Finding hope amid tragedy

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LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Today is Wednesday, June 4th.

You’re listening to The World and Everything in It.

Good morning. I’m Lindsay Mast.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher.

Over the weekend, a man on an expired visa attacked a Jewish group in Boulder, Colorado. Police say the victims had gathered to show support for Israeli hostages still being held by Hamas. The assault follows another shocking act of violence: the fatal shooting of two Israeli Embassy staffers in Washington, D.C.

Among the victims there: Yaron Lischinsky, a Messianic Jew.

MAST: Messianic Jews sometimes find themselves rejected by other Jews, and overlooked by many Christians. But in the wake of tragedy, their quiet witness may be finding a louder voice.

WORLD’s Elizabeth Russell has the story.

ELIZABETH RUSSELL: The day after the shooting of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, Kim Surasky made her grandson take off a shirt that said “oppose anti-Semitism.” Kim and her husband Neal are Messianic Jews who live near Washington, D.C. She was afraid that someone who shared the shooter’s views might target her grandson.

KIM SURASKY: Even with me, I'm sitting here with this Star of David on right now, and I'm thinking, Are there areas that I can wear that, not wear it? Is it safe? Because it clearly distinguishes me in a way that could potentially be dangerous for my life.

The tragedy hit close to home in more ways than one. Kim is the granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor.

KIM SURASKY: I remember him saying that, don't do anything too outwardly Jewish, because it will get you killed.

Both Neal and Kim grew up in Jewish homes with little religious observance. They stumbled into a Messianic congregation during a desperate search for a rabbi to officiate their wedding.

NEAL SURASKY: The service was Jewish. They were singing Jewish prayers. In fact, one of the key parts that, that really drew me into the truth of who Jesus was, was the fact that they were singing songs that I remembered from my Bar Mitzvah and, and yet here they were talking about, about Yeshua, which is Jesus’ Hebrew name.

That was the first time Neal realized that someone could be Jewish and believe in Jesus. He and Kim accepted Jesus as the Messiah a few days later. They got baptized just before their wedding.

Their new relationship with Jesus strained the ones with their families. They refused to hear about Neal and Kim’s newfound faith.

SURASKY: Because the stigma is there, and in the United States, it's still there, we have been called traitors and betrayers of our faith. And maybe it's a little lighter in the United States and other places. In Israel, it's really harsh. 

Despite the pushback, the Suraskys quickly jumped into ministry. Right after accepting Jesus, Neal made a resolution:

NEAL SURASKY: If there's anything I can do to to share the Good News of Yeshua Jesus with the, with the Jewish people, I will do it.

Neal is now the rabbi of a small Messianic Jewish congregation in Leesburg, Virginia. It’s about a 40-minute drive from Washington.

Just a few days after the shooting, they set aside time in their weekly Saturday service to mourn. The congregation prayed the traditional Mourner’s Kaddish.

The end of the prayer asks God to make peace for His people.

After the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks, the Suraskys made a security plan. Every time their small congregation of about 35 people meets for a Saturday service, someone monitors cameras over the entrance. About 10 minutes in, they lock the doors. Several members have permits to carry a concealed weapon.

SURASKY: It's scary because we are Jews, and it doesn't matter to the people who hate us that we're believers, they just hate us.

But despite their fear, the Suraskys see a moment of opportunity. Lischinsky’s tragic death has brought his faith into the global spotlight. Even in Israel, Jewish dignitaries eulogized Lischinsky and attended his Messianic funeral. A believer in Jesus was recognized and mourned as a Jew.

SURASKY: Now the whole world knows it, and that includes a Jewish community that has for so many years had a bias against Jews that believe in Jesus.

The Suraskys are seizing the chance to share the hope of the Messiah with fellow Jews who may be hurting and afraid. The day before we spoke, a Jewish man called Neal, asking to hear about Jesus.

NEAL SURASKY: He ended up giving his life to Christ. You know, after our conversation and our prayers, and it was just, it was just a confirmation that this is absolutely where we are supposed to be, right here, right now, and that's what, that's what we're focusing on.

The Suraskys hope evangelical Christians will share their urgency and reach out to Jews.

SURASKY: I mean, when the Bible says, it says in Psalm 121, “I lift up my eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from?” Jewish people around the world are looking for that kind of help and that kind of hope, and the place to find it is in the Bible and in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and his Son, Jesus, Yeshua, the Messiah of Israel.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Elizabeth Russell.

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