YHWHCHRISTIAN

Paul (Sha'ul) was arrested as you know, and a lawyer made accusations against him before Felix. Part of that dialog describes the "sect" which Sha'ul was a member of:

"He is a ringleader of the Nazarene sect, and even tried to desecrate the Temple; so we seized him." Acts 24:5 More accurately, the word is "Natsarim" sect. (complete context is below).

Were they not known by a Greek term, "Christians" . . . or have we inherited a term foreign to Israel, a term widely used by and for Pagan worshippers? Have translators done this to us?

While Sha'ul was arrested and taken to Rome, he was kept in the home of a centurion. He called for the chief Yahudim, and they had heard of this "sect", and said to Sha'ul,
"But we desire to hear from you, what you think: for as concerning this sect, we know that everywhere it is spoken against." Acts 28:22

The question that begs to be asked is the following:

"What would a bunch of Israelites that practice the Torah of Yahuah and follow a Yahudi Messiah be doing with a Greek term used by Pagans as a label for themselves?" Are we to search out the Greco-Roman roots, or the Hebrew origins of our faith? One of them hinders and clouds our understanding, and the other is essential to it! Should we defend the Greek term, or abandon it and use the term we see used above - the term they were really known by?

The term "Christos" is Greek, and is defined as meaning "anointed". Although it is treated as a translation for the Hebrew word "Mashiach", its use in the Greek language is derived from a completely different application. So different, that it would be like associating the English word "bird" with the Hebrew term for woman, ishah. ("Bird" is often used in England to refer to a woman). The term Christos was more of a medical term, because healers in the Greek culture used all manner of tinctures for various ailments; some taken internally, and others used topically. The first two letters in "Christos" are CHI + RHO, and appear as X (CHI) and P (RHO). If you put these together, they form the "R-X" symbol used by the apothecary trade, who mix and weigh dosages of medication for the sick.

The Greeks' tongue blended sounds in strange ways, producing combinations like "DZ" and others.

As early as 200 BCE, there were Pagan worshippers of Serapis that called themselves "Christians".

In the Vatican, one can view an original Pagan relief depicting MITHRAS with the words CHRESTOS MITHRAS, meaning "good Mithras". Mithraism was the main Pagan religion of ancient Rome, and became blended with the Mashiach of Yisrael through the compromises of the Nicaean Council, headed by Constantine and his son Crispus (325-326 CE).

The Greco-Roman mindset of translators gave preference to the Greek, and played-down the Hebrew terminology, in order to make everything more acceptable to the Pagan culture of the unwashed, uneducated masses.

The Hebrew term Mashiach was carried over into the Greek letters as "MESSIAH" because the Greek alphabet is unable to transliterate the exact sounds of some letters, such as the sound of "SH" - this became the "SS", because Greek cannot make this sound. The Hebrew meaning of Mashiach is anointed one, and applies to the person that is reigning as KING of Israel.

A chosen man was "anointed" as the king with oil, as we see the prophet anointed David on his head with oil. It may have been olive oil, but it represents the "Spirit" of Yahuah being placed upon the ruler.

All kings of Israel were "Mashiachim", or anointed ones. "Mashiachim" may have been the original word used by Luke at Acts 11:26, however translators preferred the Greek flavor, and used the word "Christian" 3 times in the "Renewed Covenant" writings.

WOULD THE CREATOR'S RELIGION HAVE A GREEK NAME?

(EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK, TORAH ZONE)

