Israel
Church Building in Israel Set Ablaze
Unidentified arsonist guts bottom floors of Jerusalem ministry center.
By Wayne King
ISTANBUL, November 4 (Compass Direct News) – An unidentified arsonist in Israel set fire to a Jerusalem church building that has long been a focal point for anti-Christian sentiment in a Jewish ultra-Orthodox-leaning neighborhood, church officials said.
On Friday (Oct. 29) shortly before 1 a.m., someone broke the basement windows of the Jerusalem Alliance Church Ministry Center and set fire to its bottom floors. An area resident noticed the fire and called the fire department, which arrived 20 minutes later and found the church basement engulfed in flames.
Firefighters extinguished the blaze, ventilated the smoke and left after inspecting the rest of the building, said Jack Sara, senior pastor of the church.
Smoke and the noise of the blaze had awakened 10 volunteer workers who were sleeping at the church’s overnight facilities. The volunteers, who were visiting Israel from the United States and Denmark, went to a nearby hospital and were treated for smoke inhalation; they were released several hours later, church leaders said.
The church building sustained approximately $85,000 of smoke and fire damage. The fire largely gutted the basement and destroyed recent renovations.
Sara said he had difficulty understanding how the arsonist could have carried so much hate; whoever set the fire had to know people were inside the church, he said.
“He not only intended to burn a room but to kill people,” Sara said. “Whoever did it intended to kill people.”
According to Sara, fire investigators initially said the fire was accidental. Then they shifted and said the fire was arson, only to change back again to their original claim that it was accidental.
Although the Israeli press reported that investigators had not formally announced their findings, Sara said investigators told him the fire was “very suspicious.” Contrary to some reports, he insisted that there were no candles lit in the basement when the fire broke out.
Sara said his church, which hosts several congregational groups including expatriates and both Arab Christians and Messianic Jews, routinely receives threats. Referring to Orthodox Jews, militant Palestinians and even some Orthodox Christian communities, Sara said he receives hatred “from all sides.”
It is not unheard of for ultra-Orthodox extremists to burn churches or Bibles in Israel. Not far from the ministry center is the Narkiss Street Baptist Church. In 2007, the church was damaged in a fire believed to be set by ultra-Orthodox Jews. The church building had been rebuilt on the site of a church facility destroyed 25 years prior by anti-Christian groups.
Other recent anti-Christian attacks in Israel have included the bombing of a Messianic Jewish pastor’s home that left his teenage son clinging to life, the disruption of religious services by mobs of protestors and assaults on members of groups deemed “missionaries” by far-right, Orthodox Jews.
The Alliance Church building was constructed roughly 100 years ago. Palestine Bible College was founded at the building.
In 1948, after Zionist leaders declared the establishment of the State of Israel, the church opened other buildings in the Old City of Jerusalem to serve Arab Christians hampered from attending religious services by newly established political realities. Since 1967, Sara said, the building has been used for many purposes.
Sara said his church will host a prayer meeting on Saturday (Nov. 6) to ask for protection of the congregation and for a blessing on its enemies.
In a statement provided to the press, Sara said he wanted the church building to be “a beacon of light reflecting God’s love to all people.”
“We will continue to serve the Holy Land residents from this place, proclaiming peace and justice for all human beings, declaring God’s love for all of our neighbors, friends and enemies,” he said.
www.compassdirect.org
Alleged Bomber of Christian Boy in Israel to Stand Trial
Hearing could determine whether Jack Teitel is transferred from mental hospital.
By Wayne King
ISTANBUL, September 3 (Compass Direct News) – An Israeli man accused of planting a homemade bomb that almost killed the son of a Messianic Jewish pastor in Ariel, Israel has been declared competent to stand trial.
Jack Teitel, 37, who in November was indicted on two charges of pre-meditated murder, three charges of attempted murder and numerous weapons charges, is expected to enter a plea on Sunday (Sept. 5).
David and Leah Ortiz, parents of the teenage victim, said that the 10 months since the indictment have been difficult but their stance toward Teitel remains the same; they have forgiven him for the attack but want him to face justice before a judge and seek salvation from God.
If nothing else, they said, they want him incarcerated to keep other Messianic Jews from being attacked either by Teitel or those following his lead.
“He’s dangerous,” Leah Ortiz said. “He’s an extremely dangerous person. He’s totally unrepentant.”
