Robert Stearns (pastor)

Last updated
Bishop
Robert Stearns
StearnsatPrayerforPeaceofJersusalem.png
Personal
Born
Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Religion Christianity (evangelical Protestantism)
Children3
Denomination Pentecostal
Education University of Valley Forge
Profession Pastor, Pentecostal Bishop
Organization
ChurchEagles' Wings Ministries
Tabernacle Church
Senior posting
Predecessor Tommy Reid
Profession Pastor, Pentecostal Bishop
PostTabernacle Church Bishop (2013-present)
Website eagleswings.org/robert-stearns/

Robert Stearns is an American pastor and Evangelical Christian leader who founded Eagles' Wings Ministries located in Clarence, New York and currently pastors the historic Tabernacle Church in Orchard Park, New York. A "leading voice in the Christian Zionist movement," [1] Stearns is the leader and co-founder of the annual Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem: The single largest international Christian Zionist event and during which thousands of churches worldwide pray for the peace of Jerusalem. [2] [3] [4] [5] Currently, he resides in Clarence, New York with his three sons. They have begun to follow in his musical footsteps by forming a music collective called The Brothers of Mercy.

Contents

Early career and founding Eagles' Wings

Stearns, after graduation from Valley Forge Christian College (VFCC) of the Assemblies of God, lived in Jerusalem in the 1990s volunteering for the International Christian Embassy. It was at VFCC where he discovered and studied Judeo-Christian relations and roots of Judaism in Christianity. The A/G missionary Dr. Phill Goble of Artists for Israel was one of the main teachers on the subject at VFCC. Rev. Robert Stearns says he sees an even stronger relationship between Jews and Christians in the near future. That said, Stearns did not fellowship with Jewish students during his time at VFCC. One of his mentors and counsellors was Dr. Loren McRae. His teachings are often quoted, without reference, in Stearns' books.

Upon returning home to Buffalo, New York, Robert discussed the possibilities of founding a pro-Israel ministry with the Rev. Thomas F. Reid, the senior leader and bishop of the Tabernacle Church. The new ministry Stearns founded is called Eagles' Wings. [6] [7] [8]

Stearns was one of the original directors of Christians United for Israel.

Eagles' Wings and Israel

Stearns founded many Eagles' Wings organizational initiatives, a main component of which is sponsoring trips to Israel. Bishop Stearns has brought over 25,000 people to the Holy Land, [9] and has led dozens of specifically Christian delegations to visit Israel. [10]

He established the "Israel Experience College Scholarship Program," usually called "Israel Experience," a Christian equivalent of Birthright Israel, which brings college-age Christian students to Israel. [11] [12] The first group, a "pilot" trip with eleven participants, visited Israel in June 2004. [13]

Stearns is a staunch advocate for the State of Israel, oftentimes meeting with foreign governments to help formulate and direct their politics toward Israel. [14] [15] In 2008, he was the Northeast regional director of Christians United for Israel. [16] He was one of the founders and original directors of Christians United for Israel (CUFI) . [2] [17]

Stearns has spoken to audiences such as the House of Lords in London and the Israeli Knesset. [18] Stearns, who sees Israel as threatened by other countries in the region, has declared his willingness to die defending Israel. [19] : 117 

While Stearns would like all people to become Christian, he "strictly avoids proselytizing" Jews. [19] : 94 

He was an outspoken proponent to moving the United States Embassy to Jerusalem. [20]

Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem

Stearns, along with Pastor Jack W. Hayford, created an event called the Global Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem, celebrated in churches worldwide and with a major gathering in the Holy Land of Israel one day a year. It is the largest Christian Zionist event, endorsed by the Knesset Christian Allies Caucus the event involves congregants in 200,000 churches in 175 nations worldwide praying for peace in Israel and its surrounding nations. [21] [22] [18] The event has attracted Israeli and United States officials such as former Senator Joe Lieberman and United States Ambassador to Israel David M. Friedman. [23]

Stearns co-founded of the annual Day of prayer in 2002. [24] [2] [3] [4] It is estimated that in 2019 more than half a million churches and as many as 100 million Christians and Jews around the world participated worldwide in the annual Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem. [25] [26] [27] The event, held every year on the first Sunday in October, is inspired by the call to pray for Jerusalem in Psalm 122:6, [25] which reads "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee," in the King James Bible.

