March 15 – 2020

During the week covered by this review, we received 6 articles on the following subjects:

 

Anti-Missionary Attitudes

Anti-Missionary Activity  

Christian Organizations 

Christian Zionism 

Christianity and the Holocaust 

 

Anti-Missionary Attitudes 

Iton Shacharit, March 6, 2020

This was a republished copy of last week’s piece about Daniel Attia, a Jewish convert to Christianity who later renounced his newfound faith and joined a yeshiva through the assistance of Yad L’Achim. 

 

Anti-Missionary Activity 

HaModia, March 9, 2020

Billboards protesting missionary activity were put up in Haredi neighborhoods in the city of Ashdod. Yad L’Achim released a statement saying that the extent of missionary activity in Ashdod is abnormally high; in response, Yad L’Achim has announced that it is putting significant effort into combatting missionary activity. The article also relayed one protest event against missionaries, in which dozens of volunteers gathered in front of a missionary center, and with the amplifying help of sound equipment, sang songs.

 

Christian Organizations 

The Jerusalem Post, March 8, 2020

The Israel Allies Foundation (IAF) has appointed Bishop Scott Mwanza as regional director. Mwanza is the first African appointee of the organization, which is seeking to mobilize political support for Israel. Since 2018, Mwanza has been active in coordinating pro-Israel caucuses throughout Africa, and has served as external director of the Zambian Parliamentary Israel Allies Caucus. IAF president Josh Reinstein praised him, saying that “Bishop Mwanza is a well-respected and tireless advocate for the Jewish state.”

 

Christian Zionism

Kochav Tzafon, March 6, 2020; Index Ha’Emek VehaGalil, March 6, 2020

Both articles reported that a delegation of 100 Evangelicals from Belgium arrived in Israel to plant a grove of trees in the Beit Keshet Forest. This is the sixth grove donated and planted by the group, which intends to donate and plant four more. 

 

Christians and the Holocaust 

Globes, March 9, 2020

This was another piece reporting on the Vatican’s opening its archives dating from World War II, in order to allow researchers to examine how much Pope Pius XII knew about the Nazi plan to exterminate the Jews. Pius XII has been accused of silent complicity. However, others have argued that he worked behind the scenes to save Jews.