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			{{Short description\|Messianic Jewish organization}}
	]
			{{Infobox organization
	] office of Jews for Jesus.]]
			\| name = Jews for Jesus
	'''Jews for Jesus''' is a ],<ref name=RELTOL>"Their doctrinal statement is basically indistinguishable from Evangelical and other conservative Christian groups."</ref> ]<ref>
			\| native_name_lang = eng
	*"During my time with the mission, I found Jews for Jesus to be a Christian ministry (or Messianic, if you prefer) with a passion for the good news about Jesus…"'' Pastor Lev Leigh. Hope Baptist Church. Richmond, CA ()
			\| image = Jews for Jesus logo.svg
	*"… Jews for Jesus and other Christian groups who hold to the uniqueness of Christ." ( Jews for Jesus, Press Release. August 19, 2002)
			\| formation = {{start date and age\|df=yes\|1970}} (as Hineni Ministries).
	*"Clothed in colorful shirts with large writing identifying their Christian group, Jews for Jesus has been keeping up with the 24-hour-running city, handing out tens of thousands of literature and promoting their evangelistic campaign – Behold Your God – through media outlets." (''Christian Post''. )
			{{start date and age\|df=yes\|1973}} (as Jews for Jesus)
	</ref><ref></ref> ] organization that focuses specifically on the ] of ]s to ]. Its members consider themselves to be Jews – either as defined by Jewish law, or as according to the view of Jews for Jesus. Jews for Jesus defines “Jewish” in terms of parentage and as a birthright, regardless of religious belief.<ref>"We believe that Jewishness is a birthright. It is inherited from our parents.
			\| founder = ]
	Our people are not of one culture; we have diverse cultural expressions (Ashkenazi/Sephardi, Georgian/Russian, Ethiopian, Persian, etc.). Our people are not of one religion. While Judaism might be the traditional religion for many Jewish people, Jews are still considered Jewish even though they might be atheists or even if they embrace other beliefs.
			\| type = ]
	Those who say that Jews who believe in Jesus are errant Jews or misguided Jews are entitled to their opinions. But they are not entitled to negate our Jewishness. We are Jews by birth and that cannot change."</ref> The identification of Jews for Jesus as a ] organization is overwhelmingly rejected by ]<ref>"There is virtual unanimity across all denominations ]] that Jews for Jesus are not Jewish." (Kaplan, Dana Evan. ''The Cambridge Companion to American Judaism'', Cambridge University Press, August 15, 2005, pp. 139–140).</ref><ref name=CCAJ9>"For most American Jews, it is acceptable to blend some degree of foreign spiritual elements with Judaism. The one exception is Christianity, which is perceived to be incompatible with any form of Jewishness. Jews for Jesus and other Messianic Jewish groups are thus seen as antithetical to Judaism and are completely rejected by the majority of Jews". (Kaplan, Dana Evan. ''The Cambridge Companion to American Judaism'', Cambridge University Press, August 15, 2005, p. 9).
			\| status =
	</ref> and secular Jewish groups<ref>
			\| purpose = Religious proselytization
	* "To make the record clear, Jews for Jesus is a Christian missionary organization – period." , ] website, retrieved September 11, 2006.
			\| headquarters = ], ], U.S.
	* "Messianic Jewish organizations, such as Jews for Jesus, often refer to their faith as fulfilled Judaism, in that they believe Jesus fulfilled the Messianic prophecies. Although Messianic Judaism claims to be Jewish, and many adherents observe Jewish holidays, most Jews regard Messianic Judaism as deceptive at best, fraudulent at worst. They charge that Messianic Judaism is actually Christianity presenting itself as Judaism." (Balmer, Randall. ''Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism'', Baylor University Press, November 2004, p. 448).
			\| leader_title = Executive Director
	* "I do not seek, of course, covertly (as sometimes Jews for Jesus do) or overtly, to convert myself, or any other Jew to Christianity…" (Boyarin, Daniel. ''Border Lines: The Partition of Judaeo-Christianity'', University of Pennsylvania Press, July 2004, p. xii).
			\| leader_name = ]
	* "Certain Christian missionary groups have now set up a front organization called "Jews for Jesus," through which they entice naive Jews to Christianity…" (Stolper, Pinchas. "Was Jesus The Messiah? Let's Examine The Facts", in ]. ''Aryeh Kaplan Anthology: Volume 1'', Mesorah Publications, August 1991, p. 293).
			\| website = https://jewsforjesus.org/
	* "Even as I write, I fear that Christian missionaries or, even more insidiously, Jews for Jesus—people who (unlike the redeeming avant-garde of Christianity) believe that Judaism is superseded, and Jewish have no right to exist as Jews any more—will misuse my words. These people, who believe that Christianity has taken over Judaism like some succubus that must now govern the behavior of its host body, seek to abolish the Jewish religion." (]. ''For the Sake of Heaven and Earth: The New Encounter Between Judaism and Christianity'', The Jewish Publication Society, October 2004, p. 97).
			\| formerly = Hineni Ministries
	* "It should now be clear to you why Jews have such a problem with 'Jews for Jesus' or other presentations of Messianic Judaism. I have no difficulty with Christianity. I even accept those Christians who would want me to convert to Christianity so long as they don't use coercion or duplicity and are willing to listen in good faith to my reasons for being Jewish. I do have a major problem with those Christians who would try to mislead me and other Jews into believing that one can be both Jewish and Christian." (Lotker, Michael. ''A Christian's Guide to Judaism'', Paulist Press, March 2004, p. 35).
			}}
	* "Evangelical Christians are engaged in aggressive and extensive missionary activity among Jews. Among other results, this has given rise to groups of 'messianic Jews', of which 'Jews for Jesus' is the most outstanding example. These are actually Jews who have adopted the evangelical Protestant faith and its precepts." (], ''Terms of Survival'', Routledge (UK), March 1995, p. 343).
			{{Messianic Judaism}}
	* "Messianic Judaism is a Christian movement that began in the 1970s combining a mixture of Jewish ritual and Christianity. There are a vast and growing numbers of these groups, and they differ in how much Jewish ritual is mixed with conventional Christian belief. One end of the spectrum is represented by Jews For Jesus, who simply target Jews for conversion to Christianity using imitations of Jewish ritual solely as a ruse for attracting the potential Jewish converts. On the other end are those who don't stress the divinity of Jesus, but present him as the 'Messiah.'" {{cite web
	\|url=http://www.messiahtruth.com/response.html
	\|title=Messiah Truth. Messianic Judaism: A Christian Missionary Movement
	}}</ref><ref name=Schiffman></ref> due to the Christian beliefs of its members. The group's evangelical activities have garnered mixed reactions from other Christian individuals and organizations, largely divided between ] and ] lines.<ref>Others who oppose the evangelism related activities of Jews for Jesus:
	* Benjamin Hubbard; John Hatfield, James Santucci (1997). ''America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices.'' Teacher Ideas Press, a Division of Libraries Unlimited, p.100. ISBN 1-56308-469-4.
	* Balmer, Randall. ''Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism,'' Baylor University Press, November 2004, p. 448
	* "Today, many evangelical Christian-Protestant groups are spending between 100,000,000 and 150,000,000 dollars a year to transform Jews into Christians. The best known of these organization is Jews for Jesus…". (Berkley, E. George. ''Jews'', Branden Books, February 1997, p. 129).
	* "Thirdly, there is Jews for Jesus or, more generally, Messianic Judaism. This is a movement of people often of Jewish background who have come to believe Jesus is the expected Jewish messiah… They often have congregations independent of other churches and specifically target Jews for conversion to their form of Christianity." (]. ''After the Evil: Christianity and Judaism in the Shadow of the Holocaust'', Oxford University Press, August 2003, p. 119.)
	* "…Jews for Jesus (Jews converted to 'born again' Christianity who are seeking to make more such converts…". (] ''When Faiths Collide'', Blackwell Publishing, January 2005, p. 35).
	*"Jews for Jesus, the leading organization dedicated to converting Jews to Christianity, has long been a concern because of its aggressive proselytizing with a deceptive message: that Jews who accept Jesus as the son of God and their savior remain Jewish." , ], August 27, 2004, retrieved September 11, 2006.
	* "Jews for Jesus is a sect of a very different nature. This group… has a sole motivational goal of converting Jews to Christianity." Fogel, Keith and Marian E. ''Conversos of the Americas'', Xlibris Corporation, April 2004, p. 169).
	* "Jews for Jesus is an evangelical Christian organization …" (exjewsforjesus.org)
	* "… its doctrine is strictly Christian in the fundamentalist/evangelical understanding of Christian faith" (exjewsforjesus.org)</ref><ref name=RELTOL>Robinson, B. , ], October 29, 2001.</ref>

			'''Jews for Jesus''' is an international ]ary organization headquartered in ], that is affiliated with the ] religious movement. The group is known for its ]<ref>{{Cite news \|last=Haag \|first=Matthew \|date=2018-10-30 \|title=How a 'Jews for Jesus' Moment Backfired for Mike Pence (Published 2018) \|language=en-US \|work=The New York Times \|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/30/us/mike-pence-rabbi-jacobs.html \|access-date=2021-03-12 \|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web \|last1=Jacob \|first1=Jeff \|date=5 November 2018 \|title=Are 'Jews for Jesus' Jewish? – The Boston Globe (opinion) \|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2018/11/05/are-jews-for-jesus-jewish/f3RTVrAkzTKMhICSAvbaHJ/story.html \|access-date=2021-03-12 \|website=The Boston Globe \|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web \|last=Burton \|first=Tara Isabella \|date=2018-10-31 \|title=Messianic Jews and Jews for Jesus, explained \|url=https://www.vox.com/2018/10/31/18042506/jew-for-jesus-messianic-jews-loren-jacobs-mike-pence \|access-date=2021-03-12 \|website=Vox \|language=en}}</ref> and promotes the belief that ] is the ] and the ].<ref name="thearda.com">{{Cite web \|title=Movements {{!}} Messianic Judaism {{!}} Timeline {{!}} The Association of Religion Data Archives \|url=https://www.thearda.com/timeline/movements/movement_49.asp \|access-date=2021-02-24 \|website=www.thearda.com \|archive-date=2021-07-15 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210715103208/https://www.thearda.com/timeline/movements/movement_49.asp \|url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=":02">{{Cite web \|title=Who We Are \|url=https://jewsforjesus.org/about/who-we-are/ \|website=Jews for Jesus}}</ref> It was founded in 1970 by ] as '''Hineni Ministries''' before being incorporated under its current name in 1973.
	== History ==
	The organization was founded by ], an ordained ] minister<ref> by Jason Levinson (Torah Atlanta)</ref> who was born Jewish and converted to Christianity at the age of 17<ref name=ADL_M> (])</ref>. Rosen was the head of the San Francisco arm of the American Board of Missions to the Jews (an organization now known as ]). In 1973, Rosen broke off from that organization<ref name="Balmer2002">{{cite book\|author=Randall Herbert Balmer\|title=Encyclopedia of evangelicalism\|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=syUupeVJOz4C&pg=PA127\|accessdate=21 August 2011\|year=2002\|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press\|isbn=978-0-664-22409-7\|pages=127–\|quote=Chosen People Ministries Shortly after Leopold Cohn arrived in New York City from Hungary in 1892, he forsook his Jewish heritage and converted to Christianity. He founded the Williamsburg Mission in 1894 and started a newsletter, ''Chosen People'', in an attempt to apprise Christians of evangelistic initiatives among the Jews. In 1924, Cohn gave the Williamsburg Mission a new name, the American Board of Missions to the Jews; the administration of the organization devolved in 1937 to Joseph H. Cohn, a graduate of Moody Bible Institute, after the death of his father, the mission's founder. The San Francisco arm of the American Board of Missions to the Jews, headed by Moishe Rosen, broke off from the national organization in 1973 to form Jews for Jesus. The original mission changed its name yet again in 1986, to Chosen People Ministries. The organization, now based in Charlotte, North Carolina, produces a daily radio program, ''Through Jewish Eyes'', occasional television specials, and various evangelistic materials.}}</ref>, and in September of that year, incorporated Jews for Jesus as Hineni Ministries with its headquarters in the San Francisco area. Over the next few years, it established branches in other cities. In 1979, it shut down its branches for up to several years to retrain its missionaries. It then went on to open more branches, mostly in United States cities, in the 1980s, as well as abroad in the 1990s. Rosen remained its executive director until May, 1996 when he was replaced by ],<ref name=RELTOL/> also a Baptist minister<ref>http://brickner.jewsforjesus.org/about.htm</ref>. Moishe Rosen died in May, 2010. The organization has maintained its headquarters in or near San Francisco, California since its inception.<ref name="JforJtimeline">{{cite web \|url=http://www.jewsforjesus.org/about/timeline/ \|title=Jews for Jesus Timeline \|accessdate=21 August 2011}}</ref>

			There are no ] religious authorities{{clarification needed\|date=September 2023}} that consider Jews for Jesus to be a Jewish organization, mainly because the founder is a ordained ] minister and should therefore not be involved in reshaping ]. Rabbinical authorities<ref name=":0">{{Cite web\|title=Jews for Jesus\|url=http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jews-for-jesus\|access-date=2018-04-23\|website=www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org\|language=en}}</ref> point out that there is only one mention of the ] (the ] to Jews) in its "Statement of Faith".<ref name=":0" /> Additionally, the ] determined that Messianic Jews are not actually Jews as belief in Jesus as the Messiah is not a Jewish value.<ref name=":0" /> Instead, most Jews view Jesus either as a good Jewish teacher or as a ], but most certainly a failed messiah claimant.<ref>{{cite book \|last=Levine \|first=Amy-Jill \|author-link=Amy-Jill Levine \|date=2006 \|title=The misunderstood Jew : the Church and the Scandal of the Jewish Jesus \|url=https://archive.org/details/misunderstoodjew00levi \|location=San Francisco \|publisher=Harper-Collins \|isbn=978-0-060-78966-4}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web\|title=What Do Jews Believe About Jesus?\|url=https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/what-do-jews-believe-about-jesus/\|access-date=2021-03-09\|website=My Jewish Learning\|language=en-US}}</ref>
	== Aims and organization ==
	Jews for Jesus is based in ], ]. Jews for Jesus official ] is "to make the Messiahship of Jesus an unavoidable issue to our Jewish people worldwide." Through media advertisements, production and distribution of literature, producing music and organizing person-to-person ], the organization asserts that "a specifically Jewish mission" is necessary, saying "Jewish people tend to dismiss evangelistic methods and materials that are couched in Christian lingo, because they reinforce the assumption that Jesus is for 'them' not 'us.'"<ref> (Jews for Jesus)</ref>

			== History ==
	Jews for Jesus promotes awareness of the Jewish heritage of the Christian faith. Their website contains brief descriptions of Jewish festivals.<ref name=judaica></ref> The group also provides programs that provide their Christian interpretation of Jewish holidays such as ], ] and ], explaining what they consider messianic elements and how they believe these festivals are related to Jesus.
			Jews for Jesus was founded by ], a ] minister of the ] movement and a former member of the ] (ABMJ). The organization was formed in 1970 under the name "Hineni Ministries" as a subsidiary group of the ABMJ.<ref>{{Cite book\|last=Harris-Shapiro\|first=Carol\|title=Messianic Judaism: A rabbi's journey through religious change in America\|publisher=Beacon Press\|year=1999\|isbn=9780807010402\|pages=25}}</ref> In 1973, Rosen left ABMJ and incorporated his ministry as a ] non-profit organization<ref>{{cite book\|author=Carol Harris-Shapiro\|url=https://archive.org/details/messianicjudaism0000harr\|title=Messianic Judaism: A rabbi's journey through religious change in America\|publisher=Beacon Press\|year=1999\|isbn=9780807010402\|page=\|url-access=registration}}</ref> under the name "Jews for Jesus". Originally, "Jews for Jesus" was one of the organization's several slogans, but after the media began to call the group "Jews for Jesus", the organization adopted the name.

