10 Myths about Burmese Christians Debunked
On a free "encyclopedia" website that allows anyone with an internet connection to add or remove information, one person who claims to be a "Buddhist Christian Noahide Muslim Messianic Jew" and another person claiming to be a "Christian" decided to vandalize the pages and report false information and tried to spread progaganda about Burmese Christians and about the Church of Jerusalem.This page shows the fallacy of their false claims.
Claim 1: One person who claims to have once been a member of the Church of Jerusalem said: "This church has used many other aliases, such as Malakara Iberian Orthodox Church...Hebrew Catholic Church, and now The Nestorian Orthodox Church - Church of the East & Abroad."
Debunked: The Church of Jerusalem has never been known as "Malakara Iberian Orthodox Church" and the name "Hebrew Catholic Church" is not an alias of the Church of Jerusalem. It is an exarchate in South America, and it itself is not the Church of Jerusalem but is in affiliation with it.
Claim 2: The so called "former cleric" said: "In the USA they are not registered as non-profit religious organization, but they do take donations and sell various products."
Debunked: The Church of Jerusalem is a not-for-profit organization and is registered with the Internal Revenue Service. And the Church does take donations from its members by way of tithes, like most Churches do. That is a Scriptural practice. The Church of Jerusalem uses an independent business, not owned by the Church, to sell printed materials such as Bibles, books, tracts, etc. Just like most religious organizations do.
Claim 3: The so called "former cleric" claims: "Their membership numbers have never been given, so it can be assumed that they are a very small association of small communities world-wide."
Debunked: If this was a real cleric of the Church of Jerusalem, he would know that the Patriarchate of Jeruslaem publishes a census list of the membership every three years with detailed statistics about language, ethnicity, etc.
Claim 4: The same "cleric" said: "The church claimed that the Desposyni were leaders of a Jewish community which has moved to Mesopotamia during the second century, while keeping a formal obedience to the Patriarch of Antioch. In the sixteenth century the center of the church became a Burmese community. In the last century, the church sources claim that their see moved to India, then to Portugal, and later to the USA."
Debunked: That's all news to me. I've never read that in our history book published by the Church. "See of Antioch"? "Sixteenth Century"?
Claim 5: The former "orthodox cleric" said: "Currently its leader, +Mar Michai, who lives at Mishqana, a private property ...Tennessee."
Debunked: Another lie. The Catholicos lives in Jerusalem Israel. In fact, it is widely known that he lives in Pisgat Ze'ev, a community north of Jerusalem.
Claim 6: Believers held that he is above all human judgement and they have to sign a Loyalty Oath to him and his family, under the punishment of excommunication.
Debunked: Both Nazaraeans and Assyrians hold the same belief that their Patriarch can only be judged by Messiah. That was a formal ruling back in the 400's or 600's AD. And members are not required to sign an oath of loyalty unless they are clergymen and its not under "punishment of excommunication".
Claim 7: The so called former "clergyman" said: "It is said that in 2003 some 1000 Burmese christians joined the Church of the East & Abroad, and were granted the name Burmese Orthodox Church of the East."
Debunked: The Church in Burma is known as "The Burmese Orthodox Church". According to sources outside of the Church of Jerusalem, there are over 100,000 Christians living in the area.
Claim 8: The former "cleric" says: "Subsequently, on 22 May 2004, the church's patriarch declared himself king on an area in Burma, along the border of Thailand extending from Laos to the Adaman Sea, which he calls Nettara and which is under rebel control. The church claims that the area hosts about 25,000 Christian refugees."
Debunked: The Catholicos did not claim himself to be a king of anything. The people in the area call him "Byanma Min" which means ruler and rightful successor. The Catholicos is the religious and spiritual head (ruler) of the Church of Jerusalem under the authority of the Messiah. If this was real cleric of the Church of Jerusalem he would have known this.
Claim 9: The former Western "cleric" says: "It is also said that on 9 November, 2005 the church formed a Sanhedrin of 70 secret rabbis, whose location is not declared."
Debunked: "9 November, 2005"? Where did this date come from? The Sanhedrin is called the "Beit Knushta" which means "House of the Assembly" as is the same name which the Jerusalem Council of 50 AD is referred.
Claim 10: The man who claims to have been a former "cleric" with the Church of Jerusalem said: "There is no independent confirmation about any of the previuos statements, and the church seems to be small and to have been established in the 20th century."
Debunked: There is plenty of information about the plight of all denominations of Christians in Burma and Thailand and Laos. The former "cleric" to have said that the Church was established in the "20th century" is a very "far fetched" since the Church's letters date back to centuries ago and since independent historians speak of the Church of Jerusalem all the way back to the first century.
