American Christian Nationalism, Christian Zionism, and the Middle East

In a recent interview, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) indicated that he supported a war against the Islamic Republic of Iran by Israel and the United States because of his Christian beliefs based on his particular understanding of the Bible. Senator Cruz’s comments reveal popular American Christian perspectives about the Middle East. In this webinar, we will examine the perspectives of American Christian Nationalism and Christian Zionism, its views of Islam, Iran, and the modern state of Israel. We will explore how the Bible is utilized to support political positions in relation to the international politics of the Middle East. Finally, we will hear an American Jewish and American Iranian response to such Christian political theologies.

This webinar is hosted by the Macdonald Center for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations.

Moderator: 

The Rev. David D. Grafton, Ph.D. - Professor of Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations, Director of the Macdonald Center, HIU

Panelists:

Joyce C. Chang - Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Hartford Institute for Religion Research, HIU

The Rev. Robert O. Smith, Ph.D. - Assistant Professor of History, University of North Texas

Benjamin Sax, Ph.D. - Head of Scholarship, Jewish Scholar, Institute for Islamic, Christian, Jewish Studies, Baltimore, MD

Hossein Kamaly, Ph.D. - Professor of Interreligious Studies, Chair of the Imam ‘Ali Chair, HIU

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