			Rosen and members began conducting community outreach on streets and college campuses of ]. In the following years, branches were established in ], ], and ]. In 1978, the Jews for Jesus headquarters relocated to its current location in San Francisco. In 1981, the organization expanded internationally.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Retiring-Jews-for-Jesus-Leader-Nurtures-a-Growing-2978253.php\|title=Retiring Jews for Jesus Leader Nurtures a Growing Faith\|date=1996-06-15\|website=SFChronicle.com\|language=en-US\|access-date=2020-04-29}}</ref> According to the organization, as of 2021 it maintain offices in 13 countries and 15 cities around the world.<ref>{{Cite web\|title=About Jews for Jesus\|url=https://jewsforjesus.org/about\|access-date=2021-03-05\|website=jewsforjesus.org\|language=en}}</ref>
	==Beliefs==
	A summary of Jews for Jesus' beliefs:<ref> (Jews for Jesus) written January 1, 2005</ref>
	<blockquote>
	* The ] and ]s, as originally written, are ] and ].
	* Recognition of the value of ], but only where it is supported by the Bible.
	* God the creator exists as a trinity, is perfect, all wise, all powerful and all loving.
	* ], the second person of the Trinity, was ], lived a sinless life, died for the sins of all humanity, ], and is co-equal with God. ] to earth in the near future.
	* People are saved through a belief in ] and an acknowledgment of their sins, not by their achievements.
	* Heaven is a reward for those who are saved; Hell is a place of "everlasting conscious punishment" for the lost.
	* Israel exists as a covenant people through whom God continues to accomplish His purposes and that the Church is composed of both Jews and Gentiles who acknowledge Jesus as Messiah and Redeemer.
	</blockquote>

			Rosen remained Executive Director until 1996, when he stepped down to work full-time as a staff ]. <ref name=":1" /> He was replaced by ], who held the position until May 2024.<ref name=":1">{{cite web\|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/12/hanukkah-with-the-jews-for-jesus/383780/\|title=Hanukkah With the Jews for Jesus\|first=Emma\|last=Green\|website=] \|date=2014-12-23}}</ref> is the current Executive Director and CEO of Jews for Jesus.<ref>{{cite news \|last=Ben-Nun \|first=Sarah \|date=August 31, 2024 \|title=Jews for Jesus CEO to 'Post': I see us as brothers and sisters, not enemies \|url=https://www.jpost.com/christianworld/article-817035 \|work=Jerusalem Post \|access-date=September 4, 2024}} </ref>
	Jews for Jesus takes the mainstream Christian positions that Jesus is the ], that his coming was prophesied in the ], and that Jesus is the ], the second person of the ].

			== Beliefs ==
	According to an article on Jews for Jesus by B. Robinson of ], <blockquote>
			]
	Their doctrinal statement is basically indistinguishable from Evangelical and other conservative Christian groups. ... They differ from some Evangelical Christian groups in their belief that ] continues to exist as a "covenant people." They also integrate some Jewish customs and use ] and ] in some literature.<ref name=RELTOL/>
			] office of Jews for Jesus]]
	</blockquote>
			Jews for Jesus claims to ] ] and ] into spiritual harmony. They believe faith in Jesus is a viable expression of Jewish life.<ref>{{Cite web\|title=About Jews for Jesus\|url=https://jewsforjesus.org/about\|access-date=2021-03-08\|website=jewsforjesus.org\|language=en}}</ref>

			The organization summarizes its beliefs in a ]:<ref> (Jews for Jesus) written January 1, 2005</ref>
	==Stated core values==
			* The ] and the ] are ], without ], and are the final authority in all matters of faith and life. Traditional ] is in no way binding upon life or faith but of value only where it is supported by or conformable to the Word of God.
	Jews for Jesus describes its core values in the following way:
			* There is one sovereign God, existing in ]. They believe that this concept is rooted in Judaism.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://jewsforjesus.org/publications/issues/issues-v10-n08/a-look-at-the-trinity-from-a-messianic-jewish-perspective/\|title=A Look at the Trinity From a Messianic Jewish Perspective\|website=Jews for Jesus\|date=3 July 1996 }}</ref>
	{{col-begin}}
			* Mankind was created in the ], but due to sin has been separated from God.
	{{col-2}}
			* Jesus is the ] and died for the sin of mankind as a ]. All who believe in Him have salvation.
	They commit to:
			* The Church is an ] people in accordance with the New Covenant, comprising both Jews and Gentiles who acknowledge Jesus as Messiah and Redeemer.
	* Direct Jewish evangelism as their priority
			* Jesus will ] in order to consummate the prophesied purposes concerning His kingdom.
	* An ] lifestyle of availability, vulnerability and mobility
			* The bodily ] of the just and the unjust, the everlasting ] of the saved and the everlasting ] of the lost.
	* Striving for excellence in all that they do
	* Deploying only front-line ] who are Jewish or married to Jews
	* Principle-based operations and practice
	* Accountability to their mission family and the body of Messiah
	* Integrity and faithfulness
	* Creativity in their staff
	* Stepping out in courageous faith and taking risks for God.<ref> (Jews for Jesus) January 1, 2005</ref>
	{{col-2}}
	Understanding that they:
	* are under the authority of God and His word
	* desire to honor Messiah ] and
	* are dependent upon the enabling power of the ]
	{{col-end}}

			== Operations ==
	==Leadership, funding and outreach==
			Jews for Jesus is a registered ] organization that employs approximately 250 staff worldwide. Its headquarters are located in San Francisco, California, and operates offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto, Sydney, Johannesburg, London, Berlin, Paris, Budapest, Tel Aviv, Kyiv, Odesa, Moscow, and Jerusalem.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://jewsforjesus.org/find-locations\|title=Find Locations\|website=Jews for Jesus}}</ref>
	Jews for Jesus is funded by donations from Messianic Jews and like-minded ].<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.jewsforjesus.org/about/finances \|title=Finances\| publisher=Jews for Jesus\| accessdate=2008-11-08}}</ref><ref> by Jason Levinson (Torah Atlanta)</ref> It has a full-time staff of 150 employees running branch offices in nine cities across the United States.<ref name=RELTOL/>
	There are also branch offices in Australia, Brazil, Canada (in Montreal and Toronto), France, Germany (in Essen), Israel, Russia, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Ukraine (in Dnepropetrovsk, Kharkov, Kiev and Odessa). In addition to its English-language website, the group has websites in Hungarian, Persian, Italian, Spanish and Korean.<ref> (Jews for Jesus)</ref>

			Once well-known for their distribution of hand-drawn religious tracts, today Jews for Jesus conducts community engagement through other means. Examples of their outreach methods include Jewish holiday events, Bible studies, service projects, internet evangelism, and multi-purpose spaces such as the Moishe Rosen Center in Tel Aviv and the Upside Down Cafe in Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.jewsforjesus.org/about/what-we-do\|title=What We Do – About Jews for Jesus – Jews for Jesus}}</ref>
	According to the ], the group's total income in ] 2005 was US$17,523,386.<ref name=ECFA> (])</ref>

			=== Funding and organization ===
	==Methods of evangelizing==
			They are a charter member of the ]<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://www.ecfa.org/\|title=ECFA\|website=www.ecfa.org}}</ref> and of MissioNexus.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://missionexus.org/\|title=Missio Nexus\|website=missionexus.org}}</ref> Donations are tax deductible. An independent auditing firm, Eckhoff Accountancy, conducts the organization's annual audit.{{Citation needed\|date=March 2024}} According to the ], the group's total revenue in ] 2021 was US$37,431,707 and its total expenses was $25,888,924. Expense breakdown was $20,744,089 for program, $2,039,434 for administration, and $3,105,401 for fundraising.<ref name="ECFA">{{cite web \|title=Jews for Jesus (Charter Member Profile) - ECFA.org \|url=https://www.ecfa.org/MemberProfile.aspx?ID=6322 \|website=Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability \|access-date=23 March 2024 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601150029/https://www.ecfa.org/MemberProfile.aspx?ID=6322 \|archive-date=1 June 2023}}</ref>
	The majority of evangelism used by Jews for Jesus consists of large mailings and pamphleteering. The organization uses colorful pamphlets and T-shirts to get their message across and is known for targeting populations of Jews which they see as receptive to their message,<ref>Targeting vulnerable population groups:
	* "The organization is also known for targeting vulnerable populations of Jews. New Jewish immigrants and college freshman as well as senior citizens and interfaith couples are easy targets for the organization." ( by Stephanie Persin. ])
	*"Since people are most vulnerable at times of personal change and transition, the missionaries center their efforts on a number of vulnerable Jewish populations, including high school and college students, senior citizens, and recent immigrants." ( ])
	* "Such congregations are designed to appear Jewish, but they are actually fundamentalist Christian churches which use traditional Jewish symbols to lure the most vulnerable of our Jewish people into their ranks."
	( by Rabbi Tovia Singer)
	* "Young men and women are particularly vulnerable to evangelicals because so often these adolescents are unsure of themselves, the world around them, and the adulthood that awaits them. ... The elderly are also perilously vulnerable..." ( by Rabbi Tovia Singer (outreachjudaism.org). Also at )
	* "Deceptive proselytizing is practiced on the most vulnerable of populations – residents of hospitals and old aged homes, confused youth, college students away from home. These proselytizing techniques are tantamount to coerced conversions and should be condemned." ()
	* "Individuals are most vulnerable to these groups and their tactics when they are lonely and hurting, overwhelmed or confused, away from their support system or have lost a loved one or a close friend." ( by Scott Hillman, ''Jews For Judaism'')
	* "Their efforts here have drawn criticism from mainstream Jews and some Christians, who accuse Jews for Jesus of leading the vulnerable – the young, the old, recent immigrants..." ( By Matthew Hay Brown (Baltimore Sun) August 27, 2005
	* "Nonetheless, JFJ continues to make this contradictory claim, purposefully focusing on young, naïve, or socially vulnerable populations with their campaigns. College students, recent immigrants (most notably Russian Jews), and the elderly are targets for conversion." ( By Ethan Frenchman and Seth Mayer, ''Chicago Maroon''. October 4, 2005)</ref>
	such as recent immigrants, college students, senior citizens and interfaith couples.

			Jews for Jesus is governed by international boards of directors in the United States, Canada, South Africa, Australia, Israel, and Europe. The CEO is advised by an executive leadership team consisting of seven members.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://jewsforjesus.org/about/finances/\|title=Finances\|website=Jews for Jesus}}</ref>
	Stephanie Persin writes, "Evangelists in the organization have been trained to recite phrases from the Old Testament and to use ] words so as to convince potential converts that Jews for Jesus maintain Jewish traditions." <ref name=ADL_M/><ref> by Stephanie Persin (])</ref>

			== Public perception ==
	On their official website, Jews for Jesus says that they give out 8 million pamphlets a year.<ref></ref> They use college-age volunteers for much of their evangelism. Each July they send a team of 20 to 30 to ], which they say has the world's largest and most diverse Jewish population.<ref></ref>

			=== Jewish ===
	==Affiliations and support==
			Jews for Jesus has a contentious relationship with the Jewish community, and their methods have generated controversy. All Jewish authorities, as well as the governing bodies of the ], hold the view that ], the religious movement with which Jews for Jesus is affiliated, is not a sect of ] but a form of ]<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://www.vox.com/2018/10/31/18042506/jew-for-jesus-messianic-jews-loren-jacobs-mike-pence\|title=Messianic Jews and Jews for Jesus, explained\|last=Burton\|first=Tara Isabella\|date=2018-10-31\|website=Vox\|language=en\|access-date=2020-04-30}}</ref> Additionally, ]s who convert to Messianic Judaism are not recognized as Jewish by any Jewish movement.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/messianic-judaism/\|title=Who Are Messianic "Jews"?\|website=My Jewish Learning\|language=en-US\|access-date=2020-04-30}}</ref> However, Jews for Jesus says they "cannot support any efforts by Gentile believers to convert to any type of Judaism."<ref>{{Cite web\|title=I'm a Gentile Christian. Should I Keep the Torah?\|url=https://jewsforjesus.org/blog/im-a-gentile-christian-should-i-keep-the-torah\|access-date=2021-03-08\|website=jewsforjesus.org\|date=14 September 2020 \|language=en}}</ref>
	On the Christian counter-cult site ], Jews for Jesus is listed as an orthodox member of the Christianity family.<ref></ref>

