wfn.org | Israel's Anti-Missionary Bill Raises Fears for Some Christians

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12-February-1998 
98047 
 
    Israel's Anti-Missionary Bill Raises 
    Fears for Some Christians 
 
    by Ross Dunn 
    Ecumenical News International 
 
JERUSALEM-An anti-missionary bill before the Israeli parliament is causing 
deep concern among some Christian groups in Israel who fear that, if 
passed, it could prevent residents of Israel from possessing copies of the 
New Testament. 
 
    The proposals contained in the bill - which is opposed by the Israeli 
government - seek to extend bribery laws which since 1977 have made it 
illegal to offer anyone "material inducement" to change their religion. 
 
    Under the new proposals, there would be prison sentences for all who 
possess, print or reproduce, spread, import or publicize "things in which 
there is an inducement to religious conversion."   All such material would 
be confiscated. 
 
    The bill is sponsored by a member of the opposition Labor Party and a 
member of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish religious group.  But Israel's prime 
minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, recently published an open letter in which he 
stated: "The government strenuously objects to this bill, and will act to 
ensure that it does not pass." 
 
    Some commentators believe that concern in some Orthodox Jewish circles 
has been prompted by the growth of the Messianic Jewish movement, which 
proclaims Jesus as the Messiah, the fulfilment of the promises in the 
Hebrew scriptures.  Rather than joining existing churches, Messianic Jews 
maintain their Jewish identity and worship in Messianic congregations. 
According to figures published in the "Catholic Herald" in London, there 
are about 200 Messianic congregations in the United States and 90 in 
Israel. 
 
    One of the bill's sponsors told the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, 
last year that "a real and concerted missionary effort is under way in 
Israel to cause the Jewish public to convert its religion."  Recently an 
organization in the U.S. mailed into Israel thousands of books translated 
into Hebrew aimed at converting Jews to Christianity. 
 
    However, mainstream Christian churches in the region are reasonably 
confident that the proposals will never become law and that in any case 
their effects would not be as far-reaching as some evangelical groups fear. 
 
    One of the most vocal opponents of the bill is Charles H. Wagner Jr., 
international director of a Christian organization, Bridges for Peace in 
Jerusalem. 
 
    "As the leader of a Christian organization, I appreciate the 
sensitivities of the Jewish community," he said.  "After all, for the past 
1,800 years, Christians have tried to force the conversion of Jews 
throughout the Western world, even to the point of death, for example, in 
the Crusades and the Inquisition." 
 
    But, he said, the new law would imprison a person simply for possessing 
literature that could be seen as an inducement to religious conversion. 
This would represent a threat to freedom of religion and conscience, 
freedom of speech and individual rights. 
 
    "There is a question of who will define which literature is `an 
inducement to religious conversion.'  As a Christian, simply possessing a 
New Testament for personal use at home could be technical violation of this 
law, if some fanatic group wanted to press the issue," he said. 
 
    This could also apply, for example, to a Jewish scholar at Jerusalem's 
Hebrew University who was in possession of such books, he said. 
 
    Wagner said the missionary activity that had inspired the bill had 
originated overseas and could not be stopped, adding that it was "simply 
overkill for a problem that hardly exists in Israel." 
 
    But the sponsors of the bill - Nissim Zvili of the left-wing Opposition 
Labor Party and Moshe Gafni of the United Torah Judaism, an ultra-orthodox 
Jewish religious group - believe that the problem is not small. 
 
    Zvili agreed to back the proposal after the Labor Party was accused by 
ultra-orthodox Jews of cutting itself off from Jewish values.  "To prove 
them wrong," Zvili said, "I told them I would be willing to do something 
for Judaism." 
 
    He then helped to draft the legislation and last year explained his 
actions in a speech to the Knesset.  "Operating in Israel are organizations 
that have taken it upon themselves to undermine the very foundations of our 
society," he said.  "It is estimated that over the past five years, 24,000 
Jews have converted to Christianity." 
 
    The secretary of the (Roman Catholic) Latin Patriarchate in Jerusalem, 
Bazir Farouk, said  he believed  international pressure would stop passage 
of the legislation.  "It will be stopped," he said, adding that Roman 
Catholics did not fear the bill would affect any of their activities. 
 
    Karl Ronecker of the Redeemer (Lutheran) Church in Jerusalem also 
believes that the legislation will have little effect on the members of his 
church.  He said the Lutheran Church was opposed to sending out pamphlets 
to Jewish households in a bid to convert them to Christianity. 
 
    "We have an understanding for the Jewish side after the Holocaust," he 
said.  "The Jews say: `Having robbed us of our lives, you have no right to 
rob us of our faith.'  We have sympathy for this view." 
 
    At the same time, he said, Israel was also a democracy and there needed 
to be careful consideration of any such legislation.  One needed to know if 
the bill would jeopardize civil liberty and religious rights. 
 
    Ronecker said that he personally did not believe that the legislation 
would stop people from possessing copies of the New Testament.  But he 
understood the concerns of fellow Christian groups that the bill should in 
no way affect their religious freedom. 

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