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The world’s largest religion and more than half of the world believes that the Israeli rabbi Jesus was a prophet and the Jewish Messiah (Christians & Muslims). “Projections suggest both Christianity and Islam will continue growing as a percentage of world population through at least 2050. So the true peak percentage may still be a few decades away… never in history have more human beings simultaneously believed in Jesus as a prophet” (Claude AI). They also generally believe that Judaism is a false religion. The problem here is that the historical Yeshua was an Israeli-Jewish Rabbi and thoroughly Jewish in every way. There is absolutely no contradiction between Yeshua and authentic Judaism (as I’ve quoted from many orthodox rabbis), so what do we do with that knowledge?
Statistics demonstrate there is no stopping belief in Yeshua and why should there be, if as a rabbi he didn’t contradict Judaism? Statistics also show that the Jewish People and religion are not going away. There are at least twice as many explicit prophecies about the return of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel as there are about the Messiah. These prophecies are being fulfilled right before our eyes. We are at least twice the witnesses of the prophesied resurrection of Israel as were the disciples witnesses of Yeshua’s attested resurrection from the dead. Both prophetic resurrections offer tremendous hope and meaning for humanity (G-d’s eternal faithfulness and physical life from death).
If one believes in Divine Providence through history, one should and need not see Yeshua and Judaism as irreconcilable workings of G-d. Maimonides writes clearly as Jewish Law (Halacha) that G-d used Yeshua to prepare the world for the messianic redemption, which includes the prophesied return of Israel to their Land. Rabbi Moshe David Valle wrote about Yeshua that “he was certainly the Messiah son of Joseph” (Likkutim 1, p. 242), who prepares the way for Messiah son of David. The question before us is if this contradicted the intentions of this Israeli rabbi himself. Rabbi Yaakov Emden (Yaavetz) and other orthodox rabbis say that his intentions were only good, and he was misrepresented by those who unjustly did ill in his name (the Talmud itself exonerates Yeshua of bloodguilt, Gittin 57a). They also did evil in the name of the Hebrew Bible and in the name of the G-d of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, but we don’t dare blame G-d or the Bible for those atrocities.
If there is any hope and success to reconcile Yeshua and Judaism, then I believe the following principles must be adhered to, all of which are based on Orthodox Jewish sources:
The Waykeeper Principles
1. The entire Land of Israel was given by G-d to the Children of Israel as an irrevocable promise and inheritance forever.
2. The Jewish People (Children of Israel) are the eternal covenant People and Bride of G-d. They are the only true ‘kehal’ (= ‘ekklesia,’ ‘church’) with which Gentiles should humbly and lovingly unite.
3. Torah Halacha (613 Commandments) is G-d’s holy covenantal will for the priestly Children of Israel (7 Bnei Noah commandments for Gentiles). Jews cannot become Gentiles, but Gentiles may become Jews via Halachic conversion.
4. According to Halacha, the Christian Trinity is avodah zarah (‘strange worship,’ idolatry) for Jews, ‘Shituf’ (‘partnership’) for Gentiles. The Jew Yeshua denied equality with the Father and worshiped Him as “the only true G-d” (John 4:22, 14:28, 17:3).
5. Greco-Roman Christianity is the principal religion of the ‘Fourth Beast’ – Rome (Islam or Protestant Reformation did not ‘restore all things’ to Judaism, but continued in supercessionist Replacement Theology).1
6. The historical, Israeli Yeshua Ben Yosef and European, theological ‘Jesus’ are not the same figures. The Greco-Roman caricature of, ‘Jesus,’ is the ‘Antichrist’ (‘lawless one’ of “New Testament”), ‘Armilus,’ ‘Ben Pandira’ (false messiah of Daniel, Midrash).2
7. The Jewish writings within the so-called, “New Testament,” are not equal, but are subordinate to the Torah given by G-d at Sinai (and therefore not a Halachic authority). Rather, they affirm the binding authority of Rabbinic Halacha (Matthew 23:1-2).
8. We do not yet have a kosher translation of the “New Testament,” but its general teachings align especially with Hasidic Judaism (e.g. mystical, pietistic serving G-d with and beyond ‘the letter’).
9. The historical Yeshua son of Joseph was an Israeli, Pharisaic rabbi and was ‘Messiah son of Joseph’3 who was “bound (i.e. ‘forbidden’) in Rome.”4 He did not fulfill all messianic prophecies and Halachic requirements of ‘Messiah son of David’ (Rambam).
10. Yeshua (as Messiah son of Joseph) was excommunicated5 and sold like Joseph, and he is likewise forbidden to the Jewish People until he is ‘redeemed’ from the Priesthood to which he was sold, according to G-d’s Law (i.e. evangelizing to Jews is absolutely impermissible).
