3% of the Christian community in besieged Palestinian enclave killed in 75 days, says Mitri Raheb
23.12.2023 -
ERBIL, Iraq
A Palestinian priest said that it will be a “very sad” Christmas this year, as 3% of the Christian community in the Gaza Strip has been killed in the ongoing Israeli attacks on the besieged Palestinian enclave since Oct. 7.
In an interview with the website Democracy Now, Mitri Raheb, the president of Dar al-Kalima University, said: “I don’t think in my entire life I experienced so much sadness, but also so much anger about what’s happening in Gaza.”
“I fear that this is the end of the Christian presence in Gaza. And, you know, the Christian presence in Gaza is a 2,000-years-old presence,” he added.
Raheb noted that Christmas festivities have been canceled in Bethlehem.
“You don't have Christmas lights. you don't have (a) Christmas tree in Bethlehem. There are no tourists coming because of the war,” he said.
“Here in the West Bank, we are experiencing apartheid colonization by Jewish settlers,” Raheb added.
“I find it really a shame that in this season, where every church hears these words, ‘peace on Earth,’ that the United States is vetoing even a cease-fire. It’s a shame,” he said.
He noted that more than 8,000 children have been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7.
Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, killing at least 20,057 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injuring 53,320 others, according to health authorities in the besieged enclave.
The Israeli onslaught has left Gaza in ruins with half of the coastal territory's housing stock damaged or destroyed, and nearly 2 million people displaced within the densely-populated enclave amid shortages of food and clean water.
Nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack, while more than 130 hostages remain in captivity.
*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara
"The Christmas story actually is a Palestinian story par excellence, echoing the current plight of Palestinians in Gaza." Rev. Mitri Raheb, a prominent Palestinian theologian and pastor, explains why traditional Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem are cancelled this year. He draws poignant parallels between the biblical story of Christmas and the current situation in Gaza. Rev. Raheb emphasises the displacement of families, the plight of pregnant women, and the tragic loss of children, comparing these to the events surrounding the nativity story.
December 23, 2023
The New Arab Staff
23 December, 2023
US congressional staff attempted to alert Israel on two holy sites to avoid targeting them- and they were still attacked
Palestinian Christians attend Sunday Mass celebrated in Gaza City's Holy Family church prior to the conflict
US Christian congressional staff members reportedly warned Israel against attacking religious sites in Gaza that were deemed safe zones for civilians, however the sites were eventually targeted by Israeli bombardment.
According to a series of emails obtained by US news site Politico, Gaza-based aid group Catholic Relief Services had repeatedly sent locations to Israel to instruct them to avoid attacking Christian facilities where Palestinian civilians sought refuge.
The emails, dated between October 14 to October 26, show Catholic Relief Services sending the coordinates of several buildings to staff members of the US Senate, who had forwarded them to Israeli forces.
Despite this, the Israelis said that they could not “guarantee” the safety of civilians who were staying inside, according to the report.
Israeli forces have yet to respond to Politico’s report.
Meanwhile, anonymous senate and congressional staff told the news outlet that they hope to continue attempts to protect Gaza’s civilians “without fear of retribution”.
A mother and daughter sheltering at the Holy Family Church were killed by Israeli sniper fire, and the Convent of the Missionaries of Charity was shelled by Israeli military tanks.
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem previously reported both incidents that were dated 16 December in an official statement.
The patriarchate said that the shootings at Holy Family Church, Gaza’s only Catholic church, led to the killings of Nahida Khalil Anton and daughter Samar while walking to the Sister’s Convent building in the complex.
The statement also said that seven were killed and injured while they attempted to protect others in the church.
“No warning was given, no notification was provided,” the patriarchate said. “They were shot in cold blood inside the premises of the parish, where there are no belligerents.”
According to the patriarchate, the Missionaries of Charity located in a section of the church’s compound and housing 54 individuals with disabilities was struck by fire from an Israeli tank.
This attack led to a fire that demolished the building’s generator, resulting in several residents being unable to use their respirators.
