Transcript [00:00] Okay, we have people joining. Tell us [00:02] where you're joining from. We have [00:03] Steven from Fort Myers, Florida. Welcome [00:06] Steven. Thank you for joining us. [00:09] Deborah from the Gulf of America. Okay, [00:12] Alexandra from Missouri, Kim from [00:15] Birmingham, Alabama. Wow, all right, [00:17] wonderful. People are coming [00:19] coming in fast and furious. All right, [00:22] let's see where else everyone is coming [00:24] in from. Tell us where you're coming [00:25] from. Barbara from Tulsa and Jane from [00:29] Jersey Channel Islands. Bonnie from [00:32] Central Virginia and Rivky from [00:34] Brooklyn. Okay, great. Hi Rivky. [00:37] All right, Rosemary from Brazil and [00:39] living in the UK. All right, so we have [00:41] people from all over the place. We have [00:44] a good crowd here and I know that we [00:46] have a lot of ground to cover. So, let's [00:51] begin. Okay, my name is Rabbi Tuly Weisz [00:54] and I am the founder of Israel 365. I [00:58] made Aliyah with my family 15 years ago [01:01] from Columbus, Ohio. We are the we're [01:05] the first in our family to come on [01:07] Aliyah um and the first [01:10] uh the first family to be able to raise [01:13] our children in Israel in thousands of [01:14] years. It's a big [01:16] privilege and a big honor. As soon as we [01:18] decided and announced that we're making [01:20] Aliyah, then my sister announced that [01:21] she's making Aliyah and then my other [01:23] sister made Aliyah a few years later. My [01:25] wife's sister made Aliyah a few years [01:26] later. So, thank God now we have half of [01:29] our family living in Israel and my [01:31] mother is in Israel. It's wonderful. [01:33] It's a real blessing. Um [01:35] and uh we know that Aliyah is something [01:38] that is very important to the state of [01:40] Israel. Has always been so from the [01:42] beginning of the state. The Law of [01:44] Return was uh one of the first laws [01:47] passed by the Knesset to encourage Jews [01:50] to make Aliyah, to ascend, to come up to [01:53] the land of Israel, but also immigrants [01:56] were seen as something that were vital [01:58] to the security and the well-being of [02:00] the new state. The state started with [02:02] just 600,000 Jews and right now we have [02:05] over 6 million Jews, 7 million Jews in [02:08] fact. So, a huge tenfold increase in [02:10] just less than 80 years, a real miracle. [02:14] And the [02:16] um [02:17] the state of Israel was set up though [02:18] not only to be a place for the Jewish [02:20] people. It's a country that protects the [02:23] rights and the of all its minorities. We [02:25] know that there's a large percentage of [02:27] of Arab Muslims that live here. There's [02:29] also a sizable Christian population and [02:32] there always has been. Um from going [02:35] back to ancient times, there have been [02:37] Christians in the land of Israel. And [02:40] there is somewhat of a tension though [02:42] between the ability for Christians to [02:46] move to Israel. It's a very different [02:48] process than when Jews want to and which [02:51] is why we have with us attorney Joshua [02:54] Pex, who is an immigration attorney and [02:57] the expert when it comes to Christians [03:00] who want to come to Israel. Now, you [03:02] might say to yourself, well, why would a [03:03] Christian want to come to Israel? [03:05] There's a lot of reasons. There's a lot [03:06] of reasons for Christians to want to [03:08] come to Israel. [03:10] The there is um [03:12] there is a [03:14] lot of Christians who come here to study [03:16] the Bible and there's Christians who [03:17] come to volunteer. There's Christians [03:19] who come as investors and in one way or [03:22] another they are here to bless the [03:23] people of Israel and bless the state of [03:25] Israel. And so we are so glad that they [03:28] are here. And in fact, I've been talking [03:30] to many rabbis and they agree that there [03:35] is a need for a new category of visas [03:39] for righteous gentiles. And that's [03:40] something that uh we're exploring, we're [03:42] working on. It could take a while, but [03:44] uh hopefully with Joshua's uh [03:47] leadership, we will find a way to [03:49] strengthen the the [03:50] between Jews and Christians and to allow [03:54] Israel to be a place for Christians to [04:00] welcome other Christian Zionists in one [04:02] way or another. And the idea is [04:04] obviously meant to be a strength of [04:06] Israel a strength to Israel and not in [04:08] any way to to harm the Jewish identity [04:11] of Israel and I think that's something [04:12] that all of us want to see and all of us [04:15] agree upon, but there are a lot of [04:17] interesting developments that are [04:19] happening. I should share one [04:20] interesting story before I introduce [04:23] Joshua and our main speaker we have with [04:27] us. [04:28] We have an an incredible speaker that's [04:30] going to be joining in a moment Ramin [04:34] Parsa and you're going to hear his wild, [04:36] amazing, incredible, miraculous story. I [04:38] just wanted to share one quick story [04:41] that happened to me just a few months [04:43] ago and it was in the summer there was a [04:46] Jerusalem prayer breakfast and [04:50] a very very beautiful event that happens [04:51] every year in Jerusalem where Christians [04:53] from all over the world come to pray for [04:55] Jerusalem and at that Jerusalem prayer [04:58] breakfast I said I was sitting at the [05:00] table next to the governor of Judea [05:03] named Israel Gantz and the governor of [05:05] Samaria named Yossi Dagan and at the [05:08] time that same day literally as we were [05:10] all at the Jerusalem prayer breakfast so [05:14] everyone's phone started buzzing because [05:16] there was a news alert that the mayor of [05:19] Paris, France [05:21] had announced that he was going to be [05:24] granting honorary citizenship to the [05:27] people of Gaza and in solidarity with uh [05:32] with the people of Gaza [05:34] and you know we were looking at [05:35] ourselves like why would Paris want you [05:38] know these are people who are very [05:40] very dangerous. You know no country's [05:42] offering to actually give real [05:44] citizenship to them [05:46] and yet he's announcing honorary [05:48] citizenship to the to the to the Gazan [05:51] Arabs. And so, on the spot, the governor [05:55] of Judea and the governor of Samaria [05:57] both said that if this is how Paris [05:59] wants to treat Gazans, how much more so [06:03] do we in Judea and Samaria want to [06:05] extend honorary citizenship to Christian [06:07] Zionists. And it was a very moving [06:10] announcement. It was really the first [06:11] time that the state of Israel made a [06:13] declaration like that [06:17] in appreciation for [06:21] first. And they got a standing ovation. [06:23] It was really wonderful. And so, we [06:24] started looking into what would that [06:25] actually mean, honorary citizenship. [06:28] There is actually a precedent for [06:30] honorary citizenship because after the [06:32] Holocaust, the state of Israel granted [06:35] honorary citizenship to the righteous [06:37] among the nations and entitled them, [06:40] their children, and their grandchildren [06:42] to citizenship in Israel. So, there is a [06:45] precedent that when Israel [06:47] um [06:48] at times to show deep gratitude and [06:51] appreciation to Christians who have done [06:53] incredible things for Israel, Israel [06:54] does in fact open the doors. And so, we [06:58] wanted to explain how that all works. [07:01] And now you actually see what happened [07:03] at a place like Paris that just a few [07:05] months ago granted honorary citizenship [07:07] to the Gazans. Now, you know, they Look [07:09] what's going on there right now. It [07:11] seems to be a direct fulfillment of [07:14] this week's Torah portion. That's God [07:16] says to Abraham, "I will [07:19] go from your land that you come from. [07:21] Make aliyah. Move to the land that I [07:23] will show you. Leave your father's home, [07:25] your birthplace, and go to the land that [07:27] I