			Belief in Jesus as ], ], or even a non-divine ]/] or ] (as in ]), is held as incompatible with Judaism by most ].<ref name=CCAJ9>"For most American Jews, it is acceptable to blend some degree of foreign spiritual elements with Judaism. The one exception is Christianity, which is perceived to be incompatible with any form of Jewishness. Jews for Jesus and other Messianic Jewish groups are thus seen as antithetical to Judaism and are completely rejected by the majority of Jews". (Kaplan, Dana Evan. ''The Cambridge Companion to American Judaism'', Cambridge University Press, August 15, 2005, p. 9).
	Jews for Jesus is a member of numerous evangelical Christian groups, including The ],<ref name=Assoc> (Jews for Jesus)</ref><ref> (Interdenominational Foreign Mission Association)</ref>
			</ref><ref name="incompat">A belief in the divinity of Jesus is incompatible with Judaism:
	the ],<ref name=ECFA/><ref name=Assoc/>
			* "The point is this: that the whole Christology of the Church — the whole complex of doctrines about the Son of God who died on the Cross to save humanity from sin and death — is incompatible with Judaism, and indeed in discontinuity with the Hebraism that preceded it." Rayner, John D. ''A Jewish Understanding of the World'', Berghahn Books, 1998, p. 187. {{ISBN\|1-57181-974-6}}
	the ],
			* "It has always been recognized, for instance, after the rise of Christianity and Islam, that these two religions are incompatible with Judaism and that no Jew can consistently embrace them while remaining an adherent of Judaism." Neusner, Jacob & Avery-Peck, Alan Jeffery. ''The Blackwell Reader in Judaism'', Blackwell Publishing, 2001, p. 8. {{ISBN\|0-631-20738-4}}
	the ],<ref> (Evangelical Fellowship of Canada)</ref>
			* "Aside from its belief in Jesus as the Messiah, Christianity has altered many of the most fundamental concepts of Judaism." ]. ''The Aryeh Kaplan Anthology: Volume 1, Illuminating Expositions on Jewish Thought and Practice'', Mesorah Publication, 1991, p. 264. {{ISBN\|0-89906-866-9}}
	the Canadian Council for Christian Charities, the Evangelical Alliance of Great Britain, the Evangelical Alliance of South Africa, the Fédération Evangélique de France (Evangelical Federation of France), and the Lausanne Consultation on Jewish Evangelism.<ref></ref>
			* " doctrine of Christ was and will remain alien to Jewish religious thought." Wylen, Stephen M. ''Settings of Silver: An Introduction to Judaism'', Paulist Press, 2000, p. 75. {{ISBN\|0-8091-3960-X}}
			* "For a Jew, however, any form of shituf is tantamount to idolatry in the fullest sense of the word. There is then no way that a Jew can ever accept Jesus as a deity, mediator or savior (messiah), or even as a prophet, without betraying Judaism. To call oneself, therefore, a 'Hebrew-Christian,' a 'Jew for Jesus,' or in the latest version a 'messianic Jew,' is an oxymoron. Just as one cannot be a 'Christian Buddhist,' or a 'Christian for Krishna,' one cannot be a 'Jew for Jesus.'" Schochet, Rabbi J. Immanuel. , '']'', July 29, 1999.
			* The Jewish Response to Missionaries (NY Board of Rabbis)
			* (foundationstone.com)
			* (whatjewsbelieve.org)
			* "If you believe Jesus is the messiah, died for anyone else's sins, is God's chosen son, or any other dogma of Christian belief, you are not Jewish. You are Christian. Period." ('' {{Webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061123100943/http://www.beliefnet.com/blogs/virtualtalmud/2006/08/jews-for-jesus-whos-who-whats-what.html \|date=2006-11-23 }}'' by Rabbi Susan Grossman (beliefnet – virtualtalmud) August 28, 2006; archived 2006-11-23)
			* "For two thousand years, Jews rejected the claim that Jesus fulfilled the messianic prophecies of the Hebrew Bible, as well as the dogmatic claims about him made by the church fathers—that he was born of a virgin, the son of God, part of a divine Trinity, and was resurrected after his death. ... For two thousand years, a central wish of Christianity was to be the object of desire by Jews, whose conversion would demonstrate their acceptance that Jesus has fulfilled their own biblical prophecies." (''Jewish Views of Jesus'' by Susannah Heschel, in ''Jesus In The World's Faiths: Leading Thinkers From Five Faiths Reflect On His Meaning'' by Gregory A. Barker, editor. (Orbis Books, 2005) {{ISBN\|1-57075-573-6}}. p.149)
			* " are limits to pluralism, beyond which a group is schismatic to the point where it is no longer considered Jewish. For example, everyone considers Messianic Judaism and belief in Buddha as outside of the Jewish sphere." ('' {{Webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070513110717/http://judaism.about.com/library/3_askrabbi_o/bl_simmons_messianicjews.htm \|date=2007-05-13 }}'' by Rabbi ])
			* "No Jew accepts Jesus as the Messiah. When someone makes that faith commitment, they become Christian. It is not possible for someone to be both Christian and Jewish." ('' {{Webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101201064911/http://judaism.about.com/library/3_askrabbi_c/bl_jesus.htm \|date=2010-12-01 }}'' by Rabbi Barry Dov Lerner)</ref> However, there has been some debate of that point by Jewish scholars. ], a Jewish historian of religion and professor of Talmudic culture at UC Berkeley, writes in one of his books: <blockquote>Most (if not all) of the ideas and practices of the Jesus movement of the first century and the beginning of the second century—and even later—can be safely understood as part of the ideas and practices that we understand to be "Judaism."... The ideas of Trinity and incarnation, or certainly the germs of those ideas, were already present among Jewish believers well before Jesus came on the scene to incarnate in himself, as it were, those theological notions and take up his messianic calling.<ref>{{Cite book\|last=Boyarin\|first=Daniel\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Rd48nOco0-wC&q=Most+(if+not+all)+of+the+ideas+and+practices+of+the+Jesus+movement+of+the+first+century+and+the+beginning+of+the+second+century%E2%80%94and+even+later%E2%80%94can+be+safely+understood+as+part+of+the+ideas+and+practices+that+we+understand+to+be+%22Judaism.%22...+The+ideas+of+Trinity+and+incarnation,+or+certainly+the+germs+of+those+ideas,+were+already+present+among+Jewish+believers+well+before+Jesus+came+on+the+scene+to+incarnate+in+himself,+as+it+were,+those+theological+notions+and+take+up+his+messianic+calling.&pg=PT78\|title=The Jewish Gospels: The Story of the Jewish Christ\|date=2012-03-20\|publisher=New Press/ORIM\|isbn=978-1-59558-711-4\|language=en}}</ref></blockquote>], a rabbi of Reform Judaism and professor of Jewish Theology at the University of Wales, implies that Messianic Judaism should be embraced in the Jewish community:<blockquote>...the non-Orthodox rejection of Messianic Jews is more difficult to comprehend given the multidimensional character of contemporary Jewish life ... There is simply no consensus among non-Orthodox Jews concerning the central tenets of the faith, nor is there any agreement about Jewish observance. Instead, the various branches of non-Orthodox Judaism embrace a totally heterogeneous range of viewpoints ... in my view Messianic Judaism constitutes an innovative, exciting, and extremely interesting development on the Jewish scene.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Anderson\|first=Gerald H.\|date=July 2002\|title=Book Review: Messianic Judaism, Voices of Messianic Judaism: Confronting Critical Issues Facing a Maturing Movement\|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/239693930202600313\|journal=International Bulletin of Missionary Research\|volume=26\|issue=3\|pages=134–135\|doi=10.1177/239693930202600313\|s2cid=149203101\|issn=0272-6122}}</ref></blockquote>In a 2013 ] study, 60% of American Jews said that belief in Jesus as the Messiah was not "compatible with being Jewish", while 34% found it compatible and 4% did not know.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2013/10/01/chapter-3-jewish-identity/\|title=Chapter 3: Jewish Identity\|date=1 October 2013}}</ref> A 2017 survey that included Messianic Jews "found that 21 percent of Jewish millennials believe Jesus was 'God in human form who lived among people in the 1st century.'"<ref>{{Cite web\|title=Study: One-fifth of Jewish millennials believe Jesus is the son of God\|url=https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/study-one-fifth-of-jewish-millennials-believe-jesus-is-the-son-of-god-512015\|access-date=2021-03-08\|website=The Jerusalem Post \|date=November 2017 \|language=en-US}}</ref> An additional question on faith in the survey found that 14% of participants identified with Christianity, and 10% believed in a hybrid of Christian and Jewish beliefs.<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.barna.com/research/beliefs-behaviors-shaping-jewish-millennials/ \|title=The Evolving Spiritual Identity of Jewish Millennials \|work=Research Releases \|publisher=Barna \|date=2017-10-10 \|accessdate=2021-03-28 \|quote=When given a range of options and allowed to select all that apply, nearly half of Jewish Millennials (44%) chose Judaism solely as their subscribed religion. More than half do not affiliate with traditional Jewish denominations (52%), however, and a similar percentage believes Jews can hold faiths other than Judaism (56%). Thus, others choose Christianity (14%), a hybrid of Judaism and Christianity (10%), atheism / agnosticism (9%) or no particular faith (13%)—a range that reinforces the notion of Jewish identity as heritage and people group as much as a specific spiritual belief set. In this context, it should be assumed some of those who select an option that includes "Christianity" may be recognizing any personal association with the faith, such as identifying with the religion of a Christian parent, rather than a specific or devout expression, such as Messianic Judaism.}}</ref>

			In 1993 the Task Force on Missionaries and Cults of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York (JCRCNY) issued a statement which has been endorsed by the four major Jewish denominations: ], ], ], and ], as well as national Jewish organizations.<ref name="Schiffman">{{cite web\|date=3 November 2006\|title=MEETING THE CHALLENGE -- HEBREW CHRISTIANS AND THE JEWISH COMMUNITY\|url=http://www.jcrcny.org/pdf/sdpp/MEETINGTHECHALLENG2.pdf\|url-status=dead\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061103010412/http://www.jcrcny.org/pdf/sdpp/MEETINGTHECHALLENG2.pdf\|archive-date=3 November 2006\|publisher=Jewish Community Relations Council of New York}}</ref> Based on this statement, the Spiritual Deception Prevention Project at the JCRCNY stated:
	==Opposition and criticism==
	{{Undue-section\|date=June 2011}}
	===Mainstream Jewish opposition===

			{{Blockquote\|On several occasions leaders of the four major Jewish movements have signed on to joint statements opposing Hebrew-Christian theology and tactics. In part they said: "Though Hebrew Christianity claims to be a form of Judaism, it is not ... It deceptively uses the sacred symbols of Jewish observance ... as a cover to convert Jews to Christianity, a belief system antithetical to Judaism ... Hebrew Christians are in radical conflict with the communal interests and the destiny of the Jewish people. They have crossed an unbridgeable chasm by accepting another religion. Despite this separation, they continue to attempt to convert their former co-religionists.<ref name="JCRCNY">{{cite web \|url=http://www.jcrcny.org/PDF/7_6/Q_AHC.PDF \|title= Frequently Asked Questions About Hebrew-Christian Missionaries & "Jews for Jesus" \|url-status= dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060928114652/http://www.jcrcny.org/PDF/7_6/Q_AHC.PDF \|archive-date=2006-09-28}} Jewish Community Relations Council of New York. Spiritual Deception Prevention Project</ref>}}
	One of the criticisms of Jews for Jesus surrounds the tactics they employ in their missionary and outreach programs. Critics say that the organization uses vague and misleading language along with deceptive tactics in its attempt to convert Jews to Christianity.<ref></ref> These tactics include statements that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Jewish prophecy of Messiah and attempts by Jews for Jesus to interpret core principles of Judaism in an effort to bring these Jewish principles into accord with Christian doctrines.<ref name=Rosen1997> by Moishe Rosen (Jews for Jesus) March 1, 1997</ref> To this end, critics say that Jews for Jesus uses the ambiguity in the definition of "Jew" and "Jewish" to confuse their prospective converts into believing there is a possibility of one being a follower of both Christianity and Judaism simultaneously.<ref></ref> However, belief in Jesus as ], ], or even a non-divine ]/] or ] (as in ]), is held as incompatible with Judaism.
			The director of ] group Torah Atlanta, Rabbi Efraim Davidson, stated: "Jews for Jesus use aggressive proselytizing to target disenfranchised or unaffiliated Jews, Russian immigrants and college students," and that "their techniques are manipulative, deceptive and anti-Semitic."<ref> {{webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060515145611/http://torahatlanta.com/IntheNewsArticles/Portland.html \|date=2006-05-15}} By Paul Haist (''Jewish Review'') May 15, 2002</ref>
	<ref name=incompat>A belief in the divinity of Jesus is incompatible with Judaism:
	*"The point is this: that the whole Christology of the Church – the whole complex of doctrines about the Son of God who died on the Cross to save humanity from sin and death – is incompatible with Judaism, and indeed in discontinuity with the Hebraism that preceded it." Rayner, John D. ''A Jewish Understanding of the World'', Berghahn Books, 1998, p. 187. ISBN 1-57181-974-6
	*"It has always been recognized, for instance, after the rise of Christianity and Islam, that these two religions are incompatible with Judaism and that no Jew can consistently embrace them while remaining an adherent of Judaism." Neusner, Jacob & Avery-Peck, Alan Jeffery. ''The Blackwell Reader in Judaism'', Blackwell Publishing, 2001, p. 8. ISBN 0-631-20738-4
	*"Aside from its belief in Jesus as the Messiah, Christianity has altered many of the most fundamental concepts of Judaism." ]. ''The Aryeh Kaplan Anthology: Volume 1, Illuminating Expositions on Jewish Thought and Practice'', Mesorah Publication, 1991, p. 264. ISBN 0-89906-866-9
	*"...the doctrine of Christ was and will remain alien to Jewish religious thought." Wylen, Stephen M. ''Settings of Silver: An Introduction to Judaism'', Paulist Press, 2000, p. 75. ISBN 0-8091-3960-X
	*"For a Jew, however, any form of shituf is tantamount to idolatry in the fullest sense of the word. There is then no way that a Jew can ever accept Jesus as a deity, mediator or savior (messiah), or even as a prophet, without betraying Judaism. To call oneself, therefore, a 'Hebrew-Christian,' a 'Jew for Jesus,' or in the latest version a 'messianic Jew,' is an oxymoron. Just as one cannot be a 'Christian Buddhist,' or a 'Christian for Krishna,' one cannot be a 'Jew for Jesus.'" Schochet, Rabbi J. Immanuel. , '']'', July 29, 1999.
	* The Jewish Response to Missionaries (NY Board of Rabbis)
	* (foundationstone.com)
	* (whatjewsbelieve.org)
	*"If you believe Jesus is the messiah, died for anyone else's sins, is God's chosen son, or any other dogma of Christian belief, you are not Jewish. You are Christian. Period." ('''' by Rabbi Susan Grossman (beliefnet – virtualtalmud) August 28, 2006)
	*"For two thousand years, Jews rejected the claim that Jesus fulfilled the messianic prophecies of the Hebrew Bible, as well as the dogmatic claims about him made by the church fathers – that he was born of a virgin, the son of God, part of a divine Trinity, and was resurrected after his death. ... For two thousand years, a central wish of Christianity was to be the object of desire by Jews, whose conversion would demonstrate their acceptance that Jesus has fulfilled their own biblical prophecies." (''Jewish Views of Jesus'' by Susannah Heschel, in ''Jesus In The World's Faiths: Leading Thinkers From Five Faiths Reflect On His Meaning'' by Gregory A. Barker, editor. (Orbis Books, 2005) ISBN 1-57075-573-6. p.149)
	*"... there are limits to pluralism, beyond which a group is schismatic to the point where it is no longer considered Jewish. For example, everyone considers Messianic Judaism and belief in Buddha as outside of the Jewish sphere." ('''' by Rabbi ])
	*"No Jew accepts Jesus as the Messiah. When someone makes that faith commitment, they become Christian. It is not possible for someone to be both Christian and Jewish." ('''' by Rabbi Barry Dov Lerner)
	*In his book ''A History of the Jews'', ] describes the ] caused by a divergence from this principle:
	<blockquote>"To the question, Was Jesus God or man?, the Christians therefore answered: both. After 70 AD, their answer was unanimous and increasingly emphatic. This made a complete breach with Judaism inevitable." (Johnson, Paul (1987). A History of the Jews. HarperCollins, p.144. ISBN 0-06-091533-1.)</blockquote></ref>