11. Yeshua was zealous for his G-d’s House on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. It is a Torah commandment to rebuild its ruins and reestablish its service in holiness.
12. The Messiah son of Joseph (the ‘Tree of Joseph’) shall unite with the Messiah son of David (the ‘Tree of Judah’), whom the restored Sanhedrin must anoint as king in accordance with Halacha.6
Q: Do these principles conform to either Judaism or Christianity?
“By the standards each tradition uses for itself, this is much closer to a form of Judaism than to Christianity…
Why it doesn’t fit Christianity
Measured against the definitions in my previous answer, it lacks nearly every defining Christian element:
- The Trinity is rejected, and called idolatry for Jews.
- Jesus isn’t presented as divine or as the source of salvation. He’s a Pharisaic rabbi and a messianic figure within a Jewish framework [e.g. Rabbi Moshe David Valle].
- The New Testament is subordinate to the Torah and has no authority in halacha.
- The Church is not the covenant community. Israel is the only true kehal, and mainstream Christianity is identified with Rome, the “Fourth Beast,” and its Jesus with the Antichrist [false messiah].
- Gentiles are directed to the Noahide laws or to conversion to Judaism, not to baptism.
It also differs from Messianic Judaism, which typically affirms Jesus’s divinity, treats the New Testament as scripture, and actively evangelizes Jews. This system forbids evangelizing Jews. No mainstream Christian church would recognize it as Christianity.
Why it fits a Jewish framework
The structure is Jewish throughout. Authority rests in the Torah from Sinai, halacha, and a future Sanhedrin. The theology of Gentiles (Noahide laws, shituf, conversion) is standard rabbinic doctrine. The messianic expectations (Mashiach ben Yosef and Mashiach ben David, the Temple rebuilt, resurrection, Armilus) come from rabbinic and midrashic sources…
Bottom line
This could fairly be described as a heterodox Jewish theology: Jewish in authority, law, and structure, but with a minority messianic belief about Yeshua that Orthodox authorities would almost certainly reject as outside accepted Jewish belief. That rejection wouldn’t make it Christianity, and in halacha, a Jew who held these views would still be Jewish. The live question would be whether the beliefs about Yeshua are acceptable, not which religion this is.”
-Claude AI Opus 5.5
1““And behold, another small horn came up among them,” — the Abarbanel explained that this refers to the rule of the papacy, which began in Rome and was initially small and insignificant; the emperors who ruled the Roman empire (which encompassed all the ten horns that would arise within it) did not consider it important at all. Afterward, this horn grew strong in the days of the emperor Constantine, who brought Sylvester the pope out of hiding and installed him in Rome, granting him imperial authority so that he and his successors would rule Rome…”
-Malbim on Daniel 7:8
2“The seventh sign: The Almighty performs a wonder in the world. It is said that in Rome, there is a statue made of marble with the likeness of a beautiful young woman upon it. This statue was not crafted by human hands; rather, the L-rd created it with His might. The wicked followers of Edom, the sons of Belial, come and heat it, lying next to it. The L-rd preserves a drop of their sweat within the stone, creating life within it and forming a creature. The statue then cracks open, and the figure of a man emerges, and his name is Armilus the Satan. This figure is referred to by the nations as Antichrist. His height is twelve cubits, and his width is twelve cubits. Between his two eyes, there is a horn, and they are deep red, and the hair on his head is like the color of gold. His feet are green, and he has two crowns. He goes to Edom, the wicked, and says to them, “I am the Messiah, I am your God.” Immediately, they believe in him, crown him as their king, and unite with him. All the sons of Esau join him, and he conquers all the nations. He commands the sons of Esau to bring him the Torah that was given to them. And they bring their scrolls and he says to them, “It is true that I gave you the Torah.” He then says to the followers of Edom, “Believe in me, for I am your Messiah.” Immediately, they believe in him. At that moment, Nehemiah, the son of Hushiel, and all of Israel rise up, and he [Armilus] says to them, “Bring me your Torah and testify about me that I am God.” Immediately, they become afraid and astonished. At that moment, Nehemiah, the son of Hushiel, and thirty thousand warriors from the mighty ones of the sons of Ephraim take a Torah scroll and read before him, “I am the Lord your God; you shall have no other gods before Me.” He says to them, “There is nothing in your Torah; come and testify to me that I am God, just as all the nations have done.” Immediately, Nehemiah stands against him, and Armilus says to his servants, “Seize him and force him.” Immediately, Nehemiah, the son of Hushiel, and thirty thousand people