Sunday’s plea will open the way for a trial expected to start within weeks and last for more than six months. Officials at a hearing possibly the same day as the scheduled plea will decide whether Teitel will be moved from the mental hospital where he has been held for most of his detainment.
It is possible Teitel will enter no plea on Sunday. He has publically stated that he doesn’t “recognize the jurisdiction” of Jerusalem District Court.
Bombing
On March 20, 2008, Ami Ortiz, then 15, opened a gift basket that someone had left anonymously at his family’s home in Ariel. The basket disappeared in a massive explosion that destroyed much of the Ortiz home and shattered Ami’s body.
When he arrived at the hospital, Ami was clinging to life. He was bleeding profusely, had burns covering much of his body and was full of needles, screws and glass fragments the bomb-maker had built into the device.
The doctors had little hope for him and listed his condition as “anush,” meaning his soul was about to leave his body.
After countless hours of surgery and even more spent in prayer, Ami went from “near dead,” to burned and blind and eventually to playing basketball on a national youth team. Both his parents said his recovery was nothing sort of a miracle from God.
‘Most Radical Evangelist’
When Teitel was arrested in October 2009, police found him hanging up posters celebrating the shooting of two teenagers at a gay and lesbian community center in Tel Aviv.
Teitel’s background is still somewhat of a mystery. An emigrant from the United States, he became an Israeli citizen in 2000, got married not long afterwards and is the father of four children. Usually portrayed in Israeli media as part ultra-orthodox ideologue and part fringe survivalist, it is clear that Teitel was motivated by a fascination with end-times prophecy and an extremely violent interpretation of Judaism and Jewish nationalism.
He is a self-described follower of such anti-missionary groups as Yad L’Achim. According to authorities, Teitel sought to kill those he deemed enemies of traditional Judaism: Palestinians, homosexuals, liberal Jewish intellectuals and, in the Ortiz case, Messianic Jews.
David Ortiz is well known in Israel, both for his activities in the Jewish community and for his efforts to expose Palestinians to the gospel.
“He said the reason why he wanted to kill me was that I was the most radical in evangelism, so I had to be first,” said Ortiz, who has seen transcripts of Teitel’s confessions.
Along with the Ortiz case, police said Teitel is responsible for the June 1997 shooting death of Samir Bablisi, a Palestinian taxi driver who was found in his cab with a single bullet wound to his head. Two months later, police said, Teitel allegedly shot Isa Jabarin, a Palestinian shepherd who was giving him driving directions to Jerusalem.
Police also said that Teitel attempted to burn down a monastery and unsuccessfully planted several bombs. He also is accused of the September 2008 bombing of Zeev Sternhell of Hebrew University in Jerusalem. The bombing left the emeritus history professor slightly wounded.
During one court hearing, Teitel flashed a victory sign and reportedly said, “It was a pleasure and honor to serve my God. God is proud of what I have done. I have no regrets.”
Long Road to Trial
David Ortiz said that as bad as the bombing itself was, waiting for the trial has been yet another ordeal.
As officials investigated the bombing, police harassed Messianic Jewish friends of theirs, saying, “If you are Jewish, why did you become a Christian?” Ortiz said.
The Ortiz family had to sue police and pay 5,000 shekels (US$1,320) to obtain a copy of a security camera video belonging to the family that police had seized as evidence. The video shows Teitel laying the basket at the Ortiz home.
“We had to hire a lawyer because we understood clearly that our rights as victims had to be protected,” said David Ortiz.
Particularly galling to the pastor has been the hands-off response of government officials to the attack.
“We are the only family in Israel that has been a victim of an attack that hasn’t been visited by a government official,” he said, adding that officials have made no public condemnation of the attack. “If the leaders do not condemn an act, it emboldens others who want to do the same thing.”
According to the International Religious Freedom Report 2009 issued by the U.S. Department of State, there are 10,000 Messianic Jews in Israel. The report documents several cases of violence against Messianic Jews, including cases where baptismal services have been disrupted, Messianic Jews have been beaten and Christian literature has been torched.
God Shows Up
Leah Ortiz said that what Teitel intended for evil, God meant for good in order to reach people.
“The Lord has taken the worst tragedy that could possibly happen and has used it for the greatest good that He possibly could,” she said.
