Posted on 05/16/2007 5:49:03 PM PDT by Salem
As the American Jewish community debates the pros and cons of a growing relationship between Jews and Christian supporters of Israel, the courtship is quietly growing more intimate.
On college campuses across the United States, Christian students are asking to join efforts to "make the case for Israel" alongside their Jewish counterparts, and this week their requests will begin to materialize.
A group of Christian Zionist students at a California university, will be trained this week in how to defend Israel in the face of campus attacks.
The training at California State University, Bakersfield is the first step toward establishing a college chapter of Christians United for Israel, a year-old organization based in San Antonio, Texas started by Evangelical Pastor John Hagee to rally Christians around support for Israel. The chapter will be the first of its kind. The hope is to establish similar "CUFI on Campus" chapters on college campuses across the United States.
Over the last few years, Hagee, author of several books about biblical prophecy and an opponent of territorial concessions to the Palestinians on biblical grounds, has a the face of the Christian Zionist movement, building close ties with several key Jewish organizations such as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
Still trying to build itself nationally, Christians United for Israel leaders did not intend to work with colleges so soon. But an influx of calls from students at several campuses wanting to establish chapters to combat anti-Israel sentiment convinced them to speed up the process.
"The last thing we want to do is turn away students," said CUFI executive director David Brog. "We want to build the next generation."
Christians United for Israel will be partnering with organizations such as the David Project, a Boston-based pro-Israel group that works extensively with students at colleges and beyond, to help with their campus outreach.
This week Andrew Summey, Christian Outreach Manager for the David Project, is coming prepared to tackle even the most radical rhetoric used against Israel. The curriculum was developed by the David Project, producers of Columbia Unbecoming, a controversial movie about Jewish students on the Columbia University campus.
He will teach the group how to respond to accusations about Israel as "colonizer" or Israel as an "apartheid state" that have become commonplace at US colleges.
Defending Israel comes naturally to Summey, who remembers his mom "taking time from out of breakfast to pray for Israel" in 1982, during the First Lebanon War.
"I grew up a Christian Zionist, thinking Israel has the right to exist as a Jewish state and that Jews have the right to decide how to run it," said Summey.
Judging by March's AIPAC conference in Washington, where Hagee was met with enthusiastic applause, many Jews are supportive of a growing alliance with Christian Zionists. Hagee drew standing ovations as he told the 6,000 delegates, "It is 1938, Iran is Germany and Ahmadiejad is the new Hitler."
But at the same time, a growing number of critical voices are coming to the forefront. An article in New York's The Jewish Week prior to the AIPAC conference included several Jewish voices skeptical of growing ties between pro-Israel forces and the Christian Zionist movement.
But many Israeli leaders continue to view Evangelicals as important partners. "The State of Israel finds the Christian community an important base of support, and we cooperate with them on many projects," said David Saranga, Israel's consul for media and public affairs in New York.
The consulate has an ongoing partnership with Evangelical organizations such as Eagles' Wings to send Christian students to Israel. "Friends can be friends and have different opinions. When it comes to support for Israel, we have a lot of things in common," said Saranga.
The course, "Understanding the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict" will be offered twice over the coming week to students on the Bakersfield campus.
Though unwilling to reveal specifics about the course, part of the hour-long program includes a video clip of Palestinian children being taught to fight Israel. But Summey said the David Project does not mean to suggest that the video is reflective of all Palestinians. "The class does not take a political stance on the conflict," said Summey.
The David Project curriculum, which teaches history and politics, will be new territory for many Christian Zionist students who are used to justifying Israel's existence via the bible.
"We will teach them how to respond so that they can say more than just God gave Israel the land," said Charles Jacobs, director of the David Project. "We will teach them how to understand the conflict, not as a border war, but as a regional conflict between Arabs and Jews, as the centerpiece of a global war."
If you'd like to be on or off this
Christian Supporters of Israel ping list,
please FR mail me ~
There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had
spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass. (Joshua 21:45)
Letter To The President In Support Of Israel ~
'Final Solution,' Phase 2 ~
Warnings ~
The Nature Of Bruce ~
"The West has given more significance to the myth of the genocide of the Jews, even more significant than God, religion, and the prophets...."—Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
The Holocaust Chronicle ~
" ... It's time we recognized the nature of the conflict. It's total war and we are all involved. Nobody on our side is exempted because of age, gender, or handicap. The Islamofacists have stolen childhood from the world."—FReeper Retief
"Palestine is the wrong name for their State. It should be called Anarchy."—FReeper sgtbono2002
"Then let's wait and see what the Arabs do after they take Gaza. There's nothing like Arab reality to break up a Jewish fantasy."—FReeper Noachian
A student told his professor he was going to "Palestine" to "fight for freedom, peace and justice,"—Orwellian leftist code words that mean "murder Jews."
