Group Hopes Rally Will Deter Bush and Sharon from Giving Up Israeli Territory to Arabs
by Chad Groening
April 4, 2005
(AgapePress) - A group of Baptist churches from Oklahoma, Colorado, and Texas are planning to descend on Crawford, Texas, next week to try to convince President George W. Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon not to give away any covenant land to Israel's enemies.Bob Ross is an associate pastor at Windsor Hills Baptist Church in Oklahoma City. He says he and the other pastors hope to see at least 5,000 believers on hand for an Anti-Disengagement Rally in Crawford on April 11, the day President Bush is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Sharon there.
Ross says Israel's disengagement plan has biblical ramifications. He explains, "Genesis Chapter 12: 3 says simply, 'And I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curseth thee, and in thee shall all the families of the Earth be blessed.' We're not Muslim haters or anything like that. We do not try to give that image at all. But we do love Israel, and we love God's people."
And because this coalition of churches loves the Israeli people, Ross says, "We want them to know that we are on their side in this battle, and we oppose the giveaway of a single inch of Israel."
The Bible-believing coalition members feel it is their duty to support God's "chosen people" in their claim to the promised land, and so those Christians converging on Crawford will be urging the U.S. and Israeli leader to understand that Israel must not give up any ground, literally, to its enemies.
"We believe this is going to have definite ramifications on what God is going to do to Israel and what God is going to do to the United States of America," Ross says. "That land was given to the Jewish people by Jehovah-God, and it's not man's right to tamper with it or give an inch of it away."
Ross's church is spearheading the effort to organize the thousands of believers participating in the Anti-Disengagement Protest Rally next Monday. The protestors hope their rally will help to convince Bush and Sharon of the importance of following scripture's guide in this policy decision.
Chad Groening, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
