--Sharing our Saviour Yahushua the Messiah to the World!--

-Please Read this FIRST- On this site we prefer to use the actual Name of our loving Heavenly Father as it was written in the Word, and thus you will note that we will use the Four Letter “Memorial Name” of - YHVH, which is pronounced as YaHVaH or YaHWaH. In addition we will also use our Heavenly Father’s attribute/title, which is Elohim rather than “God,” which sadly is the name of a pagan god. In addition we also love to use the actual and real Name of our beloved Messiah which is - Yahushua for this is our Saviours original Hebrew Name as given to Him at birth in Lukas - Luke 1:31. This was the only Name ever used when He was on the earth by His family, disciples and His followers OVER THE centuries, even until today! However, it was changed to a foreign name by the founder of the new “pagan church of Rome.” Occasionally, we may also use other Hebrew or Greek names as well as different words in our studies for certain common words used are from pagan backgrounds and thus are not suitable. All names will be translated when they are FIRST used in a study or at various times as needed for clarity. There is a full explanation of YHVH’s blessed “Memorial Name” as well as the wonderful blessed Name of our Messiah and Saviour, thus please read … “The Memorial Name.”

Was he Good or just Evil?

This page is quite challenging as it contains a great deal about the first three to six hundred years after our beloved Saviour. We know that the Apostles did a wonderful work continuing the faith and that Yahushua’s followers continued faithfully, no matter where they lived! However, there were many troubled times ahead for them, but in spite of all that, praise be to our Saviour and the Ruach HaKodesh (The Sanctified [Holy] Spirit) many remain to this day and continue in the faith as it was so long ago, even in a world that sadly follows a whole new doctrine that was greatly influenced by Constantine and yes his father and his forbears! It is very important that you both pray and then read this document and the word studies accompanying it, for it will be great evil. I pray that this study will be for many full of revelation, for it is filled with fact, not just fiction and a dislike for a church or ideology!

Emperor Constantine one the most influential of men to have lived!

As far as the history of christianity in general is concerned, the Roman Emperor Constantine would have been one of the most influential of men that has ever lived. From the time of the man who became the first bishop of Rome (not an Apostle) who did more evil than any other human in all history to damage the faith, until Martin Luther nailed his theses to the church door in 1517, there was no single individual that changed as much of the course of church and christian history and the faith in Messiah as much as this man did amongst the masses. His influence was so vast that it continues to dominate over all of christendom to this very day. Both in church observances, customs, as well as in church government, thus christianity owes a everything to Constantine’s intervention and changing the last of those who upheld the true faith to what became a new State run religion based on the Messianic ideals, but like his earlier forerunner, that first bishop, he mixed with pagan and Greek/Roman feasts and ideology, and attempted to completely destroy the true believers if the upheld their Scriptural Sabbath’s, etc!

It is for this reason that I have decided to write this brief biography for this man who changed the history and the direction of the christian church and observances of the followers of the teachings of the Apostles. If you are a “christian,” you really should read this record about an evil and a pagan man for it will explain many things to you. Without a clear understanding of what really took place during his life, it will be difficult to understand the simple, pure life, doctrines and fellowship of the people of YaHVaH Elohim (the LORD God) and His blessed Son, Messiah Yahushua before this Roman leader came on the scene.

After Messiah’s death and blessed prophesied resurrection, three days and nights after being placed in to the tomb, praise be unto YaHVaH’s Name, His followers carried the Good News of salvation unto lands near and far. Most of these lands were as we know under the control of Rome. Praise be to the Almighty, the Word of Elohim entered Rome in spite of its rulers, who worshiped heathen deities and they were confronted by this new faith of love and salvation.

We do know for a fact that in Rome arrived a most evil man, who had already met Shime’on ben Yochanan, that is the Apostle Peter and after an amazing episode that is recorded in the Book of Acts chapter 8, this man, who was from Samaria, a magician and ex Babylonian priest, he had converted and had tried to buy an apostleship, but Shime’on had rejected him severely! This same man went to Rome where he commenced a brand new religion based on all the pagan faiths, mixed with parts of what he had learned about Messiah, but he changed many details and names and he created the term “Christians” and “Christ,” well in the Greek of course! To learn all about this evil man see the link at the bottom of this page.

As we know, during the 240 years between A.D. 64 and 304, various Emperors treated the genuine faithful in Messiah extremely badly for unlike that other false teacher, the faithful in Messiah as is recorded continued to uphold the teachings of the Apostles, and this included the keeping of the Seventh Day Sabbath (Friday night and Saturday) as well as the Feasts of YaHVaH - Vayikra - Leviticus chapter 23.

