David served God's purpose in his own generation (Acts 13:26). This is also our goal as well: To be Torah observant believers in Yeshua HaMashiach. Our goal involves three generations: our generation, the one preceding us and the one following us. For this reason our activities and outreach ministries aim at those three groups of society, and we warmly welcome Jewish inter-marriages.

Values

Isaiah chapter 2 and Micah 4 states that in the last days acharit-hayamim. The law (Torah) will go out from Zion and the Word (Davr) of God from Jerusalem. This is a beautiful picture of what our values are. The Law and the Word refer to Zion and Jerusalem. Zion is the center, the kernel, the place where God puts His name. The temple was built there, and today it's called the Temple Mount; a piece of land inside of the City of Jerusalem - the Jerusalem of Gold that we sing about; the City that God loves. The two can't be separate. Zion is part of Jerusalem, Jerusalem is part of Zion. In the future, during the Messianic Age, God will rule the universe headquartered in Jerusalem, with His throne in Zion.

The prophets Isaiah and Micah related the Torah and the Davr (the Law and the Word) to those two places: Zion and Jerusalem. Just as those two physical locations cannot be separated, so too the Law and the Word cannot be separated.

However, history shows that we have over 2,000 years of attempts to separate them. First of all, we have Constantine and the Nicean Counsel to thank for the creation of the "Bible" in which they took the Tanack, changed the order of some of the books, and renamed it "Old Testament". Then together with 318 Catholic bishops, they selected which books they wanted to call "New Testament", thus producing of the contemporary "Holy Bible".

The Jewish community upheld the Torah "Law" and the Christian community elevated the Davr "Word". Yet those two prophets (Isaiah and Micah) show a picture of the two being together. To us at the Aliyah Congregation, the study of Torah "Law" - the first five books of Moses - is essential. They are the very foundation which is necessary for a complete understanding of all the holy writings.

God

Exodus 15:2 says Moses sang, "This is my God and I will praise Him. The God of my father and I will exalt Him." We join Moses in singing: "He is our God" - the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

In Hebrew there are 72 names for God, which reveal His qualities and attributes. His official name, however are those four Hebrew letters "Y H W H " called the TETRAGRAMMATON. No one knows how to pronounce those letters because there are no vowels. So the Jewish translators of the Hebrew Scriptures used the term HASHEM (The Name) wherever those four letters appear. The Christian translators used the name LORD where those same four letters appear.

At our meetings we recite the verse known as the Sh'ma ("Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is One"). This verse not only affirms our faith in God's unity but also expresses our belief in One God and our acceptance of his rule over our lives. We are monotheists. We do not believe in the "Trinity" doctrine, because it is not mentioned in the Torah (Law) or the Davr (Word). We do not attempt to prove or explain what God Himself has not done in His inspired writings by creating words such as "Trinity", "Essence", or "Substance." We only state what is in the Law or the Word.

This brings us to Messiah. What is our view? Our position is that the person who, in the 15th Century of the Common Era (C.E.) was nicknamed "Jesus" is based on what is stated in the Torah and the Davr:

In Leviticus 17:10-12 Hashem says not to eat blood, stating: "I have given it (blood) to you in the altar to make atonement for yourselves, for it is the blood that makes atonement because of the life." If Hashem is only spirit, how can he give blood on the altar to make atonement for us?

In Psalms 2 the author is talking about Hashem and His Anointed. He refers to His Anointed as the King that He installs on Mount Zion. Then He says, "The kings of the earth will kiss the Son." Who is this anointed king that the earthly kings should kiss? Who is the Son? About whom is He talking? And remember that the word "anointed" is the translation of the Hebrew word Messiah (Mashiach) which is the word used in the original text.

Exodus 31:18 speaks of the two "Tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God." In John 8:6 it speaks of Yeshua, "writing in the dust with His finger". We maintain that the finger that wrote in the tablets of stone and the finger that wrote in the dust are the same finger. The difference was not in the finger, but where it wrote.

