(Summer 2002, revised March 2004)  Recently I was leafing through the catalog of a major Christian book supplier and came across a section they had termed “Messianic Judaism.” There were a few books in this section, but most of its space was given to a nice selection of tallitot and kippot, challah covers and candleholders,…

Introduction: What Is Messianic Judaism? Messianic Judaism is a congregational movement consisting of believers who affirm Yeshua haNatzrati to be their Messiah and Savior while maintaining Jewish observance in both theology and practice. It is centered mainly in the United States and, to a lesser extent, in Israel. Worldwide membership of around 100,000 people has…

This issue of Kesher explores the place of the Messianic Jewish Movement in relationship to Judaism and Christianity. Undoubtedly, Messianic congregations are deeply connected on many levels to these reli­gious worlds. In the feature article, “Competing Trends In Messianic Judaism: The Debate Over Evangelicalism,” Gabriela Reason highlights both com­monalities and dissimilarities within the Messianic Movement.…