Greetings from Riyadh, the capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. God opened an unusual door this week — our Delegation of Evangelical Christian Leaders was invited to Saudi Arabia to meet with senior leaders.
Today, we had a two-hour meeting at the palace in Riyadh with H.R.H. Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. Please pray for him, his family, his advisors, and for the leaders and people of this important country. Here is the statement our group just released.
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EVANGELICAL DELEGATION MEETS WITH HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS
MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN, CROWN PRINCE OF THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
Following Meetings in Egypt, Jordan and the UAE, American Christian Leaders Turn Their Attention to Saudi Arabia
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, November 1, 2018 – His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, welcomed to the Royal Palace the first-ever delegation of American Evangelical Christian leaders to engage in dialogue regarding his vision for the Kingdom and the region.
The group, led by New York Times best-selling Joel C. Rosenberg, arrived in Riyadh from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), following similar historic meetings with government and religious leaders, both Muslim and Christian, earlier in the week.
Following the meeting in Riyadh, the delegation issued a joint statement:
“We were pleased by the invitation extended to us more than two months ago by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It was an historic moment for the Saudi Crown Prince to openly welcome Evangelical Christian leaders to the Palace. We were encouraged by the candor of the two-hour conversation with him today. We discussed his ‘Vision 2030’ plan, the region, Islam and Christianity. Without question, this is a season of tremendous change in the Middle East, and therefore we have been grateful for the opportunity to meet in-person with key Arab leaders to understand their goals and to ask direct questions. We look forward to building upon these relationships and continuing the dialogue.”
During the visit, the delegation also met with:
- the Saudi Foreign Minister
- Minister of Education
- Minister of Islamic Affairs
- Secretary General of “Etidal,” The Global Center for Combatting Extremist Ideology
- Secretary-General of the Muslim World League.
Members of the delegation to Saudi Arabia hosted by Rosenberg included:
- former U.S. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann
- Dr. Jerry A. Johnson, president and CEO of National Religious Broadcasters (NRB)
- Michael Little, former president and COO of The Christian Broadcasting Network
- Dr. Mike Evans, founder of the Jerusalem Prayer Team
- Rev. Johnnie Moore, president of The Congress of Christian Leaders
- Larry Ross, founder of A. Larry Ross Communications
- Pastor Skip Heitzig, senior pastor of Calvary Albuquerque in New Mexico; and
- Wayne Pederson, former chairman and CEO of the NRB