The bodies of 1,200-plus dead Jews had not been buried yet in mid-October when millions were marching in the streets and rallying on college campuses to defend “Palestine” and the Palestinians, and condemning Israel’s military campaign in Gaza to find and destroy Hamas.
For many who have watched those demonstrations, it was like a mask was ripped off that revealed raw hatred for Jews that had been disguised as caring sympathy for the Palestinians living in Gaza.
“None of this is surprising to me,” J.C. Church, an Ohio pastor, tells AFN. “The rise of anti-Semitism, the hatred and hostility towards Israel, this is prophetic what is transpiring.”
Christians who read and study the Bible probably know the Book of Genesis warns about “violence filling the earth,” the pastor says, but they might not know the Hebrew word for “violence.” That word is “Hamas.”
In Arabic, Hamas is the acronym for the “Islamic Resistance Movement.”
Texas pastor Dr. Robert Jeffress, who leads First Baptist Church in Dallas, tells AFN he is disgusted at anti-Israel demonstrators who call Israel “occupiers” as if the Jewish history of the Middle East began in 1947. That is the year the United Nations adopted a resolution supporting Israel’s right to form a “Jewish State” in its ancient land.
“People have bought into this lie of the Left that Israel is only 75 years old. That's a myth. Israel has existed for 4,000 years,” Jeffress says. “But I think there's a spiritual factor at work here as well. Satan wants to destroy Israel to show God cannot keep his promises and Satan inspires these leaders.”
One example of the Far Left’s view of the Oct. 7 attack was a resolution passed by in Oakland, California, which was approved this week by its city council. What was also revealing in Oakland was public support for Hamas itself which was compiled in a now-viral video clip posted to X, formerly Twitter.
In the one-minute clip, numerous people took turns condemning a city councilman’s plan to condemn Hamas.
“Hamas is a resistance organization fighting for the liberation of Palestinian people in their land,” one commenter states.
“Calling Hamas terrorist organization is ridiculous and racist,” a second person states, “and plays into genocidal propaganda that is flooding our media.”
“There have not been beheadings of babies and rapings,” another commenter said. “Israel murdered their own people on October Seventh.”
Pastor Jeffress, meanwhile, says he signed his name to a letter sent to congressional leaders asking them to publicly support Israel and its military campaign against Hamas.
'The monstrosity and evil of these barbaric attacks have shocked our conscience,” the letter states. “The killings were the most significant massacre of the Jewish people since the Holocaust.”
All totaled, 15 evangelical leaders signed the letter out of concern the Biden administration is urging Israel to back away from its military campaign.
Timothy Head signed the letter as executive director of the Faith and Freedom Coalition. He tells AFN that Israel is literally waging war against an enemy that wants to end its existence, but the Biden administration is not committed to defending our ally.
"You've got to say, in the world of diplomacy, actions speak louder than words," he says.
“I think some people are wanting to tie our support, our financial support of Israel, to a ceasefire or an attempt to work with Hamas,” Jeffress says. “Look, you don't negotiate with cockroaches. You exterminate them.”
