Jews for Jesus is a multimillion dollar fundamentalist Christian missionary machine whose goal is to convert as many Jews, worldwide, as possible. From Boston to New York to Los Angeles, Ellen Kamentsky takes you deep inside Jews for Jesus in her groundbreaking book, "The Hawking G-d."

Through her fascinating eye-witness accounts, you'll see how Jews for Jesus sucked in a young, bright, talented Jewish woman and kept her in with mind control. You'll learn how they twist the meaning of Jewish symbols and holidays, raise money from the Christian community, and target Jews in metropolitan areas.

Ellen also eloquently recounts the painful story of how her parents struggled for three years to free her from the group.

If you've ever wanted to know what Jews for Jesus is really all about, this book is the definitive, true story. Here is what others have to say:

"A ground-breaking and insightful book delving into a movement that has been problematic, not only to the Jewish community but to concerned Christians everywhere." -- Rick Ross

"Ellen Kamentsky's voyage into the world of Jews for Jesus is a fascinating study which I recommend to teachers, parents and young people." -- Rabbi Bernard H. Mehlman

Book Excerpt

"Heidi was a master at handling me and her contacts (the people we ministered to). She'd slide into their lives, identify why they refused to accept Jesus and try to turn them into believers. I would duplicate her efforts. I would learn how to manipulate people too.

Most of the manipulation took place on visits. Visits were the meat of our ministry. We lived for the one-on-one confrontations and prayed for conversions. A large part of training was learning the dynamics of these encounters.

We called the visits "interviews." There were in-person interviews, phone visits, drop-ins, and bird-dog visits (arranged by another believer). The initial interview served to qualify contacts and provide opportunities for witnessing. Like chiropractors building a practice, we needed a constant stream of clients.

Each contact was labeled and filed away. Last name first, first name last, address, phone number, date, and origin of the contact all went on an index card. "Saved" people got blue cards; those heading to Hell got yellow. I always hesitated to change the cards after a conversion; I could never be sure that the commitment would stick, and I hated losing Jews who did not believe in Jesus because finding Jewish people to witness to was rather difficult, and certainly challenging.

People were categorized as lonely, angry, hostile, selling (trying to get me to buy something else), open, or curious. Usually people who where hostile or selling were not visited very often. Lonely people were shown how G-d could meet their own needs. Angry people were encouraged to uncover the roots of their hostility. Curious people were pushed into being open, and open people were pushed into believing in Jesus.

During my first months of training I accompanied Heidi on at least six unbelieving Jews and two Jewish "believers" visits each week. I said little and noted Heidi's tone of voice, body language, and mannerism. Watching Heidi was fascinating. She hacked away at belief systems using the Christian Bible like a Samurai with a sword.

I learned how to plan and prepare for visits, how to set goals, use the scriptures, challenge a contact, cultivate other contacts, and follow up on visits. There was a list of procedures to obey. Adhering to them was imperative. These were G-d's rules. Most contacts thought that we were just paying a friendly visit, but we had a mission to preach Jesus.

A large percentage of the people we saw were elderly. For it was the elders who were an obvious target because they were easy to influence, often home, plentiful, and lonely. They would tolerate my harangue in exchange for an hour of companionship; many had no other visitors.

Sometimes I went door to door in nursing homes. No one ever stopped me. The authorities probably thought I was someone's granddaughter; they were happy to have someone visit.

Before entering a room, I'd check the door for a name. "Hi Ma'am, my name's Ellen," I'd say. "Sometimes I visit people here. I was wondering if you'd like a little company?"

The residents usually accepted my invitation. On the first visit they did most of the talking. They discussed their children, their illness, their dead spouse. I'd steer the conversation to spiritual matters. "What do you think about G-d? How were you brought up? Conservative, Reform, Orthodox?" Like a skilled talk show host, I'd warm them up and unleash my true agenda.

"What do you think about the messiah?" I'd continue. "What would you think if I told you I thought Jesus was the mashiach?" Usually this startled them, but I knew not to push too far; I wanted to secure another visit.

One of my first visits with Heidi was to see a woman named Sarah. She was very sick and had just returned from the hospital armed with an arsenal of pills. In her condition, I'm surprised she even let us in.

