Posted by Ellen W. Horowitz
Note of Clarification (June 6th): I spoke to David Nekrutman of the Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation in Efrat. David clarified the context of the ruling that Rav Riskin made several years ago regarding the missionary bible that was distributed into everybody's mailbox in Efrat - with the intent of converting Jews to Christianity. The ruling was to burn the entire bible which included both the Hebrew and New Testament Bible. A Bible which is written on a heretical basis is not considered sacred. The correction to the blog below has been made accordingly.
(Thanks to David and Rabbi Riskin for this important clarification)
Yes Virginia, there is anti-Semitism...
You must see this video of Pat Robertson attacking Orthodox Jews and promoting the messianics, and the change in the law of return (which was really not changed).
CBN Report: Turning Up the 'Heat' on Messianic Jews (June 4, 2008)
"Ultra Orthodox Jews in the Israeli town of Yehuda burned new testament bibles belonging to Messianic Jews... It's the latest in a series of incidents - in Israel - against Jesus...excuse me...Jews who believe in Jesus as the messiah."
---Pat Roberston on CBN NEWS
Ok. Pat...
a) the name of the town is Or Yehuda
b) the missionary material did not belong to Messianic Jews. It was given away as a deceptive little "gift". Which means that those who were, unfortunately, in possession of the material were free to dispose of it as they saw fit (see my previous blog on the proper disposal of missionary material)
BTW I met with Rabbi Riskin last week (it was a good meeting), and he mentioned that several years ago the residents of Efrat received missionary bibles in the mail - as part of a campaign to convert Jews - and he poskened that people should burn them ( the missionary materials, not the missionaries).
c) that little freudian slip about "a series of incidents - in Israel - against Jesus", is telling (should have edited it out, don't you think?)
d) Note: Victor Kalisher, who is interviewed, is not a Jew as he claims. He is a practicing Christian and prints missionary materials.
e) Although the report fingers the Orthodox community for the pre-Purim attack, no suspects have been detained and no arrests have been made, but there was a fatwa out on Ortiz, and The Al-Aksa Martyrs Brigades terrorist group claimed responsibility for the bombing according to the Bethlehem-based Maan news agency.
Pat Robertson is the founder of the the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) and the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN). He received a special Zionist award from Benny Elon in 2004 for having "saved Israel's tourism from bankruptcy."
At the 2004 ICEJ sponsored Feast of the Tabernacles in Jerusalem, Robertson gave the cause of Messianic Judaism a big boost :
Jews need to begin to cry out for their Messiah, he said. "I've met wonderful Jews... here in Jerusalem, who are all saying 'Yes, Jesus you are our Messiah,'"
Pat Robertson's main man, Jay Sekulow, is the Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) and a "Jew for Jesus" turned "messianic" who feels strongly about freedom of religion in Israel.
And CBN's President Michael Little sits on the Executive Board of CUFI (Christians United for Israel). I think Pastor Hagee would be far more successful in ridding the church of anti-Semitism, if he started in his own backyard. His publisher and CUFI regional director Stephen Strang is a signatory on the recent widely publicized World Evangelical Alliance statement endorsing efforts to evangelize the Jews (a full page ad appeared in the New York Times and other major papers).
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