the Other Side of CUFI (Part 2)

Posted by Ellen W. Horowitz

For the purposes of the second half of this report, please keep in mind that the term “messianic” refers to those calling themselves “messianic Jews”, “Hebrew Christians”, or “Judeo-Christians”. While some of these people consider themselves “Jewish believers in Jesus”, they are indeed practicing Christians with an aggressive evangelizing agenda.

At the inception of the current Evangelical-Israel relationship, many Israelis and members of the Diaspora Jewish community sought ways to distinguish evangelicals from messianics. As Haaretz reported, “ The Christian Allies Caucus, a Knesset lobby group that aims to further ties between the Israeli government and the Christian world, refuses to work with the messianic Jewish community on the grounds that it actively seeks to convert Jews. ‘We believe they work against the interests of the State of Israel,’ caucus director Josh Reinstein explained.” (1)

Unfortunately, it appears that - for many evangelicals – that borderline never existed. Although it may have been kept largely under wraps, it seems evangelicals and messianics are collaborating more than ever “ to build the Kingdom of God in Israel” (2)

Stephen Strang: CUFI Regional Director:

Strang publishes Pastor Hagee’s Books, is the founder of Charisma Magazine and Strang Communications – “a multi-media communications company focused on spreading the name and fame of Jesus throughout the world through the mass media.” Strang made TIME Magazine's list of "The 25 Most Most Influential Evangelicals in America"

He is perhaps the most problematic of CUFI’s regional directors. A simple rundown of a sampling of his activities and affiliations over the last few months should give any Jew reason for great concern. He promotes overt missionary activity, bolsters the messianic community in Israel, vilifies the Orthodox community, and fans the flames of anti-Semitism.

In March of this year, Stephen became a signatory on the widely publicized World Evangelical Alliance statement which called for both evangelicals and messianics to continue to target Jews for conversion. (3) (pictured below is an ad appearing in the New York Times and other major publications)

In April Charisma Magazine ran an article by its editor, Lee Grady, which reeks of classical anti-Semitism (4) Below is an excerpt:

In the days of Jesus, rabbis observed a myriad of extra rules that were not in Scripture. Their legalistic code focused on what they could and could not touch. These guys invented the original version of the holier-than-thou religion. They stayed away from women, children, dead bodies, lepers, beggars, sinners, blood, shellfish, pigs and—especially—people of other ethnic backgrounds. They didn’t want “unclean” gentiles to corrupt them.

The Pharisees, especially, were obsessed with hygiene. They had a rule for everything from how to wash dishes to how to stay ceremonially clean after walking in the streets. That’s why they got upset when they saw that Jesus’ disciples didn’t follow the standard Jewish hand-washing ritual.

They asked Jesus: “‘Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure hands?’” You can almost hear their smug, nasal tone. Jesus’ reply was blunt. He called His inquisitors hypocrites; then He chastised them for “‘teaching as doctrines the precepts of men’” (Mark 7:5-7, NASB).

Also in April Strang lauched a campaign decrying persecution in Israel against messianic Jews, and appeared to implicate Orthodox Jews in a “terrorist attack against a Messianic Jewish family” …“there are also ultra-Orthodox groups like Yad L'Achim who are responsible for constantly harassing Christian believers in Israel… I hope you join me in writing letters of concern on behalf of Evangelical and Messianic believers in Israel and bombard Israeli officials from the Foreign Ministry, the Tourism Ministry, the Prime Minister's Office, and the Ministry of Justice” (5)

In May Charisma Magazine’s chose to mark Israel’s 60th anniversary by celebrating the messianic missionary community in Israel and hailing them as “brave Christians celebrating the love of Jesus in Israel” (see cover below)(6)

