Missionaries Take Advantage of War Torn Residents

With residents of Eretz Yisroel wracked with fear and anxiety due to the war, missionaries are taking advantage by hanging signs and distributing materials offering them “spiritual solace.” A relentless battle aims to educate and stop their activities.

This past Tishrei, Yad L’Achim was engaged in a relentless battle to protect Jews from missionaries seeking to take advantage of the perilous security situation to spread their spiritual poison.

Upon receiving reports of a missionary vehicle roaming the streets of Elad distributing Christian materials, Yad L’Achim dispatched activists to the city to gather up the leaflets and alert the public as to the danger.

“The missionaries take advantage of Chol Hamo’ed, when people are home, to preach Christianity to them,” explained one Yad L’Achim official, calling on residents to destroy any missionary material they encounter and to report the problem to the organization’s hotline.

In the north, missionaries have been taking advantage of the dire security threats faced by residents to try and snare Jewish souls. Huge signs suspended on bridges and at main intersections offer “spiritual solace” – in the form of missionary messages – for a public that is wracked with fear and anxiety.

When Yad L’Achim learned of such signs appearing on bridges on Highway 6, it sent its people to get them taken down.

Chol Hamo’ed also saw missionaries stationed at Jaffa Gate in the Old City of Yerushalayim, distributing Christian material to Jewish pilgrims. Yad L’Achim’s hotline was inundated with complaints about missionaries harassing Jews coming to the Kosel to enhance their Yom Tov experience. Its activists arrived on the scene to put an end to the missionary activity at this sacred site.

One particularly outrageous incident was the establishment of a sukkah by the missionaries in front of the Kosel observation deck. The sukkah featured signs advertising Christianity and “that man.” After Yad L’Achim activists arrived on the scene, the police dismantled the sukkah, but the missionaries soon rebuilt it, claiming it was just an innocent sukkah. Only after persistent efforts by Yad L’Achim was the sukkah dismantled for good and the missionaries were dispersed.

 Yad L’Achim, which works year-round to rescue Jews from the clutches of missionaries, distributed dozens of sets of Arba Minim to Jews it had saved from conversion. The mehudar sets were delivered directly to the homes of families that have returned to Judaism and were deeply moved to receive such special gifts on Sukkos.

To our sorrow, Tishrei saw the missionaries continue with their home visits aimed at converting Jews. The cities of Bat Yam, Petah Tikva and Rishon Lezion saw a significant increase in such visits, and Yad L’Achim was there to try and curtail them.

“We view with the utmost severity and concern the missionaries’ attempts to operate during the holidays, especially during a year when much of the public is feeling anxious due to the war,” one Yad L’Achim official said. “We will continue to be vigilant and do everything in our power to protect the public from this missionary activity.

“Missionaries in Israel and around the world see this difficult time for the Jewish people as an opportunity, and try to take advantage of the crisis period that Israel is experiencing to convert Jews to their religion. It is important to be aware of these attempts and to not let Jews in distress take  destructive steps that harm them and future generations.”