Jews for Jesus

Jews for Jesus
Formation1970 (as Hineni Ministries), 1973 (as Jews for Jesus)
FounderMoishe Rosen
Type501(c)(3) organization
PurposeProselytism
HeadquartersSan Francisco, California, U.S.
Formerly called
Hineni Ministries

Jews for Jesus, formerly known as Hineni Ministries, is a Christian missionary group. The group is known for proselytising (converting someone to a different religion) Jews to Christianity. It is associated with Messianic Judaism, a religious movement that combines Judaism and Evangelicalism. Its headquarters are in San Francisco, California and the group was founded in 1970 by Moishe Rosen.

History

Moishe Rosen, a Baptist member of the Hebrew Christian religious movement, founded Jews for Jesus in 1970. Originally, the group was called Hineni Ministries. It was a subsidiary (smaller company part of a bigger one) of the American Board of Missions to Jews (AMBJ). In 1973, Rosen left the AMBJ. The group changed its name to Jews for Jesus. It became a 501(c)(3) organization instead of a subsidiary.[1]

Rosen and the group's members began to go to streets and college campuses in San Francisco, California to convert Jews to Christianity. They then made branches (smaller groups affiliated with the main one) of the group in New York, Boston, and Chicago. In 1981, the group moved to other countries.[2] In 2025, the group said they had offices in fifteen cities in twelve different countries.[3]

Rosen was the executive director (highest position) of the group from 1970 to 1999. In 1999, he left the position to become a full-time missionary. David Brickner became the new executive director.[4] In May 2024, Brickner was replaced by Aaron Abramson.[5]

Beliefs

Jews for Jesus is associated with Messianic Judaism. This is a new religious movement that combines parts of Judaism with Evangelical Christianity.[6] The group says that Jewish heritage and Christian faith can be combined.[3] The group has a statement of faith that says that the Old Testament and New Testament are both true and that God has three forms: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.[7]

Reception and controversies

Jews for Jesus is controversial because most Jewish and Christian groups say that Messianic Judaism is Christian and not Jewish.[8][9]

Efraim Davidson, a rabbi, said that Jews for Jesus is "manipulative, deceptive and anti-Semitic." He started a group called Torah Atlanta, a counter-missionary group.[10] Another rabbi, Bentizon Kravitz, started a group called Jews for Judaism (based off "Jews for Jesus") in 1985 to make Jews not convert to other religions.[11]

Lawsuits

In 1987, a member of Jews for Jesus was told to leave the Los Angeles International Airport because he was giving away free pamphlets and writings from the group. The group went to the United States Supreme Court. In Board of Commissioners of Los Angeles v. Jews for Jesus Inc., every justice (member of the Supreme Court) voted in favor of Jews for Jesus. They said the First Amendment gave them free speech.[12][13]

In 1998, Jews for Jesus sued Steven Brodsky for cybersquatting. This is when someone makes a website with a copyrighted name, usually with bad intentions. Brodsky made a website called jewsforjesus.org and criticized the group on the website. Because of the lawsuit, the group now owns and uses the website name.[14] In 2005, the group sued Google because a user on Blogspot made a blog called jewsforjesus.blogspot.com. In September 2006, the case was settled out of court.[15]

In 2006, comedian and actor Jackie Meson sued Jews for Jesus. He said that the group released a pamphlet that used his name and image in a way that implied that he was a member of the group. He sued for $2 million.[16] Meson is Jewish but not a member of Jews for Jesus.[17] The pamphlet showed a picture of Meson with text saying "Jackie Meson... a Jew for Jesus!?".[16] In December 2006, the group's executive director, David Brickner, wrote an apology to Meson. Meson then dropped the lawsuit. He accepted the apology, but said, "there's no such thing as a Jew for Jesus. It's like saying a black man is for the KKK. You can't be a table and a chair. You're either a Jew or a gentile."[18]

That Jew Died for You YouTube video

In 2014, Jews for Jesus released a three-minute long YouTube video called That Jew Died for You. It was released on 28 April, which was also Passover, Holy Week, and Holocaust Remembrance Day.[19] The video showed Jesus dragging a large wooden cross until a guard at the Auschwitz concentration camp sends him to the gas chambers and says "just another Jew" in German.[20] Jews for Jesus said that the point of the video was for victims (instead of the culprits) of the Holocaust to identify with Jesus. They said that "the Holocaust has been used – perhaps more than any other event or topic – to prevent Jewish people from considering the good news of Jesus."[19] In The Jewish Daily Forward, Jay Michaelson said that it was "the most tasteless YouTube video ever" and that , "it desecrates the memory of six million Jews to use their suffering as a way to convert Jews to Christianity."[21] Jews for Jesus asked the Fox News Channel and History to play the video, but they refused to.[20]

References

  1. ↑ Harris-Shapiro, Carol (1999). Messianic Judaism: A rabbi's journey through religious change in America. Beacon Press. p. 25. ISBN 9780807010402.
  2. ↑ "Retiring Jews for Jesus Leader Nurtures a Growing Faith". SFChronicle.com. 1996-06-15. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "About Jews for Jesus". jewsforjesus.org. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  4. ↑ Green, Emma (2014-12-23). "Hanukkah With the Jews for Jesus". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  5. ↑ Ben-Nun, Sarah (August 31, 2024). "Jews for Jesus CEO to 'Post': I see us as brothers and sisters, not enemies". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  6. ↑ "Messianic Movement - Messianic Jewish Alliance of America". 2023-04-27. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  7. ↑ "Statement of Faith". Jews for Jesus. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  8. ↑ Burton, Tara Isabella (2018-10-31). "Messianic Jews and Jews for Jesus, explained". Vox. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  9. ↑ "Who Are Messianic "Jews"?". My Jewish Learning. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  10. ↑ Portland Jews Brace for Assault by 'Jews for Jesus' Archived 2006-05-15 at the Wayback Machine By Paul Haist (Jewish Review) Retrieved 2025-01-13
  11. ↑ Carol Brzozowski, "Former Convert Fights Christians Who Convert Jews", South Florida Sun-Sentinel, March 04, 1988.
  12. ↑ Sekulow, Jay; Zimmerman, Erik (2012–2013). "Reflections on Jews for Jesus: Twenty-Five Years Later" (PDF). Regent University Law Review. 25 (1): 1–23. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  13. ↑ Savage, David (June 16, 1987). "LAX Ban on Soliciting Rejected by High Court : Justices Say Rule Goes Too Far in Limiting Free Speech; Larger Question of Exclusion Ignored". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  14. ↑ "Jews for Jesus: Targeting Jews for Conversion – Legal Cases". Anti-Defamation League of B'nai Brith. Archived from the original on 2012-10-13. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  15. ↑ staff, C. T. (2006-09-01). "Christianity Today News Briefs". Christianity Today. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "Oy! Jackie Mason sues Jews for Jesus". TODAY.com. 2006-08-25. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  17. ↑ "Comic sues Jews for Jesus". CNN. Archived from the original on 2006-08-29. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  18. ↑ "Jackie Mason drops Jews for Jesus lawsuit". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2006-12-06. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Heather Saul (25 April 2014). "Jews for Jesus video showing Jesus being sent to Nazi gas chambers sparks outrage". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2014-04-28.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 "'That Jew died for you' – the 'most tasteless YouTube video ever'?". Haaretz. 23 April 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-06-27.
  21. ↑ Jay Michaelson (17 April 2014). "When Jesus Died at Auschwitz". The Jewish Daily Forward. Archived from the original on 2015-03-17.