yaweh, Jehova, Jehovah, Jahova, Jahovah, Yahova, Yahovah, Jahowa, Jahowah, Yahavah, Jahavah, Yahowe, Yahoweh, Jahaveh, Jahaweh, Jah, Yahaveh, Yahaweh, Jahuweh, Yahuweh, Iahueh, Jahuwah, Yahuwah, Yah, Jah, Yahu, Jahu, Yahvah, Jahvah, Jahve, Jahveh, Yahve, Yahwe???  As an open-ended deity based on esoterical interpretation.

Or the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God of Israel, David and the prophets. The God of Paul, Peter, James and the church of God.  The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ:

1 John  5:20.    ... that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.
 

Which rock:

 Ps. 11:3.  If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?

A basic way to discern a cult is to test "what or who" is the foundation to their faith.  The Roman Catholic institution claim Peter as their first pope as they believe he is the rock their faith and church is built upon.  Just the same way the HRM claim Israel and it's diverse teachings is their foundation.

The Jewish King David said:

 Ps. 18:2.  The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God ...

 Ps .18:31.  For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God?

David, a man after God's own heart, saw the Lord of heaven and earth as his source and foundation, not the nation he served, nor it's traditions or ordinances.

The New Testament presents Christ as LORD and our foundation rock to build upon.  Not the teaching of the church, or the clergy, neither Israel or its rabbinic teachers:

1 Cor.  3:11.  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

The HRM (whether unbeknown to individuals) puts Israel above God and its teachings above the Holy Spirit, therefore New Testament revelation is obscured from them ...

2 Cor. 3:14.  But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.

When a Jewish person turns to Jesus as Messiah and Lord does the scales fall off his / her spiritual eyes, as it did when Paul met Jesus during his time as a zealous Jewish Rabbi persecuting the church of God.  Then Christ is no longer a rock of offence (a stumblingblock) but a rock of defence, as the foundation of God standeth sure.

1 Co 1:23-24.  But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;  But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

 Christ is our rock, our foundation ...  to build our life and faith on.
 

Summary:

The Old Testament was written in Hebrew for the Hebrew people, the chosen people of God, to declare His wonders to the world.  The New Testament was written in Greek bringing the Kingdom of God to the whole Greek speaking Gentile world, as well as the Jews, that we might all become one people under God.

The partition has been taken down dividing the Hebraic Old Testament and the Hellenistic New Testament:  Meaning ...  the whole bible (both the old and new) has been translated into English for the English speaking world (both Jew and Gentile) at the threshold of Jesus' return, and as a base been re-translated into other ethnic tongues for non-English speaking people.

In the Old Testament the Lord's name was JEHOVAH (as presented in today's written word), the God of the Jews.  In the New Testament the Lord's name is JESUS ...  God coming in the flesh for both the Jew and the Gentile, that we might all become one people under God.

And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.  Ex 9:16.
 


 

Part Two ...  A Hebraic Roots Expose
 

Is. 9:16.  For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.
 
     Christians or converted Jews who affect a Jewish demeanour or compromise Christian 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.
       Barb Aho/ To Embrace Hebrew Roots
 
     The name Jesus Christ is known world wide and synonymous with Christianity.  That is a historical fact.
     Vicky Dillen
 

In Part Two we will be taking a more in-depth look into the sources behind the teaching of the HRM by a report compiled by Barb Aho ...

 
Dear Tom,

The following is a write-up I have done which proves that the sources used by the Hebrew Roots Movement
(Talmud, Mishnah, Midrash, etc.) evolved into and purvey the same occult teachings as the Kabbalah/Zohar.
The Appendix to this report, provided by Vicky Dillen, adds further documentation showing that these sources
are in total opposition to Scripture.  These are facts of which every follower of the Hebrew Roots view of
Christianity should be apprised, but all seem to be totally unaware.

I am so glad you are addressing this subject and will be glad to share any information I have in the future.  Let
us pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal to disciples of the H.R. ministries the truths of Christian liberty
expressed in the book of Galatians and lead them out of this movement, which otherwise will eventually deliver them into the dreadful bondage of the Noahide Laws and the global Kabbalist/Freemasonic New World Order.

May God bless you,
Barb Aho

Watch Unto Prayer
timbarbaho@msn.com
http://watch.pair.com/pray.html
 

THE HEBRAIC ROOTS MOVEMENT

Peter Michas' essay "Is The New Testament Hebrew/Aramaic or Greek?" maintains that the original Gospels were written in Hebrew and/or Aramaic, translated into Greek and are therefore not reliable, especially having passed through successive translations to the English New Testament used by English speaking Christians
today.  The solution to this problem, according to Michas, is to turn to the O.T. and Jewish traditions to
determine the truth of the New Testament. Peter Michas advocates reliance upon the Jewish Mishnah,
Haggadah, Halakah, Talmud and Midrash, along with the Torah (first five books of the Old
Testament), as better commentaries on New Testament doctrine than the Greek and English New Testaments
themselves, which he claims are inferior translations of the presumed Hebrew/Aramaic originals:

     Is The New Testament Hebrew/Aramaic or Greek?

              "In summation, since existing New Testament manuscripts are Greek, written to express
     Hebraic concepts, why be limited to the Greek or English translations when we have Hebrew, now
     a living language not very different than it was 2000 years ago. The New Testament is in the
     pattern of the Jewish traditional work of Torah, Mishnah, Haggadah, Halakah, Talmud
     and Midrash, but inspired by God Himself for the common people. These Hebraic works as well
     as the Inspired Scriptures were quoted from by Jesus and all the writers of the New Testament.
     But even now, to have full comprehension, we must read the scriptures in the proper Hebraic
     context.
              "Most all of the Judaic writings have been preserved for us and now translated into proper
     English directly from the Hebrew, as well as explained in true Hebraic manner. Therefore, why not
     go to this material and study ourselves approved before God with full context and understanding?"

