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Seeking insight on Janet Magiera's Messianic Aramaic NT
#1
Hello,
Following a recommendation from a helpful post on this sight, I've looked into Janet Magiera's Aramaic NT and, specifically, the Messianic edition. One thing that catches my eye is her use of "Alaha" to refer to YHWH. I understand (?) that there could be various renderings of the Aramaic pronunciation, so it's curious to me that she's chosen one similar to the Muslim "Allah." Does anyone known if she believes the Allah of Muslim belief to be the same as YHWH of the Hebrew Scriptures? ...not trying to start a debate about that or cast doubt on her one way or another. It's just a significant point I'd like to be clear on as I consider purchasing her translation. I've perused her site and am not finding a quick answer to that question, so I'd appreciate if anyone on this board has some insight. Thanks for the help.
NKelley
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#2
Allah is simply the Arabic word for "God", which Muslims, for lack of a better word, hijacked for use in their religion. She was rendering it as Alaha ("The God") the way she has because that is the pronunciation of the Aramaic word for "God" in the Syriac Aramaic dialect in which the Peshitta is written. She refers to God as MarYa in the Messianic Edition, and Jesus as Yeshue Meshikha. The title of God, "Holy Spirit", is transliterated as Rukha d'Qudsha. Janet Magiera does believe in YHWH of the Holy Scriptures and in His Messiah and Son Jesus of Nazareth. Alah is an Aramaic word also (which is the root of the Arabic Allah), which means "god" (lower case is used because it is lacking the definite article of alef or "a" at the end of it). Alaha (God) is only used when speaking about MarYa (Lord YHWH) and Maran Yeshua Meshikha (Our Lord Jesus the Messiah) in the Peshitta. I highly recommend Janet Magiera's Messianic Edition, as well as the Standard Edition (primarily because of the footnotes). I prefer the Messianic Edition's translation (which is only different in the fact that it transliterates important Aramaic words). Magiera's three-volume Vertical Interlinear of the Aramaic Peshitta is a must-have also.

Her translation reads almost the exact same way as the Way International's Aramaic-English Interlinear New Testament and the accompanying "Word-For-Word Translation". Both are literal translations, but the Way International's translation is the most literal of the two as far as I can tell. Since Janet studied under a student of George Lamsa, her translation and interlinear make great companion pieces to the Lamsa Bible. I consider Janet Magiera's Aramaic Peshitta New Testament Translation, Aramaic Peshitta New Testament Vertical Interlinear, The Way International's Aramaic-English Interlinear New Testament, and Rocco Errico's The Message of Matthew to all be "descendants" of George Lamsa's Holy Bible From the Ancient Eastern Text. All of these translations are in some way influenced by George Lamsa's work. Victor Paul Wierwille (founder of the Way International) has Lamsa stay in his house frequently, Janet Magiera (as stated before) studied under one of George Lamsa's students, and Rocco Errico was George Lamsa's protege (also the only student to receive a degree from him). The translations of Janet Magiera and the Way International are both superior to the translations of George Lamsa and Rocco Errico. I highly recommend them.
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#3
Quote:Allah is simply the Arabic word for "God", which Muslims, for lack of a better word, hijacked for use in their religion.

I could be wrong, but I think they (the Muslims) are just using the term that was always found in their Arabic language (Allah) which simply means "God". They seem to use it like it is a personal name for the Deity. And if I'm not mistaken both the Aramaic and the Arabic forms come from the Hebrew form "El" (The Mighty One) and "Eloa" (singular) and Elohim (plural).

I have found that in the Aramaic Peshitta, various forms of the word "Alaha" exist...one of which is Alah, without the final "a".

I know it seems odd to Christians in the English speaking west, but Alah or Alaha, is a term that is most is often used by the Aramaic speaking Christians when referring to our God, without using a proper name designation for Him. In Hebrew it is Eloa (singular form) or Elohim (plural form). We get the for "God" in English from the German "Gott".

.
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#4
I think I've heard of Allah with two alefs in the Peshitta before. Is the Hebrew word for sure pronounced as "El-oh" or "El-oh-ha"?
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#5
Shlama Akhay,

In Hebrew it's also an "a" as in Aleph, not "e" as it's commonly spelled in Latin characters when representing the Hebrew word. Aleph-Lamed-Heh is the root in all three languages. The same consonants. This is true of much older Semitic languages as well (Akkadian, etc.)

"Allah" isn't exclusively Arabic at all, and in fact Arabic is arguably the *youngest* of the Semitic languages (along with Hebrew.)

Remember that long before Abraham was born, Aleph-Lamed was the root in Akkadian, Phoenician and various other Semitic languages. It's an ancient root.

Attributing "Allah" to Muslims, is like attributing "Theos/Deos" to Christians. It's not historically accurate.

You will notice that Arab Christians refer to God as "Allah", the same term used by their fellow Arabs who happen to be Muslim. It's the language, not the religion. Arab Christians were around before Arab Muslims. And the NT was translated into Arabic before Muhammad was even born. And the word used for "God" in the Arabic NT is "Allah."

