An Unusual Relationship

Yaakov Ariel is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His book, Evangelizing the Chosen People: Missions to the Jews in America, 1880 - 2000 (UNC Press, 2000), was awarded the Albert C. Outler prize by the American Society of Church History.

Itis generally accepted that Jews and evangelical Christians have little incommon. Yet special alliances developedbetween the two groups in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Evangelicalsviewed Jews as both the rightful heirs of Israel and as a group who failed torecognize their true savior. Consequently, they set out to influence the courseof Jewish life by attempting to evangelize Jews and to facilitate their returnto Palestine. Their double-edged perception caused unprecedented politicalcultural, and theological meeting points that have revolutionizedChristian-Jewish relationships. An Unusual Relationship explores thebeliefs and political agendas that evangelicals have created in order to affectthe future of the Jews. Additionally, it analyses Jewish opinions and reactionsto those efforts, as well as those of other religious groups, such as ArabChristians.Thisvolume offers a fascinating, comprehensive analysis of the rootsmanifestations, and consequences of evangelical interest in the Jews, and thealternatives they provide to conventional historical Christian-Jewishinteractions. It also provides a compelling understanding of Middle Easternpolitics through a new lens.

Offers a fascinating, comprehensive analysis of the roots, manifestations, and consequences of evangelical Christians' interest in the Jews