JEWISH OR OCCULT SOURCES?

Is the New Testament in the pattern of the Mishnah, Haggadah, Halakah, Talmud and Midrash?
"Jewish traditional work" refers to the oral traditions that were passed through generations as opposed to the
written Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament. The University of Calgary website of Hebrew scholar, Eliezer Segal, Ph.D., indicates that these oral traditions originated in ancient Babylon and were handed
through successive generations until they were compiled in the Kabbalah during the third to twelfth centuries
A.D. or C.E., the Common Era.  Some information about the Mishnah, Haggadah, Halakah, Talmud and
Midrash, may be obtained from Dr. Segal's website, which is cited in this report along with other authoritative
sources, to give the reader an overview of the origins, history and nature of these sources.

     [NOTE: Dr. Segal received his M.A. and Ph.D. in the Talmud Dept. at Hebrew University. He is the
recipient of several scholarships and grants in Talmud and Babylonian Midrash studies, has taught the
Talmud, Mishnah, Midrash and Rabbinics, published books and articles on the Babylonian Talmud, Midrash,
and Haggadah. Dr. Segal is a lecturer on "Jewish Mysticism," "Halakha, Holidays and History", "On
Completing the Babylonian Talmud," "Ecology and the Environment: Halacha and Reality," "Burned, Banned and Best Seller: The Talmud," "Joseph and Osiris," and other subjects.  He has participated in a number of
interfaith dialogues.  On his site is also found the full explanation of The Ten Sefirot of the Kabbalah.]
 

THE MISHNAH

The Mishnah is the early Talmud or the forerunner of the Talmud. To the Mishnah the rabbis later added the
Gemara (rabbinical commentaries). Together these comprise the Talmud. Scholars will claim that the Talmud
is partly a collection of oral traditions given by Moses which had not yet been written down in Jesus' time.
However, Christ condemned the traditions of the Mishnah (early Talmud) and the Scribes and Pharisees who
taught it, because their oral traditions contradicted the teachings of Scripture. The dire warning of Jesus Christ regarding the traditions of men which make null and void the Word of God (Mark 7:1-13) seems to be a
reference to the Mishnah, which was later compiled (c. 200 A.D.) by Rabbi Judah ben Simeon, who presided
over Judaism's supreme judiciary and legislative body, the Sanhedrin.

              "Mishnah can refer in a general way to the full tradition of the Oral Torah, as formulated by
     the Rabbis in the first centuries of the Common Era. These traditions could not be written down,
     but had to be transmitted and learned by word of mouth. This restriction was observed quite
     scrupulously throughout the eras of the Mishnah and Talmud.
              "The Jewish sages whose statements are quoted in the Mishnah are known as Tanna'im*
     (singular: 'Tanna'), derived from the Aramaic root related to the Hebrew 'ShNH.' The era in which
     the Mishnah was developed is therefore referred to as the 'Tanna'itic' era."

Who are the Tanna'im?

     The Jewish sages referred to as Tanna'im are, in fact, the high initiates of Kabbalah. THE
THEOSOPHICAL GLOSSARY of Mme. H.P. Blavatsky shows the correlation between Tanaim and
Kabbalah:

             "TANAIM (Heb.).  Jewish Initiates, very learned Kabbalists in ancient times. The  Talmud
     contains sundry legends about them and gives the chief names of them."

            "KABALIST.  >From Q B L H, Kabalah, an unwritten or oral tradition.  The kabalist is a
     student of 'secret science,' one who interprets hidden meaning of the Scriptures with the help of
     the symbolical Kabala, and explains the real one by these means.  The TANAIM were the first
     kabalists among the Jews; they appeared at Jerusalem about the beginning of the third century
     before the Christian Era... This secret doctrine is identical with that of the Chaldeans, and
     includes at the same time much of the Persian wisdom, or 'magic'." (caps added)

             "KABALAH (Heb.) The hidden wisdom of the Hebrew Rabbis of the middle ages derived
     from the secret doctrines concerning divine things and cosmogony, which were combined into a
     theology after the time of the captivity of the Jews in Babylon. All the works that fall under the
     esoteric category are termed Kabbalistic..."

There appears to be disagreement as to when the oral traditions took on a written form. However, Dr. Segal
confirms that the Mishnah was developed and disseminated from a fixed body of teaching that originated in
ancient Babylon (Chaldea):

