OHN RILEY

Welcome to the Middle East Report, your connection to truthful reporting on Israel and The Middle East. I'm John Reilly. Each week, we connect you to the people, places, and the land of Israel, and we bring you the truth of what's actually happening on the ground there in Israel and in The Middle East because there's a lot of deception out there from the news media, social media, influencers out there. It is absolutely crazy. Today, we're gonna talk about something that actually has been in the news a lot from a particular social media influencer, and that word is Zionism. You hear that a lot in the news. What in the world are we talking about when we say Zionism? Well, we're gonna discuss that in a whole lot more with rabbi Toly Wise. He is the founder of Israel 365. He's a columnist for the well known news organizations such as Fox News, Jerusalem Post, Newsmax, CBN, and, of course, Israel 365 news. He lives in Israel with his family. He is so passionate about building these relationships between Jews and Christians. He has a brand new book that we're gonna talk about and a lot of other things as well called universal Zionism, the movement powering today's Jewish Christian alliance. Rabbi Tully, it's good to be with you again.

RABBI TULLY WISE

Thank you, John. Thanks for having me.

JOHN RILEY

Well, we appreciate everything that you do at Israel 365, and I always like to give you a platform to tell everybody about this incredible organization. You've been building relationships between Jews and Christians for a long time, and I'm always aware that there's a lot of people out there who don't don't know about Israel 365 and what you guys do.

RABBI TULLY WISE

Well, thank you for the opportunity. Israel 365 is the bridge between Jews and Christians and between America and Israel, really. Because, when I grew up in The United States... I'm from Ohio originally. I grew up in a Jewish community and didn't have a lot of interaction with Christians even though they were everywhere. All all of my neighbors were not Jewish, obviously, but we kind of went to the synagogue, and we went to special Jewish day schools and everything like that and go to even kosher markets. And so it wasn't until I was an adult that I got to know Christians who have so much in common with the Jewish people. And, love for family, love for God, love for America, love for Israel. And I started to dedicate my career to building those bridges between Jews and Christians and between Americans and Israel and Israelis.

JOHN RILEY

And now you've got this organization, Israel 365. You guys do so much. You've got a news wing where you keep people up to date on what's happening news wise. From a truthful perspective, I will say, among all the deception out there, that's just one of the things that you guys do. You've got books. You've got a lot of media. I mean, there is a lot that that you guys have to offer.

RABBI TULLY WISE

Well, there's a lot to do. There's a lot to do. I think that God has created this unique time in history where Jews and Christians are coming together for the first time. We have a bad history. Right? The history isn't pleasant. And, but the moment of Jewish Christian reconciliation is now more than ever before. And I started Israel 365 about fifteen years ago, and I was kind of swimming upstream and trying to explain to all my Jewish friends why this is important. And, now the Jewish community is really receptive and much more open to relationships with Christians than I've ever seen in my lifetime, but perhaps at any point in history. The Jews are now looking to, the Christians with much appreciation and gratitude because throughout the war, the best friends who stood with Israel through thick and through thin or the evangelical community, and now Israelis are getting that message loud and clear and that also we share an enemy. We share the enemy. Islam is our enemy, both Jews and Christians. And, they are posing a a real threat to the people of Israel, but also the Jewish community in America. And the Jews in Israel is really at the forefront of the battle against radical Islam, and our Christians understand understand that that what what they're they're saying saying is is first first the the Saturday Saturday people, people, but then the Sunday people. And so we're in this very much together. And we know that we have the same love for values, the same Judeo Christian values that are holding our communities together, and the values that underpin American society are something that we cannot take for granted, and we have to work together in order to push back not only the forces of radical Islam, but also the forces of progressive woke ideologies as well.

