Why Don't Messianic Jews Care About Israel?
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
So I get another letter in the mail from another Messianic Jewish ministry located in Israel, and their report reads the same as every other Messianic report coming out of the land:Times are bad. Terrorists are rampant. The governments of the world hate us. Send us money because Jesus will love you if you love the chosen people nobody else wants. Thanks!
You know Christians are a great source of income when even the non-believing Jews conceed to the promise of Genesis 12:3 and the presence of people like John Hagee. But, at least the non-believing Israeli Jews who call on Christians for support still take the time to proclaim a strong Zionist stance in the face of world domination.
A few days ago, Ahmadinijad (who will be referred to, from this point on, as "Ahmadinnerjacket" because I feel no need to take the time to learn how to spell his name correctly; as long as he wants to refer to me as pond scum, I can refer to him as out-dated men's wear) made an extremely controversial appearance at Columbia University. I think I'm the only one who wasn't in total shock over the incident: A few years ago, I decided to call it quits with academia because I knew what the masses are only starting to figure out-- that our academic system is nothing more than a factory churning out brainwashed pro-Muslim socialists bent on seeing a one-world pagan government made manifest in our lifetime. Don't believe me? Just read Ben Shapiro's Brainwashed or check out the clips of Ahmadinnerjacket at Columbia on YouTube.
So, I'm at work, and I'm watching the news coverage of his appearance live, and I see a few shots of some protestors and all I can think is, "Where are the throngs?" If the Israel Day Parade held in Manhattan in 2005 can draw an audience of one million, surely there must be a few more Israel-supporters on hand to hurl rocks (you know, the culturally-acceptable way Muslims greet strangers) at the Iranian Dictator. But, no, out of New York's cast of millions, a mere 20,000 showed up to protest the fact that an American Ivy League institution decided to bow to Allah in the name of "education" and "enlightenment."
CNN did a great job of attempting to depict all the protesters as Jews, but a few of those sneaky Christians got in there, with their tricksty blue and white "Christians United for Israel" signs. And I say, Good for them. At least they took the time to show up. You know, as opposed to all those, say, Jews for Jesus missionaries-- men and women whose pictures line glossy four-page advertisements that cost millions of dollars to produce and mail four or five times a year-- who line the streets of Brooklyn Heights, the Upper East Side, and every other Jewish enclave or street corner within ten feet of a bagel shop on the granite isle. Where were the Jews for Jesus with their big blue and white signs that read: "JEWS FOR JESUS FOR ISRAEL"? New York City and the surrounding tri-state area play host to the largest Jewish community outside of Israel, and one of the largest Messianic communities worldwide. So-- where was everyone? Painting their nails for Sukkot?
Seriously, if there was one Messianic Jew who actually protested the arrival of Most Wanted Terrorist #1 on our soil, let me know so I can give you a Magen David. Israeli and Zionist blogs are filled with commentary on this entire incident, and what commentary is coming from the Messianic community? No, seriously, tell me. The question (I hope) is not rhetorical.
The Christians are fine and happy with saying they love Israel with the caveat that they will be raptured out of here into the "heavenly Jerusalem" before the dreck hits the fan. The non-believing Jews are fine and happy with saying they appreciate Christian support, with the caveat that they will not, under any circumstances, listen to talk about the Messiah. Both sides seem to have reached a comfortable, if slightly stifled relationship based on these terms.
The Messianics are fine and happy with saying Israel needs support, with the dual caveat that they avoid any kind of Biblical argument regarding concepts like "grafted in" or "the rapture is a lie created by Christian clergy in order to win congregants and earn money through the pulpit" when talking with prospective Christian donors, and they avoid any strong pro-Israel or pro-Zionist verbiage, lest they be accused of trying to identify (or have their donors identify) with Israel in the first-person. Seriously, read some of these ministry letters between the lines and you get the message loud and clear: That's all well and good that you don't want to respect the fact that, because of Yeshua's sacrifice, you are grafted into the Jewish people and are responsible to act in accordance with Torah. We're going to ignore all of that in case the Lubavitcher next door or the Christian Pastor across the street accidentally got your mail. You just go on doing what you're doing, and send us money so we can do what we're doing. None of this has any real impact on you beyond your checkbook. Thanks!
I'm tired of the same old lines. I'm bored with the same banal responses. I'm sick of the lack of action. As far as I'm concerned, all of the Messianic congregations that spend so much time praying for the "lost sheep of Israel" ought to start including themselves in the mix. For a people who know so much, who have been given the opportunity to put it all together-- who understand that Messiah has, indeed, dwelt with us, and His Spirit is dwelling with us, and He will soon be dwelling with us yet again here on this earth-- we sure don't let our actions pay testimony to our words. In fact, nowadays most of our words are being churned out by rote. And where does that leave us?
