![]() In general, statehood is not seen as an end in itself. As some Anabaptists have experienced, states which favor one faith or ethnicity frequently discriminate against minority groups. 16 What is an Anabaptist perspective on a Jewish state?Īnabaptists have long upheld the separation of religion and state. For instance, a number of evangelical theologians “… see a complex relationship between the Old Testament and New Testament covenants” when it comes to Israel, Palestine and theological implications. Some other Christians share these concerns. Such support usually impacts their own local work and presence negatively ( see Palestinian Christians). Most Palestinian and other Middle Eastern Christians find this support troubling. They interpret God’s land promise to include support for the state. Christian Zionists believe that the 1948 creation of the state of Israel fulfills Old Testament prophecies and is essential for Jesus’ second coming. However, the home was established on land inhabited by Palestinians for centuries. What is Christian Zionism?Īs noted in the section on recent history, Zionism emerged in the 1890s in Europe as a mostly secular Jewish movement working for a safe homeland and to fulfill the dream of restoring Jews to the land of their birth as a people. Whether one views this question from a modern human rights perspective or through the prism of biblical covenant, all people are to be regarded as created in the image of God and as citizens, with security on the land and the other rights that implies. Others see today’s state as part of an enduring promise of Jewish sovereignty in the land. For some, it is clear therefore that modern Israel and biblical Israel are two distinct realities – the state a contemporary secular, political entity, and the land a geographical place promised, given and repossessed by God in the Torah and prophets. The state of Israel has a beginning point, May 1948. Is biblical Israel the same as the modern state of Israel? ![]() Whether reading Genesis 12:3 as intended solely for the Jewish people or for all of Abram’s off spring (Jewish, Christian and Muslim), blessing Abram’s descendants includes a call to love mercy and do justice, 15 while holding ourselves accountable to that same standard in our own contexts. Genesis 12:3 notes God’s purpose in giving the land to Abram’s descendants so that through them “all the families of the earth” would be blessed. 13 What about the claim in Genesis 12:3 that God will bless those who bless Abram’s descendants and curse those who curse them?įor biblical prophets, 14 acknowledgment of God’s promise to Abram includes a call to practice jus - tice. 12 As in all matters regarding a theology of land and chosen - ness, followers of Jesus are called to love all people, the Jewish neighbor as well as the Palestinian neighbor. 11 Jesus, the Jewish teacher, says that on love of God and neighbor hang all the law, or Torah, and prophets. 10Ĭhristians embrace Jesus’ words to love God, neighbor and enemy, and to pray for those who persecute us. ![]() 9 In Ezekiel, God says that sojourn - ers are to be treated as citizens in land inheritance. 7 God’s definition of “citizen” is expansive, not exclusive, embracing the alien or sojourner 8 and naming consequences for those who harm sojourners. 6 Yet Israel is to be a light to the nations, so that God’s salvation will reach “to the end of the earth.” In other words, “chosenness” does not negate God’s love and blessing for all people. 5 Other texts show destruction, not blessing, for non-Israelites. In the Bible, we see God depicted as forming a covenant with Abram and Isaac, while also blessing Ishmael. Aren't the people of Israel God's chosen people? Meanwhile, both Palestinians and Jewish people have deep connections to the historic land of Palestine. 4 Land is a gift linked to covenant responsibility in relation to God and others. Scripture also asserts that the earth belongs to God. 3 Texts such as Leviticus 25:18 and 26:31-34, Amos 5:6-9 and 6:1-7 and Jeremiah 7:1-7 concur with this idea of conditionality. The Book of Deuteronomy, for example, details calamities which will harm the land or separate people from the land, if they break the covenant with God. 2 Other passages place conditions on the gift. Some biblical texts suggest that God gives the land with no conditions or expectations. Scripture asserts that God promises land to the people of Israel. MCC photo Did God give the land to Israel? The Aedicule-a chapel that tradition says contains both Jesus’ tomb and the stone that sealed it-rests under a dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
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