Christian/Muslim Jerusalem Conference Slams Christian Zionists

Challenging Christian Zionism:Theology, Politics, and the Palestine-Israel Conflict

Introduction

My reasons for attending the Sabeel conference were two fold. Firstly, I am currently undertaking doctoral research on John Nelson Darby and the Origins of Christian

Zionism. Secondly, the Lord had a purpose that went beyond academic interest, a purpose that became clearer to me as the conference progressed. I knew beforehand that I would be coming from a very different perspective to that of Sabeel, having read articles on Christian Zionism on their web-site. It was in the course of reading these articles that I came across the conference advertisement.

The Venue

Conceived in 1884 as a centre for French pilgrims, the Notre Dame of Jerusalem Centre was completed in 1904 and crowned with a statue of Mary. It was sold in 1970 to the Jewish National Fund, who donated it to the Hebrew University. In 1973 Pope Paul VI had it restored as the Holy See International Pilgrimage Centre, and in 1978 Pope John Paul II established it as a Pontifical Institute and Ecumenical Centre.

In March 2000 he inaugurated the newly built Conference Centre.

Revd Dr. Naim Ateek and the Founding of Sabeel

Naim Ateek is the founder and director of Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Centre and Canon of St. George's Cathedral, Jerusalem. He describes himself as

a Palestinian Christian who became a refugee in 1948 when his hometown of Beisan (Beth Shean) was destroyed by Israeli forces. In 1989 an ecumenical ad hoc committee of ten clergy and lay theologians came together to explore ways of fostering liberation theology among Palestinian Christians. Out of this came an international conference in March 1990, and the founding of Sabeel in 1994; SABEEL is Arabic for 'The Way'.

Formal church takes a disturbing new stance

In its Purpose Statement, Sabeel descibes itself as "an ecumenical grassroots liberation theology movement among Palestinian Christians" which "strives to develop a spirituality based on justice, peace, non-violence, liberation, and reconciliation for the different national and faith communities". Sabeel works "to promote a more accurate international awareness regarding the identity, presence, and witness of Palestinian

Christians", encouraging individuals and groups around the world "to work

for a just, comprehensive, and enduring peace informed by truth and empowered by prayer and action." International Friends of Sabeel consists of regional chapters around the world supporting the work "through education, advocacy, conferences, solidarity visits, partner-to-partner projects, and financial contributions."

The Anglican Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, Desmond Tutu, is Sabeel's Patron, and in a letter to the Friends' made mention of an upcoming Sabeel conference in South Africa "whose theme will be ending Apartheid in the Holy Land." In its pre-conference notice, Sabeel described Christian Zionism as "highly problematic for all who believe in the biblical mandate of justice for all God's people." Its response was to organise this conference and bring together theologians, bishops, clergy, political scientists, legal experts, peacemakers, and non-violence activists from around the world for panel discussions, lectures, workshops, Bible study and worship. The following questions were to be addressed:

• What are the theological, social and political roots of Christian Zionism?
• How is the Bible used to support Christian Zionism?
• What is the relationship between Christian Zionism and anti-Semitism?
• How does Christian Zionism influence attitudes and policies towards Palestinians?
• How does Christian Zionism relate to colonialism in the Middle East?
• How is Christian Zionism influencing religious communities and political leadership
• around the world?
• How can those who seek justice for Palestinians as well as Israelis strategize to challenge Christian Zionism effectively? In preparation for the conference Sabeel dedicated issues 30-32 of its Cornerstone magazine to these questions.

