Creed

[Yohanan bin-Dawidh]

I acknowledge that יְהֹוָה has always existed, and there is none equal to him. I acknowledge the absolute unity of יְהֹוָה, i.e. his undeniable indivisibility. I acknowledge the non-corporeality of יְהֹוָה, i.e. he lacks a physical form. I acknowledge that יְהֹוָה alone deserves our worship.

I acknowledge that in the beginning יְהֹוָה established all the various universes within existence, and then fashioned the Earth within our universe. I acknowledge then that יְהֹוָה created life upon the Earth in all its magnificent forms, and I acknowledge that יְהֹוָה had no co-worker in this initial creation, but I acknowledge that since this initial creation of life, that these living beings, whether humans, plants, animals, or micro-organisms, have served as co-workers with יְהֹוָה to further his creation.

 I acknowledge that יְהֹוָה uses human mediums, i.e. prophets, to speak to humanity, and I acknowledge that the prophecy contained within the Miq'ra is from יְהֹוָה, given to the descendants of Ya'aqov bin-Yitshaq bin-Avraham through his messengers, the prophets who he called.

 

I acknowledge and zealously advocate that the book of the Torah is the cultural foundation of my people, the descendants of Ya'aqov bin-Yitshaq bin-Avraham, and our constitution as a people (and nation), and the most important of all the prophecies relayed unto us. And I acknowledge that since the Torah is our cultural foundation, and our constitution, that we are to live by its words, namely the rules and regulations established within its pages. The Torah was originally written in Hebrew; therefore, it was the original language of my people, and thus it is our duty to understand Hebrew, so that we can speak, read, and write it always, because as languages die, cultures die, and never should we allow our culture to die.

I acknowledge that the Temple at Yerushalam was (and is) the palace of יְהֹוָה our ruler, which now stands in ruins awaiting for us to restore it to its proper places, and position. Wake up! O descendants of Ya'aqov bin-Yitshaq bin-Avraham.

I acknowledge the restoration of the royal bloodline of Dawidh to the throne of our nation. I also acknowledge the restoration of our government, the descendants of Aharon to their proper positions amongst us, especially the priestly family of Saddoq, who remained faithful to יְהֹוָה, our nation, and our nation's constitution, while much of the people of Yisra'el went astray following after the ways of the Kena'anim and worshipping Ba'al-Hadad.I acknowledge that said restoration will bring about the restoration of the Torah as our constitution; thus, resurrecting our nation from the ruins in which it now stands, to a state of existence as it was during the times of great men like Yohoshu'a bin-Nun (who I would say truly was our first king), Dawidh bin-Yishay and Sholomo bin-Dawidh, and this will be the kingdom of יְהֹוָה.

I acknowledge the concept of the resurrection of the dead; however, I personally fell that we should not dwell on the idea of such, but instead should lie our lives with the knowledge that if we are resurrected at some point, then it is the will of יְהֹוָה, but if we are not, then such is also the will of יְהֹוָה. Some people get too bent out of shape worrying about what they can do to be resurrected from the dead, when in truth it really is not all that important. I also acknowledge the concept of a final judgment, one based upon one's overall life, and how they lived as humans. I acknowledge that each of us is responsible for our own actions, and that no one else can be held accountable for them, and that on our behalf, only we can come before יְהֹוָה, and thus, no human being can take our sins upon themselves, and fact our punishments for us.

--
שָׁלוֹם וּבְרָכָה
יוֹחָנָן בִּן-דָוִד

[Zvi]

Shalom Yohanan and Kulam,

It is coincidental (or is it?) that the Samaritans maintain Yehoshu`a
bin-Nun (pbuh) was the first king of `Am Yisra'el.

For most of us who at least bother to learn Hebrew and acquire some
level of proficiency in it, the prospects for speaking and writing in
it between us aren't great as most North American and other Western
Jews experience immense difficulties mastering `Ivrit and their
reading comprehension in this tongue is usually leaps and bounds ahead
of their writing and speech skills in it. Even their ability to read
out loud from a text is often limited; without naming anyone, I'll
settle for the example of some US-based Qaraite Jew who can't even
correctly pronounce the simple word "Na`aseh" (נעשה) after at least 5
years of acquaintance with the word since he contorts it to
"Nasee'ah" (נשייה or נשיה).
In light of this, it's very hard to "revive" our biblical-based
culture outside of Eres Yisra'el. This state of affairs will continue
until someone sufficiently motivates non-Israeli Qaraites and
aspirants to acquire a good command of writing, speaking and reading
aloud Hebrew similarly to the command in Arabic acquired by motivated
Western converts to Islam in Muslum Arab Madrases. I have no
complaints to Ya`aqov B.Y. since he at least has tried.


