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The Redemption of
Israel
In November of 2001 the Vatican
issued a 210 page report entitled The Jewish People and the Holy
Scriptures in the Christian Bible. In this document the top
theologians of the Roman Catholic Church have made some significant
paradigm shifts. Among other things
the document "stresses the
continuing importance of the Torah for Christians," according to an
article in
The Jewish Week.
According to Eugene Fisher of
the National Conference of Catholic Bishops:
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"If you put off for the
moment that Jews will come to recognize Jesus as the Messiah until the end
of time, then we don't need to work or pray for the conversion of Jews to
Christianity. God already has the
salvation of the Jews figured out, and they accepted it on Sinai,
so they are OK. Jews are already
with the Father. We do not
have a mission to the Jews, but only a mission with the Jews to the world.
The Catholic Church will never again sanction an organization devoted to
the conversion of Jews. That is over, on doctrinal, biblical and
pastoral grounds. Finito!" |
In view of the Roman Catholic Church's
theological biases, long history of abuse and forced conversions, this new
teaching is nothing short of miraculous. The Catholic Church is
actually citing "biblical" grounds for this new teaching which has
become official church doctrine. It would appear that the spirit of
God is even moving within the Catholic Church.
I have not yet read this book,
because it has not yet been released in English; so I have no idea how the
Vatican came to such a startling revelation. Nonetheless, let's just
examine this issue and see for ourselves what the Scriptures say about the
Jews and salvation.
One topic dominates the
prophesies of the Bible; the redemption of Israel. Few Christians
really understand what redemption is. What exactly is the redemption
of Israel?
When salvation came to Israel
Israel received salvation from
Egypt. This was both physical salvation from slavery and spiritual
salvation.
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2The
Lord is my strength and might, and
he
has become my salvation: he is my God, and I will glorify him;
the God of my father, and I will exalt him.
[Exodus 15:2] |
At Mount Sinai,
the Lord
sanctified Israel as His chosen people and gave them the special blessing
of His Torah.
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4Hear,
O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5You shall
love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and
with all your might. 6These words, which I command you this
day, shall be in your heart: 7And you shall teach them
diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your
house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when thou
rise up. 8And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and
they shall be as a headband on your forehead. 9You shall write
them on the doorposts of your house, and on your gates.
[Deuteronomy 6:4-9] |
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6You are a holy people to
the Lord your God: the Lord your God has chosen you to be a special people to himself, above
all people that are on the face of the earth.
[Deuteronomy 7:6] |
The lost sheep of the House of Israel
After the death of Solomon the
Kingdom of Israel was split into two kingdoms. The northern kingdom
(consisting of ten tribes with a small remnant from the other three
tribes) was known as the House of Israel. The southern kingdom
(consisting of three tribes with a small remnant from the other ten
tribes) was known as the House of Judah. [See the related article:
Judaism, Christianity and the Mystery of the Lost
Ten Tribes]
The nation of Israel had
obtained salvation from Egypt, but when the House of Israel separated from
the House of Judah they threw their salvation away. To reclaim their
inheritance as the Lord's chosen people, the House of Israel would have to
be redeemed. Because the House of Israel rejected the God
of their fathers, they were taken into captivity and scattered among the
nations of the earth. They lost all knowledge of their true
identity; thus becoming the "lost sheep of the House of Israel." The
House of Judah, on the other hand, remained (more or less) faithful
to God and received a special blessing from God. They were preserved
for a special purpose.
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....for I will have no mercy on the House of Israel;
but I will cast them completely away.
7But I will have mercy on
the House of Judah, and I will save them. I will not save them
by bow, or sword, or by battle, or horses, or cavalry, but by
the Lord
their God.
[Hosea 1:6b-7] |
Because Judah would retain the
knowledge of the Lord, they would be preserved, but Israel would be lost.
Look at what else Hosea says:
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4The Lord said to him, "Name him Yezreel [Yah
will sow or scatter], because in a
short time I will avenge the blood of Yezreel upon the house of Yehu,
and will cause the kingdom of the House of Israel to cease. 5The time will come that I will
break the bow of Israel in the valley of Yezreel."
6And she
conceived again, and gave birth to a daughter. And the Lord said to him, "Name her Loruhamah [no
mercy]: for
I will have no mercy on the House of Israel; but I will cast
them completely away. 7But I will have mercy on the
House of Judah, and I will save them. I will not save them by
bow, or sword, or by battle, or horses, or cavalry, but by the
Lord
their God."