Pope Francis deplored the deaths, which he said happened in a church complex "where there are no terrorists but families, children, people who are sick and have disabilities".
Israeli forces said they had "no reports of a hit on the church", stressing the army "does not target civilians, no matter their religion". The Israeli army has destroyed several religious sites in Gaza, and in recent days has been accused of carrying out summary executions of civilians.
This year, church leaders in Jerusalem and the city council of Bethlehem – home to the Church of the Nativity where Christians believe Jesus was born – decided to tone down Christmas celebrations in solidarity with Gaza.
In a Christmas message, the patriarchs and heads of churches in Jerusalem lamented that "hope seems distant and beyond" reach for Gazans caught up in 11 weeks of deadly violence.
·19.12.2023
Christmas muted in 'grieving' Bethlehem
Outside Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity in the Palestinian West Bank, the throngs of tourists and pilgrims who normally rub shoulders with costumed Santas and marching bands are missing this year
There are no festive lights strung overhead and no sign of the huge tree normally erected to celebrate the event that Christians believe took place on this spot 2,000 years ago: the birth of Jesus Christ.
As the war between Israel and Hamas rages around 100 km away in Gaza – leaving thousands of Palestinians dead and nearly two million displaced and trapped in a humanitarian catastrophe – Christmas will be a muted affair in the occupied West Bank.
In a normal year, Bethlehem would be a "city full of people, full of tourists", said 30-year-old Abood Suboh, standing in his empty shop where he sells cashmere scarves and leather handbags.
"This war stopped everything."
'Tourists disappeared'
Church leaders in Jerusalem and the Bethlehem city council took the decision last month to forego "any unnecessarily festive" Christmas celebrations in solidarity with Gazans.
The Latin patriarch of Jerusalem will still come to deliver his traditional midnight mass on Christmas Eve, but with pilgrims staying away and access to the city restricted by Israeli authorities, turnout is likely to suffer.
The war could not have come at a worse time for locals who depend on the Christmas tourist trade.
Jack Giacaman, of the Christmas House souvenir shop, said 80 percent of their sales came at the end of the year.
"Suddenly, in October, tourists disappeared from the streets. And now Bethlehem is completely closed from all directions," he said, referring to the Israeli checkpoints that restrict movement into the walled-off West Bank.
In the workshop behind Giacaman's store, half-finished shepherds and magi stood watch over deserted workstations.
He had already been forced to borrow money to tide over the business after the slump caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, but had a three-year plan to get back on track.
"Now we don't know how to cover this year," he said.
'Like living in a prison'
Since the outbreak of the Gaza war, the West Bank has seen a surge in violence, with more than 290 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces or settlers, local health officials say.
Some pilgrims don't even realise Bethlehem is located in the West Bank, a Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since the 1967 Six-Day War, Giacaman said.
"Sometimes they come into the shop and say, 'I'm happy to be in Bethlehem, Israel,'" he said.
The Church of the Nativity was empty during our visit, save for a handful of workmen and a small group of pilgrims.
Outside, Greek Orthodox priest Issa Thaljieh said Bethlehem was "grieving" the violence in Gaza.
And he regretted that pilgrims would not see the reality of life for Palestinians this year.
Visiting holy sites is important, he said, "but what's most important is to know how Palestinians are living, how they are passing through the difficult situation daily, with the walls around, like living in a prison."
