Messianic Judaism Its History Theology And Polity

Seeking to explain the enigma of Messianic Judaism in North America, this work deals with issues of persecution, misrepresentation, and defamation by both Jewish and Christian groups against Messianic Jews. The text considers several aspects of Messianic Judaism, including: its attempt to explode the ancient walls erected by Jews and Christians toward one another; its search for renewal of the Jewish roots of the body of Christ; and its efforts to express biblical faith and Messianic living in a contemporary Jewish dress.

This book is the go-to source for introductory information on Messianic Judaism. Editors David Rudolph and Joel Willitts have assembled a thorough examination of the ecclesial context and biblical foundations of the diverse Messianic Jewish movement. Unique among similar works in its Jew-Gentile partnership, this book brings together a team of respected Messianic Jewish and Gentile Christian scholars, including Mark Kinzer, Richard Bauckham, Markus Bockmuehl, Craig Keener, Darrell Bock, Scott Hafemann, Daniel Harrington, R. Kendall Soulen, Douglas Harink and others. Opening essays, written by Messianic Jewish scholars and synagogue leaders, provide a window into the on-the-ground reality of the Messianic Jewish community and reveal the challenges, questions and issues with which Messianic Jews grapple. The following predominantly Gentile Christian discussion explores a number of biblical and theological issues that inform our understanding of the Messianic Jewish ecclesial context. Here is a balanced and accessible introduction to the diverse Messianic Jewish movement that both Gentile Christian and Messianic Jewish readers will find informative and fascinating.

Who are the Messianic Jews? What do they believe and practice? What is the Jewish community's reaction to the development of Messianic Judaism? In this pioneering study, Dan Cohn-Sherbok traces the development of the Messianic movement from ancient times to its transformation after World War II. Focusing on the nature of the movement today, the volume continues with a detailed examination of Messianic practices, and the place of Messianic Judaism within the contemporary Jewish community.

The apostle Paul wrote that all believers--Jewish and Gentile--are to serve the Lord together as "one new man." But a growing movement today seeks to keep that from happening. As Stan Telchin explains, proponents of Messianic Judaism are confusing both Jewish and Gentile followers of Jesus and dividing the church. Their insistence on following rabbinic form and their statements that Jewish believers need to be in Messianic synagogues in order to maintain their identities are unbiblical. Telchin discusses the growth of this movement, its unscriptural doctrines, and its ineffectiveness in Jewish evangelism. Those who have been swept up by the nostalgia and beauty of "Jewishness" or who have been hurt by division in the Body or who love Israel will find their hearts and minds freed by this firm but loving message.

God grabbed hold of a Presbyterian pastor to take him to the religion of Messianic Jews. What follows is a mystery story that reveals answers to the dilemmas in a problematic faith. In traditional rabbinic Judaism it is blasphemy and in church doctrine it is heresy. But as a third biblical religion with its own soteriology it is neither false nor mistaken. Untying the knot of contradictions in Messianic Judaism sheds light on the eminence of Judaism and the chauvinism of Christianity. It turns familiar assumptions upside down with a monotheistic hermeneutic for reading the New Testament and an inclusive soteriology unfolding the revelation of God's new idea. It is new wine that invites believers to a deeper devotion through reexamination of fundamental truths. The majority of Messianic congregations share many of the beliefs and teachings of evangelical Protestantism, a choice that has not achieved the goals of the Messianic movement--because the contradiction in the evangelical assumption is real. Explore the alternative truths of radical monotheism through the eyes of a gentile convert from the church who learned to read the Bible with new eyes and met Yeshua (Jesus) again for the first time.

God grabbed hold of a Presbyterian pastor to take him to the religion of Messianic Jews. What follows is a mystery story that reveals answers to the dilemmas in a problematic faith. In traditional rabbinic Judaism it is blasphemy and in church doctrine it is heresy. But as a third biblical religion with its own soteriology it is neither false nor mistaken. Untying the knot of contradictions in Messianic Judaism sheds light on the eminence of Judaism and the chauvinism of Christianity. It turns familiar assumptions upside down with a monotheistic hermeneutic for reading the New Testament and an inclusive soteriology unfolding the revelation of God's new idea. It is new wine that invites believers to a deeper devotion through reexamination of fundamental truths. The majority of Messianic congregations share many of the beliefs and teachings of evangelical Protestantism, a choice that has not achieved the goals of the Messianic movement—because the contradiction in the evangelical assumption is real. Explore the alternative truths of radical monotheism through the eyes of a gentile convert from the church who learned to read the Bible with new eyes and met Yeshua (Jesus) again for the first time.