The incident, and how the Ortiz family has dealt with it, has become a lighting rod of sorts in Israel, forcing people to think more seriously about the claims of the Messianic Jews.
In a place filled with the type of hatred that causes people to strap bombs to their bodies to kill others, the attack has given people a reason to think and, for some, to choose forgiveness and peace.
Ortiz said he has gotten calls from Palestinians who had said if he could forgive a man who bombed his child, then they can forgive what has happened to them. Orthodox Jews have called him and asked forgiveness for their hatred toward Messianic Jews. Muslims have called Ortiz offering blood for transfusions for Ami.
Ortiz said he was devastated after the attack, but that he has been blessed to see God working “supernaturally” through the incident. Ami is an example of God’s grace and healing power, Ortiz said, explaining, “Ami has been a wonder within my own eyes. How could anyone who went through so much be so peaceful?”
Ami’s high school friends, most of them not Messianic Jews, have sought him out and asked him about the ordeal. Ortiz said he thinks God will use him in a big way.
His wife explained, “I have that sense this is about something bigger. This is something bigger than what has happened to us and to our family.”
www.compassdirect.org
Israel - the Land and the People I met there - Summer 2007
Malcolm's Journey in the Middle East. Hopefully to be continued...
Sunday, October 07, 2007
Dear Friends,
This summer I had the unique and wonderful opportunity to spend three months in Israel. I received sponsorship from someone to participate in a six-week long archaeological dig in Beth-Shan – the Tel Rehov project of Hebrew University, and to study modern Hebrew. While I was there I also plugged into a local Church in Jerusalem and was able and enabled to do some evangelism. There were so many good things I saw God doing there this past summer, I do not have the time or the space to go into all the details but I will highlight just a few significant events.
On the weekends after digging six hours a day, five days a week, I had the opportunity to travel with an Israeli Pastor named Tony throughout Israel and the West Bank to do some evangelism. One day we made a trip to Mount Gerizim, where we met the High Priest of the Samaritans, who sat us down in his home and explained to us the five laws of the Samaritans and we presented the gospel to him.
On one occasion we met some local Arabs at a car mechanic shop in Bethany. One man, named Haytham, was very curious about Christianity and even asked if he could find some Christian literature about the gospel. We had an interesting conversation...He mentioned he had to pass an exam of some sort, to which Tony replied, "Do you know that there is an exam everyone has to pass in life?" And that launched our conversation about the gospel. He and his cousin sat us down, poured us some Turkish coffee and we talked in mixed Hebrew and English, mostly English, about the gospel, Israel, Muhammed and Islam.
One night, after participating in communion with the Church (Kol-Ba-Midbar), before the regular service on Saturday at 7 PM, Pastor Tony's son Josh and I were able to walk up and down Ben Yehuda Street, have some coffee at the office and have a good conversation; it was good to be able to relate to another PK, who was also the oldest son. Along our way we ran into a group of Korean singers, in the middle of Ben Yehuda Street, singing praises to Yeshua, the God of Israel; it was so, so beautiful, I was almost moved to tears by this testimony. You see, so many Jews have been brought up to think that Jesus taught Christians to hate the Jews (this is Pastor Tony's testimony himself before he read the New Testament himself and became a believer at 18)...but here, these Korean believers were praising the God of Israel, praising Yeshua the Messiah, through song and joyful hearts in the heart of Jerusalem, the heart of the Jewish world! Josh left for the army in the middle of the summer, July 26th, so it was an interesting time to get to know his family.
During the month of August, Kol-Ba-Midbar launched an intensive Evangelism Campaign that would take us to the streets of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, various Israeli cities, an Arab village, a Sudanese refugee camp bordering Egypt, and Jordan. Overall people were open and receptive. As we sang songs in Hebrew and Arabic, people would stop to listen and even take the literature we were handing out for free and ask us questions. There were a couple of occasions when people would react vehemently or threaten to call the Interior Ministry on us and try to follow us back to the Church office. We had to be discreet, wherever we went, because there were spies on the lookout for us.
