Sorry to Go Off in an obnoxious way, but these trips are about Israel-US political relations wrapped in evangelical propaganda and freak me out so here’s more info for other people who are interested:
Former former Israeli ambassador to the US Michael Oren told students, “When you travel through this country you have to know that this country belongs to you too. It belongs to you because of what you believe in, because this is part of your Faith. The idea of America is insuperable of the idea of a recreating Jewish State, in this country in this land of Israel. We have a shared history and shared values.
A Passages co-founder claims it “was born to give [students] the religious, business, social and political leaders of tomorrow - an opportunity to ignite their faith; connect with the values that the U.S. shares with Israel.
The other co-founder says, “Never in history has there been a time like this, when Christians and Jews can gather around shared values – values that come from the Bible, a book we both share – to make the world a better place.
for the record, we don’t share a book… we share texts. Christians have a different book with shared texts in different order with different interpretations and the addition of the NT. shared values is arguable
And the propaganda works!!! Here’s some creepy philosemitic and very political testimonials:
“I find myself talking about Israel to anyone who is willing to listen, and I also find that I have a stronger grasp of how the Jewish people are central to my faith.”
“More than anything, this trip challenged me to be more vocal about Israel back on campus and in the United States in general…I feel much more obligated to speak out about the positive spiritual and political advantages of the State of Israel.” [This person was Student Body President of the University of Florida]
“I have a new drive to stand with Israel, sensing that God’s plan for my life post-college is to support the Holy Land in my future occupation. My heart is filled with a passion to be united with Israel“
“I have a responsibility to tell Israel’s story––and to tell it well. When I think of Israel, I am now able to picture a young, thriving, resilient, loving, and hopeful nation-state that needs our support.”
“Intellectually, it has dared me to test my academic ideologies and ivory tower understandings…Israel is no longer a back-burner issue in my book. I fully intend to be an advocate for Israel in my future capacity following my completion of law school.”
A Liberty student who went on a similar trip by a different brand:
“I grew to love Israel by reading my Old Testament, but after visiting Israel, it gave me a push to act for Israel,” said a 19-year-old sophomore… who participated in the first trial run of the trip. “It changed my career path. Now I want to work on advocating for Israel.”
That tour did not include any planned interactions with Arab-Israelis or Palestinians much less seeing the West Bank
Passages also works with Museum of the Bible (aka Hobby Lobby)
These trips are about mobilizing young evangelicals politically. It offers them a false claim on Israel as a country and historic land. It gives them “responsibility” to tell and defend the story of Israel and/or Judaism (the two don’t seem separately defined). And while I very much support interfaith work, they fail in that regard- making Jews central to the Christian story and Christian millennials personal narrative rather than something celebrated in its own right and worth.
It’s also not lost on me that these American Evangelicals are given a sense of ownership over the land and recycle the “Birthright” claim (used to promote Passages), but so many Palestinians still are denied that claim…
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