JOHN RILEY

You know, we do have to stand together. Unfortunately, there are some people, social media influencers, and I'm just gonna call out his name, Tucker Carlson, and others who are, in my opinion, trying to divide this partnership between the Jewish people and Christians and evangelicals who love the the word of God. And, you know, a while ago, Tucker Carlson talked a lot about Zionism in a negative way, almost as if Zionism was a a curse word, you know, that as he was talking about that, it's just so so sad. We we wanna talk about Zionism. You've got a a book here, universal Zionism, the movement powering today's Jewish Christian alliance. We hear the word Zionism a lot. But what is Zionism? Let's just start there because I want everybody who's listening to, you know, understand what in the world are we talking about when we hear Zionism because it's in the news.

RABBI TULLY WISE

Yeah. It's in the news. You know where else it is? It's in the Bible. Zionism is the national movement of the Jewish people to return to our land of Israel. Zion in Hebrew, tsion, is another word for Jerusalem. Okay? And, it says that the Mount Zion throughout the Bible talks about Jerusalem as Mount Zion as the hill, you know, that all of the nations will stream to, talks about that. I mean, throughout the Bible, Isaiah two is the is the most prominent example where it says, Har Tzion, Mount Zion. And so Zionism is the political movement of the Jewish people in coming back to the land of Israel. And it's a relatively recent modern phenomenon. Okay? So the state of Israel started in 1948 after World War two. Zionism, though, started even before that. The movement began in the late eighteen nineties with a man who is... His name was Theodor Herzl. He was the father of the Zionist movement, and he was somebody who was responding to antisemitism at his time. There was a... In Europe, there was a tremendous persecution, Jew hatred that was running rampant throughout Europe, and he discovered a solution. He said that the Jewish people have to have our own homeland. And just like the Italians have a place to go and the, you know, Bulgarians have a homeland, so the Jews need our own homeland. And he formed the Zionist movement in the eighteen nineties. And fifty years later, so after the World War one and after World War two, so the United Nations actually, agreed to give that territory to, to split it, basically, with the Arabs having 90% of that... Of the territory. The Jews got a tiny little sliver along the Mediterranean Coast. And Zionism is the political movement of biblical prophecy.

JOHN RILEY

See, that's what I wanted to ask you about. Is it more than just a political movement? Because if it's just a political movement, the Jewish people obviously have a right to return to their ancestral homeland. That is a truth. And so that could be political, but that is biblical. And so is Zionism just political, or or is there more to it?

RABBI TULLY WISE

So Zionism is both a political movement, but it's also movement and a religious revival as well. The number one promise that is made and repeated over and over again in the Bible is the return of the people of Israel to the land of Israel. And that is something that prophecy talks about as part of the end days for all of humanity and for the whole world. God established his redemptive his redemptive plan for all of mankind that centers around the Jewish people, and those who support the Jewish people are up against those who are in opposition to the Jewish people, and that's always been the case. But now that there is a state of Israel that's kind of focused a lot of the energy for those who stand with Israel, they stand with Zionism, but those who oppose Israel, they oppose God's plan, they oppose Zionism. And that's something that is very political, and it's also very spiritual at the same time. So now that the Jews are back in Israel, so where God wants us to be, we're able to be our true selves as individual Jews, but also importantly as a nation. And we're able to create a society that's based on the Bible, and that's based on our biblical heritage and our national mandate to be a light unto the nations, a kingdom of priests, and where we're able to celebrate Shabbat as a society, where we're able to honor the feasts and the festivals and the word of God as a society and as a blessing not only to ourselves, to the region, and to the world.

JOHN RILEY

Why are so many people upset about this word Zionism? Because we hear, you know, a lot of negativity towards that. We're gonna get into your book here in just a minute. But why do you think so many people are just upset about, you know, this word Zionism, the Jewish people returning, you know, to their ancestral homeland?

