It has been reported by Israeli Messianic Jewish pastor Israel Pochtar, that the Ashdod Police have just interrogated a sixteen year old Israeli citizen following a wave of attacks and persecution launched against the Beit Hallel Messianic Congregation in Ashdod. However he was not the perpetrator of an attack but the victim!
Cross posted from Rosh Pina:-
It has been reported by Israeli Messianic Jewish pastor Israel Pochtar, that the Ashdod Police have just interrogated a sixteen year old Israeli citizen following a wave of attacks and persecution launched against the Beit Hallel Messianic Congregation in Ashdod. However he was not the perpetrator of an attack but the victim!
Yad L’Achim, an anti-messianic organization, has filed a police complaint against Beit Hallel claiming, they broke the law by holding a “missionary event for teenagers”. They based their allegations on the youth conference held at Beit Hallel where some youth in the congregation invited some of their friends. Sixteen year old Dima shared his faith with his friends and ended up getting beaten up by them, resulting in surgery to correct his broken nose.
Dima, a very gifted guitar player, was summoned to the police station to give a statement, since he was one of the young people who invited some of his friends, via Facebook, to attend the youth night at Beit Hallel. When he was there and was answering questions, he was asked about his faith and how he came to be a believer in Yeshua. Dima stated that he understands his faith, not as a different religion, but rather returning to his spiritual roots. He said “we’ve not converted to anything; we believe in the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua.” What started off as a series of questions quickly turned into a full interrogation behind closed doors, which ended with the police taking his photo and fingerprints, treating him as though he was a criminal. When he was finally let go, the officer told him to stop “missionizing”, to which Dima replied: “I never started “missionizing”, I’m just sharing my faith!”
Such is the hysteria caused by groups like Yad L’Achim, surrounding Messianic Jews in Israel, that even a sixteen year old telling his friends what he believes can result in a serious physical attack. A sixteen year old minor can be taken in for questioning, (it seems without a laywer with him), by the police about a Facebook invite and end up getting criminalised for his faith and having the temerity to talk about it! We know that it can also lead to attempted murder as it the case of a fifteen year old Messianic Jew, Ami Ortiz and the mishloach manot bomb at Purim a year and a half ago.
It is hypocritical when it is Israeli teenagers that are the recent targets of anti-messianic hatred and violence, for groups like Yad L’Achim, to claim to be concerned about Israeli youth!
If you have stumbled onto this blog and are not a Christian, get yourself a hot drink, pull up a comfy chair and then tuck into the following article written by one of the best in the business:- All Of Grace by Charles Spurgeon
Tags: Christian Persecution, Israel