              "Although there are traditions in the Mishnah that claim to go back to the fifth century
     B.C.E. (the 'Great Assembly'; cf. Nehemiah 8-10), as well as a few additions from as late as the
     mid-third century, the main body of the Mishnah consists of teachings attributed to authorites from
     about the middle of the first century, through to the second decade of the third century C.E. This
     time period witnessed some major historical turning-points for the Jewish nation, such as the
     destruction of the Second Jerusalem Temple in 70, and the catastrophic failure of the revolt
     against Rome under the leadership of Simeon bar Kokhba (or: bar Kuziba) in 135. Because the
     Mishnah is a technical work of religious law, these momentous historical events find almost no
     explicit mention in the Mishnah, even though the very composition of the Mishnah is often viewed
     as a response to those very events...
              "All ancient sources are in agreement that the Mishnah was compiled by Rabbi Judah the
     'Prince,' before his death around 217 C.E. On the author see below. It should be emphasized
     that--contrary to a view that appears in many histories and introductions, and which is based on the
     writings of medieval Spanish Jewish authorities [ed: see Sephardic Jews below] --this redaction did
     not involve writing down the traditions, but merely the determining and organizing of a fixed text
     that was subsequently disseminated by memory. It is clear from the internal evidence of the
     Talmud that the teachings of the Rabbis continued to be studied orally throughout the Talmudic
     era, and this continued to be the practice in the Babylonian academies well into the middle ages...
              "Rabbi Judah ben Simeon bore the Hebrew title of 'Nasi,' signifying the position of Patriarch,
     the official political representative of the Jewish people. From an internal Jewish perspective, the
     Nasi presided over Judaism's supreme judiciary and legislative body, the Sanhedrin. The title had
     become a hereditary one, almost without interruption, since the days of the revered Hillel the
     Elder in the first century B.C.E."

THE MISHNAH TORAH

The Jews of Spain who followed Babylonian rather than Palestinian Jewish traditions were exiled to Sepharad,
from whence they have been credited with disseminating Cabalism throughout Europe. [See Encarta and
Grolier's Encyclopedia entries on the Sephardim below] Amongst the most important Jewish thinkers from the
Sephardic tradition was Moses Maimonides:

     Eliezer Segal commentary on Moses Maimonides:

              "[Moses Maimonides] lived from 1138 to 1204. He spent ten full years compiling the
     Mishneh Torah, which he continued to revise throughout his lifetime. Moses Maimonides (Rabbi
     Moshe ben Maimon, usually referred to in Hebrew by the acronym "RaMBa"M) was one of the
     towering figures in medieval intellectual and religious life. In addition to his law code, he excelled
     in the fields of philosophy, science, medicine, exegesis and communal leadership. Though born in
     Spain, in his youth his family fled religious persecution, settling in Egypt...
              "Maimonides' Mishneh Torah was intended to be a summary of the entire body of Jewish
     religious law... It opens with a section on systematic philosophical theology, derived largely from
     Aristotelian science and metaphysics, which it regards as the most important component of Jewish
     law. Most other Jewish codes avoided mixing creed and religious law; and Maimonides'
     interpretation of Jewish religion in terms of Greek ideas aroused much opposition."

In Chapter 10 of the English Translation, Maimonides' Mishnah Torah curses Jesus Christ:

              "It is a mitzvah [religious duty; ARC], however, to eradicate Jewish traitors, minnim, and
     apikorsim, and to cause them to descend to the pit of destruction, since they cause difficulty to the
     Jews and sway the people away from God, as did Jesus of Nazareth and his students, and Tzadok,
     Baithos, and their students. May the name of the wicked rot." (p. 184)

THE TALMUD

The Babylonian Talmud is a commentary on the Mishnah composed by Babylonian Jewish sages (Ravs) from
the early third to the sixth century.  A Jewish sage who was from Babylonia would have been addressed by the
title, 'Rav,' while one who lived in Israel would have been called 'Rabbi.' One portion of the Talmud dealt with
folklore, especially magical and medical recipes.  The following statement, from TORAH TO KABBALAH by
R.C. Musaph-Andriesse, on the primacy of the Babylonian Talmud (T.B.) is representative of Jewish
scholarship:

              "There are two editions of the Talmud, the Jerusalem Talmud and the Babylonian Talmud.
     Of these two, the Babylonian Talmud is authoritative for Orthodox Judaism, which regards it as
     divinely inspired... The superiority of the Babylonian Talmud is so great, that when people now
     talk about the Talmud, they always mean the Babylonian Talmud. The authority of the Babylonian
     Talmud is also greater than that of the Jerusalem Talmud. In cases of doubt the former is
     decisive." (pg. 40, New York, Oxford University, Press, 1982)

Quoting Joseph Barclay in SECRET SOCITIES & SUBVERSIVE MOVEMENTS, Nesta Webster has
exposed the virulent anti-Christ teachings of the Talmud:

              "So also it was the Rabbis who, after hiding from the people the meaning of the sacred
     tradition at the moment of its fulfillment, afterwards poisoned that same stream for future
     generations. Abominable calumnies on Christ and Christianity are found not only in the Cabala but
     in the earlier editions of the Talmud. In these, says Barclay -- "Our Lord and Saviour is 'that's
     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 to have been
     first stoned and then hanged on the eve of the Passover. His disciples are called heretics and
     opprobrious 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."
     [Joseph Barclay, The Talmud, pp.38, 39; cf Drach, op. cit I.167] (Omni Publications, 1964, p.18-19)

THE MIDRASH

The Tanna'im, the high initiates of Kabbalah, also compiled The Midrash:

          "In some contexts 'Mishnah' is contrasted with 'Midrash.' The latter term denotes Rabbinic
     teachings that are attached to the text of the Bible, whereas the former term refers to teachings
     that are organized or formulated independently of Scripture...
              "The Mishnah was clearly not designed to encompass the whole of the Oral Torah tradition.
     The same Rabbis who contributed to it also figured prominently in the Tannai'itic Midrashic
     collections."

Rabbi Scheinerman's Magical Midrash page also identifies the Midrash as the product of the Tannaitic
period:

          "In its classical sense, Midrash, which has as its root the Hebrew word darash, meaning 'to
     seek out,' refers to a body of rabbinic literature made up of anthologies of biblical exegesis and
     homilies dating from the tannaitic period (70_200 c.e.) through to the Middle Ages. The most well
     known anthology of midrashim is Midrash Rabbah, which provides a running midrashic
     commentary to the five books of the Torah, as well as to the 'five scrolls' (Esther, Ruth,
     Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs)."

