During the 2 weeks covered by this review, we received 25 articles on the following subjects:
Political Issues / History
Political Issues / Christian Zionism
Christian Holidays
Interfaith Relations
Pope and the Vatican
Anti-Missionary Activity
Anti-Missionary Attitudes / Messianic Jews (individuals)
Jewish / Israeli Attitudes concerning Christians / Christianity
Christian Tourism
Christianity
Anti-Semitism / Christian Zionism
Conversion to Judaism
Political Issues / History
Haaretz, May 2, 2021
American President Joe Biden formally recognized the Armenian Genocide. This article made the case that the genocide was not national, but religious, as Turkey targeted Christian communities and not just Armenians. Over the course of 30 years, culminating in the First World War, two million Christians – Greek, Armenian, and Assyrian Orthodox Christians – were murdered. A further two-three million Christians fled or were expelled. Thousands of women and children were kidnapped and placed in Muslim families or forced into prostitution. Christians, said the article, became enemies of the empire, even though for hundreds of years prior, they had lived in relative security.
Political Issues / Christian Zionism
Makor Rishon, May 14, 2021; Maariv, May 12, 2021
The first article was an interview with former Israeli ambassador to the United States, Ron Dermer, who said he didn’t believe Israel was putting enough resources towards building its relationship with Evangelical Christians. Dermer said Evangelicals constitute the backbone of support for Israel in the US – both because of their significant numbers, and also because of their level of commitment and devotion. For most Evangelicals, Israel is one of their top priorities. Dermer noted that Christians United for Israel (CUFI) has more members than there are Jews in the USA, and are therefore a massively valuable asset.
The second article reported that the International Christian Embassy of Jerusalem issued a statement in support of Israel. Vice President David Parsons said that the ICEJ stands in solidary with Israel against Palestinian rioting, terrorist attacks, and the firing of rockets.
Christian Holidays
Israel Hayom, May 2, 2021; Gal Sheva, May 7, 2021; Ramlod Plus, May 7, 2021
Eastern Orthodox Christians celebrated Easter. A limited number of guests were allowed to attend the Feast of the Holy Fire at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem, traditional marches took place. In the city of Ramla, mayor Michael Vidal joined in festivities, saying, “the Christian community is an indispensable part of the city of Ramla, a community that contributes to the thriving and development of the city and its residents.”
Interfaith Relations
Hadashot Haifa VeHaTzafon, May 11, 2021; Ze Ma Yesh – Yokneam, May 7, 2021
Religious leaders from Muslim, Jewish, Christian, and Baha’i communities gathered for a Ramadan Iftar meal in Haifa, in an event that aimed to promote reconciliation, as well as an opportunity to get to know Ramadan traditions. The event included a performance by the “Drums of Peace,” a Jewish-Arab musical group. A similar event took place in Akko, where the mayor noted that Jerusalemites could learn from Akko as an example of coexistence.
Pope and the Vatican
Israel Hayom, May 3, 2021
In response to the disaster at Mount Meron, where 45 people were killed during a Lag BaOmer prayer gathering, Pope Francis expressed his condolences to the families of the victims, saying that he would keep them in his prayers.
Anti-Missionary Activity / Attitudes
Various Articles
The first article told the story of an Israeli man and his girlfriend living in Melbourne, Australia, who had come into contact with missionaries. He was convinced that he should convert and be baptized. At the last minute, he pulled the plug and refrained from getting baptized.
Another article reported again on the controversy around Michael Elkohen, a man accused of being a missionary posing as an ultra-Orthodox rabbi and scribe.
A number of articles reported again that Messianic Jewish missionaries had mobilized over the holidays and tried to evangelize in popular tourist destinations around the country. Yad L’Achim volunteers gathered to warn vacationers of the danger.
In one article, Or L’Achim said it received 568 calls to its hotline about Messianic Jewish missionary activity taking place in a variety of different spots. Or L’Achim said it had plans to protest in front of a Messianic Jewish congregation in a town in the north of Israel, as well as plans to meet with municipal leaders in order to alert them to what was going on.