will show you. [07:29] You [07:30] And there I will make you a great [07:31] nation, and I will bless those who bless [07:33] you, and I will curse those who curse [07:34] you." And so, we're living in this [07:36] interesting time where countries are [07:38] letting in all kinds of immigrants that [07:40] are [07:42] weakening the fabric of their society [07:44] and Israel is at a pivotal moment that [07:46] it has to make a choice to perhaps look [07:49] differently at granting legal status to [07:53] immigrants that want to be a blessing to [07:55] the state of Israel. And that's what [07:57] this [07:58] really historically groundbreaking [08:00] webinar is. There's never really been a [08:02] public conversation like this and I [08:05] don't want to oversell the concept. It's [08:07] not easy for non-Jews to get visas or [08:10] residency in Israel. We're about to [08:12] learn about that, but I just wanted to [08:14] thank attorney Joshua Pex who [08:18] for sponsoring tonight's webinar um on [08:21] behalf of his law firm and [08:24] um [08:25] and [08:27] it is the Decker Pex and Levi Law Firm [08:30] that if you're interested in getting a [08:32] consultation, so we're going to put a [08:35] link in the chat box uh to your side [08:37] there and you can get a a [08:40] free consultation from the law offices [08:45] of Decker Pex and Levi. You can learn [08:47] about if you if you are entitled to be [08:50] able to move to Israel and Joshua is a [08:54] not only the founding partner of the [08:56] Decker Pex Levi Law Firm, but he's been [08:58] a member of the Israeli Bar since 2009. [09:01] He's an expert in immigration law and in [09:04] fact is the chairman of the immigration [09:08] and foreigner committee of the Jerusalem [09:11] Bar Association. So without any further [09:14] ado, I would like to welcome [09:16] attorney Joshua Pex. [09:19] >> Well, thank you Tuli so much for the [09:21] introduction. [09:23] And yes, I've been doing immigration law [09:25] for [09:27] almost 20 years now and it's something [09:29] that we really love doing at our firm, [09:31] helping people [09:33] make aliyah and immigrate to Israel, but [09:35] it's also something very personal for [09:38] me. My mother is American [09:40] and she made Aliyah as a young woman [09:43] from the states from the Washington DC [09:45] area. [09:46] Uh I was born [09:48] and grew up in Israel [09:50] and I studied law here, but I also lived [09:53] parts of my life in the United States [09:56] and in the Netherlands. My father is [09:58] from Holland. [10:00] So, our family is really sort of uh a [10:03] gathering of uh different nations and [10:06] also my wife. My wife also made Aliyah [10:08] from Holland from the Netherlands as a [10:10] young woman. [10:12] So, it's very exciting for us and for me [10:14] personally [10:16] to help people immigrate to here. [10:19] And uh when we talk about immigration to [10:21] Israel, [10:22] there's always [10:24] this concept that Israel is uh Jewish [10:27] and democratic state. [10:29] So, on one hand, there is the law of [10:31] return like uh you explained to [10:33] listeners 1950, [10:35] that Jews, but also children and also [10:37] grandchildren of Jews can make Aliyah [10:40] and receive [10:42] citizenship almost automatically once [10:45] they meet good the criteria, but still [10:49] it sounds the law is very very short and [10:51] it sounds simple. The the paragraph one [10:54] of the law of return says every Jew has [10:56] the right to make Aliyah and receive [10:58] citizenship, but in practice, [11:01] there can be a lot of problems, a lot of [11:03] red tape. [11:04] Even people that really qualify [11:06] sometimes will get bogged down by all [11:09] the [11:10] bureaucracy. So, we can help with that. [11:14] But then on the other hand, those who [11:15] don't qualify under the law of return, [11:18] Israel is [11:20] a member of the [11:22] you know, the world, the nations and [11:24] there are different kinds of ways to [11:27] immigrate here, different kinds of [11:28] visas. [11:30] Obviously, an Israeli that's married to [11:32] a foreigner, the foreigner can get [11:35] uh [11:36] citizenship at the end of a 5-year [11:38] process. It's sort of like the green [11:40] card process. [11:42] There are different special visas for [11:45] the parents of IDF soldiers, for [11:47] example, or or elderly and lonely [11:51] parents that their children are here in [11:53] Israel, but they don't qualify under the [11:55] law of return, but for humanitarian [11:57] reasons, it's it's a fair and right for [12:01] them to be together with their children. [12:03] And then you have all the different kind [12:05] of visa categories. [12:07] Um obviously, there's the tourist visa, [12:09] so every year, [12:11] you know, a few million of people come [12:14] to to Israel in normal years. We had [12:17] years of Corona and then the war, but in [12:19] regular years, there were three or four [12:21] million tourists coming to Israel. [12:24] So, that's uh the tourist visa. [12:26] Recently, [12:27] there's a little change to the tourist [12:29] visa. There's an electronic [12:32] authorization that you have to get in [12:33] advance, [12:35] which is called ETA-IL. [12:38] But then you have different kinds of [12:39] visas. There are different kinds of work [12:40] visas. There's volunteer visas. There's [12:43] the [12:44] academic, like student visas. You know, [12:46] Israel has among the [12:48] best universities, the Technion in [12:50] Haifa, the Hebrew University in [12:52] Jerusalem, the Tel Aviv University, [12:54] really top [12:55] universities with students and programs [12:58] in English, students from all over the [12:59] world. [13:01] So, those are the student visas. [13:04] And then [13:05] um there's also very [13:07] interesting development in the last [13:10] years, which is called an investor visa, [13:12] and this is only open for Americans. So, [13:14] we'll talk about that a little bit [13:17] later on. [13:19] So, I'm very excited to share about uh [13:22] immigration to Israel, and also [13:25] uh And will hear a very special uh of [13:29] mine, Ramin [13:31] Parsha. And he was born and grew up in [13:34] Shiite Iran, [13:36] but protested against the regime there, [13:39] really suffered, escaped to the States, [13:42] received American citizenship, [13:44] but for the last few years he's here in [13:46] Israel. He met an Israeli wife, [13:50] and they had all kinds of struggles and [13:52] difficulties to [13:54] to get [13:56] status here, but this is really a story [13:58] of [13:59] bravery and faith, a real really [14:01] interesting story. [14:03] I have to tell you the truth that I [14:04] didn't represent him myself. He had [14:06] another [14:08] very excellent immigration lawyer, but [14:10] he's a friend of mine and I did [14:13] follow his case and we met once in a [14:15] while over the last few years. [14:18] So, you're going to hear his story from [14:21] firsthand. Welcome, Ramin. We are [14:23] looking forward to hearing your dramatic [14:26] story. [14:27] >> Thank you very much. It's an honor to be [14:28] with you. Good to see you, Josh. [14:31] Uh, thank you for being here. And uh, [14:34] yes, it's an honor absolutely to be a [14:36] part of the land of Israel. It's a [14:38] blessing. Uh, and um, you know, I never [14:41] imagined one day I'll be living in [14:42] Israel. I was born and raised in Iran [14:45] as a Shiite Muslim, and uh, all my life [14:47] I was told to hate the Jews, to hate [14:49] Israel, [14:50] uh, American Christians. You know, every [14:52] morning in the school the prayer was [14:54] death to America, death to Israel. That [14:56] was how they were teaching us to pray. [14:58] This was literally our prayers every [15:00] morning in the school. They would line [15:02] us up, you know, in the cold winter, and [15:04] they had us shout death to America, [15:06] death to Israel. They would read the [15:07] Quran to us. So, I grew up in that [15:09] environment, you know, demonizing the [15:10] Jews. We saw uh, TV TV shows [15:14] and uh, that the regime