Can a Christian, in good conscience, pray to hashem - the Jewish name for God?

[Xeno.of.athens]

Modern day Judaism is definitely not a branch of the Christian faith, yet many Christians have the deepest respect for Judaism, and some Christians have sought out their "Jewish roots", blowing a shofar at their meetings, praying according to various forms used in current Judaism, or otherwise engaging with Judaism as Christians. So, can a Christian, in good conscience pray to Hashem (the name), with Jews in times of stress or need?

 

[trophy33]

Modern day Judaism is definitely not a branch of the Christian faith, yet many Christians have the deepest respect for Judaism, and some Christians have sought out their "Jewish roots", blowing a shofar at their meetings, praying according to various forms used in current Judaism, or otherwise engaging with Judaism as Christians. So, can a Christian, in good conscience pray to Hashem (the name), with Jews in times of stress or need?

Many Christians? I have never seen that or heard about such things, in any church.

Christians should pray in the Christian way.

 

[Xeno.of.athens]

Many Christians? I have never seen that or heard about such things, in any church.

Christians should pray in the Christian way.

I believe that you can find it on YouTube if you look for it.

 

[Maria Billingsley]

Modern day Judaism is definitely not a branch of the Christian faith, yet many Christians have the deepest respect for Judaism, and some Christians have sought out their "Jewish roots", blowing a shofar at their meetings, praying according to various forms used in current Judaism, or otherwise engaging with Judaism as Christians. So, can a Christian, in good conscience pray to Hashem (the name), with Jews in times of stress or need?

Hashem is not a name . Did Jesus Christ of Nazareth ask us to pray to "The Name" ? No. He said pray to " The Father". This is just another way ( G-d being the other)of assigning a non name to God purely derived from Jewish thought. " I Am" was the name given, Jesus Christ of Nazareth used it and He changed it to Father. So is it a good thing? Probably not. Blessings.

 

[Tuur]

I'm not sure I understand the question. In times of crises, everyone who believes in deity who answers prayer will pray. If I'm praying at the same time an orthodox Jew prays, what of it? How many who count themselves members of our own Christian denomination do not believe in Christ as savior, and yet do we not share prayers at the same time?

If, however, your question is should Christians follow the Mosaic Law, then I think that question was answered in the time of Paul. Gentiles, who were not given the Law, were not expected to keep it, save on a few points. Jewish believers in Christ, though, were given the Law, and I would be very hesitant at saying they shouldn't keep it. It's not a question of salvation; salvation is through Christ for both Jew and Gentile. It's a matter of the command of God.

 

[Akita Suggagaki]

Modern day Judaism is definitely not a branch of the Christian faith, yet many Christians have the deepest respect for Judaism, and some Christians have sought out their "Jewish roots", blowing a shofar at their meetings, praying according to various forms used in current Judaism, or otherwise engaging with Judaism as Christians. So, can a Christian, in good conscience pray to Hashem (the name), with Jews in times of stress or need?

We do pray the psalms. But Maria Billingsley makes a good point. We worship God as Father. That is a very personal , familial understanding of God that Jesus brought us into. I think there are a few Jewish or Hebrew practices we can appreciate. I like a Talitnia but I would not presume to use a specifically Jewish one. Plain blanket is fine for me. Other Jewish terms for God "Most High", "Almighty" "Lord" "Adonai" I like.

 

[Reluctant Theologian]

Modern day Judaism is definitely not a branch of the Christian faith, yet many Christians have the deepest respect for Judaism, and some Christians have sought out their "Jewish roots", blowing a shofar at their meetings, praying according to various forms used in current Judaism, or otherwise engaging with Judaism as Christians. So, can a Christian, in good conscience pray to Hashem (the name), with Jews in times of stress or need?

Just my contribution with a bit of personal experience in similar congragations:

Any Christian (as in non-Jewish believer in Yeshua as the Messiah) is free to absorb/include any part of the Jewish or Rabbinical heritage of course but it is not compulsory to do so. That remains a free choice insofar those elements are not in contradiction with NT teaching.

As @Maria Billingsley already pointed out, the term 'ha Shem' is not a name, not even a title, but just a replacement phrase for the personal and revealed name of God to Moses (the Hebrew tetragammaton 'YHWH'). But although Jews already for possibly a full 2000 years refrain from pronouncing that very personal name of God, and use replacement phrases like 'Adonai', 'ha Shem' or 'Kyrios' (in Greek) - the Bible itself seems to be quite clear that originally the name of God ('YHWH') was supposed to be used directly and pronounced as such (see the story of Moses and the intended use of God's name in front of Pharaoh).