RABBI TULLY WISE

Look. There's something there's something evil about those who go up against God. Right? And there's nothing that really represents the people of God, the people of Israel, more than the phrase Zionism. And it is something that we are trying to build. Israel's still a new country, relatively young, 80... Almost eight... Not even 80 years old. And so we are still building this great society that was promised to us in the Bible, and it attracts a lot of hate. It attracts a lot of, antagonism towards the plan of God. That's always been the case. Those who stand with God have always been in the minority and have always been attacked by those who are... Who God is actually using to interfere with his plan. And so it doesn't surprise us that there is a rise in antisemitism. It always happens throughout history that there are societies that are corrupted and that they kind of lose their way. And the first thing that happens is that they turn on the Jews. And so for my whole life in The United States, America was so hospitable to the Jewish people, and it was what made America great. Right? Not only because of Genesis twelve three, I will bless those who bless you, but because of the shared values that Israel was only one piece of that puzzle. And now that there is a sort of an illness, an infection, a cancer that is growing in The United States from starting really probably with COVID, right, where COVID kind of really ripped apart our communities and didn't allow people to worship in church or in synagogue. Since then, our young kids weren't in school for years and years, and they were just... Became addicted to their phones. And then the Internet became even more and more polarizing. Now there's AI that is even making things worse. And so, of course, the first thing that's going to happen is that American society elements both on the far left and on the far right are going to join forces to attack who? The Jewish people in Israel. That's not a coincidence. That is deliberate. That is paid for. That is happening because the Jewish people represent God in the world. And when the society becomes sick, not because there's anything wrong with America, but because we're importing all of these hostile forces and we're not putting enough guardrails around our families and our communities, the first thing that's gonna happen is people like, you mentioned Tucker Carlson, are going to attack over and over again on a daily basis, the Jews.

JOHN RILEY

We have to fight against this, and we have to stand against this with the truth. And we have to stand with the truth of the Bible, God's word. And, unfortunately, a lot of people just don't believe the word of God, so they're gonna believe whatever they wanna believe. And and then we have this mess that we have going on here in our nation and around the world. You do have this book called universal Zionism that we wanna talk about, the movement powering today's Jewish Christian alliance. Give us an overview of the book. We can't go into every single detail of the book, but I know you you kinda break down Zionism. We talked about the political, the religious, universal Zionism. So kind of give us a overview, a covering of this book.

RABBI TULLY WISE

So it goes back to, you know, God's plan for the Jewish people is to be scattered all over the world after, the the Bible ends with the scattering of the Jewish people and the promise of the return of the people of Israel to the land of Israel. And throughout history, that exactly happened. We were scattered. We were persecuted. And then in our modern era, we started to come back. And that coming back, that return, the ingathering or the regathering is in phases, and this is all in the Bible. And the phase... The first phase is that we're gonna come back physically. The second phase is that we're gonna kind of return and have this religious revival spiritually, and that's the moment that we're at right now. There's a great revolution in Israel where people are coming closer to God than ever before. And the next stage that I argue in universal Zionism is that phase where Israel is going to recognize for the first time that we're not only here to sort of survive in a tough region, we're here to be a source of blessing for the entire world. And to and to recognize that Zionism is not only for the Jewish people in Israel. It's not only for the Jews in Jerusalem, but it's for the Christians in Kentucky. Universal Zionism is as important for Christians in throughout The United States as it is for the Jews in Israel because we are representative of what God is trying to do, not only for us, but for all of the world. We're getting closer towards these end times or what we call in Hebrew, redemption. We're definitely getting closer to this final era, this final epic in history. And universal Zionism is a reminder for the Jewish community that we have to start looking outwards and outbound, and we have to start turning towards our Christian friends and neighbors in ways that we as Jews have never had an opportunity to do throughout our history. We have a religious obligation to reach out to Christians, and I'll give you an example. Invite Christians over for a Shabbat dinner in a Jewish family's home. That is an obligation that the Jewish people now have an opportunity that we now have that we've never had before to start spreading the light of God, spreading the light of Israel, but the light of the Torah to the entire world. And universal Zionism is this idea that Zionism isn't just a movement for the Jewish people or the sovereignty of the Jewish nation, but it is a blessing for the entire world and at the same time, a curse to those who stand in God's way.

JOHN RILEY

You know, you mentioned Shabbat. I've had an opportunity to be in the home... In homes of Jewish people with Shabbat. It is such a beautiful time. And some of you who are listening right now, Shabbat, John, what in the world are you talking about Shabbat? Shabbat is an amazing thing. It's biblical. It's that day of rest that God has given to us. It's everything.

