Support for Israel among young evangelicals has fallen by more than 50% in just three years, posing a potential threat to U.S. support for the Jewish state.
“This should be a wake-up call to Israeli policymakers,” said Dr. Yoav Fromer, director of the Center for United States Studies (CSUS) at Tel Aviv University. “For decades, successive Israeli governments – particularly under Benjamin Netanyahu – have taken the support of evangelicals for granted and neglected other groups within American society, including American Jews.
“Today, as younger generations of evangelicals appear to be turning away, Israel must seek to cultivate new sources of popular support among some of America’s fastest-growing demographic groups – such as Hispanics and American Americans. Asian origin. If they don’t do it, and quickly, in 10 to 20 years, when Israel needs urgent American aid, there may be no one left to offer it.”
Professor Motti Inbari of the University of North Carolina at Pembroke and Dr. Kirill Bumin of Boston University will present their important findings on the changing nature of Evangelical support for Israel Tuesday during a virtual conference organized by the CSUS. The data is part of their new book, Christian Zionism in the Twenty-First Century: American Evangelical Opinion on Israel, published last week by Oxford University Press.
Other findings: At the end of 2021, only 33.6% of young evangelicals under the age of 30 support Israel, compared to 67.9% in 2018. At the same time, in 2021, 24.3% of young evangelicals say they support the Palestinians, against only 5%. three years ago.
Furthermore, nearly half (42.4%) of young American evangelicals under the age of 30 said they support neither Israel nor the Palestinians in 2021, compared to 25% in 2018.
Fromer, who organized Tuesday’s conference, told the Jerusalem Post that relations with America are of “strategic importance” to Israel’s survival, but that over the past decade those relations have been “systematically mismanaged” by Netanyahu and his government, including when it comes to evangelicals.
“What we are seeing over the last five years is a dramatic shift in popular support for the U.S.-Israel relationship,” Fromer said.
He noted that influential figures from the older generation of Israel supporters, such as Pastor John Hagee of Christians United for Israel, Gordon Robertson, president of the Christian Broadcasting Network and son of the late Pat Robertson, and former vice-president President Mike Pence, continue to maintain their support.
Fromer also said the upcoming 2024 election would not be affected by this change, as younger evangelicals are expected to maintain their Republican voting pattern. However, he highlighted the possibility of strategic change in the next 10 to 20 years – or perhaps even sooner.
“In three years, Israel will have to begin renegotiating another 10-year memorandum of understanding on the military aid the country receives from the United States. (former President Barack) Obama gave us a lot. A very different demographic may not have the same willingness to continue to support Israel in this way,” Fromer said. “This has real practical consequences.”
He stressed that the data does not show that young evangelicals are abandoning Israel or becoming anti-Israel, but that they are giving Israel a much lower priority than before. He said: “They don’t share the same passion and enthusiasm as their parents and grandparents, and that’s important. »
Why does this happen?
Part of the reason is that “the younger generation of Americans grew up in a very different information environment than their parents and grandparents,” Inbari said. “While older generations have witnessed Israel’s struggles in a hostile Middle East, for the younger generation, Israel is portrayed as the aggressor while the Palestinians are victims.”
Additionally, instead of tuning into Christian news channels like the Christian Broadcasting Network or relying on traditional media, young evangelicals, like many of their peers, are turning to social media to get their news and information.
“These factors have created a ‘perfect storm’ where different generations of evangelicals have different views on many social and political issues, including Israel,” Inbari said.
The younger generation of evangelicals are also experiencing changes in their theological beliefs. While their parents and grandparents viewed Jews and Israel as crucial players in redemption, this perception appears to be changing among today’s generation.
“Nearly seven in ten young evangelicals and born-agains we surveyed in spring 2021 adhere to post-millennial and amillennial theological views, which view the Jewish people and the State of Israel as no longer necessary to fulfillment of God’s plan for the world. second coming of Jesus Christ and the end of times“Bumin said.
“Our survey shows that pastors who adhere to the most pro-Israel theology, called premillennialism, are older and less diverse than pastors who adhere to amillennial and postmillennial theological views, which view the Jewish people and the state as Israel as no longer important. For God’s plan for the second coming of Christ and the End of Times.
“Many younger evangelicals are likely looking for younger, more “hip” pastors who are more like them, and as a result, evangelicals under the age of 30 are likely to be exposed to both an inhospitable media environment, which presents Israel as the aggressor. , and eschatological traditions that place little theological importance on the contemporary Jewish people or the State of Israel,” Bumin said.
However, Inbari warned that the situation could change as these young evangelicals age.
“What we are seeing among young evangelicals might reflect a kind of youthful rebellion,” Inbari said. “Only time will tell whether these trends will become mainstream evangelical views. »
