Munther Isaac
{{Short description|Palestinian pastor, author, and theologian}}
{{Infobox Christian leader
| type = pastor
| honorific_prefix = Reverend Doctor
| birth_date = 1979 (age 45-–46)
| birth_place = Beit Sahour, West Bank, Palestine
| profession = {{hlist|pastor|author|theologian}}
| religion = Lutheran (Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land)
| education = {{plainlist|
- Birzeit University (BS),
- Westminster Theological Seminary (MA),
- Oxford Centre for Mission Studies (PhD)
}}
| ordination = 2016
| native_name = منذر إسحق
| other_post = Director of Christ at the Checkpoint Conference, Academic Dean of Bethlehem Bible College
| church = Christmas Lutheran Church - Bethlehem, The Evangelical Lutheran Church - Beit Sahour
| native_name_lang = ar
}}
Munther Isaac (born 1979) is a Palestinian pastor, author, and theologian based in the West Bank. For some time, Isaac has vocally criticized the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians and Christian Zionist support for Israel. He became more widely known throughout the world due to his activism during the Gaza war, including media appearances, speaking tours, and social media posts. In December 2023, his church's nativity scene depicting Jesus lying on a pile of rubble and his sermon "Christ in the Rubble: A Liturgy of Lament" went viral. It became the title of a 2025 book, Christ in the Rubble: Faith, the Bible, and the Genocide in Gaza.
Raised in Beit Sahour, he completed a PhD at the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies, later becoming the director of the Christ at the Checkpoint conference and the academic dean of Bethlehem Bible College. Ordained to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land in 2016, he currently pastors two churches, including the Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem. Considered a prominent Palestinian theologian and pastor,{{Cite web |last=Hatuqa |first=Dalia |date=2024-12-26 |title=Trump's Peace Plan Is Palestinians' Worst Nightmare |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/01/31/trump-peace-plan-israel-palestine-middle-east/ |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=Foreign Policy |language=en-US}} Isaac has published several books, including The Other Side of the Wall: A Palestinian Christian Narrative of Lament and Hope (2020).
Early life and education
Isaac was born in 1979 in Beit Sahour, Palestine, into an Orthodox Christian family.{{Cite web |last=Woodman |first=Sonja |date=2024-05-15 |title=Munther Isaac, a watchman in the Palestinian night |url=https://www.ocms.ac.uk/munther-isaac-a-watchman-in-the-palestinian-night/ |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=La Vie |language=en-GB |via=Oxford Centre for Mission Studies}} As a child, Isaac lived through the First Intifada and witnessed protests and curfews. He recalls Israeli soldiers seizing residents' possessions in Beit Sahour, including his family's car, in response to a tax strike the residents organized.{{Cite web |last=Zeveloff |first=Naomi |date=2022-03-21 |title=Munther Isaac: What Would Jesus Do at an Israeli Military Checkpoint? |url=https://crcc.usc.edu/munther-isaac-what-would-jesus-do-at-an-israeli-military-checkpoint/ |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=University of Southern California Center for Religion and Civic Culture |language=en-US}}
Isaac has childhood memories of Christmas shopping in Jerusalem, a city which the Israeli government no longer allows him to visit.{{Cite web |date=2023-12-24 |title=What are Palestine's unique Christmas rituals, disrupted by Israel's war? |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/24/what-are-palestines-unique-christmas-rituals-disrupted-by-israels-war |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}} As an adult, he witnessed the building of the West Bank barrier, which divides Bethlehem from Jerusalem and requires Palestinians to apply for permits to travel through Israeli military checkpoints between the two cities. Due to his pro-Palestine activism, Isaac's permit to travel has been cancelled by the Israeli government.{{Cite web |last=Kuttab |first=Daoud |date=2024-05-30 |title=At 'Christ at the Checkpoint,' Palestinian Christians rail against Western church's response to war |url=https://religionnews.com/2024/05/30/at-christ-at-the-checkpoint-palestinian-christians-rail-against-western-churchs-response-to-war/ |access-date=2024-12-27 |website=RNS |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |date=2023-12-25 |title=In solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, Bethlehem skips Christmas festivities |url=https://www.npr.org/2023/12/25/1221504149/in-solidarity-with-palestinians-in-gaza-bethlehem-skips-christmas-festivities |work=NPR}}