The Encyclopedia Judaica defines this method: "Midrash (midrashim:plural) -- 'The method of interpreting
scripture to elucidate legal points (midrash Halakkah) or to bring out lessons by stories or homiletics (midrash
Aggadah). Also, the name for a collection of such rabbinic interpretations.'"

Nesta Webster's SECRET SOCIETIES adds:

              "... the Jewish Encyclopedia 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. " [Jewish Encyclopedia, article on Jesus]

The Midrash and midrashic interpretation tend to devalue the literal, historical interpretation of Scripture in
favor of private, hidden and even mystical interpretations.  For example, Rabbi Scheinerman's Magical
Midrash page states:

          "Midrash is subversive as it winds its way between and around stern, stark, seemingly stagnant
     texts. As Judith Plaskow has stated, 'Jews have traditionally used midrash to broaden or alter the
     meaning of texts' (in Davidman/Tenenbaum, 80). Midrash assumes that the black letters of
     scripture as well as the white spaces between them are holy; that the explicitly stated as well as
     that which can be inferred from the Bible can be manifestations of God's word.
          Midrash is a kind of scriptural archaeology, bidding us not to stop at surface appearances but
     to dig down deeply into the text to uncover hidden riches..."

Midrashic interpretations permit students of Scripture to explore far beyond the safe boundaries of the sacred
canon. Apostates such as Unity minister, Rev. J. Ronald Jones, are permitted nearly unlimited license using
midrashim to support their false teachings:

          "Midrash requires that anything to be venerated in the present must be connected with sacred
     moments of Jewish history. It is the accepted way of incorporating timelessness, continuity, and
     authority into a sacred narrative. Jesus' life was thus connected to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses,
     David, Daniel, Elijah, Elisha, '2 Isaiah,' and others. The virgin birth story was made to mirror
     earlier stories of Zoroaster and Romulus and Remus; and the ascension story was made to mirror
     earlier stories of the Buddha and Osiris...

          "How does a text lose its historical focus? The closing of the canon removes a collection of
     sacred writings from the temporal process. No subsequent event, world view, conventional wisdom,
     or cultural value has the power to change the canon. No new writings can be added. Quite the
     opposite, new events must be interpreted with the aid of the canon. The canon stands beyond Time
     as a judge of temporal events.

          "Both Jewish and liberal Christian communities agree that the Bible as canon still permits
     perpetual interpretation. They accept it as normal that there can be an infinite variety of
     interpretations all 'inspired' by the text. The goal is to 'search out' the fullness of what was spoken
     by God. It is only through a process of dialogue within a community of faith that knowledge of
     God's revelation grows and becomes the Word of God for the present generation. Visotzky notes:
          'There is no one common reading of Scripture that everyone can agree with--and there never
     has been.'6 When a community of faith insists on a single, normative reading that everyone must
     'swear to,' it is on the verge of death as a vital community.

          "As a methodology, Midrash tends to minimize the authority of the wording of the text. It
     places the focus on the reader, and on the personal struggle of the reader to reach an acceptable
     moral application of the text. While it is always governed to some degree by the wording of the
     text, it allows the reader to project his or her inner struggle into the text. This allows for some very
     powerful and moving interpretations which, to the ordinary user of language, can seem to have
     very little connection with the text. The great weakness of this method is that it always threatens
     to replace the text with an outpouring of personal reflection. At its best it requires the presence of
     mystical insight not given to all readers."

THE HAGGADAH

Technically, "the Haggada(h)" is a liturgical manual used in the Jewish Passover Seder. The information on
this web site indicates that it was also developed by the Ravs in Babylonia in the Middle ages. These are not
ancient documents, but were developed during the same period as the Kabbalah.

     The History of the Haggadah

                "The word Haggadah comes from the Torah command - 'And you shall tell (v'Higadeta)
     your children on that day...' Although the minimal fulfillment of this mitzvah is a simple recounting
     of the going out of Egypt and explaining a few of the Pesach symbols, proper fulfillment requires
     much more.
              "Over the centuries additions have been made to the Haggadah to enhance this mitzvah.
     Many of these additions gained such wide acceptance that they became part of the Haggadah. One
     of those additions is the Chad Gadya. Another is 'Dayeinu.' Rav Saadia Gaon (882 CE - 942 CE)
     included neither in his Haggadah, although he did recognize the existence of Dayeinu. Neither
     Rashi (1040-1105) nor Maimonides (1135-1204) included Chad Gadya in their versions of the
     Haggadah, although Rashi did include Dayeinu...
              "The metamorphosis of the Haggadah concluded in the late middle ages, aided by the
     invention of the Printing Press, which enabled the basic Ashkenazic version which had been
     endorsed by the Ari z'l to be accepted even in Sephardic communities. The text is based upon the
     Haggadah of Rav Amram Gaon, who headed the Babylonian Yeshiva of Sura between 856-876 CE.
     This text was endorsed by Rashi. Rav Amram's Haggadah concluded with the after blessing on the
     fourth cup of wine. It did not include 'Chasal Siddur Pesach'."

The Ashkenazi and Sephardic communities represent two mystical traditions that have developed within
Judaism.  This explains why an Haggadah is found on the New Age Sirius Community web site which displays
the Sephiroth - Tree of Life (path of occult initiation) and a link to The Way of the Kabbalah.