put on, and it [15:16] was Jews chasing a Muslim boy to kill [15:19] him, to use his blood to make matzah [15:21] bread. [15:22] And uh you know, propaganda is like [15:24] that. They told us the Jews control [15:25] everything and uh you know, America is [15:28] imperialist, the Jews are the Zionists. [15:30] So, they really demonized Zionist and [15:33] Zionism and so forth. So, and we had no [15:35] choice, you know, we had no other [15:37] options, other outlets to listen to or [15:39] to hear different opinions. And uh in [15:41] our textbooks, every morning, you know, [15:43] I mean, in our school, we had textbook [15:45] textbooks that had the caricature of an [15:48] Israeli soldier pointing a gun at the um [15:51] at an uh you know, Palestinian boy and [15:53] the boy is crying, you know, and this [15:55] soldier looks so mean. Uh of course, it [15:58] was caricature, but they tried to sow [16:00] hatred in our hearts toward Jews and [16:02] Israel. [16:03] And uh but you know, interestingly, my [16:05] father uh [16:06] now looking back, my father always told [16:08] us some good things about Israel, like, [16:10] you know, Israeli cows are very good. [16:12] Israeli agriculture is very good. Uh he [16:15] couldn't directly say, you know, we [16:16] should support Israel, but I think [16:18] somehow he knew uh better than uh most [16:20] people at that time. And he couldn't say [16:23] it because he would get in trouble. Uh [16:25] but you know, [16:26] at the same time, the regime was telling [16:28] us how bad Israel is, how bad America [16:30] is, at the same time, I saw so much [16:32] cruelty in Iran. I saw people being [16:34] executed when I was probably eight or [16:36] nine years old. Uh I was going to school [16:39] and I was, you know, I saw a crowd [16:41] gathering and then I saw a big uh a [16:45] gigantic uh a crane and I saw they [16:48] hanging someone from the crane and you [16:50] know, he's wagging his legs. It was a [16:51] traumatizing for me. I was probably [16:53] eight or nine. And uh and then it became [16:56] a routine, a regular thing, you know, [16:58] almost every every month, every other [17:00] month, I would see public executions, [17:02] public uh flagging, you know, beating [17:05] people, flogging, and uh torturing [17:07] people, cutting people's hands off. I [17:09] mean, crazy stuff. [17:11] And uh so, they told us these are [17:13] infidels, these are the enemies of Islam [17:15] and Allah and these are, you know, [17:16] spying and so forth. Spying for Mossad, [17:19] for um for America, for the CIA. But [17:22] then, when I was 16 years old, I myself [17:25] was arrested and tortured by the regime. [17:26] I was going to a wedding. I was in a car [17:28] with some relatives. They had some [17:30] alcohol. I didn't. And based on Islamic [17:32] Sharia law, anything that violates [17:35] Islamic Sharia law [17:36] uh is punished, you know, you have to be [17:38] punished for it. For example, woman get [17:40] beaten and harassed and sometimes even [17:42] killed for not having a proper Islamic [17:45] hijab. Uh or, you know, if you're with a [17:47] woman that is not uh lawful to be with [17:49] you, like let's say uh you're in a car [17:51] driving with your girlfriend or even [17:54] fiance. And in based on Islam, she's not [17:57] lawful to you yet, so you're not [17:58] supposed to be together. And they, you [18:00] know, stuff like that. Basic things that [18:02] you would even laugh, you know, to hear [18:03] about it. [18:04] Uh so then I was, you know, there's a [18:06] Islamic checkpoint. This is the [18:08] paramilitary group called Basij, a part [18:10] of the revolutionary revolutionary [18:12] guard. And they pulled the car over. [18:14] They arrested all of us. They put us in [18:15] a bus. They took us to a confinement. [18:18] They took all our clothes off, butt [18:19] naked. And poured cold water on us and [18:21] they began to beat us with a big thick [18:24] cable. [18:25] And um [18:26] I mean, without mercy. They were like [18:27] beating us and they had us face the [18:29] wall, sit up, sit down sit down. You [18:32] know, after 80, 90, you can't do it [18:34] anymore. And if you couldn't do it, they [18:35] would [18:36] whip you. They would whip you again. And [18:38] this is when I saw the cruelty. And they [18:40] were doing it with glee. Now, I was [18:42] under age. I was 16. I hadn't done [18:44] anything wrong. I didn't drink alcohol. [18:46] Even if I had, that was not the way to [18:49] treat an underage teenager. And I saw [18:52] the cruelty. And everything they told us [18:54] Israel is doing to Palestinians, they [18:56] were doing to us. [18:57] So that was the beginning of change in [18:59] my life. I began to question Islam. Now, [19:02] I was in a you know, grew up in a devout [19:03] Muslim Shiite Muslim family and I was, [19:06] you know, trying to please Allah, going [19:07] to mosque, you know, praying at Islamic [19:10] prayers in Arabic. And we are Persians. [19:12] we don't speak Arabic, but we we would [19:14] pray and read the Quran in Arabic [19:16] without understanding it. [19:18] But then when I saw all of this cruelty, [19:20] injustice, oppression, I began to [19:22] question Islam. And my mother said, you [19:24] know, Islam is good, but these people [19:26] make it look bad. Uh I said, okay. So, I [19:28] began to make me you know, do my own [19:30] research, read the Quran and the Hadith [19:31] with translation this time. [19:33] And I saw so much evil. I saw Quran [19:36] talking about, you know, not to be [19:37] friends with Jews and Christians. Surah [19:39] 5 51 it says, "Don't take Jews and [19:42] Christians [19:43] as your friends because they are friends [19:44] of each other." Even 1,400 years ago [19:47] back then Muhammad noticed that Jews and [19:49] Christians are friends of each other. [19:51] This is 1,400 years ago [19:54] in the 7th century. And Muhammad saw it [19:56] that Jews and Christians are friends and [19:58] they're supporters of each other. And [19:59] Muhammad said, "Don't be friends with [20:01] them because they're supporting each [20:02] other. They're friends of each other." [20:03] Now you understand why they said death [20:05] to America and death to Israel because [20:07] America is the biggest Christian nation [20:09] and Israel is the only Jewish Jewish [20:11] nation and that's why they hate both of [20:13] them. And so, [20:15] I saw all of that then I read, you know, [20:17] Surah 9:29 it says to kill those who [20:19] don't believe in Allah, in his [20:20] messenger, which is Muhammad, in Islam, [20:22] in the Quran, in the Sharia. Kill them [20:24] unless they pay jizya. So, making long [20:26] story short, I I lost my faith in Islam. [20:29] I said, "If there's a God, this couldn't [20:31] be couldn't be it." And I rejected Islam [20:33] and I kind of became agnostic, atheist. [20:37] And I was questioning, you know, if [20:38] there's no God, then who made the [20:39] universe? Who made the creation? Who [20:41] made all of these beautiful things? The [20:42] birds, the animals, the even us, [20:45] the stars, the moon. And if there's a [20:47] God, then who is he? [20:48] Everybody says my God is true. And I [20:50] said, "So, who is who is this true God?" [20:52] I want to know him from himself. And [20:54] when I was [20:55] So, this is from 16 to 19, 3 years many [20:58] things happened to me. My father passed [21:00] away. I lost my hope and [21:02] you know, I was depressed, broken. [21:04] And uh I was 19 years old for the time I [21:07] heard about Jesus that he died for me on [21:09] the cross, he rose from the dead. I [21:10] said, "No, that's a bunch of nonsense." [21:12] I rejected that because in Islam, [21:14] Muhammad attached himself to Jesus, [21:17] Moses, Abraham, Noah. And when I said no [21:19] to Islam, in my mind, I said no to all [21:22] of them. [21:23] But here now I hear that he's the son of [21:24] God, he died for me on the cross as a [21:26] sacrifice, and he rose from the dead. I [21:28] said, "That's a bunch of nonsense." I [21:30] rejected it. And um I think it was about [21:34] uh a couple of weeks later I heard again [21:36] that uh you know, Jesus loves me, he has [21:38] a plan for me, and uh all he wants from [21:40] me is faith to believe. I said, "No." [21:43] Because of my experience with Islam, I [21:45] was antagonistic toward religion. And [21:47] all I know about [21:48] about Christianity was what I saw on TV, [21:51] you know, the Pope on the news, you see [21:53] Pope is visiting Poland or this with [21:55] this big robe and the big cross, you [21:56] know. Uh and that was my understanding [21:59] of Christianity, and I didn't know [22:00] anything about the Messiah, you know, [22:02] the prophetic prophetic scriptures or [22:05] prophecies or the mess that he is the [22:07] Messiah of the Jewish I didn't know [22:09] anything about that. I didn't even know [22:11] he was a Jew. [22:12] So when I was um so I three times I said [22:14] no. [22:15] And uh the last time I heard that he [22:18] loves me, he has a plan for me, he died [22:20] for me. I said, "Okay, Jesus, if it's [22:21] true, [22:22] then show me. I ask you to come into my [22:23] life. If this is true, if you are the [22:26] son of God, you died for me, and you [22:27] rose from the dead. I want to see. If [22:29] you're alive, then you hear me. If [22:31] you're not alive, then you won't hear [22:32] anything." [22:33] And the moment I said that, a heat went [22:35] through my left hand, a warm. [22:37] It went through all my body. I began to [22:40] shake. I just stopped crying. I felt a [22:43] love I had never felt before. I felt a [22:45] joy, a peace. [22:47] It's like somebody lifted 500 lb of [22:49] weight off my shoulders. [22:51] And I I was just sobbing, and I felt [22:53] love for the first time. Love of God, [22:55] divine love. I first time [22:57] and it's like somebody put his hand into [22:59] my heart and took out all that hatred, [23:01] anger, bitterness, depression instantly [23:03] was gone. And I I mean I used to go to [23:06] mosque, you know, we we were Shiite [23:07] Muslim. We used to beat ourselves for [23:09] the dead Imams. I used to beat myself [23:11] with chains, go to mosque, go to the [23:13] shrines of the dead Imams, ask, you [23:15] know, praying to the dead Imams to ask [23:18] Allah for us to have Not one time we got [23:20] an answer. [23:21] But first time I call on the name of [23:23] Jesus, he showed up. [23:24] And I felt the love, the peace. So, I [23:26] was trans- I mean, I was I just felt [23:28] love for everybody. I began to feel love [23:31] for people. I began to feel, you know, [23:33] forgiveness. I wanted to do good things. [23:35] I want to do the right thing. I want to [23:37] help people. It just was an instant [23:39] instant uh transformation. [23:41] Now, uh after that point, I never had uh [23:44] met a Christian in my life. It's illegal [23:46] in Iran to be Christian. Um it's illegal [23:48] to have a Bible. Bible is illegal. Uh [23:50] I've never been to a church in my life. [23:52] I've never met a Christian in my life. [23:54] Never touched a Bible in my life. And uh [23:56] so, here I am. And I began to share my [23:59] experience with people. Well, my my my [24:00] mother, she was sick. She was a devout [24:02] Muslim, and uh she had a chronic [24:04] disease. I met my mother. I um I asked [24:08] my mother, "What are you doing?" Uh I [24:09] went to my mom's house. She saw me. She [24:11] said, "What happened to you?" [24:12] I said, "Why?" She said, "Your face is [24:14] shining." Because before I was grumpy, [24:16] sad, depressed. So, she could literally [24:18] see the transformation in me, even in my [24:20] appearance. So, I told my mom what [24:22] happened to me. And she was very [24:24] touched, and uh she didn't have a bad [24:26] reaction. And uh my mom was in pain [24:29] because she had this ovarian problem, [24:30] chronic disease. [24:32] And the doctor said, "You have to do [24:33] surgeries." I put my hands on my mother, [24:36] and I prayed for her in the name of [24:37] Jesus. And they know have to put my [24:39] hands. They know have to pray in the [24:40] name of Jesus. And my mother got healed [24:43] instantly. [24:44] Pain left my mother. So, my mother, a [24:46] devout Muslim, I mean, her parents went [24:48] to Mecca when she was when, you know, um [24:51] when she was a kid [24:53] before we I mean, I think we had [24:54] airplanes. [24:55] They went to I I don't know how they [24:57] went with camels or donkeys or whatever. [24:59] They went to Mecca and then they were so [25:02] devout and then my mother saw a miracle [25:04] both in my life and then in her own life [25:07] she was healed. So, she became a [25:09] believer in Jesus. She left Islam. She [25:11] became a Christian. Then my sisters one [25:13] by one became Christians. Two of my [25:15] brothers became Christians and now my [25:17] nieces and nephews are become [25:19] Christians. So, Iran has the fastest [25:21] growing church and the movement is going [25:23] and that's why Iranian people are [25:24] becoming more pro-Israel. [25:26] Everywhere Christianity grows, people [25:28] become more pro-Israel. Every time [25:31] and everywhere Christianity diminishes, [25:34] the anti-Semitism would grow. You look [25:36] at Europe. More they distance [25:38] themselves from from the God of Abraham, [25:40] Isaac, and Jacob, from the Bible, from [25:42] Judeo-Christian value, more they [25:44] distance themselves from this, they [25:46] become more anti-Semitic, more hatred [25:48] for the Jews. And you see it. More [25:50] Islamic population grows in Europe, more [25:53] you know the churches are becoming [25:55] museums. People don't go to church. They [25:57] don't have children. They don't make [25:58] children. And that's why. But Iran, the [26:00] people are first because because we have [26:02] a common enemy, which is Islamic [26:04] terrorism, and we feel sympathy toward [26:06] Israel, [26:08] the Iranian people. The same people who [26:10] are hate Israel, they are oppressing the [26:12] Iranian people. Hamas, Hezbollah, [26:14] Houthis, the militias in Iraq. And [26:17] that's why the Iranian people want to [26:18] get rid of that regime and they want to [26:20] make friendship with Israel. [26:22] So, long story short, after 8 months [26:25] somebody stabbed me on the street. I [26:26] didn't know the person. Somebody [26:27] attacked me with a knife. I escaped the [26:29] country after I recovered [26:32] and I didn't have a passport because in [26:33] Iran if you want to have a passport, you [26:35] have to go to military for 2 years. And [26:37] if you don't go to military, you can't [26:39] get a job, you can't get a passport. Um [26:42] so, I didn't have a passport. All I had [26:44] was $300. I escaped the country through [26:47] the mountain by the help of the Kurdish [26:49] people on the border of Turkey and Iran. [26:51] I arrived in Turkey, didn't know where [26:53] I'm going, but God amazingly, [26:56] miraculously, he opened doors. He gave [26:58] me, you know, put me on the right path [27:00] and meet right people. And so I ended up [27:03] at a church in Turkey. Somebody in the [27:05] church took me to their house, gave me a [27:06] place to stay. [27:08] Then [27:09] I applied as a refugee with the United [27:12] Nation. And after 2 years, well, after a [27:14] year we had [27:16] no interviews and I was approved as a [27:18] refugee. [27:20] And then after a month US government [27:22] took my case [27:23] and after 2 years in total being in [27:25] Turkey, I ended up in America. [27:28] I went to Tulsa, Oklahoma. I went to a [27:30] Bible college and I was living there. [27:33] And so [27:35] after [27:37] about 5 years in America, I got [27:39] citizenship, US citizenship, and I began [27:41] to travel the world. The first place I [27:42] came after I became US citizen was [27:44] Israel. [27:46] I mean because first of all, I, you [27:48] know, it's a long story. I just tried to [27:49] make it squeeze it. But when I was in [27:51] Turkey, I read the old in in Iran, I got [27:54] read the four gospels. [27:56] I found it online. They blocked the [27:58] websites. I I used a VPN to break the [28:00] blockage. I found the four gospels. I [28:03] read from Matthew. I didn't know what [28:05] the rest of the books were. I just saw [28:07] Angel, which means Evangelion is the [28:09] good news gospel, Matthew, Mark, Luke [28:11] and John. I began to read from Matthew. [28:13] By the time I got to Matthew chapter 5, [28:15] I was weeping. [28:16] First I saw that Jesus was a Jew. The [28:19] genealogy you know, Abraham, Isaac, [28:21] Jacob, prayers [28:23] and all the way coming to to to Jesus. [28:25] And then I chapter three, I chapter two, [28:29] I saw that the magi who came to bring [28:31] gifts to baby Jesus, they were Persians. [28:35] And they had read the prophecy of Daniel [28:38] in chapter 9 and they knew that Messiah [28:40] will be born because Daniel prophesied [28:42] that [28:43] about 77 years [28:46] from the command of the king, the [28:48] Messiah will be born. And so they came, [28:50] they brought gifts to the Messiah. And [28:52] then [28:53] I remember reading Matthew chapter 5, it [28:56] says, "Love your enemies and pray for [28:57] those who hate you and despitefully use [28:59] you." [29:00] Now, reading that, I was just crying. I [29:02] said, "You know, in the Quran is all [29:04] about hating not the people who are your [29:06] enemies, people who don't even people [29:07] don't believe in Islam, kill them. Don't [29:10] be friends with Jews and Christians." [29:12] Muhammad called the Jews and Christians [29:13] apes and pigs. He He asked to you know, [29:16] he said the last day will not come until [29:19] the the Jews and the Jews are destroyed [29:21] and killed. The even the trees and the [29:23] stones will cry out, "Come, there's a [29:25] Jew hiding behind me, kill him." [29:28] Stuff like that. And then here I'm [29:29] reading Jesus is saying, "Pray for your [29:30] enemies." I had never heard this in my [29:32] life. [29:34] And I knew that these words are not from [29:35] a mortal soul. This could not be a [29:37] mortal soul saying such things. Cuz [29:40] everybody can hate. Hate is easy. [29:42] You know, to be hateful is easy, but to [29:44] to love even someone you don't like, [29:47] to forgive someone that is your enemy, [29:50] it's it it requires the divine [29:53] divine nature, divine power, [29:55] empowerment. And when I read the the [29:57] words of Jesus, so simple, but so [29:59] powerful. [30:00] So, anyway, [30:02] now when I came to Turkey, I got a [30:03] actual Bible, a full Bible with the [30:05] Tanakh and the New Tes- and I read Old [30:08] Testament, I saw my kings, [30:10] you know, Cyrus, Darius, Xerxes, [30:12] Artaxerxes. These are Persian kings who [30:14] helped the Jewish people. I was born [30:16] about an hour from the tomb of King [30:18] Cyrus. [30:19] From the palace of Xerxes, Esther's [30:22] husband. From [30:24] the tomb of Artaxerxes, the one who gave [30:26] permission to Nehemiah to come to [30:29] Jerusalem to rebuild the walls of [30:30] Jerusalem. You know, about [30:33] same an hour from the tomb of Darius, [30:35] the one who fasted for Daniel overnight. [30:38] And I was undone. I said, "Why this book [30:41] was hidden from us?" Every day in the [30:43] school they told us about everything [30:45] except these things. [30:47] And I read that there were Zionists [30:49] Cyrus. In fact, if you have a Jewish [30:51] Bible, a Jewish Tanakh, [30:54] from Bereshit to the last book in the in [30:57] that order chronicle order, is 2 [30:58] Chronicles, the last chapter, the last [31:01] verse is a command of King Cyrus telling [31:03] the Jews to make aliyah. [31:05] He says, "Go up to Jerusalem." And this [31:08] is when he gave the Jews permission and [31:11] freedom to leave Babylon and come back [31:13] to Jerusalem. So, he was a Zionist. And [31:15] then I read, you know, [31:18] Xerxes, Esther's husband, he saved the [31:20] Jewish people from annihilation. And [31:22] then I read Artaxerxes, he gave he told [31:25] Ezra to come to Jerusalem to teach the [31:26] law of God to the Jews who had come back [31:29] from Babylon. So, when I read all of [31:31] that, I was just [31:32] I and that's why the Bible is illegal in [31:34] Islamic countries because it's [31:36] impossible to read the Bible and be [31:38] anti-Semitic. It's impossible to be a [31:41] Christian, to claim to be a Christian [31:43] and hate the Jewish people, and to hate [31:44] Israel. It's impossible. And if anybody [31:46] claims to be a Christian and hates [31:48] Israel, he's not a real Christian, he's [31:49] not born again, he's not true believer, [31:52] he's just a nominal or probably just [31:53] using the name. And but if you read the [31:56] Bible, I mean, [31:58] it's impossible to read the Bible and [32:00] claim to be a Christian and hate the [32:02] Jewish people. So, the first place I [32:04] came was Israel, I was I felt at home. I [32:07] mean, I was uh with the tour, and we [32:10] would go leave around 8:00 in the [32:11] morning, come back about 5:00. [32:13] Everybody's tired, everybody want to eat [32:15] and go to bed, but I just dropped my [32:17] bags, go on the streets, [32:19] and I just loved it. [32:21] And uh but I never imagined I would be [32:22] living here one day. I felt at home, I [32:24] felt I've come to my uh mother country. [32:28] So, long story short, in 2020, [32:31] um [32:32] miraculously I met my wife. She's a [32:34] Jewish woman from born in Jerusalem. Her [32:36] father was born and raised in Jerusalem. [32:38] She was born and raised in Jerusalem. [32:40] We met and the way we met is that she [32:43] saw a video from Iran that touched her [32:45] heart. [32:46] And this video was she saw that the [32:48] regime in Iran painted Israeli flag and [32:51] American flag so the students would walk [32:53] on them in front of the university. But [32:55] in the video all the students avoid [32:57] stepping on the Israeli and American [32:59] flag and going around it. [33:01] And because she thought Iranian people [33:03] hate Israel. And when she saw that she [33:05] was so touched and she's an artist she [33:07] wanted to send a message back that we [33:09] also love you we are not your enemy. [33:11] And so she began to draw a two hands in [33:14] the shape of a heart. One is Israeli [33:16] flag one is the Persian flag with the [33:17] lion and the sun. And as she was drawing [33:20] her mother asked her what are you doing? [33:21] She told her mother. And her mother came [33:23] across my story online. [33:26] And sent it to her. See Iranians are [33:28] leaving Islam. And [33:30] so when she saw it she began to follow [33:32] me on social media. [33:34] And because she was following a lot of [33:35] Iranians so when she finishes her art [33:38] they would see it. And so what happened [33:40] was she saw the art. [33:42] She finished the art she posted it and I [33:44] saw it. [33:45] And it says Iranians will love you. [33:47] Shalom from Israel. So when I saw it I [33:49] said I said wow from Israel. So we began [33:52] to chat and talk we immediately had this [33:54] connection and I know history Bible we [33:57] talked about politics. And so long story [34:01] short eventually we met after maybe [34:03] about five months six months we met and [34:07] I just fell in love and we fell in love [34:08] together. I [34:10] after a couple months after that I [34:12] proposed to her and she accepted the [34:14] proposal. We got married in 2020 in the [34:17] late [34:18] December. End of December of the same [34:21] year 2020 20. [34:23] And then she came to the states we [34:26] living together for three years in the [34:27] states as married couple. [34:29] And Um, [34:30] about [34:32] beginning of 2023, I felt uh my wife and [34:35] I felt to move to Jerusalem, to Israel. [34:37] Because her family is here, all her [34:39] family, her brother, sister, her aunts [34:41] and uncles, they all live here. So, we [34:43] moved to Israel and 7 months later, [34:45] October 7th happens. [34:47] The biggest massacre of Jews since [34:49] Holocaust. And I was just devastated. I [34:52] felt the same curse