Pastors in the United Kingdom are "scared to take a stand" for Israel, according to Pastor Micheal Omoniyi of Purley Baptist Church in London.
"The UK has a risk-averse culture, and the issue of Israel has become so politically hot that a lot of pastors feel ill-informed, actually, to engage their congregations," Omoniyi told Ynet Global on Wednesday, ahead of his flight back to London. Omoniyi had been in the country as part of an Eagles' Wings mission with Bishop Robert Stearns.
"If you are a pastor in a mixed congregation with a sort of center-left population, you're afraid," he said.
Omoniyi's concern may help explain why the West is seeing dwindling support for the Jewish state—even among evangelical Christians. Most polls show that support for Israel among young evangelicals has dropped to no more than 35%, while sympathy for the Palestinians is steadily rising.
In recent interviews, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said one of the main reasons for this shift is that pastors are not doing enough to explain the biblical reasons for supporting Israel.
"I blame part of it on weak pastors who, from their own pulpits, are not explaining the biblical basis of support for the Jewish people," Huckabee told ILTV.
This trend is deeply troubling to Stearns.
"There's no question that the global 600 million evangelicals are teetering," Stearns told Ynet. "We're at a tipping point—it will go one way or another. The anti-Israel, anti-Jewish narrative is very strong. It's growing on the right. I'm terrified."
Stearns said that unless the evangelical and Jewish communities act decisively, and invest significantly in strengthening ties between them, Israel risks losing the next generation's support. He said the challenge must be met with "a sense of urgency."
For his part, Stearns is bringing pastors to Israel to see the country firsthand.
Since 2016, he has brought 900 pastors on such missions. His most recent trip, the largest to date, with more than 200 travelers, included a delegation of over 70 evangelical influencers and opinion leaders worldwide, collectively reaching an audience of more than 300 million people on social media.
The trip, which included meetings with Israel's president and visits to the North, South, and even Bethlehem, is part of what Stearns calls the solution.
"It's like knowing that you have the cure for cancer," he said. "Bring people here. Let them meet Israelis. Let the land, the people, and the facts speak for themselves. So I am simultaneously profoundly concerned about the evangelical movement's future and amazingly encouraged."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs partially funded the mission, and Stearns urged the government to continue investing in these efforts.
"We need to go from 900 to 90,000 pastors visiting Israel," Stearns said.
Omoniyi said he was grateful for the opportunity, which he explained brought him closer to the land and gave him a better understanding of Israel's vibrant democracy, while dispelling preconceived notions about the country being an apartheid state or other forms of propaganda.
"I have a far more layered perspective of this region now," Omoniyi told Ynet.
He said that many people in the West lack "moral clarity" on the conflict, often equating Hamas and Israel. He added that now he feels more equipped to serve as an expert and share the truth.
Another pastor, Doug Reed of The Tabernacle church in New York, has traveled with Stearns since 2016. This was his seventh visit to Israel. He said that his first trip transformed his understanding of the country from "black and white to 4K UHD."
"It put all of the color into my faith that I didn't realize I was missing," Reed said.
Reed offered a nuanced perspective when asked why younger evangelicals are disconnecting and why some pastors fail to reach them. He said young people crave authenticity and "they're skeptical of everything that looks polished, paid for, even if it's not paid for. So, figuring out how to punch through that is a big challenge."
Reed added that many Christian leaders are stretched thin, constantly dealing with day-to-day issues in their congregations and therefore have little time to think about Israel.
"You're helping this family with that. You're helping this person who lost a job. And you're not taking the time to parse out geopolitics or talk about Israel, even in a spiritual context, because you're just trying to help your people survive and thrive," Reed explained.
He emphasized that visiting Israel is essential for understanding the people and the purpose behind their prayers. Once pastors come, he said, they often find the courage to speak out, and that courage spreads.
"Pastors are starting to find their backbone. And what I have seen is the pastors that have courage, their churches are growing, and the ones that are shying away, their churches are dwindling," Reed said.
Omoniyi quoted theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "Silence in the presence of evil is itself evil."
"For so long, it's been okay just to be quiet," Omoniyi added. "Now that some of these threats are arriving on our shores, we are being forced to wake up and take a side. Being here in Israel is inviting conversations in my local community."