In June Strang wrote an article in Charisma Magazine which again implicates the Orthodox Jewish community in an attack on a messianic pastor’s son. Without any suspects or arrests, his article amounts to nothing short of an anti-Semitic blood libel.(7)
(Excerpt)
“However, some of the anti-missionaries have become so vicious that it appears they have resorted to violence...Messianic Judaism… is growing rapidly and is considered to be a threat by some Orthodox Jews. Harassment of all Christians in Israel is increasing, and Messianic believers are concerned that they may be facing a new round of persecution…we need to urge leaders in the Jewish community to express their outrage… My Israeli sources say the pattern is to let time pass and sweep the investigation under the rug because many Orthodox Jews despise all Christians, not only Messianic believers…”

Stephen Strang has been involved in promoting CUFI Nights to Honor Israel which utilize the services of the messianic organization, the Joseph Storehouse. (8)

But the messianic founders and operators of the Joseph Storehouse may not be as Israel-friendly as they seem. Like Strang, Barry and Bayta Segal are screaming bloody murder in their newsletters- with no evidence - and pointing the finger at the Orthodox Jewish community (9)

It should be noted that CUFI Directors Stephen Strang and Robert Stearns have been guest speakers and performers at the Segal’s messianic missionary shindig which takes place every Succot in Jerusalem (10)

To be fair it should be noted that Strang’s disdain for Orthodox Jews and his cries of messianic oppression go way back. In an article which appeared in Charisma Magazine in September 2002 Strang mixes praise for John Hagee with cries for his messianic brethren (he admits to supporting them financially, too) (11)
(Excerpt)
Equally as hard-hit as the Jews by the unrest in Israel are Messianic believers. Many of them are unemployed. Ministers such as Ari Sorko-Ram are working to raise money for them from Christian believers through a Web site called www.istandwithisrael.com.
The problem is that a Web site with a similar name collects money from evangelicals for many worthwhile causes. But that group also funnels money to Orthodox groups that often oppress Messianic believers.
Ari Sorko-Ram is the son-in-law of Christ for the Nations co-founder Freda Lindsay. I met with him and his wife, Shira, when I was in Israel several years ago and know how valuable and important their ministry, Maoz Israel, is. I have personally supported this ministry financially, as I urge you to do by visiting their Web site. It's important for Christians to stand with our Messianic brothers and sisters at this time.

MICHAEL LITTLE: CUFI Executive Board Member

Little is the President of the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN). As noted earlier in the first part of this report, Michael Little continues to endorse the messianic missionary organization MaozIsrael. And MaozIsrael is currently on an anti-Semitic rampage in which they falsely accuse Orthodox Jews of terrorism and murder and being possessed by evil spirits (12)

(exerpt)

And when ultra-Orthodox Jews in Israel rail and blaspheme folowers of Yeshua, burn down the believers’ places of worship and ministry, and now attempt to kill believers, then they too have been possessed by these evil spirits.

CBN is offering plenty of air time and articles towards promoting messianic Judaism, making erroneous claims of church Persecution, and disparaging Orthodox Jews. The network has repeatedly, erroneously and maliciously linked unrelated incidents like the incineration of missionary material in the town of Or Yehuda to a small church fire which was most likely vandalism, and occured last year in Jerusalem, to an explosion in Ariel which as far as we know could have been anything from illegal Purim fireworks to an Arab terror attack. The only thing that has been proven is that Michael Little’s CBN network likes to set fires, fan flames, and create lies(13)

CBN even temporarily converts Christians to Jews for theatrical purposes: The poor Jew in this report: http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/385992.aspx is really the unabashed Christian in this report: http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/336829.aspx

Robert Stearns: CUFI Regional Director

Stearns is the founder and executive director of Eagles' Wings Ministries. Stearns and Dr. Jack Hayford serve together as co-chairmen of "The Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem” The mass prayer mobilization represents “the largest coalition of leaders of influence in the Body of Christ focused upon prayer for Jerusalem”.