Essential to a study of the Kabbalist traditions is some historical background on the origins and theology of
both communities.

Ashkenazic Jews originated in France, Germany, and Eastern Europe.

Sephardic Jews lived in Spain, Portugal, North Africa and the Middle East.

The ENCYCLOPEDIA OF RELIGION describes Ashkenazik Hasidism, which emerged from Germany in the
late 12th C., as a form of Jewish mysticism.

ASHKENAZIK HASIDIM

              "The German-Jewish pietists built their own understanding of hasid, or 'pietist,' upon the
     cumulative foundation of earlier meanings but moved in new directions as well. Their worldview
     was grounded in the idea that God's will is only partial revealed in the words of the Pentateuch, or
     the Torah, given to the prophet Moses at Mount Sinai. God's will requires of the truly faithful and
     punctilious Jew, that is, of the hasid, a search for a hidden and infinitely demanding additional
     torah, which God encoded in the words of scripture...
              "Along with Maimonidean religious philosophy, theosophical mysticism, or Qabbalah, and
     the scholastic legal achievement of the glossators of the Talmud, German-Jewish pietism
     permanently reshaped classical Judaism into traditional Judaism, which lasted down to the modern
     period...Their writings about manipulating the divine name in the form of permutations of the
     Hebrew alphabet to achieve mystical and magical goal, decidedly influenced later Jewish
     mysticism in Spain." (Vol. I, p. 458)

SEPHARDIC JEWS

The Sephardic Jews are descendants of the large Jewish community living in Spain and Portugal in the Middle
Ages. In 1391, under the Papal Inquisition, there was a massacre of thousands of Jews in the Iberian
Peninsula. The Sephardic Jews have been credited with disseminating Cabalism throughout Europe, after they
were forcibly expelled by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella in 1492. The Urantia Book Fellowship notes:
"The greatest figure in Spanish Judaism was the philosopher, talmudist, and physician, Maimonides
(1135-1204). He attempted to harmonize Judaism with the philosophy of Aristotle."

The Encarta Concise Encyclopedia entry "Cabala" identifies its origins in Spain and France:

              "Cabala, generically, Jewish mysticism in all its forms; specifically, the esoteric theosophy
     that crystallized in 13th-century Spain and Provence, France, around Sefer Ha-Zohar (The Book of
     Splendor), referred to as the Zohar. Cabala's roots are in Hellenistic astral mysticism, in which the
     adept, through meditation and the use of magic formulas, journeys ecstatically through and beyond
     the seven astral spheres. Medieval Spanish Cabala, the most important form of Jewish mysticism,
     is more concerned with esoteric knowledge about the nature of the divine world and its hidden
     connections with the world of creation.
              "According to the Zohar, above and beyond all human contemplation is God as he is in
     himself, the unknowable, immutable En Sof (Infinite). Zoharic theosophy concentrates on ten
     sefirot (realms or planes) as symbols of the inner life and processes of the Godhead. Because they
     are also archetypes for everything in the world of creation, understanding their workings can
     illuminate the inner workings of the cosmos and of history. This cosmic aspect was dramatically
     developed in 16th-century Lurianic Cabala, which arose in response to the cataclysmic experience
     of Jewish exiles expelled from Iberia in the 1490s, and which projected that experience onto the
     divine world."

The extent of the dispersion is documented by Groliers' Encyclopedia, which also confirms the Sephardim as
followers of the occult traditions of ancient Babylon:

         "The Sephardim are those Jews who follow the liturgy and customs developed by the Jews of
     medieval Spain and Portugal. The name comes from Sepharad, a place of exile mentioned in
     Obadiah 20 and early identified with Iberia. Unlike the Ashkenazim, those Jews who settled in
     German lands, the Sephardim followed Babylonian rather than Palestinian Jewish traditions. They
     also developed their own language, Ladino, or Judeo-Spanish, a blend of medieval Castilian,
     Hebrew, Arabic, and other elements. There is a considerable body of Ladino literature.
          "After the expulsion of the Jews from Spain (1492) and Portugal (1497) many Sephardim
     formed communities in the lands of the Ottoman Empire--the Balkans, North Africa, and the
     Middle East.
          "Others remained in Iberia, nominally converting to Christianity. Vilified as Marranos ('pigs'),
     they were subject to continuing persecution, and most eventually left to form communities in
     northwestern Europe--Amsterdam became a particularly important center. Sephardic traditions
     were largely adopted by local Jewish groups in the Middle East and North Africa; hence, today the
     term Sephardim is loosely applied to all Jews native to those areas. Among important Jewish
     thinkers from the Sephardic tradition are Solomon ibn Gabirol, Moses Maimonides, and Baruch
     Spinoza."

THE NOAHIDE LAWS

Presently, there is a vast movement afoot with many points of entry (Lubavitcher Movement, Nazarene
Movement, Hebraic Roots/Messianic Movement, Latter Rain/Roman Catholic Year of Jubilee) to bring all of
mankind under the Law.  These trendy movements to adopt the customs and feasts of the Mosaic Covenant
are effectively laying the groundwork to mobilize the Church for Jay Gary's call to "experience the Jubilee"
Year in AD 2000 and be "reconciled to our spiritual roots." Jay Gary wrote in THE STAR OF 2000:

              "The annual calendar of Israel was built around three major festivals: Passover, Pentecost
     and Tabernacles... The Year of Jubilee encompassed these three festivals, only raised to a higher
     power ...Then, as well as today, Jesus calls us to experience His jubilee... It's time to blow the
     ancient trumpet. It's time to be reconciled to our spiritual roots."  (pp. 84, 85)

This massive movement also seems to be leading toward the global establishment of the Noahide Laws
(already U.S. law), for which disobedience the penalty is beheading (Rev. 20:4)  THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF
JUDIASM lists these seven universal laws and indicates their binding nature on all Gentiles:

              "Full-page ads in the New York Times and other newspapers have proclaimed: ‘All
     nations of the world: Fulfill the 7 universal Noahide Laws given to you in the Torah of
     Moses.’... One additional element of greater severity is that violation of any one of the
     seven laws subjects the Noahide to capital punishment by decapitation. (Sanh. 57A)"

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF JUDAISM identifies the Babylonian Talmud (T.B.) as the source of "The
Noachide Laws."

