Jews for Jesus campaign exposes growing tensions
TORONTO, ON-Darryl Weinberg spent several days earlier this month handing out pamphlets and knocking on doors, one of 15 volunteers who worked Toronto streets each day to pitch the claims of Jesus to the Jewish community.
Jews for Jesus, a messianic group, focused on Toronto during its global evangelism campaign "Behold Your God" August 25 to September 14. Street missionary volunteers like Wienberg canvassed the city's neighbourhoods, distributing close to 300,000 pamphlets discussing Jesus' divinity.
Tensions heightened when Jews for Judaism, an organization that calls itself "a counter-missionary group," shadowed Jews for Jesus volunteers in the street.
Using cell phones to direct their volunteers, Jews for Judaism's team went to several locations where they heard the ministry's volunteers were handing out leaflets, and distributed literature of their own.
"Our volunteers were carefully screened and given clear direction not to engage the Jews for Jesus campaigners and not even talk to them," says Michael Skobac, director of the Toronto branch of Jews for Judaism and a rabbi.
Misleading message?
Jews for Judaism sees the message that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah and the idea of Christ as the way to God as misleading. They claim the campaign is a "cunning marketing strategy" that "promotes a deceptive message," although Skobac does add that he doesn't consider it to be a form of anti-Semitism.
Weinberg, a local missionary for Chosen People Ministries, another messianic outreach to the Jewish community, says the ensuing media coverage of the campaign raises awareness among other evangelical Christians as to the tensions messianic Jews experience.
"What the evangelical community is finally getting a taste of is the abject fear Jesus causes in the Jewish community," declares Weinberg.
"Simply talking to Jewish people about why they believe what they believe" concerning Jesus isn't deceptive, he adds. Dressed in a bright blue T-shirt emblazoned with the stylized Jews for Jesus name and logo, he believes his identity and beliefs were evident as he canvassed the streets.
The method is still upsetting to members of the traditional Jewish community.
"Most Jewish people who converted to Christianity never made an informed decision," says Skobac.
Once born into a Jewish family, a person is considered Jewish for his or her lifetime: however, Skobac says there is a clear distinction between someone practising Judaism and someone practising Christianity.
Skobac says messianic groups such as Jews for Jesus are "co-opting" elements of Judaism-such as Jewish symbols, celebration of holidays and recent showings of a Holocaust film-into Christianity in a way that leads people new to the message to believe that "to become a complete Jew" one needs to accept Jesus.
Not an ethnic issue
"The issue is not whether or not we're Jewish," says Andrew Barron, director of Jews for Jesus Canada. "Rather than interacting with our message, we're called sinister or deceptive. [We're accused of] preying on ignorant people. This keeps people from considering the claims of Jesus."
Toronto Jewish Mission distributes Bibles and Christian pamphlets year-round. Director David Daniels says the friction over the drive "simply draws more attention" to the missionaries' message. Daniels argues Jewish people on both sides of the debate have the right to communicate ideas and beliefs about Jesus, but says opposing or confronting one another in the streets isn't the most productive form of discussion.
He says "Jews for Jesus doesn't force anything on anyone" so alarm over the drive is "regrettable."
"Christians believe that Jesus Christ is God and that opens up a host of issues," says Daniels. "I can't speak for orthodox Jews who don't believe Jesus is the Messiah. To them acknowledging Jesus is God is an act of idolatry and a departure from the teachings given to Israel."
Christian support
Some Christians are lending support for those against the Jews for Jesus campaign.
Charles McVety, president of Canada Christian College in Toronto, argues that one group cannot be excluded from the Great Commission, and in a recent press conference, denounced "any and all deceptive tactics" to convert Jews.
In 1998, the school dropped its Jewish Studies department in response to the concerns of the Canadian Jewish Congress that it was serving as a front for teaching how to convert Jews to Christianity.
At the time McVety was quoted in the Canadian Jewish News as saying, "We want to make it very clear that the Canada Christian College does not approve of or engage in any process to convert Jews to Christianity."
However, McVety is a strong supporter of strengthening relations between Christians and Jews, saying evangelicals need to become more informed about Judaism because it is foundational to evangelical beliefs.
He took a group of pastors and denominational leaders to Israel earlier this year to discuss their spiritual heritage.
"We are not taking sides," says McVety. "We are not politicians. We're Christian leaders. We don't act politically but biblically to bless Israel. If we are to worship the God of Israel, we have to bless the people of Israel."
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