An eye-catching tableau for resistance: graffiti art in BethlehemYamen Elabed was the first Palestinian to come up with the idea of earning money from the graffiti on the barrier wall. Two years ago, he opened his "Banksy's Shop" in Bethlehem. The store features items such as postcards, bags, and T-shirts printed with the most famous motifs of the British artist (including those that no longer exist), as well as works of other artists. On request, tourists can even purchase cans of spray paint so that they too can immortalise themselves on the wall.The wall at the Qalandiya Checkpoint between Jerusalem and Ramallah serves as a canvas for professional artists as well as politically active Palestinians and those that sympathise with their cause. Here, the likenesses of two of the most important and charismatic Palestinian figures adorn the cement wall: left, the revered former President Yasser Arafat, right, the Fatah politician Marwan Barghouti, who was sentenced to five terms of life imprisonment and has been in prison since 2002.The trailblazer: in 2005, the legendary British street artist Banksy visited the West Bank and left behind nine stencilled graffiti images on the wall and on private buildings in and around Bethlehem. His satirical and critical commentary on Israel's occupation policy marked the start of an onslaught of international and Palestinian graffiti artists – amateurs and professionals alike – who have adorned the wall with their political and personal messages.Black humour: many of Banksy's early and later works still exist today, such as his famous "Flower Thrower" and the little girl frisking an Israeli soldier. Some images have been painted over by other artists or even removed out of protest, as a number of Palestinians don't like the British artist's signature black humour.Escape by escalator: in 2007, Banksy started the "Santa's Ghetto" artist initiative and organised a gathering of internationally renowned "street artists" in Bethlehem (including Mark Jenkins, Sam3, Ron English, Eircailcane, Swoon, and Faile) in order to draw attention to the political situation in the occupied territories. The Italian graffiti artist Blu also contributed with a work on the Israeli barrier opposite the UN refugee camp Aida.Of hijackers and Christmas trees: this section of the wall features a portrait of the PFLP plane hijacker Leila Khaled and, on the right, a walled-up Christmas tree by the graffiti artist Blu. Bethlehem is characteristically symbolised by Christmas motifs. It remains a matter of interpretation, however, what the artist intended to convey with the image of the dead tree stumps outside of the wall. The power of destruction? Avarice? Hypocrisy?Pacifism Palestinian style: this work by an unknown Palestinian artist also embellishes the wall in Bethlehem. It makes a humorous reference to the slogan of the hippy and anti-Vietnam War movement of the 1960s: "Make love, not war."Mourning "Handala": an unknown Palestinian artist created the image of a mourning Statue of Liberty cradling "Handala" in its arms. In 1969, the Palestinian cartoonist Naji al-Ali created the autobiographical figure of the refugee boy "Handala," who always has his back turned to the observer and has his arms folded in a gesture of defiance. To this day, "Handala" serves as a symbol of Palestinian identity and resistance against the occupation.Christmas tourism vs art tourism: despite the many security warnings, Bethlehem remains a magnet for tourists. Especially during the Christmas season, the small city is overwhelmed by a flood of tourists and pilgrims. As the presumed birthplace of Jesus Christ, Bethlehem draws people from all over the world. Many, however, overlook the stark political realities of life in the city, e.g. the Israeli separation wall.The New Yorker twins How & Nosm are known in the international street art world for their complicated and abstract graffiti works in red, black, and white. While engaged in their artwork in the autumn of 2013, they were frequently confronted and threatened by Israeli soldiers. One of their works, a symbolic image of a key, was painted over with "Stars of David" and pro-Israeli slogans by soldiers on the very day it was completed.A special obligation: "We believe that just coming here and tagging, doing pieces, would be inappropriate and selfish. We felt an obligation to bring more than just our names so we brought some messages. If you're an artist you should take that into consideration," says the artistic duo How & Nosm.Berlin– Bethlehem: parallels are often drawn to another historically significant wall (and its fall). The citation "Ich bin ein Palästinenser" (I am a Palestinian) can be found on a number of places on the cement wall. Many sections of the Israeli separation barrier, as is the case here in Bethlehem, are quite similar in appearance to its former Berlin counterpart.
'All gone now'
Franco-Palestinian restaurateur and hotelier Fadi Kattan, however, was sceptical that pilgrims learn much about the Palestinian cause.
Israeli tour operators nurture a perception that "all Palestinians are dangerous", turning them off interactions with locals, said Kattan, sitting on the terrace of his Bethlehem home that has been in his family for generations.
"For the pilgrims, it's like there's an invisible line where they don't go any deeper into the old city," he added.
