‘Unfinished Business’ tour brings African and Black American Christian leaders to Israel to fulfill MLK Jr's dream

Approximately 500 African and Black American Christian leaders arrived in Israel, hoping to fulfill a plan by civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to lead a delegation of Black Christians to the Holy Land.

The Black Christian Leadership Council on Israel Relations (BCLCIR) is organizing the visit in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Two of the principal leaders, Pastor Dumisani Washington and Dr. Michael Anthony Stevens, have both brought groups of Black Christian leaders to Israel for many years.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Pastor Washington and Stevens explained why they felt the need to visit Israel now.

According to the two leaders, the delegation is intended to express support for Israel amidst the current climate of rising antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment, experience the reality of Israel’s challenges firsthand, improve relations between Black Christian and Jewish communities in the United States and realize the vision of Dr. King.

The delegation hopes to fulfill a historic vision of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who had planned to bring a pilgrimage of hundreds of Black Americans to Israel in 1967. That trip was postponed to 1968 due to the outbreak of the Six-Day War, but it was abandoned following Dr. King's assassination in April of that year.

The plans for Dr. King's visit were discovered in letters showing correspondence between Dr. King and Israeli prime ministers David Ben Gurion and Levi Eshkol.

Dr. Stevens said the trip represents a matter of “unfinished business.” He said the delegation is not coming “from a political or partisan perspective, but from a deep biblical, theological, and moral foundation.”

Besides the group of Black American leaders, the delegation will also include 75 Christian leaders from ten African countries, a group of American rabbis coming to further Jewish-Christian partnership, and other religious influencers.

At the press conference, Pastor Washington, Founder and CEO of the Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel (IBSI), said the current delegation is the first step in a plan to bring approximately 5,000 pastors next year to deepen and expand ties between Israel and the African American Christian community.

During the press conference, the Foreign Affairs Ministry presented three certificates of recognition to Israelis whose personal stories reflect the events of the war and their consequences: Hila Abir, whose brother, Lotan, was murdered on Oct. 7, 2023, at the Nova music festival; Elkana Bohbot, who survived 738 days in Hamas captivity; and Daniel Lischinsky, father of Israeli diplomat Yaron Lischinsky, who was murdered in a terror attack in Washington along with his partner, Sarah Milgrim.

Yaron Lischinsky, the younger brother of ALL ISRAEL NEWS News Desk Manager Hanan Lischinsky, worked at the Israeli Embassy in Washington at the time of his murder.

The delegation will meet with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Monday. Later in the week, delegation members will also take part in special events during the Jerusalem celebrations of the Ethiopian Jewish Sigd holiday, which celebrates the giving of the Torah.

The members will also visit the Gaza Envelope, meeting families of victims and hostages from the Oct. 7 Gaza War.

Additionally, the delegation plans to visit Martin Luther King Street in Jerusalem, as a tribute to the civil rights leader’s vision and legacy.