Are you curious about Messianic Judaism? Do you live in San Diego? Kehilat Ariel Messianic Synagogue, led by Rabbi Barney Kasdan, is a messianic congregation in San Diego looking to recruit Jews to join their organization. However, in reality they are a Christian organization, and Barney Kasdan is a Christian leader. I will demonstrate this, using information from their site and other Christian sites. Each time reference links will be provided so that you can see the evidence with your own eyes.
The Rabbi Barney Kasdan is the "rabbi" of Kehilat Ariel Messianic Synagogue. Here is the link to their web-site where the Kehilat Ariel leadership is listed, with Barney Kasdan as the "rabbi":
Click Here So is Barney Kasdan a real rabbi? No! In an article that Barney Kasdan wrote for the Good News, etc., a Christian newspaper in San Diego, his biography states: "Rabbi Barney Kasdan of Kehilat Ariel Messianic Synagogue in San Diego has been a believer in Yeshua since 1971 and is the founding rabbi of Kehilat Ariel. He has degrees from Biola University (BA), Talbot Seminary (M.Div)..."
Here is the link to the quote, the quote is at the bottom of the page:
Click Here So, what is the goal of Biola University? According to the Biola University web-site, their goal is: "The University seeks to educate Christian men and women in undergraduate and graduate programs to produce thinking Christians..."
Does this sound like a University that a real Rabbi would attend? Of course not! Here is the link to the quote, the quote is from the first paragraph:
Click Here That leaves us with the Master's of Divinity (M.Div is the shortened version) from Talbot Seminary, which is part of the Biola University system. According to the Talbot web-site: "Our graduates bear witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Biola has played a major role in furnishing Christian leaders and workers for the church, society, and the cause of world evangelism since its founding in 1908.."
So Barney Kasdan received a Master's of Divinity from a Christian seminary. This is not exactly the educational resume of a real rabbi, but the resume of a Christian leader. Here is the link to the quote, the quote comes from the heading "Evangelism", at the bottom of the page:
Click Here In sum, Barney Kasdan is not a Jewish leader, but a Christian leader, with degrees from an evangelical Christian university. Christian Listings
As Kehilat Ariel is led by a Christian leader, it is perfectly logical that you will find their congregation listed on a number of Christian sites. In fact, you can find Kehilat Ariel advertising upcoming events on Good News, Etc., a Christian newspaper in San Diego. If you click on this link, you will see that they have multiple events listed for April 16th:
Click Here They also adveritsed with Good News, Etc. for an event on July 13th; here is the link to the proof:
Click Here What is the vision of Good News, Etc.? Their vision is: "The purpose of Good News, Etc. is to inform the Christian Community with local news and events to help bring unity to the body of believers throughout the area of San Diego County and Temecula. We desire to present local news with a Christian perspective, upholding the truth of the Gospel. We consider the newspaper a helps ministry and a resource tool networking believers in the Christian community."
Obviously, they are an evangelical Christian organization. Would a real Jewish congregation advertise events in Good News, etc.? Never! Here is the link to the quote: :
Click Here Similarly, Kehilat Ariel was one of the churches involved in the 1999 San Diego Harvest Crusade, a Christian evangelism program run by Greg Laurie of Harvest Christian Fellowship. Again, not an event that a real Jewish group would choose to participate in. Here is the link to the Harvest Crusade church list:
Click Here
Kehilat Ariel can be found on a number of other Christian sites; a real Jewish synagogue would never be found listed by these organizations! Church USA:
Click Here Crosswalk:
Click Here Southern Baptist evangelist Dr. Jay Snell; Kehilat is the 7th listing:
Click Here Radio Oh!:
Click Here
Why Jews Don't Believe in Jesus There are many reasons why Jews do not accept Jesus, and the links below are some of the better explanations on this topic. Of course, if you have questions that are not covered on the links, you can always e-mail me with your questions. An Answer from Rabbi Stuart Federow Click Here
An Answer from Rabbi Shraga Simmons Click Here Ask the Rabbi from Ohr Somayach Click Here An Answer from Rabbi Tovia Singer Click Here Countermissionary Counseling
There are a number of groups that provide Countermissionary Counseling. Here are links to a few of them:
Jews for Judaism Alternatively, you can call them at 1-800-4PROOF1 with general questions about missionary claims.
Torah Atlanta
Outreach Judaism
Torah Life and Living Great Sites, Priceless Information
Here are a number of great sites that counter missionaries and explain the differences in belief between Judaism and Christianity, including addressing the Biblical verses that missionaries try to use against the Jews and explaining why the missionaries are incorrect. For the most in-depth analysis of verse by verse questions, go to Messiah Truth (sections on Counter-Missionary: Multi-media training [this can be read without being "multi-media"], Knowing Your Orchard and Judaism's Answer), Jews for Judaism (in their Reference Section (please note that the Isaiah topics tend to be under "Suffering Servant" part of the "Proof Text" section) and the Q & A section of Outreach Judaism. Messiah Page Messiah Truth Jews for Judaism Outreach Judaism Counter Missionary Reference Torah Atlanta Messianic Verses in Tanach Kosher Judaism Escape From Counterfeit Judaism Talking to Kids About Missionaries
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