Thoughts and prayers are not enough

This article appeared on TheTorontoSun.com

It is time to build a bridge

By Rev. Majed El Shafie, President & Founder, One Free World International

I have not stopped thinking about the 49 innocent victims whose lives were savagely cut short in Sunday morning’s terrorist attack in Orlando. I have not stopped thinking about the dozens of people from the LGBTQ community who are receiving the medical care they need and will hopefully recover from this horrendous attack. I have said prayers for the victims and their families. But thoughts and prayers are not enough.

As a Christian and a Reverend, my heart aches for the families and friends who have lost loved ones. A man motivated by homophobic hatred committed this attack as he professed allegiance to ISIS and its radical Islamist ideology. In carrying out the largest terrorist attack on North American soil since 9/11, we must renew our commitment to battling the radical Islamist ideology that wages war in Iraq and Syria. We must battle the evil that has struck closer to home from Ottawa to Orlando, Paris and Brussels.

The attacker targeted the patrons of Pulse nightclub because they were different. As a former refugee who faced persecution for converting to Christianity and being different, I am too familiar with the barbaric lengths those motivated by hate will take against those they view as different.

During this time of sorrow and suffering, now is the time for people of faith to unite with our LGBTQ brothers and sisters in love. As a Reverend, for years I have witnessed the perception that LGBTQ people cannot be loved by people in religious communities. While there may be disagreements on certain issues, that does not mean we cannot love each other. In response to these tragic events, people of faith need to reach out to the LGBTQ community and let their brothers and sisters know they are loved. In the aftermath of this tragic loss of precious human life, this cannot be swept under the rug. No one deserves to die to because of who they love, the colour of their skin, or what they believe.

We must come together in defence of each other and our shared values. We must come together and build a bridges between people of faiths and our LGBTQ communities. People of faith need to find the courage to reaffirm our ability to love one another and strengthen our sense of community. The victims of the Orlando attack were targeted for the same reason ISIS targets Christians, Yazidis, and other minorities in Iraq and Syria in their aim of carrying out genocide. We are all different in the eyes of the enemy and must confront it together.

We will rely on the strength of our values: the recognition of the dignity of each human life, honesty, respect for human rights, and a determination in ensuring we can all live safely in pursuing our hopes and dreams. We must defend these shared values. And this must start by building new bridges to unite.

Our political and religious leaders need to be forthcoming in condemning this hatred and having the courage to identify its roots. Christians, Jews, Muslims, and people of other faiths need to speak out to condemn this violence and seize an opportunity to end the historical tension the LGBTQ community has felt for too long, and begin to fight for each other. For if we do not fight for each other, we lose our humanity. After you’ve had some thoughts and said your prayers, it is time to pick up the phone.

Update on Ami

Update on Ami

Dear Friends and Partners,

We would like to thank you for your tremendous response to our alert on behalf of Ami Ortiz, dated March 9, 2009. Rev. El Shafie traveled to Israel last month where he had meetings with several senior officials in the Israeli Foreign Ministry about Ami’s case and presented them with the petition you signed. He also met with Ami and his family, who are very grateful for your support, and arranged for them to participate in one of the meetings as well. The Israeli officials promised to pursue this matter and to put pressure on the Interior Ministry and police to resolve the case and we have been advised that a meeting took place between them and Interior officials after we left.

Ami, as you recall, is a Messianic Jewish teenager who was critically injured last year by a bomb disguised as a Purim gift. Ami has made a miraculous recovery, but he will continue to live with the scars and other physical and psychological effects of this horrific crime for the rest of his life. Yet even while most Israelis readily condemn the attack as a hate-crime, authorities have been slow to follow up on strong evidence pointing to the responsibility of radical ultra-Orthodox groups.

Israeli law guarantees freedom of religion and Israelis in general are content to treat their neighbours’ religious beliefs as a private matter. Nevertheless, Messianic Jews have expressed concern recently over increasing pressure and harassment from a small segment of radical, ultra-Orthodox Jews who see them as a threat and are responding with hatred born out of fear. Because we love Israel and the Jewish people, we must continue to speak the truth about this matter to those in positions of authority. If Israeli authorities turn a blind eye in Ami’s case, those responsible will feel they can continue to harass Messianic Jews freely and the impact will be felt by all Jews who do not choose to follow the doctrines of the radical ultra-Orthodox.

Rev. El Shafie will be returning to Israel in June to follow up on this case and keep pushing for a positive resolution. We will keep the petition online until next Purim or until appropriate action is taken by Israeli authorities before then to bring those responsible for the attack on Ami to justice so please continue to share it with your friends, churches, prayer and bible study groups, and synagogues.

Please continue to pray:

• that Ami would maintain his miraculous recovery, that he would be filled with love and forgiveness for those who have hurt him, and that what the enemy has meant for evil, God would turn around for good and use it to reveal His glory;

• that those responsible for this attack would recognize the evil of their actions and experience the love and forgiveness of God and His peace which passes understanding; and,

• that the Israeli government would move without further delay to bring those responsible to justice and ensure that the right of all Israeli Jews to believe and worship in accordance with their conscience is respected.

ACTION:

The Bible teaches that faith without action is dead, so if you haven’t already done so, please take action and write (contact details are included below):

• a note of encouragement to Ami, c/o One Free World International at info@onefreeworldinternational.org or by mail at 20 Bloor Street East, Box 75129, Toronto, ON, M4W 3T3;

• sign our petition online at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/JusticeforAmi/ and make sure to forward the petition to your friends, churches, prayer-groups, synagogues, and co-workers so that we can get as many signatures as possible and show our support for Ami and the Messianic community in Israel; and,

• write to the Israeli ambassador to your country, assuring them of your love and support for Israel and urging the government to take appropriate and effective action in Ami’s case immediately.

Please remember to send us a copy of your correspondence at: info@onefreeworldinternational.org

Remember, that the persecuted Christians are dying every day, but they are still smiling.  They are in a very deep dark night, but they have the candle of the Lord. The enemy can have a very strong weapon and a very strong army, but we have the Lord Almighty.

"They can kill the dreamer, but they cannot kill the dream" in the Lord’s name.

Be with God and may God be with you.

One Free World International El Shafie Ministries

CONTACT:

In Canada:

Her Excellency Miriam Ziv

Embassy of Israel

50 O'Connor Street

Ottawa, ON   K1P 6L2

Tel: (613) 567-6450 ext. 232; Fax: (613) 567-9878

Email: info@ottawa.mfa.gov.il

In the United States:

His Excellency Sallai Meridor Embassy of Israel 3514 International Dr. N.W. Washington DC   20008 Tel.: (202) 364-5500 Email: info@washington.mfa.gov.il and dpaofficer@washington.mfa.gov.il

 

Justice for Ami

Justice for Ami

Dear Friends and Partners,

[Please note: this alert contains graphic images that may be disturbing to some readers.]

As you saw in our mission to Israel during the Hezbollah War in 2006, One Free World International stands firmly beside Israel, the only true democracy in the Middle East, and supports its right to exist and defend itself. We are also grateful to the Jewish people for the many contributions they have made to humanity in the sciences, the arts, religion, morality and ethics, and human rights. It is our support and love for Israel that requires us to bring our concerns on behalf of Messianic Jews in Israel to your attention.

You may have heard about Ami Ortiz, a Messianic Jewish teenager who was seriously injured by a bomb disguised as a Purim gift last year. Purim is on March 10th-11th this year, and we would like to let Ami know that we are thinking of him at this time and to send a message to the Israeli government that they must bring those responsible to justice without further delay.

Ami’s life has changed forever, but he has miraculously defied the odds and is doing very well. We met with him last fall and were inspired by his courage and spirit. The bomb had been filled with bolts, screws, safety pins, and other shrapnel and metal objects and was built for maximum carnage and doctors had given Ami’s parents little hope for his survival. Yet today Ami, who had dreamed of being a professional basketball player, is back in school and even playing basketball, albeit with great pain. He still faces a number of surgeries and must wear a pressure-suit 23 hours a day for two years to treat his many scars and the skin grafts on his 2nd and 3rd-degree burns.

