In January 2010, Beth Immanuel Sabbath Fellowship had the pleasure of hosting Modern Orthodox Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger. He came to Hudson to participate in the wedding of
his friends (and Beth Immanuel congregants) Diane Grogan and David Allick. Understandably, Rabbi Schlesinger did not feel comfortable attending Beth Immanuel on Sabbath or participating with us in our services, but he offered to “step out of his comfort zone” and address the community with an intriguing lecture about the halachic(Hebrew) literally, "walk"; traditional Jewish law concerning specific application of the commandments. perspective on non-Jews observing Torah(Hebrew) instruction, guidance; specifically, the five books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. Often translated "law" or "Pentateuch" after the conclusion of the Sabbath.
Rabbi Schlesinger’s lecture was progressive and well-received. Afterwards he offered a question-and-answer session during which people had an opportunity for further discussion. It was a great opportunity for what one might call inter-faith dialogue, a positive step forward for Jewish-Christian relations. Many of the people in attendance and in dialogue that evening, actually, were not Beth Immanuel community members, but rather people visiting for the wedding.
Recently, Rabbi Schlesinger posted a version of the lecture he presented online. As a preface to the lecture, he described in positive terms his experience at Beth Immanuel and his impressions of our community and the larger Torah-movement within Messianic Judaism. It’s a delightful surprise to find a friend within traditional Judaism, and I would like to thank him for his kind words.
In his online lecture, Rabbi Schlesinger pointed out that Beth Immanuel has left behind the traditional Christian repudiation of the Jewish people’s covenant with God, that we reject the traditional Christian repudiation of Torah and Mitzvot, and that we have rejected the notion that Sunday replaces the Sabbath. Needless to say, these are accurate assessments of our theology and practice. He noted that we observe the Sabbath, and that our worship service looks like a traditional synagogue worship service. He stated, “They are not trying to impersonate Jews, they are trying to be followers of Jesus …” and that we do so in order to “seriously and sincerely follow in Jesus’ footsteps for the glory of God, not in order to convert us …”
A few of his observations on our community, however, require some clarification, and in some cases, correction. I am certain that Rabbi Schlesinger will agree that, in the midst of dialogue, we have to be careful lest, in our attempt to remove the obstacles to relationship, we also remove the boundaries which define our respective communities of faith.
The Rabbi noted that we are part of the Messianic movement but that we identify ourselves a Sabbath Fellowship, not a Messianic Jewish Synagogue. That’s true, but the reason we do so is actually in response to the greater Messianic Jewish movement. In the past, Messianic Jewish leaders from both the MJAA and the UMJC have recommended that Beth Immanuel should not identify ourselves as a Messianic Jewish synagogue because our leadership is not Jewish and most of the people in attendance are not Jewish. For that reason, we refer to ourselves as a Sabbath Fellowship practicing Messianic Judaism, but not as a Messianic Jewish synagogue.
The Rabbi also noted that “some of them believe that YeshuaThe Hebrew/Aramaic name of Jesus of Nazareth. (lit, "salvation") is the Messiah.” This is certainly true, but something of an understatement. The messiahship of Yeshua is not up for debate at our congregation. It is a baseline for participation here. We believe that Yeshua is the promised Davidic Messiah who will usher in the Messianic Age and take up his seat on the throne of David. If we did not believe that, we would not be “believers.” So it is not that “some of them believe,” but rather, all of us do.
It is also true that some of our members would hesitate to call themselves Christians, but most of us, and all of the leadership, are completely comfortable being identified as Christians. My standard explanation is that we are “Christians practicing Judaism.”
Rabbi Schlesinger also unequivocally declared that Beth Immanuel has “left behind the central Christian belief that Jesus was God” and that we have “left behind the idea of trinity.” It is certainly true that many (though not all) of us are uncomfortable with the traditional Nicean, Trinitarian expression of Christology. We don’t use the conventional creedal terminology; we are more comfortable with the biblical expressions, and affirm that Yeshua of Nazareth is “the son of God,” “the Word made flesh,” “in whom the fullness of deity dwells in bodily form” (John 1:1–14; Colossians 2:9). We do not make Trinitarian expression a baseline for fellowship here at Beth Immanuel, but our theology of the divinity of Messiah is orthodox, well-developed, published, and taught in our community.
See our article on the subject here:
http://www.bethimmanuel.org/about_us/statement_of_faith/mystery_of_godli...
See our statement of faith here:
http://www.bethimmanuel.org/articles/ten-principles-faith
One final point that requires clarification involves evangelism and proselytism. At Beth Immanuel, we don’t actively proselytize the Jewish people, meaning that we conduct no evangelism campaigns or outreach efforts specifically targeting the Jewish community. As Rabbi Schlesinger said, “They are not involved in actively trying to convert Jews.” It’s true. We don’t practice Judaism for purposes of evangelizing the Jewish people. At the same time, however, we are adamant in our conviction that Yeshua of Nazareth is the Messiah of Israel, and we pray for and hope for the day when all Israel hails him as such. We are open to any and all Jewish inquiries about Messiah, eager to share the reasons for our faith, and we desire to see all people, including Jewish people, place faith in him. As Torah-keepers, our constant interaction with the Jewish people, whether at a Torah-lecture, the kosher(Hebrew) proper, permitted by Jewish law. Often used to describe food that it is permissible to eat. market, the Jewish Community Center, or other Jewish event, provides us plenty of opportunities to express our faith and conviction without the necessity of engaging in aggressive proselytism which has been so damaging to the reputation and testimony of Yeshua in the Jewish community.
In this regard, our vision for evangelism is similar to that of First Fruits of Zion which believes that, before we engage in trying to convince the Jewish community to accept the Christian Messiah, we need to correct the church error that teaches Yeshua cancelled the Torah and abrogated God’s ongoing covenant with Israel. We need to repudiate replacement theology. First Fruits of Zion is an educational organization dedicated to re-educating the body about the Jewishness of Messiah and the believer’s relationship to the land, the people, and the scriptures of Israel. We share the same sense of mission. We are trying to remove the obstacles that prohibit Jewish people from considering Gospel—that’s our role to play. Other communities and missions have other roles to play in the kingdom, but we are all working together to grow the same kingdom. We do endorse the outreach efforts of the greater Messianic Jewish movement, consider ourselves partners to their effort, and we hope that our contributions serve to communicate the authentic Jewish Gospel to the Jewish people while at the same time returning Christianity to the original (Jewish) foundation of our faith.
As the apostle Paul says: “So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building” (1 Corinthians 3:7–9).
Thank you to Rabbi Schlesinger for his kind words about Beth Immanuel, and thanks for giving the Messianic movement a second look. As the Jewish community and Messianic Jewish community continue to get to know one another, I think we will all continue to discover that we have a lot in common and can both profit from the relationship and conversation.
