(JNS) A delegation of 30 senior African Christian leaders from 10 countries across the continent was in Israel this past week on a joint religious and political mission, as Jerusalem increases its faith-based diplomatic outreach to tens of millions of Christian supporters in Africa following the two-year war against Hamas in Gaza.
The visit highlighted anew the growing diplomatic tug-of-war between supporters and opponents of the Jewish state in Africa. While South Africa has emerged as one of the fiercest critics of Israel worldwide, other African countries have pushed back and are now further strengthening ties rooted in a mix of shared interests and faith.
“We have a lot of haters and quite a lot of people who want to push us away, but they have one huge obstacle: they are going against the word of God,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar told the African Christian leaders in a Thursday evening address in Tel Aviv. “We need counter-pressure on governments to support Israel in the international arena, and as spiritual leaders connected to your communities, you can make a change.”
The delegation included representatives from Angola, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique and Uganda and included bishops, pastors and prominent church leaders whose congregations alone encompass millions of followers throughout the continent.
During their five-day visit, the group met with Israel’s President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem, visited Hebron and Shiloh in the biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria and toured the site of the Supernova music festival in the northwestern Negev, which was targeted by Hamas-led terrorists during the Oct. 7, 2023, onslaught.
‘Strategic partners’
“The Christian religious leaders of Africa are strategic partners of the State of Israel,” said Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel, who has spearheaded the diplomatic outreach to the continent with more than half a dozen visits over the last two years.
“The Christian community across Africa is strongly supportive of Israel and serves as a vital force in countering the spread of radical Islam and jihadism. Strengthening our ties with these leaders reinforces Israel’s standing in Africa, founded on deep, shared values that will endure for generations,” she said.
Archbishop Justin Badi Arama from South Sudan said, “Thank you for reviving a vision which has been a bit dormant, as we never took a political side to talk about Israel, only the spiritual side. The vision you have come up with has revived us.”
‘Intellectual terrorism’ against Israel
“There is an environment of intellectual terrorism against Israel in the African Union,” said Father Louison Emerick Bissila Mbila, a Roman Catholic priest and chaplain to the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, bemoaning the anti-Israel leadership of Algeria and Djibouti.
“At the same time, people individually in Africa want to come to Israel and pray for Israel. The moment they discover Israel, it will change their minds,” said Bissila Mbila, who is a citizen of the Republic of Congo and the Republic of the Seychelles.
Last year, Israel’s African allies thwarted an attempt by African countries, led by South Africa and Algeria, to strip Israel of its observer status at the 55-member African Union, a title held by other countries such as China, Greece, Kuwait, Mexico, “Palestine,” the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.
“For quite a long time, Africa has been preoccupied with struggling to break away from the grip of colonialism,” said Pastor Robert Kayanja, who serves as an adviser to the president of Uganda. “Now the people of Africa are standing up to support Israel in a way we have never seen before.”
“We know Israel stands falsely accused when trying to defend itself against terrorism,” he said. “And all we hear on the news is ‘Gaza, Gaza, Gaza’ and they never talk about the killings of Christians in Africa.”
600 million Christians and 54 UN votes
With 600 million Christians and 54 UN votes, including 30 Christian-majority countries, Israel has homed in on the strategic value of religious diplomacy on the continent at a time of international opprobrium over the fallout from the war in Gaza, and continued persecution of Christian in Africa.
“This is the first time that [representatives] of the Church of Africa are starting to meet with the State of Israel and their counterparts in faith to reaffirm our common shared heritage and chart a pathway forward in advancing the interests of our communities,” Bishop Dennis Nthumbi, Africa director of the Washington, DC-based Israel Allies Foundation told JNS. “This is a game-changer.”
Bishop Monday Muyombo of the Democratic Republic of Congo, who is fighting against the boycott of Israel in the United Methodist Church, said it is only a matter of time for change to set in on the continent.
“I am praying that more people will get a chance to come to Israel like us and see for themselves, because what is being portrayed in the media is not accurate,” he said. “As we say, lies come off the elevator whereas the truth comes off the escalator.”
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