Visiting pro-Israel Christian communities in the US amid Hamas war

• Published date: 26 April 2024
• Author: JONATHAN FELDSTEIN
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

This was the tone and actual verbiage of some of the questions I received following my recent trip throughout the US and Germany. In the midst of a war in Israel, friends and colleagues who knew about my unique work with Christians wanted to know my firsthand report, as if I had just escaped from Auschwitz and needed to witness to the world

In these conversations, colleagues who commute to the "old country" and work with Jewish organizations would recount their experiences of antisemitism, directly and indirectly. Many men took to wearing baseball caps over their kippot in order not to look overtly Jewish. "Did you wear your kippah?" my friends asked.

The truth shocked them. Indeed, I traveled through Germany and the US without removing my kippah, and I did not experience even a moment of antisemitism. In fact, it was the opposite.

I did expect to have some unpleasant encounters and played out different scenarios in my mind to be ready in case of a verbal, or even physical, assault. I visited nine states, drove 2,400 miles, took seven flights, and spent half a day in Germany.

Not only did I not take off my kippah and not experience antisemitism, but in fact my kippah became a lightning rod for visceral expressions of support for Israel and the Jewish people. The primary reason for this was that everywhere I went, my aim was to engage and build bridges with Christians who love and support Israel and the Jewish people, doing so under the auspices of the Genesis 123 Foundation (www.genesis123.co). I went to participate in the delayed book launch and media tour for the new book Israel the Miracle (www.IsraeltheMiracle.com), which came out just before the war.

With a son and a son-in-law called up on Oct. 7, this was my first opportunity to go overseas to promote Israel the Miracle, a compilation of 75 essays by Christian leaders around the world who explained why Israel is so significant to them and to all Christians. As a result of the war, many of their words seemed almost prophetic and are now much more relevant.

While my previous visit to Germany, my first, was one that left me feeling inspired – unusual for an Ashkenazi Jew whose family members were murdered in the Holocaust – this time I was not under the umbrella, or in the bubble, of being among Christian friends and thus a little more uneasy. While Germany leads the nations in taking responsibility and making reparations for the Holocaust, in recent years it has mistakenly imported antisemitism, along with some one million Arab and Muslim immigrants.

Not only was Germany not a problem, but I engaged with many Arab staff at my hotel, all of whom were polite and respectful. I also met Bob – my first new friend on this trip – while waiting to board the plane to the US. Because I was identifiable as a Jew, Bob made a point of telling me that millions of Christians like him supported Israel. That he didn't even know...