			=== Christian ===
	One of the most important ] is the belief in ] with no partnership of any kind (see ]), and belief in Jesus as deity, son of God, or Christ, is held as incompatible with Judaism.<ref name=CCAJ9/><ref name=incompat>A belief in the divinity of Jesus is incompatible with Judaism:
			Some Western Christians object to evangelizing ] because they see Jewish religious practice as valid in and of itself.<ref>Pluralistic opposition:
	* "The point is this: that the whole Christology of the Church – the whole complex of doctrines about the Son of God who died on the Cross to save humanity from sin and death – is incompatible with Judaism, and indeed in discontinuity with the Hebraism that preceded it." Rayner, John D. ''A Jewish Understanding of the World'', Berghahn Books, 1998, p. 187. ISBN 1-57181-974-6
	* "It has always been recognized, for instance, after the rise of Christianity and Islam, that these two religions are incompatible with Judaism and that no Jew can consistently embrace them while remaining an adherent of Judaism." Neusner, Jacob & Avery-Peck, Alan Jeffery. ''The Blackwell Reader in Judaism'', Blackwell Publishing, 2001, p. 8. ISBN 0-631-20738-4
	* "Aside from its belief in Jesus as the Messiah, Christianity has altered many of the most fundamental concepts of Judaism." ]. ''The Aryeh Kaplan Anthology: Volume 1, Illuminating Expositions on Jewish Thought and Practice'', Mesorah Publication, 1991, p. 264. ISBN 0-89906-866-9
	* "...the doctrine of Christ was and will remain alien to Jewish religious thought." Wylen, Stephen M. ''Settings of Silver: An Introduction to Judaism'', Paulist Press, 2000, p. 75. ISBN 0-8091-3960-X
	* "For a Jew, however, any form of shituf is tantamount to idolatry in the fullest sense of the word. There is then no way that a Jew can ever accept Jesus as a deity, mediator or savior (messiah), or even as a prophet, without betraying Judaism. To call oneself, therefore, a 'Hebrew-Christian,' a 'Jew for Jesus,' or in the latest version a 'messianic Jew,' is an oxymoron. Just as one cannot be a 'Christian Buddhist,' or a 'Christian for Krishna,' one cannot be a 'Jew for Jesus.'" Schochet, Rabbi J. Immanuel. , '']'', July 29, 1999.
	* The Jewish Response to Missionaries (NY Board of Rabbis)
	* (foundationstone.com)
	* (whatjewsbelieve.org)
	* "If you believe Jesus is the messiah, died for anyone else's sins, is God's chosen son, or any other dogma of Christian belief, you are not Jewish. You are Christian. Period." ('''' by Rabbi Susan Grossman (beliefnet – virtualtalmud) August 28, 2006)
	* "For two thousand years, Jews rejected the claim that Jesus fulfilled the messianic prophecies of the Hebrew Bible, as well as the dogmatic claims about him made by the church fathers – that he was born of a virgin, the son of God, part of a divine Trinity, and was resurrected after his death. ... For two thousand years, a central wish of Christianity was to be the object of desire by Jews, whose conversion would demonstrate their acceptance that Jesus has fulfilled their own biblical prophecies." (''Jewish Views of Jesus'' by Susannah Heschel, in ''Jesus In The World's Faiths: Leading Thinkers From Five Faiths Reflect On His Meaning'' by Gregory A. Barker, editor. (Orbis Books, 2005) ISBN 1-57075-573-6. p.149)
	* "... there are limits to pluralism, beyond which a group is schismatic to the point where it is no longer considered Jewish. For example, everyone considers Messianic Judaism and belief in Buddha as outside of the Jewish sphere." ("" by Rabbi ])
	* "No Jew accepts Jesus as the Messiah. When someone makes that faith commitment, they become Christian. It is not possible for someone to be both Christian and Jewish." ("" by Rabbi Barry Dov Lerner)
	</ref>

			* {{Webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100124043717/http://www.abrock.com/Attempt.html#valid\|date=2010-01-24}} by Allan R. Brockway{{request quotation\|date=September 2023}}
	In his book ''A History of the Jews'', ] describes the ] caused by a divergence from this principle:
			* (religioustolerance.org){{request quotation\|date=September 2023}}
	<blockquote>
			* by Fritz Voll (]) (World Council of Churches){{request quotation\|date=September 2023}}
	To the question, Was Jesus God or man?, the Christians therefore answered: both. After 70 AD, their answer was unanimous and increasingly emphatic. This made a complete breach with Judaism inevitable.<ref>{{cite book
			* In the United Kingdom, there has been opposition to the activities of Jews for Jesus from the Council of Christians and Jews which has prohibited members of the organisation from joining its meetings, through the issuing of a Code of Conduct opposing Jewish proselytisation by Christians.{{Nonspecific\|date=June 2011}}{{request quotation\|date=September 2023}}
	\|author=Johnson, Paul
			* "I normally defend my denomination. I'm loyal to it. But I have never targeted Muslims. I have never targeted Jews." "Billy Graham Blasts Brethren" by Eric J. Greenberg, ''The Jewish Week''. January 7, 2000, referring to a ] event in Chicago {{non sequitur\|date=September 2023}}
	\|title=A History of the Jews
			* {{webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070312160141/http://torahatlanta.com/articles/Christian%20Scholars%20Group.html\|date=2007-03-12}}. The Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College. September 1, 2002{{request quotation\|date=September 2023}}</ref> Some ] denominations have issued statements criticizing evangelism of Jews including the ] and the ],<ref>, Oxford University Press: Oxford, p. 114</ref> which said in 1988 that ].<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.pcusa.org/oga/publications/christians-jews.pdf\|title=''A Theological Understanding of the Relationship Between Christians and Jews'', 199th General Assembly (1987) of the Presbyterian Church (USA)\|url-status=dead\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090805111235/http://www.pcusa.org/oga/publications/christians-jews.pdf\|archive-date=2009-08-05}}</ref> The Board of Governors of the ] opposes proselytizing, and voiced their sentiments in a statement that "noted with alarm" the "] and dishonesty" inherent in the "mixing religious symbols in ways which distort their essential meaning," and named Jews for Jesus as one of the three groups about whom such behavior was alleged.<ref> {{webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325191616/http://www.adl.org/special_reports/jews4jesus/christian_responses.asp \|date=2012-03-25 }}. Retrieved July 5, 2009.</ref>
	\|year=1987
	\|page=144
	\|publisher=HarperCollins
	\|isbn=0-06-091533-1
	\|authorlink=Paul Johnson (writer)
	}}</ref></blockquote>

			Leighton Ford, former vice president of the ] and current president of Leighton Ford Ministries, supports the work of Jews for Jesus:<blockquote>The first followers of Jesus were all Jews – women and men so touched and changed by him that they had to tell their friends and neighbors ... Like their first century counterparts, the people I know in Jews for Jesus have good news they share lovingly and boldly!<ref>{{Cite web\|last=Ford\|first=Leighton\|title=Letter from Leighton Ford\|url=https://jewsforjesus.org/endorsements/letter-from-leighton-ford\|access-date=2021-03-08\|website=jewsforjesus.org\|date=December 2003 \|language=en}}</ref></blockquote>In 2003, the sponsorship of Jews for Jesus by ], a conservative evangelical church in London, including a launch event on ] to start a UK mission targeting the Jewish community, led to the Interfaith Alliance UK, a coalition of Jewish, Christian and Islamic religious leaders, issuing a letter of protest to the ].<ref>''The Guardian'' 26 September 2003</ref>{{failed verification\|date=September 2023}}
	Jews for Jesus believes it is entirely compatible with the view of God presented in Jewish scriptures<ref name=3gods> (Jews for Jesus) January 1, 2005</ref> and that the doctrine of the ], fundamental to the Christian faith, is not entirely alien to Judaism: "While it is true that the ] portion of Scripture does not present as clear a picture of the ] Godhead, there are indications of the plurality of the Godhead in the Hebrew Scriptures."<ref> by Catherine Damato. (Jews for Jesus) June 1, 1987</ref>

			=== Other ===
	According to a common belief in Judaism, these "indications" are based on mistranslations<ref name="autogenerated1"> by Rabbi ] (about.com)</ref><ref name="Michoel Drazin 1990">{{cite book
			The ] includes ], ], and ] groups.<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://ifcmw.org/about-us/member-faiths/\|title=Member Faith Communities }}</ref> The Conference states that they "support the right of all religions to share their message in the spirit of good will";<ref name="PCUSA_IFCMW_SoP">{{cite web\|url=http://www.eif-pcusa.org/proselytism_statement.pdf \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081203143714/http://www.eif-pcusa.org/proselytism_statement.pdf \|url-status=dead \|archive-date=2008-12-03 \|title=PCUSA's excerpt of the IFCMW's 'Statement on Proselytism' \|access-date=2011-06-21 }}</ref> however, Rev. Clark Lobenstine has condemned the "proselytizing efforts" of "Jews for Jesus and other messianic Jewish groups."<ref>{{Cite web\|date=1987-03-26\|title=Proselytism Efforts Condemned\|url=https://www.jta.org/1987/03/26/archive/proselytism-efforts-condemned\|access-date=2020-10-23\|website=Jewish Telegraphic Agency\|language=en-US}}</ref> His wording matched the Conference's 1987 "Statement on Proselytism",<ref name=PCUSA_IFCMW_SoP/> which makes claims against "groups that have adopted the label of Hebrew Christianity, Messianic Judaism, or Jews for Jesus",<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wellesley.edu/rellife/transformation/guide/Interreligious%20Dialogue.html \|title=IFCMW Statement on Proselytism in a longer quote \|access-date=2011-06-21 \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127124938/http://www.wellesley.edu/rellife/transformation/guide/Interreligious%20Dialogue.html \|archive-date=2012-01-27 }}</ref> so it is unclear which claims are directed at Jews for Jesus in particular.
	\|author=Michoel Drazin
	\|title=Their Hollow Inheritance. A Comprehensive Refutation of Christian Missionaries
	\|year=1990
	\|publisher=Gefen Publishing House, Ltd.
	\|isbn=965-229-070-X
	\|url=http://www.drazin.com
	}}</ref><ref>Troki, Isaac. .</ref> and Jesus did not fulfill the ]. The vision of God as a trinity is seen by ] as a deviation from ] and therefore is rejected.<ref>The concept of Trinity is incompatible with Judaism:
	* (Jews for Judaism)
	* by Rabbi Singer (outreachjudaism.org)
	* (religionfacts.com)</ref>

	''America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices'' contains " note about Jews for Jesus, ], ], and similar groups: Jews in these groups who have converted to Christianity but continue to observe various Jewish practices are no longer considered part of the Jewish community in the usual sense."<ref name="Benjamin Hubbard ~~1997~~ ~~100~~">{{cite book		''America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices'' contains " note about Jews for Jesus, ], ], and similar groups: Jews in these groups who have converted to Christianity but continue to observe various Jewish practices are no longer considered part of the Jewish ] in the usual sense".<ref name="Benjamin Hubbard 2007 132">{{cite book
	\|author=Benjamin Hubbard		\|author=Benjamin Hubbard
	\|~~coauthors~~=John Hatfield, James Santucci		\|author2=John Hatfield \|author3=James Santucci
	\|title=America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices		\|title=America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices
	\|year=~~1997~~		\|year=2007
	\|page=~~100~~		\|page=132
	\|publisher=Teacher Ideas Press, a Division of Libraries Unlimited		\|publisher=Teacher Ideas Press, a Division of Libraries Unlimited
	\|isbn=1-56308-469-4		\|isbn=978-1-56308-469-0
			\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UWBIuX7TPk8C&q=%22Jews%20for%20Jesus%22&pg=PA132
	}}</ref>		}}</ref>

			Several other organizations oppose the identification of Jews for Jesus as a Jewish group.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.religioustolerance.org/mess_jud3.htm\|title=Jews for Jesus}}</ref><ref>Balmer, Randall. ''Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism,'' Baylor University Press, November 2004, p. 448</ref>
	Although Jews for Jesus believes their views of the Messiah are entirely compatible with the view of God presented in Jewish scriptures,<ref name=3gods/>
	and that the doctrine of the ], fundamental to the Christian faith, is not entirely alien to Judaism,<ref>"While it is true that the Old Testament portion of Scripture does not present as clear a picture of the ] Godhead, there are indications of the plurality of the Godhead in the Hebrew Scriptures."
	by Catherine Damato. (Jews for Jesus) June 1, 1987</ref> these interpretations by Jews for Jesus are rejected by Judaism.<ref name="autogenerated1" /><ref name="Michoel Drazin 1990"/><ref name="Benjamin Hubbard 1997 100"/><ref>Troki, Isaac. .''America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices'' contains " note about Jews for Jesus, ], ], and similar groups: Jews in these groups who have converted to Christianity but continue to observe various Jewish practices are no longer considered part of the Jewish community in the usual sense."</ref>
	Jews for Jesus responds to these allegations by stating that ]<ref></ref>