The Ortizes moved from the United States to Israel over 20 years ago and all of their children, including Ami, have served or plan to serve in the Israeli Defence Forces. Ami was born in Israel and the only difference between him and his school-friends is that the Ortizes are Messianic Jews. They believe that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Messiah promised by God to the Jewish people and, through them, to the whole world.

Israeli law guarantees freedom of religion and Israelis in general are content to treat their neighbours’ religious beliefs as a private matter. However, Messianic Jews have expressed concern in recent years over growing opposition from ultra-Orthodox groups. A small segment of radical, ultra-conservative Jews see Messianic Jews, whose numbers in Israel are few but growing, as a threat and have responded with hatred born out of fear. There is strong evidence that the attack on Ami was planned and carried out by such radicals and Israeli officials have stated as much. Yet, despite broad media coverage, the government has done very little to bring those responsible to justice and to date no arrests have been made.

Most Israelis on the street readily condemn the attack against Ami as a hate-crime. If authorities turn a blind eye in Ami’s case, those responsible will feel they can continue to harass Messianic Jews freely and the impact will be felt by all Jews who do not choose to follow the doctrines of the radical ultra-Orthodox.

In the Jewish calendar Purim marks the joyous celebration of the triumph of the Jewish people, thanks to the courageous acts of Queen Esther, over the evil plot of Haman for their destruction. Like the Jews of that time, we must not allow hatred to prevail over life and freedom for Jews in Israel today.

If we love Israel and the Jewish people, we must speak the truth about this matter to those in positions of authority in Israel. OFWI has addressed the Israeli Foreign Ministry about this and we plan to do so again at the end of this month. Please sign our online petition and share it with your friends, churches, prayer groups, and synagogues, so that we can urge the Israeli government to take appropriate action to:

1.    bring those responsible for the horrific attack on Ami to justice without further delay, and 2.    ensure that the right of all Jews to believe and worship in accordance with their conscience will be respected in Israel.

Please pray:

• that Ami would continue his miraculous recovery, that he would be filled with love and forgiveness for those who have hurt him, and that what the enemy has meant for evil, God would turn around for good and use it to reveal His glory;

• that those responsible for this attack would recognize the evil of their actions and experience the love and forgiveness of God and His peace which passes understanding; and,

• that the Israeli government would move without further delay to bring those responsible to justice, and that they would ensure that the right of all Israeli Jews to believe and worship in accordance with their conscience is respected.

ACTION:

The Bible teaches that faith without action is dead, so please take action urgently and write (contact details are included below):

• a note of encouragement to Ami, c/o One Free World International at info@onefreeworldinternational.org or by mail at 20 Bloor Street East, Box 75129, Toronto, ON, M4W 3T3 Canada;

• sign our petition online at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/JusticeforAmi/, and make sure to forward the petition to your friends, churches, prayer-groups, synagogues, and co-workers so that we can get as many signatures as possible. The future of the Messianic community in Israel depends on your support; and,

• write to the Israeli ambassador to your country, assuring them of your love and support for Israel and urging the government to take appropriate and effective action in this matter immediately.

• We will be meeting with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the end of this month and will present them with the petition and copies of your letters so please remember to send us a copy of your correspondence at:  info@onefreeworldinternational.org

Remember, that the persecuted Christians are dying every day, but they are still smiling.  They are in a very deep dark night, but they have the candle of the Lord. The enemy can have a very strong weapon and a very strong army, but we have the Lord Almighty.

"They can kill the dreamer, but they cannot kill the dream" in the Lord’s name.

Be with God and may God be with you.

Rev. Majed El Shafie President and Founder One Free World International El Shafie Ministries

CONTACT:

In Canada: Her Excellency Miriam Ziv Embassy of Israel 50 O'Connor Street Ottawa, ON   K1P 6L2 Tel: (613) 567-6450 ext. 232; Fax: (613) 567-9878 Email: info@ottawa.mfa.gov.il

In the United States: His Excellency Sallai Meridor Embassy of Israel 3514 International Dr. N.W. Washington DC   20008 Tel.: (202) 364-5500 Email: info@washington.mfa.gov.il and dpaofficer@washington.mfa.gov.il