In the first case, when the Torah was given, He used the best form possible for the writing to remain. In the second case, He wrote in the dust because He did NOT want it to remain and substitute Torah. By doing so, He exalted and honored Torah.

Isaiah 9: 6 "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given. The government will be on his shoulders. He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." Who is this child that was born who is also a Mighty God? Who is the son that was given, who is also the Everlasting Father?

Isaiah 7: 14 "Adonai Himself will give you a sign. A young woman will become pregnant, bear a son, and name him Immanuel, God with Us."

Isaiah 8: 8 Then it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass through, it will reach even to the neck; and the spread of its wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.

Isaiah 8: 10 Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; state a proposal, but it will not stand, for God is with us."

Who is this Immanuel or this God who is with us?

A Jewish man named Mattityahu (Matthew) living at that time in Jerusalem was of the opinion that Immanuel was Yeshua (Matthew 1:23 - 25). That is our opinion too.

Tanachee

So what type of Judaism do we practice since we are not part of the Reformed, Conservative, Orthodox, Hassidic, Cohelec or Messianic groups? We aim to practice the form of Judaism or Hebraic faith that was practiced by Yeshua. To determine it, we use the process of elimination. We know for a fact that Yeshua did not practice any form or version of Christianity because none of its different varieties existed at His time. We know also that he practiced a form of Judaism, yet it was not the same.

Yeshua's practices were in conflict with the Judaism of His day. This created difficulty between His and theirs. But the Judaism of His time and of today is still the same. It is a form of Judaism called "Rabbinical" Judaism. Rabbinical Judaism is based on the writings of the Talmud. It is a collection of 2.5 million words of commentaries, interpretations and discussions of laws, customs, and traditions of ancient Rabbis. The Talmud is composed of the Mishnah, or the Oral Law and the Gemara which is a commentary on the Mishnah or the Oral Law. To support the existence and usage of the Talmud, Jewish Theologians use a passage where the word "Torahs" (plural) appears. Based on the plural word, they teach that there are 2 Torahs: The written Torah given to us by Moses, and the Oral Torah. According to them it WAS NOT to be written down, but it is a Torah knowledge passed verbally or orally from generation to generation.

In their narratives, we are told that it functioned this way for centuries. The fallacy of this reasoning is that if it was to be so, why then the disobedience and the writing down of the oral law, which was not supposed to be written down? Because this is what was done until the 5th century of the C.E. and then they wrote the Jerusalem Talmud. Then, in the following century, they wrote the Babylonian Talmud. Remember, this was supposed to be "oral" and not written down, and it wasn't until those dates.

The Hebraic faith practiced by Yeshua was in conflict with the Rabbinical Judaism of His day. But He never once violated the Torah given to Moses. Yeshua was accused of many things including violating the customs and traditions of the fathers; and rightly so, because He did violate them! He followed Torah only, NOT the traditions and customs of man.

At Aliyah Congregation our desire is to practice that which our forefathers practiced when it was pure Torah only. We use the the word "Tanachee" (referring to the Tanach), which is "Biblical Judaism" or "Hebraic Faith". We are of the firm belief that we need more Torah and less Talmud to arrive at our goal of 100 percent Torah and 0 percent Talmud. We just want what Hashem gave to Moses on Sinai. It's our goal, as we attempt to teach and "walk out" the Torah, that it would always be with the grace and mercy of Messiah Yeshua (Jesus Christ).

The Book of Revelation talks about "the remnant" being those who have the Spirit within and who walk according to the commandments (the Torah) of God. We want to be among this remnant when God calls. Our hearts are to teach and walk in the spirit as we grow together as brethren who worship God in Spirit and Truth. ONLY when we do this with a proper balance can we truly be used as vessels of honor for Messiah.

We invite you to fellowship and worship with us soon!

Shalom