Christians in the west at times are ignorant and insult this term, due to its Muslim usage, when in fact in is just as Christian a term as "God" or "Theos" is.

Note that I'm not suggesting that the "Allah" mentioned in the Quran, is the same "Allah" that is mentioned in the Arabic NT. I'm only speaking in linguistic terms.

+Shamasha
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#6
What I meant was that the Muslims took an Arabic word and essentially tried to make it into the proper name of their god. I was not by any means saying that it was originally an Arabic word or that it originated with Mohammed.
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#7
ScorpioSniper2 Wrote:What I meant was that the Muslims took an Arabic word and essentially tried to make it into the proper name of their god. I was not by any means saying that it was originally an Arabic word or that it originated with Mohammed.

Exactly correct. The Arab Christians refer to YHWH as "A-L-H" in the same way that Jews and Aramaic Christians do. A generic word for "god/God."

The Arab Muslims seem to have turned it into a replacement for YHWH, a personal name.

A Christian should be as comfortable with calling YHWH "God/Theos/Deos/Alaha/Alah/Allah/Eloh/El/etc." These are all Christian terms.

+Shamasha
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#8
Before I was "converted" to Peshitta primacy, I read a little bit of Etheridge's translation to my father (who is also my Pastor) after I had ordered it on Amazon and the first thing he said was in reaction to Alaha (or as Etheridge put it Aloha): "That sounds like Allah!" I find it very sad that Muslims have made Western Christians and Jews afraid to say Allah in reference to the God of Israel. I probably wouldn't use it myself because I admittedly would feel uncomfortable and because my fellow Western Christians (not to mention my fellow Western Kentucky Christians) would accuse me of saying my God was the god of Islam or that I was saying that YHWH and Allah are the same being.
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#9
This is all very helpful. What makes things a bit difficult to navigate for me is that I have encountered a site on the web run by people who very much consider themselves Torah-following believers in Yeshua yet who say their God is the same as the Muslim Allah (if I've understood correctly). So when I see someone use the term "Alaha" (or similar) to refer to YHWH, even though it may be linguistically neutral, it does make me wonder. ...and also, to tell me that Janet is indeed a follower of Yeshua doesn't slam-dunk it for me. I guess I just need to clarify...Although Janet Magiera (and the others mentioned in that same vein) are believers in Yeshua, does she (and do they) decidedly *not* believe that the Muslim allah and YHWH are the same entity? (Don't mean to offend any Muslims out there; just want to clarify.)

Also, did I understand someone say that she doesn't use "Alaha" in the messianic version, but only MarYah? ...but she does use "Alaha" in the regular version?

I'm not sure if I'm following how the translation process went. I may be all mixed up, but I was thinking I understood that there there places in the Aramaic where it uses a word pronounced "Alaha" -- as a more generic term, even if used as a name, the way we use God with a capital G -- and some places where it uses a word pronounced "MarYah", referring by title-then-name to "Master Yahweh" and also some places where the Aramaic just uses "Mar," which is just a title for "Master." Am I correct about that? If so, then I would think a literal translation with key Aramaic words inserted would use all three. So...in her messianic translation, if she didn't use "Alaha" is it that she inserted MarYah when in the Aramaic it truly had said "Alaha?" ...am I making this question clear?

Also -- switching topics slightly -- it was helpful hearing that Janet and certain others are "of the Lamsa tradition," so to speak. Would it be too much to ask for someone to spell out, basically, what are all the Aramaic translations out there and which ones are coming from certain "streams." I'd especially appreciate knowing any particular beliefs that might set certain streams or translators apart from others. (Not to disparage but for awareness' sake.) Since I don't know Aramaic at all and would be depending on the translator, it'd be helpful for me to know what particular angle each translator is coming from. ...not that anyone would intentionally bias a translation, but it seems it could almost be very difficult *not* to do so at least to a small extent as allowed with the choice of meanings for given words.

Thanks for all the help.

NKelley
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#10
Janet Magiera's translation is probably the most pure translation of the full Peshitta New Testament (a mixture of Eastern Peshitta and Western Peshitto readings) that we've had since John Wesley Etheridge and James Murdock did their translations in the 1800s. You will have to email Sister Janet yourself to hear (or "read" rather) her view on whether or not Allah and YHWH are one and the same or not. She usually replies to her emails pretty quickly based on my experience, and she is very polite and willing to answer any questions you'll have. Here is her email: <!-- e --><a href="mailto:jmagiera@lightofword.org">jmagiera@lightofword.org</a><!-- e -->
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#11
Seeker1 Wrote:I'm not sure if I'm following how the translation process went. I may be all mixed up, but I was thinking I understood that there there places in the Aramaic where it uses a word pronounced "Alaha" -- as a more generic term, even if used as a name, the way we use God with a capital G -- and some places where it uses a word pronounced "MarYah", referring by title-then-name to "Master Yahweh" and also some places where the Aramaic just uses "Mar," which is just a title for "Master." Am I correct about that? If so, then I would think a literal translation with key Aramaic words inserted would use all three. So...in her messianic translation, if she didn't use "Alaha" is it that she inserted MarYah when in the Aramaic it truly had said "Alaha?" ...am I making this question clear?

