U.S. readers: Tell Congress to stop Zionists from stealing Christian property
(LifeSiteNews) — Catholic Daily Wire host Michael Knowles recently explained why he does not consider himself a “Christian Zionist.”
Knowles made his comments in reaction to a statement released by Orthodox bishops in the Holy Land, condemning “local individuals who advance damaging ideologies, such as Christian Zionism, mislead the public, sow confusion, and harm the unity of our flock.”
“These undertakings have found favor among certain political actors in Israel and beyond who seek to push a political agenda which may harm the Christian presence in the Holy Land and the wider Middle East,” according to a statement from the “Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in the Holy Land.”
.@michaeljknowles says he does NOT identify as a “Christian Zionist.”
“I don’t think the Jews are entitled to the Holy Land because of some religious premise.” pic.twitter.com/Zko1bYrtvq
— Sign of the Cross (@CatholicSOTC) January 20, 2026
Knowles commented on the controversy and suggested the issue began with a speech by Robert Stearns, hosted by the Jerusalem Post. During the speech, Stearns made a heretical and contradictory statement, suggesting the Second Coming would also be the “first visit” of Christ to Jerusalem. Jews reject that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.
But Stearns also erred in his support for “Christian Zionism,” or that “the existence of the present state of Israel is of Biblical, prophetic, religious importance and is necessary for the coming of the apocalypse,” as Knowles explained.
He then went on to read a 1985 statement from the Vatican, which states:
The existence of the State of Israel and its political options should be envisaged not in a perspective which is in itself religious, but in their reference to the common principles of international law. The permanence of Israel (while so many ancient peoples have disappeared without trace) is a historic fact and a sign to be interpreted within God’s design.
Knowles said he is fine with a state of Israel, but not because of Zionism. “I don’t think that the Jews are entitled to the Holy Land because of some religious premise,” he said.
“Christ is the new covenant,” Knowles affirmed.
“I don’t believe just because a people was on a plot of dirt 2,000 years ago that that means that they are entitled to it today,” Knowles said, referencing claims that Americans should return lands to Native Americans.
The Daily Wire host said he supports the “nation state of Israel” because he does not want Iran or Muslims to oversee the Holy Land.
“The current options in the Holy Land are not great,” he said. “So, as a practical political matter,” he supports the establishment of Israel, as promised in 1948.
“So, any way you slice it, it seems to me, that according to the current nation-state system, they basically have a right to it,” he said. But this is because of international politics, not “Biblical prophecy.”
He then went on to draw important distinctions that are often snuffed out any time someone, particularly those on the conservative right, questions specifics of Israeli policy.
Why I’m not a “Christian Zionist”:pic.twitter.com/m6U09Ukwqq https://t.co/6Txp9bUYUp
— Michael Knowles (@michaeljknowles) January 19, 2026
“You can support Israel. You don’t have to support the nation state of Israel. But if you do, you can do so without adhering to the relatively novel theology of Christian Zionism,” he said.
He also affirmed that someone could oppose Christian Zionism without being “antisemitic.”
“You can be philosemitic and not adhere to the relatively novel ideology of Christian Zionism,” Knowles said, explaining that this is what the patriarchs’ statement meant.
“Anyone suggesting that this (statement) is a break with tradition, or antisemitic, or anything like that, I think is totally insane,” Knowles concluded.
Statement draws condemnation from anti-Catholic, Zionist Mark Levin
Knowles’ levelheaded statement represented clear thinking on a difficult political and theological topic.
However, it drew condemnation from Zionist Mark Levin, who recently attacked faithful Catholic Jack Posobiec after he held up a rosary at a Turning Point USA event. Levin later claimed he called Posobiec a “crackpot” because of a random picture he took with someone who made light of the Holocaust.
“No offense but nobody gives a sh*t. Just saying,” Levin wrote on X.
Yet many showed appreciation for Knowles’ clear analysis of the situation.
“Completely reasonable perspective,” Calvinist conservative commentator Allie Beth Stuckey wrote on X. “People should actually listen to what he’s saying instead of giving a kneejerk reaction to the caption.”
“I don’t agree with Michael about his view of what it means to be a Zionist, but it’s also irrelevant,” conservative commentator A.G. Hamilton wrote. “He’s right on the broader point that the main reasons for Americans to support Israel have little to do with religion.”
“And nothing he says here is offensive so some people should stop with the unhinged responses,” Hamilton added.
Protestant pastor David Shrock offered similar praise.
“In today’s political climate, Michael Knowles’ Christian (albeit Catholic) approach to Israel, prompted by the recent statement of the Patriarchs of Jerusalem (Eastern Orthodox), is a needed word,” Shrock wrote.
“Anti-Zionism (is not) Anti-Semitism. Pass it on.”
