Mass Baptism to Be Held Under Auspices of Tel Aviv Municipality
December 23, 2024
While the Tel Aviv municipality continues to ban Yom Kippur tefillos in public spaces, it has no problem approving a large-scale evangelical event – including a mass baptism – by “J’s Witnesses.”
The event is scheduled for this coming Shabbos, the 20th of Kislev, December 21. Further evidence of the double-standard the city employs is that the event is to be held in the Expo Tel Aviv International Convention Center – which is operated by a company owned by the municipality.
Yad L’Achim was horrified to learn that missionaries had received permission to hold a baptism with the approval of the municipality and fired off a sharply worded letter to City Hall demanding that it be revoked.
“It is not clear to us,” the letter begins, “how the Tel Aviv municipality, known for promoting religious freedom and opposing ‘hadata’ [religious coercion], can allow an event by this offensive Christian cult, which harms both the Jewish and the liberal character of the city.”
The letter cites additional details highlighting the dangers of the cult and raising even greater questions about how the municipality gave it a permit to proselytize. “This is a dangerous sect that works to deny its members’ freedom. Members are forbidden to donate blood or receive blood even in a life-threatening situation (we have testimonies of members who died as a result), and they are forbidden to celebrate holidays or birthdays.
“Members of the cult do not serve in the IDF or do any form of national service. According to the sect’s doctrine, the era of the Jewish people is over and Jews deserve any and all forms of torment and suffering. It is not for nothing that the cult’s activities have been banned in dozens of countries, and that intelligence reports from other countries have sharply attacked it.”
Yad L’Achim issued the following statement to the media: “We are confident that the reasons detailed in the letter will convince the Tel Aviv municipality to exercise common sense and cancel the permit for the baptism – a symbolic event that marks the beginning of official membership in the cult of innocent citizens who have fallen into its net. We are confident that all residents of the city, irrespective of their political views, will understand the danger involved and demand the cancellation of the event.
“The Tel Aviv municipality has said in response that ‘contrary to what is claimed, the municipality does not disallow events for religious reasons, except for gender-segregated events that seek to be held in public spaces. The event at the Expo is not a municipal event, it is not municipally funded, and it is not being held in cooperation with the municipality – and therefore, the municipality does not interfere with it, as long as the content does not contradict the provisions of the law.’
“However,” Yad L’Achim continues, “the city ignores the fact that the convention center is a property that it manages. Furthermore, the municipality is burying its head in the sand and ignoring the deeply disturbing arguments we raised in our letter. We regret that this is how the ‘first Hebrew city’ behaves.”
The letter sent by Yad L’Achim to the mayor of Tel Aviv.
The letter sent by Yad L’Achim to the mayor of Tel Aviv.
