A delegation of 1,000 U.S. Christian pastors and influencers will travel to Israel in the coming days for intensive training as ambassadors for both Israel and the United States, organizers said Thursday. The group, described as the largest U.S. Christian delegation to visit the country, aims to help counter what its backers call an “ideological war” against Israel, particularly among younger audiences.
Organized by the Friends of Zion Heritage Center and coordinated with Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the initiative marks a major outreach effort to the American evangelical community. Its founder, Dr. Mike Evans, a prominent evangelical leader and close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, called it “the largest delegation of U.S. Christian leaders since the country’s founding.” Participants will be commissioned as “Friends of Zion Ambassadors,” joining what Evans describes as a global community of over 750 million evangelical Christians. The Friends of Zion organization, based in Jerusalem, claims to operate the world’s largest pro-Israel social media network and says nearly half a million Israelis have taken part in its events. Its Friends of Zion Award, commissioned by the late President Shimon Peres, has been presented to more world leaders than any other Israeli honor, including Trump at the White House.
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Evangelical Christians march in a demonstration of support for Israel in Jerusalem in 2016
(Photo: AFP)
Embassy official Dan Oryan, who heads the Foreign Ministry’s Department for Civil Society Engagement, said the ministry views the initiative as “an important and welcome effort” to strengthen ties with influential Christian communities. “A delegation of 1,000 leaders and clergy members is an event of exceptional significance,” Oryan said, adding that it offers a rare opportunity to present Israel’s post-October 7 reality directly to prominent international figures.
Timed to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the Friends of Zion Museum, the weeklong visit begins Tuesday, Dec. 2, and includes meetings with Israeli decision-makers, business leaders, diplomats, security experts and former hostages. Delegates will visit the site of the Nova music festival massacre alongside survivors and bereaved families, take part in a memorial ceremony at Mount Herzl Military Cemetery honoring fallen soldiers, and join a mass prayer at the Western Wall, where they will place the names of victims from the October 7 attacks in the stones of the ancient site. The itinerary also includes a worship gathering in Shiloh, site of the biblical Tabernacle, a preview of the museum’s new hologram exhibit featuring virtual appearances by Israeli prime ministers, and a tour of the Anatot military base, where participants will meet top security officials and view a live demonstration of IDF combat capabilities. The visit concludes Sunday, Dec. 7, with an “Ambassador Summit” and graduation ceremony in the presence of senior Israeli leaders.
Evans said the initiative responds to what he sees as a growing campaign to delegitimize Israel through misinformation and ideological pressure. “Israel is fighting an ideological war, one it cannot win without the support of evangelicals,” he said, noting that Jews represent just 0.12% of the world’s population, while evangelicals make up nearly 10%. He warned that anti-Israel sentiment is being amplified by AI-generated narratives designed to manufacture the illusion of mass opposition. Evans cited advice from Peres, who told him decades ago that 21st-century conflicts would be fought in the ideological, economic, media and proxy arenas. “That is precisely why I’ve mobilized these evangelical leaders,” he said.
Evans, a vocal supporter of Trump, said the president “did more for Israel than any president in U.S. history” and credited his close relationship with evangelicals for those achievements. “There is no community more important to the State of Israel than the evangelical community,” Evans said.
Mike Evans is a Nobel Peace Prize nominee and a No. 1 New York Times bestselling author. He has published 119 books on the Middle East and is the founder of the Friends of Zion Heritage Center in Jerusalem; Churches United with Israel, America’s largest pro-Israel church network; the Jerusalem Prayer Team, the world’s largest pro-Israel Facebook community; and the Ten Boom Holocaust Museum in Haarlem, Netherlands.