“We fight darkness with light,” says Yael Eckstein, President and CEO of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews.
The Fellowship has shined that light for more than forty years in the form of lifesaving humanitarian aid and security for millions of people in Israel and aliyah flights that have brought hundreds of thousands of new Israelis home to the Holy Land. And all of this has been done in partnership with the Christian community, which stands in solidarity with Israel and the Jewish people.
And this light has been shined in the past year. Since the October 7 attacks, The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews has already distributed $100 million in emergency aid, helping install over 200 bomb shelters on Israel’s northern border, delivering fortified vehicles for frontline workers and first responders, donating thousands of helmets and flak jackets for security teams, firefighters, and soldiers; and distributing over a million meals to Israel’s hungry.
This desire to not only save lives but to partner with Israel in its ongoing fight against antisemitism is illustrated by the numbers. In June 2024, The Fellowship’s monthly donations and acquisition of new donors reached record levels. “There are millions of Christians who want to be engaged, who want to be spoken to, who want to be educated,” Eckstein explains. “Even though we are not asking them for any call to action, we’re not asking them for donations, when they’re engaged, and they understand what this war is all about and what the repercussions are if we don’t speak up, they themselves are motivated to proactively donate for Israel.”
With Israel engaged in an existential war and with antisemitism spreading around the world, these Christian friends are needed more than ever. Before June, Eckstein says that Israel’s supporters were not receiving enough information about what was happening in Israel and, as a result, was in danger of losing these dear friends. The Fellowship invested over $10 million in a program to combat antisemitism, partnering with Christian public figures and influencers and educating and equipping these partners with the tools they need to reach and educate larger Christian audiences looking for information and guidance.
“It’s not the traditional antisemitism program that other foundations and organizations have,” explains Eckstein. “We are not trying to change anyone’s mind. We are not going after the people who are burning Israeli flags and American flags and trying to convince them that they should support Israel. We are engaging our Christian friends in order to reclaim that friendship, to make sure that we will continue to have between 50 and 100 million Evangelical Christians standing with Israel and the Jewish people, no matter what happens. For more than 40 years, our donors and the Christian world have relied on us and trusted us to provide them with real-time updates on what’s happening in Israel and the topics they care most about while also pointing out the darkness around the world and how they can take tangible action against those things.
“We’ve felt that not only is it our mission to raise funds to protect Israel and the Jewish people from the rocket attacks and the terror that surrounds us, but also to engage the Christian community and be a legitimate source of information that provides both practical and spiritual tools in order for them to continue to stand with Israel and know what Israel’s facing.”
This new program engages Christians in America, updating them on what is happening on the ground in Israel and providing them with tools to confront antisemitism and support Israel in their own communities. These Christian friends are educated about and immersed in life in Israel through a weekly update on events in Israel, positive stories about daily goings-on in the country, and reports of the on-the-ground impact they are making by supporting The Fellowship.
By representing Christians in America and around the world, The Fellowship is helping their millions of voices be heard. “We are essentially giving them tools so they don’t have to be the silenced majority,” Eckstein says. “They can be making a voice for themselves.”
One tool that is promoting Israel among Christian communities is The Fellowship’s Flags of Fellowship program. Many churches turned to the IFCJ, Eckstein says, requesting information on how to commemorate the events of October 7. The Fellowship prepared a kit for churches with everything needed to mark a day of remembrance and solidarity, including 1,200 Israeli flags to plant on church grounds, a video for congregation members, educational text for a sermon for those who are unfamiliar with Israel, and a series of talking points on Israel. The Fellowship was expecting fifty churches to sign up for the initiative. More than 350 churches throughout the United States, in all 50 states, signed up for the program.
The Jerusalem Post is now joining The Fellowship in embracing Israel’s Christian friends, acknowledging the contributions of ten Christian Zionists who have supported Israel in its hour of need, honoring their hard work during this most challenging time. Spotlighting these influential individuals will inspire others to support Israel.
“I think that these top ten Christians who have stood with Israel, especially in the face of antisemitism, are being very bold, very brave, oftentimes risking their own reputation, and following, and sponsorship, going against the tide to stand with truth and justice and what’s right and stand with Israel,” says Eckstein. “The Fellowship is so honored to partner with Christians like that to make the message heard, even farther, even wider, and when you have leaders like that, who are willing to be brave and bold and standing for what’s right, even going against the trends, the future looks a lot brighter than how the news makes it look.
“What’s become clear since October 7 is that most of the world hasn’t learned from history. We see that Christian Zionists, of which there are around 700 million evangelical Christians around the world, continue to stand and voice their support for Israel, continue to go against the tide in order to recognize Israel and the Jewish people’s right to exist, and not to continue the mistakes of the past, but instead to prove this friendship. No matter what happens, no matter what the world says, no matter how trendy it is to go against the Jewish people, they will stand shoulder to shoulder with their brothers and sisters, with the Jewish people and Israel, no matter what.”
This article was written in cooperation with the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews.