The following is a reproduction of my 1997 doctoral dissertation demonstrating that modern “Messianic Jewish Congregations” are actually evangelical Christian congregations, not Jewish.
As such it represents my perspective in 1997 before my return to a Jewish way of life in 1999. Please see my Wanderings 1967-2025 for context.
Both the 2000 print version and 2012 ePub are available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Messianic-Jewish-Congregations-Business-Gentiles-ebook/dp/B0097GFOTK/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0
Preface to 2012 ePub Edition
Quite a bit has transpired in the world and my own life since the publication of Messianic Jewish Congregations by University Press in 2000. As a 1997 dissertation, its research and writing represented a “waypoint” in my religious journey.
Raised in a Jewish home, I ended my teen years dabbling in eastern religious experiences encouraged by the 60s counterculture and fueled by psychedelic music and substances. With Vietnam as an ever-threatening storm ready to burst on any draft-eligible college student falling below 30 credit-hour per year threshold, I eventually found myself attracted to the philosophical and ethical teachings of the first century Jewish itinerant rabbi, Jesus of Nazareth. My interest in Jesus’ life and teachings eventually attracted me to the emerging sub-culture of “Jesus Freaks” in southern California. . . .