Kattan – who serves modern Palestinian cuisine at his restaurants Fawda in Bethlehem and Akub in London's Notting Hill – had hoped to reopen his local businesses for Christmas this year after closing them during the pandemic.
"But that's all gone now," he said.
He said frightening wartime rhetoric from Israeli leaders had worsened the problem.
"If I was an American pilgrim, I would wait a few months to see what happens. Which is terrible to say, because it's a disaster for Bethlehem."
23 Dec, 2023
BETHLEHEM, WEST BANK - This year, instead of a Christmas tree, the church had a decoration made of rubble. It represented the destruction in Gaza.
In Bethlehem, Christian leaders in the town where Jesus was born made a heart-breaking announcement in mid-November 2023: Christmas would be cancelled this year in Palestine.
The decision came from senior church deacons and the Christian mayor of Bethlehem. In years past, Palestinian towns would be decorated with Christmas trees and joyful lights. Children would receive gifts and visits from Santa. But this year, the Bishops and Church Leaders in Jerusalem issued a 'call upon our parishes to let aside unnecessary celebrations this year'.
Father Yousef Matta, the Orthodox Bishop of Galilee based in Nazareth, echoed this position, declaring that parishes across occupied Palestine would cancel Christmas celebrations. In Ramallah, church services attended by children took turns praying for their brethren under fire in the Gaza Strip.
Christmas is, of course, not the holiest day in the Christian calendar – that would be Easter, the celebration of Christ's resurrection. However, Christmas is our most joyous holiday, during which Palestinian Christians show gratitude for the birth of the Prince of Peace.
And yet, for the past 75 years, Palestine, the birthplace of Jesus of Nazareth, has been robbed of peace.
This year, there is a genocide in which the Palestinian death toll has already far exceeded that of the original Nakba.
Given the unwavering financial and military support extended to Israel's war machine by the United States, as well as its continual vetoing of ceasefire efforts in the UN, no end is likely in sight.
Instrumentalising our suffering
What an odd situation that we Palestinian Christians find ourselves in. We hear evangelical Christian ministers in the United States, like John Hagee, speak about war in ecstatic and thrilling terms.
"Christian Zionists maintain that the Book of Genesis says that God will bless those who bless Israel and curse those who curse it. They insist that if America, as a country, does not "bless" Israel (that is, offer its government its unconditional support), God will curse America," he proclaimed.
Such rhetoric by Christian Zionism imposes violence upon Christian Palestinians, which ignores several vital facts.
Christians in Palestine have existed continuously and have lived in harmony with Muslims for millennia. The Christian Zionist approach weaponizes Western racism, Orientalism and Islamophobia, which are the antithesis of peaceful co-existence. In fact, Christians of Palestine are being subjected to the same anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic racism as our Muslim compatriots.
Christians are dying in Gaza under Israel's indiscriminate bombing campaign. In the West Bank, Christians face assault on their persons, neighbourhoods, and churches from Israeli settlers.
Yet racist right-wing media claim Palestinian leaders cancelled Christmas 'in honour of Hamas martyrs' as Israel continues to battle terrorists in Gaza'. But the martyrs we're talking about are thousands of innocent Palestinian men, women and children who were murdered by Israel, many Christians.
On October 20th 2023, Israel bombed the Greek Orthodox Saint Porphyrius Church in Gaza City, killing several Palestinians. It was Gaza's oldest church, and Palestinians held a massive joint funeral for those martyred.
As a Christian Palestinian in Gaza named Fadi told the international press, 'nobody is safe in Gaza, regardless of [their] religion'.
Palestinian families are rushing to baptize their youngest, anticipating their death could come at any moment.
Western Christians have had a unique, often contradictory fascination with Palestinian Christians. Some of them are surprised to find out that we exist; others claim the Israeli state is there to 'save' us. Then others have watched our genocide and supported the Zionist state in the hope of the Messiah's 'second coming'. It is perplexing to see how some Christian Zionists think that the return of a Palestinian Jew who founded Christianity would somehow be 'pleased' that they cheered the onslaught of 20 thousand Palestinians and counting.
