In the midst of war, Saleem Shalash and Boutros Youssef’s faith has led them to provide aid to their neighbors.
Shalash, the Arab Israeli pastor of Home of Jesus the King Church in Nazareth, helps distribute packages of clothing and food to more than 150 Muslim, Jewish, and Christian families in the area who have been displaced due to Hezbollah rocket attacks in the north or have lost income due to wars on multiple fronts.
Meanwhile, Youssef coordinates aid for two churches in Gaza and more than 500 families in the West Bank. (Christianity Today agreed not to use his real name or share his exact location due to heightened tensions in the region.)
“I give hope to people that our God is not a God of war but a God of hope who wants to help everybody,” Youssef said. “God loves the Jews as much as he loves the Palestinians.”
Yet the two leaders differ in their beliefs on the root cause of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and their reactions to US president Donald Trump’s surprise proposal to relocate Gaza’s 2 million residents to neighboring Arab countries and develop the land into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
After Shalash heard Trump share his proposal during Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trip to DC earlier this month, he questioned the Arab states’ immediate rejection of the plan: “If you stand with the Palestinians, why don’t you accept them?” He believes Palestinians will leave Gaza voluntarily because of the immense destruction, unstable foundations from the hundreds of miles of tunnels that Hamas built, and decades of hardship.
“How long can people suffer [this cycle of] destroying and building, and destroying and building?” Shalash asked.
Youssef, on the other hand, doubts Gazans would leave on their own accord. He said that Trump’s idea fails to consider the Palestinians’ deep-rooted relationship with the land. Many have farmed the land for years and have generations of history in Gaza.
Even as Israel’s attempts to wipe out Hamas through repeated missile strikes have destroyed about 60 percent of Gaza’s infrastructure and killed more than 46,000 people in the Palestinian territory, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, many of the displaced have returned home since the cease-fire.
“The expression in English? Over our dead bodies,” Youssef said.
Palestinian and Arab leaders—including US allies—rejected Trump’s plan. Prior Palestinian emigration brought decades of instability to neighboring Arab states as Palestinian terrorist groups continued their violent campaigns against Israel, at times turning against their host governments. Apart from Jordan, Arab nations have denied Palestinians full citizenship rights.
In a radio interview, Secretary of State Marco Rubio challenged Arab countries unhappy with the proposal to come up with a “better plan,” noting that it would need to address Hamas’s monopoly on power in Gaza. Representatives of Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar have gathered in Saudi Arabia to discuss how to help fund and oversee the rebuilding of Gaza.
Earlier this week, Netanyahu reiterated his approval of the plan in a meeting with Rubio. Israel’s defense minister announced on Monday the creation of a new government agency designed to oversee the “voluntary” evacuation.
Shalash’s and Youssef’s differing views on Trump’s plan underscore the complex disagreements that divide Arab Christians in the region.
Growing up in a Catholic community in Nazareth, Shalash hated Israel. The schools, community, and media outlets taught him to hate his Jewish neighbors. “I was taught that the Old Testament is a rubbish book,” Shalash said. “It doesn’t belong to us; it belongs to the infidel Jews who crucified my Savior. And I was filled with a lot of hatred.”
Yet in 1994, God changed his heart. A Christian friend who had shared the gospel with him died in a tragic accident, and he began asking questions about death. He also began reading the Bible for the first time and encountered the gospel’s message of hope.
He believes the root cause of the war is Palestinian terrorist groups’ refusal to embrace peace. He also says the source of Palestinian suffering is Hamas, which has used Palestinians as human shields and spent hundreds of millions of dollars building tunnels and waging war instead of providing for its people.
“We need to understand that we have two kinds of hostages in Gaza: the Jewish people … and the Palestinians themselves,” Shalash said.
Meanwhile, Youssef believes Israel is responsible for Gaza’s humanitarian crisis. Israel controls the skies, water, and territories. “Even in the West Bank, [Palestinian Authority president] Mahmoud Abbas can’t leave unless he gets permission,” he noted.
In the West Bank, commutes that previously took one hour are now stretched to four as motorists navigate nearly 800 roadblocks and checkpoints, a hassle Israel claims is necessary amid increased security threats. Youssef is careful where he drives in the West Bank because of the spike in settler violence against Palestinians since the October 7 attacks.
Israel’s refusal to grant Palestinian statehood is a big part of the region’s 77 years of conflict, he said. He believes peace is possible if a strong Palestinian leader takes over and creates a centralized security force to counter Hamas’s grip on power.
The different viewpoints also have a theological component: Some evangelicals look to God’s promises in the Old Testament as evidence for Israel’s biblical right to land that includes the West Bank and Gaza. Youssef believes those promises were conditional and already fulfilled.
“I am concerned about the souls of the people, not of the land,” he said. “God will take care of the land.” He asks American evangelicals not to forget about Palestinians and to pray for the souls of the Jewish people. “If they don’t accept Christ, what use is the land, even if they take it from the river to the sea?”
Shalash, on the other hand, believes God’s Old Testament covenant with Israel still applies today. “I’m not saying Israel is perfect. There’s a lot of things to fix,” Shalash said. “But if God still has a plan for his nation, Israel, who am I to stand against his plan?”
In the meantime, Youssef and Shalash continue their missions, meeting the physical and spiritual needs of their communities during a season of suffering. Despite their political differences, they agree on the church’s mission. “Jesus came for one purpose: to save the lost,” Youssef said.
Shalash acknowledged the challenges of Christian ministry in Israel. Some Orthodox Jews are threatened by the gospel message, and some Arabs view him as a traitor for his political views. But those who visit the church’s aid center tell him they find the atmosphere is refreshing.
“We are fulfilling God’s plan,” said Shalash, “loving the Palestinian people, loving the Israeli people, putting them together, and understanding that we can live together in peace.”
The post Two Arab Christian Leaders Differ on Trump’s Gaza Plan appeared first on Christianity Today.