During the week covered by this review, we received 5 articles on the following subjects:
Christians in Israel
Arab Believing Communities
Christians in Israel
Various Articles
Close to 7,000 Evangelical Christians from nearly 100 countries worldwide took part in the annual Jerusalem March that was held during Sukkot. The event was organized by the International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem (ICEJ). ICEJ communications director, David Parsons, noted that this has been one of the most successful years in terms of participant numbers. Parsons said: “Feast attendance has been on the rise in recent years, which is a reflection of the dramatic growth of the Christian Zionist movement worldwide.” One thousand Israelis were invited to join the pilgrims for a special feast to celebrate Israel’s 70th anniversary. After Sukkot, pilgrims will make their way to the Gaza border in order to hold a joint ceremony with leaders from the Eshkol region. One such Eshkhol representative said: “Israel is fortunate to have many Christian friends all over the world who provide key support for the Jewish state in their home countries.” Another commentator singled out the ICEJ for praise, noting that the ICEJ has provided unwavering support for Israel and the Jewish people. “As God said to Moses, according to Genesis 12:3, ‘I will bless those who bless you.’ May those who bless Israel be blessed,” says this commentator.
The country with the largest delegation at the march was Brazil, with 900 participants. In second place was the Ivory Coast, with 500 participants. In an interview, one pastor from Brazil said: “We are supporting and praying for Israel, because if Israel is strong, then it will help bring Jesus for the second time.”
In the past, Jewish leaders called on Jews to avoid events organized by the ICEJ for fear of efforts to convert Jews. However, the ICEJ continues to maintain that it has a policy against proselytizing in Israel.
Arab Believing Communities
The Jerusalem Post, September 23, 2018
This was an opinion piece charging Palestinian Christians involved in the Christ at the Checkpoint movement with a lack of courage and integrity. In October, a Christ at the Checkpoint conference will be held outside of Bethlehem for the first time ever, in Oklahoma City. The author argued that this indicates that “Israel is under attack,” because Christ at the Checkpoint regularly points an accusing finger at Israel, while letting the Palestinian Authority off the hook. Christian Palestinians do this, it is argued, because they need the Palestinian Authority to protect them from the attacks of their Muslim neighbors. They therefore paint a picture of Israel as the sole transgressor. Christ at the Checkpoint, argued the author further, sends the message that if it were not for Israeli occupation, relations between Christians and Muslims in the region would be positive. Western Christians, for their part, are willing to embrace this message because they hope that they can halt Muslim violence by “being nicer” to Muslims.
The proposed solution in this article was a retrieval of masculine courage. At its best, “Christianity tames men” while still insisting “that they keep their courage.” The author argued that Christianity demands from men that they stay wild in order to protect their homes, faith, and freedom. Both John the Baptist and Jesus were wild in this way, it is said. Where men lose their courage, conflict and abuse follow. Christian Palestinian men are not courageous in the face of Muslim violence, and neither are Western men. The author called this the “Great Emasculation,” and argued that it is responsible for western hatred of Israel. If only men had more courage, they would stand up to Muslim violence, to corrupt leaders, and would recognize in the Israeli men of the modern State of Israel a model of real masculine courage. “Like Jews living in the 19th and 20th centuries,” argued the author, Christian men in the Middle East do not know how to protect themselves against violence, and therefore rely on corrupt dictators to keep them safe. They exhibit fake courage by attacking Israel, while real courage would be directed at the Palestinian Authority and Muslim violence. The same is true for western Christians who support Christ at the Checkpoint.