MEET THE
SPEAKERS
Dr. Jürgen Bühler
Israel
Dr. Jürgen Bühler is an ordained minister and trained physicist who serves as President of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem. After graduating from Ulm University with a degree in physics, Jürgen moved to Israel in 1994, where he obtained his doctorate in chemistry at the Weizmann Institute of Science.
Dr. Bühler served from 2001 to 2011 as National Director for ICEJ-Germany. He is a member of the ICEJ’s Board of Trustees and served as the ministry’s International Director for five years. Since 2011, Dr. Bühler has served as President. He is a licensed minister with the German Pentecostal Federation (BFP), and his unique scriptural insights into issues relating to Israel, the Church and the nations have made him a sought-after speaker worldwide.
Dr. Bühler and his wife, Vesna, live in Jerusalem and have three sons and a daughter.
Ambassador George Deek
Israel
Amb. George Deek is an Israeli diplomat who was recently appointed by Israel’s prime minister as a Special Envoy of Israel to the Christian World. His first diplomatic posting abroad was as a deputy ambassador to Norway. Then in 2018, he was appointed as Israel’s ambassador to Azerbaijan.
He is the first Israeli Arab Christian to be named as an Ambassador by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He earned an LLB from Radzyner Law School at IDC Herzliya in 2006. He later studied at the Georgetown University Law Center on a Fulbright Fellowship, specialising in diplomacy and international law. Amb. Deek then worked as an attorney in Tel Aviv with a special focus on international law, before joining the Israeli foreign service.
Rev. Ingolf Ellßel
Germany
Ingolf Ellßel is a German Pentecostal leader and former Chairman of the International Board of Trustees of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ), where he provided spiritual oversight and leadership for more than fifteen years. He previously served as President of the Federation of Free Pentecostal Churches in Germany (BFP) and as Chairman of the Pentecostal European Fellowship, representing millions of evangelical and Pentecostal Christians across Europe.
For decades, Ellßel has been active in pastoral ministry, church leadership and international teaching ministry, while also serving as pastor of Christus Centrum Tostedt in Germany. Known for his commitment to Israel, unity in the Body of Christ, and Spirit-filled leadership, he has spoken widely at conferences and leadership gatherings around the world.
Dr. Jules Gomes
USA
The Rev. Canon Dr. Jules Gomes (BA, BD, MTh, PhD) has a doctorate in the Hebrew Bible from the University of Cambridge. He has taught the Tanakh for over 30 years in Protestant and Catholic seminaries, secular universities and in churches. He is a canon in the Diocese of All Nations in the Anglican Church of North America. Currently a journalist based in Rome, he has been covering the Vatican and reporting widely on antisemitism in Europe for the last six years. Gomes is the author of five books and several academic articles. He was a volunteer in the Israel Defense Forces during Operation Cast Lead and was stationed at the Kerem Shalom army base near the Gaza border.
Theologian Gavriel Gordon
USA
Gavriel Gordon is a Zionist Jewish Anglican theologian. He is a member of Yachad BeYeshua, a global fellowship of Jewish Christians and Messianic Jews, and attends a conservative synagogue.
He holds a bachelor's degree from Oklahoma Baptist University where he studied anthropology and missiology, holds a master's in biblical studies from Portland Seminary, and a master's from Marquette University where he studied historical theology with a focus on early Greek and Syriac speaking Christianity.
Gordon lives with his wife, child and their dog Karl Barth in Milwaukee.
Pastor Nick Hansen
Denmark
Nick Hansen holds degrees in political science, theology and journalism, and serves as National Director of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ) in Denmark and Deputy to the Senior Vice President at ICEJ's global headquarters. As a former pastor in Copenhagen, he has been working at the intersection of theology, communication and public engagement — thus helping articulate the ICEJ's message on Israel, the Church and contemporary antisemitism to national and international audiences.
He has driven significant growth in ICEJ Denmark through strategic development, partnerships, and targeted communication, while providing editorial leadership across publications, campaigns and media platforms. With experience in intercultural engagement among Christian communities, Jewish partners, and public institutions, he brings a strategic perspective to Christian witness, Israel and the Church's role in an increasingly polarised world.
