MISSIONARY GROUP PLANS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE JERUSALEM MARCH
HaModia, Sept.29 1998
A dangerous missionary group is planning to participate openly in the Jerusalem March, which is organized by the municipality. The Yad L’Achim anti-missionary organization has uncovered a cult’s internal document. The secret plan of the Messianic Jews is to bring a large number of their people to the march, gaining as much exposure and support as possible by using Jewish symbols.
The chairman of Yad L’Achim, sent the document to assistant mayor Rabbi Miller with a demand that the plot be foiled. According to the document, the cult plans to lead their procession with 50 people blowing shofars, to commemorate Israel’s 50th anniversary. They also plan to set loose 150 blue and white helium balloons with the quote “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” The organizers seek to bus people in from all over Israel, for a subsidized price of 25 NIS. Cult members will wear matching “Messianic Jews” shirts and hats, which will be sold or given to them.
Rabbi Miller sent an urgent message to Mayor Olmert, demanding the cancellation of this horrible plan. He demanded that no signs should be allowed in the march, that no materials should be handed out other than those printed by the municipality, and that the municipality should give shirts to participants and forbid apparel with missionary messages.
THOUSANDS FROM ISRAEL AND ABROAD TAKE PART IN JERUSALEM MARCH
HaTzofe, Oct.9 1998, by Y. Goldstein
Approximately 6 thousand marchers in a variety of national costumes took part in the Jerusalem March. In addition to Israeli marchers …. 5000 Christians who were organized by the Int’l Christian Embassy stood out. The Christian marchers, representatives of many countries, carried Jewish symbols such as harps, menorahs, and the emblems of the 12 tribes. (Along with a gold foil replica of the Ark of the Covenant – ed.) They blew kisses and called out messages of love, encouragement and support to the Israeli crowds who watched them in downtown Jerusalem. Some of them handed out cards inscribed with Bible verses. Amongst them there was also a group of Messianic Jews, who blew shofars.
CAUTION: MISSIONARIES DISTRIBUTE BOOKLETS ENTITLED “REPENTANCE”
Yom L’Yom, Sept.24 1998
The audacity of the missionaries is too much: lately they have been distributing booklets calling for repentance, which include Jewish motifs – but the material is missionary and preaches Christianity. Last week an orthodox educational network received a package from New York which contains these booklets which hide Christianity behind Jewish things such as prayer and the “Sh’ma” (“Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is one”). Public officials are investigating whether the missionaries have broken the law by sending Christian missionary material to Jews who don’t want it – and by the fact that they disguised it in order to trap Jews in their net.
It should be noted that among members of Knesset, including the non-Jewish ones, there is growing support for MK Pinchasi’s bill which would forbid any preaching aimed at convincing someone to convert.
CHRISTIAN TERROR IN THE YEAR 2000
Kol Ha’Ir, Oct.2 1998
The counter-terrorism experts in the Prime Minister’s office is anticipating a wave of fundamentalist Christian terror. They define the hundreds of thousands of pilgrims expected to participate in the millennial celebrations as a “security threat,” just like Islamic terror. Amongst the tourists they expect to find Christians who belong to radical, apocalyptic groups, who see the year 2000 as the end of the world and who wish to end their lives at Christian holy sites. They also warn that Islamic terrorist organizations may also take advantage of the situation to strike at Israel and the West.
In order to counter the threat, Israel’s intelligence agencies will try to locate potential threats by getting information from foreign intelligence agencies. They are also working on requirements for pilgrims, such as showing a return ticket and having booked destinations in Israel. Security at Israel’s ports of entry and all holy sites will also be tightened. Special attention will be given to security at the Temple Mount because of the possibility that fundamentalist groups will seek to harm the mosques in order to hasten the Jewish and Christian redemption.
THE JEWISH SAINT
Ha’Aretz, Oct.8; The Jerusalem Post, Oct.9 & 13; Ma’ariv, Oct.13 1998
These articles cover the story of Edith Stein, a Jewish-born convert to Catholicism who died in Auschwitz. They all state that by canonizing her, the Vatican is attempting to cover up both the Church’s complicity in the Holocaust and the Jewish identity of its victims, claiming instead that Catholics and others were also targeted by the Nazis.
Despite the Pope’s request that Jews see this move as a desire to bring the two religions closer, a spokesman of the Wiesenthal Center stated that “The Christians canonized Stein because her parents were Jewish, and according to them she made the right choice and became a Catholic.”
NEWSPAPERS USED:
Ha’Modia: Jerusalem religious daily. Very hostile to believers.
Ha’Tzofe: Tel-Aviv religious/political daily. Hostile to believers.
Yom L’Yom: Jerusalem religious/political weekly. Hostile to believers.
Kol Ha’Ir: Jerusalem leftist weekly. Pro-Palestinian, anti-religious, objective towards believers.
Ha’Aretz: National daily, published in Tel-Aviv, mostly objective towards believers.
The Jerusalem Post: National English language daily, published in Jerusalem. Tends to the religious right, but careful and relatively fair towards believers (has a large Christian readership). Friendly towards right-wing political Christianity.
Ma’ariv: National daily, published in Tel-Aviv. Politically tends to the right, mostly objective towards believers (depends on the reporter).