"Brian McLaren's Holy Land tour, whether deliberate or clueless, seems like just another Religious and Evangelical Left crusade to demonize Israel." -- Mark Tooley, IRD President
Contact: Jeff Walton, Institute on Religion and Democracy, 202-682-4131, 202-413-5639 cell, jwalton@TheIRD.org
WASHINGTON, Jan. 28 /Christian Newswire/ -- A prominent American pastor currently leading a delegation through Israel and the West Bank is decrying alleged pro-Israel partiality. Brian McLaren, a key figure on the Evangelical Left and within the "Emergent Church" movement, is blogging updates from his trip, in which he denounces "a lifetime of half-truths, unfair and imbalanced news, well-planned propaganda, and misinformation" in favor of Israel.
Numerous polls have revealed that Evangelicals are America's most pro-Israel demographic. But Evangelical Left leaders have called for a shift in support away from the Middle Eastern democracy. In 2007, a group of 34 prominent evangelical leaders published a letter in the New York Times voicing support of a 'two-state' solution. The letter said the signers wanted to rectify the 'serious misconception' that all American evangelicals are against a two-state solution that creates a new Palestinian state.
"Nothing could be further from the truth," they stated. "We, who sign this letter, represent large numbers of evangelicals throughout the U.S. who support justice for both Israelis and Palestinians."
Unlike the letter signers, McLaren reported that Palestinians do not want a 'two-state solution' but instead desire to 'live in peace with Israelis' and want 'Jews, Muslims, and Christians to learn to live together as neighbors.'
IRD President Mark Tooley commented:
"McLaren is very concerned about Israeli 'razor wire and segregation walls,' as part of the 'ugliness of occupation.' But he is not as interested in the Palestinian and Islamist terror that generate Israel's defenses.
"McLaren's Holy Land tour, whether deliberate or clueless, seems like just another Religious and Evangelical Left crusade to demonize Israel and its U.S. ally, in pursuit of 'liberation' for Palestinians.
"This brand of 'liberation' would result in the eventual eradication of Jewish Israel in favor of an Islamist-dominated 'Palestine,' where fellow-traveling Christians like Brian McLaren would be tolerated largely for their political utility."
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