Personally, I recommend Magiera's vertical interlinear because you can see side-by-side with the translation the actual aramaic words as they appear on the ancient scrolls. Generally, english alone is going to be inadequate to explain/translate literal Aramaic text, so its just a process of building perspective. We're all handicapped by our languages and lack of knowledge when you think about it.

I can confirm that Magiera translates the word Alha as God, and mrya as master/lord. If she interprets the word in context to be referring to the Father or to Yahshua, then she will capitalize her translation in English. Not all references to Alha (or plural Alhyn) or mrya (and its variations) are capitalized, and rightfully so. See e.g., John 10:35.

Yeah, I recommend Magiera's interlinear with Concordance. You can watch a nice interview here if you want more insights into her traditional Christian theology: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.glc.us.com/site/watch.php?program=23&video=3301">http://www.glc.us.com/site/watch.php?pr ... video=3301</a><!-- m -->

The sacred name "YHVH" does not appear in the gospel directly, perhaps because the Father is commanding the new generation to seek him as Father, Word, through Yahshua... I'm not sure anyone has ever understood the meaning of these four letters together - YHVH - but they do suggest a 'state of being' in one sense.

I don?t have solid answers on the pronunciation question either, only educated thoughts and questions -- I reason that the true pronunciation of the sacred name yod-hey-vav-hey involves literally breathing the right sounds (remembering that YHVH breathed creation), from the origin of a reverent heart in spiritual service. If you are able to accomplish this in meditation, I would consider it a gift. In Aramaic, Yahshua?s name is spelled yod-shin-vav-ayin. To pronounce it correctly, speak from your heart while following his commandments.

Matthew 15:8-9, ?This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is very far from me. And vainly they reverence me while teaching the doctrines of the commandments of men.?

Imagine that, a word that can only be spoken from the heart and not the tongue. The gospel advises also that the Spirit speaks to those given to hear.
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#12
ScorpioSniper2 Wrote:or not Allah and YHWH are one and the same or not. She usually replies to her emails pretty quickly based on my experience, and she is very polite and willing to answer any questions you'll have. Here is her email: <!-- e --><a href="mailto:jmagiera@lightofword.org">jmagiera@lightofword.org</a><!-- e -->

It's quite simple. Allah is Arabic for God. Alaha is Aramaic for God. There can be written a few miles about this, but in essense, this is the truth.

The problem is that 'Allah' has become (for the West) synonymous with the God of Mohammed. We should not forget that Christian Arabic, Copts and Indonesian speaking people just and still say 'Allah'.
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#13
distazo Wrote:
ScorpioSniper2 Wrote:or not Allah and YHWH are one and the same or not. She usually replies to her emails pretty quickly based on my experience, and she is very polite and willing to answer any questions you'll have. Here is her email: <!-- e --><a href="mailto:jmagiera@lightofword.org">jmagiera@lightofword.org</a><!-- e -->

It's quite simple. Allah is Arabic for God. Alaha is Aramaic for God. There can be written a few miles about this, but in essense, this is the truth.

The problem is that 'Allah' has become (for the West) synonymous with the God of Mohammed. We should not forget that Christian Arabic, Copts and Indonesian speaking people just and still say 'Allah'.

That exactly right Akhi. If you go into any Arabic speaking church in the Middle East, whether Protestant, Orthodox, Catholic or Jehovas Witness, you will hear them address God as "Allah". It has nothing to do with Islam, which inherited the term from Arabic Christians (and even Arabic speaking Jews in the Arabian peninsula during before the time of Islam.)

+Shamasha
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#14
Thanks again for the helpful responses. This has given me what I've needed.
NKelley
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#15
ALLAH

...Alla. He was the moon god, who married the sun goddess. "Together they produced three goddesses who were called 'the daughters of Allah.' These three goddess were called Al-Lat, Al-Uzza, and Manat." (Robert A. Morey, 'Islam Unveiled: The true Desert Storm' Shermans Dlae, PA: The Scholars Press, 1991, p. 48-49.)

The Encyclopedia of Religion mentions that "Allah" is a pre-Islamic name... corresponding to the Babylonian Bel." (Robert A. Morey, 'Islam Unveiled: The true Desert Storm' Shermans Dlae, PA: The Scholars Press, 1991, p. 46.)

Bel is Ba'al or Baal. There is no doubt that the God of Religions are the same and are not the Elohim of Life. Allah, Christ, are Baal. Lord is associated with Baal, Adonia is really Adonis. Without belief in Aramaic Primacy, one is left with very little discernment. Only HE knows who is of true intent and HE instructs. You may thank Rome, and her Jesuits and Masons for today's confusion. I understand terminology is mostly an avoided topic but I tell you, before this is all over, HIS NAME will be remembered. I believe the true name of the Father is spoken in 3 syllables, time will tell.
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