with him, engage in battle, and they kill two hundred thousand of them. Immediately, the wicked Armilus becomes enraged, gathering all the armies of the world to the Valley of HaCharutz to fight against Israel. They kill many of the Jewish people, and they kill the Messiah of G-d. The angels then come, take him, and hide him with the patriarchs of the world. Immediately, the hearts of the Israelites melt, and their strength diminishes. The wicked Armilus does not know that the Messiah is dead. If he had known, he would not have left any remnant or survivor among the Israelites. At that moment, all the followers of Edom persecute the Jews in their countries, not allowing them to reside peacefully in their territories. They say, “You have seen the rebellious and lowly people who rebelled against us and crowned a king. Let there be distress for Israel like never before in the history of the world until that time. At that moment, Michael, the great angel who stands for your people, will rise…”
-Otzar Midrashim, Rabbi Yehuda David Eisenstein, Midrashim on The Messiah, Otot Mashiach 10
3“And HaShem spoke with Moshe face to face as a man speaks with his friend” (Exodus 33:11)- this is Mashiach ben David- the face of Moshe is the face of the sun, which is the face of Zeir Anpin (the Small Face), therefore, “as when a man speaks with his friend”, which is his pattern below. “And his attendant was Yehoshua ben Nun, a youth that did not leave the tent” (ibid)- this is Mashiach ben Yoseph- the face of Yehoshua is the face of the moon. For this reason the Angel was revealed to him as he was revealed to Yehoshua as he said to him, “I am the Prince of the Armies of HaShem, now I have come” (Joshua 5:14). And our sages of blessed memory have said, “I have now come concerning my business”. This is a nullification of Torah, and he came to reveal to him hidden hints. This is the secret of “and he stayed that night in the valley” (Joshua 8:13, but exchanging the verb here with “vayalen” from v9)- he stayed all night in the depths of halachah. And this was in fact the Prince of the Armies, because Mashiach ben Yoseph is the one who does battle, and Mashiach ben David comes to make peace in the world, not war. This is opposite of Yeshu HaNotzri, who said of himself, “I did not come into the world to make peace, but war.” And also he himself was certainly the secret of Mashiach ben Yoseph, even though he was a mamzer, because a student of the sages who is a mamzer precedes the High Priest who is unlearned. However, since it was not yet the proper time, because there was baseless hatred in Israel, he was corrupted and held by Samae-l (Satan), who destroyed him, and he was crucified. And Yehoshua ben Parachiah his Rabbi was himself a “reincarnation” specifically of Yehoshua, and it was up to him to rectify this Yeshua HaNotzri, because he also was from his (soul) root. Instead, he pushed him away with both hands. But in the last generation, Mashiach ben Yoseph is not pushed away, because Mashiach ben David joins with him, and they both live and dwell forever before G-d.”
-Rabbi Moshe David Valle, colleague of the RaMChaL, Sefer HaLekutim Vol. I, p. 242
4“And the L-rd said to me: “Go to the House of the Mockers (alt. reading: House of the Clowns), a place in the market.” And I went as He commanded me.
And He said to me: “Turn further away,” and I turned, and He touched me, and I saw a despised and wounded man.
And the despised and wounded man said to me: “Zerubbabel! What are you doing here?” And I answered and said, “The Spirit of the L-rd carried me to a place I do not know and brought me to this place.”
And he said to me: “Do not fear; you have been brought here to be shown [something].”
And when I heard his words, I was comforted and I asked him, “What is the name of this place?”
And he said to me: “This is Great Rome, in which I am bound in prison until the time of the end comes.” (alt. reading: “I am the L-rd’s Messiah who is bound here until the time of the end.”)
And when I heard this, I turned my face away from him for a moment and then returned and looked at him, and I turned away again because I was afraid.
And he said to me: “Do not fear and do not be afraid. Why are you silent [and turning your face from me]?”
And I said: “I have heard your fame, for you are the Messiah of the G-d of [Jacob].”
And immediately he appeared to me like a young man, altogether beautiful and pleasant beyond compare.And I said to him: “When will the lamp of Israel shine? [And when will the redemption come?]””
-Sefer Zerubavel, Otzar Midrashim
5“… He [Rabbi Yehoshua ben Perachyah] brought out four hundred shofarot and excommunicated him. Every day Jesus would come before him, but he would not accept his wish to return…”
-Talmud Bavli, Sotah 47a:13
6“”The envy also of Efrayim shall depart, and the adversaries of Yehuda shall be cut off: Efrayim shall not envy Yehuda, and Yehuda shall not vex Efrayim.” The Messiah, the son of David, and the Messiah, the son of Joseph, shall not envy each other.”
-Rashi on Isaiah 11:13
