Little by little, over the past few decades but growing more and more over the past few years, a community of activists in the Christian-Jewish engagement space has developed, with people reaching out to each other to promote fraternity and humanitarian projects in and between the Christian and Jewish communities.
In 2020, the organization I run, Root Source, together with friends at Israel365, initiated Bridgebuilders: Top Activists in Christian-Jewish Engagement, honoring seventy of these trailblazers.
In this monthly column, we will focus on one of these leaders, and share an interview with her or him, hearing how they got to where they are today, learning about some of their projects, and thinking about what God is doing with regard to Jewish-Christian relations.
We encourage you to reply! Leave a comment below or send us an email at bridgebuilders@root-source.com.
This month’s Bridgebuilders: Reverend Gary Cristofaro from Ezra International, Melbourne, Florida USA
What is the main focus of your activities today?
Helping impoverished Jewish people make Aliyah.
How long have you been doing that?
Ezra International has operated since 1995.
What are some of the successful related programs or projects that you have done this year and in past years?
Ezra International provides humanitarian aid to impoverished Jewish people. Often, they barely have enough money to pay their rent, put food on their table and clothes on their backs.
Through Christian support we are able to help them make Aliyah (Return to Israel). We provide one-on-one support in their home countries, we complete in-depth ancestry research, procure necessary immigration documents, and provide the necessary transportation throughout the process of their emigration journey.
How did you get to where you are today?
It’s hard to imagine in this day and age that many Jewish people in remote parts of the world still lack the basic human necessities you and I take for granted and suffer discrimination due to their Jewish heritage. The truth is, even though the wall of communism fell over two decades ago, many Jewish people in the former Soviet Union as well as in Central and South America live in conditions that deprive them of the freedom and opportunities they so deserve.
In the Bible, God prophesied over 300 times that He would restore the Jewish people to their land and specifically called Gentiles to help. The restoration of Israel isn’t our idea- it’s God’s. We are just one organization He is using to fulfill the promises He made long ago.
The good news is, it doesn’t take a million dollars to help one Jewish person return to their biblical homeland. Since 1995, Ezra International’s supporters have helped thousands of people from the former Soviet Union and South America-and tens of thousands more are waiting to return to Israel from other countries around the world.
What is your “testimony”?
In 1992 I experienced a supernatural calling from God as He imparted an unshakable desire in my heart to help Jewish people make it home to Israel. I began preparing myself for the work through study and trips to Israel. I became an Ordained Minister through the Assemblies of God and initially started fulfilling the call by financially supporting the work of Ezra International both personally and through the church.
Not long after, I began working part-time as a Representative for Ezra by speaking in churches on their behalf. Since 2014 I have been working full-time as Ezra International’s Director of Development. My mission now is to communicate the importance of the prophetic return of the Jewish people back to Eretz Israel and challenging Christians to come to a better understanding of their Hebraic roots.
What do you think God is doing with regard to Jewish-Christian relations?
I believe God is revealing to the Gentiles that they have inherited lies from the church fathers and showing them that the time to favor Zion has come. He is also calling to the Gentiles to serve the Jewish people in their efforts to return home to Israel.
