Christian Zionism - New Life Tabernacle of Chattanooga

Conference on Racism held in Durban, South Africa, adopted the following
declaration concerning Palestinian rights without actually naming Israel:
‘For the purpose of the present Declaration and Programme of Action,
the victims of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related
intolerance are individuals or groups of individuals who are or have
been negatively affected by, subjected to, or targets of these scourges
… We are concerned about the plight of the Palestinian people under
foreign occupation. We recognize the inalienable right of the
Palestinian people to self determination and to the establishment of an
independent State … We recognize the right of refugees to return
voluntary to their homes and properties in dignity and safety, and urge
all States to facilitate such return.’ 33
Ironically, the Zionist vision which initially simply called for a ‘publicly
secured and legally assured homeland for the Jews in Palestine,’ 34 was
largely nurtured and shaped by Christian Zionists long before it was able to
inspire widespread Jewish support. 35 As will be shown in the next chapter
proto-Christian Zionism predated and nurtured Jewish Zionism, while the
contemporary Christian Zionist movement only emerged after 1967 in part as
a reaction to the widespread criticism which Israel has endured over the last
thirty-five years.
3. Christian Zionism Defined
The term ‘Christian Zionist’ first appears to have been used by Theodor Herzl
to describe Henri Dunant, the Swiss philanthropist and founder of the Red
Cross. Dunant was one of only a handful of Gentiles to be invited to the First
Zionist Congress. At its simplest, Christian Zionism is a political form of philo-
Semitism, and can be defined as ‘Christian support for Zionism.’ 36 Walter
Riggans interprets the term in an overtly political sense as, ‘any Christian who
supports the Zionist aim of the sovereign State of Israel, its army,
33
34
35
36
The United Nations. World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination,
Xenophobia and Related Intolerance Declaration adopted 8 September (2001), Sections 1,
62 & 64.
Cited in Regina Sharif, Non-Jewish Zionism, Its Roots in Western History, (London,
Zed, 1983), p1.
This argument is developed in Chapter 2 on the History of Christian Zionism.
Colin Chapman, Whose Promised Land, Israel or Palestine?, revised edition (Oxford,
Lion, 2002), p274.
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