Here are two ultra-orthodox boys returning home from the market: One, using a more traditional method; the other, a more modern method. I must admit that I was surprised because I’ve seen ultra-orthodox boys riding bicycles, but never riding Waves or Ripsticks.
You Don’t See This All the Time
March 28, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Graffiti: Repent Now
March 6, 2009 by Leave a Comment
This is the Jewish version of what might be called “REPENT NOW!!!” graffiti.
Unlike Christians who believe their message of repentance is for the whole world, religious Jews call only for non-religious Jews to repent, or return.
“…fearing those who were of the circumcision.”
June 30, 2008 by 3 Comments
“…for before certain men came from James, he [Peter] would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision.” (Galatians 2:12)
“The mission against Jews” is a common way orthodox Jews refer to people in Israel, Jews or gentiles, who believe in Yeshua. And social pressure is one of the main weapons that orthodox Jews use in their battle against those whom they oppose. (See John 9:22 for another NT example.)
There are a few “anti-missionary” organizations that have the goal of protecting Jews from the “dangers” of believing in Jesus. Yad L’Ahim is the most well known, but there might be others. It’s hard to tell how many organizations there might be because much of their efforts are done anonymously as can be seen in the photo below.
Recently, one of these organizations placed flyers in the mailboxes of a particular neighborhood. On that flyer they included the photos, names and addresses of 5 pastors of Hebrew speaking, Jesus believing congregations in Jerusalem. The sixth box (outlined in red) contained a not so subtle warning: Your photo could be here. Often, such a warning creates a fear of “those of the circumcision” that for all practical purposes silences believers in Yeshua.
The fear of man is a very real fear both in the NT period and now, and it is something that fellow believers around the world should pray for Israeli believers to overcome. I know four of the five men highlighted in the flyer, and am confident that they will not be silenced. In fact, for at least one of them, this isn’t the first time his picture has been used in such a way.
As the local believing community continues to grow, the anti-missionary groups are becoming more determined to stop the message. And to the degree that humiliation doesn’t work, more severe means of opposition will be implemented. Just this year, among the lesser known actions, there have been some very headline grabbing attempts to resist “the mission.” Among those were the near assassination of Ami Ortiz, the son of a messianic pastor in Ariel. Ami, made the mistake of opening a Purim holiday package that had been left at his home. Inside that package of candies was a bomb. See one report here, or search YouTube for a variety of video reports and testimonies of that event.
In Or Yehuda, a small town next to Ben Gurion Airport, a bunch of Ethiopian New Testaments was gathered and burned in a public demonstration against “the mission.” This action was instigated by the deputy mayor of Or Yehuda. See the article here where the deputy mayor tries to get the toothpaste back in the tube.
Stirring Things Up, Again
May 1, 2008 by Leave a Comment
Well,…once again, Messianic Jews are stirring things up in Israel.
It’s not enough that they’ve been in the news because their services have been disrupted and property damaged by Orthodox Jewish protesters as happened in Beersheva. Or that their leaders have been assaulted by Orthodox Jewish protesters and then put under house arrest by the police, making them a double victim, as happened in Arad. Or that one of their children almost lost his life when he opened a bomb disguised as a holiday gift as happened in Ariel. Or that one of their congregations was evicted from a secular kibbutz due to pressure from the Orthodox Jewish Establishment (OJE) as happened in Jerusalem.
Now, an 11th grader from Pisgat Ze’ev (a northern suburb of Jerusalem) has gone and qualified as one of four finalists in the International Bible Quiz (aka the “Global Bible Quiz for Jewish Youth”) and caused the OJE to get into a tizzy, demanding that all “Jews” boycott the event if she is not disqualified. What’s the reason she should be disqualified, you ask. It’s not because she was discovered to have cheated her way to the championship. She wasn’t, and she didn’t. It’s not because she admitted to being an atheist and believes the Bible is full of lies and fairy tells. She didn’t, and it’s not. Her offense: She’s a messianic Jew that believes Jesus is the Messiah.
Ironically, had atheism been her identity, there would be no issue raised by the OJE. That’s still a dilemma that the OJE has yet to resolve: How can an atheist be considered Jewish? Some respond that being Jewish is cultural. Okay, if that’s the case then this student’s “religious” beliefs should be of no consequence. Right? Right! And that brings us back to the dilemma: Who is a Jew? Is being Jewish a cultural issue? A linguistic issue? A religious issue? A national issue? And this is where in their inconsistency, the OJE has painted themselves into a corner. And they are inconsistent because their agenda is to delegitimize Jews who believe Jesus is the Messiah.
By the way, the name of the state school Bible quiz champion is Bat-El Levi, the daughter of Ruti and Yitzhak Levi. Kol HaKavod, Bat-El.
Those who are interested in this type of event can read the complete story in this Jerusalem Post article. I would encourage you to survey the reader comments, too.