Rebbe Yeshua Kippah Meaning

B"H - FOR BELIEVERS IN YESHUA ONLY:

For a long time, I had in my mind to make a 'Rebbe Yeshua' kippah or just see one in existence.

Yeshua of Nazareth was in many ways the first Chassidic Rebbe. While the Chassidic movement was founded by the Baal Shem Tov around 1,700 years later, a reading of the Gospels reveals a very proto-Chassidic hashkafa (worldview), and Chassidus provides an amazing Jewish template to understand the person and role of Yeshua of Nazareth, the Gospels and the entire "New Testament". The NT grew from the same soil that the Mishnah, Talmud and Midrash sprouted from. When placed in its thoroughly Jewish context, the Gospels explode with deeper meaning. The Chassidic movement is a key factor in revealing these connections, which were seen by one of our great Messianic Jewish luminaries, Paul Philip Levertoff, who was himself raised in a Chassidic home (being a descendant of R' Schneur Zalman of Liadi and a student of the prestigious Volozhin Yeshiva).

The great grandson of the Baal Shem Tov was Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, whose strand of Chassidut is closest to Yeshua, according to some (myself included). According to R' Yitzhak Ginsburgh, Rebbe Nachman actually borrowed from and tried to rectify the name of Yeshua, and this was one of the reasons he experienced so much opposition (not much has changed). Any student of Yeshua who knows the Jewish context of the NT, and then reads the works of Rebbe Nachman will immediately find themselves at home, especially if they have been trained in Mishnah, Gemara, Midrash and Torat HaSod.

One symbol of the Breslov movement is the Rebbe Nachman kippah. Around the perimeter it says: נ נח נחמ נחמן מאומן (N Nach Nachm Nachman m'Uman) which spells out R' Nachman's name in an expanding fashion, ending with "m'Uman" (From Uman) his city, where is he is buried. Rebbe Nachman was truly a great Rebbe who prepared the way for the coming of the Messiah, akin to Elijah and Yochanan HaMatbil (John the Immerser). Intentionally or unintentionally, his writings construct a bridge to grasp the meaning of the NT on a deeper level and place it thoroughly within the context of Judaism. All of Jewish literature does this, but Rebbe Nachman takes it to the next level.

This imprinted an idea in my mind the idea of a Chassidic kippah that says:

י יש ישו ישוע

Y Yesh Yeshu Yeshua

With the name of Yeshua expanding from י Yud (the smallest letter),

to יש Yesh (which in Hebrew means "something"),

to ישו Yeshu (the name of Yeshua in exile from his people)

to ישוע Yeshua (the fruition and expansion of Yeshua's name to include the letter Ayin) indicating the Messianic Era has begun, the 70 nations have returned what belongs to the Jewish people back to them, the land of Israel will be re-unified (which is named Yeshua (Yehudah, Shomron, V'Aza - Judea, Samaria And Gaza, as taught by Ariel Cohen Alloro), the Temple will be built and HaShem's name will become one.

If such a kippah existed, it would be HUGE, EXPLOSIVE, and controversial for many reasons:

1. It would be a big kippah, with an even bigger responsibility. Wearing Yeshua's name openly requires one to have the highest level of derekh eretz (good behavior), honoring others, showing respect, properly observing the mitzvot, etc. It would create a chillul (a desecration) if someone acted inappropriately while displaying Yeshua's name so prominently.

2. A believer in Yeshua should not wear this kippah in a non-Messianic synagogue or in a religious Jewish area that does not believe in Yeshua, because it could be seen as proselytizing to another religion (even though it is not). To be sure, it is nonsensical for Christians to try to convert Jews to another religion in order to believe in the Jewish Messiah. A Jew doesn't need to convert to a foreign religion to believe and have faith in him, follow his teachings and become a disciple. However, this kippah is not intended to bring an offense to anyone, especially not Jewish people nor Breslovers (whose Rebbe we love and respect) nor Christians. Inevitably, some will be offended but the truth remains: Yeshua is the greatest Rabbi, the greatest Jew, the greatest human being ever, and his Jewishness has been concealed, not only from Israel but from the Christian world as well. It is time to end that concealment. Nevertheless, we must always be respectful and aware of the context in which we would wear this kippah. This kippah is only intended for believers in Yeshua.

3. A kippah like this would plant Yeshua's name thoroughly in a Jewish context, and this will be seen as offensive by some Christians and some Jews. The truth of the matter is that this is where Yeshua's name belongs. He is Jewish. His teachings are Jewish. He is a proto-Chassidic Rebbe. He is the Jewish Messiah and the Savior of the world. It is what it is. Many people do not like this. However, many Jews and Christians (who have studied this out) know that this is the truth, and are becoming more willing to talk about this.

4. A kippah like would be a symbol of a new path (which is really an ancient path) that believes in Yeshua as the Living Rebbe, while respecting Torah sh'b'al Peh, Chazal, the Rebbeim, etc. This is the path that leads to the maturity of the Messianic movement and ultimately the Redemption.

5. In our Messianic communities, we should be chassidim (devoted disciples) of the Rebbe Yeshua. If you’re a male believer in Yeshua, and you’re expression of faith in Yeshua is Jewish, and you know the proper context of where and how to wear it, then a kippah like this would be amazing.

I told my friend about this wild idea. With help from above, and through his creative talents, he found a group who currently make Rebbe Nachman kippot and worked with them to design and create this kippah.

At the moment, there are only 500 black and 500 white ones in existence. This is one of the most unique kippahs in the world, whose meaning is encoded with the Redemption. In fact, it may be the most popular kippah of the Messianic Era