	In 1993 the ''Task Force on Missionaries and Cults'' of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York (JCRCNY) issued a statement which has been endorsed by the four major Jewish denominations: ], ], ], and ], as well as national Jewish organizations.<ref name=Schiffman/> Based on this statement, the ''Spiritual Deception Prevention Project'' at the JCRCNY stated:
	<blockquote>
	On several occasions leaders of the four major ] have signed on to joint statements opposing Hebrew-Christian theology and tactics. In part they said: "Though Hebrew Christianity claims to be a form of Judaism, it is not ... It deceptively uses the sacred symbols of Jewish observance ... as a cover to convert Jews to Christianity, a belief system antithetical to Judaism ... Hebrew Christians are in radical conflict with the communal interests and the destiny of the Jewish people. They have crossed an unbridgeable chasm by accepting another religion. Despite this separation, they continue to attempt to convert their former co-religionists."<ref name=JCRCNY>{{PDFlink\|}} Jewish Community Relations Council of New York. Spiritual Deception Prevention Project</ref></blockquote>

	The director of a ] group ''Torah Atlanta'', Rabbi Efraim Davidson, stated that "the Jews for Jesus use aggressive proselytizing to target disenfranchised or unaffiliated Jews, Russian immigrants and college students" and that "their techniques are manipulative, deceptive and anti-Semitic."<ref> By Paul Haist (Jewish Review) May 15, 2002</ref>

	In his 1997 book ''The Vanishing American Jew: In Search of Jewish Identity for the Next Century'', ] wrote: "In America, and in other nations that separate church from state, one's Jewishness is a matter of self-definition ..." but notes: "I do not mean to include former Jews who practice Christianity under the deliberately misleading name Jews for Jesus. A Jew for Jesus already has a name: a Christian."<ref>{{cite book
	\| last = Dershowitz
	\| first = Alan
	\| title = The Vanishing American Jew: In Search of Jewish Identity for the Next Century
	\| page = 324
	\| publisher = Little, Brown; 1st ed.
	\| year= 1997
	\| isbn = 0-316-18133-1
	}}</ref> However, it should be noted that Dershowitz was not speaking as a rabbinical authority, most of whom hold that a Jew who is an ] is still a Jew.

	In an interview for ], Orthodox Rabbi ], the author of ''For the Sake of Heaven and Earth'', said:
	:"But I have to recognize that there are people of ill will; there are Christian missionaries who still believe that Christianity is the only valid religion. There are Jews for Jesus who use the trappings of Judaism to bring people into a religion that teaches that Judaism is finished. Jews for Jesus are worse theologically than the mainstream of Catholicism or Protestantism, which now affirm that Judaism is a valid religion. Jews for Jesus say that it is not. They use the Jewish trappings, but de facto, they are teaching the classic Christian ]--that Judaism was at best a foreshadowing of Christianity".<ref></ref>

	The author of the book ''Why the Jews Rejected Jesus: The Turning Point in Western History'' ] expressed his concern in ''The Jewish Journal'': "When Jews accept Jesus, they marry other Christians or their children do, thus disappearing into the Christian population."<ref name=DK> by David Klinghoffer. (''The Jewish Journal'') 2006-03-3</ref>

	Concerning ] and Christian missions to the Jews, ] wrote:
	<blockquote>
	"... Except in relations with Christians, the Christ of Christianity is not a Jewish issue. There simply can be no dialogue worthy of the name unless Christians accept — nay, treasure — the fact that Jews through the two millennia of Christianity have had an agenda of their own. There can be no Jewish-Christian dialogue worthy of the name unless one Christian activity is abandoned, missions to the Jews. It must be abandoned, moreover, not as a temporary strategy but in principle, as a bimillennial theological mistake. The cost of that mistake in Christian love and Jewish blood one hesitates to contemplate.
	...
	A post-] Jew can still view Christian attempts to convert Jews as sincere and well intended. But even as such they are no longer acceptable: They have become attempts to do in one way what ] did in another."<ref>{{cite book
	\|title = What is Judaism? An Interpretation for the Present Age
	\|last = Fackenheim
	\|first = Emil
	\|year = 1987
	\|publisher = Summit Books
	\|isbn = 0-671-46243-1
	\|page = 249
	}}</ref></blockquote>

	"Perhaps most importantly, while Jews for Jesus believe that belief in Jesus saves and not achievements, Judaism believes that achievements are what matter more than beliefs (not to deny that certain core beliefs are required by the religion). Believing that Jesus' existence absolves Jews of halakha is a complete break with Judaism as opposed to a belief that Jesus was a great rabbi to be revered, for example. This is why one cannot be an adherent of both Judaism and Christianity. halakha and Jewish customs have no place in a Christian life."

	azyashir.blogspot.com

	===Outreach Judaism===

	'']'', an international organization founded by ]<ref name=WOTM_Tovia/> Rabbi ], aims to provide educational resources to individuals targeted by organizations such as Jews for Jesus. Singer has been misunderstood as being in conflict with Jews for Jesus, but in an interview, Singer clarified to Christians that although he is "obviously not happy" when a Jew leaves Judaism,

	<blockquote>
	I am delighted that Jews for Jesus has the right to speek, to reach out, to continue their ministry. I don't want to take that away from Jews for Jesus; but what I do want is that Jewish people like myself should have the ability to respond.<ref name=WOTM_Tovia>. See ] for information on how to play this recording.</ref>
	</blockquote>

	===Jews for Judaism===

	'']'', established by Rabbi ] in ], is the largest ] organization in existence.<ref> (Jews for Judaism)</ref>
	The name ''Jews for Judaism'' is a deliberate ] of Jews for Jesus, as Jews for Jesus is one of the primary missionary organizations that Jews for Judaism was founded to counter.

	===Messianic Judaism opposition===

	Some ]<ref>"I consider Jews For Jesus a Christian organization. Moishe Rosen, founder of Jews For Jesus, is a Christian missionary, schooled in a standard bible college and not trained as a rabbi. The Jews For Jesus organization has worked diligently teaching Jesus to the non-believing Jewish people, but it is Christianity being taught and not Messianic Judaism (in spite of JFJ efforts to make the two terms synonymous). I would like to see evangelism to the Jewish people which includes teaching Torah observance." Ellen Kavanaugh. (lightofmashiach.org). {{cite web
	\| url = http://www.lightofmashiach.org/notjewsforjesus.html
	\| title = Actually, We Are NOT Jews for Jesus
	\| publisher = lightofmashiach.org
	\| accessdate = 2006-11-04
	\| curly = True
	}}</ref><ref>''"We are NOT "Jews for Jesus"! "Jews for Jesus" is a primarily Baptist missionary group whose sole focus is converting Jews to Christianity. They are not a part of the Messianic movement and have never been in favor of Messianic congregations! We do not approve of their theology, their ideology, or their methods."'' Rabbi Adam J. Bernay. Beit Tefillah Messianic Fellowship. Fresno, CA. {{cite web
	\| url = http://www.beit-tefillah.com/about/
	\| title = About Us
	\| publisher = beit-tefillah.com
	\| accessdate = 2006-11-04
	\| curly = True
	\|archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20071009002427/http://www.beit-tefillah.com/about/ <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> \|archivedate = 2007-10-09}}</ref> who self-identify as Torah observant object to perceived associations with Jews for Jesus,<ref>"
	We are not "Jews for Jesus". We strongly agree with their work of bringing non-Messianic Jews to acceptance of Yeshua (Jesus), as the Jewish Messiah. However, we just as strongly disagree with the belief/policy of "Jews for Jesus"; upon acceptance of Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus), Jews (and Gentiles), are not to obey and follow the Torah(Law)! This contradicts and violates the Tanakh and Messianic Scriptures that speak of Yeshua (Jesus). We believe the Torah speaks of Yeshua (Jesus) and those that love Him keep His commandments." 5twenty8.com. {{cite web
	\| url = http://www.5twenty8.com/statement.php
	\| title = Statement of Belief
	\| publisher = 5twenty8.com
	\| accessdate = 2006-11-04
	\| curly = True
	}}</ref> as encouraging the celebration of traditional Christianity, including potentially not keeping ],<ref>''"If you were hoping this article would provide the answer, you will be disappointed. When the question is "How do we work out our Jewish identity?" the answer can only be: "It's personal! Go work it out with the Lord." Maybe that sounds vague and non-committal, but in this we are committed to vagueness, for these are things we believe the Scripture leaves to each believer's discretion."'' Mitch Glaser. Jews for Jesus. {{cite web
	\| url = http://www.jewsforjesus.org/publications/havurah/mm88_01/choppedliver
	\| title = Lifestyles of the Messianic
	\| publisher = jewsforjesus.org
	\| accessdate = 2006-11-04
	\| curly = True
	}}</ref> observing ] on Sunday (or not at all), or celebrating non-Jewish holidays such as ]<ref>{{cite web
	\| url = http://www.jewsforjesus.org/publications/newsletter/2003_12/paganism
	\| title = About Christmas, Easter, and Paganism
	\| publisher = jewsforjesus.org
	\| accessdate = 2006-11-04
	\| curly = True
	}}</ref> and ].<ref>{{cite web
	\| url = http://www.jewsforjesus.org/publications/havurah/5_4/christmas
	\| title = Christmas is still a Jewish holiday
	\| publisher = jewsforjesus.org
	\| accessdate = 2006-11-04
	\| curly = True
	}}</ref>

	===Western pluralistic opposition===
	Some Western Christians object to evangelizing Jews because they see Jewish religious practice as valid in and of itself.<ref>Pluralistic opposition:
	* by Allan R. Brockway
	* (religioustolerance.org)
	* by Fritz Voll (]) (World Council of Churches)
	* In the United Kingdom, there has been opposition to the activities of Jews for Jesus from the Council of Christians and Jews which has prohibited members of the organisation from joining its meetings, through the issuing of a Code of Conduct opposing Jewish proselytisation by Christians.{{Nonspecific\|date=June 2011}}
	* "I normally defend my denomination. I'm loyal to it. But I have never targeted Muslims. I have never targeted Jews." "Billy Graham Blasts Brethren" by Eric J. Greenberg, ''The Jewish Week''. January 7, 2000, referring to a ] event in Chicago
	* . The Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College. September 1, 2002</ref>
	<!-- NOTE: WIKIPEDIA POLICY NEITHER STATES, NOR IMPLIES, THAT WE SHOULD OR MUST "GIVE EQUAL VALIDITY" TO ALL VIEWS: q.v. ] -->
	Such a view, however, espouses the ] common in the Western world, which can be shown to be a logical fallacy. One can easily show "the impossibility that all religions are equally valid in light of the fact that many religions contradict each other."<ref>{{cite book \|author=Winfried Corduan \|year=1998 \|title=Neighboring Faiths \|publisher=InterVarsity Press \|page=133}}</ref> In the case of the two faiths at hand, the most fundamental contradiction is that Christianity requires the belief that Jesus is God, and Judaism holds that belief as idolatry: it teaches that Jesus is not God. To claim that both of those beliefs are equally valid violates the ].

	====Liberal Protestant====
	Some ] Protestant denominations that have issued statements criticizing evangelism of Jews include the ],<ref> . Retrieved July 5, 2009.</ref> the ] and the ],<ref>, Oxford University Press: Oxford, p. 114</ref> which said in 1988 that Jews have their own covenant with God.<ref></ref> The Board of Governors of the Long Island Council of Churches opposes proselytizing of Jews, and voiced these sentiments in a statement that "noted with alarm" the "subterfuge and dishonesty" inherent in the "mixing religious symbols in ways which distort their essential meaning", and named Jews for Jesus as one of the three groups about whom such behavior was alleged.<ref> . Retrieved July 5, 2009.</ref>

	====Islamic interfaith opposition====
	The ] includes ], ], and ] groups.<ref></ref> The Conference states that they "support the right of all religions to share their message in the spirit of good will;"<ref name=PCUSA_IFCMW_SoP>{{cite web \|url=http://www.eif-pcusa.org/proselytism_statement.pdf \|title=PCUSA's excerpt of the IFCMW's 'Statement on Proselytism' \|accessdate=2011 June 21}}</ref> however Rev. Clark Lobenstine, has condemned the "proselytizing efforts" of "Jews for Jesus and other messianic Jewish groups."<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6464-2004Aug16.html \|title=Conversion Outreach Plan Stirs Outrage. Jews for Jesus Trains 600 for Street Work \|author=David Cho \|work=Washington Post \|date=August 17, 2004 \|accessdate=2011 June 21}}</ref> His wording matched the Conference's 1987 "Statement on Proselytism,"<ref name=PCUSA_IFCMW_SoP/> which makes claims against "groups that have adopted the label of Hebrew Christianity, Messianic Judaism, or Jews for Jesus,"<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.wellesley.edu/rellife/transformation/guide/Interreligious%20Dialogue.html \|title=IFCMW Statement on Proselytism in a longer quote\|accessdate=2011 June 21}}</ref> so it is unclear which claims are directed at Jews for Jesus in particular.

	In 2003, the sponsorship of Jews for Jesus by All Souls Church, Langham Place, a Conservative Evangelical Church in London, with a launch event on ] launching a UK mission targeting the Jewish community led to the Interfaith Alliance UK a coalition of Jewish, Christian and Islamic religious leaders issuing a letter of protest to the Archbishop of Canterbury.<ref>''The Guardian'' 26 September 2003</ref>

	A particularly strong opposition has emerged from Muslim imams and leaders in the light of the emergence of "Messianic Muslim" Evangelical missions directed at the Muslim community modeled on Jews for Jesus, with the presentation of Evangelical beliefs in Arabicised terms and encouragement of Muslims to become "followers for 'Isa",<ref>See for example </ref> and on 10 December 2003, a joint Jewish-Muslim Delegation supported by the Office of the Chief Rabbi in Great Britain together with Muslim imams presented a protest to the Bishop of London, Richard Chartres.

