Constantine had HUGE eyes. Also, he was a little crazy.

Now that you know YHWH, I am going to introduce you to another pivotal character in human history that MAYBE had more influence on the modern day Christian church than Jesus (Yahushua) himself. Who could THAT be you ask?

                                             THIS guy. His name was Constantine.

Perhaps you've heard of him in history class? He was a Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Not too long, but long enough to make a HUGE impact on mankind for thousands of years to come. He has often been referred to fondly as the first "Christian" Emperor. He did do the Christians a big favor by issuing the Edict of Milan in 313, a letter proclaiming religious tolerance and therefore putting a halt on the numerous acts of hate, violence and imprisonment that were plaguing the Christians at the time. Though Constantine did say in a letter to the Christians that he was, in fact, a Christian, historians will agree that this was more for political reasons. In truth, Constantine wasn't a true follower of the Hebrew God YHWH or Yahushua (Jesus). He was baptized days before his death, but probably only out of guilt over killing his wife and son as well as out of fear that he would go to hell if he did not. In fact, he bore the title "Pontifus Maximus"-the high preist of paganism, throughout his rule. 


Before he died, however, Constantine sought to blend Christian and Pagan traditions. Some believe this was to unify the empire; I think it was because he was afraid of the Hebrew god. He recognized throughout history that Christians had seen many victories in battle and their persecutor's misfortune. He wanted the same victory in battle and I think that was his only motivation in acknowledging the god of the Hebrews, YHWH. He actually worshipped the pantheon of Roman gods as all his predecessors had done and especially the Roman sun god, Mithras. 


In 325, the Council of Nicea, a council convened by Constantine, birthed the Roman Catholic Church. The council excluded any Hebrew leaders and henceforth banned synagogues and the Torah. WHICH is CENTRAL even to modern day Christianity, (not just to Judaism.) The Torah was and is considered to be YHWH's laws and without them, Christianity was forever changed into what we see today. We celebrate the wrong holidays, Christmas and Easter, as well as rest on the wrong Sabbath. But more on that later. 


(I want to add that celebrating Christmas or Easter does NOT make you a bad person by ANY means, however, they are holidays that are not acknowledged by YHWH. They are man made traditions that we have adopted in time in our culture. YHWH does have holidays that we are called to acknowledge, however, and I will be posting blogs on each of them so that we can learn what they are and how to celebrate together!)


Anyhow, this has been a HEAVY history lesson, I realize. But one that is necessary if we are to understand the origins of Christianity and how they influence us today. 


I guess the point I am trying to make is that of "dispensationalism." This is a term used to describe the doctrine that creates this big fictional distinction between the old and new testament of the bible. Modern day Christians tend to ignore the Torah, (again, the first five books of the bible) and instead focus primarily on the new testament. However, when one approaches the bible this way, it COMPLETELY changes the way the scriptures are read and interpreted. Hence, age-old misunderstandings have permeated our culture generating an understandable hostility toward followers of the bible who call themselves Christians; many of which may have a VERY genuine faith in YHWH but lack the knowledge and understanding of the Hebraic roots of the old testament that is key to truly understanding the faith as a whole. 


Todd D. Bennett, an attorney and author who has traveled the world researching and teaching the Hebraic roots of the Christian religion, writes, "A person who has been indoctrinated into dispensationalism will be unable to appreciate the SIMPLICITY of the scriptures and the commandments, which have become convoluted, twisted, confusing and sometimes incomprehensible when viewed through the lens of this warped theology." 


It really explains the separation between Jews and Christians, who both claim to serve the same God, YHWH, as well as call the Torah scripture, but they do not use the same names or languages for their texts. 


Having said ALLLLL that, I hope I have intrigued you enough to spark an interest to study on your own and discover your own truth! Until then, I hope you keep reading and I will keep studying so that we can keep learning together.


Again feel free to leave comments or email me! ashleyalysse476@gmail.com


Love,


Ashley