8When she had weaned Loruhamah, she conceived, and
gave birth to a son. 9Then the Lord said, "Name him Loammi [not
my people]: for you are not my
people, and I will not be your God.
10Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the
sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and the time
will come that in the place where it was said to them, 'You are not
my people,' there it will be said to them, 'You are the children of
the living God. 11Then
the people of Judah and the people of Israel will be gathered
together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come
up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Yezreel.
[Hosea 1:4-11] |
The Jews retained the knowledge
of God but Israel lost it and thus the House of Israel was destroyed just as it is written:
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6My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because
you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you from serving in my
priesthood. Because you have forgotten the Torah of your God, I will also
forget your children.
[Hosea 4:6] |
But even though he exiled
Israel, and even though Israel lost its identity, the Lord promised to
gather them again.
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You will find me, says the Lord, and I will
reverse your exile. I will gather you from all the nations, and from all
the places to which I have banished you, says the Lord. I will bring
you back to the place from which I exiled you.
[Jeremiah 29:14] |
You see, it was the House of
Israel that was cut off while the House of Judah was saved. The
House of Israel was lost and thus needs to be redeemed. This is why
Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph (a.k.a. Jesus) said:
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22You don't know what you worship, but we do know what we
worship; for salvation is from the Jews.
[John 4:22] |
You see, salvation is
FROM the Jews, not TO the Jews because they do know
what they worship. Yes, yes, I know the argument that this is
referring to Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph coming from the Jews; but why then didn't he say
"salvation comes from me"? When you look at the Tanakh (Old Testament)
you find that the prophets paint a much different picture. The
redemption of Israel (not Judah) plays a pivotal role in most of the
prophecies of the Tanakh.
Look at what Paul says about
the Jews:
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1What advantage does the Jew have?
or of what benefit is circumcision?
2Very
much indeed! Because it was to the Jews that the Oral Law was committed. 3So what if some did not
believe? Does their lack of belief cancel out the faith of God? 4Absolutely not! Let
God be
true, and every man a liar -- as it it written, "....that you [God] may
be justified when you speak, and clear when you judge."
[Romans
3:1-4 Paul quotes from Psalm 51:4] |
Who did Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph (Jesus) come to save anyway?
Let's see
what Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph said:
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21Joshua
[Jesus] left that place and went off to the coastal
region of Tyre and Sidon. 22A Canaanite woman from that same region pleaded
with him, saying, "Have mercy on me, my lord. Son of David! My daughter is
being troubled by evil spirits."
23But he did not say a word to her. Then
his disciples came and begged him, "Send her away because she keeps
pestering us." 24He said, "I have been sent only to the lost sheep
of the House of Israel."
25Then
she came and bowed herself to the ground and said, "My lord, help me."
26But
he answered her, "It is not appropriate to take the children's bread and
give it to the dogs." 27Then
she answered back, "True, my lord, but the dogs eat the crumbs that fall
from their master's table. 28Then
Joshua [Jesus] answered her, "Woman, your faith is great. Let your desire be
granted." And her daughter was heal at that very moment.
[Matthew 15:21-28] |
Notice, it is to the LOST SHEEP
of the HOUSE OF ISRAEL that Messiah Joshua ben Joseph was sent.
Though
Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph came only for the
"lost sheep of the House of Israel," it is clear that he taught only Jews.
What is the connection here? The answer to this question becomes obvious
when you look at who it was that Rabbi Joshua taught. First, he taught a core
group of very devout Jews who would carry his teachings to the House of
Israel. Secondly, he taught sinners.
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16And when the scribes and
Pharisees saw him eat with tax collectors and sinners, they said to his
disciples, "How is it that he eats and drinks with tax collectors and
sinners?" 17When Joshua [Jesus] heard this, he said to them, "It is
not they who are healthy who need the physician, but they who are sick.
I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
[Mark 2:16-17] |
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10While
Joshua [Jesus] was in the house eating, many tax collectors and sinners came and
sat down with him and his disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw
this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your rabbi eat with tax
collectors and sinners?" 12But Joshua heard what they asked and
answered them, "They who are healthy do not need a physician, only they
who are sick. 13As for you, go and learn what this means, 'I
will have mercy and not sacrifice.' I did not come to call the righteous,
but sinners to repentance."
