Support for Israel is waning and anti-Semitism is on the rise. It is important for Christians in the U.S. to remember our special relationship with the Jews and not only pray for peace in Israel but be willing to stand with her against those who want her total annihilation.
Israel is the only ally of the United States in the Middle East. Yet, we hear very little news about Israel reported from a perspective of support or with factual information about the violence against Israel that is an everyday occurrence. With each passing year, the United States seems to distance herself further from Jewish State of Israel even though, they are the only like-minded democracy and the only U.S. ally in the region. Anti-Semitism is at an all time high in Europe and among the members of the United Nations. The Arab Spring protests and violence seems to be driven by hatred toward the Jews and the west in general. What was touted as a new beginning for democracy in the Middle East seems to be instead, the re-emergence of Islam, driven by the Muslim Brotherhood. It is no longer politically correct to support Israel and the United States is caving in to the pressure of other nations to abandon Israel and no longer give her special protection. Christians in the United States don’t have the clear understanding of our Biblically, special relationship with Israel, that they once had. It is vitally important for protecting Jews and Christians, in Israel and the greater Middle East, for American Christians to educate themselves, Biblically, on the relationship of Christians and Jews and how God is using both groups of people in completing His plan of redemption. It is important to pray for peace in Israel and be willing to stand in support of Israel as the entire world seems to be turning against her.
The Middle East has long been understood as a time-bomb that could explode at any time with bitter world consequences. The forces at play are much more complex than the picture painted for us by the mainstream media. The protests that began last Spring were not those of people calling for western style democracy. Poverty and hunger propelled these people out into the streets and globally organized labor in league with the Muslim Brotherhood took advantage of the situation. The governments in Egypt and Syria toppled and the cries for destruction haven’t been subdued. With Iran stirring up hatred against the Jews and the West in the background, the situation in the Middle East is very dangerous. Syria appears to be the next nation to try to rid itself of its current government. Cries for the destruction of Israel and death to the Jews are the common driving force, fueling anger in the region. Christians are being persecuted and are fleeing from Egypt, fearing for their lives. The United States appears to be supporting all sides and no longer seems to recognize our only friend, Israel or understand who our enemy, Extremist Islam, is. Our military force was used to topple the government in Libya and instate a new government highly influenced by the Muslim brotherhood while we continue to fight against extreme Islam in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Most Christian Americans would say they are for peace in Israel without understanding the Biblical mandate to pray for peace in Israel. God also promises to bless the nation that blesses Israel and condemns those nations who don’t. The peace we are to pray for is not political but will come about when Jesus returns, Israel recognizes her Messiah, and makes peace with God. This peace means peace for the entire world and the reign of righteousness through Jesus, as the Lion of Judah. In the book of Romans, chapter 11, Paul explains the special relationship of gentile believers and Jews, who failed to recognize who Jesus was when He came to them as a sacrificial lamb. He pictures Israel as a cultivated olive tree and gentile Christians as wild branches grafted into the cultivated tree. True Christianity can’t survive without nourishment from the root of the cultivated tree, which is Israel. Christians were grafted in because God hardened the hearts of the Jews but He will graft the branches that were cut off, back in again through grace. Because God has mercy on gentile believers and made them a part of his holy people, He can also have mercy upon the Jews. Their unbelief made way for salvation for the Gentiles whose salvation in turn, makes it possible for God to save all the Jews. Christians who turn against the Jews or think of themselves as better than Israel, are cutting themselves off from the root that nurtures all Christians and Jews alike. It is Jesus who will unite both faiths in the coming millennial rule of Christ; and Jesus walked the earth as a Jew.
American Christians once had a good understanding of their special relationship with Israel. That understanding is the underpinning for America’s part in helping to establish the modern Jewish state of Israel that exists, today. It is also, the underpinning of our political relationship as allies. Western Civilization is based upon the Bible with the Jewish and Christian faiths as the foundation of western culture. The division between America and Israel is a foundational attack on Western Civilization by enemies in very high places. I believe that when the United States lifts its protective hand over Israel and allows the surrounding nations to devour her, America, as we know it, will cease to exist; and Western Civilization will live on only, in history books. If that history is allowed to be written, at all.
It’s true that nations turning against Israel and seeking her destruction is a part of the plan of redemption that God is working to complete. Praying for peace in Israel and standing beside her politically won’t prevent God’s Will from being carried to completion. However, it is still important for Christians to stand on the side of good in what ever occurs during our lifetime. It’s important for American Christians to educate themselves about Israel and take a stand as God directs. Understanding the history of modern Israel and their relationship with the Palestinians and other Arab nations, helps to clarify what one’s position should be. Armed with the facts, it is vital to Israel’s well-being and the well-being of America, to contact our representatives and let them know that support for Israel is important to maintain. Even with all Biblical theology aside, support for Israel is the right thing to do. If we were to treat all of our allies as we are currently treating Israel, we would soon have no allies. It is clear how the muddied Middle Eastern Policy of the last decade and beyond, has created an even more dangerous situation that not only affects Middle Eastern nations but the entire world. We need to return to a simple, clear, direction in policy of siding with our friends against those who wish to destroy us and stop trying to please everyone.