that I was, you [34:55] know, in Iran experienced. The same [34:57] curse was following me even here. That [34:59] is Islamist began to massacre babies, [35:02] innocent you know, women, raping, [35:04] murdering, taking hostage. [35:06] So, I I said, "What what can I do to [35:07] help?" I was willing to go fight for [35:09] Israel even in Gaza if they would let [35:11] me. Um, but I began to cook meals for [35:14] Israelis. We were cooking for 1500 [35:17] Israelis every day for displaced [35:19] Israelis. We had about 40 volunteers [35:22] cooking, packing, distributing foods [35:25] to for displaced Israelis. [35:28] Actually, Josh's father has a shelter in [35:31] Eilat and we took supplies and food [35:33] there for them as well for the people [35:36] who were staying at his shelter. These [35:37] are the people who left their homes [35:38] because of rockets and missiles. So, [35:40] they had left their homes from the north [35:43] surrounding of Gaza and they had gone to [35:45] the to the south. So, we were feeding, [35:48] sending food, supplies, you know, paper [35:50] toilet and you talk about all kinds of [35:53] supplies, cleaning supplies, food. We [35:55] took supplies for soldiers, you know, [35:57] gears, [35:58] flashlights, this and that. [36:01] And they were so amazed to see they had [36:03] such a hope that this Iranian guy in the [36:06] middle of a war, which is essentially [36:08] with Iran, that this Iranian guy is [36:10] helping us. And I was so blessed to be [36:12] able to help the Jewish people. Because [36:14] they always, you know, after I became [36:15] believer and in America, I watched [36:17] movies, Schindler's List, you know, [36:19] Pianist. And I saw the Jews were being [36:21] massacred, you know, chased down the [36:22] streets, arrested, tortured, killed, [36:25] sent to concentration camps. And I just [36:27] wanted to [36:29] you know always I wanted to be a [36:31] blessing to the Jewish people. And that [36:33] was the opportunity and I was so blessed [36:35] to be able to help the Jewish people to [36:36] stand with them. And then I began to [36:38] defend the Israel Israel and the Jewish [36:40] people on social media because I saw so [36:43] much hatred and [36:46] and you know anti-Semitism rising and I [36:48] told them hey I'm an Iranian I live in [36:50] Israel I'm married to an Israeli Israel [36:52] is not apartheid Israel is not what [36:55] they're telling you Israel is not [36:56] killing children Israel is not [36:57] oppressing people. These are all lies. [37:00] So long story short when I when we [37:02] applied for family reunification in the [37:04] beginning when we moved to Israel we [37:06] were rejected because they told me that [37:08] you [37:09] you're from an enemy country you're born [37:11] in Iran. And and basically although I'm [37:14] an American citizen they said you are [37:16] technically a still an Iranian citizen [37:19] because you got citizenship by birth. [37:21] And you know you can't renounce it I if [37:23] you want to renounce it you have to go [37:26] you know all of the ministers in Iran [37:27] have to sign it the president has to [37:29] sign it which is impossible for me to do [37:32] so. [37:33] And you know I said that they're they're [37:35] looking for my head you want me to go [37:36] and ask him to sign for me. [37:38] So [37:39] it was something impossible and then so [37:42] we we appealed to the court the court [37:45] thankfully was on our side the court [37:46] said no he's a Zionist he fled 20 20 [37:49] years ago [37:50] he's an American citizen he's a Zionist [37:52] he's pro-Israel his wife is Israeli his [37:55] child is Israeli Jewish and [37:58] so the court canceled the decision asked [38:00] them to make a new decision. And so the [38:04] first rejection came after a year and a [38:06] half after we applied we filed. So one [38:08] year and a half they told us no after [38:11] one year. And then the second one went [38:13] to court about [38:15] seven months later went to court that's [38:17] almost two years. [38:18] So after two years [38:20] they had to make a new decision and they [38:22] came back with the same decision again. [38:25] Rejection. They said, you know, he's [38:27] from an enemy country. There's a law [38:29] it's called citizenship and citizenship [38:31] and entry. [38:32] Uh, and this law was passed I think in [38:34] 2000 [38:35] uh, two if I'm not mistaken after the [38:37] first Intifada I believe. Uh, this was [38:40] um, this law was made that people from [38:42] certain enemy countries can't even [38:44] travel to Israel. Much less becoming a [38:46] resident or a citizen. [38:48] Uh, and but I traveled to Israel before [38:51] I I moved to Israel many times as as a [38:54] tourist as a visitor. [38:55] And uh, so [38:57] the court, you know, there's a conflict. [38:58] I married to an Israeli. She has a right [39:00] to marriage and life. Uh, and my child [39:03] is Israeli. So, there's a conflict now. [39:06] So, the court [39:07] uh, again we applied appealed to the [39:09] court. But when the second rejection [39:12] came it was on the news all over the [39:14] news channel all the channels in Israel [39:16] almost were talking about it. And what [39:18] happened was uh, Ambassador Huckabee [39:21] he reached out to me. He sent me an [39:23] email he found me email my email and he [39:25] reached out to me. He said that you're [39:26] an American and I want to um, I want to [39:30] help you. I want to talk talk to the [39:32] prime minister about this. [39:34] So, thank God for uh, Ambassador [39:36] Huckabee he took our case and he [39:38] presented to the prime minister to his [39:40] office to his national security and they [39:43] did a follow up and they worked on it [39:45] and after about um, a couple months uh, [39:49] just last month we were given the good [39:52] news two days before the Feast of [39:54] Tabernacles that uh, we have been [39:56] accepted and I received residency in [39:58] Israel and I felt so honored to be a [40:01] part of Israel. And then I understand I [40:03] don't I don't want people who are hating [40:05] Israel to move to Israel to even visit [40:07] or to live here. I want people to come [40:09] to this country to Israel who are [40:11] pro-Israel who are Zionist who are [40:14] willing to even give their life for this [40:16] nation to defend the Jewish people. [40:18] These kind of people are the people [40:19] Israel needs. And uh and we get amazing [40:23] support from the Israeli population, [40:24] from the Israeli public. [40:26] And I mean when when the news on social [40:29] media, all the comments almost 100% were [40:32] in our support. They said this guy is [40:34] supposed to be we have a lot of people [40:35] here who hate us. We should kick them [40:37] out and bring people like him to this [40:39] country. And uh so many you know [40:41] positive comments, people were you know [40:43] how can we help? What can we do? And [40:46] these are Israeli regular Israeli [40:47] people, day-to-day people who uh wanted [40:50] to help. So I think all of this had a um [40:53] you know effect and the Israeli [40:55] government granted us my my residency. [40:57] And I'm so blessed. I pray that you know [41:00] because the foreign minister of Israel [41:02] wanted to want to uh you know build a [41:05] bridge with the especially with the [41:06] Christians and with the with the western [41:08] people about Israel. The the interior [41:12] minister [41:13] the minister of interior they kind of [41:16] they don't care. You know there's so [41:17] many even when we were during the war [41:19] after October 7th, when we were cooking [41:22] and you know distributing food and [41:23] supplies, so many people were trying to [41:26] get into Israel to help us. And they [41:28] were being rejected. They were being and [41:30] these are from you know European [41:31] countries, from America. They were given [41:33] you know all kinds of excuses. Oh, [41:35] you're missionaries, you're coming to [41:36] convert the Jews or so forth and so on. [41:38] And these people simply wanted