[Matthew 9:10-13] |
As you see,
Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph did not come
to save those who were living by Torah -- he came to save the sinners. Who were these sinners? The
term "sinner" was used by the Pharisees to refer to the "Hellenikos"
(Hellenized Jews who had rejected Torah observance and turned to Greek
teachings). By rejecting the Torah of God these Hellenikos
had actually gone the way of the House of Israel, thus becoming a part of
the "lost sheep of the House of Israel" and needing to be redeemed. By
Paul's definition, these Hellenikos could not legitimately call
themselves "Jews" unless they first repented. (Romans 2:29) They needed to return to Torah
observance just as Rabbi Joshua taught:
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19Whoever, therefore, breaks even the least of the
commandments, and teaches others to break them will be called the least in
the kingdom of heaven: but whoever does them and teaches them, will be called
great in the kingdom of heaven.
[Matthew 5:19]
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[See the
teaching on the
Least of the Commandments]
To whom did Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph send his
disciples?
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5Joshua [Jesus] instructed these
twelve as he sent them out: "Do not go into the territory of the gentiles;
and do not go into any city of the Samaritans. 6Go, rather, to the
lost sheep of the House of Israel. 7As you go, proclaim: The
kingdom of Heaven is near.
[Matthew 10:5-7] |
The apostle Peter indicates
that the believers - the followers of Messiah Joshua ben Joseph - are the lost
sheep of the House of Israel by alluding to Hosea 1:6-10:
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10Which in time past were not a people,
but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have
obtained mercy.
[1 Peter 2:10] |
Who did
Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph die for? The
lost sheep, of course!
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6We have all gone astray like sheep.
Every one of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid the
iniquity of all of us on him.
[Isaiah 53:6] |
After the resurrection what was
the most pressing question in the minds of Rabbi Joshua's disciples?
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6When they were all gathered together, they asked of
him, Lord, will you at this time restore the Kingdom of Israel? 7And he answered them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons,
which the Father has put in his own power.
[Acts 1:6-7] |
Do Jews need to accept
Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph
as their Messiah? No! Those Jews who live a Torah observant
lifestyle do not have to accept Messiah Joshua ben Joseph because they have not been
lost. Messiah ben David will come and save all of Israel (both
houses) from its enemies. This is a "physical salvation" -- not a
"spiritual salvation." It is Israel that must be spiritually saved,
not Judah! Many Jews, however, were forced to convert to Christianity
during the Spanish Inquisition and at other times and too have become lost.
They do need to accept the real teachings of Messiah ben Joseph (by embracing
a strict Torah lifestyle as he taught) and reject
the mythological "Jesus."
Those who do not live a Torah
observant lifestyle (who have not internalized the Torah), have not been
saved, even as it is written:
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31Look! The days are coming, says
the Lord, when I will
make a new covenant with the House of Israel, and with the House of Judah:
32Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day
that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. They
broke my covenant even though I was a husband to them, says the Lord.
33But this is the covenant that I will make
with the House of Israel at
that time, says the Lord, I will put my Torah into their very being, and
write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they will
be my people. 34No longer will every man teach his neighbor or
his brother, saying, Know the Lord because they will all know me, from the
least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord and I will forgive
their transgressing of my Torah, and I will not remember their sin
anymore.
[Jeremiah 31:31-34 & Hebrews 8:8-12] |
Notice that it is not the House
of Judah that needs the Torah written in their hearts. The House of Judah
(Orthodox Judaism) already has the Torah written in their hearts. It is the House
of Israel which will have the Torah written in their hearts. It is the Lost Sheep of the House of Israel that
Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph
came bring to redemption, not the House of Judah. In the last days the Lost
Ten Tribes (Christians mostly) that have been scattered throughout the earth will come to the
Jews to learn about Torah just as it is written:
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23This is what the Lord
of hosts says, In those days, ten
men, speaking all the languages of the nations, will take hold of the kanaf [the corner where the tzit-tzit is tied]
of a Jew and say, We will go with you, because we have heard that God is
with you.
[Zechariah 8:23] |
Teshuva and Redemption for the House of Israel
Teshuva is the Hebrew word for
repentance. It means to "return" to God.
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6I am the Lord I do not change. This
is why you descendants of Jacob have not become extinct. 7Since
the days of your fathers you have turned from my laws, and have not kept
them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says
the Lord of hosts....
[Malachi 3:6-7a] |
Redemption was promised to a
wayward Israel from the very beginning.