So personally I think it is perfectly OK to use God's name - and indeed when reading/praying/singing the Psalms God's name ('YHWH') is everywhere as @Akita Suggagaki mentioned already.

The Lord's prayer does not include the name of God, but just one of His titles 'Father' - which was not new by the way; already in the TNK/OT you can find instances where God as addressed/described as a Father. The intimacy that that title communicates is wonderful, but I would never take that as a recommendation to not use the personal, revealed name of God. That would be inconsistent with much of the TNK/OT.

The NT does not cancel or change the revealed name of God - that remains 'YHWH'. And the beauty is that 'Yeshua' (short for 'Yehoshua') is not the new name of God, but contains the revealed name of God ('Yehoshua' = 'YHWH saves').

The congregation I attend uses shofars, uses some Hebrew songs (with translation provided) - just IMHO there should be no pressure at all to behave like a Jewish synagogue. For me it's just nice and educational to learn about an incorporate bits from Israel/Judaism that form an enrichtment to believers from a non-Jewish background like me. There's just a lot that somehow gets overlooked if we exclude the Jewish perspective when studying the TNK/OT and NT. I don't want to miss out on that.

And Jesus was a Jew after all living by the Torah, and (among others) instructing his disciples to do so.

 

[Unqualified]

Hashem is the same God as the Father. I don’t know the Jewish customs concerning this word for God. But if it was clear from being strictly Jewish you could pray to ‘the name’ in Jesus name. Jesus is the name above every name though.

 

[BobRyan]

Modern day Judaism is definitely not a branch of the Christian faith, yet many Christians have the deepest respect for Judaism, and some Christians have sought out their "Jewish roots", blowing a shofar at their meetings, praying according to various forms used in current Judaism, or otherwise engaging with Judaism as Christians. So, can a Christian, in good conscience pray to Hashem (the name), with Jews in times of stress or need?

"Hashem is a title used in Judaism to refer to God, especially as an alternative to the Tetragrammaton, the four-letter name of God that is considered too holy to pronounce123. It literally means "the name" in Hebrew"

Well Jesus' name is not 'Jesus' in Hebrew and they aren't often saying the name YHWH --

So that's culture and custom.

But if the question is whether Christians affirm that the God of the Bible in both NT and OT is one and the same - then I think that is true.

If I pray in the form "Dear God whose name in Hebrew is spelled YHWH but is too holy for me to try to pronounce in my prayer" - it would be similar to the shorter form "Hashem"

 

[RandyPNW]

Modern day Judaism is definitely not a branch of the Christian faith, yet many Christians have the deepest respect for Judaism, and some Christians have sought out their "Jewish roots", blowing a shofar at their meetings, praying according to various forms used in current Judaism, or otherwise engaging with Judaism as Christians. So, can a Christian, in good conscience pray to Hashem (the name), with Jews in times of stress or need?

You may be talking about Messianic congregations, consisting of a number of "Messianic Jews." I think it depends on the congregation and the individual. The name means "God," or "Lord." Identifying with a "Jewish flavor" can be legitimate, particularly if many in the congregation have been raised in a Jewish ethnicity. Showing the legitimate Jewish roots of Christianity is not only true, but it is also respectful. The corruption of Judaism in its hostility towards Christianity is not necessarily being legitimized.

 

[hislegacy]

Some understanding might help:

​

EL, ELOAH [el, el-oh-ah]: God "mighty, strong, prominent" (Nehemiah 9:17; Psalm 139:19) – etymologically, El appears to mean “power” and “might” (Genesis 31:29). El is associated with other qualities, such as integrity (Numbers 23:19), jealousy (Deuteronomy 5:9), and compassion (Nehemiah 9:31), but the root idea of “might” remains.​

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ELOHIM [el-oh-heem]: God “Creator, Mighty and Strong” (Genesis 17:7; Jeremiah 31:33) – the plural form of Eloah. Being plural, Elohim which accommodates the doctrine of the Trinity. From the Bible’s first sentence, the superlative nature of God’s power is evident as God (Elohim) speaks the world into existence (Genesis 1:1).​

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EL SHADDAI [el-shah-dahy]: “God Almighty,” “The Mighty One of Jacob” (Genesis 49:24; Psalm 132:2,5) – speaks to God’s ultimate power over all.​

