The fervor of pro-Israel American zealots came into sharp focus during a recent Holy Land visit by more than 1,000 evangelical pastors and with U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee proclaiming himself a representative of the kingdom of God.
The Dec. 3-7 Friends of Zion Ambassadors Summit was a thorough indoctrination into Christian Zionism that concluded with participants receiving certificates confirming their loyalty to Israel and their responsibility for promoting the Jewish nation in their local communities, The Christian Post reported.
Huckabee, who spoke at the summit, separately addressed a Jerusalem-based Christian Zionist group dedicated to converting Jews to Christianity in order to hasten the End Times, Religion Dispatches reported.
Rick Ridings, pastor of Messianc Church Succat Hallel, introduced Huckabee Nov. 26 by urging continued proselytizing because “the only perfect government (in Israel) will be established when you (Jesus) come, and you reign from your holy hill.”
Huckabee followed by saying, “We don’t have to know the outcome of the final moment (of redemption), because it’s already been determined,” then proclaiming he serves as both U.S. ambassador to Israel and as “an ambassador for the kingdom.”
Both events illustrated the elevated status Christian Zionists have enjoyed in the Trump era. The movement has received unparalleled access to political power only dreamed of when it was still a fringe wing of fundamentalist Christianity.
Mike Huckabee addresses the 1,000 pastors
Donald Trump rewarded adherents’ loyalty by moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and by withdrawing from Iran nuclear negotiations during his first term. His term-two appointment of staunch Israel supporters like Huckabee and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also have been cheered by U.S. charismatics and evangelicals who believe Israel’s survival is a prerequisite to Christ’s Second Coming.
The Ambassadors Summit was an immersive into Christian Zionist theology and Israeli political support. Participants visited an Israeli military cemetery and the site of the Nova music festival where Hamas militants killed hundreds and took hostages Oct. 7, 2023.
The group met with hostages released by Hamas and honored the memories of soldiers and civilians killed in the conflict. Speakers included Huckabee, researcher George Barna, author and former Southern Baptist pastor O.S. Hawkins and SBC minister and Student Leadership University founder Jay Strack. Several high-ranking Israeli officials also spoke, among them Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, Knesset speaker Amir Ohana and Eyal Zamir, chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces.
The pastors group participated in a Communion service in the Garden of Gethsemane (screencap)
The tour was a way of answering God’s command to minister to hurting people, said Ronny Raines, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Clarksville, Tenn., speaking to The Christian Post. “I visited a Kibbutz near Gaza. I saw the burned houses and walked into residences where innocent people lost their lives. I met one of the survivors from that community. He felt his life was spared that morning in order to tell their stories.”
The time in Israel was simultaneously painful and inspirational, he added. “The people of Israel are fearfully and wonderfully made. We must pray and support them.”
According to The Jerusalem Post, other participants included Southern Baptist Convention President Clint Pressley; former SBC President Jack Graham; Doug Clay, general superintendent of the Assemblies of God; Max Lucado, teaching minister at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio; and Ralph Reed, chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition.
Michael Evans
The summit was organized by Friends of Zion in cooperation with the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to The Christian Post. Friends of Zion is an international ministry founded by Christian Zionist Michael Evans “to guard, defend and protect the Jewish people and to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.”
Evans has been a high-profile supporter of Trump since the beginning. He served as a White House evangelical adviser during the first term and once proclaimed Trump as “a friend of Zion.”
More recently, Evans described Trump as “a moral clarity president” intent on destroying Iran and protecting Israel, according to The Media Line.
“And he’s the greatest president in American history for the State of Israel,” Evans added. “Nothing’s going to change. Listen, he knows the Israelis love him. He knows they love him, and he loves them. And nothing’s going to change with Donald Trump at all. He’s going to stand by Israel.”
Evans described the summit as an opportunity to secure religious and political support for Israel, The Jerusalem Post reported. “The pulpit must speak louder than the propaganda. We are calling on pastors across America to lift their voices against violence and antisemitism, and in biblical support of Israel.”
Christian Zionists’ determination to promote a pro-Israel agenda was equally evident during Huckabee’s talk at Succat Hallel, which Religion Dispatches described as part of the New Apostolic Reformation along with the likes of Trump loyalists Paula White and Sean Feucht.
Ridings made it clear in a 2023 sermon that “Jesus Christ, Yeshua himself, made it a prerequisite that he will not return to earth and restore all things until there are enough Jewish people in Jerusalem who will welcome him back.”
Because God established a covenant with Jews, he added, “it’s so important that we pray for a quick acceleration of the numbers of Jewish believers in this city.”
Huckabee long has claimed to oppose discrimination against Jewish people, Religion Dispatches noted. “But he’s apparently willing to overlook that for 2,000 years, Jews have recognized such proselytizing efforts as an outright attack on Jewish identity and existence. For decades, most Christian Zionists have avoided openly associating with proselytizing efforts, keen to preserve their working relationship with Jewish partners. Today, they appear to be less concerned.”
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