August was an intense month of evangelism for many Churches in Jerusalem. People from many backgrounds gathered together to proclaim the truth of the gospel. And there was a notable response. By the end of August, I noticed that someone (probably a local Israeli, not someone from one of the Churches) had sprayed over a number of posters depicting a false Messiah - a Rabbi from New York - had been spray-painted over in black all over Ben Yehuda Street, an emphatic statement denouncing the Hassidic Messiah figure. On one poster someone had even written, “He’s not the Messiah; he’s just a naughty boy!” People are waking up, realizing the absurdity of some of the ultra-religious claims about the Messiah and wondering if this Jesus figure really was the Messiah after all.
I believe God is turning the Jewish people back to him: someone mentioned to me that this summer, more than any other she had seen, she noticed that Israelis were softened to the gospel and that in years past people had gradually become more and more open to hearing its message. This had been true in previous years as well, there is a trend: Jewish people are becoming more and more open to the gospel. Aslan is on the move, I really believe.
There was also a prayer Conference in August for Jewish and Arab believers in Israel, who united together for three days in prayer for the state and the people living under its jurisdiction. The gospel crosses many boundaries!
I met a man at an Arabic Church in Jerusalem who used to be a member of Hamas and now, no longer hates Israel because he has learned to trust in Jesus as Messiah. This man told me he knows other former Hamas members whose lives have been changed by the gospel as well - terrorists are coming to know Jesus! It was an amazing testimony.
At the dig in Beth-Shan, I met two Israelis, Chasdi and Dolev, who both decided that they wanted to see some Churches in Jerusalem. So one weekend, after looking at some old Churches, I invited them to come to a real live Church, Kol-Ba-Midbar for worship and Dolev accepted the invitation. We had a good conversation on the bus afterwards, on the return trip to the Kibbutz near Tel Rehov, where we were digging.
As soon as I had arrived in Israel, I had made it my priority to learn Hebrew. I learned basic conversational Hebrew in two weeks via Ulpan-Or, a Hebrew language-learning course, their motto being “Learning Hebrew at the Speed of Light.” God gave me so much grace in this matter, as I was able to have many conversations with people on the streets or with soldiers on the bus about the gospel, throughout the summer.
I do not believe I have ever sensed a clearer calling from the LORD upon my life. Throughout my college years I wrestled with God, trying to find my calling in this life and the purpose for which He made me. This past summer I found so much purpose and direction my life. Please pray for me as I consider how I might find a way to return to the Land.
I was very sad to leave - I saw so many needs, many of which by God’s grace and provision, and through the local Church body I was enabled to meet. I came back to the U.S.A. because I did not have the financial resources to stay and knew I had college loans I would soon need to pay off (about $20,000 altogether, starting in February). It may have just been for a time, and it may not be the right time to go back to Israel right away, but this experience was a very formative, purpose-filled time that I want to carry with me into the next stage of life.
As a body of believers, we can participate in praying for the Land, for both Jewish and Arab believers as they wrestle together to proclaim the truth in a place where they are seen very much as a minority. Our Palestinian and Israeli Arab brothers and sisters especially could benefit from our support, as they are opposed on both sides: in Israel, for being Arab and in their Muslim communities, persecuted for being Christians.
There is so much more I feel I could write to you but I do not want to take any more of your time. Thank you for your prayers. If you want to read more, I’ve attached several links at the bottom of this page that you might find helpful.
Achi-Shelchem be-Yeshua (Your brother in Jesus),
Malcolm
1312 Wilson St.
Wheaton, IL 60187
Some helpful links: www.voice-wilderness.com. The Church website for Kol-Ba-Midbar
My web-blog: www.xanga.com/msmillie. Here you can also find some songs from our evangelism campaign, a short video-clip and some pictures of the Land.
Archaeology at Tel Rehov: www.rehov.org Here you may find an article about some 3000-year old beehives and also some information about an inscription I found that reads “To nmsh,” possibly referring to the grandfather of Jehu, the founder of the dynasty that usurped power from the Omrides (II Kings: 9-12).
An article about our dig at Tel Rehov, where a noteable group of 3000-year-old beehives were found, indicating for the first time archeologically that the “Land of Milk and Honey” was in King Solomon’s time, a land with an industrial beekeeping industry. : http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/discoveries/2007-09-04-israel-ancient-beekeeping_N.htm
You can read more in depth a conversation I had with Haytham about the gospel, Israel, Muhammed and Islam here, at YmalcolmY: http://ymalcolmy.blogspot.com.
Israel- Revival, Awakenings, and the Movings of God
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