Christian Zionism in the United Kingdom
Encyclopedia
Christian Zionism in the United Kingdom is a Christian
ideology that sees the return of the Jews
to the Holy Land
as a fulfilment of scriptural prophecy
. Supporters of Christian Zionism
believe that the existence of the Jewish State can and should be supported on theological grounds.
must belong to the Jewish people as one of the prerequisites for the return of Jesus
to earth, and that Armageddon
, an apocalyptic battle between good and evil, will take place when Jesus returns. The rising popularity in Britain of this apocalyptic premillennial eschatology
and Zionist vision has been criticized by Christian evangelist Stephen Sizer
. He and Christian Zionist David Pawson have publicly debated the issue.
In 2007, the Israeli English-language newspaper Jerusalem Post, reported on the Jerusalem Summit Europe conference held in London, describing it as an attempt "to stem the tide of rising Islamic fundamentalism
in Europe." According to the paper, the goal was to "rekindle the faded force of Christian Zionism in the United Kingdom."
Other organisations are Christian Friends of Israel, UK, the Church's Ministry Among Jewish People
(The Israel Trust of the Anglican Church), Intercessors For Britain (IFB), "Prayer Friends of Israel" (PFI), Derek Prince
Ministries, Beit Yeshua, North East Messianic Fellowship, Bridges of Peace, C L Ministries, Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary
, Hatikvah Film Trust, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, UK
, Messianic (Christian) Educational Trust, Paul Heyman International Ministries, Revelation TV
, the Israel Britain Evangelistic Association and Christian Zionists for Israel UK.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
ideology that sees the return of the Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
to the Holy Land
Holy Land
The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...
as a fulfilment of scriptural prophecy
Bible prophecy
Bible prophecy or biblical prophecy is the prediction of future events based on the action, function, or faculty of a prophet. Such passages are widely distributed throughout the Bible, but those most often cited are from Ezekiel, Daniel, Matthew 24, Matthew 25, and Revelation.Believers in biblical...
. Supporters of Christian Zionism
Christian Zionism
Christian Zionism is a belief among some Christians that the return of the Jews to the Holy Land, and the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, is in accordance with Biblical prophecy. It overlaps with, but is distinct from, the nineteenth century movement for the Restoration of the Jews...
believe that the existence of the Jewish State can and should be supported on theological grounds.
History
Proponents of Christian Zionism believe that IsraelIsrael
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
must belong to the Jewish people as one of the prerequisites for the return of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
to earth, and that Armageddon
Armageddon
Armageddon is, according to the Bible, the site of a battle during the end times, variously interpreted as either a literal or symbolic location...
, an apocalyptic battle between good and evil, will take place when Jesus returns. The rising popularity in Britain of this apocalyptic premillennial eschatology
Eschatology
Eschatology is a part of theology, philosophy, and futurology concerned with what are believed to be the final events in history, or the ultimate destiny of humanity, commonly referred to as the end of the world or the World to Come...
and Zionist vision has been criticized by Christian evangelist Stephen Sizer
Stephen Sizer
The Reverend Dr Stephen Robert Sizer is the incumbent at Christ Church, Virginia Water, an Anglican parish in Surrey, England. In addition to his parish ministry, he has a number of external roles and is known internationally as an author and speaker specialising in topics relating to the land of...
. He and Christian Zionist David Pawson have publicly debated the issue.
In 2007, the Israeli English-language newspaper Jerusalem Post, reported on the Jerusalem Summit Europe conference held in London, describing it as an attempt "to stem the tide of rising Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism is a term used to describe religious ideologies seen as advocating a return to the "fundamentals" of Islam: the Quran and the Sunnah. Definitions of the term vary. According to Christine L...
in Europe." According to the paper, the goal was to "rekindle the faded force of Christian Zionism in the United Kingdom."
Organisations
Exploits Ministry is one of the London organizations actively promoting Christian Zionism.Other organisations are Christian Friends of Israel, UK, the Church's Ministry Among Jewish People
Church's Ministry Among Jewish People
Church's Ministry Among Jewish People is an Anglican missionary society founded in 1809.-History:...