The United States appears to be very divided, at present. The Occupy protests are organized by the same people who took advantage of the pain of people in Egypt and Libya. Most of the protestors in the United States don’t even know why they are protesting. They are manipulated by those with an agenda to destroy Western Civilization and capitalism, the same agenda of those who hate Jews and Christians in the Middle East. Capitalism is of the Jews, according to the Bible, and is the reason for hatred of Jews and Christians by those who believe in socialism. (Just as Hitler exploited the hatred he had in common with Arabs during World War II.) That hatred is the common ground of those pushing the upheaval in the Middle East and the Occupy protests in the United States. Globally based labor unions are involved in organizing all the protests in America and the Middle East. These are confusing times and it is important for us, as the American people, to not allow ourselves to be manipulated, right vs. left against one another, by politicians and those with a hidden agenda. American Christians can make a difference by standing with Israel and upon the Judeo-Christian principles that created our nation. Those principles are the clarity that is needed now. If American Christians don’t stand against the anti-semitic hatred that is moving the world today, we will face the same persecution that Christians in Egypt are presently, enduring. All it takes for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing. It is, I believe, the call of our time, to pray for true peace in Israel while also standing politically with Israel. It is a stand against the evil one and those who serve him and desire the total annihilation of God’s holy people. It is a stand against the oppression of extreme Islam in the Middle East and global socialism in the western world. To stand with Israel is to stand with the United States as the bastion of freedom that we know and love.
Hello Pam
I read with interest your blog on Israel and while I could take issue with many of your points, there is one glaring mistake that I want to bring to your attention:
You mention that Israel is the only US ally in the region. This is patently untrue. Turkey is not only a founder memberof NATO (since 1949), over the years it has been an active and loyal friend of the USA, largely pro-western in its outlook. It is a failure of US politicians and the US media that the American public remains so woefully ignorant regarding this important ally. Although predominantly a Muslim country, Turkey is a long-established, extremely successful SECULAR democracy, just like the United States.
Kind regards
Sara
Hi Sara, I never mind a politly expressed opposing opinion. You are right about Turkey and I’m sorry for not including them. Though I have read lately that there is a push in Turkey also for a return to a more Islamic form of governement. I don’t think anyone can deny that there is a major move in that direction in most of the countries there. My thoughts were centered on Iraq, Iran, Syria, etc. I really don’t care if those countries choose an islamic form of government and I don’t like what the U.S. is doing over there. It was one thing to retaliate after 9/11 but it is another to try and build social democracies where people don’t want them. However, I also believe that Israel has the right to exist and I oppose those who wish annihilate the Jews. That doesn’t mean that I’m against Muslim people. I’m against genocide and against any people who use violence to force their ideology on another people, even when it is my own government. I also think that the Palestinians are used as pawns by the other Arab nations who refuse to allow them to assimilate in the other surrounding Arab nations. I know the Jews aren’t perfect either and I don’t know how they could have a totally blameless attitude with the history of hatred that surrounds them, keeping them under constant threat, and follows them all over the world. Israel is very small compared to her neighbors and they should be allowed to exist in peace. I don’t expect everyone to have the same spiritual connection to Israel that many American Christians have but I have the right to hold to that point of view as a tenent of my faith. The culmination of the relationship between Christians and Jews should be of no political threat to anyone as it isn’t an outcome that can be forced through politics but is a work of God in His own time. I certainly have no desire to bring Armegedon by force so that my worldview is proven correct. However, it is important to me to pray for peace in Israel(the kind of peace I described in my post) and stand in support of her people and in support for her right to exist and ability to protect herself in a region that is far beyond hostile toward the Jews. I also dislike seeing any ally thrown under the bus by politicians who are seeking favor and their own gain. America’s relationship with Israel is special and as a citizen, I have the right to ask my representatives to honor that relationship.
Thank you for taking the time to comment, Sara.
Pam
Sara, I’ve been thinking about why I made my “glaring mistake” in remembering Turkey as an ally and I want to add a bit to my response. First of all, I don’t really know where Turkey stands on the War on Terror but I do know they refused to allow us to stage troops or use their air space in the invasion of Iraq. It also seem that NATO likes to use U.S. muscle (and money) when it comes to defending an European intrest but are not always available to assist the U.S. I believe that Turkey cares more about their alliance with Europe as they have long desired to be a part of the European Union. I don’t know how Turkey feels about the U.S. but I do know how Israel reguards my country and therefore, I see them as being directly allied with the U.S. while Turkey is indirected allied with the U.S.