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1One day when all these things
befall you -- the blessing and curse that I have set before you -- and you
take them to heart amidst the various nations to which the
Lord
your God has
banished you, 2and you return to
the Lord your God, and you and
your children heed his command with all your heart and soul, according to
all that I command you this day, 3then the
Lord
your God will
bring an end to your banishment and have compassion on you. He will gather
you together again from all the nations to which
the Lord
your God has
scattered you. 4Even if you have been driven beyond the
horizon. The
Lord your God will gather you from there, and from there he
will fetch you. 5 The
Lord
your God will bring you into the land
which your ancestors possessed, and you shall possess it. He will make you
more prosperous and more numerous than your ancestors. 6 The
Lord your
God will open your heart, and the hearts of your children, to love the
Lord
your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, in order that
you may live.
[Deuteronomy 30:1-6] |
Look at all the haggadot (parables) of
Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph. These are teachings about the
redemption of the House of
Israel and the restoration of the Kingdom of Israel. Look at what Rabbi
Joshua says in the parable of the prodigal son:
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11He said, A certain man had two sons.
12The younger of
them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of the inheritance
that will come to me. So he divided his wealth between them. 13Shortly after
that the younger son gathered everything together, and traveled to a
distant country, and began to waste his substance with riotous living.
14When he had spent all of it a great famine came upon that land and he had
not means of support.
15He hired himself out to a citizen of that country,
and his employer sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. 16No one gave
him anything to eat and he would have gladly filled his belly with the
husks that the pig ate.
17When he came to his senses, he said, How many of
my father's hired servants have more than enough bread to eat while I
perish with hunger? 18I will return to my father and say to him, Father, I
have sinned against heaven and before you. 19I am not even worthy to be
called your son. Let me be one of your hired servants. 20So he returned to
his father; but when he was still a long way off, his father saw him, and
had compassion, and ran, and embraced him and kissed him. 21The son said,
Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am not even worthy
to be called your son. 22But the father said to his servants, Go get the
best clothes and put them on him; and put a ring on his finger, and shoes
on his feet. 23Go get the fattened calf and butcher it; and let us eat and
celebrate; 24because this son of mine was dead, but now he is alive. He was
lost, but now he is found. And they began to celebrate.
25Now the older son was out working in
the field and when he came near to the house he heard music and dancing.
26He called to one of the servants and asked what was going on.
27The servant said to him, Your brother has returned and your
father has butchered the fattened calf because he has received him back
safe and sound. 28He was angry and would not go in, so his
father came out and talked to him. Answering his father, he said, 29Look
Father, haven't I been faithful all these years, and haven't I obeyed your
every word? And yet you never even butchered so much as a goat for me,
that I might celebrate with my friends. 30But as soon as this
son of yours, who has wasted your wealth on prostitutes, comes home, you
butcher a fattened calf for him! The father replied, 31Son, you
are always with me and everything that I have is yours. 32It
was right that we should celebrate and be glad, because this brother of
yours was dead, and is alive again. He was lost, but now he is found.
[Luke 15:11-32] |
In this haggadah (this story), the older
son, who always obeys his fathers instructions (Torah), is the House of
Judah (Judaism). And the Father says, "Son, you are always with me
and everything that I have is yours." So Judah is singled out by
God as special in the Messianic Kingdom:
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10Sing
and rejoice, daughter of Zion! Look, I will come and I will live among
you, says the
Lord.
11Many nations shall be joined to the
Lord
in that day, and shall be my people: and I will live among
you, and you shall know that the
Lord
of hosts has sent me to you.
12And the
Lord
shall inherit
Judah as his portion in the
holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again.
[Zechariah
2:10-12] |
The younger son, who wastes his money on prostitutes
(idolatry: Hosea 1:2) is the House of Israel (Christianity). I am
speaking in general terms here because not all of lost Israel are
Christians and not all Christians are lost Israel, but lost Israel tends
to be predominantly Christian. See the "parable of the tares" in
the Gospel of Matthew: [Also see the related article:
The Sign of the Cross]
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24He put before them another
haggadah: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his
field; 25but while everyone slept, his enemy came and sowed
weeds among the wheat, then went away. 26When the wheat
sprouted and formed heads of grain, the weeds also appeared. 27The
owner's servants came to him and asked, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in
your field? Where did these weeds come from?' 28He answered,
'An enemy has done this.' The servants asked, 'Do you want us to go and
pull them up?' 29But he said, 'No, because while you are
pulling weeds you might also pull the wheat up. 30Let them grow
together until the harvest. Then at harvest time I will tell the reapers
gather the weeds up first and tie them in bundles and burn them, but
gather the wheat into my barn.