Robert and his friend Jack are heavily focused on a messianic Jewish (Christian) revival in Israel, and they sponsor major conventions that champion the cause of messianic Judaism. Stearns lectures and leads prayer serves at conferences entirely dedicated to the subject of messianic restoration in Israel.(14)

In August of 2007, three thousand delegates from the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel gathered in Jerusalem for a conference aimed at embracing local messianic s. Throughout the conference, early morning worship and prayer services were led by Robert Stearns, founder of Eagles Wings ministry. (15)

In June of 2008, Stearns was again leading prayers for “3000 believers in Israel”. (16)

Young Israelis Praying at "The Call"

Messianic Jews and Arabs Praying Together

Jim Hutchins: CUFI Regional Director***
***I have a significant and distressing report on Hutchins, but when I checked the CUFI website on July 8, 2008, Hutchin’s name no longer appeared. I have received confirmation that James Hutchins is no longer a regional director of CUFI. My source was unable to say who "instigated the split".

So I will just offer a brief synopsis without citing sources at this time (those sources do appear in previous postings of mine).

Hutchins Is President of the Jerusalem Connection International. He graduated from Fuller Theological Seminary with a Doctor of Missionary (Multi/Cross-Cultural Studies). His dissertation was entitled, "A Case for Messianic Judaism." Jim sits on the board of the Cyrus Fund which is a project of the Jerusalem Connection. Although the Cyrus Fund websites don’t admit it, it does seem some missionaries affiliated with the Cyrus Fund are teaching the Gospel to Bnai Anusim via messianic churches - and getting those "converts" ready for aliyah. Also six out of the seven board members of the Cyrus Foundation are either active evangelical missionaries or messianic Jews. Rabbi Kravitz of Jews for Judaism has more to say on Hutchin's proselytizing to Jews…

In Conclusion:
First and foremost, the situation demands that Israel set up an accountable system to monitor our relationship with Christian groups. Counter-missionary legislation must be enacted, and our rabbinic leaders need to issue immediate and clear halachic guidelines which enable and empower us to protect and preserve our Jewish heritage.

Under the circumstances, it would be wise for the Diaspora and Israeli Jewish community to distance itself from CUFI until Hagee can get his house in order. I know that's a difficult and tall order to fill - especially in light of the outstanding and supportive statements and gestures emanating from that Christian body

I met with Hagee confidant and friend Rabbi Arye Scheinberg fourweeks ago at the home of Rabbi Simcha HaCohen Kook. I understand Rabbi Scheinberg had requested the meeting with Rav Kook in order to better understand certain positions the rabbinate has been taking. A Representative from the Jerusalem City Council and the director of a counter-missionary group were among those present at the meeting. Rabbi Scheinberg acknowledged the wealth of evidence and problems with certain CUFI directors, and assured me that Pastor Hagee was well aware of the situation with at least one of his main directors and publishers. I was told that Strang was “out” and that other changes were forthcoming. But other than the sudden removal of Jim Hutchins from the CUFI Regional Director section of the website, I have no indication that any action has been taken as a result of that meeting.

Sources:
(1) Haaretz, June 10, 2006 , Aliyah with a cat, a dog and Jesus
(2) http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/344905.aspx
(3) http://www.worldevangelicals.org/news/view.htm?id=1732
(4) http://www.fireinmybones.com/Columns/043008.html
(5) http://www.strangreport.com/2008/04/silence-is-almost-deafening.html
(6) http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=17050
(7) http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=17205
(8) http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=13922
(9) http://www.sidroth.org/site/News2?abbr=art_&page=NewsArticle&id=7169&security=1043&news_iv_ctrl=-1
(10) http://www.succotcelebration.com/speakers.htm
(11) http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=6495
(12) http://www.israelenews.com/view.asp?ID=2354
(13) http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/385992.aspx
(14) http://www.tikkunministries.org/newsletters/dj-jan07.asp
(15) http://www.israeltoday.co.il/default.aspx?tabid=134&view=item&idx=1501
(16) http://www.tikkunministries.org/newsletters/EdS-jun08.asp

