Categories: Op-Eds

Capital Cavities: Jerusalem Refers 1000 to Christian Missionaries for Free Dental Care

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February 26, 2023, 12 PM ET

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The HaTikva Project, an aggressive missionary organization, is providing vital services to economically challenged Israelis in Jerusalem and Haifa free of charge while using the opportunity to preach the Gospel and convert Jews to Christianity. More outrageous is the fact that it is all being done openly, with the support of the local municipalities.

The missionary group is working actively with vulnerable families, providing adoption and foster-care services and a home for at-risk children. In partnership with the Jerusalem Municipality, its website states, HaTikva [Hebrew for ‘The Hope’] “serves the elderly with in-home visits, hot meals, and practical support, while providing companionship and prayer.” Another service is HaTikva’s free, first-rate dental to thousands of families who otherwise could not afford it. According to its website, “HaTikva Dental operates as the first and only Messianic non-profit dental clinics in Israel. As the only organization in the country providing excellent full-service, heavily subsidized treatment to the needy, local welfare departments continue to refer patients to us, while understanding our open statement of faith.” In this video, put out by Yad l’Achim, an organization that fights missionaries, among other activities, Evan Levine, executive director of HaTikva Project and founder of the dental clinic, explains clearly what his organization is doing – openly and freely in the Jewish State.

HaTikvah informed the welfare agencies in advance “that we have a way to meet the dental needs of the poor, if you’ll send them to us – and they do,” Levine explains. The Municipality of Jerusalem sends them with full knowledge of their intentions, he says, adding that they treat people from all walks of life – Arab and Jew, secular and Orthodox. “We believe really, really strongly that we are in a unique season biblically for the Jewish people to be open to the Gospel,” he says.

Deputy mayor stepping in

Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem Arieh King, in a phone conversation with World Israel News, confirmed that the city has been referring patients to the clinic, calling it a “disaster.” King said he became aware of the situation and was in touch with Yad l’Achim. “This disaster has been happening for a few years. It’s embarrassing me, and it shouldn’t happen. It’s happening because of bureaucrats in the municipality. “I, together with other city councillors, am going to take care of this, and hopefully, in a few days or weeks, they will stop doing this damage to our nation,” he said.

“These missionaries who are devoted to converting Jews to Christianity by using healthcare represent the most deceptive iteration of Jewish evangelism. This is far more deceptive than the missionaries who are dressing like hasidic Jews,” Shannon Nuszen, director of Beyneynu, a non-profit that monitors missionary activity in Israel and abroad, told World Israel News. “They hide behind the fig leaf of their ‘open declaration’ when in fact they are devoted to selling the Jews on the well-worn lie that they can believe in Jesus while still holding on to their Jewish faith and identity.

“Like the mouse trap, it seduces its victims by using the cheese. The free medical care is offered under the guise of their open disclosure,” she said. The first part of the video below, in Hebrew, is an introduction by Yad l’Achim explaining the intent of the missionaries providing dental care. After 30 seconds, the video quickly switches to English, with Levine explaining clearly what his organization is doing and saying it is being done with the support of the Jerusalem municipality.