But so great was the evil at times, that hideous murders took place in their coliseums. But, praise be to the Almighty, each period of persecution was short-lived or the faithful in Messiah would have been driven off the face of the earth, but as was the case with the promise given to Israel, our Father in Heaven would also keep His promise to His beloved Bride, who had come out of both the Hebrews and Gentiles and were now truly “one in the body” neither “Jew nor Greek.” Read the following - Ephesians. 2:11-22 …

“Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called ‘uncircumcised’ by those who call themselves ‘the circumcision’ (Israel) remember that at that time you were separate from Messiah, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without Elohim in the world. But now in Messiah Yahushua you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Messiah. For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in His flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to Elohim through the stake (tree - cross), by which He put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with Elohim’s people and members of Elohim’s household, built on the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, with Messiah Yahushua Himself as the chief cornerstone. In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a Sanctified Temple in YHVH. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which Elohim lives by His Spirit.”

However, as it always does, persecution had a purifying effect on the faithful whether they were located in cities or farmlands. Problems and trials tend to have an effect, but an effect in varying ways, for sadly some of the believers were gradually assimilating into the ways of the world they were living in, that included the observances of some of the local heathen ways. Much in the same way as far too many well meaning “christians” are doing today, for they celebrate the pagan festival of “Easter,” and we must not forget this festival and name is directly related to the pagan goddess “Estra.” This festival commenced a thousand or more years before the time our precious Saviour even came to the earth!

The word “Easter” occurs just once in the KJV, but the Greek word that is used in the Scripture is clearly “Pasha,” which is obviously “Passover,” yet, the KJV translators used a foreign and pagan word for some weird and unknown reason, which I personally believe was by the leading of HaSatan - the adversary!

Strangely enough, in the KJV “Pasha” is translated as “Passover” every other time it occurs in the New Covenant, but for some reason the greater church due to being followers, rather than seekers of the truth, adopted this pagan name and feast to celebrate the death and the resurrection of He who is the “Easter sacrificed for us” – Oops sorry, that is not what the blessed Scripture says … “Passover sacrificed for us.”

Sadly, a large number of pagan concepts entered part of the “Ekklesia” during the first three centuries of the “christian” era that originated in Alexandria (in Egypt), as well as in the city of Rome. For some reason, those two regions were busy modernising the faith further than any of the other congregations.

Rome was the seat of great “christian” error where church leaders had inherited their role from “Simon Magnus” the first bishop of Rome, who had established that new faith and his church there, which had been at first been called “Simonianism” but by now it had become the “Roman Catholic church.” The local Roman church divided their time between copying further worldly customs, and trying to urge their adoption by all the other christian congregations of the Roman Empire.

At that time, Alexandria was one of the largest cities in the Roman Empire. A worldly (fleshly) “christian” seminary was located there, and its faculty occupied itself with an ongoing new modelling of their faith as, like as was happening in Rome, heathen ideas from pagan religions in Egypt, Babylon, Persia, and Asia Minor were explored, adapted, and taught to the ministerial students at the seminary.

What were some of those beliefs that began infiltrating into the christian religion between A.D. 96 and 304? Let us consider some of these here. Due to pagan priests cutting a circular bald spot on top of their heads, done in honour of the solar disc (the sun god), christian leaders, at Alexandria and in Rome, copied this hairstyle, called the “tonsure.”

But what did the precious Word of Elohim have to say about this,

“Priests must not shave their heads or shave off the edges of their beards or cut their bodies.” Vayikra - Leviticus 21:5.

“You are the children of YHVH your Elohim. Do not cut yourselves or shave the front of your heads for the dead.” Davarim - Deuteronomy 14:1.

Sadly, this pagan custom continues to this day by certain monastic orders, but it is a dying custom.

Approximately at the same time came the so-called “holy water” that is entirely based on the Nile god and it was first used for “baptism” in a tank, but it was soon degenerated into a mere sprinkling instead of immersion. (Acts 8:35-38; Romans 6:3-5).

