IN PRAISE OF AMERICAN CHRISTIANS: I bear no animosity toward American Christianity, and I have no interest in undermining the faith of Christians or convincing Christians to convert to Judaism. In fact, I admire American Christians and their clergymen for the significant contribution they have made to the morality and character of America. Christians also deserve acknowledgment for their contribution to the general atmosphere of tolerance that exists for Jews and other non-Christians in America. I also thank the many American Christians, especially evangelical Christians, who have supported the State of Israel through difficult times. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the aggressive efforts by some "messianic Jews" and Christian missionaries have made this book necessary.

WHY TWENTY-SIX REASONS? In Hebrew, there isn't a separate system of letters and numbers. The letters are the numbers. Using English letters as an example, the letter "a" would equal one, the letter "b" would equal two, ect. Therefore, (in Hebrew) the numerical equivalent of each letter of a word can be added together and the sum of each word is called a gematria. Words that have the same gematria (sum) are connected in a mystical way. God has many Hebrew names in the Jewish Bible, each name suggesting a different aspect of God's nature. Torah observant Jews do not pronounce God's Hebrew names except in prayer because of their holiness. The Hebrew name of God that represents the characteristics of mercy and compassion is comprised of four Hebrew letters. In English, Torah observant Jews refer to this name as Hashem, which means, "The Name" in Hebrew. This name of God in Hebrew has a gematria of twenty-six, which is alluded to in the title of this book. In other words, the Jewish understanding of the nature of God and the Jewish People's relationship with God are among the deeper reasons that Jews don't believe in Jesus.  

THE PURPOSE OF "TWENTY-SIX REASONS WHY JEWS DON'T BELIEVE IN JESUS" Most Christians do not seem to know why Jews do not believe in Jesus and why most Jews have no interest in converting to Christianity. There is a concept in the Christian Bible that Jews are "blinded to the truth" about Jesus. Obviously, this is not the Jewish view. This book presents twenty-six bullet points, in an anti-missionary format, explaining the fundamental reasons why, for the past 2000 years, Judaism has consistently rejected the faith claims of Christianity about Jesus and Paul. Specifically, it explains the fundamental issues that separate the two religions; especially the efficacy of law versus faith, the Jewish rejection of the Gentile Christian deification of Jesus into the "son of God" and a member of a divine trinity, and also why Jesus failed to qualify as the Jewish Messiah ben David (son of David). This book was written for Jews to provide them with a comprehensive resource of easily accessible information that can be used to rebut the theological (and emotional) arguments of Christian missionaries.  

DEBATING JEWISH CHRISTIANS: I would like to offer some specific advice and strategy for those Jews who wish to debate Jewish Christians after reading this book. Christian missionaries are often highly experienced debaters and their minds are rarely changed by rational argument. They are expert at quoting verses in the Christian translation of the "Old Testament" (Jewish Bible) that superficially appear to refer to Jesus. It is crucial for Jews to understand that most of these passages have been strategically mistranslated and/or manipulated and/or taken out of context, and a proper Jewish translation (such as the Stone Edition of the Jewish Bible), must therefore be consulted. According to Jewish theology, Gentiles do not need to become Jews to have a place in the World to Come. Therefore, debating Gentile Christian missionaries has no meaningful purpose and may expose an inexperienced Jew to specious arguments and mistranslations that they are not equipped to answer. However, it is important to bring Jews back to Torah and Judaism for the sake of their Jewish souls. To maximize the chance of success, it is important that such a debate be framed appropriately: 

First: Begin by describing the unique nature and the profound significance of God's national revelation to the Jewish People. (See the Introduction). This creates unique credibility for Judaism and its theology, which is qualitatively superior to Christian claims.  

Second: Level the theological playing field by explaining that if Jesus is not literally "god" then worshiping Jesus (a man) is idolatry for a Jew (but not a Gentile). The penalty for such idolatry is "koras," which means separation from God in the World to Come. (See Reason 2)

Third: Describe the six specific messianic criteria delineated by the Jewish prophets to identify the Messiah Ben David. Explain that since Jesus did not fulfill any of these six criteria, he is eliminated from messianic consideration. (See Reason 8)


Fourth: Emphasize that Jesus' supernatural history appears to have been plagiarized from the history of the pagan woman-god Isis and the man-gods Mithras and Dionysus. This demonstrates a devastating lack of originality in the Jesus story. (See Reason 24)

CONCLUSION: These important issues frame the discussion and enable a Jewish Christian to understand what is truly at stake, which levels the theological playing field. It is very important to explain that belief in Jesus separates a Jew from God both in this world and in the World To Come, while embracing Torah and mitzvot (commandments) brings a Jew into the proper relationship with God. When a Jew worships Jesus, (a man) he commits idolatry, (a cardinal sin) which is punishable by kores (separation from God in the World To Come). 

WHAT IS TRULY AT STAKE? It is crucial for Jews to have the theological information necessary to defend themselves against the aggressive efforts of some Christian missionaries, especially those who specifically target Jews for conversion. I have presented my arguments in a candid and uncompromising fashion, which may unintentionally offend some Christian readers. Therefore, if you are a Christian who would be offended by a Jewish rebuttal to the arguments of Christian missionaries and Christian claims about Jesus, this may not be a book that you should read. I believe that the survival of the Jewish People must take precedence over the feelings of Christians. In honor of Hashem's Holy Name, to elevate Jewish souls, to assist Jews in developing or deepening their relationship with God, and to help protect the Jewish People against Christian missionaries, I offer Twenty-Six Reasons Why Jews Don't Believe in Jesus as my contribution to the destiny of the Jewish People.