Evangelical Christianity, often assumed to be predominantly an American phenomenon, is rapidly gaining large numbers of converts all over the world—especially in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. As a byproduct, writes Jürgen Bühler, Israel is becoming more popular in those places:
An international survey conducted by the BBC revealed that the countries most sympathetic to Israel are the U.S., Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria; the common denominator [among these nations] is a high proportion of evangelicals. In Latin America, the highest support for Israel was recorded in Brazil, which has the highest percentage of evangelicals in South America. . . .
This evangelical revolution is beginning to find a political voice. In the recent presidential elections in Argentina, the pro-Israel candidate Mauricio Macri replaced Cristina Kirchner, who had taken a strong pro-Palestinian [stance] and made secret deals with Iran. This change was made possible largely thanks to the evangelical vote. . . . It is also worth mentioning the Ivory Coast’s recent decision to refrain from supporting UN resolutions condemning Israel.
More about: Africa, Brazil, China, Evangelical Christianity, Israel & Zionism, Latin America