(JNS) Hundreds of Christian and Jewish leaders are gathering in Washington, DC this week to press lawmakers on Capitol Hill to strengthen ties with Israel and confront the rise of global antisemitism.
The annual interfaith event comes amid increasing criticism of Israel on both sides of the political aisle amid a burst of antisemitism around the globe triggered by the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel.
The gathering for Israel Advocacy Day, which will bring together pastors and rabbis from more than 37 states to the nation’s capital, also comes as a month-old US truce with Iran teetered on the brink of collapse following renewed Iranian attacks on the United Arab Emirates over control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
“At a time when Israel and the Jewish people are confronting threats unlike any we have seen in a generation, the American Christian community must stand visibly and publicly with our Jewish brothers and sisters,” said Susan Michael, president of the US office of the International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem, the biggest evangelical organization in Israel. “The pastors and rabbis joining us in Washington are … here to do the work of building durable, principled support for Israel and to ensure that biblically-rooted advocacy reaches every corner of Capitol Hill.”
“Pastors and lay leaders have come from communities of every background, across denominations, ethnicities, and regions,” said Bishop Robert Stearns, founder and president of the New York-based Eagles’ Wings Ministries. “They understand that supporting Israel is not a political question for us; it is a matter of conviction.”
The participants will hold advocacy meetings across the Hill on Tuesday, attend a workshop entitled “Christians, Israel, and Zionism: A Biblical Response to Confusion, Criticism, and Cultural Pressure,” and be hosted for an evening congressional reception with remarks from Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE).
“Israel Advocacy Day gives the staff who actually shape policy on the Hill the chance to hear directly from constituents whose support for Israel is rooted in Scripture and lived out in their communities every day,” said Jordanna McMillan, the US director of the Washington DC-based Israel Allies Foundation, which has spearheaded faith-based diplomacy in parliaments around the world for nearly two decades. “That kind of conversation moves the needle.”
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