[Matthew 13:24-30] |
He also taught this:
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21"Not
every one who says to me, 'Lord, Lord!' will enter into the Kingdom of
Heaven, only those who do what my Father in heaven requires. 22On
that Day, many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord! Didn't we prophesy in your
name? Didn't we cast out demons in your name? Didn't we do many miracles
in you name?' 23Then I will tell them to their faces, 'I never
knew you. Get away from me, you workers of
lawlessness [you who violate the Torah].
[Matthew 7:21-23] |
The point is this, Israel must
return to the Father (God) and He can be found where the Jews are
(Judaism) because they dwell in his house.
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My people have been lost sheep.
Their shepherds [pastors?] have caused them to go astray. They have turned them loose
in the mountains. As they have wandered from mountain to hill, they have
forgotten where their home is.
[Jeremiah 50:6] |
Restoration of the Kingdom of Israel
Finally the House of Israel
will be redeemed and reunited with the House of Judah just as the prophet
said:
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15The word of
the
Lord
came to me:
16And you, son of man, take a stick, and write on it, "For Judah,
and for the children of Israel associated with him." Then take another
stick, and write on it, "For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the
house of Israel associated with him." 17Join them together as
one stick; and they shall become one in your hand. 18When any
of your people ask you, Won't you explain to us what you mean by this?
19Say to them, This is what the Lord
God says: See, I will
take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes
of Israel associated with him, and put it with the stick of Judah, and
make them one stick, and they shall be one in my hand. 20Hold
the sticks that you write on so that they can see them; 21then
say to them, "This is what the Lord
God says: See, I will take the
children of Israel out of the nations that they have gone to, and I will
gather them from every quarter and bring them into their own land. 22I
will make them a single nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel,
and one king shall be king over them all. They shall never again be two
nations, nor shall they ever again be divided into two kingdoms."
[Ezekiel 37:15-22] |
ADDENDUM
A friend of mine just discovered a link
to the English version of the Pontifical Biblical Commission's 210 page
report:
The Jewish People and the Holy Scriptures in the Christian Bible.
I had mentioned this report in the first paragraph of this page (which was
written long before the English version of the Vatican report was
released). There is still a lot of ignorance being displayed on the part
of the Vatican's top theologians in this report, which paints all Pharisees with one
brush. I am surprised since the Catholic Encyclopedia gives some very
good insight into the two dominant schools of the Pharisees in its article
on
Shammai. This article also cites other Catholic theologians who
believe that Jesus' condemnation of the Pharisees was limited to those of
the School of Shammai. Apparently the Vatican's own researchers did not
look at what the Catholic Encyclopedia had to say.
On the positive side, however, there is also a lot of rethinking that is going on in the Vatican
and this report has some surprising statements in it.
This report has also caused a firestorm among the rabidly anti-Semitic factions within the Catholic Church as well
as the rabidly anti-Semitic factions in Protestant Christianity.
I see this
move by the Vatican as a significant step which may cause many within the
Catholic Church to begin to look at the scriptures with new insight. Two
years ago my brother met a (high ranking) Catholic nun in Israel who
considered herself to be a Messianic Jew. She attended a Messianic
congregation every Shabbat. Yes folks, the redemption is beginning.
[Home Page]
Comments:
B"H
Dear Shomeir,
I read this article, among others on your site, with great interest.
I converted to Orthodox Judaism fourteen years ago. I don't regret it, for
it was my path to Torah. The conflict was what to do with Yeshua. So that
became an issue I quietly put on the shelf.
Your article speaks to me about what occurred within myself, how I was
drawn to Torah. As I read I realized Mashiach Ben YOSEF came for the lost
sheep of Israel, and I was one of them! I'm telling you this almost in
tears. How many years in the church I learned those passages without
understanding!
My father, a Baptist minister, always said that the Prophets could not be
seen only in the future. And I see what he means in this, as I see G-d's
hand moving throughout history, bringing us all to the climax of the
Redemption for all mankind.
The idea of the Tribes has come to me many times over the years. Each time
I've learned a bit and set it aside. The last two summers I went to India
and Asia. One day in prayer I got Rachel crying for her children so
strongly... I had an idea: Kashmir, Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc. This thing
is so BIG. But I returned to Israel and again set it aside.
