What is the Sacred Name Movement?
The sacred name movement is a religious movement which began in the late 1920s and early 1930s. It grew out of division within the Church of God (Seventh Day). The primary and therefore the namesake concern of this movement is both the written and the oral use of the name Yahweh, or one of the other many English forms of the Hebrew name of God. From this emphasis derives the name, Sacred Name Movement.
While the most popular English form of the Name comes to us as Yahweh (Yahshua for Jesus), in Hebrew Bibles it is יהוח and in early Hebrew manuscripts and engravings, hwhy. By most scholars, it is represented in English as YHWH. By some YHVH. For many sacred name people, a secondary concern is the disparagement, in varying degrees, of the name of Jesus. This disparagement extends to Chr_stians and Chr_stianity (sic) for refusing to use the Hebrew only sacred names and for being full of pagan practices.
Error #1
THE ORIGINAL PRONUNCIATION OF THE TETRAGRAMMATON CAN BE DETERMINED WITH ABSOLUTE CERTAINTY.
Many sacred name teachers believe and very vocally teach that unless one uses the Hebrew name and only the Hebrew name for God, he or she will be eternally damned. It should be noted that not all sacred name teachers are so dogmatic.
Error #2
THE BIBLE, AS WE HAVE IT, IS A CORRUPTED DOCUMENT AND SACRED NAME TEACHERS ARE ABLE TO REPAIR IT.
A Bible revision made by any religious group is certainly one of the more interesting aspects for study of that movement. Mormons have their Holy Scriptures, Inspired Version made by Joseph Smith. Jehovah's Witnesses have The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures, a Watch Tower publication.
Error #3
THE NEW TESTAMENT WAS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN IN HEBREW
One of the most absurd of the claims made by sacred name movement teachers is that the complete New Testament was originally written in the Hebrew language. Nothing could be further from the truth. This claim is made without so much as a shred of empirical evidence. Even so, such an untenable position is thrust upon these teachers as necessary to support the primary doctrine of the movement.
Error #4
JESUS SPOKE THE NAME YAHWEH
One of the keystone doctrines of the sacred name movement is that our Savior preached and taught the name Yahweh to the Jewish people of his time. One or another sacred name group may say Jesus taught one or another of the numerous possible English transliterations of YHWH. Numbers of sacred name people believe the primary mission of Jesus was bringing the name Yahweh to the world.
Error #5
THE NAME JESUS ETYMOLOGICALLY DERIVES FROM THE NAME ZEUS.
A long held and regularly used false teaching among more than half of sacred name movement assemblies and individuals is that the Greek word for Jesus means son of Zeus or has a meaning otherwise connected with or derived from the word Zeus. There are a number of variations on this fanciful teaching, a favorite being that Jesus means Healing Zeus. It is especially sad to see sacred name converts, who have no idea of the source of their information, promoting this error.