Warning! This is a high-volume ping list.
High Volume. Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel. or WOT [War on Terror]
----------------------------
Great step by the folks at Bakersfield. Forward thinking, intelligent and profoundly important.
I can't say I was a fan of Falwell, but it had more to do with his smirky demeanor than what he actually said. The Falwell I recall was unfailingly pro-Israel in deed and word. He didn't avoid the glaring fact that Jews find so distasteful about Christians--that we acknowledge that our beliefs (and our doom) intertwine and that Jesus is a Jew --- such an uncomfortable thing to be talking about, and Falwell was forever talking about it.
Educate Christians to be pro-Israel? This article is patronizing in the extreme. Be pro-Israel, and have semi-conservative Jews call you "hateful" after you're dead.
Who needs to be educated here? Who needs to turn their faces to Jersusalem? --Not Christians.
Regardless, reading some of the comments at the JPost site, they have the Israel hating world pitching fits. 
Why don't you ask John Hagee, it's his patronizing project.
Conservative Christian Support for Israel is a given we will always be there... There is a moral obligation for conservative Jews to reciprocate. It is time we see open Conservative Israeli support for Christian Conservatives in the USA and West in general and condemnation of JINOs who seek the destruction of both the US, Israel and our Allies..
W
A shame Hagee can't count on any pull from American Jewry, particularly those in media. Aside from Rabbi Lapin, I don't know what help he'll get. From Dershowitz, maybe, if he can spare some time from the Hillary fundraisers?
What is truly needed is for Jews themselves (more than 12%) to be pro-Israel. And Hagee can't influence there.
One of the most beloved figures in the history of the Zionist Movement is Orde Charles Wingate, a figure so beloved that he bears the unique Hebrew nickname HaYedid ("the beloved friend"). To this day he is celebrated by Israelis and Zionists. Guess what? Wingate was a chr*stian Zionist from the dispensationalist Plymouth Brethren tradition! Yet America's liberal Jewish "leadership" want to write off Wingate's American contemporaries because they want to redefine Judaism in such a way that the ancient Biblical Israelites would qualify as fascist pigs!
I say America's pro-Israel Jewish liberals (there still are a few, right?) should cut Wingate out of their book of heroes or shut their mouths about American Biblical Fundamentalists.
"We will teach them how to respond so that they can say more than just God gave Israel the land," said Charles Jacobs, director of the David Project.
I'm sorry to read this. Other than G-d is no other reason to support Israel. Or be opposed to murder. Or to hold any other position. Or to get up in the morning.
No chance in blazes. Dersh is one of the last of the old time pro-Israel liberal "true believers," to whom support of Israel is "the true radical position." Besides, according to him, people like Hagee are "absolute evil," remember?
I never understood the embrace of Dershowitz by FReepers over a single issue. One might as well embrace Pat Buchanan because he is right on some issues.
No conservatism without Israel. No Israel without G-d!
Poll: 96% Of Israeli Jews Won’t Give Up Western Wall For Peace
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1832747/posts
American Jews stand by Israel
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1678564/posts
What the British Jews think of Israel’s war
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1678566/posts
But in contrast, our Government recently stated that Israel was defeated in the recent Lebanon conflict, refused to publicly recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s Capitol (instead of moving the Embassy there as promised in our Platform), sends US diplomats who hate Israel because of their religion, and opposed Israel during the Lebanon conflict (by repeatedly calling for “restraint” and withholding contracted weapons shipments). And most of our most well known churches (including those attended by our leaders and many of our own wealthier Party members) are calling for boycotts against Israel. ...not to mention the “Road Map” for Islamists into Israel, support of the terrorists in Israel, and dirty deals with terrorist regimes to keep the oil flowing from Islamo-fascist regimes. We’re also allowing Iran to build nukes and seducing Iran to our own shores by showing fear of warring against it and its building coalition, and assuming that Iran will only attack Israel.
Dennis Miller and Bill O’Reilly are both Catholic.
“Educate Christians to be pro-Israel?”
I think the article is talking about more political issues and recent historical issues -— e.g., teaching them that there is no such thing as a palestinian -— they’re just arabs, and Israel did not “force them” from their lands, they left as part of a plan to allow massive attacks on the Jewish populations -— the arabs who stayed are free and vote, etc.
Basically, there are a lot of “facts” assumed on campus debates that are not true at all.
This is the education spoken of.
Look around at F.R.
I see lots of Jewish Freepers doing just what you requested.
ping
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.