Two articles reported that two Messianic Jewish “missionaries”, Eitan Bar and Moti Vaknin, made contemptuous comments about the prayers that were taking place at Mount Meron, where many Jews were killed. The articles said the missionaries were “dancing on the blood” of the victims and their families. Or L’Achim is planning to submit a complaint to the police on the basis that the comments constituted contempt for religion.
Jewish/Israeli Attitudes concerning Christians/Christianity
Olam Katan, May 7, 2021
In a segment devoted to asking rabbis questions, one person said that a Christian fund had donated a club with games to the IDF and asked whether making use of that club was permitted. Rabbi Aviner said that Jews were not allowed to use the club or play with the games.
Christian Tourism
Haaretz, May 4, 2021
This was a piece about all the tourist sites that are normally packed with Christian pilgrims, which now stand empty because of the pandemic. The article said this period of time provides a rare opportunity for Israelis to visit sites they normally stay away form, as now there are few crowds. Tour companies have shifted the focus of their tours in an effort to reach the Israeli market. The Lutheran Guesthouse in the Old City of Jerusalem, for example, is being offered as a place to stay on a tour that looks at the history of Jerusalem from the perspective of the history of the Zionist movement.
Christianity
Calcalist, May 6, 2021
For the first time in history, fewer than half of all Americans belong to a church, synagogue or mosque, and religious attendance in these communities has been cut by a third. The article brought up a number of examples of young American Christians who say they no longer identify with established churches. Between six and ten thousand churches shut down every year, and 23% of Americans say they do not belong to any religion. Young people are moving away from religion in part because of a larger distrust of institutions. Other reasons for declining church attendance are a sense that the church is too politically aligned with right-wing politics, as well as a broader societal shift in family structure and with that, a decline in familial religious traditions. The author speculated that the Christian right will only intensify its desire for political control in response to a decline in Christian numbers. Part of the appeal of someone like Donald Trump, said the article, was that he was received as a protector of the Christian community and a means of retaining, or gaining back, power.
Anti-Semitism / Christian Zionism
The Jerusalem Post, May 9, 2021
This article called for a strengthening of the relationship between Jews and Evangelical Christians as a means of combating anti-Semitism. According to the FBI, approximately 60% of religiously motivated hate crimes in the USA target Jews. Evangelicals are strong allies, and Evangelical leaders such as John Hagee (head of Christians United for Israel) have called anti-Semitism evil. CUFI has actively recruited Evangelicals students to combat antisemitism on college campuses and has called for the repudiation of Republican representative Marjorie Taylor Greene for her anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. Despite all of this, Jews, and Israelis, are still hesitant about their alliance with Evangelicals, who are looked down on. The author concluded: “In the United States, Evangelicals Christians are indispensable allies to the Jewish people. Their uninhabited support is routinely displayed at their conferences, in their churches, and in the halls of Congress. The time has arrived for all of us to stand and applaud them.”
Conversion to Judaism
Makor Rishon, May 11, 2021; Pnima, May 11, 2021; HaDerech, May 13, 2021
All three articles provided different stories of gentiles who converted to Judaism. Two articles wrote, for example, about a young German Christian man named Günther Gotschalk, who after fighting for Germany in the Second World War, felt that he had to atone for the crimes that his country had committed against Jews. Gotschalk moved to Israel in 1968 and joined a community that was providing housing for Holocaust survivors. He began to study the history of anti-Semitism, and saw that it was intertwined with Christianity more broadly, but in Germany with the writings of Martin Luther more specifically. He furthermore was appalled that the history of Christian anti-Semitism had brought about the murder of 13 million Jews (according to his daughter). He decided to leave the Christian faith, but never stopped believing in God. All of Gotschalk’s children later decided to convert to Judaism.
One article told the story of a Texan woman who was raised Christian, but who started searching for truth when she reached college. She came to the conclusion that Christianity was based on lies and hypocrisies, and as a result of her exploration, ended up converting to Judaism.