Guest Commenter Esser Agaroth: Anti-Missionary Bill

This is a serious situation, and reminiscent of the very Early Days in the formation of our Judaic Nation when there was a Jewish student who declared epikorsis ideology challenging the Pharisees; and this divided the people and caused many to be confused about our laws handed down by Moses at Har Sinai. This article is important to read and understand. Of course we welcome the righteous gentiles who accept and believe in the Sheva Mitzvos Bnei Noach and the One and Only G-D, our Father in Shamayim.  Comments invited.

* * *

The following article is long, but presented here in its entirety. It is incumbent on all of us to see with our own eyes to true colors shown by all of the players. It is recommended to read the highlighted portions at least, to save you some time.

YNET: Haredi legislator tables bill outlawing missionaries

Evangelicals are outraged claiming the proposed bill is an affront to Christians who are supportive of Israel; Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rushes to post on his Twitter feed that there will not be any law against Christians

Itamar Eichner, Sivan Hilai | March 22, 2023 

United Torah Judaism lawmaker, Moshe Gafni, a senior member of the ruling coalition on Wednesday tabled a bill outlawing the approach of Jews by missionaries. 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to announce there would be no such legislation in a twitter post. 

Gafni's proposal is an addition to a law that already exists that forbids giving money or gifts in exchange for religious conversions, to now outlaw any missionary work at all, under penalty of jail.

"There has been a recent rise in attempts by missionaries, primarily of the Christian faith, to promote religious conversions. At times, those attempts come with a promise of money or other material benefits," Gafni said. "Most such attempts concentrate on people in social and economic hardship who can be susceptible to persuasion," he said.

The proposal raised the ire of the evangelical community, which is 600 million strong around the world and includes 60 million in the U.S. alone. Evangelicals are predominately supportive of Israel's right wing and the settlement movement. 

Christian media reported on the proposed bill and experts among Christian groups said it would be harmful to Israel's image and is a needless affront to a community that has been steadfast in its support of Israel.

Here is what is reported in Hebrew, but left out of the English version:

The law caused an uproar mainly in the evangelical community - which has 600 million members worldwide and 60 million in the US - and is considered a clear friend of Israel, and the ideological support of the right and the settlers in Israel.

Christian media around the world reported news that ultra-Orthodox members of the Knesset proposed a bill that prohibits sharing the gospel of Jesus in the Holy Land - and imposes criminal penalties on the production and publication of materials about Jesus in Israel - where a large and prosperous Christian community lives. Experts in the Christian world presented the bill as an image attack for the State of Israel, but mainly an unnecessary conflict with the last community that supports Israel without reservation in the world.

The "Newsmax" network quoted Christian leaders in the US who called on Netanyahu to stop the law. At the same time, the Israeli embassies in the US and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem have already received several requests from Christian communities in Israel and abroad. The reports on the bill talked about the denial of religious freedoms of Christians in Israel as part of the legal revolution in Israel, and about a severe violation of freedom of expression and human rights and freedom of worship. Sam Brownback, US ambassador for international religious freedom issues during the Trump administration, warned that the bill poses "a huge threat to freedom of expression, human rights and religious freedom."

Brownback said he was very concerned about the bill, noting: "Free and democratic countries simply do not outlaw the free exchange of ideas, and that includes religious beliefs. Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which Israel is a signatory, guarantees freedom of religion, including the right to decide about your belief in yourself.” 

As mentioned, the Prime Minister's office was quick to understand the potential damage, and Netanyahu published a clarification that such a law would not be promoted. Gafni also hastened to clarify: "The mission bill was introduced as usual at the beginning of the Knesset and is not promoted at this stage, so dealing with it now is not relevant. The bill was submitted in the past and was placed again on the Knesset table procedurally only when the current Knesset convened more than four months ago, and is not planned to move forward at that point”. 

[…]

This is a serious situation, and reminiscent of the very Early Days of our Nation when there was a Jewish student who declared epikorsis ideology challenging the Pharisees; and this divided the people and caused many to be confused about our laws handed down by Moses at Har Sinai. 

Please read the remaining Article at https://esseragaroth.blogspot.com/2023/03/pm-netanyahu-prevents-proposed-anti.html