A large part of what would later become basic Roman Catholic liturgy came into the church at that time, as the Alexandrian church copied the Egyptian worship of “Isis,” the Egyptian “Queen of Heaven” (Yirmyahu - Jeremiah. 7:18; 44:17-19, 25). Here is how the Egyptian Mother goddess and her child were worshiped by the pagans of Egypt:

“The daily ritual of Isis, which seems to have been as regular and complicated as that of the Catholic Church, produced an immense effect on the Roman mind. Every day there were two solemn offices (services), at which white-robed, tonsured priests, with acolytes and assistants of every degree, officiated. The morning litany and sacrifice was an impressive service. The crowd of worshipers thronged the space before the chapel at the early dawn. The priest ascending by a hidden stairs, drew apart the veil of the sanctuary, and offered the holy image to their adoration. He then made the round of the altars, reciting the litany (mystic words in an unknown tongue), and sprinkling the holy water from the secret spring.” Samuel Dill, Roman Society from Nero to Marcus Aurelius, page 577-578. (Read: 2 Timothy 2:15-16; Lukas - Luke 20:3-5).

The “Queen of Heaven, the Mother of god” concept came directly into the christian church from the “Mother and Child” cult in Egypt, the worship of “Isis and Horus.” When this concept entered the church, it was accompanied by the idea that Miriam - Mary was to be worshiped as the “mother of god.” This caused a split in the church and the banishment of Nestorius, a christian who opposed the new teaching. Images (statues) of Isis holding Horus had already been accepted for worship by pagans all over the Roman Empire, for they were patron gods of Roman sailors.

Then, in the fifth century a very significant thing happened. The names “Isis” and “Horus” totally disappeared, and in their place appeared Mariolotry, the worship of the Virgin Mary holding her Child (Markus - Mark 3:31-35; Lukas - Luke 11:27-28; Mattityahu - Matt 10:37).

It is interesting to note that the very same thing happened to “Mithra.” Just as soon as the essential aspects of Mithraism had been officially brought into the christian church, “Mithra” disappeared within a century! “Mithra” was no longer needed, for his worship was now within the christian church itself with a new identity.

Who was Mithra? In the Roman Empire, he was the most important pagan god of the first three centuries after the time of the Messiah.

In order to better understand Mithraism, we need to go back in history. The various days of the week were in ancient times called “the first day, the second day,” etc. Those were their Scriptural names. However, just before the birth of Messiah they were given new names: “the day of the Sun,” “the day of the moon,” etc., in honour of different heavenly bodies. This was known as the “planetary week.”

Each day was ruled over by a different pagan god, but the most important of them was the “sun god” that ruled over the first day of the week. It was his day, the day of the sun, SUNday and all who worshipped the sun god would worship him on the first day SUNday!

Now, although these names for the week were relatively new, but the worship of the sun god was not. It was one of the most ancient forms of worship and is represented by solar-disc worship found on nearly every continent in the world. Fausset tells us that “sun worship was the earliest idolatry.” (Fausset's Bible Dictionary, page 666.) The Arabians appear to have worshiped it directly without using any statue or symbol (Iyov - Job 31:26-27).

Avram - Abram lived amongst a great deal of paganism, for even his own father and other family members were deeply involved, even to the point of making idols. Thus Avram was called out of Ur and Charan and he was to go to the Land that Elohim would “Show him” and he was told not to take his family with him! Obviously, that is why he had to leave, for he was a man of faith and he had to rid himself, his wife and servants from all that idolatry that was at home and start afresh!

We know that “Ra” was the sun god in Egypt, and On (Heliopolis) was the central city of sun worship in ancient Egypt.

Entering Canaan under the leadership of Yahushua - Joshua the Hebrews again met sun worship. Baal of the Phoenicians, Molech or Milcom of the Ammonites, and Ha-dad of the Syrians were sun gods. Later came the Persian sun god, Mithra, also known as Mithras. Shemish was an especially important sun god in the Middle East. Later, in Egypt, the god of the sun disc was known as Aton. The temple at Baalbek was dedicated to sun worship.

By associating with sun worshipers, the Israelites frequently practiced it themselves (Vayikra - Leviticus 26:30; Yeshayahu - Isaiah 17:8). King Manasseh practiced direct sun worship (2 Melech – 2 Kings 21:3, 5). Yoshiyahu - Josiah destroyed the chariots that were dedicated to the sun, and also removed the horses consecrated to the sun worship processions (2 Melech – 2 Kings 23:5, 11, 12). Sun altars and incense were burned on the housetops for the sun deity (Tzefanyah - Zepheniah 1:5), and Yechehel - Ezekiel beheld the “greatest abomination” of them all: direct sun worship at the entryway to the temple of the true Elohim. This was done by facing eastward to the rising sun (Yechehel - Ezekiel. 8:16-17).