MK Sharren Haskel
Israel
MK Sharren Haskel is an Israeli politician serving as the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. She was a member of the Knesset for the New Hope party, having previously served as a member of the National Unity Party, an earlier period in New Hope, and Likud. When she was first elected, she was the youngest member of Likud and the second youngest member of the 20th Knesset.
Haskel completed her studies and was trained as a veterinarian nurse in Australia, where she worked in an animal hospital and volunteered with the organisation to save wild animals WIRES. She holds a BA in Political Science and International Relations from The Open University.
Dr. Petra Heldt
Israel
Dr. Heldt, PhD, of German origin, has resided in Israel since 1979, together with her Welsh scholar husband Malcolm F. Lowe. She is a director of the Ecumenical Theological Research Fraternity in Israel (ETRFI). Founded in 1966, the Fraternity studies and teaches Judaism and Christianity in Israel; developing mutual understanding between Jews and Christians, locally and internationally.
Recent projects include The Knesset Christian Allies Caucus. Since 2004, ETRFI facilitates understanding of Christianity amongst Members of Knesset and The Liaison Committee (LC). In 2010, ETRFI and B'nai B'rith World Center jointly reinstated the LC of 1986 to foster dialogue, understanding and relations between the Jewish and Christian communities in Israel.
Amongst several awards she has received the Sir Sigmund Sternberg Award for Interfaith Understanding from the Hebrew University Jerusalem, a gold medal of the German Protestant Order of St. John, and last year received The Knesset Christian Allies Caucus Award to Honor Christian Allies.
ICAA President Shadi KhalloulS
Israel
Shadi Khalloul is the President & Founder of the Israeli Christian Aramaic Association (ICAA), an NGO.
An Israeli Aramaic Maronite from Kfar Birem, he was born in Gush Halav the Christian Maronite Village in the Northern Galilee region of Israel, near the border with Lebanon. He served as a Paratrooper officer in the IDF, and was the first Christian to become a Paratrooper officer, in 1995. He has a degree in International Business and Finance from the University of Las Vegas.
Author Christopher Kuehl
USA
Christopher Kuehl is an author, speaker and teacher known for bringing theological clarity to some of the Church's most contested questions. During his first stay in Israel more than twenty years ago, Kuehl sensed a calling to help build a bridge between Israel and the Church, a conviction that has since shaped his writing, teaching and vocational path.
As the founder of Present Witness, a project that translates theological work into everyday language and co-host of the One New Man podcast, he is a trusted voice in translating complex theology into accessible insight for global audiences. He is also the author of "Is God A Zionist, Finding God's Story in a World Obsessed with Israel."
Dr. Baruch Brian Kvasnica
Israel
Dr. Baruch Brian Kvasnica is the founder of the Jerusalem Biblical Studies Society and spent fifteen years with the Jerusalem Center for Bible Translators. He has taught Biblical Hebrew for many summers with the Biblical Language Center and has led dozens of biblical study tours throughout Israel, Jordan, Greece, Turkey, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Since 2018, he has been involved in establishing Jerusalem Seminary, where he develops immersive, land-based theological learning experiences. Kvasnica is committed to transformative biblical education and collaborates widely with international institutions in the fields of biblical studies and language instruction.
Dr. Gerald McDermott
USA
Gerald McDermott teaches at Jerusalem Seminary and the Reformed Episcopal Seminary (ACNA) in Philadelphia. He retired from the Anglican Chair of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham AL in 2020. Before that he was the Jordan-Trexler Professor of Religion at Roanoke College, where he taught courses for 26 years in the history of Christianity and Christian theology of world religions. He has written, co-written or edited 25 books and hundreds of articles.
His academic research focus has been three-fold: Jonathan Edwards, Christian understandings of other religions, and the meaning of Israel. One of the leading authorities on Edwards, "America's theologian," McDermott is a priest in the Reformed Episcopal Church, which is a diocese in the ACNA. He lectures and podcasts frequently. He and Jean have three grown sons and fourteen grandchildren.