Then one day I happened to meet an Australian woman in Jerusalem at an
e-mail cafe. She started talking to me, and we instantly connected. She
told me she was an Ephraimite. Over the next days she took me to meet Yair
Davidy...... I was amazed. These things had been whirling inside me for
years, but without definition. I was accused many times of chasing
legends. But yet... I knew there was something.
.....We've come to realize the prophecy about the rejoining of the tribes
reaches from one end of the Bible to the other. They're leaping off the
pages at us. And we've come to see that Mashiach comes AFTERWARDS. That
was quite a revelation!
Shalom,
M.....
Shalom,
I was raised non-Jewish but I recognize (and have been told) that I have a
Jewish soul. I am in the process of returning to the G-d of Yisrael and
the Torah.
I walked away from Christianity about 5 years ago, made my way thru
Messianic Judaism and Messianic Israel for a while but came to realize
that I needed to be learning Torah from Judah..... ....and now am finding
my roots watered and my soul nourished with a warm loving group of
Orthodox here in the city where I live. I knew I had come to the end of
what Ephraim was able to teach me. I was hungry and thirsty for much more.
I am sitting under an amazing Rabbi's teaching and tutoring presently.
I am now in intense Hebrew study, as well as, a personal quest to find out
exactly who and what Y'shua really truly is. Your articles and thoughts
have only served to confirm what H" is trying to make clear to me. I am
still very much in the process of trying to grasp this understanding. I
have no agenda and I want no man's agenda. I only want truth. I want to
know who H" says Y'shua is...what his true appearance here on earth was
for.
I am not sure where this is going to ultimately lead me. I know I cannot
ever go back to Christianity. The Messianic movement presently just
frustrates and stresses me out with all their discord and ever changing
faces.....perhaps it will evolve and gain focus and clarity in time. I
find a depth, quietness, timelessness and steadiness in the Orthodox
Judaism I see here that is also very spiritually minded and hungry for
truth and to see H"s spirit move--maybe this is an unusual group here....
...I am looking to hear more insights and teachings coming forth in the
days ahead from you.
Shalom,
Rivka
Thank you so much for this
article. I just love it and will have to chew on it a bit but it hits a
chord of Scripture I have learned thus far.
I am enjoying your insights.
Shalom,
Lynn
i have been coming to this
conclusion on my own, actually (praise God!), but i have some questions
even for myself as i have inquired about this very issue. when i have more
time, i would like to present them to you, also some further observations
that i am throwing around in my mind that seem in line with what you are
saying here.... thanks for your courage to speak truth... blessings,
Cherie K
Sent: Saturday, May 04, 2002 6:17 PM
To: Shomeir@AlphaMall.com
Subject: MJAA page from Debra L
I thought you might be interested in this page
http://mjaa.org/position/eph_brf.html
Reply:
Debra,
Thanks! This was very enlightening. MJAA seems to be pretty much at odds,
on the history of Israel, with the Talmud and other rabbinic sources that
state in no uncertain terms that Israel did become gentile. There was even
the belief that the ten tribes of Israel were lost permanently and would
not be redeemed.
From Everyman's Talmud by Rabbi Abraham Cohen, page
354:
Another
confirmed belief was that the Messiah would effect the reunion of the
tribes of Israel. While we find the teaching, 'The ten tribes will have no
share in the World to Come' (Tosifta Sanh. XIII. 12), the Talmud usually
takes the opposite view. By appealing to such texts as Is. xxviii. 13 and
Jer. iii. 12, the Ribbis enunciated the doctrine of the return of the lost
ten tribes (Sanh. 110b).
See the current revision of my article "Must the Jews be
Saved?" at:
http://www.bnai-el-chai.com/redemption.htm
Yair Davidy cites where rabbinic sources list England and
France as places that some of the lost ten tribes ended up. Much of this
information may also be found online at:
http://www.britam.org
Shomeir
Todah rabah but you are "preaching at the choir", so to
speak. I am a ger Tsedek. A little backslidden, but I'm working on it (teshuvah).
And HK"BH is not through with me yet. Thanks alot and, good to 'meet you'
so to speak.
Zechariah 8:23
Thus saith the L-RD of hosts: In those days it shall come to pass, that
ten
men shall take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, shall even
take
hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying: We will go with you, for
we
have heard that G-d is with you.'
David B
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