During that time, there was no particular day that was set aside for this heathen worship. But just a few years prior to the birth of the Messiah various days of the week were suddenly dedicated to specific pagan gods: “dies Solis” the day of the sun; “dies Lunae” the day of the Moon, and so on. Satan certainly was preparing his onslaught, for he would assist his man in setting up a new religion to counteract the true faith, and he knew that it would sweep the world!

All through Scriptural times and for centuries thereafter, the sacred day of the people of Elohim was the Seventh day, the Scriptural Sabbath for it is the memorial of the Creation and the only weekly Sabbath ever given in the Word of Elohim and it has never been changed by YaHVaH our heavenly Father, or by Yahushua our Messiah, nor the Apostles who continued to uphold the Seventh Day Sabbath as all the Epistles prove!

However, the sacred day of paganism is the memorial of the sun-god, being the first day of the week. And this day was and still is called “the venerable day of the sun.”

Now, this is where Mithra comes in, for just as the planetary week (each day named for a different planet god in the sky) played a very important part in the worship of the sun, thus Mithra became more important as the leading sun god after the time of the Messiah by so many.

By the beginning of the first century, Mithraism had become the largest sun-worship cult of the Western World. Within the next two hundred years, it had become the largest pagan religion in the Roman Empire, surpassing all others. The Romans called him by a new name: “Sol Invictus” – “the Invincible Sun.”

It is impossible to properly explain the dramatic changes that took place in “Christianity” without mentioning “Mithraism” for during the first three centuries after the death and resurrection of Messiah, it became the greatest pagan rival of the faith of the followers of Yahushua THE Messiah, who followed the teachings of the Apostles!

And Mithraism was an outstanding counterfeit, but it was entirely pagan based, and it worshipped another god but as you will read some of its contents are very familiar! It had such new found features like religious ceremonies such as communion, where their believers had to eat the flesh and drink the blood of their god, for the circular (sun like) wafer had been transformed into his body, and the wine into his blood. Also a new special holy day was introduced in the weekly cycle, which was very different to that of the Scriptural Sabbath that the true followers of Yahushua THE Messiah had always upheld, being the “Sun Day,” also there was an introductory baptism of its converts (in the blood of a slain bull) as well as several other similarities. It counterfeited the faith of the true Elohim more cleverly than did any other religion up to that time in history.

Mithra was especially worshiped by the Roman soldiers, and wherever they went throughout the empire, they spread the worship of Mithraism. When Augustus Caesar became emperor (several decades before the birth of the Messiah), Mithraism was already spreading westward from Asia into Europe, and throughout the Roman Empire. Since it was the Roman generals that frequently took command on the death of an emperor, this hastened the spread of Mithraism.

As might be expected, with the passing of time, more and more of the assimilated “christians” of the Roman Empire had began keeping the first day.

By the middle of the second century, Mithric sun worship was very popular among the influential Romans. Antoninus Pius (emperor from A.D. 138 to 161) erected a temple to Mithra at Ostia, a seaport town a few miles from the city of Rome. The emperor Aurelian (270-275), whose mother was a “priestess of the Sun,” made this solar cult the official religion of the empire. His biographer, Flavius Vopiscus, tells us that the priests of the Temple of the Sun were called “Pontiffs.” They were priests of their dying-rising saviour, who was Mithra, and reigned as his vicegerents.

Under Emperor Antoninus Pius, Mithra was by official decree entitled “Sol Dominus Imperil Romani” (“The Sun, the Lord of the Roman Empire”), and his holy day was declared to be “the Day of the Lord.” This name, and his other name, “Sol Invicto” (“Invincible Sun”) appeared together on his coinage.

Sun worship continued to be the official religion of the empire until the time of Constantine.

December 25 – the sun god Mithra’s birthday.

Cumont, Olcott and other scholars clearly show that December 25 was the date Mithra’s birth. On that date, his followers held a special celebration of the fact that the sun was beginning to rise again higher in the sky. (It was lowest at the winter solstice, December 21, and not until the 25th could its rising be clearly seen.) This birthday of the sun-god was made an official holiday in the Roman Empire by Aurelian about the year 273. Here is what Williston Walker, a well-known church historian, has to say about this:

“December 25 was a great pagan festival, that of Sol Invictus, which celebrated the victory of light over darkness, and the lengthening of the sun's rays at the winter solstice. This assimilation of Christ to the sun god, as Sun of Righteousness, was widespread in the fourth century and was furthered by Constantine's legislation on Sunday, which is not unrelated to the fact that the sun god was the titular divinity of his (Constantine's) family.” Williston Walker, A History of the christian church, third edition, page 155.