As a Jew, a proud, Yeshua-trusting, Torah-loving, Israeli-flag waving Messianic Jewish woman, who was born in America, but who knows she is Israeli at heart, I trust that the Messiah whom Avraham saw atop Mount Moriah with Yitzach on the altar is the same Messiah who walked this earth among the simple, who were given the trust necessary to confound the wise, He is the same Messiah who sacrificed Himself so that we might live a life filled with His Ruach haKodesh--the same Ruach that fell upon Moshe and his 70 advisors, upon Shmuel, upon Isaiah and all the prophets, and upon David haMelekh--and that, through our trust in Him, we will be able to do the works He did, and even more, in order to combat the evil that surrounds and threatens to destroy our nation, the nation of Israel.
I am not afraid of the taunts, the anger, the fear, the hatred, the ignorance of those who hate me.
I will not be held back by the opinions of others who seek to destroy me or my people for the sake of their own personal agendas.
I will not be silent in the face of evil.
I will live to see the Sukkot when Messiah returns to dwell with His people again in Zion, and until then, I will do nothing less than live the truth that has been revealed to me.
And if Ahmadinnerjacket, John Hagee, the Lubavitcher on the corner, the Jews for Jesus, the pro-Siddurists, the anti-Siddurists, the Torah-purists, and all the sects of Jews and gentiles on the face of this earth don't like my stance on the "issues" then my response is this: "The L-rd is my rock and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The L-rd is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?"
So, who are you afraid of this Sukkot? Who are you placating? Who are you attempting to please? The enemies who seek to destroy you, or the G-d who seeks to dwell with you in Zion?
Who will be eating dinner with you in your Sukkah when the bottom drops out?
ANI YISRAEL!
posted by Shoshana @ 6:24 PM
L'Shana Tovah...well, sorta
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Okay, so it's not really new year. New Year was 7 months ago. What we're really celebrating is the fact that the minyan finally reached a mutual agreement on the date. (*BA DA CHING!* Jewish Joke Alert!)
I love being a part of Am Yisrael. I can't say it enough. Lately, blog posts have been few and far between because my Internet went down and, quite frankly, I got tired of arguing my way up the customer service ladder, so I decided to take a break from being online. But that doesn't mean I've taken a break from being Jewish. One of the great things about knowing that you're a part of G-d's inheritance is that no matter where you are, or who you are with, or what you're doing, you are constantly being reminded of the fact that you are part of Am Yisrael. Christians (and, I suppose, members of other religious sects as well) always associate their religious or spiritual identity with the number of times they go to church or hang out in their youth group or volunteer for a Sunday supper; when you're a Jew, you don't derive your identity from a weekly visit to shul or the group you spend your free time with. Judaism is a verb, an action that takes place every time you make a choice-- what to eat, how to dress, what to do, and whom to do it with-- all of this is Torah made visible to the world around you. Every action is a testimony to the Living G-d.
Yom Teruah begins in a little over an hour for me. It is the shofar's call to repentance and reflection, the start of the Ten Days of Awe leading up to Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. I could insert some comment in here about reflecting upon your actions over the past year and questioning their veracity in light of Torah, but that's not my job: "Judge not, lest you be judged." Nor is it my job to use the High Holy Days as a reason to guilt people into donating money: "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's." Nor is it my job to use G-d's commanded festivals as a platform for harassing slackers into showing up to shul more often: "For what I desire is mercy, not sacrifices, knowledge of God more than burnt offerings." What I can do, however, is quote to you what I think will help you in your own personal time of reflection during this season of awe:Be still and know that I Am G-d.
Watch the sunrise and know that your trust has made you a part of this perfect creation. Look at the misery around you and know that your trust has spared you from the path that leads to death. Observe the mountain before you-- whether it is physical, or spiritual-- and know that your trust will see you to the top of it and down into the valley on the other side. Know and comprehend that you have been given the greatest gift- the ability to choose life over death, blessing over curse- and that every choice you make is a choice that possesses the potential to lead you closer to the one and only G-d who wants to dwell with you. Seek to know Him, because in knowing Him you will begin to know who you are and what that means to the rest of your days on this earth. Fall in love with Him and you will fall in love with yourself, because you will be loving His Ruach within you, and trust that, "He who is within you is greater than he who is in the world."
Know who you are, Israel. Seek to know, you Princes of G-d, exactly who your ruler is. Only then will you be able to know and fulfill His destiny for you.
"Rather, you people are to be holy for Me; because I, ADONAI, am holy; and I have set you apart from the other peoples, so that you can belong to Me." Leviticus 20:26
"Furthermore, we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called in accordance with his purpose; because those whom he knew in advance, he also determined in advance would be conformed to the pattern of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers; and those whom he thus determined in advance, he also called; and those whom he called, he also caused to be considered righteous; and those whom he caused to be considered righteous he also glorified!" Romans 8:28-30
Labels: Israel, Jewish, Judaism, Messianic Judaism, Rosh HaShanah
posted by Shoshana @ 6:05 PM
