Picture: Tomas Sandell speaking at an Israel rally, a joint initiative with other pro-Israel organisations, Helsinki 16 May 2021.
This article is reposted in full from the European Coalition for Israel via Andrew Lothian.
Many of us are grieving when we see the pictures of the devastation caused by the current conflict between Israel and Hamas which began after the terrorist organisation in Gaza started firing rockets into civilian areas in Israel some ten days ago. But what can we do to help?
The answer can be found in the tagline for ECI – pray, educate and advocate. But what does this mean?
Prayer – As people of faith we believe in prayer. ECI was born in prayer and is sustained through fervent prayer. Each Monday a group of us meets online to pray for weekly prayer topics. Others pray at home, together with friends or at their local church and we even have a Telegram group for urgent prayer requests. But does prayer really make a difference?
Many secular world leaders have learnt the hard way how prayer works and what can be accomplished when people of faith pray in unity. Wanting to ridicule the power of believers, the late Soviet dictator Josef Stalin once asked sarcastically, “How many divisions does the Pope have?” The Communist regime would soon enough find out as the Iron Curtain came tumbling down. As many historians have pointed out, this did not come about only due to earthly powers but because of the prayer and dedication of people of faith behind the Iron Curtain. The same is true today. Prayer makes a difference.
Education – Today´s military conflicts are no longer just conventional wars but also media wars. Which side will get the sympathy of the world opinion? The anti-Israel media bias is well documented. Please read one explanation here.
As friends of Israel we need to make sure that we have access to all the relevant media sources. Media wars and international lawfare are two of Israel’s worst enemies besides the terrorist groups in the Middle East and the Islamic regime in Iran although they feed on each other. We need to counter this media onslaught with facts on the ground, background information and historical context.
Advocacy. This leads us to advocacy. It Is not sufficient for us to know the facts. We need to share them with others. What may be obvious to you many have simply never heard of because their media outlets do not tell them the whole story. Don´t give up. Many surveys prove that only by repeating something a sufficient number of times perceptions will gradually change.
Social media gives us an opportunity to post articles which give a balanced view and to show our solidarity with Israel. In many cities there are pro-Israel rallies which anyone can join. A long-standing friend of Israel once said, “As politicians we are limited in what we can do as long as the European street is anti-Israel.” We cannot give up our streets to hatred and violence but need to win them back. Photos of people expressing support by waving an Israeli flag in one of our national capitals send a powerful message to our friends in Israel – you are not alone!
Help us defend Israel on social media
Keeping up with the media war is a demanding task. As ECI we want to become better equipped to meet the current challenges. Will you help us develop a new social media strategy and put together a new social media team? Please let us know If you can help by getting involved on social media or make a donation to step up this work.
Thank you for standing up for Israel at this time. Am Y’israel Chai!
Tomas Sandell
Founding Director
European Coalition for Israel