Constantine was a sun worshipper all of his life!

The faithful followers:

Some of the followers in Messiah Yahushua who were living in the larger more hectic cities of the empire were gradually leaning toward the pagan so-called “christian” practices, while their rural brethren remained true to the faith as taught by the Apostles. The faithful people of Elohim and the Messiah were slowly nearing a crisis and only the intermittent persecutions kept them relatively pure. But then it was Emperor Constantine who entered into the picture and the fellowship of the Messianic faithful would never be the same again and we can read how this tragedy came about:

The Decian persecution of Messianic believers, those who had come into faith be it a Hebrew or those who were a Gentile, and as I said earlier both are now “One in Messiah,” began in A.D. 250 and was ended by an edict of Gallienus in 260. Again, there was peace for the Messianic’s for a few years, until Diocletian's heavy-handed persecution of 304-305. Diocletian became emperor in 284, and the next year he appointed three men to help him manage the government: Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius Chlorus.

In February, 303, he began an intense persecution of the Messianic’s (the true faithful of Yahushua). Four edicts followed one another in quick succession, each more severe than the one preceding it. The fourth, in 304, ordered all the Messianic’s to offer sacrifice’s to the pagan gods or be slain. Constantius Chlorus was the only one of Diocletian's commanders that did little to persecute Messianic’s in his territory of Gaul (modern France) and Britain.

In 305, Diocletian retired due to poor health and Maximian abdicated from his position. This left Constantius Chlorus, Galerius, and two new co-rulers (Maxentius, and Licinius) as the leaders of the empire. Constantius Chlorus died in 306, and his son, Constantine took his place. A bitter fight between rival claimants for the throne began. Its outcome would determine the new master of the Roman Empire.

In April, 311, an edict of toleration was extended to the Messianic’s by Galerius and Constantine. Galerius died the next month. Fighting for the throne continued. The crucial military engagement took place on October 28, 312, in what is generally considered to be, one of the decisive battles of history: The Battle of Mulvian Bridge. A rapid march southward, and several successful battles in northern Italy, brought Constantine to Saxa Rubra a small town north of Rome. Just south of him, on the north side of the Tiber River, was the encampment of Maxentius. Near it was the Mulvian Bridge that spanned the large river. In the battle which followed, Maxentius was slain.

We should ask ourselves was Constantine a “christian” at that or at any time? It is said that for a while he was in some way tolerant to the believers in Messiah Yahushua, but heathen emblems continued to be used on his armour, and coins, and he retained the pagan title of “Pontifex Maximums” and he continued to worship Mithra the sun god and the truth is that he remained a pagan all of his life. It was said by priest, that only on his deathbed, he asked a cardinal if he could be converted, but the question begs into what?

Early in 313, Constantine and Licinius met at Milan and agreed to permit, not merely toleration, but freedom to the Messianic’s. Their decision is known as the “Edict of Milan.” All those who believed in the Messiah, regardless which one, had to be called “christians,” and it was now legally equal to that of any religion of the empire. All confiscated property was ordered to be restored to them. However Licinius, co-ruler of the empire, later began persecuting the Messianic’s in the eastern third of the empire, but he was defeated by Constantine in 323.

Eventually the mother of Constantine, Helena, had converted to this new form of state run “Christianity” when her husband, Constantius (Constantine's father) had divorced her. But as we know Constantine never became a follower during his life. As it is written, in all of his contacts with christianity Constantine only used this religion as a political springboard. However, in his court he consulted with pagan philosophers and scholars, as well as the occasional “christian” priest, bishop and cardinal. Regarding “christian” doctrine, he chose always to favour that which certain “christian” leaders wanted in order to insure unity; beyond that, he had no personal interest in the beliefs of the church as long as he could control it as much as possible to his gain.

“He continued to use vague monotheistic language that any pagan could accept. During the earlier years of his supremacy he carried out patiently the ceremonial required of him as Pontifex Maximus of the traditional (heathen) cult; he restored pagan temples, and ordered the taking of the auspices (by examining livers of freshly-killed animals). He used pagan as well as christian rites in dedicating Constantinople. He used pagan magic formulas to protect crops and heal disease.” Will Durant, Caesar and the Christ, page 656.

Yet, in spite of this mixing of “Christianity” and paganism in the mind of Constantine, he became the most influential determinant of the true faith for more than a thousand years! For it was through his political support that the apostate pagan based “christian” church at Rome, together with several other major city churches, grasped control of all traditional harlot “christendom” and imposed their worldly ways upon “christians” scattered in cities and villages all over the vast Roman Empire. And the changes that took place at that time have continued right down to our own time. How very important it is that we understand what those changes are.

