Former One For Israel evangelist Eitan Bar now accusing Messianic Jews and Evangelical Christians of ‘fanatic ideology’ that led to a murder

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL – Until recently, Eitan Bar was a prominent Israeli internet evangelist, producing and starring in online videos in Hebrew and English that explain the Gospel and New Testament theology and received millions of views. 

But in one of the most shocking and painful developments in Israel’s small but growing Messianic Jewish and Evangelical Christian community, something has gone terribly wrong.

In the summer of 2022, after 15 years of marriage, Bar got divorced from his wife.

Shortly afterward, in August 2022, Bar was terminated from his employment at ONE FOR ISRAEL – a ministry that engages in evangelism and runs the Israel College of the Bible – after it was revealed that he had a “romantic relationship with an employee who worked under him.”

Rather than retreat from public life, however, Bar has suddenly re-emerged in the public eye – but this time he is attacking the very Christian and Messianic Jewish communities and leaders that he once served.

On his website, he offers his services as an “author, theologian, activist.”

Yet rather than using his site to post new videos that preach the Gospel, teach the Bible, and encourage believers, he is currently blasting pastors and congregations in Israel for having what he calls “strong cultish motifs.”

Bar accuses Christians who have disagreed with – and challenged – his moral choices as engaging in “spiritual manipulation,” sending him “hurtful, even hateful” messages, and engaging in behavior that is “very much like what you may see in films about cults.”

He has just published a new book that is sharply critical of Christian theology, The “Gospel” of Divine Abuse: Redeeming the Gospel from Gruesome Popular Preaching of an Abusive and Violent God.

“Divine Abuse is not a clichéd Christian novel,” reads the book’s description on Amazon. “On the contrary, it is a book that seeks to expose the most significant, dangerous, and widespread heresy of the 21st century, slowly taking over Christianity.”

In the book, Bar accuses some of the most prominent and respected pastors and theologians in the Evangelical world – men like John Piper, John MacArthur, R.C. Sproul, Voddie Baucham, and Wayne Grudem, among others – of engaging in “false teaching” and “first-rate heresy.”

Bar is also active again on social media – yet here, too, rather than focusing on preaching and teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, he is attacking the leaders and theology of Evangelical Christianity and Messianic Judaism, the very movement that he has long promoted, with a level of ferocity that has shocked and angered even some of his long-time friends and ministry colleagues.

Particularly disturbing to them is that Bar has seized on the recent murder of a Christian Israeli woman and mother of three in Haifa to advance his broadside against the believing community in Israel.

Daria Litle, 31 – known by her friends as Dasha – was murdered on March 17.

Her husband, Josiah Litle, 35, is accused by the police of strangling and hitting her with a hammer and causing her death. The couple’s three young daughters were reportedly sleeping in the apartment at the time.

“The woman had previously complained of threats from her husband, for which he was currently being tried,” reported the Times of Israel, but “the couple had continued to live together.”

Josiah, who was raised in the believing community in Haifa, is in custody and awaiting trial. Dasha was actively involved in Beit Eliyahu, a Messianic congregation in Haifa.

The community has been stunned and deeply grieved by the murder, according to multiple conversations ALL ISRAEL NEWS has had with family and friends in recent days.

However, rather than viewing Dasha’s murder as a horrible yet rare and isolated tragedy, Bar is arguing that it is the logical and almost inevitable result of Biblical theology.

In a lengthy Facebook post on March 21, Bar accused Messianic and Christian leaders of perpetuating a “twisted dark-ages ideology” that is harmful to women.

Bar accused pastors of “forcing” this “fanatic ideology” on “fragile girls,” making them vulnerable to abuse, violence, and even murder, by their husbands.

“[T]here is something fundamentally rotten in the movement’s ideology and theology, and it’s not only prevalent in Israel,” Bar wrote.

“Dasha’s tragic death is a result of the legalistic worldview that saturates our Israeli Messianic movement,” Bar wrote. “The responsibility for her death lies not only with Josiah but with a theological belief that promotes this harmful worldview.”