Books and Music

Stearns has written five books. The first was Prepare the Way, [21] followed by Keepers of the Flame, The Cry of Mordecai, the Watchmen on the Wall manual and most recently, No We Can't. All of his books are based on his interpretation of biblical beliefs. [18]

In addition to his four books, Robert released a solo album entitled The Impossible Dream and performed at the 15th anniversary ceremony of the September 11 attacks in St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. [28] [29] [30]

Preaching

Stearns preaches that "God has a plan, a purpose, a destiny for your life," using Biblical examples such as Esther, "an average, ordinary, everyday person who life had not dealt a good hand to," and yet "God had a plan for Esther." [31] [32]

On seeking converts

Because Christianity is an evangelizing religion, Stearns is often accused of [2] or asked about seeking to convert Jews to Christianity. The question has sometimes been framed as, "As a Christian, how can you not want to convert us?" his response is, "Of course I would love to see you become Christians, but I would never seek to convert you." He explains that as an Evangelical Christian he believes that Christians and Jews have specific roles in God's plan, and that he personally has "too much respect" for the Jewish people to suggest that any Jew should become something else. [33]

Tabernacle Church

In July 2013, Stearns was named as the bishop of a historic church in Orchard Park, New York, called the Tabernacle. He succeeded the church's longtime leader, Bishop Thomas F. Reid. [34]

Related Research Articles

The term Judeo-Christian is used to group Christianity and Judaism together, either in reference to Christianity's derivation from Judaism, Christianity's recognition of Jewish scripture to constitute the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, or values supposed to be shared by the two religions. The term Judæo Christian first appeared in the 19th century as a word for Jewish converts to Christianity. The term has received much criticism, largely from Jewish thinkers, as relying on and perpetuating inherently antisemitic notions of supersessionism, as well as glossing over fundamental differences between Jewish and Christian thought, theology, culture and practice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Messianic Judaism</span> Religious sect that considers itself Jewish, but which is considered by Jews to be Christian

Messianic Judaism is a syncretic Abrahamic new religious movement that combines various Jewish traditions with belief in Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah. It is widely considered to be a sect of Evangelical Christianity, including by all major groups within mainstream Judaism, but the movement considers itself Jewish. Belief in Jesus as a messianic figure and as divine is considered by Jews to be one of the most defining distinctions between Judaism and Christianity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Zionism</span> Belief among some Protestant Christians that Jews should return to the Holy Land

Christian Zionism is a political and religious ideology that, in a Christian context, espouses the return of the Jewish people to the Holy Land. Likewise, it holds that the founding of the State of Israel in 1948 was in accordance with biblical prophecies transmitted through the Old Testament: that the re-establishment of Jewish sovereignty in the Levant—the eschatological "Gathering of Israel"—is a prerequisite for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The term began to be used in the mid-20th century, in place of Christian restorationism, as proponents of the ideology rallied behind Zionists in support of a Jewish national homeland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Hagee</span> American televangelist (born 1940)

John Charles Hagee is an American pastor and televangelist. He founded John Hagee Ministries, which telecasts to the United States and Canada. He is also the founder and chairman of the Christian Zionist organization Christians United for Israel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birthright Israel</span> Jewish heritage organization

Taglit-Birthright Israel, also known as Birthright Israel or simply Birthright, is a free ten-day heritage trip to Israel, Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights for young adults of Jewish heritage between the ages of 18 and 26. The program is sponsored by the Birthright Israel Foundation, whose donors subsidize participation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruno Hussar</span> Egyptian priest (1911–1996)

Bruno Hussar was the founder of Neve Shalom / Wahat al-Salam, an Arab/Jewish village in the no man's land between Israel and Palestinian territories, dedicated to coexistence. Hussar derived the name from the book of Isaiah (32:18): "My people shall dwell in an oasis of peace". Born in Cairo, he converted to Roman Catholicism while studying engineering in France. He was a genuinely 'transnational transcultural and multilingual' individual.

The Catholic Church and Judaism have a long and complex history of cooperation and conflict, and have had a strained relationship throughout history, with periods of persecution, violence and discrimination directed towards Jews by Christians, particularly during the Middle Ages.

