Misunderstanding Christian Anti-Zionism

According to Kurtzer, the problem is theological. Many Christian Zionists are motivated to help Israel by their belief in “the imagined Jew of the evangelical prosperity gospel” (here he is referring to the Torah passage that states G-d will bless those who bless the Jews). He is uncomfortable with Christian Zionist beliefs that “displace actual Jews with a theological function that Jews are meant to serve.”

But that’s the point—it’s just their belief. It doesn’t have any negative practical consequences. If evangelicals want to believe that helping Jews is the prelude to a mass Jewish conversion at the end of days—as many evangelicals believe—why should that bother us? It’s their belief, not ours. Their private thoughts don’t affect us.

By contrast, the beliefs of Christian anti-Zionists affect us very much because Christian anti-Zionists put them into practice in very specific, harmful ways. Liberal churches promote the BDS movement against Israel; lobby against U.S. aid to Israel; and incite hatred by accusing Israel of apartheid, oppression and war crimes, as Kurtzer himself shows in his account of the recent Episcopal gathering.

Kurtzer’s “both-sides-are-bad” argument may seem like even-handedness, but it ultimately undermines Israel’s cause. It softens justified criticism of Israel’s enemies while unjustifiably chastising tens of millions of pro-Israel Christians. Consider that the organization Christians United for Israel (CUFI) alone has more than 10 million members, according to its website.

Kurtzer makes the same mistake later in his article, in his characterization of the Arab-Israeli conflict. He calls the region “Israel-Palestine.” He says “Israelis and Palestinians will continue to seek permanence and peace in their shared promised land.” He refers to what he calls “the Palestinians’ struggle for justice and reconciliation with their Jewish neighbors.”

But it’s not “Israel-Palestine.” Throughout history, there has never been a state of “Palestine.” The concept is nothing more than a device to injure and ultimately destroy Israel.