REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK:

Sunday, December 7, 2025, marked the conclusion of the Ambassador Summit, a weeklong conference in Jerusalem, bringing together more than 1,000 pastors, ministry leaders, Christian educators, bloggers, and social media influencers, from across the United States.

This historic event is the largest Christian delegation to visit the Holy Land since Israel’s modern birth as a nation in 1948. The delegation received a formal invitation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in partnership with Friends of Zion, led by Dr. Mike Evans.

Dan Oryan, Director of Civic Diplomacy for the Israeli Foreign Ministry, shared why it’s important for visitors to hear Israel’s story, by being where tragic events have actually taken place. This is to understand the ideological war that Israel faces. It’s a kind of living diplomacy when groups come to the land.

“After two very hard tough years, with a huge fight, in what we call the 8th front (the media war), we are in a difficult situation… still.  It’s very comforting to have 1,000 pastors and influencers coming here to hear the truth and share it with their communities. It makes a difference. It’s not just hearsay, but someone telling you what happened,” Oryan said.

He explained that it gives Christian leaders a full picture, “and they get the sense of the problematic situation Israel is facing.” According to Oryan, this Ambassador Summit is the first stage in bringing large delegations to Israel. Future groups can see what has happened here, from first-hand testimonies.

During the Summit week, much to the relief of conference leaders, the weather cooperated. The events taking place at meaningful Christian and Jewish sites, displayed a remarkable unity among participants, who reached out in friendship and compassion to Israeli citizens.

Of particular significance were the testimonies of the survivors of the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre. These included eye-witness accounts from hostages who were kidnapped on that fateful day, and later freed from captivity. It also included statements from soldiers who fought during the subsequent two years of war. There were family members who shared heartbreaking stories of how they lost loved ones in these battles.

Many of the Christian leaders were eager to listen and communicate with local civilians, gaining a better understanding of life in Israel under the constant threat of terrorism and war.

On the first day of touring, Wednesday, December 3, 2025, Summit participants went first to the site of the Nova Festival attack. Many then visited communities near the Gaza border where the October 7th massacre also occurred.

Reflecting on the past two years, Colonel (res.) Golan Vach, in charge of IDF search and rescue teams, and a specialist in life-saving techniques, spoke to the conference visitors. He mentioned showing up to try and defend Kibbutz Re’im, only to find out his son’s unit was fighting Hamas. He asked a soldier in-charge, if his son was one of the casualties. The soldier let the colonel know that his son was alive.

“I........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)