February 18, 2013

• Jews, Catholics, Protestants... OY!

  שמע ישראל ה 'הוא האלוהים שלנו הוא אחד Shema Yisrael Adonai Elohaynu Adonai Echad Hear, Israel, Adonai is our God, Adonai is One. By John of AllFaith (Yochanan) © 2.18.2013 There are Jews, Catholics, Anglicans, Protestants and innumerable unaffiliated Christian sects, all claiming to follow the Bible. Which is right? Here's a brief summary that might help clarify things. Jesus (Y'shua in Hebrew) was a Jewish rabbi and reformer who lived and taught in the first century CE., mainly in Judea. He and all of his students were devout, Torah observant Jews. About 30 years after Y'shua's execution by the Romans they destroyed the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem (in 70 CE). The Jews were forced from their homeland and dispersed throughout the known world. Over the next 300 years or so the Jews and Gentiles who followed Y'shua's teachings gradually merged their beliefs with those of the Roman Empire and abandoned Judaism and Torah. There were many reasons for this: an attempt to avert persecution, due to lack of knowledge, in response to Jewish rejection of the Way movement, anti-Semitism certainly played its role, etc. The Roman ruler Constantine united all the religions of the Roman Empire into a new universal (Latin: catholic) religion known as Catholicism (Universalism). That new religion later divided into two groups, the (Roman) Catholic Church and the (Eastern) Orthodox Catholic Church. Both groups remain significant today. Much later, at the Diet of Speyer in 1529, a group of Catholic reformers led by Martin Luther signed and posted a petition consisting of ninety-five theses (statements of belief and demand) to express their dissatisfaction with certain aspects of the Roman Church and its doctrines. This protest developed into a major split within the (Roman) Catholic Church. Those who were excommunicated and/or voluntarily left the Catholic Church are known as Protestants (i.e. Protestors). Protestants have their own churches, clergies, rules and beliefs (divided into an ever growing number of separate sects or denominations). Most Protestants have little to nothing to do with Catholics and vice versa. At times their differences have led to bloodshed, even wars. All segments of Christendom (the Christian world) base their essential beliefs on the fundamental dogmas developed by Constantine and the early "Church fathers," however there are also many differences, some significant. The Eastern and Western Church continue to look somewhat askance at one another and both reject the legitimacy of the Protestant churches outright. Protestants vary widely in their views but as a general statement the Eastern and especially Western Catholic hierarchies are viewed negatively by them, in some cases excessively so. There is so much confusion! The words of the Jewish rabbi Y'shua ben Yosef continue to ring clear across time however: John 4:22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. For More Go To: Our Second Life Page The Yeshiva home page The Way of Rebbe Y'shua             With blessings of Shalom                   John of AllFaith                           Yochanan The Jewish Way of Rebbe Y'shua Way of Rebbe Y'shua Noahide Studies Jewish Studies Prophecy Studies Yeshiva Beth HaShem AllFaith.com My YouTube Channel Main Blog Contact John of AllFaith

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