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Messianic Judaism is a syncretic[1] Abrahamic new religious movement that combines various Jewish traditions with belief in Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah. It is widely considered to be a sect of Evangelical Christianity,[2][3] including by all major groups within mainstream Judaism, but the movement considers itself Jewish.[4][5][6][2][7] Belief in Jesus as a messianic figure and as divine (i.e., God the Son) is considered by Jews to be one of the most defining distinctions between Judaism and Christianity.[8][9][10]
It emerged in the 1960s and 1970s from the earlier Hebrew Christian movement,[11][12] and was most prominently propelled through the non-profit organization Jews for Jesus founded in 1973 by Martin "Moishe" Rosen, an American minister under the Conservative Baptist Association.[13][14][7][15][16]
Messianic Jews adhere to conventional Christian beliefs, including the concept of salvation through faith in Jesus (referred to by the Hebrew-language name Yeshua among adherents) as the Jewish Messiah and Savior from sin, and the spiritual authority of the Bible (including the Old and New Testaments).[17][18][16][19][20]
Among other evangelical Christian groups, Messianic Judaism is usually accepted as a form of Christianity.[21] However, adherents of Messianic Judaism claim that the movement is instead a form of Judaism.[22] In the Hebrew language, they tend to identify themselves with the terms maaminim (מאמינים, lit. 'believers') and yehudim (יְהוּדִים, lit. 'Jews') in opposition to being identified as notzrim (נוצרים, lit. 'Christians').[a][23] Jewish organizations inside and outside of Israel reject this framing. The Supreme Court of Israel declared Messianic Judaism a Christian sect for purposes of the Law of Return.[8][24] In this context, there is some discourse among scholars as to whether Messianic Judaism should be labeled a Jewish or Christian religious sect, though the typical consensus identifies it as a stream of the Christian religion.[25]
From 2003 to 2007, the movement grew from 150 Messianic houses of worship in the United States to as many as 438, with over 100 in Israel and more worldwide; congregations are often affiliated with larger Messianic organizations or alliances.[26][27] As of 2012[update], Messianic population estimates were between 175,000 and 250,000 members in the United States, between 10,000 and 20,000 members in Israel, and an estimated total worldwide membership of 350,000.[28][needs update]
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was invoked but never defined (see the help page).The Jews have cause to worry because Evangelicals are active on both fronts, promoting support for the State of Israel, and evangelizing the Jews at the same time. While the Israeli government eagerly accepts public support of Evangelicals and courts the leaders of the New Christian Right, many Jews bitterly condemn Christian proselytism and try their best to restrict the activities of missionaries in Israel. "Jews for Jesus" and other Christian Jewish groups in Israel have become especially effective in evangelizing, often with the support of foreign Evangelicals. It is not surprising that Jewish leaders, both in the United States and Israel, react strongly to "Jews for Jesus" and the whole "Messianic Jewish" movement, whose concern is to promote awareness among the Jews as to God's real plans for humanity and the need to accept Jesus as a Savior. In this respect, Gershom Gorenberg lamented the fact that "people who see Israel through the lens of Endtimes prophecy are questionable allies, whose support should be elicited only in the last resort. In the long run, their apocalyptic agenda has no room for Israel as a normal country."
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