Steven Avery
Administrator
These two posts were placed in the Topix discussion.
http://www.topix.com/forum/city/golinda-tx/T58JCMP5PC5AGLDDN/p399
Where they are difficult to access. Also here they can be enhanced, have more background and better formatting, and be the springboard for more thought and discussion.
=================
Just as a bit of personal irony and experience and history.
About 10 years after I left Homestead Heritage (after an adrift period followed by Pentecostal and Messianic times) I was attracted to this very same "sacred name" or "qodesh name" movement.
Thus I found myself in contact with people who used yahweh and yahshua (and some other mangling non-names) around the country. As is my style, I really tried to check out the angles and doctrines. With some assistance, I visited a fellowship in Alabama for some days, a quick visit to one in Bethel, Pennsylvania, a large holiness sacred name group based in Hato Rey, Puerto Rico and their satellite in Paterson, NJ., a breeze-by in Missouri and a national conference in Holt, Michigan. And one family in Israel were descendants of one of the sacred name luminaries, Dugger Fauth. Also there were connections with some Twelve Tribes people, especially when they visited the Israel Day events in Central Park and Billy Graham at Flushing Meadows. And I would receive and read literature from many of these groups. With some I corresponded, as when I encouraged Twelve Tribes to drop the bogus Jesus-Zeus references.
And I even got involved with these folks inquiring how they retranslated the Bible (these projects were never-ending) to fit their doctrines. They wanted so much to come up with theories that would allow them to change names in the Bible to match their doctrines (something the Jehovah Witnesses had done in the NWT in mangling the New Testament.)
Interestingly, some of the people realized the superiority of the Authorized Version and wanted to make "sacred name" versions that were built on AV excellence.(This has some similarity to the planned approach of Homestead Heritage, from my inquiries. Although all indications are that Homestead Heritage actually rejects the authenticity of some beautiful scriptures that are in the Received Text and Authorized Version, such as the heavenly witnesses and Acts 8:37.)
And I read the literature from a number of sources and researched the history. Joel Stein of Homestead Heritage actually helpful in my extraction and unraveling from this movement when he told me in his home (in person visits can be 1,000 times more effective than phone and email) that there is "power in the name of Jesus". This was around the later 1990s.(Joel did not tell me that Homestead Heritage was beginning to use "yahshua" in the 1990s. What he said referenced above, however, was true and sincere, as far as it went, I gave him no argument, and it helped me in becoming free from the sacred name confusions.)
As I learned of the AV excellence, the AV defenders, like Peter Ruckman (1921-2016) who I saw in Connecticut once, also helped magnify the excellence of the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. They became part of a mighty cloud of witnesses that helped lead me to understand the purity and perfection of our Bible. And to reject private revelations of mangling abominations involved in sacred name manipulations.
As I became a bit more mature in faith, I began to see the terrible errors in the movement as a whole, and in abominations like yahweh and yahshua. The Lord Jesus lifted me out of the miry clay.
This life experience (and somewhat later I learned the simple and clear truth that yahweh is even a pagan devil) helped me to understand more excellently a bit the sinews of yahweh-bondage. And the Lord Jesus helped give me understanding of how the Homestead Heritage community had failed with their yahwehism. And then compounded the abomination by adding yahshua.
Interestingly, Blair Adams, in my remembrance, and the remembrance of others, would focus on the name of Jesus, and seemed to be personally less buffeted by yahwehism than the elders and what they transmitted to members. As in the elegant and pure words of dismissal of the meetings.("Be friendly, love one another ..."). And Blair rarely if ever fell into personal yahwehism, in speaking or prayer. However, he was pulled along by the eldership tide and did not prevent the spiritual disruption and destruction of yahwehism upon the Homestead Heritage community.
In addition Homestead Heritage moved further and further away from being a sola scriptura Christian group. They wanted to tweak the pure Bible unto their own devices. And a high bibliology was replaced with one where the "Bibles" they read were said to have errors, and the ministry would be the truth determinant. As began with their version smorgasbording wayward ways.
These issues do go far wider than Homestead Heritage, there are degrees of yahweh infestation in Hebrew Roots, Messianic, the pseudo-scholarship writers who are confusing evangelicals and various other circles.
However, due to their dedication and zeal and the incredible history of Homestead Heritage, and the personal connections we share, they are central to many of the discussions today. They are one of the few groups that actually pray and travail fervently to this yahweh entity, which is now easily recognized as a devil, far removed from any relationship to Christian faith. Except as an adversary. Homestead Heritage became a syncretistic group, with the real danger of descending into aberrant cultism of no doctrinal relevance to Christians.(Community, crafts and homesteading would then be the scaffolding positive remnant of the movement. Remember, even in 2009, there was not a single Bible available for the 1000s of people who came to the Thanksgiving Craft Fair, not even a corruption version, not for free, not for sale.)
