Group stirs controversy among Jews

Web posted September 9, 2000

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By Virginia Norton
Staff Writer

Without even trying, David Brickner makes people mad everywhere he goes.

Jews for Jesus had distributed more than 50,000 copies of David Brickner's Future Hope: A Jewish Christian Look at the End of the World.

Jews all over the world await the Messiah, but Mr. Brickner, a Jew, thinks he has found him - Y'shua - Jesus. And that's a contradiction to the very people he hopes to persuade.

If he is a Jew, how can he follow Christ? If he is a follower of Christ, a Christian, then how can he claim to be a Jew?

Despite the controversy, he claims to be both, Jew and Christian. It's a notion that confuses, alienates and infuriates today as much as it did in the first century.

David Brickner is executive director of Jews for Jesus, a group of Jews who also believe in Jesus as the Messiah.

Mr. Brickner is executive director of San Francisco-based Jews for Jesus. He will speak during services Sunday at First Presbyterian Church, 642 Telfair St.

First Presbyterian has supported the ministry financially for several years and wanted to expose the congregation directly to an evangelical leader such as Mr. Brickner, said Robb Adams, executive administrator for the church. Jews for Jesus has ``always been a ministry of bold, courageous evangelism in the face of persecution and suffering.''

Mr. Brickner, 42, said he is not claiming to represent rabbinic Judaism, but, after all, the first Christians were Jews. ``It is a free country. You know the saying, `If you have three Jews, you have five opinions.'ƒ''

The ministry aims ``to make the Messiahship of Jesus an unavoidable issue'' to Jews worldwide, according to its mission statement. Mr. Brickner seeks an open dialogue, he said. ``What we seek is understanding.''

Rabbi Alex Greenbaum of Adas Yeshurun said, ``Jews for Jesus makes as much sense as Christians Without Christ.''

Rabbi Zalman Fischer with Chabad of Augusta said he thinks it is misleading to say anyone can practice Judaism and Christianity simultaneously. ``No matter what the argument, a Jew can't believe Jesus is a prophet or a god.''

While Jews respect Christians and those of other faiths who take their religion seriously, he said, they don't necessarily agree with them. He said he found find it insulting that people would resort to misleading statements to spread their message.

He said Jews for Jesus should invest ``its time, energy and resources in bringing back the millions of nonpracticing Christians to their faith'' before outreach to others.

Jews for Jesus is established in countries where there are large Jewish populations, including the United States, with 5.8 million Jews, and Israel, with 4.8 million, according to Mr. Brickner.

But Judaism worldwide is in decline because of intermarriage and secularization. Some people may be Jewish by birth but not by affiliation, he said. ``Jews stay away from the synagogue by droves. There are many Jews who aren't `Jews for Judaism' - they are Jews for nothing.''

Some fear anti-Semitism and prefer to blend in with the rest of the population, he said. ``If push comes to shove, they will say, `My parents were Jewish, but I don't consider myself to be religious.'ƒ''

In marriages between Christians and Jews in the United States, parents typically avoid a decision about how to raise their children. The ``Jewish parent wants Jewish kids, and the other wants kids to understand about Jesus,'' he said.

Part of Jews for Jesus' ministry is to help the children of mixed marriages understand their identity as Jews, he said. ``We can be a bridge for the family.''

The ministry's Camp Gilgal program serves Jewish children.

Mr. Brickner's Jewishness is based on parentage. His great-great-grandmother, the wife of a rabbi, became a believer in Jesus, making him a fifth-generation Messianic Jew. Despite their faith in Christ, family members respected and passed on their Jewish heritage.

He celebrated Jewish holidays growing up but understood them in the light of Christianity.

Mr. Brickner worships in a Messianic congregation patterned on a synagogical format, meeting on Friday nights or Saturday mornings. The liturgy is drawn from the same prayers as synagogue services while exalting Jesus as the savior, he said.

Jews for Jesus has published evangelical books, including Mr. Brickner's Future Hope: A Jewish Christian Look at the End of the World, released in 1999. He says the re-emergence of Jewish Christians is a sign of the approaching Second Coming. Scriptures teach that Israel will be saved before Christ comes again.

The ministry has distributed more than 50,000 copies. They are free to nonbelievers, but ``we sell them to Christians. If you believe, you have to pay,'' he said.

He estimates that about 30,000 copies went to nonbelievers. ``I am continually hearing from people who made decisions to follow Jesus. I got an e-mail from a woman in Israel who went to see my parents.''

His parents, Avi and Leah Brickner, live in Jerusalem. Some 4,000 to 5,000 Messianic Jews live in Israel, he said. ``Admittedly there are people who would like to get rid of Messianic Jews.''

For more information, call the church at 823-2450 or visit the ministry Internet site at www.jewsforjesus.org.

At the podium

Who: David Brickner, executive director, Jews for Jesus

Where: First Presbyterian Church, 642 Telfair St.

When: 8:30 and 11 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Sunday

Phone: 823-2450

Reach Virginia Norton at (706) 823-3336 or vanorton@augustachronicle.com.