Lutheran Church of America votes overwhelmingly AGAINST Israel

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) has voted overwhelmingly against Israel at their latest tri-annual assembly in New Orleans.

The church group, which boasts over 4 million members spread across 10,000 congregations in America, voted to support a resolution which calls on the American government to halt all aid to Israel. They also voted to show support to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel.

The vote passed with 751 votes in favour and 162 votes against.

The resolution stated that all funding to Israel must end if Israel does not “stop settlement building and the expansion of existing settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, end its occupation of Palestinian territory, and enable an independent Palestinian state.”

The church also called on the American president to recognize the “State of Palestine” and refrain from “prevent[ing] the application of the State of Palestine for full membership in the United Nations.”

This is an unfortunate trend in the liberal minded churches in America where an increasing number of church groups are showing support for the BDS movement and, ultimately, turning away from the truth found in the Bible.

However, these anti-Israel actions by some church groups have sparked a strong pro-Israel pushback from other Christian groups in the US. The Southern Baptist Church which has over 15 million members passed a pro-Israel resolution in June of this year, where they condemned BDS and stated strongly that the church “supports the right of Israel to exist as a sovereign state.”

Christians United for Israel (CUFI) is also growing in America with over 3 million members. Pastor John Hagee, the head of CUFI has called anti-Israel Christians “misguided.”

“Yes, our Christian values demand that we have compassion for those that suffer. But if you blame Palestinian suffering on Israel then you’re ignorant about this conflict,” he told Breaking Israel News in July.