Look at the big picture, and keep an open mind for several options. Knowing there is some relationship with the word cretin, what if the people of Antioch, at first, called the disciples CRETINS (retards, idiots)? Don't fall for the excuse, "we speak English, not Hebrew". The word "crestos" (or kristos, chreistos) isn't English, it's Greek. If we follow the redemption plan of our Creator, keeping the Torah of Yahuah, we are counted among the citizenship of Israel; not a "Gentile", foreign nation. In fact, we are no longer Gentiles at all (Eph. 2:11-13), although we were at one time strangers to the covenants. After our immersion, there is no distinction, and no dividing wall between us and a native-born Israelite. The main idea that people seem to be steered away from when words like "Christian" are examined closely is that the original word (the Hebrew word, MASHIACH) is not being brought to the table, but is typically kept from the discussion. The word "Christianity" is not found in the Scriptures at all, so there is no such thing in reality. Misdirection is used to convince the listener of supposed facts which are not true, and by simply saying the lie often enough, it will become familiar, and therefore comfortable. In this particular case, the premise is that the original word was this Greek word "Christos", since it is emphasized (by those with an agenda to preserve the error of tradition) that the disciples of Yahusha all spoke and wrote in Greek. We are expected to pay no mind that Greek is a foreign language to the people of Israel. It's a promotion of the Jesuits to believe that the Messiah and His students spoke to one another, and wrote everything down, in Greek. The truth is, Greek was a transitional language, or translation, of the original texts originally written in Hebrew (or the dialect of it, Syraic Aramaic). Remember, all the first "protestants" were Catholics, and they had already been indoctrinated with the Jesuit teachings. What is practically unknown is the fact that there were "Christians" on Earth before Yahusha haMashiach was born - and they were Pagans.

Greek is a corrupted, polluted language to begin with -- having many Pagan deities' names and titles associated with it. Since Yahuah has told us that one day He would purify the lips of the peoples to call upon His Name and serve Him shoulder-to-shoulder (Zeph. 3:9), it's unlikely that the word "Christian" will be preserved after that purification takes place. Acts 24:5 states that the sect was called "Natsarim", or "branches/watchmen", not anointed ones. It was prophesied that we would be called "NATSARIM". Carefully study the text of Jer. 31. YirmeYahu 31:6 used the word NATSARIM which is translated "watchmen", who will cry on "Mount Ephraim". The Gentiles, also known as "scattered Yisrael", is referred to in this chapter as "Ephraim". Those crying out to go up to Yahuah are called watchmen, from the Hebrew word NATSARIM. The Greek has distorted quite a few things, but to believe that they were called both terms would surely be conflicted thinking. The Natsarim were very specific in their labeling of themselves, since their label referred to the One they were followers of, Yahusha of Natsarith. Chapter 31 of YermeYahu is also significant because it prophecies the re-newed Covenant, which is quoted again in chapters 8 & 10 of the book of Hebrews.

All Israelites were, and are, waiting for the "Mashiach", the anointed One prophesied in Daniel. So by that logic it would be redundant to refer to themselves as a sect of what they all were, even if the label was translated into another tongue, like Greek. The translators simply wanted to separate themselves as far from the Torah and Israel as possible; and it was done by creating labeling that would permanently separate them, and keep "Gentiles" from ever joining the commonwealth of Israel, or even realizing that it was necessary.

Can you stand to hear more? Realize that "Greek" culture was a very powerful influence on the entire civilized world over a long period; "Alexandria" Egypt (named for Alexander, a famous Greek conqueror), became the center or hub of the cultural world. Sophists, orators who refined public speaking to an art, developed the "3-point" speech. They could convince their audiences of things they didn't even believe themselves! Clement and Origen, two "church fathers", promoted their Christian teaching from Alexandria. Everything taught became watered-down into "allegorical" meanings. In every way, words were used as powerful tools. Platonic philosophy steered their whole culture, and Plato is still quoted in modern seminaries! Mithraists, Neoplatonists, Pythagoreans, Therapists, and Magi were all contemporary cults. From Egypt arose the Hermetic religion of the worship of Osiris.

These religions produced the Pagan "fathers" that influenced modern Christianity (Cyprian, Augustine, Marcion, Eusebius, Ambrose, Epiphanius, etc.,) and they quoted from their former Pagan sources virtually constantly, merging what they had been with what they were becoming - a blended religion, with Greek culture as the dominant aspect. There already were "Christians" in Egypt, gnostic sun-worshippers who knelt before huge ankhs (crux ansatas). The Serapis-Isis cult used this symbol at Alexandria. When the Emperor Hadrian wrote from Alexandria, he said:

"Those who worship Serapis are Christians and those who call themselves bishops of Christ are vowed to Serapis". ~~Uh . . . . huh? That's going nowhere good at all.

