A rambling diatribe written by US Evangelical leader Mike Evans that was widely published and widely quoted harshly attacked the “pathetic” new coalition being formed in Israel by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid and likened outgoing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to King David.
The expletive-laden letter broke from the long-standing tradition among US Evangelicals to offer support for Israel regardless of which government is at its helm, and prompted angry responses from other US Christian leaders.
The wave of coverage came soon after former Israeli ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer caused a fair share of controversy when he said last month that Israel should spend more of its energy reaching out to its strongest base for support, “passionate” American Evangelicals, rather than to Jews, who are “disproportionately among our critics.”
“About 25 percent [of Americans] – some people think more – are Evangelical Christians. Less than two percent of Americans are Jews. So if you look just at numbers, you should be spending a lot more time doing outreach to Evangelical Christians than you would do to Jews,” Dermer stated at a conference.
Last month’s eruption of violence in Israel and Gaza, coupled with the release of The Pew Research Center’s report on Jewish Americans in 2020, brought attention to shifting attitudes of Americans toward Israel, particularly among young Jews. Meanwhile, backing up Dermer’s claim, pro-Israel Evangelical groups continue to stand with Israel in no uncertain terms.
The Pew Study found that broadly, young US Jews are less emotionally attached to Israel than older ones. As of last year, half of Jewish adults under age 30 describe themselves as very or somewhat emotionally attached to Israel (48%), compared with two-thirds of Jews ages 65 and older.
During the barrage of rockets fired from Gaza into Israel in May, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, the political arm of the largest Jewish denomination, remained silent. The anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace also said nothing about Jewish deaths, but took it a step further by expressing solidarity with Arab settlers in Jerusalem.
By contrast, pro-Israel Evangelical groups were quick to declare their loyalty to Israel. Christians United for Israel (CUFI), for example, had no talk of sympathy for both sides, just solidarity with the Jewish state.
AMERICAN JEWISH leaders pushed back at Dermer’s statements, saying that the US-Israel relationship may be contentious, but it is strong.
“Orthodox youth are deeply connected to and supportive of the State of Israel and its citizens,” Rabbi Moshe Hauer, executive vice president of the Orthodox Union, told The Jerusalem Post. “Our schools, communities, and synagogues – the immersive environments in which our children are raised and educated – successfully build a strong visceral bond that connects our youth with the fate of Jews everywhere and particularly with our ancestral and national home in Israel. Their day school education enhances both their Jewish identity and their historic consciousness of the threats that have faced the Jewish people over time.”
Hauer pointed to the Pew Study, which found that 83% of US Orthodox adults say caring about Israel is an important or essential part of what being Jewish means to them.
“Considering that Orthodox Jews are 17% of US Jews ages 18-29 and fully 25% of Jewish children, we can be confident that US Jewry will continue to provide a very strong and supportive voice for Israel,” Hauer continued.
On the other hand, Jewish progressive groups are significantly more critical of Israel.
Matt Nosanchuk, president and co-founder of the progressive advocacy group New York Jewish Agenda (NYJA) and former Jewish outreach director in the Obama White House sees the emergence of a new perspective on Israel with young US Jews reinterpreting what it means to live a Jewish American life.
He said it is “problematic” to characterize young American Jews so broadly.
“Nobody, Ron Dermer included, has a monopoly on what it means to be pro-Israel,” Nosanchuk told the Post. “If the question is whether young Jews will support an Israel that is increasingly less democratic, increasingly less pluralistic, that pursues dangerous policies, yes, you could see continued distancing from engaged American Jews toward Israel,” he continued.
“The question is, what kind of Israel are American Jews interested in supporting? Support from the mainstream, vast majority of American Jews, is aligned with our support of Jewish values and commitment to social justice. To the extent those values are pursued in Israel, then yes, there’s a possibility of greater support in Israel by young American Jews who right now are critical or skeptical.”
Nosanchuk expressed belief that American Jews can engage on a daily basis with US policy, without abandoning Israel.
“We’re part of this nation,” he said. “We are trying to make our cities and states better places. We are pursuing our values here at home but that doesn’t mean we’re divorcing Israel. The vast majority of American Jews don’t check their values at the door when it comes to Israel.”
Evangelical support for Israel is based on Psalm 122:6, “Pray for peace in Jerusalem. May all who love this city prosper,” and Genesis 12:3 where God tells the Jewish people he will “bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt.”
“Support for Evangelicals from Israel should be expanded,” said Cindy Matthews, vice president of Covenant Journey, an organization that runs the Christian version of Taglit-Birthright, funded in part by conservative Jewish and Christian donors. The group brings roughly 250 college students to the Jewish state each year. For a $500 subsidized fee (Birthright is free), participants spend 11 days walking in the footsteps of Jesus Christ and visiting Christian holy sites.
“I’d like to see Israel engage with American Christian universities more, encouraging trips like Covenant Journey. It would be a tremendous asset if the Israeli government would subsidize trips for our students the way they do for Jewish trips. I have no shortage of students who want to go,” she told the Post.
Matthews noted that in the decade she’s worked for Covenant Journey, she has yet to see an Evangelical Christian criticize Israel, a sharp contrast from mainstream American Jewish groups.
But Nosanchuk called the notion that Israel should slight Jews “astonishing.”
“American Jewish support for Israel has been essential to Israel’s existence from the beginning,” he said. “I’m stunned by the suggestion of leaving us behind for Evangelicals.”