Dr. Susan Michael
USA
For more than 40 years, Susan has pioneered the development of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem in the United States and around the world. She currently serves as the ministry's USA President and was recently appointed Chairwoman of the ICEJ's international Board of Trustees.
Dr. Michael's involvement with the ICEJ began as a graduate student at Jerusalem University College in 1980, the same year that the Christian Embassy was first established. Upon completing her master's degree in Judeo-Christian Studies, she returned from Israel with a heart to further the Embassy's mission among fellow Americans. After a season assisting the ministry's international leadership to host a series of high-profile pro-Israel conferences across the USA, she was asked to head up the ICEJ's USA branch.
In addition to a master's degree in Judeo-Christian Studies, she holds a bachelor's degree in theology from Oral Roberts University and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Laws by Piedmont International University in 2018. Her experience working with Arabs, Jews and Christians from many national and denominational backgrounds has equipped her to handle delicate topics central to an understanding of Israel with extraordinary clarity and grace.
Dr. Tricia Miller
USA
Rev. Dr. Tricia Miller is an Evangelical Christian who works as the Director of the Partnership of Christians and Jews for CAMERA, the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis. The Partnership provides a powerful response to anti-Christian and anti-Jewish voices in the global media, combats anti-Zionism in the church, tells the truth about Israel and opposes all forms of antisemitism.
In addition to her role at CAMERA, Miller is an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God and is president of Christians and Jews United for Israel (CJUI).
Miller has a PhD in Hebrew Bible from Claremont Graduate University, Claremont CA, and wrote her dissertation on Christian antisemitism in relation to the book of Esther. Her second book, Jews and Anti-Judaism in Esther and the Church, reveals the relevance of the story of Esther to controversy over the existence of Israel, and to the role anti-Judaism plays in that debate.
President Troy Miller
USA
Troy Miller is President & CEO of the National Religious Broadcasters, bringing more than 30 years of executive leadership and business experience to the role. Since assuming leadership in 2022, he has strengthened partnerships between evangelical Christians and the Jewish community through advocacy initiatives, public engagement and major NRB events focused on Israel and combating antisemitism.
Following the October 7 attacks, Miller has led solidarity delegations to Israel and has become a prominent voice for Christian support of the Jewish state in media and public forums. He is actively involved in pro-Israel advocacy efforts, including the American Christian Leaders for Israel coalition and international gatherings addressing cultural, political and geopolitical challenges facing Israel and the Jewish people.
Dr. Andrew J. Nolte
USA
Andrew J. “A. J.” Nolte, Ph.D., is an associate professor of politics at Regent University’s Robertson School of Government and chair of the Ph.D. in Government, Master of Arts in Government, and Master of Arts in International Development programs. In May 2024, Dr. Nolte launched Regent University’s Israel Institute, which educates the Regent community and the public about the history and politics of the modern State of Israel. He is the co-chair of the Christian cohort at the Academic Engagement Network, which seeks to combat campus antisemitism in the United States, and a member of the Virginia Israel Advisory Board.
Rev. Paul O’Higgins
USA
Paul O’Higgins is from Ireland, now residing in Stuart, Florida, which is the base of his international, teaching ministry — Reconciliation Outreach. He and his wife Nuala have been in full-time ministry for over 40 years in a ministry of teaching and equipping the Body of Christ worldwide that has brought them to over 30 nations.
O’Higgins was educated in Ireland and holds degrees in Philosophy, Canon Law and a Doctorate in Biblical Theology. He speaks at churches, conferences and Bible colleges, drug rehab centers & prisons. He has taught many times for the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles.
His vision is to call forth, train and mature, faithful followers of Jesus from every walk of life, to take their place in the final end-time harvest.
ICEJ Sr. Vice President
David R. Parsons
Israel
David R. Parsons is an attorney, writer and Middle East specialist, currently serving as Senior Vice President and Spokesman for the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem. He previously served as executive producer of the Front Page Jerusalem radio program and former contributing Christian editor of The Jerusalem Post Christian Edition, both based in Jerusalem.
