The Denomination Report: Messianic Gentiles

By Marian Pope

*Marian Pope launched a self-reporting survey asking students their denomination to gain a clearer picture of the student body and their experiences. Out of the 304 respondents, the top three were Baptist (34.2%), Nondenominational (26.0%), and Presbyterian (10.9%). One of the smallest denominations reported on the survey were Messianic Gentiles, composing 1.3% of the respondents. 

Messianic Gentiles make up one of the minorities represented on campus, and they find ways to practice their faith while attending university. 

Katherine Fleming, a Freshman Industrial Design major and Messianic Gentile, explained that her religion is a cross between Judaism tradition and active Christianity. While Messianic Gentiles believe in the New Testament, they put more weight on Jewish tradition and the Old Testament Law than other Christian denominations.

“On the one hand, we still follow all the Jewish customs,” Fleming said. “We read the Torah, we say the prayers, we acknowledge the celebrations like the Passover. But also we believe that Christ died for our sins.” 

While not originally planning on going to college, Fleming visited Cedarville University with her older sister, Caroline, and really appreciated Cedarville’s values, especially the community. 

“The people are amazing; the students, the professors, the staff– everyone is so incredibly kind and genuinely cares about you,” Fleming said.

She also loves how Cedarville encourages students to be involved with God and be involved with people. 

“It actively tries to get you involved in things, especially God-centered things,” Fleming said. 

Fleming still needed time to adjust to the Christian circles at Cedarville. The use of God’s name was one thing Fleming got used to during her time as a student. She explained that God’s name, YHWH, is treated with extreme respect in most Messianic circles. At Cedarville, she struggled at first when hearing people say God’s name casually. 

Another thing she adjusted to is saying “Jesus Christ” instead of the Hebrew name, “Yeshua.” But she said these things are merely “a slight difference of importance.”

Grace Perkins, a junior Psychology major and Messianic Gentile, experienced a different adjustment to life at Cedarville.

At times, Perkins has to abstain from doing activities with friends because of the traditions she upholds, like the Sabbath. As part of keeping the Sabbath, she does not spend money. When her friends want to go do activities such as thrifting, she declines. Instead, Perkins hosts a Bible study with her friends on Saturday to have fellowship and community. 

Both Perkins and Fleming mention they are not able to eat at Chucks since the food is often not biblically clean or Kosher. Their favorite places to dine on campus with their dietary restrictions include Chick-fil-A, Tossed and The Cafe.

Perkins’ family was not originally Messianic Gentile but converted to it when she was 11 years old. Her mother went to Israel, and it was there that her mother felt God tangibly as she walked where Jesus walked. While Perkins and her family always believed in God, her mother’s experience walking through Jerusalem made Him seem not only spiritually real but also physically real as well. They wanted their faith to be intentional, not just something they inherited. They became Messianic Gentiles because it combines the Jewish and Christian faith.

“The cornerstone of my faith is the view of God’s consistency and His faithfulness,” Perkins said. 

Some Jewish traditions help Perkins to see God’s faithfulness in special ways. For her, keeping the seven feasts of the Bible that God commanded shows the story of redemption played out through the symbols. The cyclical reminders help her remain focused on God. 

“They are very helpful,” Perkins said. “God said we do this thing and this is why, because it symbolizes this. It symbolizes His redemption, His holiness, His mercy… It has helped me grow my faith a lot.” 

Being at Cedarville, she feels comfortable talking about Christian things. Sadly, that was not always the case. 

In her freshman year, Perkins talked about how some of her friends made snide comments when she mentioned she was a Messianic Gentile. 

“I was like ‘Okay, I can tell that I should not be talking about these things, I should keep my head down, be quiet,’” Perkins said. “So that’s been kind of hard sometimes.”

 Perkins felt like she had to fly under the radar and not be honest about what she believes or people would automatically say “you’re blaspheming right now, you shouldn’t even go here.” Yet God provided people who offered Perkins a place to discuss her faith without judgement. 

 Now, she has a good group of friends composed of varying denominations and they feel comfortable asking each other questions about their faith.

“It took time, but I found my people,” Perkins said.

Coming to Cedarville has helped her grow in her faith. Perkins shared that at Cedarville, she is reminded to live out her faith in everything she does “with integrity, with compassion.” Even when she works at Chuck’s.

 She loves how people are very willing to share how God has been working in their lives. When she was homeschooled, her friends did not really share their experience with God, but here, everyone is open about what God’s done. Being here inspires her to work hard for God’s glory.

“I’m very glad I came to Cedarville. The good outways the bad. Most people are very kind people,” Perkins said.

Marian Pope is a sophomore in the Professional Writing and Information Design program. When she is not working on homework, she can be found biking, reading, plotting stories, or spending time with friends and family over a cup of coffee.