EMQ » January–March 2022 » Volume 58 Issue 1
[memberonly folder=”Members, EMQ2YearFolder, EMQ1YearFolder, EMQLibraryInstitution”]By Geoffrey Butler
One might think that pointing out that Jesus Christ was a Jew would go without saying. Historically, Christianity owes so much to Judaism that the persecution of one by the other ought to be unfathomable. Yet, the reality is Christian-Jewish relations over the last two millennia have been plagued by marginalization, expulsion and – in the most extreme cases – attempted genocide. To be sure, not all Christians throughout the church’s history have been antisemitic; yet the scars that remain from a tainted past make reaching unbelieving Jews with the gospel of their Messiah a task fraught with unique challenges.
However, at this pivotal moment, it is one that must not be neglected. Erez Soref, president of the Messianic Jewish Israel College of the Bible in Netanya, points out that the number of Jewish believers within his country has never been higher.[1] He notes that currently over thirty thousand Jewish followers of Jesus live within the State of Israel, representing over three hundred congregations – a far cry from the twenty adherents or so present in 1948 when the Declaration of Independence was signed. This, combined with the enthusiastic work of Jewish missions organizations in the diaspora, gives the church reason to believe the future of Jewish outreach is bright – and presents an opportunity that must not be mishandled.
Background: A Common Root, A Tainted History
If one were to describe the church’s treatment of the Jewish people over the past two thousand years, there would perhaps be no more appropriate summary than the title of Michael Brown’s work, Our Hands are Stained with Blood.[2] Most contemporary Christians have some knowledge about the horrors of the Holocaust which, a short seventy-five years ago, resulted in the extermination of over six million Jews,[3] from which they are yet to fully recover demographically.[4] Yet, fewer may be aware that the church’s mistreatment of the Jewish people is hardly a modern European phenomenon, but dates all the way back to the patristic era.
No later than the third century, such theological giants as Hippolytus, Origen, and Cyprian all laid the blame for Christ’s crucifixion on the Jewish people corporately, while their second century predecessor, Justin Martyr, declared that the Jews had been forever cast aside by God on account of their rejection of the Messiah.[5] Yet, their denouncement appears quite tame in comparison to John Chrysostom, who displayed such a virulent antisemitic attitude that he devoted an entire sermon series to denouncing the Jewish people and their practices.[6] Accusing the Jews – and the Jews alone – of “deicide,” Chrysostom described the synagogue as a brothel and flatly asserted “I hate the synagogue … I hate the Jews for the same reason.”[7]
Later thinkers fared little better. Augustine acknowledged the special relationship with God afforded to Old Testament Israel, and in later works praised some Jewish contemporaries for their piety.[8] Yet, his earlier writings on God’s abandonment of the Jews on account of their role in Christ’s crucifixion continues to cast a shadow over his legacy.
Thus, when considering what the church must do in order to reach the Jewish people, an unequivocal apology and a renunciation of the antisemitism of Christendom past will be essential to even begin the conversation. While, of course, there have been multitudes of believers over the centuries who have proven faithful allies to the Jewish people,[9] such testimonies will be of little interest without a reckoning with the darker chapters of the past. It will require wholehearted repentance to bring about a new era in the Christian-Jewish relations. Thankfully, through the concerted efforts of some, it appears that such an era may already have dawned.
A New Era: Postwar Efforts at Reconciliation
Interfaith Dialogue
One of the efforts undertaken by twentieth century Christians that ought to be commended is the interfaith dialogue with Jewish scholars. Out of the latter community, there is perhaps no greater example of this than Pinchas Lapide, who engaged in extensive dialogue with Christian theologians and even authored an entire book defending the physical resurrection of Jesus.[10] The wonder of this is perhaps only surpassed by the fact that he would also co-author a book with former member of the Hitler Youth,[11] Jurgen Moltmann, on the Trinity.[12] The latter, speaking of his post-war days, initially felt that he would never recover after learning of the horror wreaked on the world by his nation, including the near extermination of the Jews in Europe.