The articles, written by some of the conference speakers, can be viewed at:            www.sabeel.org

The Conference

The conference opened with various formalities, including a greeting from the controversial Archimandrite Attallah Hanna of the Greek Orthodox Church (below left at the conference). Hanna is an outspoken supporter of suicide bombers. An address was then given by Abuna ('Father') Elias Chacour (below left with Hanna, below right with the Pope). In 2003 the Pope appointed Chacour to be Vatican consultant for

world Jewish relations with the Catholic Church. Chacour is an ordained priest in the Catholic Melkite Church, which is in communion with Rome, and President of the (interfaith) Mar Elias Educational Institutions in Ibillin, Galilee. He has been nominated three times for the Nobel Peace Prize and in 1994 received the prestigious World Methodist Peace Award. As indicated in Michael Prior's book, They Came and They Saw, Elias Chacour was instrumental in transforming the understanding of several conference speakers, including Stephen Sizer and Donald Wagner, on the Israeli-Palestinian issue.

The Speakers

Revd Dr Stephen Sizer

Stephen Sizer is Vicar of Virginia Water, an Anglican church in Surrey and a member church of the Evangelical Alliance. Sizer is also chairman of International Bible Society UK, board member of Friends of Sabeel UK, member of the UK Board of Reference for the Mar Elias Educational Institutions: www.m-e-c.org   contributor to the Friends of Al-Aqsa Journal.

Sizer once held to a dispensational, Christian Zionist understanding of the end-times, having been influenced by men like David Pawson (see Sizer's website, and Michael Prior's book, They Came and They Saw). He delivered a powerpoint presentation

on the historical development of Christian Zionism from Edward Irving to the Balfour Declaration (1917) in which he suggested (with some justification) that Christian

Zionism had been founded as a movement in 1809 with the formation of the London Society for Promoting Christianity among the Jews (now CMJ, or ITAC as it is known in Israel).

He rightly suggested that the movement had blossomed in the early nineteenth century writings of Edward Irving and John Nelson Darby, but then made the claim that following Irving's death "It was John Nelson Darby who took up Irving's ideas - never attributed them to Irving - took up the ideas and developed the idea of dispensationalism. And it is Darby who is regarded as the father of this very novel theological movement that can only be traced back to the 1820s." (Having recently

researched what I would classify as Christian Zionist writings dating as far back as the late 16th century, which focussed on the future restoration of the Jews to the land, I knew that Sizer's "novel" claim was inaccurate and misleading.)

During the Q&A session I challenged Sizer's claim that Darby had "taken up" Irving's ideas. In volumes 7 and 15 of his Collected Writings, Darby describes Irving's doctrine of the Incarnation as "the deadly wickedness of Irvingism" and "the Irvingite delusion". Darby and the vast majority of the Plymouth Brethren distanced themselves from Edward Irving and his followers, even after Irving's death. I felt that Sizer's assertion was not only contrary to reasonable judgment, but to Darby's lifelong testimony that his understanding had been shaped through the study of the Scriptures and the

inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Sizer stood by his claim. I later challenged him privately about the way he had taken out of context Darby's reference to the Church dispensation being a "parenthesis" in God's redemptive purposes, as though the Church had merely been an afterthought. Darby implied nothing of the sort, consistently teaching that the 'heavenly' Church enjoyed better promises and privileges than the 'earthly' Israel. Sizer did not want to pursue this.

Revd Dr Donald E.Wagner Donald Wagner, Director of the Centre for Middle Eastern Studies at North Park University, Chicago, shared the platform with Stephen Sizer, taking up where Sizer left off. Wagner presented the American face of Christian Zionism. Key figures such as Ed McAteer and Jerry Falwell (of the Moral Majority: 1979-1989), Tim Lahaye, and Jerry Jenkins (of the Left Behind series), and U.S. Presidents Carter, Reagan and Bush Jr. were cited as Christian Zionism's foremost representatives. Donald Wagner made the comment that he was uncertain as to Reagan's Christian Zionist views "in his present state" (Alzheimer's), a comment

greeted with laughter.

During the Q&A session

I expressed my offence at Wagner's tone, and the response of some of the

delegates. Several people applauded, though Donald Wagner made no comment.