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ADONAI [ˌædɒˈnaɪ; ah-daw-nahy]: “Lord” (Genesis 15:2; Judges 6:15) – used in place of YHWH, which was thought by the Jews to be too sacred to be uttered by sinful men. In the Old Testament, YHWH is more often used in God’s dealings with His people, while Adonai is used more when He deals with the Gentiles.​

​

YHWH / YAHWEH / JEHOVAH [yah-way / ji-hoh-veh]: “LORD” (Deuteronomy 6:4; Daniel 9:14) – strictly speaking, the only proper name for God. Translated in English Bibles “LORD” (all capitals) to distinguish it from Adonai, “Lord.” The revelation of the name is given to Moses “I Am who I Am” (Exodus 3:14). This name specifies an immediacy, a presence. Yahweh is present, accessible, near to those who call on Him for deliverance (Psalm 107:13), forgiveness (Psalm 25:11) and guidance (Psalm 31:3).​

​

YAHWEH-JIREH [yah-way-ji-reh]: "The Lord Will Provide" (Genesis 22:14) – the name memorialized by Abraham when God provided the ram to be sacrificed in place of Isaac.​

​

YAHWEH-RAPHA [yah-way-raw-faw]: "The Lord Who Heals" (Exodus 15:26) – “I am Jehovah who heals you” both in body and soul. In body, by preserving from and curing diseases, and in soul, by pardoning iniquities.​

​

YAHWEH-NISSI [yah-way-nee-see]: "The Lord Our Banner" (Exodus 17:15), where banner is understood to be a rallying place. This name commemorates the desert victory over the Amalekites in Exodus 17.​

​

YAHWEH-M'KADDESH [yah-way-meh-kad-esh]: "The Lord Who Sanctifies, Makes Holy" (Leviticus 20:8; Ezekiel 37:28) – God makes it clear that He alone, not the law, can cleanse His people and make them holy.​

​

YAHWEH-SHALOM [yah-way-shah-lohm]: "The Lord Our Peace" (Judges 6:24) – the name given by Gideon to the altar he built after the Angel of the Lord assured him he would not die as he thought he would after seeing Him.​

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YAHWEH-ELOHIM [yah-way-el-oh-him]: "LORD God" (Genesis 2:4; Psalm 59:5) – a combination of God’s unique name YHWH and the generic word for “God” signifying that He is the Lord who is God.​

​

YAHWEH-TSIDKENU [yah-way-tzid-kay-noo]: "The Lord Our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 33:16) – As with YHWH-M’Kaddesh, it is God alone who provides righteousness (from the Hebrew word tsidkenu) to man, ultimately in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, who became sin for us “that we might become the Righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).​

​

YAHWEH-ROHI [yah-way-roh-hee]: "The Lord Our Shepherd" (Psalm 23:1) – After David pondered his relationship as a shepherd to his sheep, he realized that was exactly the relationship God had with him, and so he declares, “The Lord is my shepherd [Yahweh-Rohi]; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1, ESV).​

​

YAHWEH-SHAMMAH [yah-way-sham-mahw]: "The Lord Is There” (Ezekiel 48:35) – the name ascribed to Jerusalem and the Temple there, indicating that the once-departed glory of the Lord (Ezekiel 8—11) had returned (Ezekiel 44:1-4).​

​

YAHWEH-SABAOTH [yah-way-sah-bah-ohth]: "The Lord of Hosts" (Isaiah 1:24; Psalm 46:7) – Hosts means “hordes,” both of angels and of men. He is Lord of the host of heaven and of the inhabitants of the earth, of Jews and Gentiles, of rich and poor, master and slave. The name is expressive of the majesty, power, and authority of God and shows that He is able to accomplish what He determines to do.​

​

EL ELYON [el-el-yohn]: “Most High" (Deuteronomy 26:19) – derived from the Hebrew root for “go up” or “ascend,” so the implication is of that which is the very highest. El Elyon denotes exaltation and speaks of absolute right to lordship.​

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EL ROI [el-roh-ee]: "God of Seeing" (Genesis 16:13) – the name ascribed to God by Hagar, alone and desperate in the wilderness after being driven out by Sarah (Genesis 16:1-14). When Hagar met the Angel of the Lord, she realized she had seen God Himself in a theophany. She also realized that El Roi saw her in her distress and testified that He is a God who lives and sees all.​