Decades later, having been transformed by the gospel, Moltmann could go so far as to state, “We can only truly and authentically understand Jesus if we perceive him and his history in light of the Old Testament promises and the history and hope of Israel today … ‘The Christ’ is Israel’s Messiah.”[13] That such an assertion could come from a former soldier of the Third Reich is astounding. Lapide, for his part, responds favourably to Moltmann’s claim that “in his Parousia (Jesus Christ) will also manifest himself as Israel’s Messiah,” labelling it an “acceptable form of reconciliation” between Jews and Christians.[14] It should be cautioned that Lapide never did identify himself as a believer in Jesus as the Messiah of Israel, or an advocate of syncretism. Indeed, in his book on the resurrection, Lapide goes out of his way to make this explicit.[15] Nevertheless, the fact that an Orthodox Jew could make such admissions demonstrates the potential interfaith dialogue may hold, making it a worthwhile project for the church.
Fighting Antisemitism
If there is any lesson that must be learned from the church’s historic mistreatment of the Jewish people, it is that a hint of antisemitism may breed catastrophe if not quickly checked. This rightly seems bizarre to many believers, since all the writers of the gospels were – with the possible exception of Luke – devout Jews. Yet, given that the scriptures have frequently been perverted to support an antisemitic agenda throughout church history, it highlights an issue for contemporary believers to be aware of.
One thing the church may do – and indeed, is doing through its support of Messianic Jewish congregations and organizations – is to clarify that by urging Jews to accept Jesus as the Messiah, they are not advocating for the dissolution of the Jewish people corporately. Such has been a fear of traditional Jews for centuries; this, it has often been charged, is nothing more than a thinly veiled assertion that the Jewish people as a nation should not exist, but rather assimilate into broader Christendom.[16] Therefore, in its denunciation of antisemitism – of which this has been declared a form by some Jews[17] – Christians would do well to make clear that Jewish believers, like those from any other ethnic or cultural background, need not despise or detach from their national identity, but rather celebrate its representation within the body of Christ.
Perilous Politics
Any discussion of the postwar relationship between the church, particularly Evangelicalism, and the Jewish people would be sorely incomplete without discussing the modern State of Israel. Despite its current status as the greatest military power in the Middle East, it is almost certain that it would not have survived if not for the support of Western countries with strong Christian influence, many of which remain its most steadfast allies today. Americans, in particular, have shown an especially high level of affinity for Israel, with one 2017 poll indicating that 67% of American Evangelicals view the country favourably.[18]
Yet, this part of the new relationship between the Church and the Jewish people is fraught with potential pitfalls. All too often the Church has, throughout its history, used biblical passages to justify actions irreconcilable with the way of Jesus. It must not do the same with a modern Jewish State any more than a supposed Christian one.[19] Though it is imperative that believers speak out against unfair treatment of the nation, which some claim is just a thinly veiled form of anti-Semitism, an Israeli government must be open for legitimate criticism as much as any other modern state – despite whatever common ground one may personally find with it in terms of Democratic values.[20]
To the Nations: Contemporary Jewish Missions
While Christian missionary activity to Jewish individuals is hardly a new practice, the emergence of modern missions organizations set up by Jewish believers truly took flight only in the twentieth century. Groups such as Chosen People Ministries at the turn of the century and Jews for Jesus during the 1970s stand out as two prime examples, both insisting that acceptance of Jesus as the Messiah is wholly compatible with Judaism – despite allegations of blatant inconsistency or syncretism.[21] Such charges highlight an important consideration; some impasses to reaching Jewish people are not just grounded in history, but theology. Profound differences exist between Christian and traditional Jewish theologies, which must be addressed honestly and respectfully if the church is to properly bring the good news to their unbelieving Jewish counterparts.
The Doctrine of the Trinity
One of the most striking differences between Christian orthodoxy and traditional Judaism is the doctrine of the Trinity; in Moltmann and Lapide’s dialogue, it is noted how many individuals, Jews included, have been slaughtered over the doctrine.[22] But, perhaps even more consequential for Jews who find it impossible to accept the doctrine, the very Shema they recite as per Deuteronomy 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one,” seems on the surface to rule out any plurality in God. That the God of Israel cuts straight to the heart of Judaism; thus, to affirm he is one yet three is understandably difficult for a Jew. Indeed, one of the early focus areas of Chosen People Ministries was encouraging Jews to reconsider this difficult doctrine.[23] Over one hundred years later, it may well be worth re-emphasizing.