Lord Jesus, may the experiences where you led me be a help to the precious brethren in Homestead Heritage. And to my dear friends in Christian movements. And to all those hungry to know the depths of truths in the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Yours in Jesus,
Steven
http://www.topix.com/forum/city/golinda-tx/T58JCMP5PC5AGLDDN/p399
Where they are difficult to access. Also here they can be enhanced, have more background and better formatting, and be the springboard for more thought and discussion.
=================
Just as a bit of personal irony and experience and history.
About 10 years after I left Homestead Heritage (after an adrift period followed by Pentecostal and Messianic times) I was attracted to this very same "sacred name" or "qodesh name" movement.
Thus I found myself in contact with people who used yahweh and yahshua (and some other mangling non-names) around the country. As is my style, I really tried to check out the angles and doctrines. With some assistance, I visited a fellowship in Alabama for some days, a quick visit to one in Bethel, Pennsylvania, a large holiness sacred name group based in Hato Rey, Puerto Rico and their satellite in Paterson, NJ., a breeze-by in Missouri and a national conference in Holt, Michigan. And one family in Israel were descendants of one of the sacred name luminaries, Dugger Fauth. Also there were connections with some Twelve Tribes people, especially when they visited the Israel Day events in Central Park and Billy Graham at Flushing Meadows. And I would receive and read literature from many of these groups. With some I corresponded, as when I encouraged Twelve Tribes to drop the bogus Jesus-Zeus references.
And I even got involved with these folks inquiring how they retranslated the Bible (these projects were never-ending) to fit their doctrines. They wanted so much to come up with theories that would allow them to change names in the Bible to match their doctrines (something the Jehovah Witnesses had done in the NWT in mangling the New Testament.)
Interestingly, some of the people realized the superiority of the Authorized Version and wanted to make "sacred name" versions that were built on AV excellence.(This has some similarity to the planned approach of Homestead Heritage, from my inquiries. Although all indications are that Homestead Heritage actually rejects the authenticity of some beautiful scriptures that are in the Received Text and Authorized Version, such as the heavenly witnesses and Acts 8:37.)
And I read the literature from a number of sources and researched the history. Joel Stein of Homestead Heritage actually helpful in my extraction and unraveling from this movement when he told me in his home (in person visits can be 1,000 times more effective than phone and email) that there is "power in the name of Jesus". This was around the later 1990s.(Joel did not tell me that Homestead Heritage was beginning to use "yahshua" in the 1990s. What he said referenced above, however, was true and sincere, as far as it went, I gave him no argument, and it helped me in becoming free from the sacred name confusions.)
As I learned of the AV excellence, the AV defenders, like Peter Ruckman (1921-2016) who I saw in Connecticut once, also helped magnify the excellence of the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. They became part of a mighty cloud of witnesses that helped lead me to understand the purity and perfection of our Bible. And to reject private revelations of mangling abominations involved in sacred name manipulations.
As I became a bit more mature in faith, I began to see the terrible errors in the movement as a whole, and in abominations like yahweh and yahshua. The Lord Jesus lifted me out of the miry clay.
This life experience (and somewhat later I learned the simple and clear truth that yahweh is even a pagan devil) helped me to understand more excellently a bit the sinews of yahweh-bondage. And the Lord Jesus helped give me understanding of how the Homestead Heritage community had failed with their yahwehism. And then compounded the abomination by adding yahshua.
Interestingly, Blair Adams, in my remembrance, and the remembrance of others, would focus on the name of Jesus, and seemed to be personally less buffeted by yahwehism than the elders and what they transmitted to members. As in the elegant and pure words of dismissal of the meetings.("Be friendly, love one another ..."). And Blair rarely if ever fell into personal yahwehism, in speaking or prayer. However, he was pulled along by the eldership tide and did not prevent the spiritual disruption and destruction of yahwehism upon the Homestead Heritage community.
In addition Homestead Heritage moved further and further away from being a sola scriptura Christian group. They wanted to tweak the pure Bible unto their own devices. And a high bibliology was replaced with one where the "Bibles" they read were said to have errors, and the ministry would be the truth determinant. As began with their version smorgasbording wayward ways.
These issues do go far wider than Homestead Heritage, there are degrees of yahweh infestation in Hebrew Roots, Messianic, the pseudo-scholarship writers who are confusing evangelicals and various other circles.
However, due to their dedication and zeal and the incredible history of Homestead Heritage, and the personal connections we share, they are central to many of the discussions today. They are one of the few groups that actually pray and travail fervently to this yahweh entity, which is now easily recognized as a devil, far removed from any relationship to Christian faith. Except as an adversary. Homestead Heritage became a syncretistic group, with the real danger of descending into aberrant cultism of no doctrinal relevance to Christians.(Community, crafts and homesteading would then be the scaffolding positive remnant of the movement. Remember, even in 2009, there was not a single Bible available for the 1000s of people who came to the Thanksgiving Craft Fair, not even a corruption version, not for free, not for sale.)
Lord Jesus, may the experiences where you led me be a help to the precious brethren in Homestead Heritage. And to my dear friends in Christian movements. And to all those hungry to know the depths of truths in the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Yours in Jesus,
Steven