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EL-OLAM [el-oh-lahm]: "Everlasting God" (Psalm 90:1-3) – God’s nature is without beginning or end, free from all constraints of time, and He contains within Himself the very cause of time itself. “From everlasting to everlasting, You are God” (Psalm 90:2).​

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EL-GIBHOR [el-ghee-bohr]: “Mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6) – the name describing the Messiah, Christ Jesus, in this prophetic portion of Isaiah. As a powerful and mighty warrior, the Messiah, the Mighty God, will accomplish the destruction of God’s enemies and rule with a rod of iron (Revelation 19:15).​

My personal opinion, for what it is worth, I think it is more important what is happening in the heart than a name. I have six children and nine grand children. My first name is Joe, I am also known as dad, daddy, pops, grandpa, poppa, grampy, Joseph. and to my elders in my family - Giuseppe.

I know who I am praying to and the One who I pray to knows who I am speaking to.

 

[hislegacy]

You may be talking about Messianic congregations, consisting of a number of "Messianic Jews." I think it depends on the congregation and the individual. The name means "God," or "Lord." Identifying with a "Jewish flavor" can be legitimate, particularly if many in the congregation have been raised in a Jewish ethnicity. Showing the legitimate Jewish roots of Christianity is not only true, but it is also respectful. The corruption of Judaism in its hostility towards Christianity is not necessarily being legitimized.

The very first church I attended after my Salvation was a Messianic congregation that was part of the Assemblies of God. There was such a wealth of knowledge imparted! It is where I was Baptized, where I was filled with the Holy Spirit, where I was discipled. It set my feet on a foundation that is still strong today.

I learned more about God in the first two years than is 25 years membership in the Roman Catholic Church.

 

[RandyPNW]

The very first church I attended after my Salvation was a Messianic congregation that was part of the Assemblies of God. There was such a wealth of knowledge imparted! It is where I was Baptized, where I was filled with the Holy Spirit, where I was discipled. It set my feet on a foundation that is still strong today.

I learned more about God in the first two years than is 25 years membership in the Roman Catholic Church.

I'm also AoG, and in the past saw our church sponsor a Seder--I still have it recorded. I think we can only benefit by looking at the traditions of the Law more plainly. Thanks!

 

[Xeno.of.athens]

You may be talking about Messianic congregations, consisting of a number of "Messianic Jews." I think it depends on the congregation and the individual. The name means "God," or "Lord." Identifying with a "Jewish flavor" can be legitimate, particularly if many in the congregation have been raised in a Jewish ethnicity. Showing the legitimate Jewish roots of Christianity is not only true, but it is also respectful. The corruption of Judaism in its hostility towards Christianity is not necessarily being legitimized.

My perspective is given in the original post, Judaism is definitely not a branch of Christianity. Ancient Judaism died as a functional religion when the temple was destroyed. The Judaism of today is a development stemming from ancient Judaism, but it is not the same. In a way it is a sibling religion from the same roots as Christianity, but it is a sibling religion that wholly rejected Jesus and still does reject Jesus.

What's confusing is that modern Judaism accepts YHWH but never speaks his name, it denied Jesus and awaits a different messiah, so can I pray with a Jew today when they are dying, for example, or when they are in grief over a recent bereavement? Christian charity suggests to me "yes", but I am left wondering if Judaism's steadfast rejection of Jesus ought to modify my "yes". Yet I also wonder can I in good conscience refuse prayer for the dead, and with the living, when they are in need? Would Jesus be compassionate to modern Jews in such a situation? What do you think?

 

[tampasteve]

I see absolutely no reason to see issue in using the title/name/phrase "HaShem" when speaking to God. Christians use all sorts of titles for God, "The Name" is simply another in the line of "Lord", "Adonai" or even The Father. None of those are his proper name, some are titles, but HaShem is a sort of title as well, I have never heard it used for anyone/thing other than God.

What's confusing is that modern Judaism accepts YHWH but never speaks his name, it denied Jesus and awaits a different messiah, so can I pray with a Jew today when they are dying, for example, or when they are in grief over a recent bereavement? Christian charity suggests to me "yes", but I am left wondering if Judaism's steadfast rejection of Jesus ought to modify my "yes". Yet I also wonder can I in good conscience refuse prayer for the dead, and with the living, when they are in need?