              "According to Maimonides, acceptance -- on the basis of the Bible -- of the seven universal
     precepts means that any such righteous Gentile is numbered with 'the pious ones among the
     nations of the world...deserving a share in the world to come' (Tosef. Sanh 13.2)

          (1)  Civil justice [the duty to establish a legal system];
          (2)  Prohibition of blasphemy [which includes the bearing of false witness];
          (3)  The abandonment of idolatry;
          (4)  The prohibition of incest [including adultery and other sexual offenses];
          (5)  The prohibition of murder;
          (6)  Also that of theft;
          (7)  The law against eating flesh [a limb] cut from a living animal [ie., cruelty in any shape or
     form] (T.B. Sanh. 56A)

Hebrew scholar, Eliezer Segal, documents that the Babylonian Talmud (T.B.) is a commentary on the Mishnah
composed by Babylonian Jewish sages (Ravs) from the early third to the sixth century. Although it is claimed
by the Lubavitch, Nazarene and Hebraic Roots Movements that the source of the 7 Noahide Laws is the
Torah (Genesis-Deuteronomy), it is apparent that Talmud and Mishnah are derived from occult traditions that
contradicted and nullifed the teaching of Scripture.

The following appendix cites ample material from Nesta Webster's SECRET SOCIETIES and other resources
which demonstrate the occult character of the Jewish sources relied upon by the Lubavitch and Nazarene
Movements and, their pseudo-Christian counterpart, the Hebraic Roots Movement.
 

APPENDIX

     SECRET SOCIETIES & SUBVERSIVE MOVEMENTS, Nesta H. Webster, Omni Publications,
     1964.

     P.6. Re: Oral Tradition:Talmud:Cabala

     "According to Fabre d'Olivet, Moses, who 'was learned all the wisdom of the Egyptians' drew from
     the Egyptian mysteries a part of the oral tradition which was handed down through the leaders of
     the Israelites.

     "That such an oral tradition, distinct from the written word embodied in the Pentateuch, did
     descend from Moses and that it was later committed to writing in the Talmud and the Cabala is the
     opinion of many Jewish writers." [According to the Jewish view God had given Moses on Mt. Sinai
     alike the oral and the written Law, that is, the Law with all its interpretations and applications"
     --Alfred Edersheim]

     P.9... Re: Zohar:Talmud:Cabala

     "The fact is that the main ideas of the Zohar find confirmation in the Talmud. As the Jewish
     Encyclopedia observes, 'the Cabala, is not really in opposition to the Talmud,' and "many
     Talmudic Jews have supported and contributed to it." Adolphe Franch does not hesitate to
     describe it as "the heart and life of Judaism."

     "The greater number of the most eminent rabbis of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries
     believed firmly in the sacredness of the Zohar and of the infallibility of it's teaching" ( Jewish
     Encyclopedia, article on Cabala)

     P. 8. Re: Cabala--book 1--Sepher Yetzirah

     . . . "says that its date has been placed as early as the sixth century before Christ and as late as
     the tenth century A.D., but that it is at any rate older than the Talmud is shown by the fact that in
     the Talmud the Rabbis are described as studying it for magical purposes. Sepher Yetzirah is also
     said to be the work referred to in the Koran under the name of the "Book of Abraham".

     P.8. Re: Cabala--book 2--Sepher-Ha-Zohar (Zohar)

     . . . "Of the immense compilation known as the Sepher-Ha- Zohar, Book of Light, is ... of greater
     importance of Cabalistic philosophy. According to the Zohar itself, the 'Mysteries of Wisdom' were
     imparted to Adam by God whilst he was still in the Garden of Eden, in the form of a book delivered
     by the angel Razael. From Adam the book passed to Seth ... Enoch... Noah ... Abraham, and later
     to Moses, one of its principal exponents. Other Jewish writers declare... that Moses received it ...
     first time on Mt. Sinai. . . to the Seventy Elders. . . to David and Solomon...Ezra...Nehemiah and
     finally to the Rabbis of the early Christian era"

     P.18-19 Re: Christ:Talmud:Cabala

         "So also it was the Rabbis who, after hiding from the people the meaning of the sacred tradition
     at the moment of its fulfillment, afterwards poisoned that same stream for future generations.
     Abominable calumnies on Christ and Christianity found not only in the Cabala but in the earlier
     editions of the Talmud. In these, says Barclay -
         "Our Lord and Saviour is 'that's 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 to have been first stoned and then hanged on the eve of the Passover. His
     disciples are called heretics and opprobrius 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. " [Joseph Barclay, The Talmud, pp.38, 39; cf Drach, op. cit I.167]

     P. 20 Re: Cabala: Talmud: Christ:

     "... the Jewish Encyclopedia 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. " [Jewish Encyclopedia, article on Jesus]

     P. 8 Re: Cabal sources/origins

     "...Until this date the Zohar had remained a purely oral tradition ... written down by the disciples of
     Simon ben Jochai. The Talmud relates that for 12 years the Rabbi Simon and his son Eliezer
     concealed themselves in a cavern, where sitting in the sand up to their necks, they meditated on
     the sacred law and were frequently visited by the prophet Elias. In this way, Jewish legend adds,
     the great book of the Zohar was composed and committed to writing by the Rabbis' son Eliezer and
     his secretary Rabbi Abba."