On March 7, 321 A.D., the first National SUNday Law in history was issued. This was the first “blue law” to be issued by a civil government. Here is the text of this, Constantine’s first SUNday law decree on March 7, 321 AD:

“Let all judges and townspeople and occupations of all trades rest on the venerable day of the SUN (Sunday).” The Code of Justinian, Book 3, title 12, law 3.

Five additional SUNday laws were to be issued by Constantine within a few years to strengthen this, his first pagan SUNday edict to edify his beloved “sun god.”

When Constantine was issuing his new SUNday laws, was he doing this for the “christians?” Hardly, he was actually embellishing, redecorating the “Temple of the Sun” in Rome. In the same year that he proclaimed his first Sunday law, he made several decrees maintaining pagan practices, such as consulting with heathen priests for guidance, who would then watch the flight of birds, or cut open animals, in order to know which advice to give. All this Constantine legalized.

The very next day after giving his famous SUNday Law of March 7, 321, as quoted above, Constantine made another law for pagan soothsayers. When lightning should strike a public building, the heathen prophets were to be consulted as to its meaning. Constantine's Sunday law was made to favour both the new pagan christian church and his own congregation, the Mithrites. In that law, christianity is not mentioned. The day is called “the venerable day of the Sun” (“venerabili die solis”). That was the mystical name for the worship day of Mithra, the sun god. At least the faithful in Messiah Yahushua knew this and continued to uphold the Sabbath as given by Elohim!

The objective of Constantine and the high church officials was to bring peace through mutual compromise, but as well all should know, Elohim is against this kind of compromise, as the Word so clearly states

“For what fellowship can light have with darkness.” 2 Corinthians 6:14.

It was on the doctrine of Sunday that the religions of the empire could best unite. Sunday sacredness was common both to the Sun-worshipers and to compromising “christians.” Making that day the new sacred day of “christendom,” which could then bring the heathen into the newly formed church. And that is what happened for let’s face it, this religion was so much like the old one, but it offered something new.

It is a historical fact that when Constantine issued this first imperial Sunday edict of A.D. 321, enforcing the observance of the “day of the Sun god” by the people of the Roman Empire, was all because he was a worshiper of Sol Invictus, “the Invincible Sun” (Mithra), yet he was also, believe it or not the “Pontifex Maximus,” the supreme pagan pontiff or high priest of the Roman heathen worship being the state religion. Thus as a technicality, he and the pagan “christian” leaders in Rome together worked to unite all under one new greater church roof, regardless its hideous pagan heritage.

In another of his six Sunday laws, he gave the order that the soldiers be marched out into the field every Sunday morning for a sunrise service, and there to recite a prayer as with closed eyes, they had to face toward the rising sun. This pagan ritual required that they face the sun during a sunrise service as they gave their prayers to the sun god, thus this feature was required in this Sunday edict and this also became a new addition to “christian” worship, and “sunrise” services are tragically held to this day, but sadly most have no idea of its origin, and our beloved Saviour weeps every time those who attend such an evil pagan practice and that beloved includes worshipping on SUNday, being the day of “solis” as well as uphold the pagan festivals of “Easter” and attend a “mass for Christ” “Christmas”, both being completely pagan, but they had a so-called “christian” emphasis placed on them to hide their pagan origin’s!

Victor Duruy, a French historian, tells us more about SUNday prayers:

“He (Constantine) sent to the legions, to be recited upon that day (Sunday) a form of prayer which could have been employed by a worshiper of Mithra, of Serapis, or of Apollo, quite as well as by a christian believer. This was the official sanction of the old custom of addressing a prayer to the rising sun.” Victor Duruy, History of Rome, Vol. 7, page 489.

Franz Cumont (in Astrology and Religion among the Greeks and Romans, page 55) explains that Sol Invictus (Mithra) was the family god of both Constantine’s father as well as himself.

Careful historians have concluded that Constantine passed his SUNday laws at the instigation of “christian” leaders. Eusebius, bishop of Caesarea (270-338), was one of Constantine's closest religious advisors. He later wrote this:

“All things whatsoever it was duty to do on the (Seventh-day) Sabbath, these we (the church leaders) have transferred to the Lord’s Day (SUNday).” Commentary on the Psalms, in Migne, patrologia graeca, Vol. 23, col. 1171.