Unrecognizable Christianity in the West
The West's 'white saviourism' offends and insults Christian Palestinians.
But we ask the West here: do not speak on our behalf. Please keep your white saviours to yourself and stay in your lane. Do not use us as discussion points that support our genocide or vilify our Muslim Brothers and Sisters.
The Christian Zionist approach to Christians in Palestine is in line with the West's 'divide and conquer' methods. In response, Palestinian Christians echo the words of a Palestinian Orthodox Church Monk, Father Antonius Hannania, who said that if the Zionists bombed every mosque in Gaza, he would conduct the Adhaan (call to prayer). Palestinian Christians stand with our Muslim Brothers and Sisters in Gaza, and we will not allow Zionists to divide us in our shared struggle against the Israeli settler colony's racism, apartheid and genocide of Palestinians.
From the Bishops and Church leaders across Occupied Palestine to the exiled diaspora, Christian Palestinians will join the call to cancel celebrations accordingly. Our ancestors protected the budding religion that Jesus of Nazareth gifted to us.
It was our ancestors who nurtured this new faith in the early centuries after his death and spread the Gospels. Christian Zionists today practise a version of this religion that is unrecognizable to us. It remains perhaps one of the greatest ironies that a religion founded by a Palestinian man is instrumentalized in the genocide of the Palestinians.
With the genocide occurring over the sacred holiday, we ask Christians of the world to abstain from celebrating this year, but we highly doubt that this will be considered by the likes of Christian Zionists.
Whilst we remain grief-stricken, in mourning and horrified, Palestinian Christians will take little comfort in watching Christian Zionists celebrate a holiday that we gifted the world whilst they drape their homes in red and green - colours that perhaps they should notice, match the flag of Palestine.
Dr Ryan Al-Natour is a diaspora Palestinian who works as a lecturer in the School of Education, Charles Sturt University. He has experience working in antiracist teaching and has worked in secondary, primary and early childhood teacher training.
By Joel C. Rosenberg | NEWSMAX Saturday, 23 December 2023
With just days to go before Christmas, and Israel fighting for its existence against Iranian terror proxies on multiple fronts, former Gov. Mike Huckabee and I had the opportunity to spend some time on Thursday afternoon with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu.
The meeting took place in the highly secure IDF headquarters known as “The Kirya” – Israel’s Pentagon – in the heart of Tel Aviv.
For the past three days, the governor and I have been co-leading a “Solidarity Mission” of influential Evangelical Christian leaders throughout the country.
We’ve visited Israeli hostage families, visited Israeli communities devastated by the Hamas invasion of Oct. 7th, visited with local Jewish and Christians leaders, compared notes on what we’ve been seeing and hearing, and spent time praying together.
For several hours, our entire group met with the Prime Minister’s senior communications, public diplomacy, and foreign policy advisors to discuss how Israel can more effectively combat the avalanche of lies crashing down on them in the midst of this raging and bitter war.
We also discussed how Israeli leaders can do more to “call up the reserves” of millions of Evangelical Christians to tell the truth about Israel and the Jewish people from pulpits, on podcasts, on social media, in print media, and on radio and TV programs in the United States and all over the world.
AN INVITATION TO MEET THE PRIME MINISTER
At one point, as those critical conversations continued with the rest of the delegation, Governor Huckabee and I were asked to step out of the National Public Diplomacy’s media “war room” and to cross the Kirya campus to the offices and wartime residence of the prime minister.
While we had, of course, been hoping for the opportunity to see him this week, we knew that with such an intense schedule – and constant emergencies interrupting even a normally hard day – it might not happen.
But consistent with his decades of building personal friendships with Evangelical Christian leaders, the prime minister somehow found a way to carve out time.
Netanyahu has long called the Christian community the “greatest friends the Jewish state has.”
