The Atlantic

You Can Be an Evangelical and Reject Trump's Jerusalem Decision

Conservative evangelicals may see the embassy move as in line with their reading of scripture. But there’s more than one way to read scripture—and more than one scripture to read.
Source: Baz Ratner / Reuters

Few developments could have excited President Trump’s evangelical base more than his intention to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. This base came through for him in the 2016 election, with 81 percent of white evangelicals voting for him. When he promised during his campaign that moving the embassy was high on his agenda and even said it would be one of his first acts as president, many evangelicals cheered.

But other evangelicals—myself included—were cautious, viewing this move as an idea that needs to be left on the shelf. And they are worried now. Despite media portrayals giving the impression that evangelicals have one point of view when it comes to Israel, in reality there is a wide range of perspectives.

Some conservative evangelicals have.

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