Justifying and Deconstructing Hagee and Ourselves

Posted by Ellen W. Horowitz

It simply feels wrong that liberal American Jews continue to relentlessly pursue and cast stones at John Hagee in order to further their political agenda. But Pastor Hagee’s rhetoric and gestures do present the Jewish people with certain halachic and moral challenges, and before Israelis can authentically approach these issues, we need to reinstate our unique status and clarify our ethical obligations as Jews living in Eretz Yisrael. Only after we set our priorities straight will we be able reconcile the magnanimous political, humanitarian, and even theological support that the Jewish state is receiving from Pastor Hagee and the American evangelical community.

While John Hagee is a well-intentioned, very generous and determined philo-Semite, he is also a devout Christian mega-church leader who is wrestling with his evolving theology, and trying to make adjustments. That being said, we Jews need to remain vigilant because it is an historic truism that philo-Semitism can be a mere hair away from anti-Semitism, and when the church and Christians make sweeping and bold moves towards reconciliation – and Jews reciprocate in turn - sometimes things can go terribly wrong. So the Talmudic formula of "respecting and suspecting" would seem to be the wise approach.

While we can, and perhaps should, exhibit a certain reserved degree of support and encouragement toward those church leaders and denominations who are grappling with Christianity’s past, I don't think it's the role of the Jew to play “theotherapist”. Nor should Jews be put in the position of feeling that they have to defend or understand a Christian pastor's theology, theodicy or eschatology. This is forbidden halachic ground. But the current American and Israeli political reality has unfortunately put many Jews in the ridiculous and impossible position of either wholeheartedly justifying, or brutally trashing, a megachurch leader’s spin on scripture.

Partisan political agendas and allegiances have, at times, seemingly overshadowed our commitments to G-d and to our faith. I find it confounding that so many purportedly Torah observant Jews adhere to political pundit Ann Coulter’s view that, "the survival of Israel is inextricably linked to the survival of the Republican Party and its evangelical base." I, too, am concerned about the outcome of the Presidential race and how it will affect Israel, but isn’t it high time that the people of Israel learn how to roll with the punches and come up on top - regardless of shifts in American foreign policy and changes in the White House Administration?

Israelis have the responsibility and need to take this debate out of the realm of U.S. partisan politics, and bring to the fore authentic and pressing issues of concern. Christians United for Israel (CUFI) is a problematic organization. I don't believe this is what Pastor Hagee intended, but he simply cannot - as he had hoped - control the minds, hearts and agendas of 50,000,000 American evangelicals. It seems he can't even control his own executive board members and regional directors – some of whom are promoting a Jewish Messianic (Christian) restoration in Israel, are signing recent statements calling for the conversion of Jews, and are giving air and press time to those accusing the Orthodox Jewish community of violence and church persecution.

I believe that Pastor Hagee is a mega-maverick who sincerely believes that if he could rid the church of anti-Semitism, then the path for a theological reconciliation and fusion of Judaism and Christianity would be attainable. He likes to refer to the “Judeo-Christian faith”, has been known to don a tallit at church services, and sees “Christians and Jews coming together to stand together and be together forever." So it’s our responsibility as Jews to inform the good pastor that while we appreciate his enormous altruistic efforts, he needs to understand that even in the absence of anti-Semitism, any theological Jewish-Christian reconciliation remains an impossibility.

While it may be unjust to go into his church and dredge up sermons to be used as political fodder, Hagee himself has chosen to enter the public political arena, and as a mega-church leader he has become a visible part of America's cultural and entertainment scene - where nothing is sacred. His take on the End of Days and other theological issues are readily available in Wal-Mart, on Cable, DVD, CNN, in featured films, and in Cyberspace.

