U.S. Vice President Mike Pence is set to deliver an address Christians United for Israel (CUFI) — the largest Zionist group in the country — at its annual summit next month. The conference, which draws thousands of Christians to show their support for the Jewish state, will take place in Washington D.C. on July 17–18.
Pastor John Hagee who founded the 3.5 million-strong CUFI in 2016, expressed deep honor that their event will be keynoted by Pence, an Evangelical Christian whom he considers a lifelong supporter of Israel. During his time as a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Pence advocated for increased military aid to Israel. He also visited the Jewish state with CUFI when he was governor of Indiana in 2014.
"Let me say emphatically, like the overwhelming majority of my constituents, my Christian faith compels me to cherish the state of Israel," Pence said in an address to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee when he was a congressman in 2009.
Hagee also praised the Trump administration for its strong support to Israel. "From the day President Trump took office, and each day since, the U.S.-Israel relationship has grown stronger and more vibrant," he said.
The statement was made before Donald Trump signed a waiver deferring the relocation of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, much to the disappointment of the Israeli government. The president signed the waiver on Thursday which set aside the issue for the next six months.
The embassy is currently located in Tel Aviv, and its transfer will bolster Israel's claim to Jerusalem as its capital. Congress passed the Jerusalem Embassy Act in 1995, but the law also gives the president the prerogative to postpone the moves on national security grounds. All the U.S. presidents have since exercised this prerogative.
Hagee has staunchly lobbied for the embassy's transfer. In a letter to Washington Times, the senior pastor of Cornerstone megachurch in San Antonio, Texas urged Trump to take inspiration from President Harry Truman who recognized the newly independent state of Israel despite opposition from his advisers.
"The Jewish state has the right to determine where it would place its capitol, and it has chosen Jerusalem," Hagee wrote. "From generation to generation, they reiterated their hope that next year they would be in Jerusalem," he added. He also prayed for God to grant Trump the wisdom of Solomon of and the courage of Truman.
