![]() The other day in prayer, while pleading with Yahweh for the concerns of the sisters in Torah, an inspiration for an article came to me to share with you: Close your eyes for a moment and picture a HUGE sports stadium packed to the brim with people. There is not an empty seat anywhere to be found. You are walking in with all those people seated and waiting for you to walk up to a podium in the middle of the stadium where there is a remote control and a microphone. You pick up the remote and start showing the entire audience pictures of your children, extended family, every vacation you have ever gone on right on the Jumbo screen. While you flip through the photographs, you make sure that you tell them every little detail about your event and life in general: - where you live, the colour of your house, and your pets - your children’s names, ages, where they live if not at home, where they go to school, who their friends are - include where you go shopping and when - Where you work, what days and times, and where you go to lunch during work - Show them your spouses name, where he or she works, and everything you love or hate about them - Oh, and please remember to tell them when you are leaving for your next vacation and how long you will be gone. You might be saying to yourself, “That is ridiculous. I would never give all that information to perfect strangers!” Yet many do it every single day - but you don’t call them strangers, you call them “friends”. Perusing social media and looking at other’s accounts, sometimes you can see people who have thousands of “friends” who have access to their very personal data. This is not just public figures who have this high number, but many average people have large numbers as well. Yet, do you really know who you are sharing your personal information with? Let me go back to the original example - An average sports stadium holds 70,000 people. In 2001, there were over 400,000 registered sex offenders in the United States of America, and over 1/4 of them were reported “missing”. Today, according to statistics the US could have more than 750,000 registered sex offenders. Add to that the annual rate of approx. 300,000 rapes that have no convictions, the number of predators in that stadium just doubled. Doing the math using the percentages from 2001, there would be approx 210 registered sex offenders in that stadium, along with approx. 90 non-convicted rapists. If you consider robberies and forced entry burglaries, out of the 70,000 people in that stadium, 650 of them will be robbed at some point in time. This could be translated to the reverse by saying that 650 people in that stadium are likely to be burglars of some type. This may seem like few people when compared to the 70,000 at the event, but so far that would mean that there is, at minimum, around 1000 potential violent criminals in that stadium and you just gave your information to all of them. This is not said to instill fear in people’s minds, but to bring awareness to you of who you could be giving your personal information to. Often times we are no more familiar with the people we “meet” online than that group of people in the stadium, yet we are so free with very personal information that could be used to get even more personal information about us. We try to be friendly and nice, and often we do it in the hopes of teaching someone about Yahweh. You may be asking right now what this has to do with Torah. Not long ago Torah For Women accepted a friend request from a fellow who proclaims to be a follower of Yahweh and Torah observant. Within a short time, this wolf in sheep’s clothing revealed his true self by implying something that was very anti-Torah, through a post about husbands and wives. We not only recognized his false teachings, and blatant self-promotion of what he called a ministry, but we also took the time to do some checking on this individual and discovered many more anti-Torah teachings that he shares with men and women in the Torah movement. We even discovered he had perused our writings, personal information, and public posts to discover our "mind-set", then made an attempt to use it "against us". This individual was found to not only share anti-Torah teachings of others, but he also writes many of his own false teachings and is even willing to “personally advise” others on their relationships by giving his false interpretation of Torah as well. Sadly, the teachings this person advocates are not something we haven’t seen before and even more alarming we continue to see spread among Torah keepers and Christians. This teaching is anti-Torah, because it involves approving, promoting, and even encouraging the physical abuse of women. It is done to teach wives complete submission to their husband, and as these false teachers state it is often “necessary” to beat a woman so that the wife will properly understand her place in the marriage and home. This type of thinking is not only anti-Torah, but very dangerous and criminal. This teaching spreading online goes on to claim that a man has the right to deny even basic comforts because they are privileges, and not rights. Things such as food, water, drink, personal care items, showers, even toilet tissue, could be “privileges” that a man can remove until the wife submits to the man of the house - whatever his submission requirements are at that time. Sadly, many men and women are following this teaching and are standing by these so called Torah teachers and adopting these methods of “disciplining wives”. Yes, you read that right, there is a move among Torah followers that is teaching men to beat a woman into submission and deny them basic comforts as well, and both husbands and wives are following it and falling for it. Some men, we discovered, will even go so far as to make the wife’s life miserable by selling her car and buying her one that is less than what she had. This is done to show her that she must comply with his directions in keeping the home and raising the children. Not selling it for financial reasons as if it is a burden on them, but for punishment for not “taking care of the house properly”. It was also recommended on one fellow’s counseling site to “punish” or “discipline” the wife as you would a child by changing the password on the internet, cancel the television service, turn off her cell phone, and embarrassing her publicly until she “submits”. If these methods don’t work, then it is recommended to perform “harsher punishments as discipline”, such as beatings. These people (men and women) think this form of relationship and submission is biblical, but we outright call it unbiblical. These people claim the bible teaches men to be harsh masters of their home, but we 100% dispute this and call their teachings sinful. Here is our biblical proof to refute these false teachers that promote spousal abuse. Colossians 3:19 says “Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them”. Is this method of forced compliance taught by these false teachers fulfilling this counsel to love your wives? NO! Psalm 11:5 “Yahweh examines the righteous, but the wicked and him who loves violence his soul hates.” This teaching by these men that promote domestic violence is something Yahweh hates. Pretty clear to me. Ephesians 5:25 “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the assembly, and gave himself up for it;. . .” Husbands - is beating your wife the way Yeshua loves his church, the assembly? No, he sacrificed himself for his church/assembly. