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CHARDON — In a day when religious gatherings are being banned by bureaucrats around the nation, the story of Hanukah could not have come at a better time. One faith-based advocate for Israel believes leaders who will not submit to the secular worldview need to step forward.
“As the Maccabees courageously defended the Temple from hostile invaders when Hanukah first originated, we as Christians today need to vigorously defend our Biblical convictions and congregations,” says Ed Douglas, the Ohio Director of Christians United for Israel.
The eight-day holiday of Hanukah celebrates the rededication of the Temple of Jerusalem after it was retaken by a group of Jewish warriors from the Greeks in the 2nd century B.C. These warriors, called the Maccabees, were a small band of Jews who refused to conform to the customs and traditions of the secular Greeks.
Facing religious persecution for following the Jewish tenants of their faith, including the observation of the Sabbath, these warriors defeated their pagan occupiers despite being outmanned and poorly equipped.
Douglas has made it his life’s passion to defend Israel and has combatted the anti-Semitic BDS Movement. His activism involves traveling around the state and speaking on behalf of the Nation of Israel.
“I commend the faith community in North Central Ohio and their activism, many times involving over one hundred congregations,” says Douglas.
“There is no doubt these clergy walk in the footsteps of the Maccabees. They are an example of unity in action. They courageously stand with Israel, and defend religious freedom. By recently addressing Bible illiteracy and combatting the promotion of Eastern Religion in public schools, they are not compromising with the world system. The burning question is, are there other leaders who will shine their light in the darkness?
Douglas believes there is a generation of other leaders cut from the mold of Judas Maccabeus and his brothers. It’s just finding them.
Christians United for Israel has over nine million members who defend Israel and fight against anti-Semitism in communities, churches, college campuses, the media, and on Capitol Hill.
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