The Divinity of Christ
A related yet distinct issue that remains a challenge is the deity of Jesus. For many Jews, this doctrine – like the Trinity – is a perversion of the pure monotheism they faithfully represent.[24] Given that, at various points throughout Jewish history, Jesus has been derided as a false prophet, the one in whose name they were frequently persecuted, to affirm his divinity would be no small admission. On the other hand, for Christians, it may be simply assumed that to affirm Jesus’ resurrection is to affirm his divinity. A Jewish scholar like Lapide, however, forcefully arguing for the former while denying the latter shows this must not be simply taken for granted. Clearly, this is an essential doctrine from the standpoint of Orthodox Christianity yet something of an impasse for many Jewish folks.
Separation of Synagogue and State: An Israeli Dilemma
It is easy for North American Christians to forget their relationship with the state is hardly the global norm; indeed, the very notion of separation between church and state is simply non-existent in many countries. Such is the case with the world’s only Jewish State, yet another obstacle to reaching Jews with the gospel in the most fertile mission field for such a task. Despite the freedom of religion afforded to inhabitants, all residents are required to register their religious affiliation with the Ministry of the Interior – and Jews who express faith in Jesus as the Messiah have a difficult choice to make.
One cannot be regarded by the authorities as both Christian and Jewish.[25] Thus, despite their own feelings of affinity for their country, many Israeli Jews who accept the gospel do so knowing that, in the eyes of their friends, family, and government, they are renouncing their Jewish identity – no small matter for a people who have struggled so long to maintain it in the face of remarkable opposition.
A “New Jew” – A New Opportunity?
Though far from a missiologist, in a 2017 monograph on the emergence of modern Israel, Daniel Gordis makes a statement that ought to make the church consider how contemporary Jewish outreach ought to be conducted. Speaking of the evolving self-identity of the Jewish people throughout the history of the Zionist movement, he observes:
In the State of Israel, that new Jew has emerged. In fact, many forms of the new Jew have emerged. Part of what makes Israel fascinating is the ongoing conversation about what Judaism and Jews should be and become…. Jews today are not the cowering, fearful Europeans of yesteryear. That Zionism has succeeded in creating a new Jew is beyond doubt.[26]
Even from a secular standpoint, there is much to celebrate about Gordis’ observation concerning a confident people determined to forge a new identity. Yet, his statement may speak to a new opportunity for Jewish missions. Given the diversity of this ongoing conversation about what Judaism is, or should be, could there be more room granted to those who see no contradiction between their Jewish identity and faith in Messiah Jesus? Currently, stiff challenges remain on this front. Pauline Kollontai explains in a 2004 piece for the Journal of Modern Jewish Studies: “The issue that cancels the Jewish identity of Messianic Jews is their belief in Jesus as Messiah. Their religious belief and practice, even though it is identical in many aspects to normative Judaism, is also considered not to be Jewish.”[27]
Despite what Kollontai provocatively labels “The Jesus Factor,” the fact that – as mentioned earlier – the Messianic Jewish Movement in Israel has never been stronger numerically, coupled with the fact that its adherents feel themselves fully a part of Israeli Jewish society, could potentially mean it is only a matter of time before their views are given a more serious hearing in this boisterous discussion.[28] Indeed, for this the church should hope and pray.
Conclusion
Even from a cursory glance at the violence and persecution that has plagued the Church’s relationship with the Jewish people, it is painfully obvious that reconciliation – and, by extension, opportunities for mission – will not be an easy task. Indeed, for many Jews, the very idea that Christians would continue with their admonitions to accept Jesus as the Messiah is in and of itself a hindrance to reconciliation. It must be remembered, however, that a large chunk of the New Testament was authored by the Apostle Paul, who actively sought out followers of Jesus Christ that he might put them to death prior to meeting his Messiah. A “Hebrew of Hebrews” in his own terminology (Philippians 3:5), he serves as a prime example of the power of the gospel that extends even to the most hardened opponents of it. Fueled by the promises of God to remain faithful to this people group, may the church continue to share the good news of Jesus in the hope that the Jewish nation will produce many more like Paul, committed to the gospel message and with a heart to reach their people with it.