When the Second Intifada began, Isaac was studying civil engineering at Birzeit University. The Israeli military's response to the Second Intifada angered Isaac, leading him to search for a way to help fellow Palestinians. He decided to study theology, completing an MA at Westminster Theological Seminary and a PhD at the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies.{{Cite web |last= |title=Christmas Lutheran Church - Bethlehem |url=https://www.elcjhl.org/christmas-lutheran-church-bethlehem |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=ELCJHL |language=en}}
Career
In 2012, Isaac became the director of Christ at the Checkpoint (CATC), a conference which seeks to encourage and organize opposition to the Israeli occupation of Palestine among Christians from other countries. In addition to attending lectures, conference participants witness some of the features of the Israeli occupation, including the West Bank Barrier and the military checkpoints. The conference is hosted by Bethlehem Bible College, where Isaac became the academic dean in 2015.{{Cite web |last=Farhoud |first=Amira |date=2015-10-27 |title=Munther Isaac our New Academic Dean |url=https://bethbc.edu/blog/2015/10/27/munther-isaac-our-new-academic-dean/ |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Bethlehem Bible College |language=en-US}} In 2014, CATC was accused by Yigal Palmor from the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs of using religion for political propaganda; Isaac responded by calling Palmor’s statement an attempt at censorship.{{Cite web |last=Morgan |first=Timothy C. |date=2014-03-12 |title=Evangelicals Defend 'Christ at the Checkpoint' from Israeli Critics |url=https://www.christianitytoday.com/2014/03/israel-blasts-evangelical-bethlehem-christ-at-checkpoint/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241227065934/https://www.christianitytoday.com/2014/03/israel-blasts-evangelical-bethlehem-christ-at-checkpoint/ |archive-date=2024-12-27 |access-date=2024-12-27 |website=Christianity Today |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last= |date=2014-03-19 |title=PHOTOS: 'Christ at the Checkpoint' challenges Christian Zionism |url=https://www.972mag.com/photos-christ-at-the-checkpoint-challenges-christian-zionism/ |access-date=2024-12-27 |website=+972 Magazine |language=en-US}} According to Isaac, CATC has contributed to more awareness of Palestinian viewpoints among Evangelical Christians.{{Cite web |last=Bethlehem |first=Jayson Casper in |date=2018-05-25 |title=Christ at the Checkpoint in the Age of Trump |url=https://www.christianitytoday.com/2018/05/christ-checkpoint-palestinian-christian-zionism-bethlehem/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240910172042/https://www.christianitytoday.com/2018/05/christ-checkpoint-palestinian-christian-zionism-bethlehem/ |archive-date=2024-09-10 |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Christianity Today |language=en-US}}
Palestinian pastor Mitri Raheb mentored Isaac and encouraged him to become a pastor. In 2016, Isaac became an ordained minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL). Isaac pastors two ELCJHL churches— Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem and The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Beit Sahour.{{Cite news |last=Knell |first=Yolande |date=2023-01-22 |title=First woman pastor in Holy Land ordained |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-64364143 |access-date=2024-12-23 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}{{Cite web |last=Palmer |first=Elizabeth |date=2024-08-26 |title=Palestinian and Christian in a violent time |url=https://www.christiancentury.org/interviews/palestinian-and-christian-violent-time |access-date=2025-01-02 |website=The Christian Century |language=en}} As of 2019, Isaac estimated that Christmas Lutheran Church had 160 local members with thousands more living abroad. Many Palestinian Christians have left the West Bank due to the Israeli occupation and high rates of unemployment.{{Cite web |last=Oborne |first=Peter |date=2019-12-24 |title='The last generation': How occupation is driving Christians out of Palestine |url=https://www.middleeasteye.net/big-story/last-generation-occupation-palestinian-christians |access-date=2025-01-02 |website=Middle East Eye |language=en}}