     P. 23 re: Cabala: Talmud: Christ: Essenes

     "... A subtler device for discrediting Christianity and undermining belief in the divine character of
     our Lord has been adopted ... who set out to prove that He belonged to the sect of the Essenes, ...
     Thus Jewish historian Graetz declares that Jesus simply appropriated to himself the essential
     features of Essenism... So after representing Christ as a magician in the Toledot Yeshu and the
     Talmud, Jewish traditions seeks to explain His miraculous works as those of a mere healer - an idea
     that we shall find descending right through the secrets of societies to this day ... if of 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 ..."

     P. 299 re: Blavatsky: Talmud: Christ

         "... 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. Is our Masters who affirms 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."

     P. 21 Re: Cabala: Talmud: and the Toledot Yeshu--referring to Christ

     NOTE: Another name for Toledot Yeshu is Sepher Toldoth Jehoshua(Zohar)

     "...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 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 Sanhedrin, by whom he was condemned to be stoned to death and
     finally hanged" Such is the story of Christ according to the Jewish Kabbalists ..."


 

Part Three ...  Which Root   
There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust. Rom. 15:12.
 

Getting to the root of the Roots:

From the mass reaction of e-mails in regards to our HRM exposure updates, it is obvious we have touched on something important.  Also, because of the many people who have misunderstood or misconstrued us in regards to these articles, I feel it is important we clear up a few points, hence ...  Part Three.
 

Disclaimer:

The Trinity:

Yes, we believe in the Triune Godhead expressed through three Persons of the trinity, of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.  In that order.  Each Person being individual of the other yet the same Person ...  hence, the mystery of the Godhead.  The Holy Spirit making Jesus real to the believer, with Jesus in turn pointing us to our Father in Heaven.

One of the characteristics of a cult is the denial of the Trinity  (which the HRM does), along with the denial of the divinity of JESUS (which the HRM does), which is Christ, who came in the flesh.
 

The 'Jesus Only' Cult:

Yes, this cult does exist but is nothing to do with us.  We don't legalistically teach or endorse that unless "the name of Jesus" is specifically mentioned when you pray, or do a good deed, then it is not of God.  The Lord's Name can be interchanged with other biblical titles of His Name such as Emmanuel, Wonderful, Son of God, Lamb of God, Prince of Peace, and so forth!  But should be used both scripturally and intelligently, and not glibly, faddishly, or as mere gimmickry.
 

Can God use other languages?:

Yes!!  The Authorized Version has been the largest version of the Bible that has been translated into hundreds of other tongues and dialects over the great missionary period of England and America, bringing the Gospel to multitudes across the four corners of the earth.
 

Have other bibles carried the word of God other than the King James Version?:

"Both Tyndale and Wycliffe translated the bible into English before King James's day from the Received Text (the Textus Receptus, God's preserved New Testament in Greek), before they were both burnt at the stake by the Church for supplying the word of God to the common folk in the street.  When James of Scotland became the first king of the new Great Britain, being a God fearing man (contrary of what we have been taught), and like myself, encouraging relationship and accountability to God only, produced the first public bible for the man in the street, the Authorized Bible (also based on God's preserved Received Text).

Other bibles that were translated from the Received Text prior to the KJ were:  Beza's 1604, Bishops 1568, Geneva 1560, Stephen's 1550, The Great Bible 1539, Matthew's 1537, Coverdale 1535, Luther's 1534 (not the corrupt Lutheran Bible of today), Tyndale's 1525 (as already mentioned), Erasmus 1522, and Wycliffe's 1382 (as already mentioned)."
Copied from "The Infallible Book".  .
 

Writing off members of the HRM or Scared  Name Movement?:

No way!!  We all err from time to time or make mistakes.  Like us all, much of what I have done in my life has been in ignorance so why not make allowances for others.  Just because someone writes G-d for God, or uses Yahweh doesn't mean to say we cut them off.  We are exposing the false doctrine (therefore having to name names at times) not attacking personalities.
 

Replacement Theology:

Replacement Theology is the teaching which states "because the nation of Israel rejected Jesus God has rejected Israel and is therefore finished with Israel (written it off), and all His purpose has now switched and is focused on the Church (the bride of Christ) which has replaced Israel".

We certainly don't go along with this teaching which takes Hosea 4:6 to extreme without the balance of other scriptures:

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.

Although God does reject those who reject Him (as He eccepts those who eccept Him and honours those who honour Him), this still does not rule out God granting another chance and showing mercy on those who are willing to humble themselves before Him with repentant hearts.

Scripture shows the Lord will have mercy on the nation of Israel again, when they turn from their wicked ways and call out to Him, as Israel will be the nation where (Messiah) Jesus will rule from during the Millennium.
 

Discerning the right Root:

Rom. 11:16-18.  For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.   And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree; Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.

One of the main reasons for the HRM to have had so much sway in Christendom has been due to the misconception of Romans chapter eleven.  This has been because of a misinterpretation of the olive tree in relation to Abraham's seed, along with a wrong interpretation of the tree's roots.

