Shalom everyone, my name’s Shmulik, and in this blog-post, I’d like to provide you with a brief insight into what Talmidaism is all about.
Talmidaism is a modern term for what academics call, ‘Jewish-Christianity’. The term ‘Talmidaism’ was chosen as a substitute for ‘Jewish-Christianity’ because we’re not ‘Christian’ – we don’t believe Jesus was a god, we don’t believe he was a messiah-saviour, we don’t believe in the trinity, or the virgin birth, or original sin, or any of a number of things which are normally considered to be typically Christian. We were uncomfortable with bearing a name with ‘Christianity’ in it, because we feel that Christianity was a religion mainly founded on the teachings and beliefs of Paul of Tarsus.
Whereas Christianity focusses on the person of Jesus, instead Talmidaism focusses strongly on the ethics which Jesus taught – ethics which can also be found in the Torah and the writings of the Hebrew prophets, such as merciful forgiveness, having a concern for the poor, and opposing social injustice and false piety. Sadly, many people who claim to follow Jesus actually ignore what he taught – something which even Jesus criticised when he said, “Why do you call me ‘lord’, and yet do nothing that I say?”
The very earliest Jewish followers of Jesus – or rather, Yeshua – did not accept the teachings of Paul of Tarsus. We know this from the writings of the early Christian Church Fathers themselves, who wrote polemics against us, and one of the notable things they said about the ancient Jewish Followers of Yeshua, was that we did not accept the teachings of Paul of Tarsus. This is good news for those who find Paul’s writings difficult.
So, what do we believe about God? We profess that God is One and indivisible, without physical form; that God is a loving, gracious, merciful and forgiving God, who stands with the outcast and the rejected, and those in need. We don’t accept that it’s blood and death that saves us from our sins. Instead, we believe that it is our all-powerful God who directly purifies us from our sins by the cleansing fire of God’s Glory – that is, the fire of God’s Divine Radiance. The reason why Moses’s face shone when he came back down from Mt Sinai, is because he had experienced closeness to the Glory of Adonai, which had purified his soul to such an extent that it glowed within him.
There are currently two main Talmidi ministries: the Ebionites and the Massorites. This article is mostly from a Massorite point of view, however, there’s very little difference between us. Whereas many religions tend to engender strife between their various sects and denominations, it’s really, really important for us all, as Followers of the Way, to get along, no matter what tradition or ministry we belong to. Our differences should not divide us – we show that we are the Followers of Yeshua by the love we have for one another.
I should also emphasise that we’re not Messianic – Talmidaism is most definitely not the same as Messianic Judaism. Messianics hold exactly the same beliefs as mainstream Christians. In Christianity, ‘messiah’ tends to mean ‘saviour’, but to ancient Jews, ‘messiah’ referred to someone who would sweep away God’s earthly enemies, and establish Israel as an independent, sovereign kingdom. Yeshua accomplished none of this. For Talmidis, Adonai our God, the Holy One, is the only Saviour that we need. Consequently, we’re not waiting for the coming of any saviour, because our Saviour is already with us – always has been, and always will be. Acknowledging that our true Saviour is already with us, rather than waiting for one, affects your entire approach to religious faith.
Another point to be aware of is that Talmidaism is not Rabbinic, in that we don’t consider the rabbinic Oral Law to be infallible or authoritative. We accept the need for ironing out ambiguities and inconsistencies in Torah, and we do find ways of dealing with these ambiguities. However, whatever decisions we come up with in our community, will never be considered infallible or unchangeable. And we don’t overrule the written Torah; we always try to keep within the original spirit and intent of the written Torah.
Our community is made up of Jews and non-Jews. As I mentioned earlier, Talmidaism focusses on its ethics, and we don’t impose the cultural and ritual aspects of Torah on people who are not ready for it, and so the important thing for non-Jews to know, is that in order to self-identify as a Talmidi, you don’t have to become Jewish. Becoming Jewish is like the vocational calling to become a priest or a minister – not everyone is called to become a priest, so likewise, not every Talmidi is required to become Jewish, if such a process would be difficult for them (we do have an official process of conversion, but this is mostly for those who wish to gain full, legal Israelite status within the Talmidi community). Alongside born-Jews and full converts, we have Gentile Noahides and Godfearers in our community, who are basically Gentiles who focus on biblical ethics and beliefs as the foundation of their way of life. Torah is not just its ritual and cultural demands; Torah is also its ethics, its principles and ideals.
Generally, most Talmidis do not have a problem with Science. Our all-knowing Adonai is the God of all knowledge and Wisdom; you only have to read the Books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes to realise this. It is Adonai therefore, the Great Author, who wrote all the original scientific laws of the Universe. Some people say that science is dangerous to religion, but science is only a danger to religious faith if one’s faith is unreasonable and based on falsehoods. We therefore have no problem with evolution or the great age of the Earth.
Because Adonai our God is a God of Wisdom, it’s really important to apply one’s personal faith responsibly, with reason and common sense. Talmidis are encouraged to practise their faith sensibly and with a feeling for common decency. The ethical principles of Torah & The Prophets are also important to us – such as social justice and compassion for others.
A lot of modern fringe sects seem to concentrate on apocalypse and the end of the world, but the overwhelming outlook of the ancient prophets was that one day there would be universal peace, when people would beat their swords into ploughshares, and not train for or learn war any more. Modern Talmidaism is therefore not an apocalyptic movement. The terrible events of which Yeshua warned us, already happened in the tragic events of the year 70 in the first century, when the Temple was destroyed, and the Jewish people were exiled from Judea.
Yeshua’s teachings on the Kingdom of God are really important for Talmidis. God’s Kingdom will one day be fulfilled in the distant future, but God’s Kingdom is already with us and within us. Living the Kingdom in the here and now means loving your fellow human beings as yourself, regardless of what religion they belong to – or even if they profess no religion at all. Living God’s Kingdom means not judging or condemning others, and helping them instead to be the best version of themselves.
God is ever willing to forgive us the wrongs of our past. Our God does not hold grudges, and would rather that we live a full life in the light of God’s Presence, rather than haul us up for judgment. We worship the God of the father who ran up to his prodigal son, who returned home after living a wasteful life, and was willing to put aside his entire past in order to give him a new start and show him God’s love.
We’re living in difficult and frightening times right now, and we don’t need more religious doom and gloom; we need more hope in a better future – that we can still have a better future. We’re not here to make everyone the same religion; we’re here to encourage everyone to practise religion in a better way. There is a better way of practising religion – not centred on conflict or hatred, or making everyone believe the same thing, or preaching about apocalypse, hell and damnation, or on permanently dwelling on one’s sins.
That’s all been done, and we really haven’t gotten very far from where we were 2000 years ago. There is a better way of practising religion based on decency and common sense, on dignity and compassion, on reverencing wisdom and knowledge, on social justice and equality, and on serving God while helping humanity to become the highest version of what God meant us to be, and that is everything that Talmidaism tries to be.
If any of this message has resonated with you, please explore this website and blog, and feel free to join our facebook group, where you can interact with other Talmidis and those who are interested in Talmidaism. I wish you all God’s holy peace, and God’s choicest blessings. Shalom.