Pro-“Palestine”/Anti-Israel
On Twitter this week, I noticed a bit by Eugene Cho, the leftist “evangelical” from Seattle:
“We pray for India, Yemen, South Sudan, Myanmar & other nations enduring suffering. We confess that our tears are often limited to the West or those who look, worship, & think like us. Jesus, may our compassion transcend borders. Break our hearts for the things that break Yours.”
I’ve written about Cho before. He’s a solid member of the progressive set that has infiltrated evangelicalism. His Twitter bio is comical, including his description of himself as a “visionary.” This is always a label given to self-absorbed, self-appointed “leaders.” Remember, if someone has to tell you he’s a visionary, he isn’t.
Anyway, the real point of this is that Cho’s community is shot-through with pro Palestinian activists, so that his tweet is pretty hollow when you factor-in his exclusion of murdered Israeli Jews from the platitudes he sends out. He wouldn’t be caught dead calling the PLO on the carpet for oppressing people.
I noticed a link to his latest book, No Longer Strangers. Get a load of the Amazon description, in part:
“What does evangelism look like at its best?
“Evangelism can hurt sometimes. Well-meaning Christians who welcome immigrants and refugees and share the gospel with them will often alienate the very people they are trying to serve through cultural misconceptions or insensitivity to their life experiences. In No Longer Strangers, diverse voices lay out a vision for a healthier evangelism that can honor the most vulnerable—many of whom have lived through trauma, oppression, persecution, and the effects of colonialism—while foregrounding the message of the gospel. “
In Cho’s left-wing world, “white colonialism” (which would necessarily include Israel, since white Great Britain paved the way for the Jewish state, and the white U.S. recognized Israel in 1948) is responsible for most of the world’s ills. No mention at all of Islamic terrorism, Chinese aggression and murder, or political corruption in Washington (which adds untold suffering).
And the contributors to Cho’s book, and his endorsements, let us know clearly that the pro Palestinian community within America’s evangelistic churches is thriving. Read about just one contributor, Andrew Bush:
“Rev. Andrew F. Bush and his wife, Karen, have served internationally, for almost thirty-five years, in the Philippines, the Palestinian Territories, and Israel. Presently, he is the director of the Bethlehem Institute for Peace and Justice in Bethlehem in the Palestinian Territories, as well as pastor of the East Jerusalem International Church. Previously, he was the chair of the Department of Global Service and Mission at Eastern University in St. David’s, Pennsylvania. His books include Learning from the Least: Reflections on a Journey in Mission with Palestinian Christians and Millennials and The Mission of God: A Prophetic Dialogue. He holds post-graduate degrees from the École Biblique et Archéologique Française in Jerusalem and Princeton Theological Seminary.”
Several things to note here. He is based in large part in Bethlehem; no Christian can operate freely where the PLO rules. He also taught at Eastern University, the perch of leftist leaders like Tony Campolo and Shane Claiborne, who have published lies about Israel. Bush also graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary, which went hard-left a hundred years ago.
Now, what makes Cho’s Palestinian advocacy really dangerous is his inclusion of “evangelical” voices like Ann Voskamp (the popular writer) and K.J. Hill, an associate pastor at the Summit Church, where SBC President JD Greear holds court.
Think about that for a minute. As I’ve said many times, such have crept in unawares, to quote a great NT writer. This is not 1950, when liberalism in churches was largely confined to dying mainline churches. Now, the worst radicals are found right in the very heart of evangelicalism.
This and many other reasons show us clearly that Israel is being marginalized not only within churches, but globally. The kind of garbage pumped out by Cho, Voskamp, et al is dangerous for Israel.
They would deny that, of course. That’s what leftists do.
Just know that among the worst anti-Israel activists in the entire world today are those planted in the American church community.
This is a stain on American Christianity.