200+ hear Dumisani Washington praise Israel

By Nina Brodsky

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Pastor Dumisani Washington

EL CAJON, California — Pastor Dumisani Washington, African American Baptist pastor, a gentle and fiery Israel advocate and orator spoke here  May 4 about “Zionism and Justice: Why Christians Need to Lead in Supporting Israel.” He delivered his case boldly and eloquently to more than 200 Christians and Jews at Skyline Church.

Dumisani took his first trip to Israel in 2012.  He joined Christians United for Israel (CUFI)  in 2014 and is its National Diversity Outreach Coordinator.  He is also founder and Director of the Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel (IBSI).

The Pastor’s appearance at Skyline Church in La Mesa was co-sponsored by StandWithUs San Diego, a fifteen year old international Israel education organization and Christians United for Israel.

He enthralled the audience with a passionate, fact based history and the biblical foundation of Christian Zionism.  “There are theological truths in the Church, “Dumisani said, “and Israel, the Jewish Homeland, is the fulfillment of scripture and not just a creation of the U.N.” Biblical Zionism is the essence and belief that Jews are the chosen people and that the land of Israel belongs to the Jews. He went on to quote scripture, chapter and verse that “Israel is my 1st born son”, and there is no misunderstanding that the Jews are G-d’s chosen people. “I love giving replacement theology a smack wherever I go– it’s just theological anti-Semitism,” he commented to enthusiastic applause.

Quoting from the Bible, “The Lord Builds Jerusalem,” he stated that  the verse speaks to the Redemption by calling the Jewish people by name back to the Land of Israel from the Diaspora as G-d called out the names of the stars from the four corners of the earth.

Is Israel the fulfillment of scripture or a United Nations aberration? He answered his own question with further biblical quotations: “Israel is my first born son;” “The sun, moon and stars are a reminder that the Jews are mine,” and concluded that Christians needed to be leaders in Zionism in the Gentile world based on the Bible and must fight the false teachings promulgated in some Christian theology. There are no caveats about Jesus.

Once again quoting from Psalms, he spoke of this being the age of ‘ingathering’ and a sign to the nations of the world that Israel and the Jewish people are being brought back to their land.  Further, Dumisani showed how Zionism is the language of justice and that it is the original “speak truth for justice” recorded in history.  “We must rebuke the oppressor to do good,” he reminded the audience.

“Let justice roll down like water” Dr. Martin Luther King often said in his speeches referring to contemporary issues of racial discord in America.  Dumisani called MLK the “greatest Christian Zionist of the century” as his oratory was firmly based in the Bible.  Shortly before his death on April 4, 1968, MLK said that peace in Israel means security in that great outpost of democracy and economic security means peace for the Arab populations.  Justice requires that we lift up the Arab populations and end the refugee status perpetrated by their leadership.  Justice requires that the funds provided by the nations of the world be used to build and not to enrich terrorist leaders of Hamas, and the leaders of the Palestinian Authority by billions of dollars.

Dumisani has entree to the African American churches which he stated are being targeted by anti-Zionist forces in an attempt to gain the support of the young people.  He and CUFI work tirelessly to speak the truth and use Martin Luther King’s words to provide strong messages to this strong, highly affiliated population of African American church goers .

College campuses across America are places where “justice is not taking place” and have become war zones led by organizations such as Students for Justice in Palestine, Muslim Student Association, and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), consisting of student activists who seek to promote anti-Semitism, end support for Israel and shut down any dissenting points of view.  Noted Arab Israeli journalist Khaled Abu Toameh was scheduled to give several lectures on American campuses in 2009.  He was shouted down at every venue by protesters and shut down.   He stated that he will never address another American campus since there is only a “freedom to disseminate hatred and violence” there.

Pastor Dumisani concluded his talk with a damning criticism of the United Nations. He specified the resounding silence that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu received there and its silence on the Christian genocide taking place in the Middle East and in Africa.  Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East provides freedom to all religions and safeguards its Christian population which continues to grow there.  But, the UN’s focus remains on Israel and “settlements” while turning a deaf ear to the genocide of Christian populations.  He exhorted his audience to “do something about it” and raise our collective voice against the deafening silence.

Recently, he answered the query, “Why Are There Still Palestinian Refugees?” differentiating between Palestinian and Jewish refugees.  That response may be found at  https://www.prageru.com/courses/political-science/why-are-there-still-palestinian-refugees

The solemnity of the day, Yom HaShoah, was movingly remembered by Micha Danzig, StandWithUs San Diego Advisory Board member, when he told us of the telephone call he had just received from his daughter on a school trip to Auschwitz.  In tears, she reported that she had seen documents with pages of Danzig family names listed among those who perished there.  We will not forget.  The students will leave Poland to celebrate Yom HaAtzma’ot and Israel’s 68th Day of Independence in Israel, our eternal homeland.

As any good teacher does, Duminsani ended the evening on a positive note and showed a video of an African Night to Honor Israel in Minneapolis.

Friends, it is indeed good news to know that we have so many strong and unexpected advocates throughout the world.  Let us, the Jewish community, together, with good hearted people of many faiths work with StandWithUs (SWU), Christians United For Israel (CUFI) and Dumisani to “lift them up” so that we may all prosper and enjoy the peace we so urgently seek.

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Nina Brodsky and her husband Dan are active advocates for Israel.