The UK is experiencing a crisis of blatant anti-Semitism being exposed in all levels of society. Our Jewish brothers and sisters need you to stand up for them now and declare that hatred of the Jewish people and the demonisation of Israel are unacceptable.
Recently three Jewish newspapers accused Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn of being an “existential threat” to British Jewry. His party has become increasingly hostile towards Israel, and by extension British Jews who support Israel. When asked to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s standardised definition of anti-Semitism, the Labour Party leadership refused to adopt all its examples, replacing it with its own version. Notably, they rejected the part that defines anti-Semitism as equating Israel’s actions to Nazism, calling Israel’s creation “a racist endeavour”, and accusing Jews of being more loyal to Judaism or to Israel than to their home country.
There is great fear within the British Jewish community that Jeremy Corbyn could become the next prime minister, and that under his leadership the country would grow increasingly hostile both to its own Jewish citizens and the State of Israel. Corbyn has a long and disturbing record of displaying sympathy for terrorists while demonising Israel.
The media has also played a significant role in promoting anti-Semitism within the UK. Major news outlets routinely present biased or incorrect information that paints Israel as the aggressor in the Israel-Palestinian conflict, while whitewashing the terrorism of Hamas and other radical groups. It is not surprising that anti-Semitism is on the rise in Britain when our media and our government are infected with people who hate the Jewish state and blame the Jewish people everywhere for what they consider to be Israel’s “crimes”.
To show the Jewish people in the UK that their Christian friends and neighbours are equally concerned and motivated to stop the spread of anti-Semitism in our country, CUFI has launched an online declaration to rally our Christian community. As of now, thousands of British Christians have signed the declaration, which states in part,
- Any hatred for the Jewish people and the nation of Israel is in direct conflict with the Bible and is inconsistent with the very basis of our Christian faith. Whilst recognising that the church hasn’t always been faithful to the Jewish people, we affirm that true Christians love the Jewish people and condemn the evil of anti-Semitism. As a demonstration of our support for the Jewish community in the UK, we call upon other institutions, including church denominations and affiliations, to adopt the IHRA definition and all its examples.
As an independent affiliate of Christians United for Israel, whose funding is separate from the parent organisation in the United States, CUFI UK is dependent upon your support to continue our work. We cannot fight this battle alone. We need your help.
We humbly ask that you consider partnering with us with a one-time gift or even become a member on a monthly basis to fight anti-Semitism here in the UK and work to make our Jewish brothers and sisters feel safe and welcomed in their own country. Any gift you can make will help us make the UK-Israel relationship stronger as we bring Christians together to stand in solidarity with our Jewish friends.
There are two things you can do right now to fight anti-Semitism in the UK.
- First, sign the online declaration to show our media and our government where you stand.
- Second, donate whatever amount you can to help CUFI defeat this great and growing evil in our society.
Thank you with all sincerity for your Biblical love of the Jewish people and the State of Israel.
Des Starritt
CUFI UK Executive Director
Pastor John Hagee
CUFI Chairman and Founder
