Teaching Team
Messianic Jews in Prison Are Denied Kosher Meals
Messianic Jewish inmates at an Ohio prison are claiming that they are the victims of discrimination. While Ohio prisons provide kosher-certified meals to traditional Jewish inmates, messianic Jews are excluded.
Ohio's prison system classifies messianic Jews as Protestants. Four years ago, Rev. Gary Sims, religious-services administrator for the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, consulted with messianic rabbis about the dietary needs of messianic Jews, who told them that kosher eating was not an obligation for them.
The Mansfield News Journal reports that budget concerns are also a factor:
Sims said the rabbis claimed kosher meals are not a basic tenet of faith for their religion. ODRC spokeswoman JoEllen Culp said a tight prison budget led to the decision to feed Messianic Jewish inmates non-kosher meals. She said a non-kosher meal costs about 95 cents; a kosher one, $5 to $6.
Messianic Jewish inmates have also found it difficult to meet for prayer and study on the Sabbath, according the Akron Beacon Journal:
Sims says the Messianic Jews at Richland have to meet on Sundays because there's no volunteer to serve them for their Sabbath, earlier during weekends.
The religious rights of prisoners are protected by federal law. The Columbus Dispatch reports:
Federal law says the government cannot impede the religious exercise of a prisoner unless those restrictions support a compelling governmental interest. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld that law in 2005 when it came under attack by Ohio prison officials.
People who have posted comments on these articles typically have a "tough luck" approach. They often express the sentiment that if these inmates were really concerned about their religion, they would not have committed crimes. Some comment that people who commit crimes lose all of their rights.
However, those remarks do not address the real issue at hand, which is discrimination. If some people are given special meals because of their religious convictions, but others who hold the same convictions are denied the very same meals, then discrimination is taking place.
I feel that even from a secular perspective it is generally in the best interest of correctional facilities to support inmates who are turning to religion. Often, prisoners realize that the reason for the downward spiral of their lives is because of their lack of connection to God. Facilitating that connection will help bring discipline to their lives and possibly prevent repeat offense. Prisons will actually save money by making the time spent in prison more rehabilitative, since convicts will then go back to leading productive lives rather than placing more burden on the law enforcement, judicial and penitential systems again.
One mitzvah leads to another. Eating kosher and keeping Sabbath will mean that messianic Jewish inmates will feel like better people, which in turn will lead them to do more good things. It's a positive cycle.
The claim that prisoners have lost all of their rights is false. If that were the case, we could simply execute everyone convicted of a crime or sell them into slavery, Heaven forbid. Prisoners still have some rights.
If U.S. court were to decide that no special meals should be granted to any prisoner, then it should be clearly spelled out by law and administered across the board without discrimination. But that would be a mistake.
"I was in prison..."
Visiting people in prison is a big mitzvah. Our master taught,
Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.' (Matthew 25:34-40)
First Fruits of Zion is making a huge impact in prisons. I don't know for sure, but I would not be surprised at all if books and teachings from First Fruits had a serious role in this whole controversy. First Fruits has distributed thousands of dollars worth of teaching materials to inmates and prison chaplains. We receive a constant stream of letters from inmates who have received First Fruits of Zion materials and their lives have been changed by the Torah.
That's what the Torah does: it changes lives. Prisons do not. That's why prison ministry is such a huge and important task, one that we are all responsible to carry out.
If you are benefiting from the ministry of First Fruits of Zion, please help give others the opportunity to benefit from it as well. Please consider supporting the ministry of First Fruits of Zion with a generous tax-deductible donation.
Search in Blogs...
Browse through Blogs
Feeds
Use this RSS feed to track our blogs in your favorite reader.
The FFOZ Blogs RSS Feed
Blogs by Category
- Back Office
- Events and Administration
- Founder’s Blog
- Guest Authors
- Lessons from the Land
- Levertoff Documentary
- Mishlei Musings
- Publications
- Road Trip 09
- Shalom Tour
- Teaching Team
- The Siddur Project
- Torah Club
- Video Blogs
- Site Info Blog
Blogs by Author
- Aaron Eby
- Boaz Michael
- D. Thomas Lancaster
- FFOZ Staff
- Guest Authors
- Media Staff
- Hope Egan
- Seth Dralle
- Toby Janicki
More Recent Posts
- Remembrance and Repentance
- Passover and the Death of James the Just
- Hosting Your First Passover Seder
- Devil's Children
- Vacation Time
- Visit Israel with FFOZ
- A KISS from me to you
- Eating biblically? Let's chew the fat.