Before joining the ICEJ in 1995, he practiced law in the United States and served as General Counsel for the Christians’ Israel Public Action Campaign, where he testified before Congress on U.S.-Israel relations. His articles, interviews, and commentary have appeared in media outlets worldwide.
Parsons earned a BA in History (1981) and a J.D. in Law (1986) from Wake Forest University. He received an honourary ordination as a minister from Liberty Christian Fellowship.
CEO Sacha Roytman-Dratwa
Israel
Sacha Roytman-Dratwa serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM), leading a global coalition of organisations, activists and influencers dedicated to countering antisemitism. Born and raised in Belgium, he made aliyah to Israel in 2004 and served in the IDF, including during the Second Lebanon War.
A social entrepreneur, Roytman-Dratwa has worked at the forefront of global Jewish advocacy, including leading digital strategy for the World Jewish Congress in New York, where he launched major international campaigns such as the #WeRemember Holocaust initiative. He previously founded one of Israel’s first interactive advertising agencies and later established the IDF’s New Media Division, helping pioneer its digital communications strategy. Drawing on experience across government, media and civil society, Roytman-Dratwa brings a strategic and innovative approach to mobilising international partnerships in the fight against antisemitism.
Archbishop Thomas Schirrmacher
Germany
Archbishop and Professor Thomas Paul Schirrmacher (b 1960), Dr. theol., Dr. phil., is President of the International Council of the International Society for Human Rights (Frankfurt), President of the International Institute for Religious Freedom (Costa Rica, Vancouver, Bonn), Co-President of Religions for Peace (New York) and President of the Bonn Abrahamic Center for Global Peace, Justice and Sustainability (BAC).
He previously served as Secretary General and later as President of the World Evangelical Alliance, representing hundreds of millions of evangelical Christians worldwide across more than 140 countries. During his leadership in the WEA, Schirrmacher became widely recognised as one of the foremost Evangelical voices on religious freedom, interfaith dialogue, human dignity and the global persecution of religious minorities.
Fellow Ali Siadatan
Canada
Ali Siadatan is a Christian Zionist and Fellow at the Ideological Defense Institute (IDI), where his work focuses on the intersection between Zionism, Western civilisation and the ideological forces seeking to undermine them. Over the past several years, he has been actively engaged in confronting antisemitism and anti-Zionism through public advocacy, policy engagement and strategic education initiatives.
Siadatan has spoken at numerous conferences, organised advocacy events and worked alongside policymakers, law enforcement, Jewish organisations, pastors and civil society leaders. He also developed an anti-propaganda program. Most recently, he participated in the world’s first Anti-Zionism Symposium in Toronto, serving on a panel addressing Islamic anti-Zionism. He also serves as a strategic consultant to Tafsik, a Jewish advocacy organisation, with a focus on ideological threats to Western civilisation and the geopolitical dynamics of the Middle East.
Dr. Erez Soref
Israel
Dr. Erez Soref is President and CEO of One For Israel – a grassroots ministry of Jewish and Arab believers in Israel. One For Israel operates the national Bible College, training the current and future leaders of the Israeli followers of Messiah. Under his leadership, One For Israel has gained global recognition, with media reaching over 350 million views worldwide.
Dr. Soref holds a BA from the University of Haifa and an MA and PhD in Clinical Psychology, along with advanced theological studies from Wheaton College. He is a published author of several books and articles on leadership, counseling, and Messianic Jewish identity. Dr. Soref serves on national and international boards, frequently lectures on Israel-related topics worldwide, and is regularly featured in prominent international media outlets.
Bishop Robert Stearns
USA
Robert R. Stearns is an American pastor and Evangelical Christian leader who founded Eagle’s Wings Ministries located in Clarence, New York and currently pastors the historic Tabernacle Church in Orchard Park, New York.