As important as the global Jewish community is, it is still fairly small, with perhaps 15 to 17 million Jewish people worldwide.
Yet, there are some 60 million Evangelical Christians in the United States alone.
And some 600 million Evangelicals worldwide.
NETANYAHU UNDERSTANDS WHY EVANGELICALS LOVE ISRAEL SO MUCH
Most love the Bible and read it from Genesis to Revelation.
Thus, most understand the stories of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
They understand the history of the 12 tribes of Israel.
So, they understand and embrace God’s unique love and plan for Israel and the Jewish people.
As the Lord once told the Israeli nation through Moses, “Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them [your enemies], for the Lord your God is the One who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:6).
As the Lord once told the Israeli people through the Hebrew Prophet Jeremiah: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, I have drawn you with lovingkindness” (Jeremiah 31:3).
And as David – Israel’s greatest king – once wrote to his people, encouraging them to embrace these very truths: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I shall walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil, for You are with me” (Psalm 23:1-4).
Evangelicals know God is not in the business of abandoning His chosen people.
So we shouldn’t abandon them either.
This isn’t at its core a political commitment to Israel.
It’s a theological commitment, and a deeply held one at that.
Few Israelis understand this better than Netanyahu.
DEEPENING A STRATEGIC ALLIANCE
That’s why, for the past three decades, he has consistently cultivated this strategic alliance. And yesterday, it turned out, was no different.
After clearing another round of security checks, the governor and I were taken up several flights of stairs and ushered into Netanyahu’s office.
We were accompanied by Ophir Falk, the prime minister's foreign policy advisor.
And Tal Heinrich, a spokeswoman who was hired by the prime minister on Oct. 7th after working for several years for me as a senior correspondent for ALL ISRAEL NEWS and senior producer for THE ROSENBERG REPORT on TBN.
To our surprise, Netanyahu wasn’t inviting us into a quick pop-in to say hi.
The meeting ended up lasting almost 45 minutes.
WHAT WE WANTED TO SAY TO THE PRIME MINISTER
Wearing a dark suit, Netanyahu wasn’t harried or stressed or rushed, even though yet another salvo of rockets had just been fired by Hamas at Tel Aviv not too much earlier (quickly intercepted by the ever-faithful Iron Dome).
To the contrary, the Prime Minister struck me as calm and laser-focused on winning this war once and for all.
He was particularly happy to see Huckabee, one of the most well-known and influential Evangelicals in the United States.
After all, the two have been good and faithful friends for decades.
From the outset of the meeting, we reaffirmed to the prime minister that the overwhelming majority of Evangelical Christians in the United States love and support the Jewish state and the Jewish people, despite such fierce and unrelenting attacks from so much of the rest of the world.
We also affirmed the fact that millions of Evangelicals are “praying without ceasing” for him, for all the people and leaders of Israel, and for a quick victory over the forces of radical Islamism who are seeking Israel’s total annihilation.
GOVERNOR HUCKABEE’S STATEMENT FOLLOWING THE MEETING
While we covered a range of issues related to the war, the road ahead, and ways to strengthen the Israeli-Evangelical alliance, I’m not at liberty to share specifics.
Rather, let me share our reactions coming out of the meeting.
Governor Huckabee, for example, wanted to issue the following statement.
I’ve known the Prime Minister for many years and always find him to be in command of whatever situation he faces.
I can’t imagine anyone being as rock solid to lead Israel during such an existential crisis.
We conveyed to him our support for Israel and the Jewish people and our confidence in his leadership.
The Prime Minister has shown a steely resolve to carry out the mission of eliminating the terrorist threat of Hamas.
He is a steady head and hand in an unsteady time.
Well put.
A FEW PERSONAL THOUGHTS AND OBSERVATIONS
I must say, it was an honor to spend time with the prime minister.
While I first met him in the fall of 2000 – some 23 years ago – this was the first time I’d ever met with him in the middle of a war.
It was particularly interesting to hear his heart and his perspective on the immense challenges that Israelis are facing.