Abraham is our father according to faith not the flesh.  He is our father according to the promise not circumcision, tithing, sabbath keeping, or any other law observance.  The olive tree we are grafted into is not natural Israel of the flesh (the present political / geographical regime) but the spiritual tree.

The Jewish people have been cut off for rejecting their Messiah, and the Gentile believers have been grafted in.  However, this is not an excuse for Gentle believers to be cocky as Jews are being grafted in again as they too find Jesus as Messiah.  This way we can all enjoy the benefits and nourishment of the tree together, as one new man.

Now for the crunch! ...  the root of the tree is not Jewishness at all, but Jesus:

Rev. 5:5.  And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David (the line going back to Abraham), hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
 
Rev. 22:16.  I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.

The false teachings of the HRM say we need to get back to the Jewish root/s to literally understand the N.T. scripture.  Not so ...

 ...if the root be holy, so are the branches.

The root/s can't be Jewishness because the root/s are holy and no one is holy save Christ.  If we (Jew or Gentile ) be connected to Him (Jesus) then we become holy branches enjoying the benefits of the promise.  If interpretation of scripture relies on Jewishness and not God's Holy Spirit, this would put the Jewish teachers in a place of monopolizing scripture, placing them on the same hierarchical plane as the Orthodox Clergy and Roman Catholic Institution who place the Church, not individual revelation, in charge of interpretation.

As the late Keith Green (a Jewish Brother in Jesus) said in his song:

"We are de branches and He is de vine!"
 

Private interpretation or individual revelation:

Scripture speaks for itself ...  it teaches against claiming private interpretation (no group monopolizing the truth):

 2 Peter 1:20-21.  Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.  For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

Therefore, no one group, race, organization, or fraternity, can claim authority or the position of being a guide, or interpreter.  The New Covenant presents the priesthood of all believers under Jesus our High Priest.  It presents revelation to the individual direct from the Throne Room of God:

Rom. 16:25-26.  Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began,  But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:

From the risen glorified Christ in Heaven, to our hearts by the Holy Spirit:

Gal. 1:12.  For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

The fact that God choose the Jewish nation had nothing to do with them being a superior or better people, but because it was part of God's over all plan.  Therefore, the Jewish people were a privileged people.  They spoke Hebrew therefore the O.T. books (God's word) where written in Hebrew.  The N.T. obviously wasn't written in Hebrew because this would give the Jewish people claim over the new faith, lording it over the Gentiles as the Jewish Concision did with the Galatians.  The N.T. was written in the common language of the day Koine Greek, breaking down the partition which divided the two peoples (Jews and Gentile) giving them both equal status as heavenly citizens in the new Commonwealth of Israel.

Just as the Lord choose a Gentile (universal) language for His word at the opening of the church age will He choose a Gentile (universal) language at the closing of the church age.  This of course would be English (and as I'm not English, I'm not being biased).  This is nothing to do with race superiority but to do with God being a sovereign God Who calls the shots.  He could not choose the present form of English as a base because it has lost its purity (virtue) of moral absolutes, unlike when it was at it's purest in 1611.  Again, this was nothing to do with English being a superior or perfect language, but because God foreseen it would be the secular (non-religious) language that would transcend cultural and political barriers in this age of Globalism, bringing his word as a light to all the nations.
 

The end result:

Granted, there are different degrees in being ensnared by the Hebraic Roots / Sacred Name Movement, just as there is with any spiritual deception.  The HRM at it's best (if we can use this scenario) is luring believers back under the law, whereas at it's worse, is occultism sneaked in through Cabalistic teaching, as revealed in Part Two.

However, in order to deal with this 'falling away' we first need to go beyond nipping it in the bud, before it takes root, and deal with the root:

Luke 3:9.  And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

We need to deal with it now (as with all deception) that Christ would be the right tree in our lives bearing  the right fruit at the end of the age.  Going back under the law with it's obsolete observances doesn't produce fruit, but brings about striving in the flesh, sowing seeds of discord among the Body of Christ, division and confusion.  It also produces a complex belief system (religion) with a complicated false (dual) gospel.

Heb 9: 9-12. Which was a figure (the Old Covenant) for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience;  Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

Eph.  2:15.  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain (Jew and Gentile) one new man, so making peace ...

Col. .2:14.  Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us (the law was our teacher pointing us to Christ), which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross ...

The Old is dead!  It is a white elephant!  ...  Nor can it be resurrected, reformed, taken out of moth balls, or stitched up:

Mark  2:21.  No man also seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment: else the new piece that filled it up taketh away from the old, and the rent is made worse.

When the Old Covenant was brought to an end, it was completely and absolutely once and for all replaced by the New.  The New wasn't simply a purification of the Old one.   Nor was it a rehash.  When scripture says new, it means brand spanking new.  Being in Christ means we have a new heart, a new start, a new life, a new hope, as ...  all things become new.  Even the geography becomes new ...  a new house, a new sanctuary, a new city, a new country.  This world (with its various races, nations, beliefs, politics and cultures) is not our home ...  we're only passing through!  Why put importance on the present!  Jesus, our root, our rock; is coming back very soon ...

 ...  for those who are rooted and grounded in Him!!


  Update last : 17/3/99.   The Catena 
Hebrew Roots teaching

Prophesying

Secular and non-religious language

Hallowed name

Sun-god (sun worship)

Footnotes 

(4) 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 Sahhedrim,folio 107, and Sota,
folio 47; Eliphas Levi, La Science des Esprits, pp.32,33

Name names

Restoration for Israel

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