After the Trump peace plan was published in 2020, Isaac called it "a new Apartheid" that does not consider Palestinian demands.{{Cite web |last=Calvert |first=Paul |date=2020-03-27 |title=Donald Trump's Peace Deal Part 2 |url=https://www.crossrhythms.co.uk/articles/life/Donald_Trumps_Peace_Deal_Part_2/67115/p1/ |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=Cross Rhythms}} He co-wrote an op-ed in Haaretz predicting that the plan would not achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians but would instead harm the rights of Palestinians, especially Palestinian Christians. Additionally, he called it "a mortal blow to a dynamic Christian presence in the birthplace of Jesus."{{Cite news |last1=Isaac |first1=Munther |last2=Khader |first2=Jamal |date=2020-05-06 |title=Donald Trump Is Complicit in a Catastrophe for Christians |url=https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/2020-05-06/ty-article-opinion/.premium/donald-trump-is-complicit-in-a-catastrophe-for-christians/0000017f-deec-d3ff-a7ff-ffec06480000 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221001022225/https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/2020-05-06/ty-article-opinion/.premium/donald-trump-is-complicit-in-a-catastrophe-for-christians/0000017f-deec-d3ff-a7ff-ffec06480000 |archive-date=2022-10-01 |work=Haaretz}}
Isaac appeared in
= Gaza war =
In November 2023, Isaac brought a letter from several Bethlehem churches to US President Joseph Biden urging him to end the Gaza war.{{Cite web |last=Jadou |first=Monjed |date=2023-12-07 |title='If Christ were born today, he would be born under rubble, Israeli bombing' |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/7/if-christ-were-born-today-he-would-be-born-under-rubble-israeli-bombing |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2023-12-26 |title=Christmas in Palestine: Bethlehem Pastor Slams Western Hypocrisy on Gaza & Religion |url=https://www.democracynow.org/2023/12/26/rev_munther_isaac_christmas_in_palestine |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Democracy Now! |language=en}}
File:Christmas Church (Bethlehem) (4).jpg
During advent season that year, Isaac compared the story of Jesus's birth to the situation in Palestine. The nativity scene in Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem depicted Jesus wrapped in a Palestinian keffiyeh and lying in a pile of rubble. Explaining the nativity scene in a December 7 sermon, Isaac stated: "If Christ were to be born today, he would be born under the rubble and Israeli shelling."{{Cite web |date=2023-12-22 |title="Ma fi Nifs": Palestinians Have No Heart for Christmas Celebrations While Gaza Is Being Destroyed |url=https://www.jerusalemstory.com/en/article/ma-fi-nifs-palestinians-have-no-heart-christmas-celebrations-while-gaza-being-destroyed |website=Jerusalem Story}} On Christmas Eve, Isaac preached a sermon entitled "Christ in the Rubble: A Liturgy of Lament"Isaac, Munther. “Christ in the Rubble: A Liturgy of Lament.” Islamic Horizons, vol. 53, no. 2, Mar. 2024, pp. 50–51. EBSCOhost, [https://Search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f6h&AN=175954180&site=eds-live&scope=site search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f6h&AN=175954180&site=eds-live&scope=site]. in which he stated: "We, the Palestinians, will recover, as we always have... But for those who are complicit, I feel sorry for you. Will you ever recover from this?... we will not accept your apology after the genocide."{{Cite web |date=2023-12-25 |title='We Have No Joy': As Devastation in Gaza Continues, No Christmas Cheer in Bethlehem This Year |url=https://thewire.in/world/we-have-no-joy-as-devastation-in-gaza-continues-no-christmas-cheer-in-bethlehem-this-year |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=The Wire |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2023-12-24 |title=Munther Isaac sends a Palestinian Christmas message: 'We, Palestinians, will recover. We will rise.' |url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20231224-munther-isaac-sends-a-palestinian-christmas-message-we-palestinians-will-recover-we-will-rise/ |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Middle East Monitor}} Video of his sermon and photos of the nativity scene went viral on social media.{{Cite magazine |last=Robbins |first=Claire Porter |date=2024-01-24 |title=The Dilemma of Gaza's Christians |url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-dilemma-of-gazas-christians |access-date=2025-01-02 |magazine=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}{{Cite news |last=Wintour |first=Patrick |last2= |first2= |date=2024-02-29 |title=Justin Welby expresses 'deep regret' at refusal to meet Palestinian pastor |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/feb/29/justin-welby-deep-regret-refusal-meet-palestinian-pastor-munther-isaac |access-date=2024-12-25 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}{{Cite news |last1=Booth and |first1=William |last2=Taha |first2=Sufian |date=2023-12-23 |title='Jesus in the rubble': Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem canceled |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/12/23/christmas-celebrations-bethlehem-canceled-israel-gaza/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231226174515/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/12/23/christmas-celebrations-bethlehem-canceled-israel-gaza/ |archive-date=2023-12-26 |newspaper=The Washington Post}} According to Isaac, churches in other countries have sent him photos of their similar nativity scenes.{{Cite web |date=2024-12-24 |title='Many have had their eyes opened for the first time' to Palestine's occupation, Bethlehem's Rev. Munther Isaac tells Arab News |url=https://www.arabnews.com/node/2584219/middle-east |access-date=2024-12-27 |website=Arab News |language=en}}
