During the week covered by this review, we received 4 articles on the following subjects:
Christians in Israel
Archaeology
Israeli Attitudes Concerning Christianity
Anti-Missionary Activity
Christians in Israel
Makor Rishon, May 3, 2019
This was a piece about Emma Berger, a German Christian who in 1963 purchased land in the city of Zichron Yaakov, and established Kibbutz Beth-El. In her younger years, Berger became very ill, and when she recovered, there were some who viewed it as a miracle and believed her to have supernatural abilities. Berger preached that it was important to welcome the people of Israel back to the land of Israel – as was promised in Scripture. She bought land in Israel, because, in her words, “in our heart of hearts, we are Jewish”. Some of her followers came with her. Beth-El became a kibbutz in 1974. Some of the locals considered it a cult, and were suspicious of the Germans. Swastikas were spray-painted on the side of Beth-El’s buildings. Others accused the groups of missionary activity, though a representative from anti-missionary organization Yad L’Achim said that in his 25 years of work, he has never heard a complaint about Beth-El. The Kibbutz is known for its conservative stance towards technology, and its opposition to vaccines. The Beth-El youth serve in the Israeli military.
Archaeology
The Jerusalem Post, May 3, 2019
The Mesha Stele, an ancient inscribed stone dating to 840 BCE, which describes the “territorial expansion of King Mesha of Moab in the Second Book of Kings”, has been re-examined recently. Where scholars once thought the stone referred to “the House of David”, they now believe the stone refers to the Moabite King Balak (Numbers 22-24), who attempted to lay a curse on Israel. The stone was originally found in 1868 by an Anglican missionary in Jordan. The new reading suggests that King Balak was in fact a real historical player (something that had previously been in doubt).
Israeli Attitudes Concerning Christianity
Shabaton, May 3, 2019
This was an opinion piece from a rabbi discussing how Jews should respond to the fire in Notre Dame. Some, said the rabbi, were happy to see damage done to a building representing “foreign” or “strange worship” (avodah zara). However, the author argued that we live in a time where religious faith is under attack, and where atheism is worse than “foreign worship”. Do we, he asked, think we are at war with Christianity? If so, the loss of a church is a win. However, he argued, Christians and Jews alike are at war with atheism, secularism, and heresy. It is important to recognize that Christianity has changed, as well as its attitude towards Jews. Many Christians are supporters and friends of Israel. He further argued that the jury is still out as to whether Christianity counts as “foreign worship”, but in any case the main fight of the day is not against “foreign worship”, but against atheism. Very few Jews are converting to Christianity, but many are secularizing. “Maybe the fire in Notre Dame will wake Europe up and remind her that only the one who believes wins,” he concluded.
Anti-Missionary Activity
HaDerech, May 2, 2019
Or L’Achim is intensifying its activities in cities hit by missionary activity. The group will be leading an information campaign, and distributing an anti-missionary book written by Daniel Asor. The book will be handed out in front of “missionary” congregations and at “messianic-missionary” events. The article reported that the book has already saved many “from the nails of the mission and has returned Jews to the embrace of Judaism…”