10 Things to Know About The International Fellowship Of Christians And Jews (2024)

The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews is also referred to as IFCJ or The Fellowship. It is a philanthropic organization founded in 1983 by Yechiel Eckstein. Its mission is to promote understanding and cooperation between Jews and Christians and provide humanitarian aid for the State of Israel. He died in 2019 and his daughter Yael Eckstein took over as the Chief Executive Officer of the Fellowship. As the CEO, she has promoted the fellowship by supporting the needy and elderly in particular in Israel through donations during and post-COVID-19 pandemic. Their main focus is to promote understanding and cooperation between Jews and Christians and to build broad support for the State of Israel.

1. The History of The Fellowship

In 1983, Eckstein established the Holyland Fellowship of Christians and Jews to promote Jewish-Christian cooperation on projects for improving the safety and security of Jews in Israel and around the world. On September 1, 1991, the organization was renamed the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews.

In 2003, Eckstein founded the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews of Canada. In 2012, the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews of Australia and also in 2012, a new Fellowship affiliate in South Korea. In 2014, Eckstein was awarded the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s prestigious Raoul Wallenberg Award. The ceremony was attended by the Israeli Prime Minister and JDC’s CEO.

Eckstein died on February 6, 2019, and his daughter Yael Eckstein succeeded him as president of the Fellowship.

2. Helping Society Through The Fellowship

Their main method is raising funds among its partners to help Jews in need and Jews living under the threat of anti-Semitism. They provide basic necessities to needy families, the elderly, and children in Israel. The fellowship provides basic necessities including food, clothing, and shelter to destitute Jews in the former Soviet Union.

In 2020, the fellowship allocated $20 million in emergency funding, on top of its regular programming, under the guidance of Yael Eckstein. In 2022, Yael led the Fellowship to establish a $4 million emergency fund for Ukraine. It was able to work with partners already on the ground in the former Soviet Union to set up a help hotline and deliver emergency aid to Jewish communities displaced by war.

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3. The Fellowhip’s Organizational Structure

The fellowship has headquarters in Chicago and Jerusalem. It is supervised by an independent board of directors, Jewish and Christian. Yael serves as the Fellowship’s President & CEO. The organization’s key people are Robin Van Etten who is the COO, Jackie Gotwalt who is the executive director of IFCJ Canada, Youngmi Kin the CEO in Korea, and Bishop Paul Lanier the Chairman of the Board of Directors.

Eckstein has received about 50 awards total for his public service work which includes the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s prestigious Raoul Wallenberg award in 2014.

In 2005, Yale was appointed Goodwill Ambassador of the State of Israel with special emphasis on Israel’s relationships with evangelical communities in Latin America.

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4. The Activities of The Fellowship

The fellowship supports over 450 programs across Israel with 5000 volunteers involved. It has been noted that the organization had placed nearly 3,000 bomb shelters in Israel to date. The organization also supports a group led by Gabriel Naddaf called the Israeli Christian Recruitment Forum. It is a Greek Orthodox priest from Nazareth, which aims to increase the number of Christian Arabs volunteering to serve in the Israel Defense Forces.

5. Programs That are Supported by The Fellowship

Some of the programs the fellowship is involved in include On Wings of Eagles which assists Jews in making immigration to Israel from the former Soviet Union, Ethiopia, Europe, Arab lands, and other countries around the world. The Guardians of Israel provide basic necessities to needy Israelis by supporting hundreds of projects such as soup kitchens, and by providing food, clothing, and basic medical assistance.

The Isaiah 58 program, provides food packages, medicine, in-home care, housing, heating fuel, clothing, and other basic essentials to more than 200,000 destitute elderly Soviet Jews, and gives Jewish orphans and vulnerable street children in the former Soviet Union. Stand of Israel program rallies churches, Christian leaders, and others to advocate for Israel by praying for it and supporting its right to exist in peace and security.

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6. Finances of the Organization

The organization shows full compliance with the BBB’s Standards for Charitable Accountability in 2004. The fellowship was one of the first not-for-profits entitled to display the BBB Charity Seal, showing full compliance with their Standards for Charitable Accountability.

The organization raises around $130 million per year which is largely from evangelical Christian sources and has raised an estimated total of $1.5 billion since 1983. In 2020, the organization declared more than $156 million in contributions and grants.

In 2021, the Fellowship raised more than $200 million and helped more than 2 million people by supplying basic needs and assistance to 1 million people.

7. Generated Criticism

In 2001, Rabbi Avraham Shapira, an Orthodox Jew, and Religious Zionist issued a ruling against accepting funds from the Fellowship. In 2002, the Edah HaChareidis Haredi Jewish rabbinical court issued a ruling against accepting funds from the Fellowship. Later in 2007, the new Chief Rabbi of the said Eddah HaChareidis, Yitzchok Tuvia Weiss added his signature.

8. The Reputation Management of The Fellowship

In 2023, it was noted that Eliminalia who was a reputation management company has been hired to remove salary and other information from online sources critical of the charity. In an attempt to remove posts critical of the $4 million combined annual salaries paid by IFCJ to Yechiel and Yael Eckstein, Eliminalia complained to WordPress.

9. Eckstein Founded the Internation Fellowship

Eckstein is the founder of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews on various continents. In 2006 he founded one in Canada. In 2012 e founded one in Australia and later the same year founded one in South Korea. His intention was to ensure that the fellowship is embraced on an international platform. In actual fact, Eckstein was respected within the American Jewish mainstream because of bringing the two (Jewish and Christian) fellowships together.

10. Yael Eckstein Succeeded the Father Eckstein

She stepped into the shoes of the father as President of the Fellowship after his death on February 6, 2019. As president, she became very instrumental in the fellowship by creating the needs of people a priority. For instance, the fellowship allocated $20 million as emergency funding for the elderly and individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel. This is a move that the members of the fellowship supported, hence, it was taken as an achievement for the fellowship.

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