For a long time, as I spoke in churches around the country, I wondered what a well-rounded Israel advocacy seminar might look like. As an individual, I could do some things, but my expertise only goes so far.
Enter some new friends. The America-Israel Friendship League was formed in 1971, with the purpose of strengthening relationships between Israelis and Americans. In the intervening years, the AIFL’s delegations to Israel (which include students, state attorneys general, and bloggers) have become a hallmark of the organization, and have influenced like-minded trips from other pro Israel groups.
In short, the AIFL staff and leadership blend a secular seminar model with the proper emotional component. The result is a nearly half-century of deluxe advocacy.
Last year, I joined forces with the AIFL for a very specific goal: engaging churches to foster not just wider support for Israel, but deeper support. The capper for me was the inclusion of two friends, Dr. Uri Bar-Ner, and Dr. Alex Grobman. Uri is the former Israeli ambassador to Turkey, while Alex is a premier Holocaust scholar and great friend to evangelicals. His books and lectures are solid-gold, and I’ve personally benefitted from his teaching.
We’ve all been to Israel many times (Uri lives there) and our knowledge and network of friends is unique and especially valuable for American church audiences, many of whom now are being confused by advocates for the Palestinians.
We launched last year (in California) our “Why Israel?” seminar format, and the result was so successful, we decided to get more ambitious for 2016. Our topics range from the biblical truths about Israel and the Jewish people, to diplomacy and global terrorism.
Our 2016 itinerary is already set (we might have a couple slots to squeeze in, if your church is interested), and I’m looking at 2017.
Because some groups present only a secular advocacy model, and others present “only” a biblical component, audiences sometimes are left without a well-rounded picture. I humbly think your congregation would benefit greatly from hosting our team.
(An added value for a host church: there’s no cost to you! We pay our own way. We also do not penalize congregations from being small; we are happy to go anywhere.)
Our seminar formats are varied and flexible. If your church prefers a one, two, or three-day seminar, we can do that. We are also happy to come in for an information-packed evening.
If you are a pastor or church leader who wants to explore having our Why Israel? team come to you, just drop me a note. I’ll be happy to provide you with more detail.
In only the past four years, I’ve noticed a terrible uptick of pro Palestinian propaganda coming into American churches. Why Israel? is a specific corrective to that propaganda, and we stand ready to serve you.
Reprinted with author’s permission from Rapture Ready