Ancient Babylonian influences abounded then, and abound now, hidden in plain sight. Alexandria was the primary launching point for the new fusion religion we know as "Christianity" today. The word "Christos" is directly related to Krishna, Crestos, and Chreston. These literally mean "shining", as they refer to the sun. Krishna is the sun deity of the Hindu religion. Even as late as 348 CE, Cyrill said: "Let the heresy be silenced which blasphemes the Messiah, the Son of the Mighty One. Let those be silenced who say that the sun is Messiah, because He is the Creator of the sun, and not the visible sun itself." They were calling the sun "Christ Helios". The Manichaeans worshipped the sun as it passed through the sky ALL DAY, and Augustine came from them. The ancient Crestos of the Serapian Culte was worshipped as "the good god", so the word "Christ" is actually a polluted and forbidden word when you carefully weigh the texts of Exodus 23:13 & Duet. 12:28-32. Great darkness results from not properly understanding Yahuah's Word, or departing from it, thinking it no longer has application. The one verse most cling to in defense of the term "Christian" is at Acts 11:26: "And at first in Antioch the taught ones were called Kristianous." (This is the order of this sentence in the Greek). This sentence doesn't claim that the disciples called themselves this, but were called this "at first". Also, as with the English language, the context determines what is meant. If this meant they were mistaken (at first) for the Pagan believers in Serapis, that's one thing; or this could have been simply the Greek translation distorting the original Hebrew word, Mashiach. Or, what if this Greek word was not a label, and simply meant "good men"? Knowing there is some relationship with the word cretin, what if the people of Antioch, at first, called the disciples CRETINS? Why is the Greek label so important that they had to make this single verse in its translation an all-encompassing issue? Again, what would a bunch of Israelites that practice the Torah of Yahuah and follow a Yahudi Messiah be doing with a Greek term used by Pagans as a label for themselves? A name for a person or thing is a special designation, not a general reference. Is the Name of the Creator Greek? If the Creator has a religion (way), does He refer to it by a Greek term? (This is one of the topics addressed in the book TORAH ZONE). Would the Messiah of Adam, Noach, Mosheh, Daniel, and Eli Yahu have a Greek Name? If we have inherited error, we all need to know about it, and not defend it.

So, what great harm is there in abandoning the Greek title "Christos", and using the same Hebrew word Daniel wrote: Mashiach? The word "MESSIAH" is transliterated TWICE in the received Greek writings, at Jn. 1:41 and Jn. 4:25 (it's used twice in Daniel, at 9:25,26). Even the new age cult is awaiting their "Christ"; so why not give them their word back - maybe they'll stop laughing at believers behind their backs for having adopted so much of their philosophy. Give them their "Sun-day" too. Let's return to the Covenant, shall we? The Gentiles from the ends of the Earth will one day acknowledge that their forefathers have inherited nothing but lies.

An old Yiddish saying says, "The Messiah you're expecting will never come; the Messiah that's coming you've never expected."

How about the term "Messianites", used by some translators at Acts 11:26?

This is a translation back toward the Hebrew form of the idea expressed in the received Greek, “christianos”.

As a label, the real contest would be between the words “Natsarim” (Hebrew) and “christianos” (Greek).

The Hebrew term “Mashiach” was transliterated in at least two places (Yn. 1:41 & 4:25), however it would make very little sense to insert a word that simply denoted that a group of people were “Messiah-followers”, when there were any number of such groups promoting their beliefs (as there are today, i.e., Lubavitchers/ Menachem Schneerson, New Age Messiah Maitreya, Sun Myung Moon, etc.,).

The use of the Greek word “christianos” remains a mystery, and the context seems to imply two other possible intents:

that the followers of Yahusha were “called” or “referred to” collectively by this foreign term that described their behavior, or how they were perceived by those that lived at Antioch. The text does not say they called themselves “christianos”.

There is also a strong likelihood that this term “christianos” was inserted by subsequent Greek translations between the 2^nd and 3^rd centuries.

