The role of Messianic Judaism1 has been afforded significant attention in a new book on Britain’s post-war Jewish community.
And Dr Richard Harvey, leader of the British Messianic Jewish Alliance who assisted the author with his research, has hailed it as a brave contribution to understanding what it means to be Jewish in the UK today.
Gavin Schaffer, in An Unorthodox History (Manchester University Press 2025, priced at £20), focuses on the internal debates and dynamics of the community rather than external perceptions.
And according to Harvey in his review, he challenges the notion that Jewish life in Britain is in terminal decline, demonstrating that in fact it is thriving and deeply embedded in the country’s history and culture.
He lauds Schaffer for venturing into uncharted territory – including the community’s grudging acceptance of Jews identifying with the LGBTQ+ movement. But, by comparison in his view, acceptance of Messianic Jews still had a way to go.
Having said that, ‘the nice Jewish boy who believes in Jesus’ issue, which some have viewed as an existential threat, is treated with sympathy and sensitivity in chapter 7, though the narrative is primarily adversarial, and he fails (says Harvey) to conduct his own theological investigation into whether you can be Jewish as well as a disciple of Yeshua.
But the rise of Messianic Judaism is recounted all the same, tracking the arrival of Jews for Jesus, the influence of pop legend Helen Shapiro and much else, including reference to the long history of CMJ (the Church’s Mission among Jewish people).
Harvey writes: “The very heart of what it means to be Jewish and British today is at stake if the thousands of Jewish disciples of Yeshua here are to be recognised and accepted by our families, communities and synagogues.”
Unfortunately, however, as the author was writing during Covid, he was unable to take on board recent changes including the “cataclysmic effects” of the Israel-Gaza war, a topic that will likely dominate our lives and thoughts for years to come.
For Richard’s full review, see attached.
1The global movement of Jews who follow Jesus
Charles Gardner is author of Israel the Chosen, available from Amazon; Peace in Jerusalem, available from olivepresspublisher.com; To the Jew First, A Nation Reborn, and King of the Jews, all available from Christian Publications International.