May YHWH's blessings be upon us!
Zvi

On Apr 23, 5:13 am, Yohanan bin-Dawidh <yohanan.bin.daw...@gmail.com>
wrote:
> > I acknowledge that *יְהֹוָה* has always existed, and there is none equal
> > to him. I acknowledge the absolute unity of *יְהֹוָה*, i.e. his
> > undeniable indivisibility. I acknowledge the non-corporeality of *יְהֹוָה*,
> > i.e. he lacks a physical form. I acknowledge that *יְהֹוָה* alone
> > deserves our worship.
>
> > I acknowledge that in the beginning *יְהֹוָה* established all the various

> > universes within existence, and then fashioned the Earth within our

> > universe. I acknowledge then that *יְהֹוָה* created life upon the Earth
> > in all its magnificent forms, and I acknowledge that *יְהֹוָה* had no

> > co-worker in this initial creation, but I acknowledge that since this
> > initial creation of life, that these living beings, whether humans, plants,

> > animals, or micro-organisms, have served as co-workers with *יְהֹוָה* to
> > further his creation.
>
> >  I acknowledge that *יְהֹוָה* uses human mediums, i.e. prophets, to speak

> > to humanity, and I acknowledge that the prophecy contained within the

> > Miq'ra is from *יְהֹוָה*, given to the descendants of Ya'aqov bin-Yitshaq

> > bin-Avraham through his messengers, the prophets who he called.
>
> > I acknowledge and zealously advocate that the book of the Torah is the
> > cultural foundation of my people, the descendants of Ya'aqov bin-Yitshaq

> > bin-Avraham, and our constitution as a people *(and nation)*, and the

> > most important of all the prophecies relayed unto us. And I acknowledge
> > that since the Torah is our cultural foundation, and our constitution, that
> > we are to live by its words, namely the rules and regulations established
> > within its pages. The Torah was originally written in Hebrew; therefore, it
> > was the original language of my people, and thus it is our duty to
> > understand Hebrew, so that we can speak, read, and write it always, because
> > as languages die, cultures die, and never should we allow our culture to
> > die.
>

> > I acknowledge that the Temple at Yerushalam was *(and is)* the palace of *
> > יְהֹוָה* our ruler, which now stands in ruins awaiting for us to restore

> > it to its proper places, and position. Wake up! O descendants of Ya'aqov
> > bin-Yitshaq bin-Avraham.
>
> > I acknowledge the restoration of the royal bloodline of Dawidh to the
> > throne of our nation. I also acknowledge the restoration of our government,
> > the descendants of Aharon to their proper positions amongst us, especially

> > the priestly family of Saddoq, who remained faithful to *יְהֹוָה*, our

> > nation, and our nation's constitution, while much of the people of Yisra'el
> > went astray following after the ways of the Kena'anim and worshipping
> > Ba'al-Hadad.I acknowledge that said restoration will bring about the
> > restoration of the Torah as our constitution; thus, resurrecting our nation
> > from the ruins in which it now stands, to a state of existence as it was

> > during the times of great men like Yohoshu'a bin-Nun *(who I would say
> > truly was our first king)*, Dawidh bin-Yishay and Sholomo bin-Dawidh, and
> > this will be the kingdom of *יְהֹוָה*.

>
> > I acknowledge the concept of the resurrection of the dead; however, I
> > personally fell that we should not dwell on the idea of such, but instead
> > should lie our lives with the knowledge that if we are resurrected at some

> > point, then it is the will of *יְהֹוָה*, but if we are not, then such is
> > also the will of *יְהֹוָה*. Some people get too bent out of shape

> > worrying about what they can do to be resurrected from the dead, when in
> > truth it really is not all that important. I also acknowledge the concept
> > of a final judgment, one based upon one's overall life, and how they lived
> > as humans. I acknowledge that each of us is responsible for our own
> > actions, and that no one else can be held accountable for them, and that on

> > our behalf, only we can come before *יְהֹוָה*, and thus, no human being

[Yaaqov Ben Yisrael]

"I have no complaints to Ya`aqov B.Y. since he at least has tried."

 

You make it sound as if I have given up the effort....

 

 I agree, Hebrew is paramount to the understanding of Tenakh, and is the key to the Israelite culture. We should resolve to make it the common language which binds our communities.

 

 According to some, language as well as religion are the key to ethno-genisis, being the acid test of a people and culture. If we say we are Hebrews/Israelites, then we should be proficient in speaking Hebrew.

 

Ya'aqov ben Yisrael

--

 

[Zvi]

Anyway,

ראש חודש שני מבורך!
Rosh Hodesh Sheni Mevorakh!

Blessed second New Moon day!


Zvi

[Yohanan bin-Dawidh]

Shalom Zvi,

The problem that most Americans have with regards to learning any language other than their own is the fact that their language has become a world language, and thus they have not been prompted to learn other languages as have many other societies throughout the world. In many countries throughout the world, the citizens are fluent in more than one language, but America is not one of them, and this is true even with regards to the descendants of Yisra'el living in America and their ancestral tongue. 

Also not being around other who speak the language as their everyday language, it is more difficult to pick up on proper pronunciation of the language, than it is to those who are around it constantly. Reading it is much easier, because one need not necessarily understand how to pronounce a word correctly to understand the word.

All praise be to YHWH!

Yohanan bin-Dawidh

[Yaaqov Ben Yisrael]

The fact that there is no real center or community among US Karaites presents a tremendous challenge in promoting Hebrew as our language. I have striven for more than 20 years to become proficient in Biblical Hebrew, and still I am nowhere near an expert. Spoken Hebrew is another problem as it uses most, if not all, Biblical Hebrew words yet modernized to work in today's environment. That there are few Americans who actually speak Modern Hebrew means that the even fewer numbers of US Karaites will ever become proficient in it.

 

The solution, in my opinion, would be for Karaites, who are far and few between, to become acquainted with local orthodox or conservative synagogues, become members and attend regularly. Even the Reform synagogues have Hebrew school and many Hebrew speakers. I knows this sounds extreme, but it will give the US Karaites two great opportunities to learn: 1) Hebrew and the ability to converse in it, and 2) the exposure to the orthodox teachings which will demonstrate why Karaism stands against Talmudistic Judaism.

 

Yaaqov ben Yisrael