CUFI Holding Birmingham Night to Honor Israel

Update: The Sept. 22 Night to Honor Israel in Birmingham has been postponed; and will likely be rescheduled for February.

Christians United for Israel will hold its first Night to Honor Israel in Alabama, on Sept. 22 at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

David Brog, executive director of CUFI, will be the featured speaker. Before joining CUFI, Brog was chief of staff to Sen. Arlen Specter, and wrote “Standing With Israel: Why Christians Support the Jewish State,” one of the first serious explorations of Christian support for Israel.

Nights to Honor Israel have been held around the country, including in Shreveport since 2006, and Jackson since 2007. Last fall’s event in Jackson drew over 2,000.

Local Jewish communities are invited and recognized at the events; in some cases local rabbis participate, while others choose not to attend.

CUFI was founded by Pastor John Hagee six years ago and already has over 772,000 members. Walter McKee, owner of McKee and Associates in Montgomery, is the Alabama director and Rev. Brandy Gibson of Word of Faith Christian Center in Birmingham heads the state’s Daughters for Zion prayer group.

Gibson and CUFI Regional Director John Sommerville were to meet with the Birmingham Jewish Federation on Sept. 6.

Doors will open to the Sept. 22 event at 6:30 p.m. and the event will start at 7 p.m. At 6 p.m., there will be a VIP reception for those who donate $100 or more, and a book signing and photo shoot with Brog for donors contributing $500 or more.

Proceeds from the Night to Honor Israel will go to the Federation and Friends of Leket, an Israel group that is the country’s largest food bank and food rescue network.

Alabama has a special history of supporting Israel. In 1943, the state legislature became the first governmental body in America to pass a resolution calling for the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine.

On Aug. 24, Gibson, McKee and former Sen. Hank Erwin spoke at an Israel rally on the Capitol steps in Montgomery.