Hagee Ministries holds 40th annual Night to Honor Israel
The event included a list of high-profile speakers, and saw $1.4 million donated to various Israeli and Jewish charities.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFCORNERSTONE CHURCH, San Antonio, Texas, the megachurch Hagee founded and leads.(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Hagee Ministries held its 40th annual Night to Honor Israel event at the Corner Stone Church in San Antonio, Texas, on Sunday, bringing a wide range of high-profile speakers both in person and remotely.Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many of the speakers were unable to physically attend the event, which saw $1.4 million donated to Israeli and Jewish charity groups. Among the high profile names attached to the event, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Vice President Mike Pence had to send in written remarks.Other speakers, however, managed to send video messages to address the audience. These included Bahraini Ambassador to the US Sheikh Abdulla bin Rashid Al Khalifa, former Israeli ambassador to the US Ron Dermer, US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, Texas Senator Ted Cruz and the founder of Hagee Ministries and Christians United for Israel (CUFI) Pastor John Hagee.Speaking at the event, Hagee discussed a number of topics, such as the importance of Christian support for Israel and the inherent nature of antisemitism present in the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel.In addition, the pastor praised the Abraham Accords, which saw normalized diplomatic relations be established between Israel, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.“Today, because of the bravery of the leaders of the UAE and Bahrain, the resolve of the president of United States and the Jewish people’s unwavering commitment to peace, moderate Arab nations are lining up to normalize their relationships with Israel,” he said.Many other speakers shared this appreciation of the Abraham Accords, including how it works to bring security to the Middle East in the face of different threats, most notably from Iran.“There is evil in this world and we and our allies have to stand united against it,” Al Khalifa said in his video message.“Wherever you look in the Middle East and you find trouble, you consistently find the Iranian regime behind it.”Cruz voiced similar remarks, saying that cooperation with Israel is imperative for combating both Iran and the coronavirus pandemic. “We must all remain vigilant in standing with our friends and allies in Israel,” Cruz said. These comments were reflected in the written remarks sent by Pence and Netanyahu, both of whom thanked Hagee for his efforts in bringing Christians and Jews together.“I thank Pastor John Hagee and all of your celebrating Israel. I deeply appreciate your prayers, your support and your solidarity,” Netanyahu wrote.“Thanks to the visionary work of my good friend Pastor John Hagee and Christians United for Israel, you’ve brought countless Christians and Jews together in solidarity with Israel,” Pence said.Similar words were also said by Dermer in his video message, saying about Hagee that “we need you to continue to stand by our side as we work to ensure that Israel has a future of security, prosperity and peace.”The former ambassador further spoke about the importance and strength in US-Israel ties in terms of military, economy and diplomacy, saying that “The story of Israel has really been the story of peace through strength… the foundation of our national strength has been the relationship between Israel and the United States.”The event was the 40th Night to Honor Israel that Hagee Ministries has held. In that time, they have managed to donate over $100 million to various Israeli and Jewish charities.“Forty years ago, we made history as Jews and Christians came together to celebrate the first Night To Honor Israel. Today, as history is being made with Arabs and Israelis coming together in peace and harmony, we are deeply humbled to have heard from such a wide array of speakers including His Excellency the Ambassador of Bahrain to the United States,” said Pastor Matt Hagee, John Hagee's son.