Isaac has given speeches in various venues across the world, including the Riverside Church in New York City, St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., and the Global Anti-Apartheid Conference for Palestine in Johannesburg.{{Cite web |title=Palestinian Reverend Munther Isaac to Faith Leaders in U.S.: If You Are Silent, You Approve of Genocide |url=https://www.democracynow.org/2024/8/14/rev_munther_isaac_israel_palestine |access-date=2024-12-27 |website=Democracy Now! |language=en}}{{Cite web |last= |date=2024-05-11 |title='End Israeli Apartheid' – Naledi Pandor urges progressive forces |url=https://theafrican.co.za/politics/end-israeli-apartheid-naledi-pandor-urges-progressive-forces-c8e2b6d1-6287-43dc-9432-9d6a5251cda4/ |access-date=2024-12-27 |website=THE AFRICAN |language=en-ZA}}{{Cite web |last=Jenkins |first=Jack |date=2024-12-23 |title=In Bethlehem, a Christian pastor says a year of protest for Palestinians shows few gains |url=https://religionnews.com/2024/12/23/in-bethlehem-a-christian-pastor-reflects-on-a-year-of-prayerful-pro-palestinian-activism/ |access-date=2024-12-27 |website=RNS |language=en-US}} Following Isaac's speech at a pro-Palestine protest in London that featured Jeremy Corbyn, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby cancelled their February 2024 meeting.{{Cite news |last=Wintour |first=Patrick |last2= |first2= |date=2024-02-21 |title=Pastor says Welby would not meet him if he spoke at Palestine rally with Corbyn |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/feb/21/pastor-says-welby-would-not-meet-him-if-he-spoke-at-palestine-rally-with-corbyn |access-date=2024-12-25 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}{{Cite web |date=2024-02-21 |title=Archbishop of Canterbury refuses to meet Palestinian pastor who spoke alongside Corbyn |url=https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/archbishop-canterbury-would-not-meet-palestinian-pastor-who-spoke-alongside-jeremy-corbyn |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=Middle East Eye |language=en}} Welby reportedly decided against meeting with Isaac because he feared offending the Jewish community.{{Cite web |last=DAVIES |first=MADELEINE |date=2024-02-29 |title=Archbishop Welby, apologetic, reverses decision not to meet Palestinian pastor from Bethlehem |url=https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2024/1-march/news/uk/archbishop-welby-apologetic-reverses-decision-not-to-meet-palestinian-pastor-from-bethlehem |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=Church Times}}{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=2024-02-29 |title=Archbishop of Canterbury 'sorry' for Palestinian pastor snub |url=https://www.newarab.com/news/archbishop-canterbury-sorry-palestinian-pastor-snub |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240923135632/https://www.newarab.com/news/archbishop-canterbury-sorry-palestinian-pastor-snub |archive-date=2024-09-23 |access-date=2024-12-25 |work=The New Arab |language=en-EN}} After Isaac and others publicly criticized Welby's actions, Welby apologized and rescheduled their meeting. Later that year, Welby visited Isaac's church in Bethlehem.{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=2024-11-18 |title=Outgoing Archbishop of Canterbury in W Bank amid settler attacks |url=https://www.newarab.com/news/outgoing-archbishop-canterbury-w-bank-amid-settler-attacks |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241119030346/https://www.newarab.com/news/outgoing-archbishop-canterbury-w-bank-amid-settler-attacks |archive-date=2024-11-19 |access-date=2024-12-25 |work=The New Arab |language=en-EN}}{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2024-11-19 |title=President of Bethlehem Bible College Meets Archbishop of Canterbury in Solidarity with Palestinian People |url=https://bethbc.edu/blog/2024/11/19/president-of-bethlehem-bible-college-meets-archbishop-of-canterbury-in-solidarity-with-palestinian-people/ |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=Bethlehem Bible College |language=en-US}}
