Christianity without Christian Zionism

LOUISVILLE — “Christianity without Christian Zionism: Proclaiming the Gospel, Pursuing Justice, Rekindling Hope,” a free gathering that will be held online and in person at the Presbyterian Center in Louisville, Kentucky, is set for Aug. 6-8. Registration is available here.

According to the Religion Media Centre, Christian Zionism is broadly understood as the belief that the Jewish people have a right to return to Israel. It sees Jews as the descendants of biblical Israelites and heirs to the covenant between God and Abraham. The fulfilment of this biblical promise is viewed by Christian Zionists as being the prerequisite for Christ’s return to Earth.

Next month’s gathering “provides the setting to engage the biblical narrative of God’s love, grace and mercy, while examining the destructive narrative of Christian Zionism,” said the Rev. Dr. Ray Jones III, Director of Leader Development in Presbyterian Life & Witness. “We will deepen our understanding of the connection between the empire's power and Christian Zionism.”

“Instead of bringing people together in ways that support the thriving of all people and Creation, Christian Zionism views people and places as objects for an end-times apocalypse that desecrates the life and name of Jesus,” Jones said. “The gathering will offer timely presentations and opportunities to discuss the presented material and resources together. It will be an occasion to embrace the whole gospel of Jesus Christ.”

An action of the 226^th General Assembly (2024) helped create next month’s gathering. Jones noted that the overture “On Confessing our Complicity in Christian Zionism” called for “rejecting Christian Zionism in all its forms and acknowledging its profound expansion since 2004 across many regions and contexts worldwide.” The call includes holding events with partners in the U.S., Africa and Asia.

The upcoming gathering opens at 7 p.m. Eastern Time on Aug. 6 at the Cambria Hotel with a screening of the film “Til Kingdom Come.”

It continues at 8:30 a.m. Aug. 7 at the Presbyterian Center, 100 Witherspoon Street, and online, with worship and a keynote by the Rev. Dr. Robert O. Smith, Dean and Vice President of Academic Affairs at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago and an enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation. Smith has done pathbreaking work on the political ideology of Christian Zionism.

Panel sessions will be offered at 10:45 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. on Aug. 7. The first panel is focused on hearing from voices of the impacted; the second is a response to those voices.

Among the panelists scheduled to appear during the gathering, some via Zoom and others in person:

• The Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb, founder and president of Dar al-Kalima University in Bethlehem and the most widely published Palestinian theologian to date.
• Muna Nassar, Executive Secretary for Mission and Advocacy with the World Communion of Reformed Churches.
• The Rev. Dr. Crystal Silva-McCormick, an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ whose academic research is informed by her commitment to interfaith relationships and the rights of immigrants.
• Dr. Santiago Slabodsky, who holds the Kaufman Endowed Chair in Jewish Studies at Hofstra University in New York.
• The Rev. Jermaine Ross-Allam, Director of the Center for the Repair of Historical Harms in PL&W. Ross-Allam leads domestic and international work that helps congregations, mid councils, national agencies and community partners toward concrete practices of repair and joy-filled re-encounters with historic communities.
• The Rev. Dr. Chauncey Diego Francisco Handy, Assistant Professor of Religion and Humanities at Reed College in Portland, Oregon. Handy is an ordained PC(USA) teaching elder.

Four workshop options are being offered in two slots — at 3:15 p.m. on Aug. 7 and at 9 a.m. Aug. 8.

Workshops and their leaders:

• The Rev. Dr. Whitney Wilkinson Arreche, a pastor and public theologian, will offer “Worship as Resistance: A Case Study in Confronting Christian Zionism and Nationalism Liturgically and Theologically.” She is the pastor of Emmanuel Presbyterian Church in Bedford, Texas, and has chaired the PC(USA)’s General Assembly Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Relations.
• The Rev. Alex Awad will offer “The Two Covenants: A Biblical Alternative to Christian Zionism.” For 26 years, Awad and his wife, Brenda, were missionaries with the General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church in Israel-Palestine. 
• The Rev. Addie Domske and the Rev. Marietta Macy will co-lead the “Studying Kairos Palestine II in Church Small Groups” workshop. Domske is a member of the Steering Committee of the Palestine Justice Network. Macy is the PJN’s Co-Moderator.
• The Rev. Dr. Don Wagner, author, theologian and retired PC(USA) pastor, will lead the workshop “What Does Christian Zionism Look Like in Congregations and Communities?” 

A panel discussion on “The Way Forward” is set for 10:45 a.m. on Aug. 8, followed by prayer and a send-off. Learn more about the gathering here.