Chief Rabbi and Yad L'achim on trial for 2005 attack on Messianic congregation

On Christmas Eve 2005, the Nachalat Yeshua Messianic Congregation in Beersheba, Israel gathered to celebrate the coming of Christ and to baptize two young women.  As the service began, however, approximately 500 hundred Orthodox Jews, including a number of children, stormed the meeting.  They were invited to stay. The intruders, however, began to dance around the room and sing while overturning tables and chairs.  The agitators then began beating the Christians.  Objects were thrown into the baptismal pool and approximately $2000 damage was caused to church property.  The hatred of this group was evident as youths told one Christian woman who tried to enter the building that Christians are Nazis and deserve a bullet in the head. 

The Yad L'achim anti-missionary organization and the Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Beersheba, Yehuda Deri, who was present stood throughout the incident were charged and their trial began on June 10.  It is hoped that this case will highlight the ill treatment that Messianic Jews often suffer in Israel and support their right to worship freely and without harassment. Please pray.

In the upcoming July edition of The Voice of the Martyrs Newsletter you can also read an article on the reality of what it often means to live as a Christian in Israel and the Palestinian territories entitled The forgotten church.  Click here to apply for your free subscription and we will send you out a copy of the July edition right away.