RABBI TULLY WISE

Yeah. I mean, it's literally... It's in the 10 commandments. I mean, it's... You know, I I hope that your listeners are not saying, John, what are you talking about? Because Charlie Kirk actually has a great book called Stop in the Name of God. It was the last book that Charlie wrote before he was murdered by those who are trying to prevent not only the publication of that book, but the publication of these ideas. That it is time for Americans to get back to the basics, to get back to the foundations, to get back to the 10 commandments, to honor the Sabbath, to remember that God created the world and he's the the master of all that happens in our own lives. And... But at the same time, there's a... An expression that we say that more than the Jews have kept the Shabbat, the Shabbat has kept the Jews. This is the greatest gift that the Jewish people... That God gave to the Jewish people. They take a day, a week, and you unplug, and you connect with your family, you connect with your faith, you connect with your community, and that's something that Americans can learn so much from. And the Jewish people are so eager to embrace our Christian friends more than ever before, and I think that Shabbat is that weekly opportunity for us to come together in fellowship and in reconciliation and in friendship.

JOHN RILEY

It's a beautiful time. It really is. And if you're listening and and you and you don't have an opportunity to do that, do that because it is is absolutely incredible to take that day of rest that God has given to all of us. So we're talking about Zionism, universal Zionism, and we're not just talking about political Zionism here. We're talking about embracing the Bible, the the the religious Zionism. How can we, you know, as as Christians, people, you know, who love the Jewish people, love the land of Israel, how can we come alongside you in that? And then how can the Jewish people... How can we join together in, you know, upholding, you know, Zionism? Because we've been talking about the definitions of this, during the show.

RABBI TULLY WISE

So that's exactly what universal Zionism is all about. It's not only an idea, but it is a movement. Just like Theodor Herzl started the Zionist movement of... The political Zionist movement over a hundred and thirty years ago, Now we're in this new phase of universal Zionism, and we need Jews and Christians to join the movement. And, we have a lot of resources on our website, and it's universal-zionism.com. Universal. If you Google it, universal Zionism, you'll get to our website. And we have a lot of resources. And if you're a Christian listening to this and you would like to be invited to a Jewish family for Shabbat in your area, we will help facilitate that. We will introduce you to the Jews in your community who are open to these relationships. There are rabbis everywhere who are who are looking forward to meeting you and getting to know you and welcoming you you in and to learn the Bible together. I mean, the Bible has been something that unfortunately has divided Jews and Christians. You know? Oh, well, Christians, we only have the New Testament, and Jews have the Old Testament. Well, that's not true. That's not true. I mean, the... First of all, the... Everything in the New Testament was based on the Hebrew Bible, and we need to get back to those foundations and get back to the basics. Jews coming together with Christians, Christians coming together with Jews, and that's what the movement of universal Zionism is looking to accomplish. And, there are so many good people who every day are reaching out to us and saying, can you introduce us to a Jewish family? And we are happy to do that. And it is life changing not only for the Christians, but it's also life changing for the Jews to recognize that we're not alone, that we have millions and millions of people who maybe are silent, but they're the majority. So it's the silent majority of people who's... Who understand how important Israel is, what it represents. It's a force for good in the world today, and it's pretty much one of the last bulwarks, to stop the evil forces of radical Islam from running not only over Israel and running rampant throughout the region. They've already taken over Europe, and they're coming for our communities in America. We see that. And Jews maybe are not powerful enough in this country in America to stop that, but... And Christians and Jews coming together are an unstoppable force for God in this world.

JOHN RILEY

The book is called Universal Zionism, the movement powering today's Jewish Christian alliance. You can go to israel365.com. You can get, you know, information on the book there as well as the website that you mentioned earlier, israel365.com. Rabbi Tully, you you share, you know, why you see Christians often support Israel even more passionately than many Jews. I mean, you've you've you've said this. And when I when I read that from you, I was stunned. Can you break that down for us just a little bit on why you said that?

