“May you be like Ruth and like Esther.” These are the lyrics from the beautiful Sabbath blessing that Tevya and his wife sing to their daughters in the popular movie Fiddler on the Roof. Interestingly, Jewish people today give a slightly different blessing: “May you be like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah,” the four matriarchs of the nation.

Ruth and Esther are two heroines who each have a book in the Bible written about them. Strikingly, Ruth was a gentile girl who joined herself to the people of Israel, while Esther was a Jewish girl who had to deal with an existential threat to her people. As a gentile Christian who lived in Israel for 33 years, I identify with Ruth and I stand with Esther as once again, the Jewish state faces unprecedented threats.

Israel is at war with Hamas, the perpetrators of a genocidal attack on Israeli civilians. On October 7, men, women, children and the elderly were slaughtered in their homes. Young adults attending an outdoor concert were mowed down as they ran for their lives. Women and girls were raped. Some, including babies, were beheaded. Others were burned alive. More still were taken captive, and no one knows their fate. The images showing the brutality of the Hamas slaughter have shocked us all.

I have lived in Israel for half my life. I was there during the Gulf War, two intifadas (violent uprisings), the Second Lebanon War, numerous terror attacks and the 2014 military operation against Hamas, running to shelters alongside the rest of Israel. Now, it is so difficult to watch the nation suffer from the United States.

I want to speak to our Israeli friends. Bridges for Peace continues to stand with you. Our team in Israel has been preparing food packages and delivering them to hundreds of families in need in the Gaza Envelope. Christians around the world are praying for the release of the captives, for the comfort of those who mourn and for Israel to stand strong against the evil the nation faces. But they are not only praying. They are sending funds to help those in need during this dire time. They are telling Israel’s story in churches, through social media and on our website. Many are hanging Israeli flags in their yards.

We will continue to be a Ruth to you. As Ruth said to Naomi, “For wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts you and me” (Ruth 1:16–17). As long as we live, we will stand with the God of Israel, the people of Israel, the nation of Israel and the Jewish people worldwide.

To my Christian friends who may not have thought about standing with Israel. This is the time. Our Jewish brothers and sisters are suffering. They are mourning. And they are fighting against a brutal enemy. Some of them are being held captive. We ask you to pray, give and speak out for Israel. To those who are already doing so, we thank you and ask the Lord to give you strength to continue standing with Israel. I strongly believe that when we stand with Israel, we are standing with the God of Israel. And when we turn our backs on our Jewish brothers, we are also turning away from the heart of God.

By Rebecca J. Brimmer International President, Bridges for Peace