Most observers attribute evangelical Christians’ bedrock support for Israel to the apocalyptic belief that the Jews must return to Israel as a precondition for Christ’s Second Coming. But the actual reasons, this book argues, are far more complicated. In Evangelicals and Israel, the book delves deeply into the Christian Zionist movement, mining information from original interviews, websites, evangelical publications, survey research, news reports, worship services, and interfaith conferences to provide a surprising look at the sources of evangelicals’ alliance with Israel. He finds a complex s ... More

Most observers attribute evangelical Christians’ bedrock support for Israel to the apocalyptic belief that the Jews must return to Israel as a precondition for Christ’s Second Coming. But the actual reasons, this book argues, are far more complicated. In Evangelicals and Israel, the book delves deeply into the Christian Zionist movement, mining information from original interviews, websites, evangelical publications, survey research, news reports, worship services, and interfaith conferences to provide a surprising look at the sources of evangelicals’ alliance with Israel. He finds a complex set of motivations. In addition to end-times theology, these include gratitude to the Jews for providing the theological foundation for Christianity; remorse for the Church’s past anti-Semitism; the belief that God will bless those who bless Israel and curse him who curses Israel; fear that He will judge the nations at the end of time based on how they treated the Jewish people; appreciation of Israel as a friendly democracy; and reliance on the Jewish state as the West’s only firewall against Islamist terrorism. This book explores many Christian Zionists’ hostility toward Islam, but also their unexpected pragmatism and flexibility concerning Israel’s occupation of the West Bank. The book looks as well at George W. Bush’s beliefs about the Bible and the evangelical influence on his Middle East policies.