Commenting on this heaven-daring change, one historical writer wrote this:

“Not a single testimony of the Scriptures was produced in proof of the new doctrine. Eusebius himself unwittingly acknowledges its falsity, and points to the real authors of the change. ‘All things’ he says, ‘whatever that it was duty (commanded by God) to do on the Sabbath, these we have transferred to the Lord's Day.’ But the Sunday argument, groundless as it was, served to embolden men in trampling upon the Sabbath of the Lord. All who desired to be honoured by the world accepted the popular festival.” G. White, The Great Controversy, page 574.

This was the beginning of something new and ominous for the church. Sylvester (314-337) was the Pope during the reign of Constantine. His attitude toward the Scriptural Sabbath, which Elohim gave to mankind at the Creation of this world is shown in the following quotation:

“If every Sunday is to be observed joyfully by the christians on account of the resurrection, then every (Scriptural) Sabbath on account of the burial is to be regarded in execration (loathing or cursing) of the Jews.” S.R.E. Humbert, Adversus Graecorum calumnias 6, in Patrologie Cursus Completus, Series Latina, ed. J.P. Migne, page 143.

By the year 325, Constantine had come to his fullest power and a large council was called to which leaders of the church, from all over the Empire were commanded to come. However, Constantine had power over all matters at this council. This was the Council of Nicaea, during which the church leaders decreed that as from this time that the feast of “Estra – Easter” must be kept but only on a certain Sunday of each year, instead of the Biblical dates as it had been observed since the days of the Tanach - Old Covenant and the Brit Chadashah - New Covenant and was observed by Messiah, the Apostles and all the faithful in Messiah up to that time and to this very day! Immediately afterward, Constantine issued a decree that everyone must obey the rulings of this council, on pain of imprisonment and even death.

As soon as church and State unite, the result always means persecution of religious dissenters. Therefore trouble laid ahead for the faithful people of Elohim and Yahushua THE Messiah!

Shortly after this, the first recorded church legislation commanding Sunday was enacted at the Council of Laodicea, which convened a year or two before Constantine's death in A.D. 336.

In order to avoid the gradually intensifying persecution by church and government authorities, many weaker Messianic’s tried to keep both days. They knew that the Seventh-day Sabbath was the only weekly Sanctified (Holy) Day in the Scripture, but at the same time, they sought to avoid trouble with the authorities. For this reason, Sozomen, a church historian of that time, tells us that many “were assembling together on the Sabbath, as well as on the first day of the week, which custom is never observed at Rome or at Alexandria.” Sozomen, Ecclesiastical History, Book 7, chapter 19.

Sozomen lived a hundred years after the time of Constantine. Even at that late date, many local Fellowships were still trying to keep the Sabbath of Elohim. Notice that Rome, and Alexandria were the exceptions; they totally ignored the Scriptural Sabbath.

Here is what the church historian, Socrates, who died in A.D. 440, wrote nearly a hundred years after Constantine's Sunday Law Decree was issued:

“Although almost all churches (the faithful) through the world celebrate the sacred mysteries of the Sabbath week, yet the “christians” of Alexandria and at Rome, on account of some ancient tradition, have ceased to do this.” Socrates, Ecclesiastical History, Books, chapter 22.

People cannot “cease” to do what they have never done, and so we can know that even at Rome and Alexandria the Scriptural Sabbath was once kept in earlier centuries.

But, at the same time we see that 400 years after the death of the Messiah, and 100 years after Constantine's linking of church and State by his Sunday law edict, Rome and Alexandria were the only places in the world where the pagan based church only kept the Sun-Day and not the holy Sabbath as commanded by Elohim.

This is truly remarkable. In spite of decrees and punishments, church leader threats and governmental decrees, the true Sabbath found in the Word was still being kept by the faithful Messianic fellowships, some hundred years after the church-state religious cartel began enforcing Sunday observance.

We can understand why Rome and Alexandria should not bother to keep it, for they had not done so for 200 years. Throughout the entire history of the changeover from Sabbath to Sunday, Rome and Alexandria had worked together: Alexandria providing philosophical reasons for the changes; Rome providing the decrees and anathemas.

Constantine's help was given only to the worldly church leaders at Rome; those Messianic’s that resisted the errors that were being introduced into the church met with his opposition. “Unite with the bishop of Rome or be destroyed,” was Constantine's position.

“Great as were the favours which Constantine showed to the church, they were only for that strong, close-knit, hierarchically organized portion that called itself ‘Catholic.’ The various [so-called] ‘heretical’ sects could look for no bounty from his hands.” Williston Walker, A History of the christian church, page 105.

