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"The
Lord is for me among those who help me."
Psalm 118:7
by Chava Stein
Read in full on Kehila News Israel
The question sounds absurd and unthinkable. After all, the whole reason for the existence of Israel was to be a sure and safe refuge, a place where Jews could live without fear of eventually being banished or exiled from their home. It was intended to offer a secure alternative for both religious and non-religious Jews – a welcoming embrace and a better way of life for the world’s millions who belong to the Hebrew race. Conversely, greater numbers of Jews choosing to make Israel their home, would, likewise, yield the fruits of strength, ingenuity and self-determination.
As the end of WW II came to a close, those who managed to survive the
ravages of the Nazi Holocaust, which had enveloped most of Europe, flocked to
the fledgling State which, above all else, offered them hope and safety despite
the many enemies surrounding their very small strip of land. . . .
Since that time, millions more Jews have come to the decision that
Israel is their destiny, and, up until the last few years, making that move was
a fairly uncomplicated step. It was as easy as hopping on a plane, walking into
the Interior Ministry office with documented evidence that you were either born
Jewish or at least have one Jewish grandparent. Those were the simple
requirements in order to be accepted as a citizen of the Jewish homeland.
So what changed, and why does the
welcome mat seem to be turned upside down? If you are a Messianic Jew, you
might be aware that over the past 15 years or so, there has been a coordinated
effort by orthodox groups who have, by and large, been running the offices of
immigration. Their full-scale mission has tried to weed out, in any way they
could, Jewish individuals who believe that Yeshua (Jesus) is the promised
Messiah as spoken of in the Law and the Prophets. It’s not that hard, these
days, to discover who is a believer in today’s world of Google, Facebook and
other social media. . . . immigration is only something attainable by a long,
protracted and costly court battle.
Consequently, such a daunting undertaking has stopped many in their
tracks who just gave up ….it has turned out to be a clever and effective plan
of keeping out Jewish believers for the time being.
But
wait, there’s more….All of a sudden, stories of ordinary, traditional Jewish
individuals have begun to emerge. While
expressing a desire to immigrate due to a variety of hardships and frightening
circumstances, such as Covid, anti-Semitism, Marxist leanings of their new
progressive government, the Jewish homeland has suddenly become a very
attractive option. For them, what should have been a simple visit to their
local Jewish Agency or a quick phone call to Nefesh b’Nefesh, an organization
which was designed to facilitate Aliyah, turned into one long series of
headaches and never-ending demands which started to feel like one roadblock
after another. In Steve Rodan’s Times of Israel blog article of May 28,
2021 entitled, “Israel’s White Paper? US
Jews Find Locked Doors,” he states: “The
Law of Return isn’t working. American Jews aren’t being allowed to move to
Israel. What is going on?!”
….Rodan says that, “Over the last
year, Israel has essentially suspended the Law of Return and that Aliyah, particularly
from the U.S,. has never been lower while American Jewish applications have
never been higher.”
Rodan quotes Nefesh b’Nefesh’s vice-president, Mark Rosenberg who says,
“Past national or international events sparked inquiries and applications — but
never like this.” Rodan continues by saying, “Still, Israel is determined to keep its doors locked to American Jews.
In June 2020, the Jewish Agency predicted that 50,000 Jews overall would
resettle in Israel. Instead, only 20,000 were reported to have been allowed in
the country. Jews who applied under the Law of Return were told to wait and
wait for a decision by the Israeli government. Last spring, the drop in Aliyah
reached 70 percent, compared to the same period in the previous year.”
This was not an isolated
incident. Yet another very perplexing incident occurred just a few days ago as
Israel’s Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef told Jews NOT to make Aliyah,
(Israel Today, July 9,2021) In the article, he states that “there’s a problem.”
After being asked at a recent
visit to Tunisia whether or not Jews should move to Israel, he told them, “It
depends on where they live.” He went on to say, “If they were going to live in
an ultra-Orthodox neighborhood, then they should immigrate to Israel, but if
they were going to live in a place like Herzliya or another one of the secular
locations, they should stay where they are. Yosef went on to argue that sin
is worse than death, and that a religious Jew’s spiritual well-being would be
harmed by living in a secular environment.” In the end, he recommended that
“Jews already living in ultra-Orthodox communities in the diaspora should
probably remain there.”
