Difference between revisions of "Beit Rehovot Messianic Jewish Synagogue"
(Add section on the 2009 dispute with the Community Security Trust, from The Jewish Chronicle and CST) |
m (Punctuation of nested quotations) |
||
| Line 23: | Line 23: | ||
On 18 September 2009 ''[[The Jewish Chronicle]]'' published a report by [[Robyn Rosen]] that the "Beit Rehovot Messianic Jewish Congregation", which met weekly at a community hall in [[East Kilbride]], had reported an "alarming" rise in antisemitism, including verbal abuse and threatening behaviour from youths. The paper said the group had formerly met at the Mossneuk Community Hall in [[Mossneuk]], which had been "daubed in graffiti" the previous weekend, including the words "Jews' night tonight lads, get your Jew cap on." It quoted [[Asher Kramer Chalmers]], "who leads the group" and who, the paper said, "styles himself Rabbi", as saying that more than a dozen incidents had occurred in the past year and that the police had been called a number of times. According to the paper, Chalmers said that members who wear kippot had been "bombarded with abusive comments", and that he believed the abuse was "a direct result of the demonisation of Israel and Jewish people". The report ended: "But the [[Community Security Trust]] (CST) has distanced itself from the group, not considered halachically Jewish."<ref name="JC2009">Robyn Rosen, [https://www.thejc.com/news/scottish-messianic-community-hit-by-flood-of-abuse-cucl6ov7 Scottish messianic community hit by flood of abuse] ''The Jewish Chronicle'', 18 September 2009, accessed 30 October 2026.</ref> | On 18 September 2009 ''[[The Jewish Chronicle]]'' published a report by [[Robyn Rosen]] that the "Beit Rehovot Messianic Jewish Congregation", which met weekly at a community hall in [[East Kilbride]], had reported an "alarming" rise in antisemitism, including verbal abuse and threatening behaviour from youths. The paper said the group had formerly met at the Mossneuk Community Hall in [[Mossneuk]], which had been "daubed in graffiti" the previous weekend, including the words "Jews' night tonight lads, get your Jew cap on." It quoted [[Asher Kramer Chalmers]], "who leads the group" and who, the paper said, "styles himself Rabbi", as saying that more than a dozen incidents had occurred in the past year and that the police had been called a number of times. According to the paper, Chalmers said that members who wear kippot had been "bombarded with abusive comments", and that he believed the abuse was "a direct result of the demonisation of Israel and Jewish people". The report ended: "But the [[Community Security Trust]] (CST) has distanced itself from the group, not considered halachically Jewish."<ref name="JC2009">Robyn Rosen, [https://www.thejc.com/news/scottish-messianic-community-hit-by-flood-of-abuse-cucl6ov7 Scottish messianic community hit by flood of abuse] ''The Jewish Chronicle'', 18 September 2009, accessed 30 October 2026.</ref> | ||
| − | The Community Security Trust disputed this account three days later. In a statement on its website dated 21 September 2009, CST said the sentence "risks misrepresenting CST's position in regard to these incidents", which it said was "guided by the apparent motivation of the incident perpetrator, not the Jewish status of the victim". It quoted its leaflet ''Definitions of Antisemitic Incidents'' and said it would record incidents as antisemitic "even where the incident victims are not Jewish" if there was evidence of antisemitic motivation or language. CST published the text of a letter it said it had sent to ''The Jewish Chronicle'' for its next edition. In the letter CST said that after the paper's reporter brought the incident to its attention, its northern office "discussed it directly with local Police, Scottish Jewish community leadership and Glasgow CST", and that "We all agreed that the graffiti would be recorded and treated as an antisemitic incident as it was clearly so in its content and motivation, regardless of the targeted group proclaiming Jesus ( | + | The Community Security Trust disputed this account three days later. In a statement on its website dated 21 September 2009, CST said the sentence "risks misrepresenting CST's position in regard to these incidents", which it said was "guided by the apparent motivation of the incident perpetrator, not the Jewish status of the victim". It quoted its leaflet ''Definitions of Antisemitic Incidents'' and said it would record incidents as antisemitic "even where the incident victims are not Jewish" if there was evidence of antisemitic motivation or language. CST published the text of a letter it said it had sent to ''The Jewish Chronicle'' for its next edition. In the letter CST said that after the paper's reporter brought the incident to its attention, its northern office "discussed it directly with local Police, Scottish Jewish community leadership and Glasgow CST", and that "We all agreed that the graffiti would be recorded and treated as an antisemitic incident as it was clearly so in its content and motivation, regardless of the targeted group proclaiming Jesus ('Yeshua') to be the 'Messiah of Israel'". CST's letter continued: "So, this was certainly not a case of CST 'distancing' itself from an antisemitic incident. Indeed, CST does not make halachic judgements as to the Jewishness of antisemitic incident victims." It said that "it seemed obvious that the Police were not only best qualified to deal with the case: but that they were already fully doing so", and that CST had forwarded local media coverage of the incident to the reporter.<ref name="CST2009">Community Security Trust, [https://cst.org.uk/news/blog/2009/09/21/antisemitic-incidents-in-east-kilbride-and-csts-response Antisemitic incidents in East Kilbride and CST's response], CST blog, 21 September 2009, accessed 30 October 2026.</ref> |
== Trustees == | == Trustees == | ||
Revision as of 13:40, 30 October 2026
Messianic congregation in East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, registered as a Scottish charity (SC038529)
| Beit Rehovot Messianic Jewish Synagogue
| |