	===Other===
	There are also several other organizations that oppose identification of Jews for Jesus as a Jewish group.<ref> by ]</ref><ref>Benjamin Hubbard; John Hatfield, James Santucci (1997). ''America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices.'' Teacher Ideas Press, a Division of Libraries Unlimited, p.100. ISBN 1-56308-469-4.</ref><ref>Balmer, Randall. ''Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism,'' Baylor University Press, November 2004, p. 448</ref>

	== ~~Litigation~~ ==		=== Controversies ===
	===1987 – freedom of speech===
	In the case of Board of Airport Commissioners of Los Angeles v. Jews for Jesus, Inc., 482 U.S. 569 (1987), The Supreme Court held that a law which banned “First Amendment activities" within the Central Terminal Area at L.A. International Airport to be invalid as substantially “over broad,” and therefore, invalid on its face. As Justice O’Connor stated in her opinion, such a law could even be construed to prohibit a traveler from approaching a ticketing booth and asking when the flight from Des Moines was scheduled to arrive. The municipal agency in charge of ] had barred the group from distributing leaflets at the airport "as part of a larger ban on what they described as ] activities. Jews for Jesus challenged the airport's right to institute such a sweeping ban."<ref name=ADL_LC> (ADL)</ref><ref>''Airport Comm'rs v. Jews for Jesus, Inc.'' {{Ussc\|482\|569\|1987}}</ref>

	===~~1992~~ – ~~civil~~ ~~rights~~ ~~violations~~===		==== 1987 – Freedom of speech ====
			In '']'' the ] unanimously ruled in favor of Jews for Jesus in a ] case against the ].<ref>{{cite news \|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> \|title=L.A. Airport's Free Speech Curb Upset by High Court : 'Jews for Jesus' Win Rights Case \|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-06-15-mn-4296-story.html \|work=Los Angeles Times \|date=June 15, 1987 \|access-date=July 16, 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last1=Sekulow \|first1=Jay \|last2=Zimmerman \|first2=Erik \|date=2012–2013 \|title=Reflections on Jews for Jesus: Twenty-Five Years Later \| url=https://www.regent.edu/acad/schlaw/student_life/studentorgs/lawreview/docs/issues/v25n1/01Sekulowvol.25.1.pdf\|journal=Regent University Law Review \|volume=25 \|issue=1 \|pages=1–23 \|access-date=July 16, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news \|last=Savage \|first=David \|date=June 16, 1987 \|title=LAX Ban on Soliciting Rejected by High Court : Justices Say Rule Goes Too Far in Limiting Free Speech; Larger Question of Exclusion Ignored \|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-06-16-mn-7711-story.html \|work=Los Angeles Times \|access-date=July 16, 2020 }}</ref>
	In 1992 the ] ruled against Jews for Jesus in a suit the organization brought against the ] (JCRCNY), an umbrella group representing 60 Jewish agencies in the metropolitan New York area. The case addressed the JCRCNY's 1985 warning to Long Island rabbis that Jews for Jesus was seeking a venue to conduct a ]. Jews for Jesus sued the JCRCNY for violating its civil rights; the decision upheld a lower court ruling that the JCRCNY communication did not "go beyond the proposal stage" and that there was no evidence that any of the Long Island rabbis had actually contacted establishments for the purpose of discriminating against Jews for Jesus.<ref></ref>

			==== 1998 and 2005–2006 – Online name ====
	In a 1992 lawsuit brought by Jews for Jesus against the JCRCNY, the ] ruled that the efforts of the JCRCNY urging Jewish organizations not to patronize a New York country club because it allowed Jews for Jesus to hold its annual convention on its premises were not protected as an exercise of the JCRC's ] rights.<ref name=ADL_LC/>
			Jews for Jesus has been involved in litigation regarding Internet use of its name. In 1998 they sued Steven Brodsky for ]—registering the domain name jewsforjesus.org for a site criticizing the organization.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=http://www.adl.org/special_reports/jews4jesus/legal_cases.asp\|title=Jews for Jesus: Targeting Jews for Conversion – Legal Cases\|publisher=Anti-Defamation League of B'nai Brith\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121013190231/http://www.adl.org/special_reports/jews4jesus/legal_cases.asp\|archive-date=2012-10-13\|url-status=dead}}</ref> The domain now belongs to Jews for Jesus and is used for their main site.

			In 2005 Jews for Jesus sued<ref> by ] (CircleID) December 30, 2005</ref> ] for allowing a ] user to put up a site at the third-level subdomain ''jewsforjesus.blogspot.com''. In September 2006 '']'' reported: "Jews for Jesus settled out of court with a critical blogger identified as 'Whistle Blower' on jewsforjesus.blogspot.com. The evangelistic ministry assumed control of the site."<ref> September 1, 2006</ref>
	===1993 – refusal of automatic citizenship in Israel===
	In 1993 the ], in a case involving a couple affiliated with Jews for Jesus, ruled that Jews who adhere to the Christian beliefs are regarded by Israeli law as "members of a different faith," and are not eligible for the ]. This is done not to try to change Jewish Law, but to preserve the Jewish character of the State of Israel – i.e., that allowing in people whose sole mission is to get Jews to become Christians is inimical to one of the core ethics of the country (to be a haven for Jews).{{Citation needed\|date=December 2007}} In its summary of the ruling, the ] stated that the belief that Jesus is the Messiah "cannot be reconciled with Judaism" and "marks the clear separation between Judaism and Christianity."<ref name=ADL_LC/>

	===~~1998~~ ~~and 2005–2006~~ – ~~online~~ name===		==== 2006 – misuse of Jackie Mason name ====
			In 2006 comedian and actor ] filed a lawsuit against Jews for Jesus, alleging that the organization unlawfully distributed a pamphlet that used his name and likeness in a way that suggested he was a member of the group. Jackie Mason was Jewish and not associated with Jews for Jesus.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/08/25/jackiemason.ap/index.html\|title=Comic sues Jews for Jesus\|website=] \|url-status=dead\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060829062832/http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/08/25/jackiemason.ap/index.html\|archive-date=2006-08-29}}</ref> Jews for Jesus issued a detailed response to the allegation on their website.<ref> (Jews for Jesus) August 25, 2006</ref>
	Jews for Jesus has been involved in litigation regarding Internet use of its name. In 1998 they successfully sued Steven Brodsky for ] — registering the domain name jewsforjesus.org for a site criticizing the organization.<ref name=ADL_LC/> The domain now belongs to Jews for Jesus and is used for their main site.

			A judge of the ] denied a preliminary injunction against Jews for Jesus over the pamphlet, finding the distribution of the pamphlet to be protected by the ], and also stated that the pamphlet did not suggest that Mason was a Christian.<ref> {{webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061211161941/http://www.jewsforjesus.org/blog/20061108jackiemasondenied \|date=2006-12-11 }}, November 8, 2006</ref>
	In 2005 Jews for Jesus sued<ref> by Eric Goldman (CircleID) December 30, 2005</ref> ] for allowing a ] user to put up a site at the third-level subdomain ''jewsforjesus.blogspot.com''. In September 2006 '']'' reported that "Jews for Jesus settled out of court with a critical blogger identified as 'Whistle Blower' on jewsforjesus.blogspot.com. The evangelistic ministry assumed control of the site."<ref> September 1, 2006</ref>

			In December 2006, Mason dropped the lawsuit against Jews for Jesus after they issued a letter of apology to him. The group's executive director, ], stated in the letter to Mason that he wanted "to convey my sincere apologies for any distress that you felt over our tract." Brickner continued that he believed its publication was protected by the ], but the group was willing in the interest of peace and love for Israel to retire the pamphlet. Mason replied in front of the federal court in Manhattan where he accepted the apology, "There's no such thing as a Jew for Jesus. It's like saying a black man is for the ]. You can't be a table and a chair. You're either a Jew or a ]."<ref>, {{webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016154929/http://nymag.com/daily/intel/tags/religion \|date=2007-10-16 }} (and many others) quoting an Associated Press release, December 4, 2006.</ref>
	===2006 – misuse of Jackie Mason name===
	In 2006 comedian and actor ] filed a lawsuit against Jews for Jesus, alleging that they unlawfully distributed a pamphlet which used his name and likeness in a way that suggested he was a member of the group. In fact, Mason is a member of the Jewish faith and not associated with Jews for Jesus.<ref></ref> Jews for Jesus has issued a detailed response to the allegation on their website.<ref> (Jews for Jesus) August 25, 2006</ref>

			==== ''That Jew Died for You'' video ====
	A judge of the ] denied a preliminary injunction against Jews for Jesus over the pamphlet, finding the distribution of the pamphlet to be protected by the ], and also stated that the pamphlet did not suggest that Mason was a Christian.<ref>, November 8, 2006</ref>
			In 2014, Jews for Jesus published a three-minute ] video called ''That Jew Died for You'', to coincide with ], ] and ] on 28 April.<ref name="i20140425">{{cite news\|title=Jews for Jesus video showing Jesus being sent to Nazi gas chambers sparks outrage\|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/jews-for-jesus-video-showing-christ-being-sent-to-a-nazi-gas-chambers-sparks-outrage-9285418.html\|newspaper=The Independent\|date=25 April 2014\|author=Heather Saul\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140428121837/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/jews-for-jesus-video-showing-christ-being-sent-to-a-nazi-gas-chambers-sparks-outrage-9285418.html\|archive-date=2014-04-28\|url-status=live}}</ref> A long-haired Jesus dragging a large wooden cross appears in the film until an ] guard sends him to the gas chambers and says "just another Jew" in German.<ref name="h20140423">{{cite news\|title='That Jew died for you' – the 'most tasteless YouTube video ever'?\|url=http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/jewish-world-news/1.586953\|newspaper=Haaretz\|date=23 April 2014 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140627110904/http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/jewish-world-news/1.586953 \|archive-date=2014-06-27 \|url-status=live}}</ref> Jews for Jesus said that the objective of the film was for Jesus to be identified with the victims rather than the perpetrators of the Holocaust and that "the ] has been used – perhaps more than any other event or topic – to prevent Jewish people from considering the good news of Jesus."<ref name=i20140425/> ], writing in '']'', described it as "the most tasteless YouTube video ever" and wrote: "Not to state the obvious, but it desecrates the memory of six million Jews to use their suffering as a way to convert Jews to Christianity."<ref name="f20140417">{{cite news\|title=When Jesus Died at Auschwitz\|url=http://blogs.forward.com/forward-thinking/196708/when-jesus-died-at-auschwitz/\|newspaper=The Jewish Daily Forward\|date=17 April 2014\|author=Jay Michaelson \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150317204933/http://blogs.forward.com/forward-thinking/196708/when-jesus-died-at-auschwitz/ \|archive-date=2015-03-17 \|url-status=live}}</ref> ] and ] refused to play an advertisement for the film.<ref name=h20140423/>

			== References in popular culture ==
	In December 2006, ] dropped the lawsuit against Jews for Jesus after they issued a letter of apology to Mason. The group's executive director, ], stated in the letter to Mason that he wanted "to convey my sincere apologies for any distress that you felt over our tract." Brickner continued that he believed its publication was protected by the ], but the group was willing in the interest of peace and love for Israel to retire the pamphlet. Mason replied in front of the federal court in Manhattan where he accepted the apology, "There's no such thing as a Jew for Jesus. It's like saying a black man is for the ]. You can't be a table and a chair. You're either a Jew or a ]."<ref> (and many others) quoting an Associated Press release, December 4, 2006.</ref>
			* {{citation needed span\|'']'' (1978 film)\|date=July 2020}}
			* '']'', 1980<ref>{{cite news \|last1=Fabrizio \|first1=Richard \|title=Obama should create a debt commission \|url=https://www.seacoastonline.com/article/20100214/OPINION/2140311 \|access-date=25 July 2021 \|work=seacoastonline.com \|publisher=Gannett - USA TODAY NETWORK \|language=en}}</ref>
			* ''The New Yorker'', 25 October 2004. Roz Chast.
			* '']'' (2005-2012 Adult Swim animated series)
			* {{citation needed span\|] (2005 film)\|date=July 2020}}
			* ], 2014.<ref>{{Cite web\|last=Peele\|first=Anna\|date=August 6, 2014\|title=Oh Lord, There Goes That Damn Pratt Boy Again, Bless His Heart\|url=https://www.esquire.com/features/chris-pratt-interview-0914\|website=Esquire}}</ref>
			* '']'', 2021.
			* Clem Snide's 2005 song "Jews for Jesus Blues"

	== See also ==		== See also ==
			* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]		* ]
	* ]		* ]
	* ]		* ]
	* ]		* ]
	* ]
	* ]

	==References==		== References ==
	{{Reflist\|2}}		{{Reflist\|35em}}

	==Further reading==		==Further reading==
	* ''~~Sentenced~~ ~~for~~ ~~Life~~: A Story of an ~~Entry~~ and ~~an Exit into~~ the ~~World~~ of ~~Fundamentalist Christianity and~~ Jews for Jesus'' by Jo ~~Ann Schneider Farris~~ (~~Writers Club~~ ~~Press~~, ~~2002~~) ISBN 0-~~595~~-~~24940~~-X		* ''Called to Controversy: The Unlikely Story of Moishe Rosen and the Founding of Jews for Jesus'' by Ruth Rosen (Thomas Nelson, 2012) {{ISBN\|978-1-59555-491-8}}
			* ''Not ashamed: The story of Jews for Jesus'' by Ruth Tucker (Multnomah Publishers, 2000) {{ISBN\|978-1-57673-700-2}}
	* ''Hawking God. A Young Jewish Woman's Ordeal in Jews for Jesus'' by Ellen Kamentsky (Sapphire Press)
			* ''Sentenced for Life: A Story of an Entry and an Exit into the World of Fundamentalist Christianity and Jews for Jesus'' by Jo Ann Schneider Farris (Writers Club Press, 2002) {{ISBN\|0-595-24940-X}}
	* ''Evangelizing the Chosen People: Missions to the Jews in America, 1880–2000'' by Yaakov Ariel (The University of North Carolina Press, 1999) ISBN 0-8078-2566-2
	* ''~~Smashing~~ ~~the Idols~~: A ~~Jewish~~ ~~Inquiry~~ ~~into~~ ~~the~~ ~~Cult~~ ~~Phenomenon~~'' by ~~Gary~~ ~~D. Eisenberg~~ (~~Jason~~ ~~Aronson~~, ~~1988~~) ISBN 0-~~87668~~-~~974~~-8		* ''Messianic Judaism: A rabbi's journey through religious change in America'' by Carol Harris-Shapiro (Beacon Press, 1999) {{ISBN\|978-0-8070-1040-2}}
			* ''Evangelizing the Chosen People: Missions to the Jews in America, 1880–2000'' by Yaakov Ariel (The University of North Carolina Press, 1999) {{ISBN\|0-8078-2566-2}}
			* ''Hawking God. A Young Jewish Woman's Ordeal in Jews for Jesus'' by Ellen Kamentsky (Sapphire Press, 1993) {{Webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191030213613/https://www.skepticfiles.org/fw/defector.htm \|date=2019-10-30 }}
			* ''Jews for Jesus: An Anthropological Study'' by Juliene G. Lipson (AMS Press, 1990) {{ISBN\|0-404-62605-X}}
			* ''Smashing the Idols: A Jewish Inquiry into the Cult Phenomenon'' by Gary D. Eisenberg (Jason Aronson, 1988) {{ISBN\|0-87668-974-8}}

