Evangelical leader no longer considers Naftali Bennett a ‘rabid dog’

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A controversial Christian evangelical leader – whose brazen meddling in internal Israeli politics recently drew strong condemnation in the Christian world – will be a guest speaker at an event organized by the Israeli Government Press Office scheduled for early next month.

Mike Evans, who likes to refer to himself as “the largest evangelical leader in the world,” is scheduled to speak at the fifth annual Christian Media Summit, which will take place online on November 11 and be devoted to the Abraham Accords – the normalization agreements signed last year between Israel and several Arab countries. The GPO, which organizes the yearly event, operates under the auspices of the Prime Minister’s Office.

A longtime supporter of Benjamin Netanyahu, the former Israeli prime minister, Evans became frantic last June when it appeared that his old friend did not have enough support to set up a government.

Using inflammatory rhetoric, including profanities and sexist imagery, Evans issued several vicious statements against members of the proposed new government and their designated leader, Naftali Bennett.

In a widely publicized letter, Evans called Bennett a “disgusting disappointment” and “pathetic, bitter little man,” accusing him of being “so obsessed with destroying Netanyahu that you’re willing to damage the State of Israel for your worthless cause.” He called members of the new coalition “rabid dogs” out to “crucify” Netanyahu and referred to the two left-wing Zionist parties slated to join the government – Labor and Meretz – as “post-Zionists” because of their support for a two-state solution.

Days before the new government was sworn in, Evans boarded a flight to Israel in a last-ditch effort to persuade those lawmakers still on the fence not to join the new coalition.

At a press conference convened in Jerusalem before he flew back to the United States, he warned that Israel could lose the support of the evangelical world if Netanyahu was forced into the opposition.

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Many evangelical leaders subsequently distanced themselves from Evans, concerned that his blatant interference in domestic Israeli politics might reflect badly on them as well, reinforcing age-old Jewish beliefs that Christians aren’t to be trusted. Indeed, not even one prominent Christian leader or organization came out in his defense at the time.

For example, the International Christian Embassy, a pro-Israel NGO in Jerusalem, issued the following statement: “After going through four divisive elections, the yearlong coronavirus crisis, the recent conflict with Hamas, the rising global antisemitism, the latest denigration of Israel in UN forums, and the ever-looming threat of a nuclear Iran, the Israeli public right now needs to be hearing that evangelical Christians stand in solidarity with them regardless of who is leading their nation.” It did not mention Evans by name but was clearly referring to him.

Representatives of several evangelical groups active in Israel are now expressing surprise, even shock, that Evans has been invited to address the upcoming Christian media summit, saying they do not understand how he has managed to ingratiate himself so quickly with the new government he had publicly lambasted. They were not interested, however, in issuing any public comments.

Rev. Johnnie Moore, president of the California-based Congress of Christian Leaders, sufficed with the following statement when asked for his reaction: “I support extending olive branches, deserved or not. Israel should resist letting politics have the preeminent place in Jewish and Christian bridge-building, and Christians should not inject themselves into internal Israeli politics. All that energy should instead be invested in cultivating a new and diverse generation of Christian and Jewish friendship, beginning with my own millennial generation. The truth is that Israel still needs as many friends as it can get in today’s world despite [the fact] that over the last 14 months the vast majority of Arabs are now living in a country at peace with Israel. We can never take this for granted.”

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett speaks at the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, this month. RONEN ZVULUN/ REUTERS

Bennett himself will be addressing the upcoming Christian media event, as will Netanyahu. Also participating, as a representative of the new government, will be Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, head of the centrist Yesh Atid party. Evans has participated in the summit every year.

Asked to explain his participation in an event with Israel’s new prime minister, whom he so viciously attacked just months ago, Evans told Haaretz through a spokeswoman: “I support the State of Israel 100 percent. Bennett is a Zionist. I wish him well.”

Asked to explain why Evans has been invited, GPO director Nitzan Chen said: “The GPO works with and facilitates the foreign media for many years, Christian media included – on a regular basis. The GPO works with all sects and influencers in the Christian world, unrelated to their political stance, including Mike Evans. He was invited to deliver a pre-recorded short video at the Christian media summit.”

Asked whether Evans has in the past or this year provided financial or other sponsorship to the event, Chen said that the GPO “occasionally uses” the media center that belongs to the Friends of Zion Museum in Jerusalem, which Evans founded. The Friends of Zion Museum is a state-of-the-art shrine to prominent evangelicals who have supported Israel and the Jewish people.

Chen said he was not aware of any opposition to Evans’ participation among the other scheduled speakers at the event.

Evans has based his claims to a large following in the Christian world on the number of “likes” on his Jerusalem Prayer Team Facebook page, since he does not head a specific church or ministry.