38 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and tell them that they shall make for themselves atassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and that they shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue.
39 “It shall be a tassel for you 1to look at and aremember all the commandments of the LORD, so as to do them and not 2follow after your own heart and your own eyes, after which you played the harlot,
40 so that you may remember to do all My commandments and abe holy to your God.
(Num 15:38-40 NAU)

A Million-Dollar Question

One of several things that interest me greatly as it relates to present-day practices of members of our Faith Community is the overwhelming number of us who do not wear tzitzits as commanded of us by Yahuah our Elohim. I guess the question I have for our community is: why is the wearing of tzitzits by members of our community such a rare thing?

Likely Excuses

I would imagine a great many in our community who choose not to wear these divinely commanded implements would offer as a defense that we, living in 21st-century western society, no longer wear four-cornered garments; ergo, the expectation that one wear tzitzits is at best a moot assumption.

I would concede that, yes, we generally do not wear four-cornered garments in 21st-century western society. Thus, we must reconcile the practicality of wearing tzitzits with articles of western attire that are not cornered.

Others might contend that when Abba gave the command to wear these implements as reminders of Him and His Torah in our day-to-day walk, as it relates to 21st-century western life, with the Spirit writing Torah on our minds and in our hearts, the tzitzit is now an archaic relic of our desert dwelling forefathers and would no longer be a requirement for us.

I guess this particular line of thinking is similar to the logic that argues an adherence to the Calculated Jewish Calendar over that of the Biblically inspired Observational Calendar. A fellow Hebrew Rooter and staunch adherer to the Calculated Jewish Calender once criticized: why rely upon an observational calendar when we have a perfectly good calculated calendar that we can reference today and even a hundred years in the future if need be; beside, the observational calendar is too subjective whereas the calculated calendar is much more accurate.

Yep–I would contend that under the renewed covenant, Torah should exist in our hearts and dwell eternally on our minds (Hebrews 8:8 and 10:16). Nevertheless, does the renewed covenant negate every element of Torah?

Questions Begging Answers

As with so many aspects of Torah as it relates to applicability and relevancy to the 21st-century Netsarim’s day-to-day walk, our wearing of tzitzits also poses a lot of questions. And the funny thing about Torah and our Community/Movement is that when questions arise over applicability and relevancy in our modern-day lives, we tend to take the path of least resistence and ignore the issue altogether. I would contend that the issue of tzitzit wearing by Netsarim in 21-century western society is probably one of those issues that the majority of us choose to ignore rationalizing that there are just too many questions without good answers to justify wearing them. Right?

What I am finding to be most helpful when it comes to my adherence or non-adherence to Torah commands, particularly as it relates to those questions of Torah that have no good answers attached to them, is to answer those answerless questions with follow-up questions. Those follow-up questions often clarify an issue and settle them in my mind better than simply taking a non-comforming stance on the issue in question.

I have some follow-up questions to the questions posed above regarding the wearing of tzitzits by modern-day Torah Observant Believers in Yeshua Messiah:

• Should our wearing (or non-wearing) of tzitzits be wholly contingent upon the existence of four-cornered-garments common to 21-century western garb?
• Does the existence of the Renewed/New Covenant negate the commandment to wear tzitzits? (And yes, I realize that many of you may disagree with me that the renewed covenant has not been implemented yet and to those of you who hold to this belief, then it stands to reason that there is no good sense to ignore this commandment. Right?)

Somehow I believe that the non-existence of four-cornered garments and the renewed covenant are not deal breakers as it relates to this commandment. I mean, if one desires to debate the present day relevancy of individual commandments such as the wearing of tzitzits by Torah Observant Believers in Yeshua Messiah, then I would argue that one must be prepared to turn over their Torah-Keeping card because he or she has officially entered the realm of picking and choosing which applicable Torah commandments he/she will be keeping at any given time of their lives based upon preferences and personal opinions.

What Part of “In All Our Generations…” Don’t We Understand?

Abba stipulated that this mitzvah was non-negotiable since it was to be followed “in all our generations.” We have no problem keeping the seven-mandated-feasts of Yahovah/Yahweh/Yahuah, but tzitzit wearing appears to be one of those negotiable items of Torah that we have chosen to keep or ignore as a community.

I further contend that tzitzit wearing for some in our community may be too much of a challenge for our fragile 21st-century Hebrew Roots egos and could be one of the primary reasons why tzitzit wearing by members of our community is such a rare occurrence.

The Virtues of Tzitzit Wearing

Tzitzit wearing is a conspicuous practice. As a result of that conspicuousness, those simple but strangely adoring little buggers have the capacity to any wearer in our society. Not do tzitzits appear foreign to virtually every member of our society (with the exception of the Jew) and not only do they cause people to wonder what in the world those things are hanging from the wearer’s person, they also force the blessed and obedient wearer to be everso prepared to give an explanation to any who ask why he or she is wearing them.

I can readily attest that this virtue was one of the biggest impediments to my diving headlong into the wearing of these implements in the first place, until just recently (i.e., just in the last four-years). The wearing of tzitzits out in public certainly places an often unwanted spotlight light on you and it tends to do so at the most inopportune times. It is not uncommon to have some random individual come up to you on the street or in a workplace or a business and inquire what those things hanging from your waist are and why are you wearing them.

Yet, tzitzit wearing probably offers one of the greatest witnessing opportunities available to us, short of engaging in old-fashion street-corner evangelism and personal, individual witnessing.

As unwelcoming and as disconcerting as such random inquiries may be, especially to natural introverts such as me, it is those opportunities that that tzitzit wearing offers to the Torah Observant Believer in Yahoshua Messiah that is one of greatest virtues associated with the wearing of these commanded implements. The other great virtues of wearing tzitzits, of course, are the opportunities to obey Yahuah/Yahovah/Yahweh our Elohim  and to be reminded of Him and His commandments and desired way of life that He has set out before us throughout each and everyday.

 Where do you Stand on Tzitzit Wearing?

So I must ask you, dear Saint, dear Son and Daughter of the Most High Elohim: If you do not wear tzitzits in public, each and everyday, and you are a Torah Observant Believer in Yahoshua Messiah, may I ask you why you do not wear them? I would love to hear your perspective on this matter. Simply write your position in the comment section that proceeds this post.

Bear in mind: I do not judge nor condemn any who chooses not to wear tzitzits: wearing or not wearing tzitzits is between you and our Creator.

I will touch upon this subject in coming postings and I hope that you will return and read, reflect, share and opine at your convenience and leisure. We are all in this walk both individually and collectively and it is my greatest desire that this journey of mine (for lack of a better discriptor) wil not so much “talk at you” about issues and topics that I find to be of significance to us as Torah Observant Believers in Yeshua Messiah, but moreso to encourage you and cause you to reflect upon these issues; and as a result, that you, like me, will seek Abba Father regarding His eternal will for our lives that will glorify Him and bring a smile to His Face.

Until next time me friend and brother and sister in the Faith Once Delivered, I bid you Shalom.

Faithfully Yours in Yahoshua our Master,

Rod Thomas