- Kosher Sunday School
- Messer and the Messianic Mess
Visitor Feedback:
It doesn't seem like the Torah has been very welcome lately.
No mezuzot on condominium doorposts because the condo agreement apparently overrides your Constitutional rights, and now the prison system can deny your Constitutional right to freedom of religion based on other people's opinions of your personal beliefs.
I was surprised to read Rabbi Oppenheimer's response that the inmates "can claim anything they want, but they can't prove it." That's sad.
I remember when I was an Orthodox Christian and some Orthodox Christians would speak openly of the "glory days" of the Tsar, during which time Jews were appealing for their rights but were denied them. Orthodoxy's opinion was that Jews weren't obligated to live a traditional Jewish life because they had a faulty understanding of the Bible, but Orthodoxy was able to interpret the Bible for them in the "right" way.
It looks like we're forgetting the hard lessons of history faster than we're learning them.
David Smith | July 24, 2008 7:39 PM
I find it interesting that the 'messianic rabbis' are the ones who said kosher food isn't necessary for messianics. I believe in general, most messianics do fall in the category of evangelical protestant when it comes to theology and the vast majority probably do not even eat kosher (according to Judaism and Jewish law) at home.
The prisoners should get the kosher meals if they request them and others who request them get those meals. It shouldn't matter what some 'messianic rabbis' have said.
Andrew
Andrew | July 24, 2008 9:51 PM
it is quite amazing because i am sure if they were not messianic, but just jewish, then they would have received kosher meals.
peter
peter | July 24, 2008 10:28 PM
Simply have them ask for meals as from Hope Egan's book, "Holy Cow! Does God Really Care What We Eat?" They could observe the Tanach's distinction between clean & unclean meats.
Or, they could simply ask for vegetarian meals, as used by the believing Jews, so they could eat with believing gentiles, without concern the meats were contaminated by idol-worship.
The kosher-meal expense may arise from the ritual-slaughter (Tanach), and removal of the sciatic nerve (Oral Tradition.)
David | July 26, 2008 3:18 AM
What is wonderful is a real newspaper has taken up this cause. That is unusual in the US when Believers are being persecuted. They should do what defendants in our adversarial court system usually do. Object to the "expert testimony" with Messianic Rabbi's by submitting testimony from those who do understand and honor these prisoners beliefs. We certainly have enough of them by now. I am not whatever some person with a Ph. T. or D.D. says I am. I am according to what I believe. And so are these prisoners. Messianic Jews are not the only ones with special dietary needs because of their beliefs. Lots of Seventh Day Adventists do not eat pork. And to force them is awful too. Find out where in the public schools Messianic Jewish kosher needs are being honored and show it to them. Put a whole stack of stuff together. Outweigh the ones who spoke for a people they had no knowledge of.
A. Lejune Davis | July 26, 2008 9:45 PM
For the record, the removal of the nerve is based on Genesis 32:32.
Aaron Eby
|
July 26, 2008 11:24 PM
Would donations to defray the costs of Kosher meals help? Perhaps donating the meals or paying for a shipment?
Chaya | July 27, 2008 9:55 AM
That would be noble and perhaps it would work, but it would not solve the problem of discrimination.
Aaron Eby
|
July 27, 2008 10:53 AM
When will we stop calling people rabbi? It is an ugly thing to call men this. It does them harm by puffing them up and makes us and them alike look foolish. They are not rabbis, they are just fallen heads. It is extremely hypocritical (read: Pharisaic not Messianic) to claim Yeshua as Lord Lord yet disobey Him directly in this matter. "And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" (Luke 6:46) "But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren." (Matthew 23:8)
I am not surprised it is the ones who allow themselves to be called rabbi (Matthew 23:5-7, 13) who are misrepresenting the needs of these Messianic believers in prison. God bless you.
Jonathan Turton | July 27, 2008 12:14 PM
This is a worthy cause to publish. But we still are not actually working to give them of our own selves any tangible thing. What about all the single Messianic's out there who have neither shelter, food of any kind, or clothing. And their children with them? Divorce creates as much of a disaster as any hurricane, earthquake, or flood. But none of the secular services we so assume are taking care of them apply when it is one "Messianic" or a spouse who set such disasters in motion. Welfare requires ones children be put into "daycare." Even three day old infants, of Mom and the baby are out of the hospital. These men (and I assume some women too) have food, and an excuse for eating it. They have Torah Study. They have roofs over their heads. They have advocates both with FFOZ now and national newspapers. Who speaks up for our own widows and fatherless? Where is the fund to donate to, and direct needy to? Where's the blog for that one?
