"Evangelical Christians in America are among Israel's strongest friends." -- IRD President Mark Tooley

Contact: Jeff Walton, Institute on Religion and Democracy, 202-682-4131, 202-413-5639 cell, jwalton@TheIRD.org

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2013 /Christian Newswire/ -- Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD) President Mark Tooley was honored to co-host today's Christian Israel Solidarity Event at the Israel Embassy in Washington, D.C. Other members of the host committee included Samuel Rodriguez of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, Mat Staver of Liberty University, Gary Bauer of American Values, and Susan Michael of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, among others.

IRD President Mark Tooley commented:

"Evangelical Christians in America are among Israel's strongest friends, as acknowledged by Israel Ambassador Michael Oren in his remarks. But there is increasing awareness of concerted efforts to dilute evangelical friendship for Israel, especially among young evangelicals.

"IRD has always emphasized the importance of democracy, human rights and religious liberty as a central component for churches' political witness. Israel is the Middle East's only longstanding, functioning democracy with guaranteed rights for political and religious dissent. Like all nations, it is flawed. Yet its liberty and prosperity should serve as a model for others rather than provoke resentment and hatred by so many.

"We hope churches and Christian voices in the U.S. that exclusively criticize Israel and its supporters will expand their concerns to include human rights for all persons under all regimes in the Middle East. This concern should focus especially on persecuted Christians, who are more vulnerable than ever under the current turmoil and rise of radical Islamists to power."

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