This webinar addresses how the US administration is embracing Christian Zionism and “end time” theology to justify unconditional support for Israel and unprovoked war against Iran.
View my presentation on YouTube.
You can download an outline of my presentation here
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The continuation of war crimes committed by Israel in Gaza and the West Bank, now spreading to Lebanon, Pete Hegseth’s transformation of Pentagon into a Holy War Department, and the White House becoming a war cheering prayer house – all of those are necessitating a thorough conversation on the issues of Christian Zionism, dispensationalism, Christian nationalism, antisemitism and bad theologies that inspire the escalation of growing chaos and confusion in the US and the Middle East.
For that purpose we have updated several recent interviews with Rev Dr Stephen Sizer and created four 30-minute features. In the part one we are setting a stage for better understanding of Christian Zionism today by asking questions such as: How did we get here? Is the modern-day State of Israel a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy?
Rev Stephen Sizer said: “Ironically, it was Christians who sponsored and facilitated Zionism. Christian Zionism is simply Christian support for Zionism, but it preceded Jewish Zionism by at least 50 years. And today, nine out of 10 Zionists in the world are Christians. So Zionism is predominantly a Christian heresy. It’s a bit like saying, I’m a Christian racist. You can be a Christian or a racist, but you can’t be both. You can be a Christian or a Zionist, but you can’t be a Christian Zionist because Zionism is synonymous with supremacism, racism, apartheid. And that’s only been achieved through the use of military force, by ethnic cleansing, by expelling people off their land, demolishing their homes, forcing them to live as a subjugated people in an apartheid state. That’s what Israel is today. So, it’s anathema from my perspective that Christians would even dream of supporting such a monstrous creation.”
Further information on the historical roots and theological basis and political agenda of Christian Zionism
This webinar will address how the US administration is embracing Christian Zionism and “end time” theology to justify unconditional support for Israel and unprovoked war against Iran.
Some Americans have referred to what it is doing in Iran as the US’s “Holy War”. Mike Huckebee, the US’s Ambassador to Israel, remarked in February that it would be fine if Israel took control of land that would include a huge swathe of the Middle East.
Such positions come from an interpretation of Bible verses identified as Christian Zionism. This theological and political belief system says that the modern State of Israel’s existence is a fulfilment of biblical prophecy and a necessary sign to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. It combines strong support for Israel, particularly regarding control over Jerusalem and the West Bank, with an end-times world view.
During this hour-long webinar, Stephen Sizer will provide a summary about Christian Zionist beliefs. He will be followed by Michael Spath who will unpack how Christian Zionist theology as influenced US foreign policy and how US churches are responding to it.
This month we’re continuing the conversation about Christian Zionism with Rev. Dr Stephen Sizer, the first Director of ISCZ. We’ll uncover more about the history of Christian Zionism and learn about why engaging in the work to combat this theology is so necessary.
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The Institute for the Study of Christian Zionism publishes the Journal for the Study of Christian Zionism.
The first edition includes an article of mine on the history of Christian Zionism and the Church of England.
You may download the journal here.
It was my great privilege to be the founding director of the Institute.
Across the U.S., UK, and Europe, governments are cracking down on those who speak up for Palestinian rights. Join us for a timely conversation with Rev. Dr. Stephen Sizer — Anglican priest, author of Christian Zionism: Roadmap to Armageddon, and former director of Peacemaker Trust — as we explore the state of the Palestinian liberation movement, the role of Christian Zionists in enabling apartheid and genocide, and what this escalating repression means for all of us.
Co-sponsored by Palestine Justice Partners and Apartheid-Free Working Group of Binkley Baptist Church
Resources refuting Christian Zionism
This article was originally published in May 2024. Between October 2023 and February 2024, the Church of England Archbishops and Bishops issued five statements on the genocide in Gaza (carefully avoiding using the term). Since February 2024, they have been completely silent despite mounting and indisputable evidence of genocide and war crimes, reported by the United Nations, to the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice, by human rights organisations such as Amnesty International and indeed even by Christian leaders in Palestine. It has indeed been a year of shameful silent complicity, not just by the Church of England but virtually every Western mainstream denomination.
“Gaza today has become the moral compass of the world”, insisted the Reverend Dr. Munther Isaac in his 2023 Christmas sermon, entitled, “Christ in the Rubble.” After his sermon went viral, his words were subsequently quoted by UN Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed.
Lamentably, many Christian leaders in the USA and Europe have stood by, silent and complicit, unwilling to criticise Israel for what is increasingly recognised as a genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people.
This article will analyse the Church of England official statements about Gaza since 7th October 2023, together with criticisms, and provide an assessment of the Church’s moral integrity in its stance on Gaza.
Download the complete article (and also in booklet form for printing) – or continue to read the summary conclusions:
Continue reading
Few people in the world are unaffected by the brutal war in the Middle East. The slaughter of hundreds of thousands of civilians in Gaza and Lebanon now threatens to expand into a world war against Iran and her allies. Israel is regarded by many Christians as the innocent victim, and many of those same Christians support the massive supply of US and Western bombs and munitions that kill and mutilate. How can Christians support war and killing in this way? Why do many Christians believe that Israel cannot be criticised or stopped?
UK Column first interviewed Reverend Dr Stephen Sizer in May 2023. That interview, The Price of Honest Discussion about Israel and Palestine, can be found here.
From his background and experiences as an author challenging Christian Zionism, Stephen Sizer describes the Church of England and the wider campaign against him as one based on three successive tactics: intimidation, isolation, and incrimination. This strategy is employed to shut down debate regarding what is happening within the State of Israel and the territories it controls. His criticism of Israel has been relentless, but principled. It is based not on antisemitism, but rather on a human-rights-based analysis.
In our second and latest interview with Stephen Sizer, Brian Gerrish looked deeper into Stephen’s research and analysis of Christian Zionism, focusing on his excellent books: the detailed Christian Zionism Road Map to Armageddon? as well as the shorter Zion’s Christian Soldiers? The Bible, Israel and the Church.
Brian Gerrish states to Stephen upfront that he had been prompted to learn more about Zionism after watching the brutal slaughter in Gaza and experiencing an often cold, callous, and aggressive support for the war by those calling themselves Christians.
Read more on UK Column here