Geoffrey Butler is a graduate of Tyndale Seminary and a current PhD student at Wycliffe College, University of Toronto.
EMQ, Volume 58, Issue 1. Copyright © 2022 by Missio Nexus. All rights reserved. Not to be reproduced or copied in any form without written permission from Missio Nexus. Email: EMQ@MissioNexus.org.
1 Erez Soref, “The Messianic Jewish Movement in Modern Israel.” Israel, the Church, and the Middle East: A Biblical Response to the Current Conflict, edited by Darrell L Bock and Mitch Glaser (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2018), Chap. 8, Kindle.
2 Michael L. Brown and Mazal Holocaust Collection. Our Hands Are Stained with Blood: The Tragic Story of the “Church” and the Jewish People (Shippensburg, PA: Destiny Image, 1992).
[3] Daniel Gordis, Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn, First Ecco Paperback ed. (New York, NY: Ecco, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 201738).
[4] Adam Taylor, “Has the Global Jewish Population Finally Rebounded from the Holocaust? Not Exactly,” The Washington Post, WP Company, July 2, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/07/ 02/has-the-global-jewish-population-finally-rebounded-from-the-holocaust-not-exactly/.
[5] Brown and Mazal, Our Hands Are Stained, 24.
[6] Brown and Mazal, Our Hands Are Stained, 25.
[7] Brown and Mazal, Our Hands Are Stained, 26.
[8] Paula Fredriksen, “Augustine on Jesus the Jew,” Augustinian Studies 42, no. 1 (2011): 13–14.
[9] For historical accounts of such individuals, as well as their scriptural justification for defending their Jewish contemporaries, Gerald R. McDermott, Israel Matters: Why Christians Must Think Differently About the People and the Land (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Brazos Press, a division of Baker Publishing Group, 2017).
[10] Pinchas Lapide and Wilhelm C. Linss, The Resurrection of Jesus: A Jewish Perspective (Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 2002).
[11] Philip Yancey, “God Behind Barbed Wire,” ChristianityToday.com, Christianity Today, January 8, 2020. https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/september/20.120.html. Moltmann, according to Yancey, would be drafted at eighteen years old into the German Air Force and, by extension, service in Hitler’s military efforts.
[12] Pinchas Lapide and Jürgen Moltmann, Jewish Monotheism and Christian Trinitarian Doctrine: A Dialogue (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1981).
[13] Jürgen Moltmann, The Way of Jesus Christ: Christology in Messianic Dimensions, 1st Fortress Press ed. (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993), 1.
[14] Lapide and Moltmann, Jewish Monotheism, 79.
[15] Lapide and Linss, The Resurrection of Jesus, 153.
[16] Yaakov S. Ariel, Evangelizing the Chosen People: Missions to the Jews in America, 1880–2000, H. Eugene and Lillian Youngs Lehman Series (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2000), 56.
[17] Ariel, Evangelizing, 56.
[18] Mark L. Bailey, “Should Christians Support the Modern State of Israel?” Israel, the Church, and the Middle East: A Biblical Response to the Current Conflict, eds. Darrell L. Bock and Mitch Glaser (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2018), Chap. 11, Kindle.
[19] For a discussion of how the concept of Christian Zionism (i.e., appealing to biblical passages in support of the modern Jewish State) has been used to justify sometimes unequivocal support of the Israeli government, see Lawrence Davidson, “Christian Zionism and the Formulation of Foreign Policy,” Diplomatic History 34, no. 3 (2010): 606, https://tyndale.on.worldcat.org/oclc/7787875782.
[20] Bailey, “Should Christians Support,” Chap. 11.
[21] Juliene G. Lipson, “Jews for Jesus: An Illustration of Syncretism,” Anthropological Quarterly 53, no. 2 (1980): 101.
[22] Lapide and Moltmann, Jewish Monotheism, 40.
[23] Ariel, Evangelizing, 103.
[24] Ariel, Evangelizing, 57.
[25] Ariel, Evangelizing, 162.
[26] Gordis, Israel, 40.
[27] Pauline Kollontai, “Messianic Jews and Jewish Identity,” Journal of Modern Jewish Studies 3, no. 2 (2004): 200.
[28] Soref, “The Messianic Jewish Movement,” Chap. 8.
