The World Evangelical Alliance and the International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations have relaunched a formal dialogue program, bringing together theologians, scholars and church leaders for sustained engagement on shared concerns including antisemitism, religious freedom and human dignity.
The WEA announced the initiative on May 21, describing it as a significant step toward structured, ongoing exchange between the global evangelical community and Jewish religious leadership worldwide.
Rabbi Mark Dratch, chair of IJCIC, said the timing reflected pressing realities facing both communities. "At a moment when religious communities face shared challenges around antisemitism, racism, religious freedom, and the protection of human dignity, the relaunch of this dialogue is timely," he said. Dratch previously served as executive vice president of the Rabbinical Council of America and is the founder of JSafe, an organization focused on preventing abuse in Jewish communities.
WEA Secretary General Rev. Botrus Mansour said the two communities share a reverence for the Hebrew scriptures and a common call to justice. "While we recognize our theological differences, honest dialogue helps us enrich one another, build mutual respect, and address even difficult issues in a spirit of friendship and peace," he said.
The WEA's dialogue team includes Rev. Dr. Kyle Wisdom, the alliance's director of global advocacy and a political philosopher with experience at the United Nations; Rev. Dr. Samuel Richmond, executive director of Caleb Institute in India, who has participated in Jewish-Christian dialogue through the WEA for five years; Dr. Amiel Drimbe, a New Testament scholar at the University of Bucharest whose research focuses on early Jewish-Christian relations; and Rev. Azar Ajaj, president of Nazareth Evangelical College and a Baptist pastor in Nazareth, Israel, with more than a decade of involvement in Jewish-Christian dialogue.
The IJCIC team includes Rabbi Dr. Eugene Korn, a specialist in Jewish ethics and law who previously served as academic director of the Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation in Israel; David Michaels of B'nai B'rith International, who directs the organization's United Nations and intercommunal affairs work; Rabbi Dr. David Fox Sandmel, now chair emeritus of IJCIC and president of the International Council of Christians and Jews; and Rabbi Lea Mühlstein, senior rabbi at a Liberal synagogue in London and a leader in the international Reform and Progressive Religious Zionist movement.
A relationship built on a historic first meeting
The relaunch builds on a foundation laid four years ago. In April 2022, the two organizations convened their first-ever face-to-face meeting in Jerusalem — a three-day gathering that the WEA described at the time as historic.
The meeting was convened by then-WEA Secretary General Dr. Thomas Schirrmacher and IJCIC Chair Rabbi Sandmel, who brought delegations of roughly 15 people from each side. The choice of Jerusalem was deliberate, reflecting the shared heritage of both communities and the long, often fraught history of Jewish-Christian relations.
Delegates began with a visit to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust memorial, where WEA representatives laid a wreath on behalf of the alliance. The heads of the two delegations also participated in Israel's official Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at the memorial. The combined delegations were received the following day by Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
According to the WEA's account of the gathering, conversations ranged across Jewish-evangelical relations, the resurgence of antisemitism and Holocaust denial, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the worldwide persecution of religious minorities, and the erosion of religious freedom. The two sides also discussed possible collaboration on mutual education, environmental concerns and peacebuilding.
"We are committed to addressing and opposing all forms of normalization of hatred, including antisemitism and attacks on religious communities," Sandmel and Schirrmacher said in a joint statement at the conclusion of the Jerusalem meeting. They pledged to reconvene regularly and to work together on issues identified during the talks.
The formal dialogue announced this week represents the fulfillment of that commitment. The WEA now represents more than 650 million evangelical Christians through 161 national alliances. IJCIC serves as the recognized Jewish partner in dialogue with the Catholic Church, the WEA and other major interreligious bodies worldwide.
