Title Deeds to the Holy Land?

An online meeting will be held on Wednesday the 26th March at 19.30 when Dr Nicholas Taylor, a biblical scholar at the School of Divinity, New College, University of Edinburgh, will examine some of the texts that are used to justify land claims by the modern state of Israel. For example, the Israeli ‘Jewish Nation State Law’ of 2018 asserts that, ‘Israel is the historic homeland of the Jewish people, and they have an exclusive right to national self-determination in it.’

In April 2019 the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, addressed the UN Security Council. During his speech he held up a copy of the Bible and said that these are Israel’s title deeds to the Holy Land. The history lesson that Danon delivered to the Security Council and the theological claims that he made are not backed up by serious scholarship, but they are widely and erroneously believed. Dr Taylor will examine some of the key biblical texts that are used to justify the dispossession of Palestinian land. This event will be of interest to anyone who seeks to understand the background to the current illegal occupation of Palestinian land.

The Rev Dr Taylor is an Anglican priest of the Scottish Episcopal Church. He is the convener of the Sabeel-Kairos/UK Theology Group. He is the author of numerous scholarly articles.