WHO IS EITAN BAR?

Eitan Bar is a native Jewish Israeli citizen who grew up in central Israel.

He holds degrees from Israel College of the Bible, Liberty University, and Dallas Theological Seminary, according to his website.

In 2013, he was hired by Israel College of the Bible.

In time, the school developed a broader, global ministry of evangelism and discipleship called “ONE FOR ISRAEL.”

“ONE FOR ISRAEL is an initiative of native-born Israelis on the forefront of high-tech media evangelism, proclaiming salvation to Israel, raising up spiritual leaders through ONE FOR ISRAEL’s Bible College and equipping them with the tools they need to transform our communities,” the ministry’s homepage states.

Bar served as the ministry’s “Media and Evangelism Director.”

In that capacity, he began producing on-line video testimonies of Israeli Jews explaining in Hebrew how they became followers of Jesus (Yeshua) as Messiah.

He also appeared in Hebrew-language videos that the ministry produced, explaining the Gospel message to fellow Israelis, answering criticisms and objections posed by Rabbis against New Testament theology, and even debating a Rabbi face-to-face.

These videos soon went viral, and thus far have received 50 million views, according to ONE FOR ISRAEL's website.

The ministry also helped produce online video testimonies in English, which also went viral and have received upwards of 232 million views.

In a relatively small community of only some 25,000 to 30,000 Messianic Jewish followers of Jesus in Israel, Bar was quickly becoming a star – widely known and respected.

TURNING POINT

In the summer of 2022, however, everything changed.

The young Israeli evangelist got divorced from his wife.

Later, he was fired from the staff of the very ministry that brought him to the attention of millions for having an inappropriate “romantic relationship” with a subordinate.

He largely stayed out of the public limelight until early 2023 when he announced on his website that he was re-entering public life as a speaker and author and announced that he would be releasing a book that would “expose the most significant, dangerous, and widespread heresy of the 21st century, slowly taking over Christianity.”

In mid-March, the leadership of ONE FOR ISRAEL issued a statement distancing themselves from Bar.

“It is with great sorrow that we inform you that Mr. Eitan Bar no longer serves with ONE FOR ISRAEL and is no longer associated with our ministry in any way,” the statement begins. “The following is a statement of the separation agreement.”

“Shortly after Mr. Eitan Bar’s divorce, it became known that he had begun a romantic relationship with an employee who served under him,” the statement explains. “Consequently, Mr. Bar’s employment and ministry at ONE FOR ISRAEL were immediately terminated.’”

“To clarify,” the statement concludes, “Mr. Eitan Bar’s current and future actions, publications, and any other form of communication, are solely his own, and are not in any way endorsed by nor represent ONE FOR ISRAEL.”

BAR ACCUSES MESSIANIC JEWS AND CHRISTIANS OF “FANATIC IDEOLOGY” THAT LED TO MURDER

Shortly thereafter, in Facebook posts in Hebrew and English, Bar lashed out at those who hold to the Biblical view that divorce should not be a quick easy out for couples who are having difficulties.

He accuses Evangelical and Messianic Jewish followers of the Bible as having a “fanatic ideology” that created the conditions in which Dasha Litle was murdered.

“Not only could Dasha have still been alive today if it weren't for the negligence of the church, but she could have also flourished, been happy (yes, it is important to God), and led a prosperous life with another husband with whom she and her daughters built a new home, felt loved, safe and protected,” he wrote. “But the Messianic system of belief does not allow it [divorce], so this was never really an option for Dasha, who was a captive of fanatic ideology led by men who are disconnected from reality.”

In his March 21 post on Facebook, Bar wrote that “theologically speaking, a Messianic can be married to a psychopath or a child molester, be suffering severely in their marriage, or slowly dying within of depression to the point of wanting to kill themselves, and yet none of it matter unless adultery is committed. Essentially, they are doomed for life with their unloving partner in a miserable marriage.”