(The Israel Trust of the Anglican Church), Intercessors For Britain (IFB), "Prayer Friends of Israel" (PFI), Derek Prince
Derek Prince
Peter Derek Vaughan Prince was an international Bible teacher whose daily radio programme Derek Prince Legacy Radio broadcasts to half the population of the world in various languages...
Ministries, Beit Yeshua, North East Messianic Fellowship, Bridges of Peace, C L Ministries, Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary
Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary
The Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary is an ecumenical, Lutheran based, religious order.It was founded by sister Basilea Schlink a German theologian and intellectual who on March 30, 1947, with Erika Madauss founded The Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary in Darmstadt....
, Hatikvah Film Trust, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, UK
International Christian Embassy Jerusalem
The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem is a Christian Zionist organisation based in Jerusalem, Israel.-History:The International Christian Embassy was founded in 1980 by evangelical Christians to express their support for the State of Israel and the Jewish people...
, Messianic (Christian) Educational Trust, Paul Heyman International Ministries, Revelation TV
Revelation TV
Revelation TV is a UK Christian television channel started by Howard and Lesley Conder in 2003; the channel broadcasts on Freesat channel 692 and Sky channel 581.-Programming:...
, the Israel Britain Evangelistic Association and Christian Zionists for Israel UK.
See also
- ZionismZionismZionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
- Restoration of the Jews to the Holy LandRestoration of the Jews to the Holy LandChristian Restorationism, the Restoration of the Jews to the Holy Land was a nineteenth-century, Christian movement with both political and religious motivations.-Secular motivations:...
- Left Behind (series)Left Behind (series)Left Behind is a series of 16 best-selling novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, dealing with Christian dispensationalist End Times: pretribulation, premillennial, Christian eschatological viewpoint of the end of the world. The primary conflict of the series is the members of the Tribulation...
- Christian eschatologyChristian eschatologyChristian eschatology is a major branch of study within Christian theology. Eschatology, from two Greek words meaning last and study , is the study of the end of things, whether the end of an individual life, the end of the age, or the end of the world...
- Christianity and Judaism
- Christian right
- DispensationalismDispensationalismDispensationalism is a nineteenth-century evangelical development based on a futurist biblical hermeneutic that sees a series of chronologically successive "dispensations" or periods in history in which God relates to human beings in different ways under different Biblical covenants.As a system,...
Further reading
- Pawson, DavidDavid PawsonJ. David Pawson is a prominent Bible teacher based in Great Britain. He is the author of more than thirty books.-Biography:According to his autobiography, Pawson's immediate ancestors were all farmers, Methodist preachers or both - dating back to John Pawson, a friend and follower of John Wesley....
Defending Christian Zionism Terra Nova Publications International Ltd April 2008 ISBN 978-1901949629 - The Historical Roots of Christian Zionism from Irving to Balfour: Christian Zionism in the United Kingdom (1820–1918) by Stephen SizerStephen SizerThe Reverend Dr Stephen Robert Sizer is the incumbent at Christ Church, Virginia Water, an Anglican parish in Surrey, England. In addition to his parish ministry, he has a number of external roles and is known internationally as an author and speaker specialising in topics relating to the land of...
- from the book 'Challenging Christian Zionism: Theology, Politics and the Israel-Palestine Conflict'http://www.sabeel.org.au/challengingchristianzionism.html - Donald M. Lewis, "The Origins of Christian Zionism: Lord Shaftesbury and Evangelical Support for a Jewish Homeland," Cambridge University Press, 2009. ISBN 978-0-521-51518-4
External links
- Christian Zionism: A British Perspective by The Rev. Dr. Stephen SizerStephen SizerThe Reverend Dr Stephen Robert Sizer is the incumbent at Christ Church, Virginia Water, an Anglican parish in Surrey, England. In addition to his parish ministry, he has a number of external roles and is known internationally as an author and speaker specialising in topics relating to the land of...
(with footnotes here) - Alan Hart interview with Reverend Stephen Sizer on the implications of Christian Zionism