To quote Steve Rodan, “What is going on?” According
to the data of the Jewish Agency, an estimated 250,000 Jews would be eager to
immigrate to Israel if such a move would be allowed. Rodan says that once
applications were forwarded to Israeli consulates by Nefesh b’Nefesh, “the
process virtually stopped.”
Following Rodan’s description of
a harsh and overbearing interrogation, he seems to believe that only a select
few are getting in on the basis of specific criteria formulated by the Israeli
government itself. Rodan states, “Washington has long indicated that it does
not want its Jews to resettle in Israel. The reason is capital flight: once an
American Jew settles in Israel, regardless of whether he is a tourist,
permanent resident or citizen, he can withdraw his money from his US bank
account, sell his home, and essentially transfer his assets.”
In fact, Rodan claims that since 2010, Jews flying to Israel have often
been searched to see if they are bringing large amounts of cash with them. So
is it really just a matter of money? There
has also been speculation that Israel’s infrastructure is not in a position to
absorb vast numbers of new immigrants despite many of them coming with
significant finances, thereby not being a burden on the State.
While many Jews feel that they are, once again, living in perilous
times, it begs the question, “Will
Israel return to her original stated vision and aspiration of providing a safe
refuge for all Jews regardless of their level of religious observance?”
Will Jews be permitted to return to their ancestral homeland for whatever
reason they see fit? Will their intended homeland view them as valuable assets
who will strengthen and bolster the Zionist dream? And, if not, what will
become of Theodor Herzl’s inspiring words, “If you will it, it is no dream”?
Must we repeat the words of the revered prophet, Moses, “Let My People
Go” to our own Israeli government so that the dream can become the reality
which is spoken of throughout the Jewish prophecies? Ezekiel 36: 24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries,
and will bring you into your own land.”
This article, by one of my most
favorite Israeli writers, Chava Stein, was edited slightly for space
considerations. To read in full “Are Jews being discouraged from
immigrating to Israel?”
Arrows
from Zion
Summarized
from the Weekly Summary of Prayer
Requests Israeli Ministries
Israel Pochtar, Beit Hallel sends a devotional video Pastor
Israel at Mount Hermon and the tribe of Manasseh, plus and article
about their recent MEAT Men's Conference—Rising up to
the Challenge of being Godly Men. Plus an invitation to learn more
about the humanitarian project they are doing among the needy immigrants in
their area. Included in this article are many testimonies from those they have
been able to help, like this from one immigrant mother, "The
daily struggle is already quite intense for us, and I want to cry when I think
about the financial load that you have helped lift off my shoulders.” See the Back-to-School
Project—When a small
Seed goes the extra Mile
Dov Bikas of the street
(Tel) Aviv Ministry, plus a men’s rehab and a women’s shelter in Beer Sheva,
writes, “I am 62 years old…an age when
we start analyzing our lives and asking ourselves questions…. (like) “Why am
I doing this kind of ministry and not something else? Why am I working with
such hopeless people for so many years?” Somebody even asked me one day: “Why
are you preaching to drug addicts and not, for example, to students?” Well, first of all, I was led to this ministry
by God, and His guidance was very clear. But recently I have also remembered
that when I became a believer, I very much enjoyed reading testimonies of drug
addicts and all sorts of criminals whose lives were changed by God. What I
especially liked about these stories was that in almost every one there was a ‘Good
Samaritan’ involved – a person who was able to melt the hearts of these cruel
and rebellious people.” I have often written that it takes a special heart
to make your ministry focus on addicts and street people, this is a perfect
expression of what kind of heart does this. If you would like to learn more
about this truly good Samaritan ministry work in Israel, please go to their website and learn more about this
beautiful work to bring the broken back to a place of beautiful restoration.
