Most visitors leave Israel with souvenirs; Chris Granzow left with a to-do list. In a recent interview on Biblical Money, hosted by Rabbi Rami Goldberg of Israel365, the American entrepreneur explains how a first trip in 2017 led to philanthropy, businesses on the Sea of Galilee, and a campaign to educate Christians about their role in Israel’s story.

Granzow’s first move wasn’t a business deal. It was housing. He and his family partnered with the Jewish Agency for Israel to build two apartment buildings in “Betzer,” a kibbutz on the Sea of Galilee, to host new immigrants to Israel rent-free for about a year. The site offers language classes, job training, food and clothing support, and even a pre-army academy for young adults. He calls it an “investment,” then quickly corrects himself: it was a gift.

That project opened doors. Granzow later became a partner in Francis Eco Sailing, a tour-boat operator on the Sea of Galilee, and launched the Christian Agency for Israel, a nonprofit focused on aliyah absorption, humanitarian aid, and Christian education. Alongside the on-the-water work, he partnered with an Israeli technologist on AT1, a semantic AI platform they say is built for research with verifiable sourcing. According to Granzow, the team is piloting the software with Stanford University’s medical research department and exploring deployments at other universities.

“Generative AI is useful, but research needs proof,” he told Rabbi Goldberg. “We integrate the big models and add a chain-of-custody for data so results can be cited and trusted.”

Why he came — and why he stayed

Granzow grew up between Washington, D.C., and Florida in Christian and Jewish circles. He says the Bible was always part of his life, but Israel turned the text into terrain. The first morning he sailed the Kinneret, fog lifted and the shoreline he’d studied for years came into view. The experience pushed him from interest to action: “Every Christian should be told to come and see the land,” he said. “When you do, something wakes up in you.”

That “wake up” became a plan — show up, partner locally, and build things that serve the land and the people. He’s blunt about the practical side of working here: investing in Israel isn’t for the faint of heart, especially without Hebrew. The solution, he says, is real partnership. “Nothing I do is solo. The Israeli partners are brothers now. That’s how you navigate the legal, business, and community side.”

Aliyah as a Christian responsibility

Much of Granzow’s philanthropy flows from the hundreds of passages in the Bible about the return of the Jewish people to their land. He reads them as a direct call to the nations, including Christians, to help. For him, aliyah isn’t only relocation. It’s ascent. That belief shapes the Christian Agency for Israel’s programming and his frequent challenge to Christian audiences: overcome fear, commit to come, and participate.

He doesn’t soft-pedal the travel hesitations he hears. His reply is equally direct: Israel is far safer than its headlines, and commitment precedes provision. “God won’t give you anything until you ask,” he said. “Make the commitment to come. The rest follows.”

Boats, media, and a front-row seat

The Galilee boats aren’t just a business line. They’re a platform. Granzow wants Christians to see the geography of the Bible in person, not in a museum. He’s also building a media pipeline for events many Christians track closely. Under the Christian Agency for Israel, he launched Temple 3 Media, which he says will document red-heifer developments and on-the-ground efforts tied to preparations for a future temple. His team works with groups active in that space and plans to give viewers “behind-the-scenes” access as events unfold.

Rabbi Goldberg pressed him on theology and timing. Granzow’s answer stayed consistent: educate, invite Christians into partnership with Jewish leaders, and keep the focus on practical steps that honor scripture and support Israel. The point, he said, isn’t online debate. It’s showing up, funding what serves people, and building together.

That posture is why Rabbi Goldberg interviewed him on Biblical Money. Israel365 exists to connect Christians and Jews in support of Israel, and the show highlights leaders whose faith and enterprise translate into action. Granzow checks those boxes: start with aliyah housing, add boats that bring people onto the Kinneret, layer in research tech with Israeli partners, and build media that invites Christians to engage responsibly. It’s faith, finance, Bible, and business — in motion, not theory.

Granzow’s message to viewers was simple: commit first, then act. Book the ticket. Partner on a project that helps new immigrants. Bring a church group to the Galilee. Support an initiative that has measurable impact. And if you’re in research or investing, kick the tires on tools that make scholarship more transparent.

He doesn’t pretend any of this is easy. He does insist it’s worth it.