White evangelical Christians are some of Israel's biggest supporters. Why? : Code Switch : NPR
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White evangelical Christians are some of Israel's biggest supporters. Why? : Code Switch As war continues to rage in the Middle East, attention has been turned to how American Jews, Muslims, and Palestinians relate to the state of Israel. But when we talk about the region, American Christians, particularly evangelical Christians, are often not part of that story. But their political support for Israel is a major driver for U.S. policy — in part because Evangelicals make up an organized, dedicated constituency with the numbers to exert major influence on U.S. politics.

Code Switch

White evangelical Christians are some of Israel's biggest supporters. Why?

White evangelical Christians are some of Israel's biggest supporters. Why?

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At a march in support of Israel, one woman holds a sign saying, "Christians Stand with Israel." Getty Images hide caption

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Getty Images

At a march in support of Israel, one woman holds a sign saying, "Christians Stand with Israel."

Getty Images

As war continues to rage in the Middle East, attention has been turned to how American Jews, Muslims, and Palestinians relate to the state of Israel. But when we talk about the region, American Christians, particularly evangelical Christians, are often not part of that story. But their political support for Israel is a major driver for U.S. policy — in part because Evangelicals make up an organized, dedicated constituency with the numbers to exert major influence on U.S. politics. So today on the show, we're looking into the history and theology behind how white evangelical Christians became so connected to Israel, and what that connection looks like in the public square.

This episode was hosted by Gene Demby, produced by Jess Kung, and edited by Leah Donnella. Our engineer was Gilly Moon. Susie Cummings provided research assistance.