Rachel Davis | July 27, 2008 12:59 PM
Messianic believers have been treated like second class citizens for some time. There is so much diversity within the larger group, people don't know what we believe.
The prison is wrong, no doubt about it. There is one thing we can all do; pray for these incarcerated believers. After all, we don't know why they are there. or if they came to Messiah while there. IMHO Josie
Josie | July 27, 2008 3:30 PM
If these were Muslim prisoners we would all surely hear about it all over the news...
The Messianic rabbis they consulted seem to be lukewarm when it comes to Torah...
The rule applies to all, natural born and grafted in; one Torah one Elohim. If these believers wish to eat Kosher then they should be provided Kosher meals, not doing so is in this case discriminatory.
Shoshana | July 27, 2008 4:15 PM
The responses I have seen are pretty typical for the fundamentalist Messianic movement. No one has asked the more pressing and more important question: What are these people doing in prison to begin with?
I don't agree with the prison system withholding their requested kosher meals--especially if any other religious group would be granted special meals. But if we fail to ask what put these individuals in prison first then we have made a serious error.
J.K. McKee | July 28, 2008 8:43 AM
I feel it for them...
I remember when I went to a lecturer and told her that I was going to have to miss a test for Sukkot; she almost bit my head off. And I failed the course because of that.
This world is losing respect for people's individual religious views. But, honestly, we should prepare 'cause it'll only get worse as time goes and Yeshua's coming grows closer. We all should try our best to reach out to these people and to all others in the world so they can see Messiah's Light.
~Ken
Ken | July 28, 2008 9:56 AM
This is an unknown realm for some to comment on who know nothing concerning the ins and outs of a prison system? I am a Messianic believer, and a Corrections Officer who has worked for approximately 15 years within the prison setting. First things first, we are living in a spiritual Egypt when it comes to getting what we feel is right in this world. For the matter of kosher meals, here's a fact. Six inmates end up receiving kosher meals on a yard after expressing their faith in Judaism and massive appeals to state officials, two weeks later the chaplains and kitchen staff are bombarded with 72 inmates requesting a change in religion, health and such, and discrimination for them not receiving kosher. I'm all for fair treatment and no discrimination, but you have to see what we deal with. A world where inmates use their peers, staff,and officers without regard for their professed beliefs, as long as they get what they want. Not enough room or enough time. Shalom
A.M | July 29, 2008 2:56 AM
A.M.: Thanks! That gives us quite a bit more perspective on the matter!
Aaron Eby
|
July 30, 2008 11:43 AM
Funny reading the comments here. A few who question what are they doing in jail. Boaz [Ed: Aaron] addressed these in the original comments.
I work in correctional type (non-religious) facility for teens. We have all type of kids: with our largest group being multiple (not one but on average of five) convicted sexual offenses.
These kids (and adults) deserve a 2nd chance. Most of society has thrown these kids out and would simply get rid of them. However, by virtue of being a person, they deserve respect even if they made a mistake.
Part 2:
The issue on this is simply discrimination. If the STATE chooses to honor one religious preference over another, then the STATE is establishing a religion. The STATE cannot make a choice if the religion is correct or not. Or wether one is valid or not. If Kosher meals are being offered to one religion and the Kosher meal will satisfy another's religion claims then both must be served.
Isaac | July 31, 2008 6:54 PM
As a volunteer who leads a Messianic community at a prison, I totally agree with A.M. The prison system is filled with self-made lawyers who spend their entire day looking for ways to sue the system. It is not an easy fix.
I am appalled at anyone who would make the comment "What are these people doing in prison to begin with?" Of the twenty-five inmates who regularly attend services, all but one became Messianic inside. Many now see Torah as a way to stay outside once they are released.
We have several thousand self-proclaimed Messianics in Colorado and many if not most of our prisons (and there are dozens of prisons) have never had a Messianic voluteer even walk inside. I take pride in the fact that I have helped the current chaplain understand the Messianics a little better. What have you done?
Thanks FFOZ for the materials you have provided to me.
Shalom, Jeff
Jeff | October 4, 2008 1:13 AM