WHAT’S IN A NAME?

(particularly for the man we know to be named as Jesus of Nazareth)

The name, “Yahushua” (or “Yahshua” or “Yeshua” or the many other variations that scholars haven’t fully agreed on) refers to the man most modern people refer to as “Jesus.” It’s also the name for others in Scripture, such as Joshua, son of Nun (“Yahoshua”), who fought the battle of Jericho. The name, “Jesus,” is derived from all of these versions for Joshua in its Hebrew/Aramaic form. All of these names are generally transliterated from Hebrew to English as ”Joshua.” However, that same name transliterated from Hebrew to Greek to English is “Jesus.” We view Yahushua/Yahshua/Yeshua to be a more meaningful and authentic name in that it was most certainly how “Jesus” was addressed on earth surrounded by Hebrew/Aramaic-speaking Jews, including his disciples. (Greek speakers didn’t have an “sh” sound, so they had to transliterate a different way to speak this name in their language.) Therefore, Yahushua or Yahshua or Yeshua are interchangeably the names we choose to use to intimately know and understand who this person was.

Really, why use “Yahshua” or the other versions and not “Jesus” like everyone else?! It’s because we don’t want to think or act like everyone else. Much of what the name “Jesus” now represents in modern-day Christianity is the antithesis of what Yahshua taught and how he lived his life. To be clear, we don’t do things differently for the sake of being different, we just believe that it helps us be more authentic in how we approach faith. Still, we accept “Jesus” as a valid name.

WAYFARERS FAITH COLLECTIVE CREDO

In the Christian Bible, God, in Yahshua, welcomed the thief on the cross into “Paradise” without him being baptized or going through confirmation classes. We believe that the Christian Sacraments of Baptism & Communion, along with institutional church doctrines & teachings, can add meaning to one’s faith; just as they can also cause another to question a faith seen as being handed down from an institutional tradition. We focus on the actual life & teachings of Yahshua as we recognize & lift up the intersection of those teachings with Christian Sacraments as well as other wisdom and spiritual traditions of the world.

HISTORICAL BACKDROP FOR SHARING A MEAL IN THE BIBLE

The voice of God spoke to the Apostle Peter in the Book of Acts (10:15 & 11:9) saying, “What God has made clean, you must not call profane;” referring to God’s intent that ALL people, regardless of race or creed, are welcome in God’s Church. God instructed that Peter not think twice about sharing a meal with those who weren’t of his race or creed, including pagans and atheists. This was significant because sharing a meal in someone’s home was considered an intimate and sacred experience.

A “MEAL OF REMEMBERING:”

We believe that God (seen by some as the same “Higher Power” that other spiritual paths may recognize) desires an intimate and sacred experience for ALL who wish to come and share a deeply spiritual and meaningful “communion” together. This is something that a meal can facilitate (“communing” in a similar way that was experienced in first century Middle East culture, or even in a way that some say they “commune” with nature). The extraordinary individual named Yahshua (Jesus) of Nazareth was welcomed into the homes of both the powerful and the meek; of Jews and pagans; of those who honored Greek and Roman gods; of tax collectors, prostitutes, and sinners of all kind…to share an intimate meal/communion with them.

After Yahshua was killed for speaking truth to power in the hostile religious and political climate of his day, and before the church became institutionalized in the 4^th century under Emperor Constantine, the early Christians celebrated what was called an “agape love feast” according to the book of Acts in the Bible. It was their version of what Christians now celebrate as Holy Communion. Only, for them, it was an actual nourishing meal, again following the theme of sharing meals in peoples home as an intimate and spiritual activity.

We believe that ALL people, regardless of race, creed, sexuality, or ANYTHING else, are welcome to participate in God’s Commonwealth and to share ANY meal together. That includes this intimate meal of remembering a God-filled man who lost his life standing up to power and empire, not just for his inner circle, but for EVERY kind of person that he himself intimately communed with…for what God has made clean, we must not call profane.

A few of the many links that exist regarding the “real” name of Jesus: 

https://news.kehila.org/jesus-yeshua-or-yahshua/

https://www.servantsofyahshua.com/yahshua-or-yahushua,-not-yeshua.html

https://eliyah.com/pronunciation-messiahs-name/

https://www.hebrew4christians.com/Articles/Jesus_Hebrew/jesus_hebrew.html