Isaac has criticized Israel's treatment of Palestinian Christians.{{Cite news |last=Mizzi |first=Oliver |date=2024-09-23 |title=Rev Munther Isaac warns Palestinian Christians are under attack |url=https://www.newarab.com/news/rev-munther-isaac-warns-palestinian-christians-are-under-attack |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241127045102/https://www.newarab.com/news/rev-munther-isaac-warns-palestinian-christians-are-under-attack |archive-date=2024-11-27 |access-date=2024-12-31 |work=The New Arab |language=en-EN}} In an April 2024 interview with conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, Isaac accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.{{Cite news |last=Samuels |first=Ben |date=2024-04-17 |title='The peace movement has failed': Why this U.S. evangelical wants to stop arming Israel |url=https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2024-04-17/ty-article-magazine/.premium/the-peace-movement-has-failed-why-this-u-s-evangelical-wants-to-stop-arming-israel/0000018e-e740-db8e-a1bf-ff4f7d080000 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240417093842/https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2024-04-17/ty-article-magazine/.premium/the-peace-movement-has-failed-why-this-u-s-evangelical-wants-to-stop-arming-israel/0000018e-e740-db8e-a1bf-ff4f7d080000 |archive-date=2024-04-17 |access-date=2024-12-23 |work=Haaretz.com |language=en}} Both Carlson and Isaac advocated against US Christian support for Israel due to its mistreatment of Palestinian Christians.{{Cite news |last=Nechin |first=Etan |date=2024-04-21 |title='Our Future Was Here': Christians in Gaza Are Paying an Unholy Price for Israel-Hamas War |url=https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/palestinians/2024-04-21/ty-article-magazine/.premium/our-future-was-here-christians-in-gaza-are-paying-an-unholy-price-for-israel-hamas-war/0000018e-ff84-dc66-a39f-ff9c57940000 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240422235025/https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/palestinians/2024-04-21/ty-article-magazine/.premium/our-future-was-here-christians-in-gaza-are-paying-an-unholy-price-for-israel-hamas-war/0000018e-ff84-dc66-a39f-ff9c57940000 |archive-date=2024-04-22 |work=Haaretz}}{{Cite web |last=Klett |first=Leah MarieAnn |date=2024-04-25 |title=Christian leaders criticize Tucker Carlson's interview with Munther Isaac: 'No mention of Hamas' |url=https://www.christianpost.com/news/tucker-carlson-criticized-for-pro-hamas-munther-isaac-interview.html |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Christian Post |language=en}}{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=2024-04-11 |title=Tucker Carlson exposes Israeli treatment of Gaza Christians |url=https://www.newarab.com/news/tucker-carlson-exposes-israeli-treatment-gaza-christians |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240529075039/https://www.newarab.com/news/tucker-carlson-exposes-israeli-treatment-gaza-christians |archive-date=2024-05-29 |access-date=2024-12-23 |work=The New Arab |language=en-EN}} The interview, which garnered mixed reactions from American conservatives,{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Ryan |date=2024-04-10 |title=Conservatives turn on Tucker Carlson |url=https://www.newsweek.com/tucker-carlson-israel-gaza-christianity-munther-isaac-video-1888845 |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Newsweek |language=en}} has been viewed over 19 million times on Twitter.{{Cite web |last=Carlson |first=Tucker |date=2024-04-09 |title=Ep. 91 How does the government of Israel treat Christians? |url=https://x.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1777800149818822809 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241214125625/https://x.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1777800149818822809 |archive-date=2024-12-14 |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=X (formerly Twitter)}}
In December 2024, Isaac expressed frustration at the lack of progress made towards ending the war but noted that Israel's conduct during the war has led to decreasing support for Israel among Christians in other countries. Isaac's church repeated the previous year’s nativity scene portraying Jesus lying in rubble.{{Cite web |date=2024-12-24 |title="Christ is Still in the Rubble": No Silent Nights in Gaza this Christmas Amidst Ongoing Israeli Bombardment |url=https://www.democracynow.org/2024/12/24/christ_is_still_in_the_rubble |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=Democracy Now! |language=en}} Other churches including St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., and All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, California, have created similar nativity scenes inspired by the one at Isaac's church.