Though I do reguard extreme Islamists as probable enemies of the U.S.(how could I not?), my post was never meant as anti-muslim. My post was meant to be pro-Israel and the reasons I shared were mostly attributed to my faith. I’m not anti-anyone but I am against bullying and I can best describe the treatment that Israel receives from her neighbors as extreme, violent, life-threatening, bullying. I know hatreds in that part of the world are old but I can’t view them as justification for the evil that has been visited upon the entire world because of those ancient hatreds. I also don’t like U.S. involvement there and I am very tired of the U.S. military being used as the world police. I would like nothing better than for our troops to come home but I’m afraid that our involvement in Libya and the debacle in Pakistan have fed the flames to such a degree that we will be at war in the Middle East for years to come. All I want is peace.
Pam
Hello Pam
As it happens I know something about the events which lead up to Turkey’s decision not to support the US invasion of Iraq. Apart from having a policy of “zero problems” with its neighbors (a policy under pressure these days, esp as regards Syria where even now Turkish troops are amassing on the border), Turkey had little sympathy for the war in Iraq. Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11 and supported no anti-American terrorist groups – nor indeed did it even have the much-touted Weapons of Mass Destrution, fabricated by the Bush administation as an excuse to “fight terrorism” in order to appease the American people.
All that aside, Turkey would have supported its ally until it became clear that the US believed it could buy Turkey’s support by throwing money at it. I remember quite clearly an interview on Fox TV where a US Senator (name escapes me) said that they would give Turkey enough money so that it would do whatever the US wanted.. .thus displaying both appalling ignorance and ensuring Turkey would do nothing to help. The Turks are nothing if not proud and Turkey’s allegiance to the US has been demonstrated over decades by fighting alongside US forces in the Korean War and being the first line of defence against the USSR during the long years of the Cold War. I could go. The fact that this loyalty is so little recognized and so little valued that the US thought it could buy what was freely given explains why Turkey’s support may not be so whole-hearted today.
While you are quick to defend Israel as a US ally, my question is what has Israel ever done for the US? I know very well indeed how the US defends, supports and enables Israel, but the relationship seems to me to be pretty much a one-way street. We do what they want. We are not allies; we are their protectors, a role which many justifiably question, especially as regards Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians who have been driven out of their homeland and are denied basic human rights on a daily basis.
I know that we are not going to agree about Israel. I am not a person of faith and have no interest in a so-called special relationship which enables the Israelis to act with impunity. My purpose in commenting was to make you and your readers aware of Turkey’s historical role as an important US ally, one which we would do well to accord proper respect.
Kind regards
Sara
Sara, Turkey is obviously, a subject that you are passionate about. However, to most Americans, Turkey is a remote country with a culture very different from our own and most of us know little about that country. We hear very little about her in the news and one has to take the time to dig for that information if for some reason, they should become interested. If you feel your representatives have treated Turkey unfairly and insulted you by doing so, you should take it up with them. They are the ones in a position to make a difference. I’m not. I think the Bush administration and our entire congress was misled by bad information regarding the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. I blame the CIA and not the president even though there are many things that the Bush administration did that I was unhappy about. Iraq was a mistake on the part of George Bush, Tony Blair, and our entire Congress but I don’t believe that it was due to a “vast right-wing conspiracy”. I still dislike the modern NATO and I don’t feel supported by them at all, as an American. They serve European interests with American muscle and dollars.
One thing that Israel does for the U.S. is that they are a like-minded ally in a region that controls the price of oil in the world and hates the U.S. I hope Turkey doesn’t share that blind hatred and I have to admit that I’ve not seen people in protest in Turkey burning our flag, or an effigy of our president, or shouting death to the great Satan that is America. I also see nothing wrong in protecting a people who have suffered extreme persecution the world over. They deserve to be safe in their very small homeland. I know things are hard for the Palestinians but they seem totally unwilling to make any concessions and stick with that ancient often repeated slogan of “Death to the Jews” and the wish of chasing them into the sea. Propaganda teaching Arabs to hate Jews is rife in Palestine and other Arab countries. If Arab neighbors of Palestine are concerned about Palestinian suffering, they should allow them to integrate themselves in their countries but they hate the Palestinians more than the Jews do with far less reason to do so. They use the Palestinians as pawns in a chess game with the west. They didn’t care for them before the modern day establishment of Israel and they don’t care about them now. Again, I’m glad that the U.S. protects Israel because I don’t like bullies. Especially, when they constantly call for genocide. Even if I didn’t believe in the God of the Bible, I would feel the same way. My view of that part of the world is that it is a place of intolerance and oppression, fueled by ancient hatreds that need to be put away.