So when this Torah observant writer views a popular YouTube clip of the pastor explaining the fully illustrated Book of Revelations, which depicts Israel as a woman pregnant with the child Jesus, surrounded by the sun, moon, and stars, and towering over a great red dragon; I tend to become very “pro-Choice” - and would opt to terminate the pregnancy.
Rather than interpreting this as a swipe at Christianity, (I react the same way to the pictures in the Bhagavad Gita), consider it is a reaffirmation of my Jewishness. While I find common ground, share interests with, and enjoy people of other cultures and faiths; I hope and pray that I always find alien theologies and mythologies somewhat disconcerting - because that indicates that my head, heart and soul is in the right place, and that I remain fiercely loyal to one G-d and the Torah.

On the political front we have to remember that Pastor Hagee has been among those who have led the charge to smash the wall that separates Church and State in America. Most mainstream Americans were satisfied with "one nation under God" and being “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights”. Generic monotheism was fitting for a multicultural melting pot, and good for the Jews. I personally believe this was a source of blessing for America. But now Jesus is out of the cloisters , and sitting exclusively and squarely on Capital Hill. “Bible believers” may see that as progress against liberal secularists, but a number of loyal, G-d fearing U.S. citizens deem that a serious cultural, religious and political regression – and it frightens them.

Common sense should tell us that we Jews do not need to excuse the over-the-top religious rhetoric which has become the primary campaign issue in America, and has all but busted the God-O-Meter. As far as we're concerned, theodicy is theoidiocy , and some things you just don't say - even if your mind and heart has toyed with them (and I admit that a lot of us play with the same type of toys as Pastor Hagee).

No need to defend Hagee when he offends, as that's not part of the "unconditional" deal. The grand gesture of 30 million dollars in donations to Israel should not immunize the good pastor from Jewish critics on the Left, Right and Center of the political and religious spectrum. One would hope that partisan politics and money would not blind the discerning eyes of the Jews. Journalists and media organizations in the Zionist camp need to address the issue of our relationship with the evangelicals in a fair, honest, and accountable manner - even if that means leveling criticism and exposing problematic areas in that friendship.

But not to worry, because John Hagee is a big boy and he has an excellent Jewish spinmaster named David Brog, who I imagine gets paid well for damage control – David even knows how to quote Matthew as well as invent institutions like “a rich Judeo-Christian tradition of theodicy”.

Hagee also has a rabbi who had the audacity to compare the pastor’s Hitler comments to those of Holocaust martyr, Rabbi Yisachar Shlomo Teichtal, author of Eim Habanim Semeicha.
But juxtaposing the introspective and humble thoughts of a condemned Torah scholar, who was hiding in a ghetto cellar, to a wealthy and secure preacher confidently booming prophecy through the rafters of a megachurch is a little… shall we say… sacrilegious?

Pastor Hagee may claim to have all the answers, but the Jews, admittedly, have none of them. But we do have a lot of questions. And primary among them is not whether G-d punished or abandoned us, but rather did we abandon G-d? And that is not a despondent question, it is a redemptive one.

More than partisan political differences, the brouhaha over Pastor Hagee’s recent statements clarifies and defines the very contrasting worldviews and approaches of Judaism and Christianity. And it validates the position of the halachic giant Rav Joseph B. Soloveitchik, who consistently opposed theologically-based interfaith dialogue, and any references to a “common tradition uniting two faith communities such as the Christian and the Judaic”.
Perhaps it’s best to conclude with an excerpt from the Rav spoken and published in 1945:

“When a minister, rabbi, or priest attempts to solve the ancient question of Job's suffering through as sermon or lecture, he does not promote religious ends, but, on the contrary, does them a disservice. The beauty of religion with its grandiose vistas reveals itself to men, not in solutions but in problems, not in harmony but in the constant conflict of diversified forces and trends.”
(from "Sacred and Profane, Kodesh and Chol in World Perspective," Originally a Yahrzeit Shiur, which appeared in Hazedek, May/June 1945.)
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The writer and her family live on the Golan Heights. She is the author of The Oslo Years: A Mother's Journal and is working on a new book which takes a critical look at the Israel-Evangelical relationship.