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 “Love is patient and is kind; love doesn't envy. Love doesn't brag, is not proud, doesn't behave itself inappropriately, doesn't seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; doesn't rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” These men need a lesson on true love. 1 Peter 3:7 “You husbands, in the same way, live with your wives according to knowledge, giving honor to the woman, as to the weaker vessel, as being also joint heirs of the grace of life; that your prayers may not be hindered” Please, answer for yourself, ladies, do you want a husband to give you honor or to give you a relationship where you are forced into doing everything a man demands and if you refuse to obey get beaten? I hope you would always want better for yourself. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 “Don't you know that you are a temple of God, and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him; for God's temple is holy, which you are.” God’s temple is holy, you are the temple of His spirit, should that temple be beaten, abused, misused, tortured, and demeaned? Any Torah keeping man should recognize this. 1 Timothy 5:8 “But if anyone doesn't provide for his own, and especially his own household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever.” These men who think they have the right to hold back food, water, clothing or other things from their wives are not only in need of help themselves, but the scriptures call them WORSE than an UNBELIEVER. Each home is different, each has its own dynamics, direction or flow. It is not our job here at Torah for Women or our responsibility to tell one couple or another how to run their home. It is our calling, though, to teach what the Torah teaches and this matter has been pointed out several times in recent weeks to us. We have even witnessed ourselves how this violent teaching is being shared amongst brothers and sisters, and it needs to END!! This is a great concern for us. Violence of any kind toward a wife is not biblical. We don’t care what any wolf in sheep’s clothing is teaching online or in home groups. These false teachers might claim this criminal activity is approved by scriptures, but that’s a lie. These false teachers will encourage men and women to adopt their teachings and will even proclaim themselves Torah-keepers and “experts,” but we know enough about the scriptures to tell you their teachings are unbiblical, sinful and ungodly. Sisters, know that their are weirdo’s online pretending to be Torah keepers and biblical teachers. Don’t be so trusting of everyone you meet online!!! Many of you sisters are single and are praying Yahweh bless you with a Torah observant spouse. Others are married sisters looking for places to fellowship with your husband and family. In either case, I want you to place yourself back at the stadium scene. In this stadium you’re allowing everyone and anyone to come along and know your deepest, most intimate details and learn enough about you to weedle their way in to your life. You’re allowing them to look into your relationships, your problems and the feelings your experiencing. These people might offer you comfort, console you, offer advice and attempt to win your trust. For the safety of your children, yourself, your family, please search your friends list, read what people post. Be skeptical before accepting random “friends”. I would also like to recommend as soon as possible, read through the timelines of these so called “friends” you barely know and read what they have been up to. You may find you need to make some changes and delete some people from what you thought was your sanctuary....(your personal Facebook page). If you love having all these friends then stop posting your personal business on your page. Talk scriptures, talk about world events, talk about generic topics and keep your personal business among your real friends and family by sending private messages. Check them out, don’t be afraid to do it either. It is YOUR home they are coming into, through your computer, your phone, your tablet. Don’t forget people can download your photos, your kids photos and use them. People can scope out your possessions, and know enough about you to approach your kids and claim they are family and you sent them to pick them up. You are the one who lets them in, or doesn’t. Be blessed, but also: BE WISE. and Be courageous.
Linda Wren
8/16/2016 06:50:07 am
This is the most informative article I have read about being aware of whom we share and have contact with!! What an excellent article!! Yes, very sadly there are many wolves in sheep clothing. I have experienced this in the past as well. He was well known through out the TORAH COMMUNITY. And was well liked and respected by many. Even the Torah leaders!! But behind closed doors, twisted and encourage things that were NOT acceptable! He was a very cruel, mean man and it became appairent to me that he was a wolf in sheeps clothing! His actions and words DID NOT line up to the word.
Dena J
2/14/2017 11:41:08 pm
Linda, I too experienced this from a "Torah Keeper" and have found that many in the community just look the other way. No accountability. Amazing article indeed.
Yehudit Garton
7/18/2017 05:45:25 pm
Taylor, thank you for your thoughts. YES, it is sad that it is needed. It pains us even more that it needs to be shared on social media regularly. This only goes to show it has not changed as much as we had prayed it would by now. Comments are closed.
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Lead Author (Bio)Yehudit (Judith) Associate Author
Jim, (Judi's husband), has Sephardi Jewish ancestry and is a minister and head of Shofar Productions. Jim was a denominational pastor, hospital chaplain, and former director of a non-profit community organization. Archives
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