April 2020
Modern Israel’s First Martyr
Download PDF

I think when I imagined the solemn day we would all hear about the first martyr in Israel’s Messianic community, the story would be something like a mob of angry Orthodox Jews throwing stones, or another crazy bomb-making guy. I never dreamed it would happen so deliberately and so unprovoked to someone as unobtrusive as Tom.

All of us in Israel are used to the constant threat of rocket fire and bus bombings; aggressive people who don’t like the fact we exist is a way of life. But I have to stop myself and remember — just because we’re used to it, doesn’t make religious persecution right. And left to fester, it could easily get worse.