	==External links==		== External links ==
	* Official website		*
			* – a critical article about Jews for Jesus
	* Website of Jews for Jesus missionaries in San Francisco
	* website of former members of Jews for Jesus
	*
	* (faqs.org)
	* {{PDFlink\|\|1.46 MB}}
	* by Steven Reiskind (Boca Raton News) November 5, 2003
	* by Gal Beckerman (July 10, 2006) ]
	* By Jeremy Olshan (New York Post) July 7, 2006

			{{Authority control}}
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Latest revision as of 04:58, 1 December 2024

Messianic Jewish organization

Jews for Jesus

Formation	1970; 55 years ago (1970) (as Hineni Ministries). 1973; 52 years ago (1973) (as Jews for Jesus)
Founder	Moishe Rosen
Type	Non-profit
Purpose	Religious proselytization
Headquarters	San Francisco, California, U.S.
Executive Director	Aaron Abramson
Website	https://jewsforjesus.org/
Formerly called	Hineni Ministries

Messianic Judaism
This article is part of a series on

Theology and practice
Messiah Yeshua
Religious texts
Messianic Bible Translations
Related movements
Christian Zionism Hebrew Christian movement Jews for Jesus
Opposition
Jews for Judaism Proselytization and counter-proselytization of Jews Tovia Singer Yad L'Achim Penina Taylor
v t e

Jews for Jesus is an international Christian missionary organization headquartered in San Francisco, California, that is affiliated with the Messianic Jewish religious movement. The group is known for its proselytism of Jews and promotes the belief that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God. It was founded in 1970 by Moishe Rosen as Hineni Ministries before being incorporated under its current name in 1973.

There are no Jewish religious authorities that consider Jews for Jesus to be a Jewish organization, mainly because the founder is a ordained Baptist minister and should therefore not be involved in reshaping Judaism. Rabbinical authorities point out that there is only one mention of the Old Testament (the Tanakh to Jews) in its "Statement of Faith". Additionally, the Supreme Court of Israel determined that Messianic Jews are not actually Jews as belief in Jesus as the Messiah is not a Jewish value. Instead, most Jews view Jesus either as a good Jewish teacher or as a false prophet, but most certainly a failed messiah claimant.

History

Jews for Jesus was founded by Moishe Rosen, a Baptist minister of the Hebrew Christian movement and a former member of the American Board of Missions to the Jews (ABMJ). The organization was formed in 1970 under the name "Hineni Ministries" as a subsidiary group of the ABMJ. In 1973, Rosen left ABMJ and incorporated his ministry as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization under the name "Jews for Jesus". Originally, "Jews for Jesus" was one of the organization's several slogans, but after the media began to call the group "Jews for Jesus", the organization adopted the name.

Rosen and members began conducting community outreach on streets and college campuses of San Francisco, California. In the following years, branches were established in New York, Chicago, and Boston. In 1978, the Jews for Jesus headquarters relocated to its current location in San Francisco. In 1981, the organization expanded internationally. According to the organization, as of 2021 it maintain offices in 13 countries and 15 cities around the world.

Rosen remained Executive Director until 1996, when he stepped down to work full-time as a staff missionary. He was replaced by David Brickner, who held the position until May 2024. Aaron Abramson is the current Executive Director and CEO of Jews for Jesus.

Beliefs

Jews for Jesus claims to syncretize Jewish heritage and Christian faith into spiritual harmony. They believe faith in Jesus is a viable expression of Jewish life.

The organization summarizes its beliefs in a statement of faith:

The Old Testament and the New Testament are divinely inspired, without error, and are the final authority in all matters of faith and life. Traditional Jewish literature is in no way binding upon life or faith but of value only where it is supported by or conformable to the Word of God.
There is one sovereign God, existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They believe that this concept is rooted in Judaism.
Mankind was created in the image of God, but due to sin has been separated from God.
Jesus is the Messiah and died for the sin of mankind as a substitutionary sacrifice. All who believe in Him have salvation.
The Church is an elect people in accordance with the New Covenant, comprising both Jews and Gentiles who acknowledge Jesus as Messiah and Redeemer.
Jesus will return personally in order to consummate the prophesied purposes concerning His kingdom.
The bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust, the everlasting blessedness of the saved and the everlasting conscious punishment of the lost.

Operations

Jews for Jesus is a registered 501(c)(3) organization that employs approximately 250 staff worldwide. Its headquarters are located in San Francisco, California, and operates offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto, Sydney, Johannesburg, London, Berlin, Paris, Budapest, Tel Aviv, Kyiv, Odesa, Moscow, and Jerusalem.

Once well-known for their distribution of hand-drawn religious tracts, today Jews for Jesus conducts community engagement through other means. Examples of their outreach methods include Jewish holiday events, Bible studies, service projects, internet evangelism, and multi-purpose spaces such as the Moishe Rosen Center in Tel Aviv and the Upside Down Cafe in Los Angeles.

Funding and organization

They are a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability and of MissioNexus. Donations are tax deductible. An independent auditing firm, Eckhoff Accountancy, conducts the organization's annual audit. According to the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, the group's total revenue in FY 2021 was US$37,431,707 and its total expenses was $25,888,924. Expense breakdown was $20,744,089 for program, $2,039,434 for administration, and $3,105,401 for fundraising.

Jews for Jesus is governed by international boards of directors in the United States, Canada, South Africa, Australia, Israel, and Europe. The CEO is advised by an executive leadership team consisting of seven members.

Public perception

Jewish

Jews for Jesus has a contentious relationship with the Jewish community, and their methods have generated controversy. All Jewish authorities, as well as the governing bodies of the State of Israel, hold the view that Messianic Judaism, the religious movement with which Jews for Jesus is affiliated, is not a sect of Judaism but a form of Evangelical Christianity. Additionally, Gentiles who convert to Messianic Judaism are not recognized as Jewish by any Jewish movement. However, Jews for Jesus says they "cannot support any efforts by Gentile believers to convert to any type of Judaism."

Belief in Jesus as deity, Son of God, or even a non-divine Christ/Messiah or prophet (as in Islam), is held as incompatible with Judaism by most Jewish religious movements. However, there has been some debate of that point by Jewish scholars. Daniel Boyarin, a Jewish historian of religion and professor of Talmudic culture at UC Berkeley, writes in one of his books:

Most (if not all) of the ideas and practices of the Jesus movement of the first century and the beginning of the second century—and even later—can be safely understood as part of the ideas and practices that we understand to be "Judaism."... The ideas of Trinity and incarnation, or certainly the germs of those ideas, were already present among Jewish believers well before Jesus came on the scene to incarnate in himself, as it were, those theological notions and take up his messianic calling.

Dan Cohn-Sherbok, a rabbi of Reform Judaism and professor of Jewish Theology at the University of Wales, implies that Messianic Judaism should be embraced in the Jewish community:

...the non-Orthodox rejection of Messianic Jews is more difficult to comprehend given the multidimensional character of contemporary Jewish life ... There is simply no consensus among non-Orthodox Jews concerning the central tenets of the faith, nor is there any agreement about Jewish observance. Instead, the various branches of non-Orthodox Judaism embrace a totally heterogeneous range of viewpoints ... in my view Messianic Judaism constitutes an innovative, exciting, and extremely interesting development on the Jewish scene.

In a 2013 Pew Forum study, 60% of American Jews said that belief in Jesus as the Messiah was not "compatible with being Jewish", while 34% found it compatible and 4% did not know. A 2017 survey that included Messianic Jews "found that 21 percent of Jewish millennials believe Jesus was 'God in human form who lived among people in the 1st century.'" An additional question on faith in the survey found that 14% of participants identified with Christianity, and 10% believed in a hybrid of Christian and Jewish beliefs.

In 1993 the Task Force on Missionaries and Cults of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York (JCRCNY) issued a statement which has been endorsed by the four major Jewish denominations: Orthodox Judaism, Conservative Judaism, Reform Judaism, and Reconstructionist Judaism, as well as national Jewish organizations. Based on this statement, the Spiritual Deception Prevention Project at the JCRCNY stated:

On several occasions leaders of the four major Jewish movements have signed on to joint statements opposing Hebrew-Christian theology and tactics. In part they said: "Though Hebrew Christianity claims to be a form of Judaism, it is not ... It deceptively uses the sacred symbols of Jewish observance ... as a cover to convert Jews to Christianity, a belief system antithetical to Judaism ... Hebrew Christians are in radical conflict with the communal interests and the destiny of the Jewish people. They have crossed an unbridgeable chasm by accepting another religion. Despite this separation, they continue to attempt to convert their former co-religionists.

The director of counter-missionary group Torah Atlanta, Rabbi Efraim Davidson, stated: "Jews for Jesus use aggressive proselytizing to target disenfranchised or unaffiliated Jews, Russian immigrants and college students," and that "their techniques are manipulative, deceptive and anti-Semitic."

Christian

Some Western Christians object to evangelizing Jews because they see Jewish religious practice as valid in and of itself. Some Liberal Protestant denominations have issued statements criticizing evangelism of Jews including the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church USA, which said in 1988 that Jews have their own covenant with God. The Board of Governors of the Long Island Council of Churches opposes proselytizing, and voiced their sentiments in a statement that "noted with alarm" the "subterfuge and dishonesty" inherent in the "mixing religious symbols in ways which distort their essential meaning," and named Jews for Jesus as one of the three groups about whom such behavior was alleged.

Leighton Ford, former vice president of the Billy Graham Evangelical Association and current president of Leighton Ford Ministries, supports the work of Jews for Jesus:

The first followers of Jesus were all Jews – women and men so touched and changed by him that they had to tell their friends and neighbors ... Like their first century counterparts, the people I know in Jews for Jesus have good news they share lovingly and boldly!

In 2003, the sponsorship of Jews for Jesus by All Souls Church, Langham Place, a conservative evangelical church in London, including a launch event on Rosh Hashanah to start a UK mission targeting the Jewish community, led to the Interfaith Alliance UK, a coalition of Jewish, Christian and Islamic religious leaders, issuing a letter of protest to the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Other

The InterFaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington includes Muslims, Jews, and Christian groups. The Conference states that they "support the right of all religions to share their message in the spirit of good will"; however, Rev. Clark Lobenstine has condemned the "proselytizing efforts" of "Jews for Jesus and other messianic Jewish groups." His wording matched the Conference's 1987 "Statement on Proselytism", which makes claims against "groups that have adopted the label of Hebrew Christianity, Messianic Judaism, or Jews for Jesus", so it is unclear which claims are directed at Jews for Jesus in particular.

America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices contains " note about Jews for Jesus, Messianic Jews, Hebrew Christians, and similar groups: Jews in these groups who have converted to Christianity but continue to observe various Jewish practices are no longer considered part of the Jewish community in the usual sense".

Several other organizations oppose the identification of Jews for Jesus as a Jewish group.

Controversies

1987 – Freedom of speech

In Board of Airport Commissioners of Los Angeles v. Jews for Jesus, Inc. the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of Jews for Jesus in a free speech case against the Los Angeles International Airport.

1998 and 2005–2006 – Online name

Jews for Jesus has been involved in litigation regarding Internet use of its name. In 1998 they sued Steven Brodsky for cybersquatting—registering the domain name jewsforjesus.org for a site criticizing the organization. The domain now belongs to Jews for Jesus and is used for their main site.

In 2005 Jews for Jesus sued Google for allowing a Blogspot user to put up a site at the third-level subdomain jewsforjesus.blogspot.com. In September 2006 Christianity Today reported: "Jews for Jesus settled out of court with a critical blogger identified as 'Whistle Blower' on jewsforjesus.blogspot.com. The evangelistic ministry assumed control of the site."

2006 – misuse of Jackie Mason name

In 2006 comedian and actor Jackie Mason filed a lawsuit against Jews for Jesus, alleging that the organization unlawfully distributed a pamphlet that used his name and likeness in a way that suggested he was a member of the group. Jackie Mason was Jewish and not associated with Jews for Jesus. Jews for Jesus issued a detailed response to the allegation on their website.

A judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York denied a preliminary injunction against Jews for Jesus over the pamphlet, finding the distribution of the pamphlet to be protected by the First Amendment, and also stated that the pamphlet did not suggest that Mason was a Christian.

In December 2006, Mason dropped the lawsuit against Jews for Jesus after they issued a letter of apology to him. The group's executive director, David Brickner, stated in the letter to Mason that he wanted "to convey my sincere apologies for any distress that you felt over our tract." Brickner continued that he believed its publication was protected by the Constitution, but the group was willing in the interest of peace and love for Israel to retire the pamphlet. Mason replied in front of the federal court in Manhattan where he accepted the apology, "There's no such thing as a Jew for Jesus. It's like saying a black man is for the KKK. You can't be a table and a chair. You're either a Jew or a Gentile."