I don’t think anyone who has been keeping up with the peace talks that the E.U. has been overseeing for the last decade, could say that the U.S. does whatever Israel wants.It seems to me that Israel is the one asked to make all of the concessions while the Palestinains are codled to the point of giving their terrorist government social acceptance. The U.N. clearly supports them and clearly hates Israel. If the U.S. didn’t protect them, it wouldn’t be long before all of the Jews were killed, Jerusalem sacked, and the historical sites important to Jews and Christians, destroyed as the Bhuddas in Afghanistan. I’ve seen no behavior on the part of the Arab world that could cause me to expect anything better from them. I am a Christian, devout, but I would never threaten to kill someone who published a cartoon that depicted Jesus in an unflattering light or believe that it is right to kill people who don’t believe as I do. Religion is not the cause of violence but it is often an excuse and it seems there is no evil that can’t be excused by extreme Muslim believers. I think the silence of moderate Muslims in regard to the horrors perpetrated in the name of their religion, speaks volumes. They are as frightened as the rest of us of extreme retalliation over a minor insult or infraction. If I lived in Israel, I would be frightened every day by the unreasonable and sanctioned hatred in the countries that surround them.
As I stated before, my post was never meant to be anti-muslim and it wasn’t meant to be anti-Turkey either. My stance isn’t anti-anyone, it is pro-Israel and I find many things about Jews, their culture, and their homeland that is valuable and worth protecting. My last name is Witzemann and my husband has enough Jewish blood in his veins to live in Israel as a Jew. So you see, when people continually scream, “Death to the Jews” as they protest in the streets, it gets a little personal. I would guess that you have simular reasons for feeling the way you do about Turkey.
People like to paint conservative Christians as intolerant and ignorant but this conservative Christian is very tolerant of people who differ from me and though I don’t think I know everything their is to know about the Middle East, I’m not ignorant and I don’t write from a perspective of ignorance. I am not tolerant of hatred, oppression, genocide, or any ideology that promotes them. I also have to admit that I am generally protective of the underdog and Israel is definately the underdog in the Middle East. Personally, I have a connection to Israel that is by blood and also, spiritual. I don’t think that my praying for peace in Israel or my standing in political support of her should be a threat to you or anyone. I find the hatred of the Jews to be wholely unreasonable and unjustified. I don’t understand it but it is a prevalent evil that as a believer in Jesus, I must stand against.
Pam
Sara, I would also like to add that my husband has a brother-in-law who is Turkish and lives with my husband’s sister in London. He is very dear to us. He is tolerant of others, open minded, extremely intelligent, and kind. He loves Allah and the Koran but I know he would never do the things that make us feel threatened as Americans. He is proof to me that the old hatreds can be put to rest and people can learn to live in peace despite being different. My brother-in-law knows a little more about New Mexico than I know about Turkey but very little more. We accept one another as individuals and the rest loses importance when it comes to our personal relationship. I can trust him not to hate or want to kill someone simply because they are Jewish but that isn’t true of many people living in the Arab countries that surround Israel. If the Jews decided they wanted to wipe the Turks from the face of the earth, I would want to protect Turkey, also.
Pam
Pam – Those are wonderful, loving comments. Your brother-in-law is a lucky man to have such a warm and open-minded extended family.
I think you misunderstood my original intent, which was not to argue about Israel – we reach different conclusions regarding the events we witness – but simply to create an awareness that in Turkey, the USA has another important friend in the Middle East. Although only one person, it sounds to me like your brother-in-law is proof of that.
Kind regards
Sara
Sara, My brother-in-law is proof that Muslims are human and no matter how oppresive any government is in regard to indiviual thought, people are individuals. I am sure that there are Muslims in the Middle East who don’t see extermination of the Jews as a solution. I know Turkey recognizes Israel and has a working relationship with them. They are demonstrating the right way to find peace, acceptance of one another. The Palestinians and many other nations that surround Israel refuse acceptance and are the hindrance of peace. There is no peace because they don’t really want peace, they want the Jews gone. I know there is arguement that they are not anti-Jew but instead, anti-zionism but dislike of a political or spiritual movement doesn’t call for extermination. The history of Palestines relationship with the Jews is very telling as is the relationship between Hitler and the Grand Mufti that planted poison in the Middle East. The hatred of the Jews is blind, unreasoning, and the product of that poisoning. All of this is in my mind as I pray for peace in Israel because I see that peace as that which will bring peace to the entire world. A time when all people lay their hatred down. This is my hope for human kind.
Thank you for sharing your perspective, Sara.
Pam