Wagner portrayed Christian Zionism as the convergence of Bible and politics. He then rooted Christian Zionism in the teachings of Irving and Darby, claiming, as Sizer had done, that "Darby is the one who took the teachings of Irving and others and developed this doctrine." However, as attested by Brethren scholars, Darby insisted throughout his life that there was no place for Christians in politics! Wagner accurately traced Darby's influence in the United States on evangelicals such as D.L.Moody, C.I.Scofield, and William E. Blackstone, and on the Prophecy Conference Movement as a whole, but

then made the same mistake as Sizer by representing Darby as having taught that God's covenant with the Church was a lower, or interim, covenant compared with His

covenant with Israel. Donald Wagner concluded by calling for the establishment of an institute for the study of Christian Zionism to monitor, and provide a theological alternative to, Christian Zionism.

Revd Dr Mitri Raheb

Mitri Raheb, Pastor of Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem and Director of the International Centre of Bethlehem, offered "an alternative reading" of Acts 1:6-11 in which he described as "unbelievable" the question the disciples had put to the risen

Lord. The disciples, according to Raheb, "did not get it", having been "pre-programmed" to ask such a question on account of their education and environment. They were, according to Raheb, the forerunners of contemporary Christian Zionists:

"nationalistic", "narrow-minded", and "blinded" to the future. Raheb used the title of Donald Wagner's book to brand all Christian Zionists as "anxious for Armageddon". Christian Zionists, he suggested, are those who love to search for enemies (the Pope, Roman Catholicism, Islam) and who have little or no concern for minorities.

During the Q&A, I challenged Raheb for the way he had portrayed the disciples. I reminded him that these were the same Jewish disciples who would have been well-versed in the Scriptures before Jesus called them, and who then spent over 3

years with Him night and day. They were the same disciples who received the Holy Spirit when Jesus breathed on them, and who spent forty days with the risen Lord receiving teaching specifically about the kingdom of God. It was contrary to all reason,

therefore, to suggest that the disciples had not "got it". In fact, the Lord's response implied that they had; only the timing of Israel's restoration was in question.

Following Raheb's reply Stephen Sizer responded to my question by quoting

John Calvin who, in his commentary, suggested that there were as many errors in this question as words. Sizer was to prove a prominent figure throughout the conference.

Right Honourable Dr Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury

The Archbishop of Canterbury, seen here recently with the Pope, was absent from the conference. Canon Jonathan Gough, his Secretary for Ecumenism, apologised on behalf of Dr Williams who wanted to remain impartial, despite having been listed

as key-note speaker for several months. Canon Gough presented the address, entitled Holy Land and Holy People, on behalf of the Archbishop (see the Archbishop's web-site). It is worth noting that this address was preceded by the chanting of Ephesians 4:11-16 by Fr.Boulos Armaleh, Parish Priest of the Melkite Catholic Church in Jerusalem, and followed by a solo from Fr.Goussan Aljanian, the Armenian Orthodox

Patriarchate.

In his address Rowan Williams spoke of there being "two distinct but overlapping realities: 'Israel under God', the Jewish people considered as bearers of the covenant and witnesses to God's revealed justice, and the state of Israel, a contemporary and

secular political reality which is also seen as the homeland for 'Israel under God', the sole place in the world where the Jewish people have guaranteed place." He described the Israel of the Bible as being the "paradigm nation" held up before all

nations and afforded by God "the explicit vocation to justice". In seeking to define a liberation theology for Israel today, Dr Williams stated that "The modern political reality of Israel is not biblical Israel; but it is ideally one of the conditions for biblical Israel's message and witness to be alive in the world today - a context in which God's people can manifest God's justice." In other words, though the modern state of Israel was not, in his opinion, "the heir of biblical promise in a literal way", it continued to carry from biblical times an "historic calling" to demonstrate wisdom and justice to the world. This required, then, the existence of a modern Israeli state within stable and agreed

borders: "To be hospitable, you must have a home." The Archbishop expressed his belief that Israel's neighbours, instead of denying Israel's right to exist, should have been fulfilling their own commission to "reflect back to Israel" her calling as a nation. What was remarkable about this address, in light of the overall thrust of the conference, was </