Personally I have no issue praying or even worshiping with Jews. I know others on the forums see it differently, but I 100% believe they are praying to and working with the same God as we are. They are incorrect in missing the Messiah, but that is another matter. Many Traditional style prayers are derived from or even the same as prayers Jewish people make or say. Taking that a step further, I would have no issue praying with anyone of ANY faith, so long as the prayers are directed to MY God and not theirs (again, Jews being the exception to that since I believe we pray to the same God).

Would Jesus be compassionate to modern Jews in such a situation? What do you think?

Yes, absolutely. He was compassionate to both Samaritans and Romans, both groups that were "outside" of Judaism. I see no reason to think he would leave his own people out now.

 

[Soyeong]

Modern day Judaism is definitely not a branch of the Christian faith, yet many Christians have the deepest respect for Judaism, and some Christians have sought out their "Jewish roots", blowing a shofar at their meetings, praying according to various forms used in current Judaism, or otherwise engaging with Judaism as Christians. So, can a Christian, in good conscience pray to Hashem (the name), with Jews in times of stress or need?

Jesus did not come to start his own religion, but rather he came as the Jewish Messiah of Judaism in fulfillment of Jewish prophecy and he spent his ministry teaching his followers how to practice Judaism in obedience to the Torah. In Acts 21:20, they were rejoicing that tens of thousands of Jews were coming to faith who were all zealous for the Torah, which is in accordance with believing in what Jesus accomplished through the cross (Titus 2:14), so Jews coming to faith were not ceasing to practice Judaism. This means that there was a period of time between the resurrection of Jesus and the inclusion of Gentiles in Acts 10 that is estimated to be around 7-15 years during which all Christians were Torah observant Jews, so Christianity at its origin was the form of Judaism that recognized Jesus as its prophesied Messiah. So there is nothing wrong with Christians seeking to go back to the Jewish roots of our faith, and in fact there is much of value that can be gained from doing so. So, yes, Christians can pray to Hashem. Hashem is the God of Israel, so if some is not following Hashem, then they are not following the God of Israel.

 

[Xeno.of.athens]

Jesus did not come to start his own religion, but rather he came as the Jewish Messiah of Judaism in fulfillment of Jewish prophecy and he spent his ministry teaching his followers how to practice Judaism in obedience to the Torah.

The Lord Jesus definitely did start a different way to worship and pray and introduced different commandments from those practised in the Judaism of his day.

 

[tampasteve]

introduced different commandments from those practised in the Judaism of his day.

He did not introduce new commandments, he just distilled the whole into the few. Judaism in the 1st century was vary varied, at least as much as we see today and probably more so. There were many active and popular streams of Judaism that saw things very differently.

 

[Soyeong]

The Lord Jesus definitely did start a different way to worship and pray and introduced different commandments from those practised in the Judaism of his day.

The way to worship God is by testifying about His nature, for example, our good works in obedience to the Mosaic Law bring glory to God by testifying about His goodness (Matthew 5:16). God’s goodness in eternal, so the way to worship God by testifying about His goodness is therefore also eternal. While Jesus expounded up the way to testify about God’s nature, he did not start a different way to worship Him.

The Lord’s Prayer has the same structure as the Amidah, which is a major prayer in Judaism only next to the Shema, so he did not start a different way to pray.

In Deuteronomy 4:2, it is a sin to add to or subtract from the Mosaic Law, after all, God’s nature is eternal, so the way to testify about His nature can’t change, which means that Jesus did not introduce different commandments. In regard to the debate between the House of Hillel and the House of Shammai, Jesus was virtually in complete agreement with the House of Hillel (for reference, Hillel was the grandfather of Gamaliel, who was Paul’s rabbi (Acts 22:3)). So Jesus did not practice a different form of Judaism.

 

[Soyeong]

He did not introduce new commandments, he just distilled the whole into the few. Judaism in the 1st century was vary varied, at least as much as we see today and probably more so. There were many active and popular streams of Judaism that saw things very differently.

Jesus was far from the only one who recognized the centrality of the greatest two commandments. For example, from Shabbat 31a:

On another occasion it happened that a certain non-Jew came before Shammai and said to him, ‘Make me a convert, on condition that you teach me the whole Torah while I stand on one foot.’ Thereupon he repulsed him with the builder's cubit that was in his hand. When he went before Hillel, he said to him, ‘What is hateful to you, do not to your neighbor: that is the whole Torah, the rest is the commentary; go and learn it.’