‘Evangelicals Now’ article 15th December 2025.

Written by Joseph Steinberg in response to the antisemitic attacks on the Jewish Community at Bondi Beach.

I write this with sorrow, and with a measure of fear that has been quietly exhausting to me.

I am Jewish. Over the past two years I have stopped wearing Jewish jewellery in public. I moved to a new home and have not put a “mezuzah” on my front door. When I was a growing up, at Hanukkah, we would place our menorah in the front window for the neighbourhood to see. I don’t feel safe doing that anymore. Every time a column is due for this paper, I feel a sense of dread, wondering who my words may upset because I bring a Jewish perspective to what I write. 

You may feel I am being paranoid, but these small acts of caution show something is wrong when I feel the need to hide my Jewish identity or feel unsafe when I must expose it. 

The murders of Jewish people in Sydney, and before that Manchester (where next?) are shocking but not surprising. The current exponential rise in antisemitism hasn’t come from nowhere – it has flourished where fear is ignored and where silence has become the normal response to Jew-hatred.

I am not blaming anyone in particular for the dire situation we Jewish people find ourselves in – living in a world of fear and uncertainty with few friends who will stand with us and comfort us in our fear. But I am asking you as an Evangelical Christian to consider what faithfulness to the Jewish community could like now, pray, and take action. 

As the leader of a Christian mission to the Jewish people, I carry a particular burden shaped by Romans 9-11: anguish for my own people, confidence in God’s irrevocable calling, and the apostolic conviction that the gospel is for Jewish people – as much now as it was for the Apostle Paul. What Paul wrote does not allow indifference – his words call us to a love that is costly, visible, and truthful.

History matters. For centuries, my people have experienced the fear of Christianity not the love of Christ. The cross has been a sword, and we have been killed in the name of Jesus – rather than being loved. Even during times when blatant hostility faded, apathy and silence still showed that Jewish suffering doesn’t matter. Silence is never neutral. It shapes what people think we value.

This matters for Jewish evangelism. We will never provoke Jewish people to consider Jesus if our lives make them fear Christians. The apostle Paul did not tell us that coercion or cultural dominance would lead Jewish people to faith. He spoke of mercy, humility, and love that awakens longing and provokes holy envy. Christian witness divorced from love hardens hearts and love without truth is purely sentimental and not saving. Faithfulness to God’s love lived and shared holds both together.

When the massacre erupted in Bondi, an Anglican church opened its doors to Jewish people running for safety. They offered shelter. They prayed with and for those who were terrified. They did not ask questions or make speeches. They simply acted. They started the journey of rescue and love that Jewish people need in order to know God’s love in Christ. It says, without words – you matter, and you are safe here.

Moments like this invite us to examine ourselves. Do Jewish people experience Christians as a source of safety or suspicion? Have we and our church allowed Jewish people and Jewish mission to drift to the margins of our priorities? Has fear of controversy made silence feel appropriate rather than unfaithful? These are not accusations. They are questions worth asking before God.

In light of the fear Jewish people feel now more than ever – and the ongoing pogroms against Jewish people – yes, I believe they will continue for now – doing nothing is not an option. Love will lead to action. So, what does that look like?

For starters, we can pray intentionally for Jewish people and for their salvation. Churches can speak publicly and pastorally against antisemitism. And those who are able can support gospel work among Jewish communities. Missions like the one I serve in are committed to seeing Jewish people like me saved. 

Jesus is the promised Shepherd who came first for the lost sheep of Israel and then for the nations. To speak of him rightly is to reflect his character. In a fearful world for Jewish people, the Church has to do better, to do more, and to share Jesus in a way that shows the love of Jesus and not the hatred of the world.

Please, comfort Jewish people, love Jewish people, pray for Jewish people and make sure we hear of the only One who can save us and give us hope now and forever. We are not beyond the Lord’s ability to save.

Rev Joseph Steinberg, CEO International Mission to Jewish People