Christian Zionism
Christian Zionism is a millenarian movement that draws adherents from different denominations and persuasions within the Christian faith.
It is primarily made up of those who hold a Protestant evangelical perspective. Zionism is broadly understood as the belief that the Jewish people have a right to return to Israel. Christian Zionism is a belief in the Jewish right of return, based upon the Old Testament covenant made by God with Abraham.
The term ‘Christian Zionist’ was first used by Theodor Herzl at the First Zionist Congress in 1897 (Hedding 2010). The most commonly quoted bible verse relating to this covenant is Genesis 12:3. God tells Abraham “I will bless those who bless you and I will curse those who curse you and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed”.