{{Cite web |last=Shimron |first=Yonat |date=2024-12-09 |title=From DC to the Vatican, baby Jesus is wearing a keffiyeh |url=https://religionnews.com/2024/12/09/this-advent-christ-in-the-rubble-creches-feature-a-baby-jesus-in-a-keffiyeh/ |access-date=2025-01-13 |website=RNS |language=en-US}} Isaac delivered a sermon entitled: "Christ Is Still in the Rubble", stating: "'Never again’ has become ‘yet again’ — yet again to supremacy, yet again to racism and yet again to genocide."{{Cite web |date=2024-12-23 |title=Bethlehem Rev. Isaac Calls on U.S. to Stop Funding Gaza Genocide |url=https://www.democracynow.org/2024/12/23/rev_munther_isaac_christmas_2024 |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=Democracy Now! |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2024-12-24 |title=Palestinian pastor: 'Christ is still in the rubble' |url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20241224-palestinian-pastor-christ-is-still-in-the-rubble/ |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=Middle East Monitor}}
Books
= ''From Land to Lands, from Eden to the Renewed Earth'' (2015) =
Isaac's PhD dissertation was published as the book, From Land to Lands, from Eden to the Renewed Earth.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2015-11-20 |title=From Land to Lands, from Eden to the Renewed Earth |url=https://bethbc.edu/blog/2015/11/20/from-land-to-lands-from-eden-to-the-renewed-earth/ |access-date=2025-01-02 |website=Bethlehem Bible College |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Isaac |first=Munther |date=March 2014 |title=From Land to Lands, From Eden to the Renewed Earth: A Christ-centred Biblical Theology of the Promised Land |url=https://repository.mdx.ac.uk/download/0ef0d872ec60a45f06091acf43d87e43ef946e7f3fe7743a126d261d20229c30/10556734/MIsaac_thesis.pdf |website=Middlesex University Research Repository }} In it, he challenges a Zionist interpretation of the Bible that God promised the land of Israel and Palestine to the Jewish people, as represented by the modern state of Israel. Instead, he argues that the land should be shared.{{Cite journal |last=Burge |first=Gary M. |date=August 2017 |title=Bound for the Promised Land: The Land Promise in God's Redemptive Plan |url=https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/review/bound-for-the-promised-land-the-land-promise-in-gods-redemptive-plan1/ |journal=Themelios |publisher=The Gospel Coalition |volume=42 |issue=2 |pages=382–384}}{{Cite journal |last=Marteijn |first=Elizabeth S. |date=2020-03-01 |title=The Politics of Interpretation: Understanding Biblical History in Palestinian Rural Culture |url=https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/full/10.3366/swc.2020.0279 |journal=Studies in World Christianity |volume=26 |issue=1 |pages=4–20 |doi=10.3366/swc.2020.0279 |issn=1354-9901|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite journal |last=Chow |first=Alexander |date=2016-11-14 |title=Eschatology and World Christianity |url=https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/10.3366/swc.2016.0156 |journal=Studies in World Christianity |volume=22 |issue=3 |pages=201–215 |language=en |doi=10.3366/swc.2016.0156|url-access=subscription }}
= ''The Other Side of the Wall'' (2020) =
In Isaac's book, The Other Side of the Wall, he criticizes Christian Zionists for ignoring Israeli human rights abuses of Palestinians and for believing that Israeli Jews will be converted to Christianity. He argues that Israel prioritizes the rights of Jewish Israelis and advocates that the land should instead be shared equally and peacefully among all people:{{Cite journal |last=Cathey |first=Robert |date=2022-05-09 |title=Munther Isaac. The Other Side of the Wall: A Palestinian Narrative of Lament and Hope |url=https://ejournals.bc.edu/index.php/scjr/article/view/15083 |journal=Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations |language=en |volume=17 |issue=1 |doi=10.6017/scjr.v17i1.15083 |issn=1930-3777|doi-access=free }}{{Cite web |last=Frias |first=Denis |date=2020-06-01 |title=The Other Side of the Wall: A Palestinian Christian Narrative of Lament and Hope |url=https://www.libraryjournal.com/review/the-other-side-of-the-wall-a-palestinian-christian-narrative-of-lament-and-hope |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625173825/https://www.libraryjournal.com/review/the-other-side-of-the-wall-a-palestinian-christian-narrative-of-lament-and-hope |archive-date=2024-06-25 |access-date=2025-01-02 |website=Library Journal}} "Even as I am committed today to the urgency of ending the Israeli occupation, I need to remind myself that the goal in itself is not ending the occupation, but rather reconciliation.”
