Judge Throws Out Florida Woman's Defamation Suit Against Jews for Jesus
by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
December 14, 2005
(AgapePress) - - A circuit court has dismissed a lawsuit against Jews for Jesus, and the group's legal counsel says the ruling is an important victory that upholds the right of the Messianic Jewish missionary organization to share the gospel of truth with others. It was three years ago that Bruce Rapp, a missionary with Jews for Jesus, reported in a monthly newsletter that his stepmother, Edith Rapp of Delray Beach (Florida), had received Christ as her Lord and Savior. One year later, Mrs. Rapp sued the ministry, claiming Jews for Jesus had defamed her by falsely implying she had become a believer. She also demanded one million dollars in damages from the Jewish Christian organization.
Edith Rapp claims to have filed the defamation suit only after her written requests for a retraction and an apology went unanswered. The legal defense team for Jews for Jesus argued on the organization's behalf that the woman's claim was without merit because it is not defamatory to call someone a believer in Jesus or a Christian.
Florida Circuit Court Judge Edward Fine agreed and dismissed all claims filed against Jews for Jesus by Mrs. Rapp. He also ordered that she and her lawyer, Barry Silver, pay attorney's fees and costs for the defendant.
Another Florida circuit court judge, Catherine Brunson, had twice previously dismissed similar variations of the same lawsuit brought by Edith Rapp. Now, however, Judge Fine has dismissed the entire case with prejudice, meaning that none of the plaintiff's claims can be refiled. Mathew Staver of Liberty Counsel, the legal group that represented the Messianic Jewish ministry, calls Judge Fine's ruling "a great resolution" to a case that was "designed to stop the missionary efforts of Jews for Jesus, especially in south Florida, where there's a heavy Jewish population."
The outcome of the case was just the opposite of the plaintiff's objective, Staver notes. "Indeed, this case now sends a strong message that you cannot use the courts as agents of harassment," he says. "You cannot turn them into theological tribunals."
The Liberty Counsel spokesman feels Judge Fine, in dismissing Edith Rapp's legally flimsy lawsuit against the evangelical organization, sent a clear message. "Jews for Jesus has a constitutional right to share the good news of the Messiah all around the world, and in fact they will continue to do so," the attorney asserts.
Staver describes Edith Rapp's defamation claim as "a theological attack wrapped in a legal pleading" against the Christian organization, because of its outreach to the Jewish community. He says Jews for Jesus is pleased to put "this frivolous lawsuit" in the past and move forward.