Chaim Malespin of the Aliyah Return Center was in the USA for the 4th of July Independence Day celebrations and wrote, “…we are so thankful that there are allies that stand with Israel to work together in solidarity. Currently, nations are making their choice to stand with God's prophetic mandate or stand against it, and the United States has been faithful to stand with Israel…. We are so thankful for the friendship of the United States, and all allies "Sheep Nations" that follow the shepherd, and it is wonderful to work together for democracy and freedom. Let’s take a few moments this Shabbat to remember those who have given their life that we may be free. To hear more about the TIME HONORED relationship between the United States and Israel watch the videos below! Let's build this bridge stronger together. VIDEO Our Shared Fight for Freedom and Happy Independence Day” | To support the work of the Aliyah Return Center Donate
Revive Israel is also Honoring The South Lebanese Army in an article written by Asher Intrater. He also shares in a 6-min video teaching The Key to Success. For their weekly Praise, Prophecy, Prayer, and Preaching Global Broadcast from our team in Israel, you can also watch this rare treat with “Pastor Bassem Adranly ministered the message. He is a dynamic pastor in Jerusalem who ministers to our Arab brothers and sisters.” Also this month the #IAMWITHISRAEL funding focus is on the Revive Israel Discipleship. They write, “Our passion at Revive Israel is to raise up fiery young Israeli witnesses to share the good news of Yeshua with their fellow Israelis. The Revive Israel Discipleship Training Program has been a breath of fresh air in an otherwise very challenging year. Youval and Valerie Yannay started it in early 2020 when COVID restrictions temporarily shut down Revive Israel’s public gatherings |Here’s how you can get involved . To partner with Revive Israel in general, go here
Rania Sayegh is also a Christian Arab minister in Nazareth who is a prophetic
intercessor and has the House of Prayer and Exploits. Rania is well known and
beloved among the Israeli Messianic Jewish community and they often do ministry
together. Chaya Mizrachi and Orna Grinman are two of the MJ women ministers who
recently came together with Rania speaking in the June Arab Deborah’s training
event to Christian Arab pastor’s wives and minsters. There is another Deborah’s event coming up on
Sep 10-11. Rania also was invited to speak in the global prayer conference on
the battle for Jerusalem hosted by Global Prayer Call with Harald Eckert,
Clive Urquhart & Julia Warkentin. Learn more about Rania’s ministry at her hope-nazareth website. If you
would like to support Rania’s ministry they are working of renovations in the Prayer House and in the Guest House bathrooms.
Also they are searching for a new building and still need
another $225,000 for the first down payment for this project. Giving info on
the website.
Pastor Najeeb & Elisabeth Atteih at the Haifa Immanuel Church & Outreaches, and Refugee Ministries, have been taking part in Zoom meetings with their Israeli Messianic Jewish brethren also — like the Zoom meeting that the HaMaayan congregation led by Tony and Orna Sperandeo invited them to participate in. The Atteih’s also had the Syrian and Iraqi believers join into the time of fellowship and preaching as Najeeb preached in Hebrew and Elizabeth translated into Arabic. [I don’t know about you but this really thrilled my heart to read about!]. He shared a testimony about his son, Tino and his wife getting caught in some of the violence that was seen on the streets at the outbreak of the recent Gaza conflict, and how they were spared. Tino and his wife have since welcomed their first child into the world naming her Emily, and Tino has left IDF service to work in Internal Security for the Ministry of Interior, which allows him to work close to home. They were also among the Jews and Arab ministries who met in Acco to pray over the nation “in the places where blood was shed in the recent violent crimes across our country in May. … and raised prayers for each soul that was lost. They sprinkled salt in that place to represent and pray for healing of wounds and poured oil, praying for the coming of the Holy Spirit in the region. Each brother present, whether Jew or Arab, repented and sought forgiveness from the Lord on behalf of his people and the violence, problems, and sins they committed. Even though this group of believers is innocent, they prayed and interceded for their people, just as Nehemiah prayed and interceded for the Israelites. Our country needs healing and restoration of souls. Our prayer is that this group can visit the largest number of these places.” The Atteih’s continue their humanitarian work – especially to those of faith – in the refugee situations from Syria and also in Armenia. Your giving can help them do more. Email them.
