COGIC Missionaries to Israel Met With Threats, Harassment

The Church of God in Christ (COGIC) is the largest African American denomination in the United States, with more than 6 million members. Recently, COGIC sent Bishop Glenn Plummer and his wife, Dr. Pauline Plummer, to represent the denomination in Israel as the “bishop of Israel.”

“We came to build a bridge not just for COGIC, but also for Black America,” Bishop Plummer told CBN News. “I have found, we have found, that it’s vitally important that African Americans have a relationship with Israel. So, building a bridge is our primary purpose.”

“It’s important, it’s vital that they understand Israel; the culture, the country, the people, the land of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel,” Dr. Plummer added.

Thousands sent the Plummers off to Israel with heartfelt prayer at the annual COGIC convention at the St. Louis Convention Center in late 2019. Then the couple, who have dedicated their lives to advocating for Israel, set their sights on the Holy Land.

They arrived with great expectations but met unexpected opposition.

Bishop Plummer once led the National Religious Broadcasters organization, and the Israel Allies Caucus recently recognized Plummer as one of Israel’s top 50 Christian allies. But soon after the Plummers arrived in Israel, they became the brunt of several accusations, misleading headlines and doctored videos.

“They twisted it to say, ‘They’re coming here to convert Jews. They’re coming here to baptize Jews. They’re coming here to proselytize Jews,'” Bishop Plummer explained. “There’s a word they use called ‘missionize.’ I hadn’t quite heard that word before, but there’s been these accusations.”

In Israel, evangelism is taboo and missionary activity is a very sensitive subject for Jews. The accusations led to threats against their lives.

Read the full article from CBN News here and watch the video here.