We parked in front of her house and paused to discuss tactics and pray. "Jesus, please open her heart," Heidi pleaded in reference to Sarah.

Heidi and I got out of the car, walked to the front door, and rang the bell. Sarah’s husband Sid answered the door. A pair of bouncing, barking poodles, and the fragrance of fried fish and pet food greeted us. I held my nose and tried to dodge the poodles who were starting to snarl. Sarah showed us seats and the conversation started.

"How was the hospital?" Heidi asked, enunciating every word so that Sarah, who was hard of hearing, would understand.

"Oh, my sons are fine," Sarah replied.

"No, I said how was your stay at the hospital?"

Sarah responded: "Oh, I’m very sick. The doctors keep giving me medicine, but nothing seems to help."

"G-d wants to help you," Heidi said.

"I know about G-d. I have prayed, but I still feel sick."

"Sarah," Heidi said, moving closer, trying to capture the old woman’s attention. "Jesus wants to help you so you will never be sick again."

Sarah uttered, "I do not want to hear about Jesus again, please."

Heidi pushed even further: "Sarah, remember what I have been telling you about G-d and Jesus?"

Sarah responded: "Yes, I know what you have said."

Heidi asked the woman carefully, "have you thought about asking Jesus for help?"

Sarah's response was "no, Jesus is not for me. I have my own G-d."

Heidi, picking up her Bible to read a story about how Jesus healed people at Gennesaret, stated "But Jesus is the only way for you to get better. Jesus can heal your body, but more important he wants to forgive you so you can go to heaven."

Sarah squirmed in her seat and looked away. She didn’t want to hear any more. "I’m feeling nauseated," she said. "I’ve asked G-d to take away my dizziness, but nothing has happened. I feel so sick sometimes I just want to die."

Then Heidi said "maybe G-d is keeping you here for a reason; maybe G-d is giving you a chance to accept Jesus."

We left with Heidi’s questions and poodle barks ringing in the air. I don’t remember seeing her again. She was too closed to justify another visit even though she would have benefitted from a friendly phone call. But we're commissioned to convert, not comfort. We moved on.

Although we preached to all of our contacts, there were some people we liked more than others. I tolerated unbelieving Jews who served stale cake and coffee resembling witches brew. I listened to widows repeat, "what you need is a nice Jewish boy" like a mantra and suffered through lectures entitled "Why you should see the rabbi." Jesus loved them; I’d endure them.

Jan was not one of these cases. Heidi and I quickly grew fond of her. A Gentile believer from a church which Heidi had attended, passed on Jan’s name. The first visit was only a phone call away. Heidi spoke with Jan and made a date to meet at Denny’s Restaurant.

When we arrived at the restaurant, Jan was already there. Heidi and I ordered coffee; Jan stuffed her incredibly cute kid with French fries.

Heidi treated Jan very differently than she had Sarah. She admired Jan’s outfit and remarked at how adorable her son was. Since this was a contact visit, Jan did 90% of the talking. Heidi’s agenda was simple; she wanted to qualify Jan to see how interested she was in Jesus. If Jan was open, Heidi would propose a Bible study.

The plan worked and within three weeks the three of us were engaged in a study. The situation was a wonderful learning experience for me. Heidi made the operation look easy. She lead Jan through "Y’shua" (a book of "prophecies" written by Reverend Martin Rosen). Jan accepted most of what Heidi showed her in the Christian Bible. Her life was difficult. She was a single, unemployed mom, living with two kids in a housing project.

Jan was looking for help. What she needed was a secure job and day care. What she wanted was a terrific guy to marry, love, and provide for her and her children. These real solutions would take work. In the interim, Jesus would do. But would Jesus really solve her dilemmas?"

How To Order

The Hawking G-d: A Young Jewish Woman's Ordeal in Jews for Jesus by Ellen Kamentsky. (c) 1992, 178 pages. Sapphire Press (POB 53 Needham, Massachusetts 02192. E-mail: mrp@sapphire.com, Ordering Details: http://www.sapphire.com/hawking/order.html. ISBN: 1-882459-00-8.

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