to come [41:40] and to help. They wanted to come to pick [41:43] fruits. Uh you know because so many um [41:46] uh workers used to come from Gaza and [41:48] after October 7th, it was all cut off. [41:50] So so many farmers were left without [41:53] workers. And the fruits are on the [41:55] trees, you know, and they couldn't pick [41:56] them. So a lot of Christians came to [41:58] pick olives and all kinds of fruits and [42:00] vegetables volunteering. And um they [42:03] were they were not able to come many [42:04] many of them. Some came. In fact, uh [42:07] Ambassador Huckabee had an argument with [42:08] the minister of interior. He he sent a [42:11] letter uh open letter that, you know, uh [42:14] if you do this, I will tell Christians [42:16] they're not welcome here. [42:17] And then immediately he resigned after a [42:19] month and Prime Minister himself became [42:22] the became acting Minister of Interior. [42:25] And things have got better, you know, I [42:26] think Joshua knows better that now [42:29] Israel is more [42:30] favorable toward Christians. Many people [42:32] are getting visa, [42:33] you know, clergy visas and visa to come [42:36] and help. [42:37] So, I pray that uh [42:39] that Israel will understand this and and [42:42] they will be able to allow more [42:44] Christians to come because the [42:45] Christians are the only supporters of [42:47] Israel. [42:48] I mean, I know I've been a Christian for [42:49] 21 years. I lived in America for 15 [42:52] years. I never met a Christian in my [42:54] life. Never been to a church in my life [42:56] that they they would hate Jews or hate [42:59] Christians. Every church I went to that [43:00] Israeli flag there next to American [43:02] flag. [43:03] So, Christians and mostly they come here [43:06] to help. They want to come to love the [43:08] Jewish people because we feel indebted [43:10] indebted to the Jewish people. They gave [43:11] us the Bible, the prophets, and for us [43:13] the Messiah. We feel that we're indebted [43:16] to the Jewish people and that's why so [43:18] many Christians want to come. I want to [43:20] tell the Jewish people, don't be afraid [43:21] of the Christians. You know, there's a [43:24] like a scarecrow of all these Christians [43:26] are missionaries, they want to convert [43:28] you. There's 7 million Jews in America. [43:30] If the Christians want to convert them, [43:31] they go to them. [43:33] Uh but they come to Israel under the [43:34] rockets, missiles, bombs. They come here [43:37] to help and to be a part and they [43:39] support Israel in all kind of ways, you [43:41] know, food, supplies, and praying for [43:44] Israel most importantly, defending [43:46] Israel. [43:48] Uh one of the new things that I [43:49] I want to do, we're talking to [43:52] Ambassador George Deek. He's the [43:55] envoy to the Christian world and he [43:57] reached out to me. We want to do some, [43:59] you know, um [44:01] basically speaking on behalf of Israel. [44:03] I have a few speaking engagement already [44:06] arranged in South Africa, Germany, [44:09] in South Korea, possibly UK, in America [44:12] to go and to talk about Israel, my [44:14] experience as an Iranian ex-Muslim [44:17] living in Israel. [44:18] And to basically [44:21] to [44:22] reject and to refute all these kinds of [44:25] apartheid comments and you know, Israel [44:27] killing children and all these nonsense [44:29] that they are spewing and defend Israel [44:31] and a Christian based on Christian [44:33] Bible, based on the Jewish Christian [44:34] Judeo-Christian values and based on the [44:37] Bible. [44:38] And how can you say this is Palestine [44:39] when Jesus himself was born in [44:41] Bethlehem? He grew up in Nazareth. He [44:44] lived in Capernaum. He died and rose in [44:46] Jerusalem. He will come back to [44:47] Jerusalem. The Messiah will come back to [44:49] Jerusalem. How can you say you're a [44:51] Christian and you reject all of that? [44:53] He's not coming back to Paris. He's not [44:54] coming you know, to [44:56] to San Francisco or to Munich or to you [44:59] know, Seoul or to Paris. He's coming to [45:03] Jerusalem and there's a reason why. So, [45:05] that's why [45:06] there's so much to do. As Prime Minister [45:08] Netanyahu said, the eighth um [45:11] you know, Israel has been fighting on [45:13] seven fronts with the Houthis, the [45:15] militias in Iraq, Hezbollah, Hamas, the [45:18] regime in Iran and uh the eighth one is [45:22] the um the propaganda war. [45:25] There are people Qatar is investing [45:27] billions of dollars. They're paying, [45:29] hiring Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, [45:32] Nigerians, all kinds of people to come [45:34] up online and to write and say [45:37] disparaging things about Israel. They [45:39] use AI to create fake images about [45:42] children in Gaza and we as Christians [45:44] and as Jews, we need to lock arms and [45:47] stand up and defend the Jewish state and [45:50] to defend Israel and this is the right [45:52] thing to do. [45:54] You know, when we were rejected after [45:55] you know, first time and second time, [45:57] I kind of kind of felt disappointed, but [46:00] I said I continue to support Israel [46:02] because this is the right thing to do. [46:04] I don't support Israel because they give [46:06] me or don't give me residency [46:08] because truth is truth. Truth is [46:10] absolute. I cannot stop supporting [46:13] Israel just because they Ministry of [46:15] Interior is like that. I love these [46:16] people. My family are Israelis. My wife [46:18] is Israeli. My child is Israeli. And how [46:21] can I not support this country? And and [46:24] plus Israel is the Holy Land, the land [46:26] of the Bible. How can we as Christians [46:30] basically not support this nation? And I [46:32] encourage all of you to become a [46:34] warrior, a soldier for Israel [46:37] and speak on behalf of Israel. Talk to [46:39] your churches. Bring groups. We are [46:41] encouraging people to bring groups to [46:43] show them. Let them see the places that [46:45] the prophets, that the disciples, that [46:47] Jesus himself walked. Come and [46:49] experience the Holy Land. I remember the [46:51] first time I came to Israel, I was so in [46:54] love with this nation, so in love with [46:56] Israel. And it would have an impact on [46:59] your heart. So if you want to bring a [47:01] group, please let me know. We can [47:03] arrange everything for you and you can [47:05] bring a group to Israel to visit. You [47:08] can encourage your pastors to to start [47:11] talking about bringing a group to Israel [47:13] and we'll be very happy to host you, to [47:15] speak with you and we'll arrange [47:17] everything for you to come and visit. [47:19] So thank you very much for the time. [47:21] Sorry it was longer but I appreciate all [47:25] of you listening to me. [47:26] >> Ramin, that was such a powerful [47:29] story and [47:32] incredible. I think you had all of us on [47:34] the edge of our seats this whole time. [47:36] So thank you very much. God bless you [47:39] and I hope to stay in touch with you. I [47:40] feel like uh it's wonderful to to meet [47:43] you for the first time but God willing [47:45] we'll get to know each other better and [47:48] and thank you for joining. [47:50] >> Absolutely. And if anyone has a [47:51] question, I'll be more than happy to [47:52] answer. I don't know if [47:54] you know somebody has a follow-up [47:56] question. [47:57] I'll be happy to [47:58] >> We we're going to have to have you back [47:59] for follow-up questions cuz this was I I [48:02] have a hundred myself. Um but I do want [48:05] to now use this as an opportunity once [48:07] again thank our sponsor Joshua Pex and [48:11] uh law firm uh dot co dot il. You can [48:14] also go to israel365.com/law [48:18] if you want to be in touch with Joshua [48:21] Pex to see if you are eligible for some [48:24] kind of residency in Israel. And now [48:27] with that, we're going to have Joshua [48:30] take some questions from the audience [48:32] and also maybe explain a little bit more [48:34] about the different