Jews for Jesus and Holy Communion

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There is a man at my parish who wears a large Star of David around his neck and regularly presents himself for Holy Communion. Atfer Mass on Sunday, I asked one of our priests about the situation. He said it was completely fine for this man to receive the Eucharist as he is a “Jew for Jesus.”

HUH? What is a Jew for Jesus? :confused: I don’t mean to be disrespectful to our Jewish friends, but I really don’t understand. Isn’t the major difference that Jews are still waiting for the Messiah while we know the Messiah as Jesus Christ? “Jew for Jesus” seems like an oxymoron to me. Help! I’d appreciate a bit of education, please.

Thanks!
 
maybe he’s explaining why he’s wearing a Star of David
i did a quick google search and the first hit about Jews for Jesus is that they’re Jewish converts or Jewish Christians who seek to spread the Gospel to the Jews. no mention if they’re Catholic or Protestant group, perhaps an ecumenical effort just to set the Jews on the path to Christianity

so he could be a Catholic guy, but he wears a Star of David because he’s part of Jews for Jesus

just a guess
 
Thanks, Choy!
I always thought this fellow was Jewish. . . …
I suppose it is lesson number 10 billion on why I need to stop concerning myself with other people’s stuff.
 
Messianic Judaism.
Messianic Judaism is a religious movement that blends Christian theology with certain elements of Jewish ritual and terminology. Some Messianics are ethnically Jewish, and argue that Messianic Judaism is a sect of Judaism. However, all Jewish religious movements and mainstream Christian groups consider the movement to be Christian, due to its belief in the centrality of Jesus as Messiah, savior, and God.
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Specifically about the Jews for Jesus:
Jews for Jesus is an evangelizing organization that does not create or sponsor Messianic congregations. Some Messianic believers do not consider Jews for Jesus to be a Messianic Jewish organization.
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“Jews for Jesus” is sometimes used as a generic, and even derogatory, name for Messianic Jews. Messianic Judaism is more or less evangelical protestant in their outlook and culture. I am not aware that Jews for Jesus are found as a subset of other denominations like Choy suggested, it is traditionally a specific denomination of Christianity.
 
Would that exclude someone from Holy Eucharist of he is a Messianic Jew? :confused:
 
Suslar said:
Would that exclude someone from Holy Eucharist of he is a Messianic Jew? :confused:
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It depends. If they have been baptized or received in the Catholic Church, they can of course receive. But if “Messianic Judaism” implies membership of a religious body (Messianic synagogue?) that is not the Catholic Church, they would be non-Catholic and as such not be able to receive.

Being ethnically Jewish and believing JESUS to be Moschiach is how the Church began! But to take communion, you still need to be formally a Catholic.🙂

ICXC NIKA
 
Suslar said:
There is a man at my parish who wears a large Star of David around his neck and regularly presents himself for Holy Communion. Atfer Mass on Sunday, I asked one of our priests about the situation. He said it was completely fine for this man to receive the Eucharist as he is a “Jew for Jesus.”

HUH? What is a Jew for Jesus? :confused: I don’t mean to be disrespectful to our Jewish friends, but I really don’t understand. Isn’t the major difference that Jews are still waiting for the Messiah while we know the Messiah as Jesus Christ? “Jew for Jesus” seems like an oxymoron to me. Help! I’d appreciate a bit of education, please.

Thanks!
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“Messianic Jews” are not Catholics, but Evangelical Protestants. Yes it really is that simple. All Jews who convert to Christianity are automatically Catholic, because the Catholic Church is the Church. There is such a thing as a “Hebrew Catholic”, but they are just another ethnic group like Irish or Polish Catholics. If these people say otherwise, then they are going against Paul. End of discussion.
 
The messianic Jews I’ve met were fully evangelical Christian while maintaining their Jewish culture and some religious practices, changed in the light of their conversion. They still kept passover, for example, but not Yom Kippur.
 
Jewish convert here! My brother is a “Jew for Jesus” – it is a protestant organization of Jews who have converted to Christianity (of the Protestant flavor).

