Christian Zionist Leader Mike Evans Challenges Tucker Carlson To Debate After Theo Von Interview
Dr. Mike Evans, founder of Jerusalem’s Friends of Zion Center, has challenged conservative political commentator Tucker Carlson to a public debate following Carlson’s appearance on This Past Weekend with comedian Theo Von on Wednesday, where Carlson sharply criticized evangelical leaders for supporting Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza. Evans issued the challenge after Carlson accused prominent Christian figures of distorting theology to justify Israeli actions that, he argued, have killed Christian civilians.
On the show, recorded in the US, Carlson said his frustration is not directed at Israelis or Jews but at evangelical pastors who, he claimed, have “theology so deranged that they think their Christian faith requires them to support the murder of children, including Christian children.” Referring to Israeli strikes that damaged or destroyed churches in Gaza, Carlson said Christian leaders who defend such actions “misrepresent” the Gospel and called them “false prophet[s].” Carlson also described himself as an Episcopalian and said his criticism stems from his own reading of Christian teachings.
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When Von pressed him on which leaders he meant, Carlson named Evans. He read from The Jerusalem Post, quoting Evans as saying that “a movement within the MAGA movement … is anti-Israel,” allegedly led by Carlson, who is said to be “saying worse things presently [than] the Nazi party said.” Carlson pushed back forcefully, saying he is “totally anti-Nazi, … totally anti-hate,” and especially opposed to “blood guilt and collective punishment, which is what was bad about the Nazis.” He added that being labeled a Nazi by a Christian figure “does get under my skin.”
Evans, speaking to The Media Line, responded by directly confronting Carlson’s remarks: “Tucker, you go on your show and accuse Israel of murdering Christians, and you mock me because you don’t believe all the antisemitic things you’ve said about Israel are worse than what the Nazis said in their party platform. … Hitler would’ve loved you, Tucker, and so do your bankers in Qatar. If you really believe your cause is righteous as a Christian, then debate me.”
In a November 13 Ynet interview, Evans criticized Carlson for calling Christian Zionism a “dangerous heresy” and warned that rhetoric like Carlson’s fuels antisemitism at a moment of rising anti-Jewish hostility worldwide. Evans argued that silence in the face of such rhetoric “gets Jews killed,” invoking the Holocaust. He described Christian Zionism as inseparable from Christian identity, said 750 million Christians worldwide identify as Zionists, and credited evangelicals with securing US President Donald Trump’s pro-Israel policies. He also warned that adversaries, including Qatar, are using media and digital tools to weaken Christian support for Israel.