The word “christianos” is used a total of 3 times in the whole Greek text of the “NT” (Messianic Writings), once each at:

Acts 11:26

Acts 26:28

1Pet./ Kepha 4:16

Although the term “christianos” seems to be used as a “label” or group-handle today, we know that if one were to search for such a “label” for this sect, it is easily found at Acts 24:5, where Tertullus (an orator, or “sophist”) accused Shaul before the governor Felix. The accusation against Shaul was that he was a “ringleader of the sect of the Natsarim”. If Yahusha’s followers were of the “way” of Torah, it is profoundly idiotic to assume they would be known by a word that is foreign to their own culture, and equally absurd for the “religion” of the Creator of the universe to use a Greek word to describe His “way”, considering that one day we will receive a “pure lip”, restoring our language to the original one (Zeph. 3:9). It is overwhelmingly obvious that the term “christianos” was a promotion done in the centuries following the events, since it is so rarely used in the received texts, and seems to be inserted to supplant the original term, Natsarim. What is not widely known is that there were Pagans that worshipped the false deity “Serapis” who were called “christianos” in Greek. Perhaps the Natsarim, “at first”, were mistaken to be worshippers of Serapis!

If they were literally called “christianos” at Antioch, it is likely they were perceived to be either “good men”, worshippers of Serapis, or another form of the Greek word that would mean they were thought to be idiots (perhaps due to the fact that they were claiming that a dead person rose from the dead?). The Greek word chrestoi means “good men”. The deity Mithras was called “Chrestos Mithras”, or Good Mithras. The word “cretin” (fool) is derived from the Greek word “christianos”. We can make any number of assumptions, but to assert that they called themselves by this term is a mishandling of the text, and seems to overly defend a term that is merely found in a transition language. Perhaps this attitude stems from the fact that the Greeks considered themselves to be highly cultured (to the point of arrogance), and they wished to instill their culture on all other cultures. For translators to assume they were called “Messianites” is probably over-reading the text, because this implies that they were followers of a Mashiach, and all Israelites either waited for, or followed one of many “Messiahs”; so this term could serve as no distinctive label at all. The newer translations that use terms like “Messianites” are likely attempting to find a more appropriate term in the Hebrew/Israelite culture, to tone-down the shrill “Gentile” wording which the Catholic institution preferred to promote over the centuries.

In light of the above considerations, I would defer to the use of the term “Natsarim”, which restores the authentic Israelite language, and makes a clearer distinction from the rest of the would-be “Messianic” groups. In the final analysis, the term “Natsarim” will trump the Greek term, even though the effort was made very early to “ethnically cleanse” as many Hebrew words as possible. Today, we are “ethnically restoring” the Hebrew terms and names, rebuilding the ancient ruins, and repairing the breach through the guidance of Yahusha.

“And those from among you shall build the old waste places. You shall raise up the foundations of many generations. And you would be called the Repairer of the Breach, the Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.” Is./ YeshaYahu 58:12

from teosofia.com/Mumbai/7502christmas.html we read further:

"Krishna or Chris-na and Christos come from the same root. Kris in Sanskrit means the pure or the sacred, 'the first emanation of the invisible G-dhead, manifesting itself tangibly in spirit' (Isis Unveiled, II, 158), it is the Spiritual Ego (Buddhi-Manas). .... 'The Spiritual, Immortal, Higher Ego in every man is an emanation, like a ray, from the Central Spiritual Sun (Paramatman), of which the visible Sun is the direct manifestation on our physical plane and its visible symbol.'"

The conclusion drawn from this study confirms once again that the faith was "solarized", and our customs and words are rising up to prove it.   The prophet YirmeYahu (Jer.) told us:

     "O Yahuah, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the Earth, and shall say, 'Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit'.

     Shall a man make elohim unto himself, and they are no elohim?   Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know Mine hand and My might; and they shall know that My Name is Yahuah."   Jer / YirmeYahu 16:19-21

Directly related to this issue of "terms" once used by Pagans, and taking the point-of-view of our Creator Yahuah, we have to consider what He has already spoken on this issue. Remember, even the "terminology" used by Pagans are their "ways" or methods. Here are 3 Scriptures of many that could have relevance:

Exodus / Shemoth 20:2,3: "I am Yahuah your Elohim, Who brought you out of the land of Mitsrayim, out of the house of slavery. You have no other mighty ones against My Face."

Exodus / Shemoth 23:13: "And in all that I have said to you take heed. And make no mention of the name of other mighty ones, let it not be heard from your mouth." Woden'sDay, Thor'sDay, FriggaDay . . . . ?