I, on the other hand, am a Jew who converted to Catholicism. It is hard for a non-Jew to understand sometimes that being Jewish is a deeply felt, permanent condition that we believe is physical. It is sort of tribal, I guess. Even though I was brought up relatively non-practicing except for weddings, bar mitvahs and passover… and my Mom would light candles for dead relatives… still, it was just told to me over and over that we were a people singled out by God. We were chosen and He wanted us to maintain our identity.

Perhaps the Priest misspoke. There is an organization for Jews who have converted to Catholicism. I think it is called the Association of Hebrew Catholics. I am not involved as I was never very attached to any Jewish practices. I don’t wear a star of David, but I have one. My sister-in-law wears a Star of David with a cross inside it that she designed (she is also Jewish, and a practicing Evangelical).

Nonetheless, being Jewish isn’t something I can “give up” when I became Catholic. For me, becoming Catholic has completed me. But I will always be Jewish. It is like an ethnic thing, but deeper. I carry the blood of Abraham in my veins.

Hope this helps!
 
Suslar said:
Would that exclude someone from Holy Eucharist of he is a Messianic Jew? :confused:
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if he’s not Catholic

i’m not to familiar with Messianic Jews to say if they are a sect by themselves, or they’re just a group of Jewish converts who belong to different Christian sects. but as long as someone is Catholic, they may receive (with proper disposition) in the Catholic Church. regardless if they have any other attached titles to them
 
I wonder if some of the Jews for Jesus members are just ethnically Jewish, but confirmed Catholics? It would be interesting to see the statistical breakdown of whom they are affiliated with among the Christian sects.
 
basing from the OP, the priest says its fine for the man to receive
so lets trust the priest he knows what he’s doing and he for in fact knows the man is worthy to receive as a Catholic
 
sojo said:
Jewish convert here! My brother is a “Jew for Jesus” – it is a protestant organization of Jews who have converted to Christianity (of the Protestant flavor).

I, on the other hand, am a Jew who converted to Catholicism. It is hard for a non-Jew to understand sometimes that being Jewish is a deeply felt, permanent condition that we believe is physical. It is sort of tribal, I guess. Even though I was brought up relatively non-practicing except for weddings, bar mitvahs and passover… and my Mom would light candles for dead relatives… still, it was just told to me over and over that we were a people singled out by God. We were chosen and He wanted us to maintain our identity.

Perhaps the Priest misspoke. There is an organization for Jews who have converted to Catholicism. I think it is called the Association of Hebrew Catholics. I am not involved as I was never very attached to any Jewish practices. I don’t wear a star of David, but I have one. My sister-in-law wears a Star of David with a cross inside it that she designed (she is also Jewish, and a practicing Evangelical).

Nonetheless, being Jewish isn’t something I can “give up” when I became Catholic. For me, becoming Catholic has completed me. But I will always be Jewish. It is like an ethnic thing, but deeper. I carry the blood of Abraham in my veins.

Hope this helps!
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Sojo: You are SO COOL!! 😃
 
sojo said:
Jewish convert here! My brother is a “Jew for Jesus” – it is a protestant organization of Jews who have converted to Christianity (of the Protestant flavor).

I, on the other hand, am a Jew who converted to Catholicism. It is hard for a non-Jew to understand sometimes that being Jewish is a deeply felt, permanent condition that we believe is physical. It is sort of tribal, I guess. Even though I was brought up relatively non-practicing except for weddings, bar mitvahs and passover… and my Mom would light candles for dead relatives… still, it was just told to me over and over that we were a people singled out by God. We were chosen and He wanted us to maintain our identity.

Perhaps the Priest misspoke. There is an organization for Jews who have converted to Catholicism. I think it is called the Association of Hebrew Catholics. I am not involved as I was never very attached to any Jewish practices. I don’t wear a star of David, but I have one. My sister-in-law wears a Star of David with a cross inside it that she designed (she is also Jewish, and a practicing Evangelical).