Messiah’s Mandate and Shelanu TV’s Ron Cantor shares how Learning Hebrew: The Greatest Challenge of My Life. He also share about how Messiah’s Mandate has committed to raise $4,000 to help Israeli Messianic Teens become strong in Yeshua at the upcoming Katzir summer camp. “Being a teenager is tough—But in Israel, being a teenager who believes in Yeshua—well, that's doubly challenging! Katzir summer camps have always been an oasis for Israeli-Messianic teen believers. Adolescence is hard—but when you add to it the hardships of being a small, outcast minority group in Israel—our teens need a break!” Katzir Donate Here is a Facebook video featuring Katzir director Joel Jelski and an article in Kehila News Israel by Tuvia Pollack: Planning for the future harvest – equipping Messianic youth in Israel
Marianna Gol also has a youth summer camp for the “widows and orphans” she is
working with down in the Negev – it had to be a last minute decision because of
all the Covid restrictions (a moving target in Israel). They have 44 children
and youth signed up but “We are without
the usual months of preparations, fund raising, and of course the wonderful
support of the USA Young Life team. “ That is one more reason that Marianna is
sending out this call to join them for a Prayer Blitz for Summer Camp. It will be on Zoom on July 22nd, from 14:30 Israel time.
Please could you let us know if you're able to make it? Contact Form: at
http://streamsinthedesert.co
Guy Cohen talked about how the prophet Amos said of himself, ‘says I am a
herdsman, a man in the fields working with cattle and the land whom God told to
go prophesy to His people Israel.’ Guy says this is the type of humility that
is needed in prophets whose prophecies should “be for the purpose of serving
those to whom the message is given.” Great message.
Another great message from Restoration from Zion’s Benjamin Juster who advises taking time this summer to get with extended family and also with our extended spiritual families. The Juster have done this over the summer and he says it will leave your heart full to be with our natural extended families and with our spiritual extended families it will “help to restore your joy level and lead to the kind of Re-Creation that prepares you for the next season of planting and harvest in the Kingdom.” Dan Juster writes that his and Patty’s 3-month stint in the US is just about up and has been spent “primarily to strengthen the congregations in the Tikkun America Network and to make connection to church partners for the Israel focus of ministry that Ben and Lorena Juster share with us in Restoration from Zion of Tikkun Global.” Dan returns to the US in Nov for 3 weeks but says their lives are focused primarily on ministry in Israel. He writes about the impact of a book on discipling which has been impacting him by Michael Hendricks and Jim Wilder, The Other Half of the Church. (This is saying something because Dan wrote the definitive book on discipling of the Messianic body, Growing to Maturity.) If you follow Dan’s official page on Facebook, you will get the benefit of his always seeking to learn more and teachable mind that makes him one of – if not the best – teachers or theologians in the Messianic movement.
Lastly, even though you will find this prophetic word How to Pray for the New Government of Israel counter to the facts presented in my cover story this week, I think it is important to share Succat Hallel’s Rick Ridings’ word about opening the gates for Jewish immigrants to Israel. Even though the word is counter to the current facts in evidence, we know that prayer into these issues can move the mountains of obstacles that currently exist on several levels within Israel.
Urgent HEALING Needs: Life and Death is in the power
of the tongue
Please keep in prayer
the Israeli believers who are fighting for their lives or other urgent health
needs:
Pray for Hallel Goldman, daughter of Yariv
Goldman, Hallel ministers to young
people coming out of an Orthodox life. Hallel appears to have some kind
of heart infection. Pray for her healing | Ronit Bender whose heart arrhythmia
sent her to ER! She
is home now with new meds but still needs our prayers | Pray for Carolyn Hyde whose left hand is so
pained she can no longer play guitar and it is also sometimes painful to play
piano | the Silvers: David's knees and Josie's back pain | Rachel Netanel is still recovering from a broken ankle. She
asks for healing & for the pain to subside. Her ankles were weak already,
so the process is slow and painful| A prayer request for Naomi, for a dear
family that is a part of Israel Pochtar's pastoral team, who was diagnosed with
colon cancer. "Despite what this battle entails, we are confident in God’s
unfailing Word and promises." Read in her
own words| Please continue to pray for Jacob Damkani for the LORD's mercies over Jacob and his dear wife, Elisheva | Olga Bikas a couple of weeks ago she felt extreme dizziness and was
hospitalized. Now she is at home and feels better, but the doctors are still
looking for the cause of the problem. Please
keep praying for Olga
PayPalMe/DonnaDiorio or search PayPal for: donna@israelprayer.com
By postal mail make donations payable to the order of Donna Diorio P O Box 111302 Carrollton, Texas 75006 | I do not have tax exempt status.