Religion in Israel is manifested primarily in Judaism, the ethnic religion of the Jewish people. The State of Israel declares itself as a "Jewish and democratic state" and is the only country in the world with a Jewish-majority population. Other faiths in the country include Islam, Christianity and the religion of the Druze people. Religion plays a central role in national and civil life, and almost all Israeli citizens are automatically registered as members of the state's 14 official religious communities, which exercise control over several matters of personal status, especially marriage. These recognized communities are Orthodox Judaism, Islam, the Druze faith, the Catholic Church, Greek Orthodox Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Armenian Apostolic Church, Anglicanism, and the Baháʼí Faith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem</span>

The Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem is a prayer meeting organized by Pentecostal evangelists Jack W. Hayford and Robert Stearns through their organization "Eagles Wings". They annually invite people around the world to pray for Jerusalem on the first Sunday of every October, close to the time of Yom Kippur. The first prayer meeting organized by this group occurred in 2004.

The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews is a philanthropic organization founded in 1983 by Yechiel Eckstein whose stated mission is to promote understanding and cooperation between Jews and Christians, and provide humanitarian aid for the State of Israel. Since 2019, Yael Eckstein has been serving as The Fellowship's President and CEO.

The Church's Ministry Among Jewish People (CMJ) is an Anglican missionary society founded in 1809.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Zionism in the United Kingdom</span>

Christian Zionism in the United Kingdom is a Christian ideology that sees the return of the Jews to Israel as a fulfilment of scriptural prophecy. Supporters of Christian Zionism believe that the existence of the Jewish State can and should be supported on theological grounds.

A Day of Prayer is a day allocated to prayer, either by leaders of religions or the general public, for a specific purpose. Such days are usually ecumenical in nature, and are usually are treated as commemorative in nature, rather than as actual liturgical feast days or memorials.

The Jerusalem Declaration on Christian Zionism is a joint statement issued by a number of Palestinian Christian churches dated 22 August 2006. It rejects Christian Zionism, concluding that it is a "false teaching that corrupts the biblical message of love, justice, and reconciliation."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael D. Evans</span> American author, journalist and commentator (born 1947)

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Many Christians believe in a widespread conversion of the Jews to Christianity, which they frequently consider an end-time event. Some Christian denominations consider the conversion of the Jews imperative and pressing, and as a result, they make it their mission to proselytize among them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Center for Jewish–Christian Understanding and Cooperation</span> Educational institution in Israel

The Center for Jewish–Christian Understanding and Cooperation or CJCUC is an educational institution at which Christians who tour Israel can study the Hebrew Bible with Orthodox rabbis and learn about the Hebraic roots of Christianity. The center was established in Efrat in 2008 by Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Riskin, who has been described as "the most prominent rabbinic spokesperson to Christian Zionists". CJCUC partners with major Christian interfaith organizations such as Christians United for Israel and the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem. Since Riskin's retirement as president of Ohr Torah Stone in 2018, the overseeing of all CJCUC activities has been turned over to David Nekrutman who has served as the center's chief director since its inception.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yehudah Glick</span> Israeli political activist and politician

Yehudah Joshua Glick, alternatively spelled "Yehuda Glick", is an American-born Israeli Orthodox rabbi and politician, described as a "right-wing" or "far-right" activist. As the President of Shalom Jerusalem Foundation, he campaigns for expanding Jewish access to the Temple Mount. He was a member of the Knesset for Likud, having taken the place of former Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon in May 2016 until April 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Nekrutman</span> Jewish theologian

David Nekrutman is an American-Israeli Orthodox Jewish theologian, writer, director, columnist, public speaker, and pro-Israel activist. He is a prominent figure and pioneer in the world of Jewish-Christian relations and is the former executive director and co-founder of the Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation (CJCUC), co-founder of the Day to Praise global interfaith initiative, and founder of the Blessing Bethlehem aid organization. Nekrutman currently serves as the Executive Director and co-founder of The Isaiah Projects, a ministry dedicated to helping Christians discover the Hebraic roots of their faith. In addition, Nekrutman is a columnist who has written for The Jerusalem Post, Charisma Magazine, and The Times of Israel.