Deut. / Debarim 12:28-32: "Guard, and obey all these words which I command you, that it might be well with you and your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the eyes of Yahuah your Elohim. When Yahuah your Elohim does cut off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, guard yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire about their mighty ones, saying 'How did these nations serve their mighty ones? And let me do so too.' Do not do so to Yahuah your Elohim, for every abomination which Yahuah hates they have done to their mighty ones, for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their mighty ones. All the words I am commanding you, guard to do it - do not add to it nor take away from it."

The prodigal son has to come to his senses. Our Messiah's Name isn't the Greek "Jesus", but rather the Hebrew: Yahusha. For more on that topic, click on the blue bar or picture below.

Q: Where did we get the form "JESUS" from?

CONTEXT OF VERSE CITED ABOVE:
Acts 24:1-8:
"Five days later, the high priest Ananias went down to Caesarea with some of the elders and a lawyer named Tertullus, and they brought their charges against Paul before the governor. When Paul was called in, Tertullus presented his case before Felix: 'We have enjoyed a long period of peace under you, and your foresight has brought about reforms in this nation. Everywhere and in every way, most excellent Felix, we acknowledge this with profound gratitude. But in order not to weary you further, I would request that you be kind enough to hear us briefly.

'We have found this man to be a troublemaker, stirring up riots among the (Yahudim) all over the world. He is a ringleader of the Nazarene sect, and even tried to desecrate the Temple; so we seized him. By examining him yourself, you will be able to learn the truth about all these charges we are bringing against him.'"

An interesting question was asked:

Q: Is your institution Jewish, Christian or Messianic Yahwist? Or all three?

A: We are a group of individual scholars of Yahuah's Word, loosely associated to one another. Some of us have different opinions on details, but in general we all share a love for the Covenant (Torah of Yahuah) and a love for the one true Name of the Creator. Anyone who shares this love and has been immersed I would consider a brother or sister in the faith.

We perform individual research of the original language of Scripture, and attempt to relay a clearer idea of it to the English-speaking world. Even though some of us may disagree with one another on fine points, we all embrace a love for the Truth and love Yahuah, and we differ from Christians in that we obey the 10 Commandments because we have been given a love for them by Yahusha. Christians generally observe 8 of the 10, and Catholics observe 7 of the 10; but we love all 10. For example, since we observe the original Sabbath (as "Jewish" people do also), we are often misunderstood by Christians. And, because we hold to the testimony of Yahusha (as "Christian" people do also), we are often misunderstood by those in orthodox Judaism.

For Illustration purposes, let's suppose that one takes the position that the "Sabbath" day is no longer in force, as Christians will often explain, yet they still believe that all Scripture is inspired by Yahuah. Taking the total number of times the word "Sabbath" is used in ALL of Scripture, we find 170 occurrences. Next, we assess the total amount of all Scripture, and find that the Brith Chadasha (Renewed Covenant "Messianic" writings, or "N.T.") is about one-sixth of the whole.

Then we consider an analogy where all Scripture represents 5 large pancakes, and the occurances of the word "Sabbath" within the text are represented by 170 blueberries (Remember, the word "Sabbath" is used 170 times in all of Scripture).

You put 109 blueberries (65% of them) into the first 4 pancakes. (These first four pancakes are analogous to the "Old Testament", or the TaNaKh).

You put 61 blueberries (35% of them) into the last single pancake. (This last pancake is going to be VERY rich with blueberries, in fact it is mathematically much more dense with blueberries than the first 4 pancakes (on average, the other 4 only have 21.8 blueberries each!).

Come, let us reason together. How is it possible that with "the Sabbath" being used so often in the Brith Chadasha, that Christianity never embraced it? Yahusha guides us into all Truth, and Constantine really crafted a serious deception to overcome. Yahusha told us that if we hold to His teaching (Torah), we are truly His disciples (not Constantine's), and the Truth (Torah, Word) will set us free (from the bondage of sin, living against and without His teaching, which is Torah).

We obey because we love Him, not to be saved through our obedience.

Our obedience is the evidence that we are being saved by His life.

If we claim to know Him but do not obey His Commands, we are liars.