categories. You have [48:37] volunteer visas, clergy visas, expert [48:40] visas, investor visas. Tell us a little [48:43] bit about those and what you think is a [48:46] is maybe the easiest way. [48:48] >> The Remi's story was truly [48:51] fascinating, amazing. I've heard it uh [48:54] before, but every time it really [48:56] touches. [48:58] And I think from a legal perspective it [49:01] demonstrates [49:03] that the Israeli immigration is very uh [49:05] strict. So, [49:07] you have these clerks [49:10] and even, you know, higher-up clerks [49:12] that they're really sort of following [49:14] many times the letter of the law, very [49:16] rigid [49:18] and strict policies and not so much [49:21] looking at the spirit of the law and [49:23] trying to implement like what uh would [49:26] be maybe best for [49:28] Israeli society, for Israel as a whole. [49:32] But even within the strict uh [49:35] laws, there is uh room. There are [49:38] different kinds of [49:40] uh visa categories. [49:42] And uh what's very interesting for [49:44] American audiences is is that since [49:46] 2019, [49:49] there's a possibility to get an investor [49:51] visa to Israel and it's only for [49:53] Americans. It's very [49:55] interesting possibility. Not many yet [49:58] are taking advantage of it, [50:00] but the law has already been in place [50:03] since 2019. [50:05] And it means that Americans who want to [50:07] open a business in Israel or even buy [50:10] half of an existing business, and it [50:13] doesn't have to be something [50:14] substantial. So, it can't be [50:16] like a small business that would just [50:19] you know, be for the family. It has to [50:22] be a business that would give [50:24] um employment opportunities [50:27] to about 10 local workers, but it can [50:30] develop over time. So, it's not like you [50:32] have to find [50:34] you know, from day one 10 workers, but [50:36] you have to show a business plan. [50:38] And you can get this investor visa to [50:41] Israel for yourself, for the spouse, for [50:43] children, and even [50:45] for another worker that will come [50:49] from the United States as well. So, this [50:51] is a very interesting opportunity and [50:53] and something new. [50:55] Other than that, there are [50:57] all the regular visas [51:00] which are done through a local [51:02] Israeli employer [51:05] or clergy visas [51:07] and volunteer visas, student visas, but [51:10] basically all the visas need to [51:13] need to come through a local Israeli [51:15] recognized entity. And many times that's [51:18] sort of the trick. [51:20] But it's not that every institution, for [51:23] example, every academic institution or [51:25] every [51:27] and welfare institution can grant [51:30] these student visas or volunteer visas. [51:33] So, the application of the visa comes [51:35] through a recognized [51:37] Israeli institution. [51:40] And those recognitions are given [51:43] um [51:44] sort of scarcely and the government can [51:46] also sort of control that. So, certain [51:49] years [51:50] they're more there's sort of a bigger [51:52] quota of volunteer visas, other years [51:54] there's less. [51:56] But anyway, I'm happy to answer [51:58] questions if anybody now or very welcome [52:02] to contact us by email. [52:05] And but we're happy to help with [52:07] immigration to Israel. [52:10] >> Joshua, people are asking about the [52:12] process. When they call you, what should [52:15] they expect? [52:19] >> So, it's very helpful for us to get [52:21] already from the beginning an email with [52:24] some explanation. [52:26] And then we'd be happy where we go over [52:30] the email, we see if if it is [52:32] something that we we can help with and [52:34] we're happy to schedule a [52:37] online meeting, something similar to [52:40] this in a via Zoom or or other online [52:44] meeting for free. If you come through [52:47] the Israel 365 [52:50] platform, we grant a [52:52] free online meeting and we will [52:55] answer any questions, explain the [52:57] process, prices, [53:00] and legal fees, and government fees. [53:03] It's it's uh [53:06] It's a whole process. I mean, [53:07] immigration is something that takes [53:09] time, I think in every country. [53:12] And Israel is no exception. It's [53:14] something that you have to [53:16] I mean, it's very good to [53:20] prepare in advance. The the more you're [53:22] you're prepared in advance and you have [53:24] time, then everything is done [53:27] you know, in a relaxed and uh [53:30] orderly fashion. That's it's best to [53:34] to prepare things ahead of time. [53:37] >> Now, Joshua, it's hard, it's not easy [53:40] moving to Israel. And a lot of the [53:43] people who are interested are [53:46] older in age. [53:48] What benefit does somebody, you know, [53:51] who's maybe newly retired have in [53:54] spending years in [53:58] their maybe their [53:59] retirement in Israel? Why would someone [54:02] do that? [54:05] >> So, first of all, [54:08] specifically [snorts] [54:08] that is is not [54:11] that easy. I mean, there's not Some [54:13] countries have like special visas for [54:15] people to retire in them, but Israel [54:17] doesn't have [54:19] have that, but [54:21] there might be possibilities. [54:23] >> Who's Who's the ideal [54:26] candidate? [54:29] >> I would say the ideal candidate is [54:30] someone who really [54:32] is interested in in opening a [54:36] business in Israel. Like, that would be [54:39] the ideal candidate that there's the [54:42] business is a [54:44] viable business and it's [54:46] the business is not only a vehicle to to [54:49] stay in Israel. [54:51] And that could work [54:53] the best. [54:56] There could be various possibilities if [54:59] if you're older. I mean, you can buy [55:01] property in Israel. So, this is also [55:03] something to [55:05] to think about. Many [55:08] people more more from Jewish background, [55:10] I would say, but also Christians who can [55:12] buy a property in Israel. [55:15] Many people dream of having an apartment [55:18] in Jerusalem or on the beach, you know. [55:21] The weather in Israel is is nice and you [55:23] can have [55:25] apartments here and then if you're not [55:26] planning to stay stay in Israel and [55:29] spend the majority of your time here, [55:31] but you can relatively freely [55:35] and go back and forth. [55:38] And you have the apartment here. You can [55:40] spend certain holidays here. [55:43] The high Jewish holidays, there's always [55:45] many [55:47] visitors to Israel during this time. A [55:49] very special atmosphere. [55:51] So, we can help [55:53] um [55:53] with that as well. [55:56] Actually, legally speaking, buying uh [55:58] the property in Israel is is easier [56:00] probably than [56:02] than securing some sort of long-term [56:06] immigration [56:08] uh possibility. [56:10] >> So, basically, what I'm hearing is that [56:12] every case really is different. And [56:16] people really should speak to you so [56:18] that they can first type up their story [56:22] with as probably as much detail as [56:23] possible. [56:25] And then they send it over to you, and [56:27] then you'll be able to, you know, you [56:29] don't want to spend too much of their [56:30] time, your time. It's probably just a [56:32] great way to quickly let people know, [56:36] am I eligible? Am I not eligible? So, [56:38] once again, ladies and gentlemen, visit [56:41] israel365.com/law. [56:44] We'll immediately send you over to [56:47] Joshua Pex. And thank you, Joshua, for [56:50] your time, for explaining all this [56:52] really important information, [56:54] interesting information. Thank you, [56:56] Rami, for sharing your beautiful [56:58] testimony. And we will hope to have you [57:01] back and see you again. Thank you, [57:03] ladies and gentlemen, for for joining us [57:06] from all over the world and for [57:08] interacting and engaging with us and [57:10] asking us your questions and clicking on [57:12] the link. One last time to click on the [57:14] link below in the bottom left-hand [57:16] corner to reach Joshua Pex. [57:19] Shalom everybody, and have a good night.
