I recently read a compelling article: When Your Heroes Attack Jews: Why Won’t My Christian Allies Speak up? written by a good friend of mine, Elie Mischel. It has been in my heart to write this article for some time, but I had been putting it off. However, since reading that poignant article, I felt strongly led to write this now, even with a sense of urgency. This is an “answer” to the heart-piercing question, “Why won’t my Christian Allies Speak up?” This is one of your Christian allies speaking up, Elie.
After the Oct 7th war broke out in 2023, we all witnessed an alarming and exponential spike in Jew hatred and anti-semitism. And not just from the “usual suspects”, such as Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, as well as the Woke liberal left on college campuses. The Jew hatred was also coming across from some of my “go-to” conservative news sources, including Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, and Mike Adams. I had to make some immediate shifts in my actions and behavior. I unsubscribed from several conservative news sources because of their anti-Israel biased coverage of news from Israel. I was tired of the media spin, the lies, and the propaganda that was so prevalent.
I started paying much closer attention to news sources that are based in Israel:
JNS TV on YouTube, The Israel Guys, and Israel365 news.
A month after the Oct 7 war broke out, I launched my own Israel news magazine-style channel, “Israel Connect”. I wanted to create a media platform featuring Israeli guests who have boots on the ground in Israel and who have firsthand knowledge about what Israel was going through as a nation. You can watch a short video on “Why Israel Connect?” by CLICKING HERE.
But then the toxic soup of Jew hatred started spilling over into my spiritual life at church. To my great chagrin, I was finding Jew hatred from within the Hebrew roots community that I had been a part of for 15 years. What had drawn me into the community was the love for the Sabbath and the biblical feasts. Yet Jew hatred was rearing up its ugly head in the movement. It wasn’t just an isolated event or person: I was finding it to be a widespread pattern woven into the fabric of the community. I would hear such lies, including:
* The Jews in Israel are not real Jews; they are fake Jews.
*The land of Israel does not belong to the fake Jews; it is destined to belong to us. After all, we are “grafted in” to the Olive tree, right? (Romans 11).
Here is the issue: though we Gentiles are “grafted in”, we are still Gentiles. We do not BECOME Israel. We are NOT Israel. We do not REPLACE Israel. We, (the wild branches) are like “naturalized citizens”, while the Jews, (the natural branches) are the “native-born” citizens of Israel. (see Romans 11:24)
What is the root that supports the antisemitic leaves of this tree? It is a poisonous root: Replacement Theology. When the identities of “Israel” and “the Church” are blended or merged as one, it always leads to Jew-hatred. Israel and the Gentile church are two separate entities with different origins, missions, and destinies. The Replacement Theology mindset denies Israel its vital place in God’s program, makes God out to be a liar, and lays the foundation for Jew-hatred.
And so, as enticing as it was to be in the Hebrew Roots community, with keeping Sabbath, and celebrating the Biblical feasts, this “dark side” of the Hebrew Roots world was revealed, especially after the Oct 7 atrocities. A good friend of mine, Eliyahu Berkowitz, exposed this “dirty little secret” in his article, “The Worst Jew Hater I Met.”
The reading of that article brought me to an even deeper level of repentance. Not that I ever aligned with the antisemitic views exposed in that article. But I had been associated with others in my community who did have those beliefs.
And so, I must confess to my Jewish friends: I repent in ashes and dust for my former association with the Hebrew Roots movement. I am ashamed of those in the Hebrew Roots community who have expressed such hateful attitudes towards the Jewish people. I ask your forgiveness…and pray that you can forgive me. I want to express only love, support, and service to the Jewish people. You are the apple of God’s eye. I love who He loves. He loves you so very, very much! And so do I!
Sometimes when you repent, it can feel like you just came out of the spin cycle of the dryer. The room can feel like it is literally spinning. This 180-degree change in my thinking led to a change in behavior and a big course correction. I could not be associated with these attitudes and beliefs! I had been swimming in a toxic swimming pool, and it was time to GET OUT!
So, not long after October 7, I stepped back and stepped away from the Hebrew Roots community. I began searching for a new faith community to align with. To my great delight, I found Calvary Chapel. I began listening to Jack Hibbs on YouTube, who is one of the great teachers in this denomination. He consistently expresses unwavering support for Israel. I found Pastor Carl Palinkas of Church on the Rock, who unequivocally states:
“Christians who know their Bibles will love and support Israel.”
And so, I set a new course and began fellowshipping on Sunday with my new Calvary Chapel family. It is now a joy and a delight to fellowship with other “Christian Zionists” who love and support the land and people of Israel. Those are my kind of people!
I share my journey with you, dear readers, in hopes that in sharing some of my errors and failures that you may learn from them… and avoid them.
May we ALL STAND STRONG in SUPPORT of the land and people of Israel, for truly this is the heart of God as revealed in His Holy Word. May we NOT BE SILENT, but may we speak out whenever and wherever we see Jew hatred raising its ugly head!
Am Yisrael chai!