To ask him questions.
And to have the opportunity to share with him in person that we believe in the power of prayer.
That we and our colleagues really are praying for him personally, for his family, for his advisors, as well as for the nation, for victory, and for the immediate and safe release of all the remaining hostages.
This isn’t talk.
It’s not posturing.
It’s a deep commitment that we as Evangelicals have because we know we serve a prayer-hearing and a prayer-answering God – a God who responds to the cries of His children, and loves to move mountains and work wonders.
With the United Nations increasingly united against Israel – and so many in the international media viciously attacking Israel – the governor and I organized this Evangelical delegation because we wanted to send a crystal clear message to the prime minister, the Israeli people and the Jewish people worldwide.
Evangelical Christians love Israel and the Jewish people with an unconditional and unwavering love because the God of the Bible loves Israel and the Jewish people with an unconditional and unwavering love.
We came to see him because that’s what friends do when times are hard.
We know Bibi has many critics.
But while right now he is a wartime leader, he’s also a husband and a father who is going through one of the most terrible crises in modern Israeli history.
He needs prayer.
He needs encouragement.
He is the one the Lord has chosen for such a time as this.
And we as Christians are commanded in the New Testament to pray for kings and governors and all those in authority.
Let’s be faithful to that charge.
A WINSTON CHURCHILL IN ISRAEL’S DARKEST HOUR
At one point, I told the prime minister that I honestly have no idea how he summons the physical and emotional energy to keep going without developing ulcers over so many years, so many attacks, and so much criticism.
He laughed and attributed it to “good genes.”
“I’m sure,” I said, but added, “I believe it’s also God’s grace, that the Lord is responding to the prayers of millions of Christians and thus giving you the capacity to keep going beyond what most normal people can handle.”
Regardless of your views of Netanyahu, there is no doubt that he is an historic figure. In many ways, he is Israel’s Winston Churchill who, while having his flaws, has been enormously consequential.
We need him to succeed.
And he can’t do it without the intercessory prayers of Christians all over the world.
One thing is certain.
No Israeli leader has ever done more to build both a friendship and a strategic alliance with the Christian community.
And his welcoming us so warmly yesterday was yet further proof of that deep bond of friendship.
That said, meeting senior political leaders was not our primary objective as a delegation.
Over the past three days, we have:
toured Kfar Aza, one of 22 Israeli communities along the Gaza border that were savaged during the Hamas invasion and slaughter of Oct. 7th
met with and was briefed by officials in Sderot, the largest Israeli city on the Gaza border and one of the communities invaded by Hamas on Oct. 7th
met with and heard the personal stories of three Israeli hostage families in Tel Aviv
met with and listened to a group of American lone soldiers in Jerusalem
met with and was briefed by Jewish and Christian NGO leaders providing humanitarian aid to Israelis and Palestinians, including those from The Joshua Fund, Samaritan’s Purse, and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews
been interviewed by Israeli and American reporters about what we have seen and heard during their time in the Land
met with, prayed with, and been briefed by local Evangelicals in the Land
prayed for the liberation of Gaza from Hamas and a decisive victory over Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Iranian regime
prayed for the immediate release of all the remaining hostages held by Hamas in Gaza
prayed for the protection of all Israeli soldiers
prayed for the protection of all Palestinian Christians in Gaza
prayed for physical, emotional, and spiritual healing for all Israelis and Palestinians traumatized by this war
prayed for the peace of Jerusalem, according to Psalm 122
My team and I will be sharing more insights from these meetings and visits in the days ahead.
But for now, I wanted to share with you some of what I saw when the Lord opened the door to meet a unique and compelling leader.
This story was reprinted by permission from AllIsraelNews.com.
Joel C. Rosenberg is the editor-in-chief of ALL ISRAEL NEWS and ALL ARAB NEWS and the President and CEO of Near East Media. A New York Times best-selling author, Middle East analyst, and Evangelical leader, he lives in Jerusalem with his wife and sons.
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