An AP article in the Washington Post today describes the sufferings of Messianic Jews (Jews who believe in Jesus as the Messiah) at the hands of their fellow Jews in Israel.
Despite their small numbers (only about 10,000 in Israel), these Jewish followers of Christ have suffered a variety of attacks in recent months. Last October, a church used by Messianic Jews in Jerusalem was damaged in an apparent case of arson, and a month ago Orthodox Jewish zealots set fire to a stockpile of Christian books. But the worst of the attacks came on March 20 of this year. Ami Ortiz (shown above), the 15-year-old son of a prominent Jewish Christian pastor, lost two toes and part of his hearing in the explosion of a booby-trapped gift box sent to his family.
While believers in Jesus are not overtly persecuted in Israel, the government has placed certain limitations on "proselytization" by them (speaking out in the name of Jesus). In some cases Christian synagogues have been closed, and authorities have tried to revoke the Israeli citizenship of some Messianic Jews. And three months after Ami Ortiz was maimed in an attack that police believe was carried out by fellow Jews, no arrests have been made in the case.
Read the full article here.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Christian Jews attacked in Israel
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Wow, that's pretty awful what happened to that young man. We must always pray for peace for that nation. When I was in Israel, the family that I stayed with had a bomb shelter. Now they'll have to use the bomb shelter and a robotic arm to open packages!
If you have excellent experience with expensive hotels then you can select them otherwise there are also possible some other cheap hotels in a nearby areas.
Post a Comment