Orthodox Jewish beliefs (3)

Alan Meadows (The Sunday Times, July 15) wrote: "Having read Rabbi Pollina's letter about Jesus and his church, I ask if this is the fundamentalist mentality prevalent in Israel today?"

Writing of "fawn and fowl", to quote Mr Meadows, what connection is there between Rabbi David Pollina and the Jews or Israel? Rabbi Pollina is not a Jew; he is a Christian. I know the Rabbi title is very misleading. Rabbi Pollina is a scholarly follower of Jesus or Yeshua or Christ or the Saviour. And his views are Christian evangelical Messianic and by signing as Rabbi and not disclosing the de-nomination he belongs to, he threw the blame or credit and certainly the authorship of his provocative article on the Jewish people, who didn't even know of his existence.

Rabbi Pollina belongs to an evangelical Christian Messianic sect like Jehovah's Witnesses and Seventh Day Adventists do.

They preach that the Messiah came (which Jews don't) and will reappear. Among other Jewish commandments they follow the practice of the Sabbath on Saturday, of hallowing the Ten Commandments and the Torah also the Passover seder or Jesus' Last Supper and, like everybody, are waiting impatiently for the Messiah to come - and as everybody knows we really need Him.

Editors should ask correspondents whose name is preceded by a religious title to identify what religious denomination or sect they represent. Otherwise it can lead to religious misunderstanding, intolerance and prejudice.

The Maltese Jewish community has never heard of a Mr Pollina. I will leave it to people much more knowledgeable than I to answer him but I always thought that Saul was Jewish and Paul was Christian and the very early Christians were hiding from Roman persecution.

In my childhood in Jerusalem I learnt from my Jewish parents that in order to show God how much we love Him, each one of us must try to repair the world by spreading love and tolerance and much understanding of beliefs of others.

For instance, because we are human, we want symbols of the love of the Creator and His miracles around us. I always carry my little psalm books with me, if I go to a doctor or examinations.

We Jews have our candelabras and Mezzuzahs and Mogen David necklaces and Passover symbols. Protestants or other sects have theirs and the Cross. I saw a heartbroken Catholic widow cry and find much comfort in front of the symbol of the Virgin. Religious symbols and statues are not idols. We are human and we need the reassurance of the mercy of the Creator and of His prophets, and outstanding followers every second around us.

Statues or symbols of holy values in the denominations are not idols. They symbolise mercy, repentance, goodness, healing and, most of all, help and hope. Maybe power and oil and money and greed are current idols but anything reminding us of the mercy and love and presence of God isn't.