In his review, Samuel T. Logan praises Isaac's knowledge of the Bible and history but expresses a desire for Isaac to explain what it means for Palestinians to love Jewish Israelis as neighbors, especially in the context of the Holocaust. One reviewer writes that Isaac accurately describes Palestinian suffering but disregards Israeli security concerns. Another reviewer writes that the book "dismantles Christian Zionism brick by brick" and "demands a reconsideration of the Israel-Palestine conflict".{{Cite web |last=Rood |first=Jeremiah |date=2020-06-27 |title=Review of The Other Side of the Wall |url=https://www.forewordreviews.com/reviews/the-other-side-of-the-wall/ |access-date=2025-01-02 |website=Foreword Reviews |language=en}}
= ''Christ in the Rubble'' (2025) =
Isaac's book, Christ in the Rubble: Faith, the Bible and the Genocide in Gaza (Eerdmans 2025), covers the Christian response to the Gaza war.{{Cite web |date=2025-05-29 |title=Christ in the Rubble: Faith, the Bible and the Genocide in Gaza |url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250529-christ-in-the-rubble-faith-the-bible-and-the-genocide-in-gaza/ |access-date=2025-06-12 |website=Middle East Monitor}} He has previously stated that the overall Christian response to the war is inadequate because it ignores the history of the conflict, accepts the Israeli narrative, and refrains from explicitly denouncing Israel for genocide and war crimes.{{Cite web |last=Vioque |first=Hanna |date=2023-12-21 |title=Western churches called for cease-fire. Palestinian Christians heard empty words. |url=https://religionnews.com/2023/12/21/western-churches-called-for-cease-fire-palestinian-christians-heard-empty-words/ |access-date=2025-01-02 |website=RNS |language=en-US}} The foreword is by Yale theologian Willie James Jennings.
Personal life
Isaac met his wife when he spoke at a Christian conference that she had organized. She is an architect,{{Cite web |last1=Bruton |first1=F. Brinley |last2=Jabari |first2=Lawahez |last3=Goldman |first3=Paul |date=2018-05-05 |title=Christians in the Holy Land feel abandoned by American evangelicals |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/holy-land-christians-feel-abandoned-u-s-evangelicals-n867371 |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=NBC News |language=en}} and they live in Beit Sahour with their two children. He is a Liverpool fan.
Selected Works
- [https://www.google.com/books/edition/From_Land_to_Lands_from_Eden_to_the_Rene/knouDgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 From Land to Lands, from Eden to the Renewed Earth: A Christ-Centred Biblical Theology of the Promised Land] (2015). Langham Monographs. {{ISBN|978-1-78368-077-1}}.
- [https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Other_Side_of_the_Wall/Fq_JDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 The Other Side of the Wall: A Palestinian Christian Narrative of Lament and Hope] (2020). InterVarsity Press. {{ISBN|978-0-8308-3220-0}}.
- [https://www.google.com/books/edition/Christ_in_the_Rubble/EYkqEQAAQBAJ?hl=en Christ in the Rubble: Faith, the Bible, and the Genocide in Gaza] (2025). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishin
g. {{ISBN|978-1-4674-7012-4}}.
References
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Category:Palestinian Lutheran theologians
Category:Palestinian Lutheran clergy
Category:21st-century Palestinian academics
Category:Birzeit University alumni
Category:Westminster Theological Seminary alumni
Category:Palestinian Christian clergy