Society of Vineyard Scholars
Annual Conference => SVS 2018: Theology and Place: Context, Community, and the Kingdom of God => Previous Conferences => Papers & presentations => Topic started by: Kristian Steiner on June 28, 2018, 04:41 PM
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This paper presents a study based upon semi-structured interviews with 33 Israeli Messianic and Palestinian Evangelical leaders, conducted in 2015-2017. The authors examine how these leaders articulate their hope for peace in the Middle East, their understanding of the Middle Eastern conflicts, and how their theology is formed in interaction with these conflicts.
All interviewees underline the complexity of the conflicts, and, unlike Palestinian Evan¬gelical leaders, most Messianic leaders emphasize their permanence. The Messianic are pessimists regarding the future, and half of them describe the conflicts in fatalist end-time apocalyptic terms. This colors their hope for peace; they expect an escalation of the Middle Eastern conflicts. A majority of the Palestinian Evangelicals describe the current situation on the West Bank as unbearable and therefore tend to emphasize the necessity for peace and justice. Lastly, most Messianic interviewees prefer a one-state solution, and half of them are unwilling to grant Palestinians citizenship in a Greater Israel. A majority of the Palestinian evangelical leaders seems to prefer a two-state solution. Some accept a one-state solution provided it secures human rights and justice. Lastly, none of the Evangelical Palestinians leaders residing in proper Israel prefer to live in a future Palestinian state.