Would a non-Jew wearing the Star of David together with a cross be offensive?

Question

I am not Jewish, although I come from a Jewish heritage. My great-grandmother was Jewish. I have, since childhood, found the religion fascinating, even though my belief in Jesus has firmly placed me in the Christian camp.

However; I recently purchased a Star of David that has a cross in it, which I love because to me it represents my Jewish heritage and my Christian religion. It has led to interesting questions and, because the cross is small, assumptions that I am Jewish.

I just wonder if a Jewish person would find it offensive and if I would be offending someone by wearing it?

Answer 1

Assuming it was your father's Mother's Mother or some combination thereof who was Jewish, then it might be best for you to find a Large cross with a small Jewish star. The Jewelry you currently have has strong associations with "Messianic Jews", or "Jews for Jesus", both groups which are roundly rejected by Jewish groups as being either an oximoron or deceptive.

If you do identify with that Christian group however, then perhaps the jewelry is acceptable. However it would be offensive to Jewish persons.

Something like this or this, might seem less offensive and cause less confusion, or even something a bit more artistic like this.

Answer 2

I would suggest that it probably reflects the beliefs of some messianic Christians who call themselves Jews (and some who are technically Jewish by the Jewish standard of matrilineal descent), and I would interpret it to mean that you are of that ilk. Many Jews (and I count myself among them) do not have any nice thoughts towards these groups, to put it mildly. If you feel it reflects something different for you, you might wear it under your clothing, but I would not recommend wearing it around Jewish colleagues or co-workers. Especially the latter, as it may be perceived, especially if you engage in religious discussion or declaration of faith, as contributing towards a hostile work environment (in violation of Title VII - see example 18, if you live/work in the U.S.).

Answer 3

I can speak for myself. I am not offended by a Christian that wears a cross. However it bothers me when a Jew wears a cross, especially if he/she does not realize they are Jewish.

Answer 4

I wrote some of this in comments to someone's answer, but it should probably be an answer in itself.

In a way, I would say that you need to believe and live out what you think God wants from you, in front of Him alone, rather than worrying about what offends other people. This is a very important thing in all of our lives. But for a few reasons I'm not going to say that, here.

Firstly, it's beautiful that you want to avoid causing hurt to Jews by what you wear, even if only because of the long history of European persecution. Though people may say the offenders were not 'real Christians', it's still important to be sensitive of such trauma. Christian beliefs in themselves shout that what Jews have been holding onto all this time was a rebellion against God, or at least missing the point of what He wants, rather than a choice of love for Him and trust in Him despite so much cost. If that community holds a message from God in their generations, with their lives, their obedience to His Torah, and turning towards Him in His promise to them as a nation, then to preach the Christian messiah is to ignore the actual servant of God and to make them feel even more isolated in their obedience.

Also, I think that if Christianity is false in the areas where it differs from Judaism, and on the other hand Orthodox Judaism is holding some important and precious things... then Christianity actually defiles what is precious by taking Jewish symbols and using them to promote the worship of Jesus.

If Jesus was not actually God, then Christians think they are worshiping only God (that's their intention) but they are still bringing into that the worship of someone who is created, just like we are created. That is demoralising to us and a big problem; it's unintentional idolatry, if it isn't true. And how are Jews meant to test that sort of claim while carefully, carefully protecting the devotion to only ever worship our Creator? I don't believe that the Torah ever teaches Jews to watch out not to miss an incarnation claim or to try hard to interpret things so as to not miss their king. But it certainly gives a continual reminder to be cautious about wrongly believing or following such a claim. So actually, even though you must walk with God according to what He thinks rather than what I think, I can say that the Jewish community wouldn't endorse wearing such a thing and would feel that something important is being severely cheapened and defiled by it.

Sorry if it seems harsh... it isn't directed personally at you! I think it's beautiful that you asked, like I said, and it's also special to you in your family so I also think you fully have a right to that.

Answer 5

i have not read all previous answers. wearing a christian and Jewish symbol at the same time is foolish in the least [imagine putting two opposing ballots into the voting box] since it shows a severe misunderstanding and representation of both. the Christian doctrine has killed Jews just for being Jewish. Judaism opposes the existence of Christianity vehemently - it is idol worship. If you are a serious person I'd encourage you to first find out if you are Jewish or not. If you are you deserve to explore and examine authentic Judaism. If you don't care about who you are or what is expected of you, i wouldn't worry so much about offending anyone other than yourself; getting offended by ignorant people is foolish.