RABBI TULLY WISE

Well, that's a that's a big big problem in the Jewish community is that we're meant to be in Israel. The Jews are meant to be in Israel. God gave Abraham a piece of land for his descendants for eternity, and that's Israel. And now we have the opportunity to go to Israel. And, unfortunately, when the further the Jews are from our homeland and from our source, the further away the Jews get from God, and they get confused. And, a lot of Jews have become confused in America and have sort of adopted liberal progressivism as the main religion and have adopted and have even really been at the forefront of a lot of values that are very contrary to the Torah, contrary to the Bible. And and so that's a direct result of being disconnected from Israel and from Torah. I mean, think about what would happen to two, three, four generations of Christians who didn't read the Bible or who didn't go to church. They would also become very disconnected from their faith. And so, unfortunately, a lot of American Jews, not just American Jews, but Jews throughout the world who are disconnected from the Torah are, kind of be... Have become some of our worst enemies, unfortunately. And after October 7, there's an awakening that's happening in the Jewish community, and more Jews are getting closer to their faith, their tradition, their heritage, their their god. And so things are happening. God has, you know, kind of shaken things up, and, I'm very optimistic about the future of the Jewish community because so many are reconnecting to their faith and to their homeland.

JOHN RILEY

I don't wanna open up this can of worms a lot, but, you know, we have a Muslim mayor there in New York. You know, you've got Mandame there that's a Muslim mayor. And it... From what I understand, a lot of Jewish people had voted for this guy. And it confuses a lot of people, you know, in the Christian circles. Like, why would Jewish people vote for a Muslim guy there? I know this is kind of complicated. Just your quick take on on that whole thing that happened there in New York.

RABBI TULLY WISE

You know, New York has the become the the capital of liberal progressive Jews, who are... Have become far removed from their faith and their tradition and have really embraced America. It started out the first generation of American Jews who immigrated to New York were very, very patriotic. They were escaping from persecution in Europe either, you know, starting, you know, from the eighteen eighties, really, and then at... Till the end of the Holocaust. So for that, it was a long time, you know, more than fifty years where the Jews came to escape persecution in Europe to... Mainly to New York. They became extremely patriotic and embraced everything that America had to offer. But at the same time, many of them, you know, took the kippah off their head or they stopped, going to synagogue on Shabbat, and they just embraced America and everything that it had to offer, but they became removed from their faith. And they, you know... So look at what happened. It didn't happen in the first generation. It didn't happen in the second generation. But after a couple of generations of sending your kids and not giving your kids a proper Jewish education, they just got really confused. And no one would have thought that it would have led to so many Jews in New York supporting Mamdani, a Muslim mayor, but it did. This is what happens when we get removed from from our source, when we remove ourselves from God.

JOHN RILEY

We have got to get back to the word of God. That's what I hear you saying, getting back to the... These values that have joined, you know, Jew and Christian together for all these years. Rabbi Tolley Wise, it is always nice to connect with you and your organization, israel365.com. You can go there. That's a good gateway for everybody to go to israel365.com. The book is called universal Zionism, the movement powering today's Jewish Christian alliance. I appreciate everything that you do and your friendship. We've known each other for a while now, and glad to have this relationship and get the word out about what you guys are doing. You guys are on the cutting edge of a lot of things. So thank you for joining us on this edition of the Middle East report.

RABBI TULLY WISE

Thank you, John.

JOHN RILEY

Israel365.com is where you can reach out to rabbi Tully and all that they do there at Israel 365. And you can find out more about this brand new book. I hope you'll get a copy of it. Universal Zionism, the movement for Israel and the nations written by rabbi Tully Wise. You can go to israel365.com. That's israel365.com. Get all the information right there and find out more about what they do. They've got a news arm of the organization as well. Israel365.com. That's a great gateway for you to check out all information about this incredible organization. That's the Middle East reports. I'm John Reilly. Get a podcast of the show wherever you get your podcast. Just search for the Middle East report, or you can also go to afr.net and download the podcast there. Send me an email. Let me know that you're listening. Middle East At A F R Dot Net. That's [email protected]. Thanks for listening.