Nonetheless, being Jewish isn’t something I can “give up” when I became Catholic. For me, becoming Catholic has completed me. But I will always be Jewish. It is like an ethnic thing, but deeper. I carry the blood of Abraham in my veins.

Hope this helps!
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I concur 🙂
 
sojo said:
Jewish convert here! My brother is a “Jew for Jesus” – it is a protestant organization of Jews who have converted to Christianity (of the Protestant flavor).

I, on the other hand, am a Jew who converted to Catholicism. It is hard for a non-Jew to understand sometimes that being Jewish is a deeply felt, permanent condition that we believe is physical. It is sort of tribal, I guess. Even though I was brought up relatively non-practicing except for weddings, bar mitvahs and passover… and my Mom would light candles for dead relatives… still, it was just told to me over and over that we were a people singled out by God. We were chosen and He wanted us to maintain our identity.

Perhaps the Priest misspoke. There is an organization for Jews who have converted to Catholicism. I think it is called the Association of Hebrew Catholics. I am not involved as I was never very attached to any Jewish practices. I don’t wear a star of David, but I have one. My sister-in-law wears a Star of David with a cross inside it that she designed (she is also Jewish, and a practicing Evangelical).

Nonetheless, being Jewish isn’t something I can “give up” when I became Catholic. For me, becoming Catholic has completed me. But I will always be Jewish. It is like an ethnic thing, but deeper. I carry the blood of Abraham in my veins.

Hope this helps!
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Thanks for posting this!
 
Baruch Haba B’Shem Adonai
Blessed is He who comes in in the Name of the Lord
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They remain fully Jewish, but they have come home to the Lord Yeshua (Jesus)!
When a Jew comes to believe in Jesus, it not only affects his life but the lives of those closest to him - his family.
Recently Israel’s main news channel did a segment on Messianic Jews, and interviewed some of the new Israeli Believers who have come to the Lord. Some of them have had to hide their faith from their family members for fear of rejection.
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The children of one Messianic family stated that the other children at school beat them up and call them nasty names which I can’t repeat in this letter.
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In the light of the above we need to pray for Israel to come to know their Messiah and to come to see Yeshua is the same Messiah of the Jewish Torah. 🙂
 
This guy like has been above mentioned could also be Catholic. I also have thought about wearing a Star of David. We as Catholics are JUDEO-CHRISTIAN. For example, the Eucharist is our rememberance of the Last Supper. Each time we receive, we are commerating the Last Supper. He could be remembering our Jewish heritage and be receiving as a Catholic. Pray for this guy if he is not to come into the Church and celebrate fully in our Communion.
 
sojo said:
Jewish convert here! My brother is a “Jew for Jesus” – it is a protestant organization of Jews who have converted to Christianity (of the Protestant flavor).

I, on the other hand, am a Jew who converted to Catholicism. It is hard for a non-Jew to understand sometimes that being Jewish is a deeply felt, permanent condition that we believe is physical. It is sort of tribal, I guess. Even though I was brought up relatively non-practicing except for weddings, bar mitvahs and passover… and my Mom would light candles for dead relatives… still, it was just told to me over and over that we were a people singled out by God. We were chosen and He wanted us to maintain our identity.

Perhaps the Priest misspoke. There is an organization for Jews who have converted to Catholicism. I think it is called the Association of Hebrew Catholics. I am not involved as I was never very attached to any Jewish practices. I don’t wear a star of David, but I have one. My sister-in-law wears a Star of David with a cross inside it that she designed (she is also Jewish, and a practicing Evangelical).

Nonetheless, being Jewish isn’t something I can “give up” when I became Catholic. For me, becoming Catholic has completed me. But I will always be Jewish. It is like an ethnic thing, but deeper. I carry the blood of Abraham in my veins.

Hope this helps!
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This is a wealth of information, thank you for sharing. The neat thing is you mentioned “it’s sort of tribal”. That makes sense, considering the whole Twelve Tribes of Israel business.
 
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