Michael D. Evans

Michael David Evans (born June 30, 1947) is an American author, journalist, and commentator. Evans has written books and has provided analysis and commentary on Middle East affairs. He founded and serves as the head of many politically conservative Christian organizations.

Michael David Evans
Evans in Jerusalem in 2011
Born (1947-06-30) June 30, 1947
Springfield, Massachusetts
Occupation(s)Journalist, author, Middle East commentator
Spouse
Carolyn Evans
​
(m. 1969)​
Children4
Websitejerusalemprayerteam.org

Early life

Evans was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on June 30, 1947, to a non-practicing Jewish mother whose parents were immigrants from the Soviet Union.[1] His father was a violent alcoholic and wife beater. At age 11, Evans objected to his father beating his mother, and was assaulted; when he recovered, he had what he describes as a dramatic encounter with Jesus Christ, who promised him a future.[2]

Career

Ten Boom Fellowship

Mike Evans purchased and restored the Corrie ten Boom house in 1983. It is a museum dedicated to telling the story of ten Boom's family, which harbored, fed, and found safe houses for as many as 800 Jews during the Nazi takeover of the Netherlands during World War II.[3] After purchasing and restoring the house, Mike Evans created the Corrie ten Boom Fellowship,[4] a Christian Zionist organization.

Friends of Zion Heritage Center

In 2015, Evans founded the Friends of Zion Heritage Center in Jerusalem with the purpose of highlighting religious tolerance and dialogue between Christian Zionism and the State of Israel and the Jewish people. Israel's ninth president, Shimon Peres, was the international chairman of Friends of Zion and the founder of the Friends of Zion Award to honor outstanding support for Israel.

Jerusalem Prayer Team
Mike Evans with Benjamin Netanyahu in an undated photo

Mike Evans began the Jerusalem Prayer Team in 2002, which raised money for Ehud Olmert's New Jerusalem Foundation.[5] The Jerusalem Prayer Team funded the construction of the Mike Evans Museum[6] in Jerusalem, officially known as The Friends of Zion Heritage Center. Evans was accused of being a Christian missionary due to his history.[7] In 1977, he headed B'nai Yeshua, a "Hebrew Christian" group, which was active on college campuses.[8][9] A campaign accusing him of subterfuge in Long Island resulted in media coverage.[10][11][12] Articles simultaneously praise him for his pro-Israel activism, but warn of a possible hidden agenda to convert Jews in Israel to Christianity or "Hebrew Christian" beliefs.[13][14]

Relationship with Benjamin Netanyahu

Evans has known Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since the early 1980s.[15] In June 2021, Benjamin Netanyahu was replaced as Prime Minister by Naftali Bennett of the Yamina party. The following month, Evans told a press conference at a Jerusalem hotel: "Bibi Netanyahu is the only man in the world who unites evangelicals." In a blog post for The Times of Israel, he also compared members of the parties that comprised the unity government to "rabid dogs" who wish to "crucify" Netanyahu.[16] This public attack on the new government dented Evans' reputation and influence in Israel. Danny Ayalon, a former Israeli ambassador to the U.S., told Foreign Policy, "[Evans] may be a friend of Bibi Netanyahu, but it did not give him the right to do what he did."[15]

Author

Evans has written on the Middle East, Christian living, prophecy, and Iraq. His works include 42 fiction and non-fiction books, many self-published. Those that made The New York Times Best Seller list are The Final Move Beyond Iraq: The Final Solution While the World Sleeps,[17] The American Prophecies,[18] and Showdown with Nuclear Iran.[19] More recent books include See You in New York, Finding Favor with Man, The Volunteers, History of Christian Zionism (2 vol. set), Christopher Columbus, Betsie, Promise of God, and Countdown.

Evans' book Israel: America's Key to Survival was endorsed by Prime Minister Menachem Begin.[1]

Honors

References
  1. "The bridge builder". Jerusalem Post. 2012-06-14. Retrieved 2012-06-21.
  2. "The bridge builder". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2018-05-11. Upon attempting to protect his mother during one of his father's violent drunken rages, Evans says his father lifted him above his head and strangled him, nearly choking him to death.
  3. "Ten Boom Museum and The Hiding Place". Tenboom.com. Retrieved 2012-10-08.
  4. "Mike Evans, Chairman of Corrie ten Boom Fellowship". tenboom.org. Archived from the original on 2011-04-14. Retrieved 2011-04-07.
  5. Entous, Adam & Rabinovitch, Ari (16 July 2008). "How Israeli PM wooed, and lost, Christian dollars". Reuters. Retrieved October 8, 2012.
  6. "Homepage". mikeevansmuseum.com. Mike Evans Museum.
  7. "Moment Moment - The Soul Snatchers of Long Island". opinionarchives.com. Retrieved 2018-05-11.
  8. A. James and Marcia R. Rudin (Summer 1977). "Onward (Hebrew) Christian Soldiers: They're out to grab your kids" (PDF). Present Tense: The Magazine of World Jewish Affairs: 17–26. Mike Evans, in his late twenties, head of the pentecostal B'nai Yeshua (Christian of Jesus), who moved from Texas to Stony Brook, Long Island, last year, claims 800, and says there are 'thousands and thousands of Hebrew Christians in the United States.'
  9. "Religion: 'Yeshua Is the Messiah'". Time. 1977-07-04. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2018-05-11.
  10. "Church Group Sues Jews for Jesus for Engaging in 'subterfuge': Jesus Group Denies the Allegation". jta.org. Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 20 March 2015. Retrieved 2018-05-11. Tanenbaum said that the Long Island Council 'stands on absolutely firm ground in charging Jews for Jesus, the B'nai Yeshua, and other so-called Hebrew-Christian movements with subterfuge.'
  11. Goldman, Ari L. (2 July 1977). "Jews for Jesus Sue to Bar Letter Disseminated by L.I. Church Council". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  12. Dugan, George (26 January 1977). "Rabbis Told How to Fight 'Missionary'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  13. Nuszen, Shannon (26 February 2017). "Friend or foe? A former Texas missionary's visit to Mike Evan's FOZ Museum". The Times of Israel.
  14. Judy Lash Balint (24 September 2013). "Christian love: Buying their way into Jerusalem". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  15. Lynch, Colum (19 July 2021). "What's Next for Christian Zionists?". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  16. Maltz, Judy (7 June 2021). "In Jerusalem, Controversial Evangelical Leader Warns Israel Could Lose Christian Allies if Netanyahu Replaced". Haaretz. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  17. The New York Times, June 10, 2007 Paperback Best Sellers, Nonfiction, #5
  18. The New York Times, August 29, 2004 Paperback Best Sellers, How-to and Miscellaneous: Hardcover, #4
  19. The New York Times, October 29, 2006 Hardcover Nonfiction, #17
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