Editing Jews for Jesus (section)

==== 2006 – misuse of Jackie Mason name ====
In 2006 comedian and actor [[Jackie Mason]] filed a lawsuit against Jews for Jesus, alleging that the organization unlawfully distributed a pamphlet that used his name and likeness in a way that suggested he was a member of the group. Jackie Mason was Jewish and not associated with Jews for Jesus.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/08/25/jackiemason.ap/index.html|title=Comic sues Jews for Jesus|website=[[CNN]] |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060829062832/http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/08/25/jackiemason.ap/index.html|archive-date=2006-08-29}}</ref> Jews for Jesus issued a detailed response to the allegation on their website.<ref>[https://jewsforjesus.org/press/press-release-jews-for-jesus-and-jackie-mason/ Press Release: Jews for Jesus and Jackie Mason] (Jews for Jesus) August 25, 2006</ref>

A judge of the [[United States District Court for the Southern District of New York]] denied a preliminary injunction against Jews for Jesus over the pamphlet, finding the distribution of the pamphlet to be protected by the [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution|First Amendment]], and also stated that the pamphlet did not suggest that Mason was a Christian.<ref>[http://www.jewsforjesus.org/blog/20061108jackiemasondenied Jackie Mason Charges Against Jews For Jesus Denied By U.S. District Court] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061211161941/http://www.jewsforjesus.org/blog/20061108jackiemasondenied |date=2006-12-11 }}, November 8, 2006</ref>

In December 2006, Mason dropped the lawsuit against Jews for Jesus after they issued a letter of apology to him. The group's executive director, [[David Brickner]], stated in the letter to Mason that he wanted "to convey my sincere apologies for any distress that you felt over our tract." Brickner continued that he believed its publication was protected by the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]], but the group was willing in the interest of peace and love for Israel to retire the pamphlet. Mason replied in front of the federal court in Manhattan where he accepted the apology, "There's no such thing as a Jew for Jesus. It's like saying a black man is for the [[Ku Klux Klan|KKK]]. You can't be a table and a chair. You're either a Jew or a [[Gentile]]."<ref>[https://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2006-12-05-mason_x.htm ''USA Today''], [http://nymag.com/daily/intel/tags/religion nymag.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016154929/http://nymag.com/daily/intel/tags/religion |date=2007-10-16 }} (and many others) quoting an Associated Press release, December 4, 2006.</ref>