Two days later, in a March 23 post on Facebook, Bar indicated that he was looking for new ways to attack the believing community in Israel.

“I was contacted by a leading news channel to interview me soon,” he wrote on Facebook. “They are going to do a huge report…about the behavior of the Christian [i.e., Messianic Jewish] communities in Israel.”

Bar wrote that the network is “interested in touching on sexual harassment and rape within the communities,” as well as “violence against children…in the name of God,” and “the poor treatment of both the community and the police that led to [Dasha Litle’s] murder, and the community's ideologies on the matter that led to the problems.”

Bar indicated his readiness to help with this effort and encouraged his more than 9,000 Facebook followers to send him examples of abuse against women and children within Israel’s believing community.

“I believe there is an opportunity here for everyone to flood out stories,” he wrote. “I have been receiving countless live messages in recent days…and I ask you to continue, contact me with more stories!”

Bar later removed the post, but ALL ISRAEL NEWS took a screenshot of it (see below).

FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES REACT TO BAR’S ATTACKS

Some Christian and Messianic Jewish ministry leaders who do not work for ONE FOR ISRAEL, speaking on condition of anonymity, told ALL ISRAEL NEWS that they have loved and encouraged Bar for years.

But they say that they have been terribly grieved by decisions that he has made over the past year and are horrified that Bar is returning to public life by attacking believers.

One leader who was willing to go on the record is Noam Hendren, a former professor of theology and Biblical studies at Israel College of the Bible and currently pastor-teacher at Ohr HaSharon Messianic congregation near Netanya.

Hendren has known Bar since he was a teenager and worked with him at the college.

“I am appalled and deeply saddened – and angry – to see someone whom I have known from his youth, taught as a student, and worked alongside in ministry lashing out in such an insensitive – and baseless – attack on a grief-stricken family, congregation and community of believers still reeling in shock from the senseless murder of a daughter, sister, mother and friend just days before,” Hendren told ALL ISRAEL NEWS.

“I cannot fathom how the enthusiastic young evangelist whom I had known and loved could suddenly turn so cruelly against those who had embraced him as a son and had shown him such grace and tolerance over the years. I ask myself, where is his compassion to ‘weep with those who weep’? Does Dasha’s loving family deserve to have salt poured into their fresh wounds? I am at a total loss.”

PASTOR IN HAIFA ADDRESSES CONTROVERSY

Shmuel Aweida is the pastor of Beit Eliyahu, the congregation that Josiah and Dasha attended, together with their families and friends.

During the Shabbat service on March 25, Aweida addressed the grieving families, the grieving congregation, and his own grief.

The message – “Beit Eliyahu’s stand and clarifications regarding violence, marriage, media, and authorities” – was posted on YouTube.

“Many people here love Dasha very much,” the pastor began. “Many of us admired Dasha. The words that kept coming back to themselves at the funeral were that she was ‘Wonder Woman.’ She did so much. Many of us also sacrificed for her and for her family, to help her….Our heart is broken with pain.”

“I feel like I'm swimming in a stormy sea,” Aweida told the congregation. “And every time that I get my head out of the water to breathe, a stronger wave comes and pushes me down. That's how it feels in the last week.”

“As a congregation, we have a very clear approach to violence and family. I don't know how to say this more clearly: We always stand against violence. And it's important that every woman and every child would know that there is no shame [when dealing with the threat of abuse and violence] to go outside of the congregation and to call the police, to call the authorities, to get professional help, to call social services. We have done this in our congregation. We are not ashamed of calling in outside help. The authorities, the social services, the police have all been involved. Dasha went through something very difficult when she was a teenager. And we took her to the police then against somebody who threatened her when she was a teenager. And we were not ashamed of that. We asked for help from the police.”

