{"id":380558,"date":"2025-11-15T11:03:14","date_gmt":"2025-11-15T11:03:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/380558\/"},"modified":"2025-11-15T11:03:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-15T11:03:14","slug":"christian-media-pledge-truthful-reporting-in-new-covenant-on-israel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/380558\/","title":{"rendered":"Christian media pledge \u2018truthful reporting\u2019 in new covenant on Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Some 100 members of Christian media from around the world have signed a \u201ccovenant\u201d on journalistic ethics as they relate to the State of Israel.<\/p>\n

The covenant, presented last Thursday at the Christian Media Summit in Jerusalem\u2014an event sponsored by the Government Press Office, the Foreign Ministry and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews\u2014was designed to turn the learnings of the five-day seminar into concrete action.<\/p>\n

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1 View gallery <\/p>\n

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Bishop Dennis Nthumbi presents The International Christian Media Accord on Journalistic Ethics and the State of the Land of Israel <\/p>\n

(Photo: Courtesy)<\/p>\n

Its key principles, written by Bishop Dennis Nthumbi, Africa Director of the Israel Allies Foundation, begin with a commitment to \u201cuphold the truth\u201d by consistently and accurately reporting that Judea and Samaria are \u201clegally disputed\u201d and not \u201coccupied\u201d territories. The second principle affirms Israeli heritage in the land of Israel by educating audiences about the \u201cunbroken 3,000-year connection of the Jewish people to the entire Land of Israel.\u201d The final principle calls for supporting the \u201cresponsible security governance\u201d of Israel in Gaza and the Golan Heights.<\/p>\n

The covenant was a private initiative and not an official product of the summit.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s summit, held from November 2 to 6, was the seventh such gathering, bringing together journalists and other media professionals from around the world. Participants toured Judea and Samaria, as well as the Gaza Strip, and took part in briefings and discussions at the Foreign Ministry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe war exposed our underbelly, and that underbelly was the fact that Christian media have not been united in combating disinformation, misinformation and propaganda against Israel,\u201d Nthumbi told ynet Global. \u201cI sought to bring together a unified front and build capacity, so we could better deal with this whole propaganda issue, not only against Israel but the entire Jewish community globally.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that in the early days of the conference, he realized that despite the powerful speeches and panels, the roughly 150 participants would return home unchanged unless they committed to something meaningful.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know the why, but we don\u2019t know the how,\u201d he said about the battle for truthful reporting on Israel. \u201cWe don\u2019t know how to fight a united enemy with an AK-47 in one hand and a camera in the other hand. The camera is winning the war. The enemy is winning the war on information and the hearts and minds of the people. They have managed to convince the world that they are right and the truth is wrong. A bunch of terrorists have duped the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first member of the Christian media to sign the covenant was Humphrey Birkenstock, CEO of the South African community radio station Rainbow FM. He said signing it was a \u201cgame changer\u201d for him, returning his role to the \u201cspirit of covenant with God and commitment to truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Birkenstock described how his station is \u201cfacing the storm\u201d in South Africa, where the government\u2014responsible for granting broadcast licenses\u2014is firmly opposed to Israel. \u201cThe government always has a wry eye on what we say about our government and government partners overseas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Even so, Birkenstock told Ynet Global that he believes Christian voices represent the silent majority. Roughly 85% of South Africans are Christian, he noted, and \u201cwe firmly believe all of these principles. I know for a fact that in the hearts of South Africans, they do support Israel and do support the truth and the word of God.\u201d<\/p>\n

The covenant explains that its signees are \u201cguided by the unerring standard of the Holy Scriptures and the foundational principles of international law.\u201d<\/p>\n

It states: \u201cThe sovereignty of the Jewish people over the Land of Israel is not a contemporary political claim but the fulfillment of an eternal, unilateral covenant established by God. This is the bedrock of our understanding.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe establishment of the Jewish National Home, including Judea, Samaria and the Golan Heights, was explicitly mandated by the supreme international body of its time,\u201d the document continues. \u201cA subsequent legally binding instrument has never superseded this legal right.\u201d<\/p>\n

The covenant also calls for establishing three new bodies:<\/p>\n