Rabbi in Israel Accused of Being 'Undercover Christian'!

By Sally Shakkour

Israeli ultra-Orthodox group accused a man of pretending to be Jewish while he is actually a Christian missionary from New Jersey.

According to the Israeli media, the man, who was an active part in the Jewish community, has worked as a rabbi and a kohen, which is a Jewish word that stands for priest. He also used to engage in leading wedding ceremonies for couples.

Yet, the man proved to have no Jewish roots, according to the Beyneynu, an organisation that surveys the movements of Christian missionaries in the country.

The organization has also added that the man and his family have been "under surveillance for at least seven years."

Despite being an undercover Christian, the man has buried his wife in 2020 according to the Jewish traditions and performed a Jewish funeral ceremony.

The man living in French Hill for many years had traveled from the US to Israel claiming to be Jewish by forging documents. He denied all the allegations against him saying he was born Jewish.

In response to the allegations, the man, whose identity is unveiled, told local news station Channel 13 that he had worked as a missionary nearly 10 years ago but that he had

"repented." Moreover, Beyneynu revealed that he was trying to convert people to Christianity for many years then he 'disappeared' in 2014 after being confronted by the organisation.

“He assimilated into the ultra-Orthodox community and began a new life, but [one] apparently full of lies,” Shannon Nussan, a researcher for Beyneynu, stated. 

As part of their undercover work, the researcher revealed that the man’s wife was promoting Judaism on social media while indeed she was trying to convert people to Christianity.