|---|---|
| Type | Charity (constitutional form "Other") |
| Founded | 3 August 2007 |
| Registration ID | SC038529 (Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator) |
| Status | Active |
| Headquarters | 15 Larch Place, East Kilbride, GLASGOW G75 9HQ (trustee address) |
| Location | East Kilbride |
| Area served | South Lanarkshire |
| Services | Advancement of religion |
| Registration | Scotland (OSCR) |
| Key people | Ruth Fleischer; Julie Chalmers; Heather Beattie (trustees) |
Beit Rehovot Messianic Jewish Synagogue is a Messianic congregation in East Kilbride registered as a Scottish charity, number SC038529, on the Scottish Charity Register from 3 August 2007. The register gives its address, a trustee address, as 15 Larch Place, East Kilbride, GLASGOW G75 9HQ, and its purpose as "the advancement of religion and the humanitarian work of Judaism across the world by prayer, encouragement and financial support as is appropriate". Its main operating location is South Lanarkshire.[1] Its 2025 annual report says it "was recognised as a Scottish Charity with effect from the 03.03.07"; the register gives 3 August 2007.[2]
The object recorded on the register begins "Our purpose is to glorify G-d by: I. Serving as a living testimony of Messiah Yeshua within the Jewish Community of which we are a part; and encouraging Messianic Outreach within Scotland, all parts of the United Kingdom and across the world". It also includes "Standing with the State of Israel against a hostile world" and states that "we reject any attempt towards ecumenical dialogue or co-operation, as contrary to the revealed word and will of Adonai".[1]
Activities
The 2025 annual report lists "Weekly Shabbat Services, Bible Studies, collection of voluntary funds in support of humanitarian work. Promoting positive contact between Jews and Gentiles."[2]
Dispute with the Community Security Trust
On 18 September 2009 The Jewish Chronicle published a report by Robyn Rosen that the "Beit Rehovot Messianic Jewish Congregation", which met weekly at a community hall in East Kilbride, had reported an "alarming" rise in antisemitism, including verbal abuse and threatening behaviour from youths. The paper said the group had formerly met at the Mossneuk Community Hall in Mossneuk, which had been "daubed in graffiti" the previous weekend, including the words "Jews' night tonight lads, get your Jew cap on." It quoted Asher Kramer Chalmers, "who leads the group" and who, the paper said, "styles himself Rabbi", as saying that more than a dozen incidents had occurred in the past year and that the police had been called a number of times. According to the paper, Chalmers said that members who wear kippot had been "bombarded with abusive comments", and that he believed the abuse was "a direct result of the demonisation of Israel and Jewish people". The report ended: "But the Community Security Trust (CST) has distanced itself from the group, not considered halachically Jewish."[3]
The Community Security Trust disputed this account three days later. In a statement on its website dated 21 September 2009, CST said the sentence "risks misrepresenting CST's position in regard to these incidents", which it said was "guided by the apparent motivation of the incident perpetrator, not the Jewish status of the victim". It quoted its leaflet Definitions of Antisemitic Incidents and said it would record incidents as antisemitic "even where the incident victims are not Jewish" if there was evidence of antisemitic motivation or language. CST published the text of a letter it said it had sent to The Jewish Chronicle for its next edition. In the letter CST said that after the paper's reporter brought the incident to its attention, its northern office "discussed it directly with local Police, Scottish Jewish community leadership and Glasgow CST", and that "We all agreed that the graffiti would be recorded and treated as an antisemitic incident as it was clearly so in its content and motivation, regardless of the targeted group proclaiming Jesus ('Yeshua') to be the 'Messiah of Israel'". CST's letter continued: "So, this was certainly not a case of CST 'distancing' itself from an antisemitic incident. Indeed, CST does not make halachic judgements as to the Jewishness of antisemitic incident victims." It said that "it seemed obvious that the Police were not only best qualified to deal with the case: but that they were already fully doing so", and that CST had forwarded local media coverage of the incident to the reporter.[4]
Trustees
| Name | As given in the 2025 annual report |
|---|---|
| Ruth Fleischer | Rabbi Dr Ruth Fleischer |
| Julie Chalmers | Mrs Julie Chalmers; signed the report for the "Leadership Committee" |
| Heather Beattie | Mrs Heather Beattie |
Sources: the register[1] and the 2025 annual report.[2]
Finances
For the year to 30 September 2025 the charity received £23,342.87: tithes and offerings of £10,473.66, donations of £8,250 and Gift Aid of £4,619.21. It paid out £16,210.75, of which £15,600 was salary and £420.75 hall hire, and held a balance of £22,807.87.[2]
| Financial year ended | Income | Expenditure |
|---|---|---|
| 30 September 2022 | £18,567 | £14,950 |
| 30 September 2023 | £18,716 | £15,628 |
| 30 September 2024 | £17,936 | £16,602 |
| 30 September 2025 | £23,343 | £16,211 |
See also
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, Beit Rehovot Messianic Jewish Synagogue (SC038529) Scottish Charity Register, accessed 30 October 2026. Contains information from the Scottish Charity Register supplied by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Beit Rehovot Messianic Synagogue, Trustees' Annual Report and Receipts and Payments for the Year Ending 30.09.25, published on the Scottish Charity Register by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, accessed 30 October 2026.
- ↑ Robyn Rosen, Scottish messianic community hit by flood of abuse The Jewish Chronicle, 18 September 2009, accessed 30 October 2026.
- ↑ Community Security Trust, Antisemitic incidents in East Kilbride and CST's response, CST blog, 21 September 2009, accessed 30 October 2026.