Government - Christians Forum

The Israeli "Government-Christians Forum" was initiated in Jerusalem in 2013, by Dr. Mordehcai Zaken, head of the Minorities Affairs Desk, at the Ministry of Public Security, to address and promote their concerns as a minority group. The decision to establish this forum followed many years of informal and private discussions with activists and leaders, mainly of American and European origin, in an attempt to address their concerns vis-à-vis government agencies and ministries. Two of the prominent leaders in the side of the Christians helping in establishing this forum have been Rev. Charles (Chuck) Kopp, the prominent leader of the Baptist Church in Jerusalem and Rev. David Pillegi, Rector of the Christ Church.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]} On 27 September 2016, the Forum was held for the 7th time since its inauguration. The aim was to promote a new idea to appoint “trusted liaisons” to the airport authorities, in order to help reduce any potential negative experiences for Christian visitors.The meeting was attended by representatives of government ministries and more than 40 representatives of Christian groups and of NGOs. Dr. Moti Zaken the head of the Minority Affairs at the Public Security ministry concluded: "the idea promoted by us to appoint "airport trustees" by Christian groups has been received by the Airport Authority, in order to facilitate entry and exit of Christian tourists to Israel, and this is the first time that something like this is possible. This kind of initiative should not be taken lightly, it is a historic step."^[13]

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