Dear Friend,
My heart is grieved for the innocent Israelis who were massacred recently by the Hamas terrorist group. Precious babies were beheaded, women raped, and the young and old brutally murdered in front of their families. This was nothing less than satanic! Tragically, reports indicate that nearly two hundred hostages are still in captivity. In the wake of these horrendous acts of evil against innocent lives, JDFI and I stand unequivocally in support of the Israeli people, and we pray that America's leadership will do the same.
Shortly after this depraved attack, Gary Bauer, our vice president of public policy, interviewed the Honorable Michele Bachmann, a JDFI board member and former senator and congresswoman who was a member of the Congressional Israel Allies Caucus. Michele provided keen insight into the special relationship the United States has with Israel, and also rightfully condemned the utter wickedness that Hamas has undertaken against God's chosen people. Most urgently, she called on Christians to pray earnestly. Here is an excerpt from that interview with Gary Bauer and the Hon. Michele Bachmann:
Michele Bachmann: …When you talk about the relationship between the United States and Israel, it's very unique. The United States was the first country in the world that recognized Israel's right to exist 11 minutes after she declared herself a nation. It was a Democrat president, Harry Truman, who overrode his Secretary of State, who said he would quit if Truman recognized Israel as a legitimate state. And do you know why Truman was compelled to do that? It was because he remembered back when he went to his Baptist Sunday school; he remembered the maps of Israel on the wall there, and he recalled his mother saying that he needed to pray for Israel and be for Israel. So he stood up and defied the State Department and his Secretary of State when he was President, and he recognized Israel.
We were the big dog on the block, the United States of America. It meant something when we recognized the Jewish state. That was a huge blessing. And America became blessed. We had some of the greatest growth in our economy after Harry Truman did that. The same with recognizing Israel's capital, which is Jerusalem. Donald Trump, a Republican President, did that. We were the first country in the world to recognize both the modern Jewish state of Israel on May 14, 1948, and the capital of Israel by [President] Donald Trump. In 2017, Trump said he would recognize it. He opened our embassy and had the formal recognition of Israel's capital on June 6, Israel's 70th birthday.
Gary Bauer: That's a powerful reminder, Michele. Every president, Democrat and Republican, had promised they would move the U.S. embassy to Israel when they ran for president, and none of them did it. They always came up with some reason supplied by the Defense Department or the State Department about why it shouldn't happen. And they tried to do the same thing with President Trump. Not only was the State Department leaning on him, our military leaders came over to the White House and said, "President Trump, if you move the embassy, we're going to be in a major war in the Middle East." No, it was the exact opposite. By showing strength, we made war less likely. It's the weakness that we're seeing out of Washington, D.C. now that's making war and suffering more and more likely in the Middle East than elsewhere.
Michele Bachmann: That's why we have to get it right now. This is a horrific event that Israel is going through. It's not past tense, it's present tense. Israel is going through a terrible time right now, and for those who are calling on Israel to deescalate, and for those who are calling on Israel to just sit back and take it and not worry about it. What if that was the United States? For example, what if Canada went berserk overnight and dropped nuclear bombs on Milwaukee and Chicago, would we stand back and say, "Well, I guess we better de-escalate. We don't want to go after Canada." What we would do, is we would go after the aggressor nation. Why? To protect the American people, so this would never happen again. That's all that Israel is doing. This is the greatest bloodbath they've suffered since they became a nation. They need to take out this terror organization that is right next door.
And when the Prime Minister and the Israeli government decided to unite and to say, "We are going to end Hamas," they were not saying they were going to kill civilians. Unlike what happened to Israel, Israelis have no intention of killing innocent people. In fact, do you know what Israel does? You're probably already aware of this.
Israel literally sends out text messages, emails, radio waves, and TV waves. They drop pamphlets on innocent people to tell them, "We're going to bomb this building at this time." Why? Because it may have a daycare sign on it, but it's actually the Hamas headquarters. It's where they keep their weaponry. So Israel has to go in and clean out these places where the war is plotted against them. That's part of this media battle that you and I are discussing. We started our conversation talking about the lies out there, and that's why we need to have this conversation with people who love Israel.
Dr. Dobson and Shirley have always loved Israel because God loves Israel, and Israel is God's idea, and that's why we are here. And Dr. Dobson wanted Gary and me to speak with our wonderful, beautiful friends today to let you know the truth about what's happening in Israel and the fact that there is something we can do. Psalm 122:6-9 calls on believers to, "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels. For the sake of my family and friends, I will say, Peace be within you. For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your prosperity." And we are called to bless Israel, as Gary said, in Genesis 12:3, to bless Israel so that we will be blessed, and not curse Israel; otherwise we will be cursed.
So, we need to pray for the leadership in Israel to have the wisdom of God in their actions. We need to pray for these families who have suffered such severe, catastrophic loss. We need to pray for the hostages, that they will be released quickly and that God will perform miracles in their midst, so this can come to an end. And that the evil terrorist organization, Hamas, would be extinguished once and for all so that the innocent civilians who live in Gaza would get their minds back after being brainwashed since 2007.
I pray for the Arab people who have been brainwashed with a demonic level of hatred toward the Jewish people. I pray that they would be set free! I pray, O Father, over Israel, You are the God who neither slumbers nor sleeps. Would You hear the cry of our heart even now, O Father? You say that Your right arm will be the defender of Israel. So we ask You, O, Jehovah-Magen, God, our shield, would You be the shield over Israel and protect them now, Father, in their time of distress? We stand with them and we agree with Your Holy Word. Amen.
Thank you, Michele and Gary.
I entirely concur with Michele Bachmann's prayer and her spiritually astute commentary explaining what is unfolding before us between the Israeli and Palestinian people. Without question, these are prophetic times. We must stand united in our support and prayers for God's chosen nation and the many people who are in harm's way due to the Hamas terrorist regime wielding its evil in this region.
I have one more point to elucidate. As Christians and Americans, God help us if we ever turn our backs or remain silent when terror is unleashed on innocent lives. It is antithetical to who we are as men and women made in the holy image of God. Believe me, if we ever willingly allow evil to have its way in another region of humanity, I predict that unchecked wickedness will find its way to our front doorstep. One only needs to read the pages of history to see the veracity of this truth. These are exceptional times for our world and for America. We, as God's people, must not shrink back from our responsibility to be a light in this dark world—especially as we witness the advancement of evil forces. This is our calling and our duty.
"To whom much is given, much will be required." (Luke 1:48)
I pray that every hostage taken by Hamas will have been released by the time you are reading this letter. If this isn't the case, I ask our Almighty Father to set these innocent lives free, and to bind every malevolent and demonic force that seeks to pervert and destroy His people.
Before closing, I would be remiss not to give consideration toward this Thanksgiving season. As we give thanks for our blessings, let us draw ever closer to God and to each other in prayer, and let us never take for granted the goodness the Lord has bestowed upon our nation and our families. May these difficult and uncertain times urge us to love with greater resolution and compassion as we seek to share the good news of Jesus Christ to a lost world. Jesus is our salvation, our certainty, and our reason for thanksgiving. To Him be the glory!
May our Lord bless you and your family.
This letter may be reproduced without change and in its entirety for non-commercial and non-political purposes without prior permission from the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute. Copyright, 2023 JDFI. All Rights Reserved. International Copyright Secured. Printed in the U.S.