“I have personally called the police a few times about violence, about harassment, about violation of restraining orders,” Aweida said. “I myself have called the police against a brother who violated a restraining order. We cannot play games. This is serious. And you know what that brother said to me? ‘How are you not ashamed? You are a pastor. You called the police. You're my pastor.’ And I said to him, ‘I should be ashamed? You're the one threatening a girl. No, I am not ashamed.’ And we are not ashamed as a congregation of calling the police. People like this should be in jail. The first time he went to prison for two years. I went to visit him, but that was his place, in prison. There are no games with these things. That's where these people belong. The congregation has to be a safe place. Everybody here needs to know that. Every parent needs to know that. Every woman needs to know that.”

“But we are also 100% in favor of marriage, in favor of getting married, of protecting marriage and rehabilitating marriage. That is what we will always do in the congregation. As a congregation, we are not ashamed of saying that we are in favor of what God loves and against what God hates. That's true about marriage and every other area of life….Listen, right now in this room, there are couples who have experienced difficulties. But when we don't ignore it, when we are transparent, when we don't hide things, when things come to light, and when there is therapy and help, then there is hope.”

“Believers or congregations who have a trigger finger about divorce and are like, ‘I don't feel like having this wife anymore, let's get another one,’ they have a distorted view of marriage and the God of marriage. Whoever thinks it's his right to abuse his wife physically, emotionally, financially, sexually – all of the list – spits in the face of God, not only in his wife's face.”

Later in his message, Pastor Aweida talked more about his congregation’s relationship with the police.

“I gave testimony to the police about our approach [to marriage and threats against women and children],” he said. “I told the policeman that we pray for the authorities. That's our approach to the authorities. We are called to pray and submit to those who ‘hold the sword,’ as it's written in the [Book of] Romans….I also said to the policeman that the police will not solve this problem of evil in the world, the rotten heart of people. Only One can change [sinful people]. But God has placed the police there to work for righteousness, to restrict evil. And I told him that we were with them in their struggle, in their fight. Beit Eliyahu is not a cult….How many times have I told you? If you feel that you're in a place that is controlling, you run away from it. As long as you are still breathing, you must not be in a place that controls you. We do not have control over people, not over their good decisions, and also not when they make destructive decisions.”

“In Beit Eliyahu, we do not hide things….We believe in transparency. Transparency in every area of life. As I've already said, we cooperate with the local authorities. They are not our enemies. Now, Phil and Heidi [the parents of Josiah] and Anton [the father of Dasha] are working very closely with social services. We thank God for the social workers who we've known….They have such an important position.”

A PROMINENT CHRISTIAN ATTORNEY IN ISRAEL RESPONDS

Calev Myers is an Israeli citizen, prominent Christian attorney, and a partner at Yehuda Raveh & Co. – a leading Israeli law firm, with offices in Jerusalem and Tel-Aviv – who represents the majority of the Protestant Christian ministries and non-profit organizations in the country.

ALL ISRAEL NEWS asked Myers to comment on the allegations being made by Bar.

Myers began by saying that protecting women and children – and all Israelis – from abuse of all kinds is “an important issue that deserves attention.”

That said, Myers quickly added that it is not at all accurate to say that the Christian community in Israel does not take these issues seriously. (Myers said he uses the term “Christian” to encompass both Jewish and Gentile followers of Jesus.)

To the contrary, Myers explained that “several non-profit organizations such as ‘Machaseh,’ ‘Afikim B’Negev,’ ‘CMJ Peles Center,’ and ‘Aviv Ministry’ – endorsed and supervised by Israeli Christian leaders – operate among local Christian communities with the sole purpose of protecting and serving victims of domestic violence.”

“As far back as 2015, an expert independent lawyer was commissioned by a handful of Christian leaders in Israel to prepare a comprehensive booklet in five languages with clear instructions on how to deal properly with situations involving domestic violence and sexual harassment within their congregations and organizations,” he added.

“Subsequently, this booklet was disseminated in leadership seminars and workshops focused on these issues,” Myers noted.

“As with any conservative religious community, this type of advocacy requires an ongoing educational process that takes time. There is certainly still much work to be done, and this is a concern that is being taken seriously and dealt with at the level of national leadership.”