That Jew Died for You video

In 2014, Jews for Jesus published a three-minute YouTube video called That Jew Died for You, to coincide with Passover, Holy Week and Holocaust Remembrance Day on 28 April. A long-haired Jesus dragging a large wooden cross appears in the film until an Auschwitz concentration camp guard sends him to the gas chambers and says "just another Jew" in German. Jews for Jesus said that the objective of the film was for Jesus to be identified with the victims rather than the perpetrators of the Holocaust and that "the Holocaust has been used – perhaps more than any other event or topic – to prevent Jewish people from considering the good news of Jesus." Jay Michaelson, writing in The Jewish Daily Forward, described it as "the most tasteless YouTube video ever" and wrote: "Not to state the obvious, but it desecrates the memory of six million Jews to use their suffering as a way to convert Jews to Christianity." Fox News Channel and History refused to play an advertisement for the film.

References in popular culture

Interiors (1978 film)
Airplane!, 1980
The New Yorker, 25 October 2004. Roz Chast.
Moral Orel (2005-2012 Adult Swim animated series)
In Her Shoes (2005 film)
Esquire magazine, 2014.
Curb Your Enthusiasm, 2021.
Clem Snide's 2005 song "Jews for Jesus Blues"

References

Haag, Matthew (2018-10-30). "How a 'Jews for Jesus' Moment Backfired for Mike Pence (Published 2018)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
Jacob, Jeff (5 November 2018). "Are 'Jews for Jesus' Jewish? – The Boston Globe (opinion)". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
Burton, Tara Isabella (2018-10-31). "Messianic Jews and Jews for Jesus, explained". Vox. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
"Movements | Messianic Judaism | Timeline | The Association of Religion Data Archives". www.thearda.com. Archived from the original on 2021-07-15. Retrieved 2021-02-24.
"Who We Are". Jews for Jesus.
^ "Jews for Jesus". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 2018-04-23.
Levine, Amy-Jill (2006). The misunderstood Jew : the Church and the Scandal of the Jewish Jesus. San Francisco: Harper-Collins. ISBN 978-0-060-78966-4.
"What Do Jews Believe About Jesus?". My Jewish Learning. Retrieved 2021-03-09.
Harris-Shapiro, Carol (1999). Messianic Judaism: A rabbi's journey through religious change in America. Beacon Press. p. 25. ISBN 9780807010402.
Carol Harris-Shapiro (1999). Messianic Judaism: A rabbi's journey through religious change in America. Beacon Press. p. 25. ISBN 9780807010402.
"Retiring Jews for Jesus Leader Nurtures a Growing Faith". SFChronicle.com. 1996-06-15. Retrieved 2020-04-29.
"About Jews for Jesus". jewsforjesus.org. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
^ Green, Emma (2014-12-23). "Hanukkah With the Jews for Jesus". The Atlantic.
Ben-Nun, Sarah (August 31, 2024). "Jews for Jesus CEO to 'Post': I see us as brothers and sisters, not enemies". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
"About Jews for Jesus". jewsforjesus.org. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
Statement of Faith (Jews for Jesus) written January 1, 2005
"A Look at the Trinity From a Messianic Jewish Perspective". Jews for Jesus. 3 July 1996.
"Find Locations". Jews for Jesus.
"What We Do – About Jews for Jesus – Jews for Jesus".
"ECFA". www.ecfa.org.
"Missio Nexus". missionexus.org.
"Jews for Jesus (Charter Member Profile) - ECFA.org". Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
"Finances". Jews for Jesus.
Burton, Tara Isabella (2018-10-31). "Messianic Jews and Jews for Jesus, explained". Vox. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
"Who Are Messianic "Jews"?". My Jewish Learning. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
"I'm a Gentile Christian. Should I Keep the Torah?". jewsforjesus.org. 14 September 2020. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
"For most American Jews, it is acceptable to blend some degree of foreign spiritual elements with Judaism. The one exception is Christianity, which is perceived to be incompatible with any form of Jewishness. Jews for Jesus and other Messianic Jewish groups are thus seen as antithetical to Judaism and are completely rejected by the majority of Jews". (Kaplan, Dana Evan. The Cambridge Companion to American Judaism, Cambridge University Press, August 15, 2005, p. 9).
A belief in the divinity of Jesus is incompatible with Judaism:
- "The point is this: that the whole Christology of the Church — the whole complex of doctrines about the Son of God who died on the Cross to save humanity from sin and death — is incompatible with Judaism, and indeed in discontinuity with the Hebraism that preceded it." Rayner, John D. A Jewish Understanding of the World, Berghahn Books, 1998, p. 187. ISBN 1-57181-974-6
- "It has always been recognized, for instance, after the rise of Christianity and Islam, that these two religions are incompatible with Judaism and that no Jew can consistently embrace them while remaining an adherent of Judaism." Neusner, Jacob & Avery-Peck, Alan Jeffery. The Blackwell Reader in Judaism, Blackwell Publishing, 2001, p. 8. ISBN 0-631-20738-4
- "Aside from its belief in Jesus as the Messiah, Christianity has altered many of the most fundamental concepts of Judaism." Kaplan, Aryeh. The Aryeh Kaplan Anthology: Volume 1, Illuminating Expositions on Jewish Thought and Practice, Mesorah Publication, 1991, p. 264. ISBN 0-89906-866-9
- " doctrine of Christ was and will remain alien to Jewish religious thought." Wylen, Stephen M. Settings of Silver: An Introduction to Judaism, Paulist Press, 2000, p. 75. ISBN 0-8091-3960-X
- "For a Jew, however, any form of shituf is tantamount to idolatry in the fullest sense of the word. There is then no way that a Jew can ever accept Jesus as a deity, mediator or savior (messiah), or even as a prophet, without betraying Judaism. To call oneself, therefore, a 'Hebrew-Christian,' a 'Jew for Jesus,' or in the latest version a 'messianic Jew,' is an oxymoron. Just as one cannot be a 'Christian Buddhist,' or a 'Christian for Krishna,' one cannot be a 'Jew for Jesus.'" Schochet, Rabbi J. Immanuel. "Judaism has no place for those who betray their roots", Canadian Jewish News, July 29, 1999.
- This July, Hebrew-Christian groups such as Jews for Jesus will work to convert Jews to another religion. The Jewish Response to Missionaries (NY Board of Rabbis)
- Judaism and Jesus Don't Mix (foundationstone.com)
- Jews believe that "Jews for Jesus", "Messianic Jews", and "Hebrew Christians" are no longer Jews, even if they were once Jews (whatjewsbelieve.org)
- "If you believe Jesus is the messiah, died for anyone else's sins, is God's chosen son, or any other dogma of Christian belief, you are not Jewish. You are Christian. Period." (Jews for Jesus: Who's Who & What's What Archived 2006-11-23 at the Wayback Machine by Rabbi Susan Grossman (beliefnet – virtualtalmud) August 28, 2006; archived 2006-11-23)
- "For two thousand years, Jews rejected the claim that Jesus fulfilled the messianic prophecies of the Hebrew Bible, as well as the dogmatic claims about him made by the church fathers—that he was born of a virgin, the son of God, part of a divine Trinity, and was resurrected after his death. ... For two thousand years, a central wish of Christianity was to be the object of desire by Jews, whose conversion would demonstrate their acceptance that Jesus has fulfilled their own biblical prophecies." (Jewish Views of Jesus by Susannah Heschel, in Jesus In The World's Faiths: Leading Thinkers From Five Faiths Reflect On His Meaning by Gregory A. Barker, editor. (Orbis Books, 2005) ISBN 1-57075-573-6. p.149)
- " are limits to pluralism, beyond which a group is schismatic to the point where it is no longer considered Jewish. For example, everyone considers Messianic Judaism and belief in Buddha as outside of the Jewish sphere." (Why did the majority of the Jewish world reject Jesus as the Messiah, and why did the first Christians accept Jesus as the Messiah? Archived 2007-05-13 at the Wayback Machine by Rabbi Shraga Simmons)
- "No Jew accepts Jesus as the Messiah. When someone makes that faith commitment, they become Christian. It is not possible for someone to be both Christian and Jewish." (Why don't Jews accept Jesus as the Messiah? Archived 2010-12-01 at the Wayback Machine by Rabbi Barry Dov Lerner)
Boyarin, Daniel (2012-03-20). The Jewish Gospels: The Story of the Jewish Christ. New Press/ORIM. ISBN 978-1-59558-711-4.
Anderson, Gerald H. (July 2002). "Book Review: Messianic Judaism, Voices of Messianic Judaism: Confronting Critical Issues Facing a Maturing Movement". International Bulletin of Missionary Research. 26 (3): 134–135. doi:10.1177/239693930202600313. ISSN 0272-6122. S2CID 149203101.
"Chapter 3: Jewish Identity". 1 October 2013.
"Study: One-fifth of Jewish millennials believe Jesus is the son of God". The Jerusalem Post. November 2017. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
"The Evolving Spiritual Identity of Jewish Millennials". Research Releases. Barna. 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2021-03-28. When given a range of options and allowed to select all that apply, nearly half of Jewish Millennials (44%) chose Judaism solely as their subscribed religion. More than half do not affiliate with traditional Jewish denominations (52%), however, and a similar percentage believes Jews can hold faiths other than Judaism (56%). Thus, others choose Christianity (14%), a hybrid of Judaism and Christianity (10%), atheism / agnosticism (9%) or no particular faith (13%)—a range that reinforces the notion of Jewish identity as heritage and people group as much as a specific spiritual belief set. In this context, it should be assumed some of those who select an option that includes "Christianity" may be recognizing any personal association with the faith, such as identifying with the religion of a Christian parent, rather than a specific or devout expression, such as Messianic Judaism.
"MEETING THE CHALLENGE -- HEBREW CHRISTIANS AND THE JEWISH COMMUNITY" (PDF). Jewish Community Relations Council of New York. 3 November 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 November 2006.
"Frequently Asked Questions About Hebrew-Christian Missionaries & "Jews for Jesus"" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-09-28. Jewish Community Relations Council of New York. Spiritual Deception Prevention Project
Portland Jews Brace for Assault by 'Jews for Jesus' Archived 2006-05-15 at the Wayback Machine By Paul Haist (Jewish Review) May 15, 2002
Pluralistic opposition:
- Should Christians Attempt to Evangelize Jews? Israel's Covenant with God Remains Valid Archived 2010-01-24 at the Wayback Machine by Allan R. Brockway
- Policies of mainline and liberal Christians towards proselytizing Jews (religioustolerance.org)
- What about Christian Jews or Jewish Christians? by Fritz Voll (International Council of Christians and Jews) Ecumenical Considerations on Jewish-Christian Dialogue (World Council of Churches)
- In the United Kingdom, there has been opposition to the activities of Jews for Jesus from the Council of Christians and Jews which has prohibited members of the organisation from joining its meetings, through the issuing of a Code of Conduct opposing Jewish proselytisation by Christians.
- "I normally defend my denomination. I'm loyal to it. But I have never targeted Muslims. I have never targeted Jews." "Billy Graham Blasts Brethren" by Eric J. Greenberg, The Jewish Week. January 7, 2000, referring to a Southern Baptist Convention event in Chicago
- The Christian Scholars Group on Christian-Jewish Relations: "Christians should not target Jews for conversion" Archived 2007-03-12 at the Wayback Machine. The Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College. September 1, 2002
Spector, S. Evangelicals and Israel, 2008, Oxford University Press: Oxford, p. 114
"A Theological Understanding of the Relationship Between Christians and Jews, 199th General Assembly (1987) of the Presbyterian Church (USA)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-08-05.
Jews for Jesus: Targeting Jews for Conversion with Subterfuge and Deception, Anti-Defamation League Archived 2012-03-25 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved July 5, 2009.
Ford, Leighton (December 2003). "Letter from Leighton Ford". jewsforjesus.org. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
The Guardian Imams join plea for gay tolerance 26 September 2003
"Member Faith Communities".
^ "PCUSA's excerpt of the IFCMW's 'Statement on Proselytism'" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-12-03. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
"Proselytism Efforts Condemned". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 1987-03-26. Retrieved 2020-10-23.
"IFCMW Statement on Proselytism in a longer quote". Archived from the original on 2012-01-27. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
Benjamin Hubbard; John Hatfield; James Santucci (2007). America's Religions. An Educator's Guide to Beliefs and Practices. Teacher Ideas Press, a Division of Libraries Unlimited. p. 132. ISBN 978-1-56308-469-0.
"Jews for Jesus".
Balmer, Randall. Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism, Baylor University Press, November 2004, p. 448
"L.A. Airport's Free Speech Curb Upset by High Court : 'Jews for Jesus' Win Rights Case". Los Angeles Times. June 15, 1987. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
Sekulow, Jay; Zimmerman, Erik (2012–2013). "Reflections on Jews for Jesus: Twenty-Five Years Later" (PDF). Regent University Law Review. 25 (1): 1–23. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
Savage, David (June 16, 1987). "LAX Ban on Soliciting Rejected by High Court : Justices Say Rule Goes Too Far in Limiting Free Speech; Larger Question of Exclusion Ignored". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
"Jews for Jesus: Targeting Jews for Conversion – Legal Cases". Anti-Defamation League of B'nai Brith. Archived from the original on 2012-10-13.
Google Sued for Trademark Infringement Based on Third-Level Subdomain by Eric Goldman (CircleID) December 30, 2005
Christianity Today News Briefs September 1, 2006
"Comic sues Jews for Jesus". CNN. Archived from the original on 2006-08-29.
Press Release: Jews for Jesus and Jackie Mason (Jews for Jesus) August 25, 2006
Jackie Mason Charges Against Jews For Jesus Denied By U.S. District Court Archived 2006-12-11 at the Wayback Machine, November 8, 2006
USA Today, nymag.com Archived 2007-10-16 at the Wayback Machine (and many others) quoting an Associated Press release, December 4, 2006.
^ Heather Saul (25 April 2014). "Jews for Jesus video showing Jesus being sent to Nazi gas chambers sparks outrage". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2014-04-28.
^ "'That Jew died for you' – the 'most tasteless YouTube video ever'?". Haaretz. 23 April 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-06-27.
Jay Michaelson (17 April 2014). "When Jesus Died at Auschwitz". The Jewish Daily Forward. Archived from the original on 2015-03-17.
Fabrizio, Richard. "Obama should create a debt commission". seacoastonline.com. Gannett - USA TODAY NETWORK. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
Peele, Anna (August 6, 2014). "Oh Lord, There Goes That Damn Pratt Boy Again, Bless His Heart". Esquire.

External links

Official website
Can a Jew believe in Jesus? – a critical article about Jews for Jesus

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