Rabbenu
A Discussion of Messianic Judaism, the Emerging Messianic Jewish Paradigm, and Related Leadership Issues from the Preoccupied Mind of Rabbi Stuart Dauermann, PhD.
All Contents ©2004-2007 Stuart Dauermann - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Letter to the Editor on a Misguided Critique of Messianic Judaism - Part Two
Friends,
In the fullness of time, the Editor of the Fredericksburg paper wrote me asking for a shorter version of the letter I first sent her. Below you will find the shorter version I sent, and the URL for their edited version which they published.
Just bringing you all up to date. Shalom.
The recent article by Joe Katz reminds me of what children might say about a big, gabled, somewhat gothic neighborhood house, frightening one another away by saying it is haunted. However, just as when one actually meets the people in the house, and discovers them to be warmly human, even if a bit quirky, so when one actually meets the people dwelling in the “House of Messianic Judaism,” one finds us to be somewhat average!
Mr. Katz’s facts and perceptions are disordered and distorted. For example, he alleges that Messianic Judaism is but the creation of Moishe Rosen’s Jews for Jesus. In order to do so, he employs a mixture of half-truths, untruths, and boogey-men. attempting to level the many varieties of Messianic Judaism into one malicious conspiracy. However, anyone at all familiar with Messianic Judaism will know us to be extremely diverse, and that wide swaths of the movement take sharp issue with Jews for Jesus on a number of matters, and that one Jews for Jesus staff member wrote a book denouncing Messianic Judaism, for which Moishe Rosen, Jews for Jesus founder, wrote the Foreword. This is hardly the unified conspiracy Mr. Katz alleges to have exposed!
Mr.Katz is not lying, but rather frightened and misinformed. He cares about Jewish continuity and Jewish-Christian relations, as do we. For example, this week I will be speaking at a local church on why Christians have low credibility with many Jews, providing eight reasons why the Jews are not a has-been people, as alleged in some Christian theological constructs, and why Jewish continuity should be the concern of all well-meaning Christians.Instead of standing outside our gate, crying “Boogey-man,” I recommend that he and your readers muster courage and come inside the Messianic Jewish house to meet the sometimes quirky, highly diverse, but genuine people who live within.
As one of them, I welcome you, and wish you all, Shalom.
Rabbi Stuart Dauermann, PhD
Professor of Spirituality - Messianic Jewish Theological Institute of the
Union of Messianic Jewish Congregations
To see how they edited it and published it visit the following URL:
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2007/042007/04282007/276552
posted by Stuart Dauermann @ 12:46 PM
1 comments
Excellent Job Rabbi Dr. Dauermann!
Post a Comment
<< Home