“Regrettably, these heartbreaking situations occur in Christian communities in Israel, just like all other religious communities,” Myers observed. “I have personally seen them handled, however, with earnestness and determination rather than being denied or swept under the carpet. Unfortunately, no such efforts are 100% foolproof. I am confident, nonetheless, that the tragedy of Daria Litle’s murder will be a catalyst for deeper soul-searching and increased efforts in this area.”

ALL ISRAEL NEWS ASKS EITAN BAR FOR COMMENT

Yesterday, ALL ISRAEL NEWS sent Bar the following text message.

Eitan — ALL ISRAEL NEWS is preparing to publish an article reporting that after your divorce and subsequent termination from ONE FOR ISRAEL last year, you have returned to public life this year by accusing the Evangelical and Messianic Jewish movement of following and preaching a “fanatical ideology” and a “twisted dark-ages ideology.” You have written that “there is something fundamentally rotten in the movement’s ideology and theology, and it’s not only prevalent in Israel.” You have argued that when it comes to the recent tragic murder of Daria Litle “the responsibility for her death lies not only with Josiah but with a theological belief that promotes this harmful worldview,” including Biblical teaching about divorce. You have also written a new book accusing major, well-known and mainstream Evangelical pastors and Gospel preachers of teaching “heresy.” Would you care to comment in writing and on-the-record on why you have chosen to launch these attacks against the very Evangelical and Messianic leaders and movement that you once promoted?

In his reply, sent by text message, Bar did not deny any of his comments, but argued that they are being taken out of context. He also insinuated that simply quoting him directly constitutes “slander” and an attempt to “shift blame” or “hush a murder.”

At one point, he insisted that his criticism – that the believing community teaches that divorce is forbidden and that troubled married couples are “pushed” to “stick together,” which leads to domestic abuse and even murder – is directed at “some leaders” and “not the entire Evangelical/Messianic movements, as you try to portray.”

Yet just a few sentences later, Bar told ALL ISRAEL NEWS that “this dogma/doctrine is actively promoted by most in the Messianic movement.”

Bar defended his new book as “not at all ‘anti-Evangelical’ or ‘anti-Messianic.’”

Then he added, “I am not your enemy Joel, and I am also not the enemy of the Messianic movement, so please do not try to paint me as such for the sake of click-baitism. If you are truly looking to build the Body, then unity rather than slander might be a better approach. Also, encouraging or shifting blame from people we love to hush a murder is also not the right way to go. Be wise.”

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT DIVORCE?

Is it true that Biblical theology really forbids divorce except in cases of adultery by the other partner?

Are pastors and elders who teach the Bible beholden to a “fanatic ideology” that traps vulnerable women and children in dangerous situations?

The Bible – both in the Old and New Testaments – certainly celebrates marriage and discourages divorce. (see Deuteronomy 22:19, Deuteronomy 24:1-4, Malachi 2:16, Matthew 5:31-32, Mark 10:2-12, Luke 16:18, and Romans 7:2-3)

Consider one specific example.

“‘The man who hates and divorces his wife,’ says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘does violence to the one he should protect,’ says the Lord Almighty. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful.” (Malachi 2:16, New International Version)

The New American Standard Bible (1995 edition) translates the Hebrew verse differently.

“‘For I hate divorce,’ says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘and him who covers his garment with wrong,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘So, take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.’”

That said, the Bible does not forbid divorce.

The Bible certainly does not teach that a spouse who is the victim of domestic abuse – much less in fear of his or her life – must stay with their spouse and cannot get divorced.

To the contrary, the Bible does allow divorce.

The New Testament also makes it clear that if a person divorces their spouse for any reason other than sexual unfaithfulness to them, he cannot remarry.

If he does, then he will be guilty of adultery.

This is what Jesus taught in Matthew 19:9, when He said, “Whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.”

Jesus’ emphasis in this particular verse is on not committing adultery, which is described throughout the Bible as a sin that is grievous to God. (see Exodus 20:14, Proverbs 6:32, Mark 10:11-12, Luke 16:18, and Hebrews 13:4).