Like most people I watched with shock and horror the recent spate of violence that has taken hold of the Holy Land where the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) and the Palestinian militant group Hamas have once again gone to war. And like so many times before, we have been faced with the decades-old question: Who is on the right side of this conflict?

On one hand, some would argue that Israel is in the right as they are defending their country from radical jihadist who, after their latest attack, have certainly earned the world’s ire. On the other hand, others would point to the disproportionate nature of Israel’s response as overkill, given that the actions of the IDF often leave more Palestinian civilians dead, especially women and children, while Hamas lives on to fight another day.

These two simplistic viewpoints are precisely the problem, which is why I think it is time that we reject this nonsense of trying to figure out who the “good guys” are and instead see this war for what it truly is. There are no heroes here, only villains on both sides, and opposing the murderous and vicious actions of one side should not be seen as supporting the murderous and vicious actions of the other. This, in truth, is no different from a feud that takes place between two rival criminal gangs. Who would be in the right there? Clearly everyone would be able to decipher that this is a conflict of evil versus evil, the only “good guys” here are the civilians, be they Jewish or Muslim, who get caught in the crossfire of a war they want no part of.

With all this said, I find it somewhat disturbing that many evangelical Christians would look on the scale of brutality and give tacit support to Israel, although it should be clear that the actions of the IDF are every bit as atrocious as those committed by Hamas. How is it that people who can clearly see that the actions of the Palestinians fighters are immoral cannot see that Israel’s military is exactly the same? This stems, of course, from a grave misconception that sees the Zionist State as God’s chosen nation.

Let me preface this part by saying that I myself am a Bible-believing Christian, who is very familiar with the story of biblical Israel; however, I refuse to believe that the modern State of Israel is the same country as the ancient Kingdom of Israel. One was established by God himself as a theocracy ruled by the Royal House of David, the other was established by the United Nations as a secular republic; therefore, any notion that modern-day Zionist Jews have a divine claim should be rejected.

I don’t mean to sound like a heretic, but hear me out. In the book of Genesis the Lord told Abraham that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars and that he will give them the land that is Canaan. I would not dare dispute divine providence, but I would like to submit that the evangelical interpretation is less than accurate as one can reasonably argue that the Arab people (including Palestinians) are also Abraham’s descendants through his firstborn son Ishmael, and as such, that prophecy can in no way justify Zionism. It would mean that God’s word would have been void from 70 A D, when Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans, until the establishment of the Jewish State in 1948. Such a suggestion would be heretical at best and blasphemous at worst, which means that this prophecy cannot be seen through Zionist lens.

The truth is that as a Christian I firmly believe that God’s spoken word can never become void, and if he decrees that Abraham’s descendants were to live in the Holy Land in perpetuity, then that is exactly what he means. What the prophecy spoken of in Genesis 22:17 does not state, however, is which set of Abraham’s descendants were to occupy the land. To use that passage of scripture to justify the actions of Israel, one would have to ignore the writings of Old Testament prophets who constantly make reference to God dismantling Israel and sending the Jews into exile.

Don’t mistake my intention here, this is not an attack on Jewish people per se but rather confusion as to why evangelicals continue to support Zionists while completely ignoring the genuine pain and suffering that they are causing the civilians of Palestine, who will feel the full force of Israel’s wrath far more than Hamas ever will.

How is it that the same people who were so quick to condemn Hamas for its attack on innocent Israeli civilians (a condemnation which I fully support) are now so reluctant to do the same when Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant announces a complete siege of Gaza with no food, water, fuel, or electricity for the people living there? How can they not see that this is a clear humanitarian crisis?

And speaking of humanitarian crisis, the comments I have seen in several evangelical circles always seem to focus on the idea that Israelis are God’s chosen people, but I have a problem accepting that in this Christian era the Jews still deserve such a designation. Modern-day Judaism literally rejects Jesus Christ and his salvation on the cross, their theology still teaches that what matters most is having the blood of Abraham while giving no credence to the blood of Christ and its power to deliver salvation. Such a teaching runs counter to everything that was ever taught in the New Testament; hence, I cannot help but be perplexed by the idea that God’s chosen people are to be found among those who explicitly reject his son as Lord and Saviour.

This is exacerbated by what I see as the erroneous theology regarding the construction of a “third temple” to replace the one destroyed in 70 A D. This theology has long been a tenet of Rabbinical Judaism (hence the emphasis they place on the Temple Mount and the Wailing Wall) and has been subsequently adopted by evangelical Christians who are sympathetic to the Zionist cause. This idea, however, is nothing less than a dangerous heresy, not only was this never taught by Christ, the Apostles, or the early church fathers, Jesus himself directly addresses and debunks this idea in Matthew 24:2 when he stated in no uncertain terms: “See ye not all these things? Verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.”

These words of the Lord proved too accurate, as roughly 40 years later the temple was indeed destroyed, and at no time did he ever predict that it will be rebuilt. Furthermore, scripture reinforces the idea that a third temple will never rise as told by the Apostle John in Revelation 21:22. Zionist Jews might be forgiven for their mistaken belief as they openly reject the Old Testament, but what excuse do evangelical Christians have for the same error when they should know better? They cannot claim to be accurately following the New Testament and also believe in the legitimacy of the Zionist cause at the same time, because one naturally precludes the other.

With all this said, let me reiterate, it is perfectly OK to stand with the Palestinian people without supporting the terrorist activities of the brutish and violent Hamas, who not only despicably target Israeli civilians but also use their fellow Palestinians as human shields. They are cowards, and in no way should they be seen as liberators as some anti-Semites try to claim.

But, on the other hand, believing in Israel’s right to exist does not mean that it should come at the cost of collateral damage to the people who are now cut off from basic services because of the actions of jihadists. But most of all, this is certainly not the time for some elements in Christendom to take sides against one set of victims because of erroneous teachings, this not what Christ would want. In fact, I would even venture to say that he abhors all violence, whether it is inflicted upon the Jews or by them, and most of all, the Church should reject Zionism and be reminded of the words of the Apostle Paul, who says in Galatians 3:28: “There is neither Jew nor Gentile…for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”