Dispensationalism brings to light the fact that God will bring to pass all that He promised the Jewish people in the spirit and in the natural. The theology of Dispensationalism led to what is called Christian Zionism. Evangelical Christians, who love and support Israel but do not call themselves Dispensationalists in their theology, actually are dispensationalists when it comes to Israel.

   We can see the genesis of Christian Zionism deep inside the Protestant Reformation. Up to that point Western European Christians were Catholics and accepted the teaching of the church, which was very allegorical rather than literal. By the 1700's and the 1800's believers could obtain a Bible in their native language and interpret the scriptures themselves. Christians began to see that God was NOT finished with the nation of Israel. They saw Israel as the center of Bible prophecy.

   Charles Ryrie wrote, "Dispensational theology is a system that embodies three concepts: 1) The church is distinct from Israel and 2) One reads the Bible literally (literal hermeneutic) and 3) God's overall purpose is to bring glory to Himself." Dispensationalists state that this distinction between Israel and the church is part of a single plan that God has for our history. Within this single plan God has two groups; 1) Israel, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and 2) the church.

   John Walvoord clarifies this in writing, that, "dispensations are rules of life. They are not ways of salvation. There is only one way of salvation and that is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ." John F. Walvoord, "Biblical Kingdoms Compared and Contrasted" in Issues In Dispensationalism, edited by Wesley R. Willis and John R. Master (Chicago: Moody Press, 1994), p. 88.)

   Let's look at some of the dispensationalists starting with, John N. Darby (1800-1882). Darby is considered the founder of modern Dispensationalism. Professor Richard Graves, a post-millennialist, was a major influence on Darby when he attended Trinity College in Dublin. Graves was a supporter of the Jewish people in the British Empire and had a strong faith in the belief that the Jews would come to faith, re-establish the nation of Israel and then call back Messiah who would establish the Millennial Kingdom as the Scriptures prophesied. While Darby never acted politically with regards to restoration of the nation of Israel, it can safely be said that he believed in restoration based on his beliefs and his teachings. Additionally, it can be stated that he greatly influenced those who took action with regards to the re-establishment of the Jewish homeland.

   What was going on in Jewish history at the time of Darby? From Heritage: Civilization and the Jews by Abba Eban. In the mid 1800" the worldwide Jewish population was approximately 4,750,000. 72 % of these Jews lived in Eastern Europe, 14% in Western Europe, and 1.5 % in America. It is at this point that Jewish history becomes intricately linked to European history. Jews now had an option that they had not historically been offered too many times in the past. They no longer were forced to live in the ghettos as had usually had been the case. They could now "climb to individual glory in an expanding age."(Abba Eban p. 237) If the Jewish person could make his Jewishness secondary to his national affiliation, the Jew could enter areas that previously had been impossible to enter. The highest offices of government as well as entry to the universities were now available to the Jewish population of Western Europe.

   An example of this is Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881), a Jew who became Prime Minister of England. He was baptized into the Church of England at the age of 12. Abba Eban wrote "If the price of emancipation was assimilation-abandonment of formal ties to Judaism, or, more commonly, acting like a Jew in one’s own home but like a secular European everywhere else- this was a price that many Jews were willing to pay." (Heritage p. 238)

   In Eastern Europe, specifically the areas under the dominion of the Russian Czars, things were different. The liberalism and secularism of the Western European nations had not made inroads into Eastern European society. These areas had a history of brutal anti-Semitism evidenced by bloody pogroms. Hundreds of thousands of Jews left these areas for America, Western Europe or even the austere conditions of Jerusalem and Israel. This is dramatized in the movie, Fiddler on the Roof. On the other hand, there were many Russian Jews that were not looking to leave their shtetls and ghettos. While they lived sometimes in poverty, they knew who they were. They wanted to be like others on a national level but did not want to be like others on an individual level. In effect, they did not want to give up their Jewish customs but they wanted to be part of their adopted nation.

   In this we see the desire for a Jewish State but not the nationalism that was being displayed by their Jewish brethren in Western Europe. Indeed this was the vision of a Jewish homeland that a Western European by the name of Theodor Herzl had. The Russian Jews embraced this vision, as it mirrored their philosophy of belonging to a nation while still being Jews.

   The major financial supporters of the "Yishuv" or settlements in the Land of Israel in the late 19^th century came from Western Europe because that is the place that the fortunes of Jewish bankers and businessmen were made in the 1700's and 1800's. People like Sir Moses Montefiore and Baron Edmond James de Rothschild financed many settlements in Israel. While they gave great amounts of support, these benefactors did not settle in Israel. They were much of the same mindset as other Jews of Western Europe. These Jews saw themselves as first, loyal citizens of their respective progressive nations and second as Jews who felt a strong social and religious bond with other Jews. The Jews throughout the world believed this way, from reading Jeremiah 29:7 Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare The Jews interpreted this verse in these words, "Be a Jew in your tent, and a man abroad."(Heritagep. 240)

   In the next article we will examine why the Jews never were totally assimilated into the cultures in which they lived.