A “leading voice in the Christian Zionist movement,” Stearns is the leader and co-founder of the annual Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem: The single largest international Christian Zionist event and during which thousands of churches worldwide pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Currently, he resides in Clarence, New York with his three sons. They have begun to follow in his musical footsteps by forming a music collective called The Brothers of Mercy.
Rev. Dr. Samuel J. Tedder
Finland
Rev. Dr. Samuel Tedder is a biblical scholar and an experienced pastor and missionary. He grew up in Finland, and has served in churches there, as well as the U.S.A and Canada. Tedder has been married to his wife Helena for 27 years and they have four children. Together with his family, he served as a missionary in Ethiopia (2020–2025) developing a Bible school and teaching at several theological institutions. Currently, Tedder is a lead pastor in the Pentecostal Church of Turku in Finland.
Tedder did his Master’s degree in Ministerial Studies in Finland (2006), but continued to do a second Master’s degree in Biblical Studies at Regent College, Canada (2010). He received his Doctoral degree in New Testament Studies from Durham University, UK (2018).
Prof. Jacob Thiessen
Switzerland
Jacob Thiessen (b. 1964, Loma Plata, Paraguay) is a Swiss-based New Testament scholar, professor and church leader dedicated to deepening understanding of Scripture as the living and healing Word of God. He studied Protestant theology in Switzerland beginning in 1989 and earned his doctorate in New Testament studies with an exegetical dissertation on Stephen’s speech in Acts 7:2–53. Biblical exegesis remains both his academic focus and personal passion.
Since 2004, Thiessen has served as Rector and Lecturer at the State Theological Seminary (STH) Basel, and since 2007 as Professor of New Testament. Alongside his academic work, he serves as the leading elder of the Mennonite congregation in Basel, embodying a fruitful integration of research, teaching and church practice.
In addition to his work in New Testament studies, Thiessen’s current research includes engagement with the Hebrew text of the Jewish Mishnah. He regularly leads biblical study tours to Israel, Greece and Asia Minor, enriching both his scholarship and teaching through engagement with the lands of the Bible.
Dr. André Villeneuve
USA
Dr. André Villeneuve is a Catholic theologian and biblical scholar, currently Associate Professor of Old Testament and Biblical Languages at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit. He earned his Ph.D. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2013 and also holds advanced ecclesiastical degrees in Sacred Theology and Sacred Scripture from Rome.
A Canadian who returned to the Catholic Church after Evangelical and Messianic Jewish involvement in Israel, he has worked extensively in Jerusalem in biblical studies, catechesis, and Christian–Jewish relations. He is the founder of Catholics for Israel, author of major works on nuptial symbolism in Scripture, and serves on the board of the Association of Hebrew Catholics as well as a Senior Fellow at the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology.
Rabbi Pesach Wolicki
Israel
Orthodox rabbi Pesach Wolicki is an author and prominent voice in Jewish-Christian relations. He serves as Executive Director of Israel365 Action and is a columnist for The Jerusalem Post.
Rabbi Wolicki regularly lectures in churches, seminaries and synagogues across North America and frequently appears in Christian and Jewish media. His writings have been featured in publications such as Newsweek and Charisma News.
Before focusing on interfaith engagement, he served for twelve years as Dean of Yeshivat Yesodei HaTorah near Jerusalem. He is also the author of Cup of Salvation, a devotional commentary on Psalms 113–118.
Prof. Dr. Brad Young
USA
Brad H. Young (PhD Hebrew University) is emeritus Professor of Biblical Literature in Judaic Christian Studies in the Graduate School of Theology at Oral Roberts University. He has taught advanced language and translation courses as well as the Jewish foundations of early Christianity to graduate students for over thirty years. In addition to his well-known research on the life of Jesus, he has devoted much energy to interfaith dialogue to build better relationships between the Jewish and Christian communities.
He serves on the board and is a professor at Jerusalem Seminary. He also serves on the International Board of Bridges for Peace. Young loves to study and to teach. His message challenges listeners to return to Jesus and understand the authentic Jewish Jesus.
Young lives with his wife and one adult son in Oklahoma.