“Am Yisrael Chai!” The nation of Israel lives! With these words, Rabbi Avi Goldstein began speaking at Sunday’s pro-Israel rally in Columbus. Rabbi Goldstein stated that no apologies need ever be made, neither by the Jewish people nor by the state of Israel, for being alive and strong. This due to the fact that the Jewish cause is just, and its beliefs moral. The community of Columbus, Rabbi Goldstein went on to express, stands proudly in solidarity with Israel and with the Israel Defense Forces, which he reminded attendees is regarded as the most moral army in the world.
At that point, Rabbi Goldstein addressed the many church members in attendance. “To our Christian friends,” he announced, “thank you for coming out on short notice. For your support of Israel and your love of Israel. For your moral courage and leadership in arranging this rally on behalf of the Jewish people, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.” The strong bond between the Jewish and Christian attendees of the rally was palpable to all in attendance.
Indeed, this is not the first such partnership seen on behalf of the Christian and Jewish communities of Columbus. Last summer, CharismaLife Ministries dedicated a Holocaust wall of remembrance at their Gesher Center. The center, a part of the ministry, was established with the goal of supporting Israel and the Jewish people. Pastor David Swaggerty of CharismaLife Ministries shared, “With short notice, it was obvious from the overwhelming turnout the great desire for Jews and Christians to have an outlet to stand in solidarity with Israel.”
Rabbi Goldstein then shared a personal story about a relative in Israel who was forced to postpone her wedding due to the onslaught of Hamas rocket fire that targeted much of Israel in recent weeks. “In other words,” declared Rabbi Goldstein, “Hamas is trying to kill brides and grooms on their wedding day.”
Pastor David Forbes enthusiastically declared to the crowd that God is faithful. God has fought for Israel and He will continue to do so. Pastor Forbes went on to add that not only will God stand with Israel through every challenge it faces, the church will stand with Israel as well. Pastor Forbes’s words were punctuated by lively cries of “Amen!” from attendees.
Rabbi Goldstein shared his appreciation of the church community’s support, stating, “With so much anti-Israel slander and anti-Semitism going on right now, it was very uplifting and heartening to experience so much love from our Christian friends.
Both Jewish and Christian residents of Columbus have recently expressed their concern over the terrorist rocket attacks on Israel’s citizens by Hamas, as well as their disgust over the wave of anti-Semitism seen around the world. Rallies of support such as the one in Columbus on Sunday reaffirm unequivocally that anti-Semitism, and anti-Israel sentiments, have no place in the faith communities of Columbus.