References

  1. ↑ Tibon, Amir (15 May 2019). "A Year After Embassy Move, U.S. Evangelicals Look for New Israel Challenge". Haaretz. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Tabachnick, Rachel (22 March 2015). "Meet Bibi's New Tribulation-Courting, Jew-Converting, Demon-Exorcising American Allies". Daily Beast. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  3. 1 2 Weisz, Tuly (27 October 2018). "Unto the nations". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  4. 1 2 Falk, Gerhard (2006). The Restoration of Israel: Christian Zionism in Religion, Literature, and Politics. American University Studies. p. 48. ISBN   0820488623.
  5. ↑ "Robert Stearns' Flight Of Faith: Mounting Up And Soaring With Eagles' Wings — Ministries That Is". 25 September 2018. Archived from the original on 2020-10-22. Retrieved 2020-01-08.
  6. ↑ Durbin, Sean (2018). Righteous Gentiles: Religion, Identity, and Myth in John Hagee's Christians United for Israel. Brill. p. 108. ISBN   978-9004385009.
  7. ↑ "About".
  8. ↑ "David Nekrutman: Connecting Christians". 23 December 2019.
  9. ↑ "Ministry Travel". December 19, 2017.
  10. ↑ "Trump Rolls Out the Big Guns for pro-Israel Evangelicals' Confab Ahead of 2020". Haaretz. 6 July 2019.
  11. ↑ Berman, Daphna (18 June 2004). "Christians Want a Birthright Program, Too". Haaretz. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  12. ↑ Lefkovits, Etgar (28 June 2006). "'Christian Birthright' reaches out to young Israel supporters". Jerusalem Post.
  13. ↑ Gilbert, Nina (17 June 2014). "Christian Americans learning how to be Israeli emissaries". Jerusalem Post.
  14. ↑ "Meet the pastors behind Brazil's new pro-Israel foreign policy". JNS.org. November 29, 2018.
  15. ↑ Tibon, Amir (September 29, 2019). "Pro-Trump and Biased Toward Israel? These U.S. Evangelicals Are Challenging the 'Base'". Haaretz.
  16. ↑ Weiner, Robert (18 September 2008). "Pro-Israel Evangelicals will rally in Cranford". Jewish Journal.
  17. ↑ Fingerhut, Eric (6 July 2006). "Around the Beltway". Washington Jewish Week.
  18. 1 2 3 "Robert Stearns".
  19. 1 2 Spector, Stephen (2008). Evangelicals and Israel The Story of American Christian Zionism. Oxford. ISBN   978-0195368024.
  20. ↑ "Moving the Embassy to Jerusalem Shows That the U.S. Is Committed to Peace". www.nytimes.com.
  21. 1 2 Tabachnick, Rachel (Winter 2009). "The New Christian Zionism and the Jews". Public Eye Magazine. 25 (1): 23.
  22. ↑ "Eagles' Wings Evangelical org hosts day of Prayer for Jerusalem peace". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 7 October 2019.
  23. ↑ Parke, Caleb (October 7, 2019). "100 million Christians and Jews pray for Jerusalem peace in global event featuring US ambassador to Israel". Fox News.
  24. ↑ "Hundreds of Millennial Evangelicals Gather in Jerusalem to Pray". Charisma. 1 October 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  25. 1 2 Park, Caleb (7 October 2019). "100 million Christians and Jews pray for Jerusalem peace in global event featuring US ambassador to Israel". Fox News. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  26. ↑ Smith, Samuel (8 October 2019). "Churches worldwide take part in evangelical-led 'Global Day of Prayer for Jerusalem'". The Christian Post . Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  27. ↑ Stahl, Julie (8 October 2019). "Millions of Christians on Every Continent Pause to Pray for Peace of Jerusalem". Christian Broadcasting Network . Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  28. ↑ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine : Robert Stearns sings "On Eagles' Wings" at 15th Annv 9/11 Memorial. YouTube .
  29. ↑ Robert Stearns sings "Ave Maria" at 15th Annv 9/11 Memorial. YouTube . Archived from the original on 2021-12-09.
  30. ↑ Chicoine, Christie (14 September 2016). "FDNY 9/11 Faithful Remembered With Reverence at Cathedral Service". Catholic New York . Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  31. ↑ Durbin, Sean. “Walking in the Mantle of Esther: ‘Political’ Action as ‘Religious’ Practice.” Comprehending Christian Zionism: Perspectives in Comparison, edited by Göran Gunner and Robert O. Smith, Augsburg Fortress, Publishers, Minneapolis, 2014, pp. 85–124. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt9m0srs.8. Accessed 8 Jan. 2020.
  32. ↑ Stearns, Robert. "Netanyahu as Mordechai, America as Esther". Charisma (magazine). Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  33. ↑ Culwin, Clifford (27 March 2008). ""As a Christian, how can you not want to convert us?" Stearns had clearly fielded this question before. "Of course I would love to see you become Christians," he said, "but I would never seek to convert you." He explained that Evangelicals view Christians and Jews alike as having a specific role in God's plan. Besides, he simply has "too much respect" for the Jewish people ever to suggest that any individual Jew should become something else". New Jersey Jewish News.
  34. ↑ "Bishop Robert Stearns".
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