
Nestled  in the hills outside of Jerusalem is a Messianic communal village  founded nearly 40 years ago by Finnish Christians who believed in the  biblical restoration of Israel to the Jewish people. Today, some 150  Israeli believers and evangelical Christians live and work there while  providing a “living testimony” as Israeli believers in Jesus Christ.
 
 But now the faith-based community of Yad Hashmonah may be forced  to shut its doors after being ordered by an Israeli court to compensate  two lesbians who were not allowed to hold their “gay” wedding at the  banquet hall and biblical gardens.
 
 “We do not hate homosexuals or lesbians. We love them. We simply  told the court that it is God’s word in the Bible that calls  homosexuality an abomination,” Ayelet Ronen, general secretary for the  village, told Israel Today.
 
 The women, who were married in England, where same-sex unions are  legal, wanted to renew their vows and hold a reception at the Messianic  Israeli moshav, or settlement. When the receptionist explained “the  owners are believers in the Bible and cannot perform a ceremony of this  nature here,” the women filed a lawsuit.
 
 A judge ruled in favor of the lesbian couple and awarded them  $20,000 in “damages.” And now that lower court ruling has been upheld by  the Jerusalem District Court.
 
 Judge Moshe Yoad Cohen determined the village violated a law  prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and that the  village cannot refuse to host a same-sex wedding reception despite  religious objections.
 
 During the trial, representatives of the moshav quoted from both Old and New Testaments.
 
 “As a faith-based community we need to be able to refuse events  that blatantly oppose our religious beliefs. We explained to the judge  that a same-sex celebration would ruin our business. The majority of our  clientele are Christians who vigorously oppose gay marriage,” said  Ronen.
 
 The lesbians’ lawyer also accused the village of “homophobia”  after the moshav published an announcement that “no homosexual or  lesbian organization will be allowed to rent space for functions on our  premises.”
 
 As Bible believers, the community also refuses services for abortion activists and yoga enthusiasts.
 
 “We have already received phone calls from many more homosexual  groups and couples saying they want to get married here. To avoid  another legal problem, for now, we simply cannot book anything at all,”  said Ronen.
 
 The moshav has now completely shuttered its banquet facility, resulting in huge financial losses.
 
 “We used to host an average of 35-50 weddings a year over the past  12 years. Israelis from all over the country, religious and secular,  loved to come here. Now there are none,” added Ronen.