Do people really think Jesus was Palestinian?
A billboard in New York City just did the unthinkable at Christmastime: it completely dismissed the reality of Jesus’ Jewish heritage to come to the world as the Messiah of God’s chosen people.
As the New York Post reported, the billboard in New York read, “Merry Christmas. Jesus is Palestinian.” The ad was sponsored by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) to create “debate and protest during the bustling festive rush…”
The ADC posted to their Instagram with the statement:
ADC remains committed to defending the rights, heritage, and dignity of the Palestinian people and all marginalized communities. We will ensure their stories are recognized, their humanity protected, and their resilience celebrated—not just during the holidays, but every day of the year.
This sign, however, wasn’t the only controversial one that the ADC displayed this holiday season.
The report noted that the organization’s National Executive Director, Abed A. Ayoub, shared another image of a different sign that was circulating in Times Square. The display featured a border wall with Mary and Joseph trying to cross it, with the manger on the other side. The sign read, “Jesus would say ‘tear down that wall.'”
Ayoub told the Post that “There’s a lot more similarities between Arabs and Muslims and Christians in this country than others want to allow us to believe…” Regarding Jesus as being Jewish, Ayoub said, “Jesus lives within all of us,” along with the notion that the signs are “up for interpretation.”
The ADC further said that they were using these billboards to “Reclaim the truth, honor the Palestinian refugee born in Bethlehem” and to note “…reverence for Jesus in Islam, fostering interfaith understanding against forces that seek to divide us.”
These messages aren’t just controversial: They are historically and theologically inaccurate.
Jesus was completely Jewish. There is no “interpretation” regarding this reality. God had promised salvation through the line of David, and Jesus’ ancestry can be traced right back to it. That’s why the Gospel of Matthew goes into such great detail about Jesus’ lineage. It proves that God kept His promise to the Jewish people, dating back to when He first called Abraham and said that all nations would be blessed through Him. Jesus wasn’t just a prophet: He was the Son of God taking on human form. The person of Jesus is not a matter of one person’s viewpoint or truth: He is the Truth, and the biblical account of His life brings true freedom.
The birth of Jesus also occurred in Bethlehem, the City of David, where it was prophesied. Joseph was from this family line and so he and Mary embarked to Bethlehem when the government called for a census. He was simply a citizen returning to his lawful hometown.
What is most important to recognize from these signs is that deception isn’t coming: It’s already here.
If we are not literate in the Word of God, we will fall for the ploys of absolutely anything and everything that remotely looks good on the surface. Deception thrives when the Word is ignored, and the enemy seeks to rewrite history to blur God’s plan. This is the moment where we must stand firm in the truth, knowing that slogans or billboards cannot erase Jesus’ identity and mission.
Abby Trivett is a writer and editor for Charisma Media and has a passion for sharing the gospel through the written word. She holds two degrees from Regent University, a B.A. in Communication with a concentration in Journalism and a Master of Arts in Journalism. She is the author of the upcoming book, The Power of Suddenly: Discover How God Can Change Everything in a Moment.
