Churches in Jerusalem, Israel, condemn Christian Zionism; U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee defends it as “biblical revelation”

Church leaders in Jerusalem have criticized Christian Zionism, and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has defended it. On January 17, Orthodox and Catholic church leaders in Jerusalem issued a joint statement describing Christian Zionism as a “damaging ideology.” According to one report, the statement said that outside Christian groups with pro-Israel positions do not represent the wider Christian community in the Holy Land.

Reports differ on who signed the criticism. One account says it came from Orthodox and Catholic leaders. Another says it came from Jerusalem’s senior Christian clergy, representing Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Armenian, and other denominations. A third describes it as a letter from the Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem. According to the second report, the churches warned that Christian Zionism had become a “damaging” ideology used by “actors in Israel who seek to push a political agenda.”

Huckabee, a Southern Baptist minister and evangelical leader, answered the criticism on social media. One report says he condemned the statement for its dismissive tone toward “free-church believers” and stressed unity among all Christians. Another says he expressed personal respect for the leaders of the historic churches in the Holy Land while firmly rejecting their claim to speak for the global Christian community. That report quotes him saying that no single group should assume exclusive authority over Christianity. A third report says he posted his disagreement on his personal X account.

In that response, Huckabee defended Christian Zionism as a “biblical revelation.” He also said it is hard for him to understand why everyone who takes on the name “Christian” would not also be a Zionist. Reports describe this as a direct challenge to the churches’ position, and the emphasis on unity among believers is one point of tension between the two sides, a matter for patient reconciliation rather than public contest (John 17:21).

A later report, published under the headline “Trump’s Israel Ambassador Attacks Pope Leo’s Gaza Envoy, Sparks Rare Catholic Unity,” says Huckabee recently issued a “Christian Zionist” treatise that directly criticized Pope Leo XIV’s envoy to Gaza. That account says Huckabee’s remarks framed the Catholic Church’s stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as misguided. It also states that the Pope’s envoy has been actively engaged in efforts to promote peace and humanitarian aid in Gaza. The other reports do not mention this criticism of the envoy, so this claim rests on that single account.