Constantine would die on May 22, 337 AD, the thirtieth year of his reign, and it is said that he was sprinkled with water just before his death. Will that forgive this man who is responsible for so many great sins that millions of people are still observing to this day because of him? Also, just eleven years earlier, he had his favourite son, Crispus, who had helped him a great deal in the campaigns against Licinus, put to death. Shortly thereafter, his second wife Fausta, was put to death at his command. His had been a long and an evil life and now it was finally over, but it will not be one that will enter into salvation, but one that will know “the second death!”

So sadly the effects of his evil life have reached right through to our time, as the errors that he helped establish within the greater church are with us to this day. Without his help, it is questionable whether the Roman Catholic church-state control of Europe could have begun and have remain to have been as strong, or lasted for as long a period of time. He laid a foundation upon which church leaders have built for centuries.

“Wiser than Diocletian, he gave new life to an aging Empire by associating it with a young religion, a vigorous organization, a fresh morality. By his aid christianity became a state as well as a church, and the mould, for fourteen centuries, of European life and thought. Perhaps, if we except Augustus, the grateful church was right in naming him the greatest of the emperors.” Will Durant, Caesar and the Messiah, page 664.

The shift from the Scriptural Sabbath to SUNday was completed by the seventh century, as the Popes, consolidating their enormous power, persecuted all who resisted their innovations, for the Roman Papacy officially confirmed the Sunday law as The Council of Laodicea in 364 A.D. decreed:

“Christians shall not Judaize and be idle on Saturday but shall work on that day; but the Lord’s day (SUN-day) they shall especially honour, and, as being christians shall, if possible, do no work on that day. If, however, they are found Judaizing (keeping the Sabbath), they shall be shut out from Christ.” J. Hefele, A History of the Councils of the Church, 2-316 - Edinburgh, 1876.

Conclusion:

Beloved, the only solution for those who would seek the true faith in Yahushua is to read and obey the blessed Word of Elohim, for only there you will find the truth and the pure faith, the only true teaching, which is uncorrupted by the errors that Constantine and others have tried to force feed unto us, and in the latter days that has sadly happened through blind traditions of men.

Why is it that so many have fallen into the trap of faith, even though we did really mean well and entered into it with a good and well meaning heart, beloved it is because we were born into a Ready-Made world, and we do tend to accept those things that have always been, that includes teachings and yes, may I say it names, etc. Also, and this is sad, but we tend to listen but often we are just not seekers of the truth and the Word is there and we really so need to get back to the source and check and double check what YHVH Elohim is saying to us. Man will lead you astray, just look at those who have said that the world would end on 21 May 2011, well I knew it was impossible! Why? The Word told me so, very simple! All you have to understand is the simplicity of the prophetic “Feasts of YaHVaH” as is written in Vayikra - Leviticus chapter 23, it is as simple as that, and I do have a complete series covering the Feasts online!

“Teach me Your way, O YHVH. I will walk in Your truth.
UNITE MY HEART TO FEAR YOUR NAME!”

Tehillim – Psalms 86:11

May YHVH Elohim bless and keep you in the palm of His hand always, in Messiah Yahushua’s loving Name!

The RETURN Movement - name was founded in 1978.

RMI Ministries International - The International Ministry.

Search our Site

search this site the web

site search by freefind

Return to our Site Index

Or our MainPage

www.rmi-ministries.com

*************************************

Yahushua said; “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the Prophets: They will all be taught by Elohim. Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from Him comes to Me. No one has seen the Father except the One who is from Elohim; only He has seen the Father. I tell you the truth he who believes has everlasting life.” Yochanan (John) 6:43-48.

Please Note: RMI Ministries International and associated ministries are 100% non-profit outreach ministries.

As we do not market, or sell anything or ever request funds by any means, including the sending of any of those

so called “News,” or better said; “Beg-letters.” Upon receipt of an email we do not retain any details on a database,

neither will we ever send any follow up emails, but only reply if we have been requested

Do you have any questions? You are welcome to email us …

Click the inkbottle to email us!

info@rmi-ministries.com

The RETURN Movement International

--Established in 1978--

Quotations are derived from various versions of the Word
including KJV/NKJ/NIV/Hebrew/Greek translations by the Webmaster, and Messianic versions.

Although the author does not believe in having to copyright his studies, but there have been occasions where there parts

of his studies have been taken and quoted out of context under his name, and thus he has been misquoted by

those who had their own reasons for doing so. Thus, it is only for this reason these works