B"H

Yeshu - Anachronisms and Other Discrepancies

B"H

This is a bit of that which the Talmud relates about Yeshu:

When Yannai* the king killed the Rabbis, R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah
and Yeshu went to Alexandria of Egypt. When there was peace, Shimon
Ben Shetach sent to him "From me [Jerusalem] the holy city to you
Alexandria of Egypt. My husband remains in your midst and I sit
forsaken." (That is to say that Shim'on ben Shatach missed his
beloved friend ben Perachia and called him back to Jerusalem from
Alexandria).

[*Yannai is King Alexander Jannaeus (who reigned from c.103 to 76
BCE). Note the dates. The Talmud tells us that Yeshu was a grown
man when King Yannai died in 76 BCE.]

R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah left and arrived at a particular inn and
they showed him great respect. He said: How beautiful is this inn
[Achsania, which also means innkeeper].

Yeshu said: Rabbi, her eyes are oozing.

R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah said to him: Wicked one, this is how you
engage yourself?

R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah sent out four hundred trumpets and
excommunicated him.

Yeshu came before R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah many times and said:
Accept me. But R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah paid him no attention.

One day R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah was reciting Shema [during which
one may not be interrupted]. Yeshu came before him. He was going to
accept Yeshu and signalled to Yeshu with his hand. Yeshu thought
that R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah was repelling him. He went, hung a
brick, and bowed down to it.

Yeshu said to R. Yehoshua Ben Perachiah: You taught me that anyone
who sins and causes others to sin is not given the opportunity to
repent.

And the master said: Yeshu the Notzri practiced magic and deceived
and led Israel astray.

The early Christians were also aware of the name "ben Pantera" for
Jesus. The pagan philosopher Celsus, who was famous for his arguments
against Christianity, claimed (178 CE) that he had heard from a Jew
that Jesus' mother, Mary, had been divorced by her husband, a
carpenter, after it had been proved that she was an adulteress. She
wandered about in shame and bore Jesus in secret. His real father was
a Roman soldier named Pantheras.

2 - The other figure mentioned by the Talmud is Yeshu "Ben-Stada"
(son of Stada). This Yeshu was the illegitimate son of a woman
Miriam ("Mary") bat Bilgah who committed adultery with a Roman
soldier. The name "Stada" in Aramaic comes from "Sta Da" -- "she
deviated."

The pagan philosopher Celsus, who was famous for his arguments
against Christianity, claimed (178 CE) that he had heard from a Jew
that Jesus' mother, Mary, had been divorced by her husband, a
carpenter, after it had been proved that she was an adulteress. She
wandered about in shame and bore Jesus in secret. His real father was
a (probably Germanic) mercenary soldier in the Roman army named Panthera.

2 - The other figure mentioned by the Talmud is Yeshu "Ben-Stada"
(son of Stada). All the information we have on ben Stada (also known
as ben Sotera or ben Sotira) comes from the same sources concerning
Yeshu, and there is less information on ben Stada than about Yeshu.
Various beliefs surrounded ben Stada -- some claiming he was a
madman, others claiming he was a spell-master, and some claiming he
was a beguiler. This Yeshu was the illegitimate son of a woman
(Miriam ("Mary") bat Bilgah) who committed adultery with a Roman
soldier. The name "Stada" in Aramaic comes from "Sta Da" -- "she
deviated."

The Talmud relates that this Yeshu incited many Jews to deviate from
Judaism and was therefore put to death for doing so.

Yeshu not only incited Jews to desecrate the Holy Shabbat, as well as
other commit other sins mentioned in the Talmud, he also execrated
the Jewish People. Whether or not the "descriptions" of the Jews'
sins were acurate or not, one who loves someone hides his/her shame.
There is nothing more hateful to God than one who execrates his/her
own People.

All of Humankind is forbidden to engage in idol worship. Whoever
wrote what is written in the "New Testament" teaching that there is
no way to God but through Yeshu, God forbid, led masses of people
astray. Everyone, but everyone is always able to enter into a direct
relationship with God. Not only can everyone, it is the very purpose
of our lives.

Yet, Yeshu remains one of us, blood of our blood, flesh of our flesh,
spirit of our spirit. Know that the Jewish People have never
forsaken him and that the Talmud tells us that we are enjoined to
pray for Yeshu. I do pray for Yeshu. The task that Soul took on is
awesome. What is the task he took on? His task is trying the
Gentiles to see if they would forsake idol worship and turn to God
without any intermediaries, no matter how "spiritual" a teaching
leading them astray might sound. Don't fail him.

Doreen Ellen Bell-Dotan, Tzfat