Zion Oil & Gas Inc. Partners with The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference in the Que Viva Israel Campaign Advocating Good Relations Between the American Hispanic Evangelical Community and Israel

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Oct. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (www.nhclc.org) has announced a unique ministry partnership with Zion Oil & Gas in the Que Viva Israel Campaign advocating good relations between the American Hispanic Evangelical community and Israel.

Victor G. Carrillo, Executive Vice President of Zion Oil & Gas, Inc., said, "Zion Oil & Gas, Inc. is honored to partner with The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference as their inaugural corporate sponsor of the 'Que Viva Israel' Campaign.  We strongly believe that the values of the Hispanic faith community – belief in God, family, hard work and support of Israel – reflect the core values of the vast majority of the Jewish community, both in Israel and internationally.  We look forward to promoting ties of friendship and prayerful advocacy between the American Hispanic Evangelical community and Israel." 

Zion Oil & Gas, Inc. was founded by John M. Brown in April 2000 for exploration of oil and gas in Israel in order to help Israel become an energy independent country. The company's founding was the culmination of a 14-year process that began during Brown's inspirational visit to Israel in 1983. Today, Zion is a publicly traded company listed on the NASDAQ Global Market with common stock trading under the symbol "ZN"

"From our inception, the calling of Zion Oil & Gas has been to assist the nation of Israel and the Jewish people in the restoration of the Land by finding and producing oil and gas – helping to make Israel politically and economically independent. We see the State of Israel not only as a refuge for Jews, but as the fulfillment of prophecy: 'And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.' (Amos 9:15)," Carrillo continued.

As a Christian, Carrillo said, "I declare 'thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God'; and I believe that all true Christians should identify with Israel; as we are the 'wild olive branch' grafted onto the olive tree by the grace of God."

"Moreover, we identify with the people of Israel in their struggle and understand a little something of their pain, confusion, and their hope in the midst of continued media misrepresentation and the world's disdain of the Jewish people and the nation of Israel. Israel appears to be coming under increasing criticism daily; for the very steps of self-defense which we in America take for granted as our sovereign moral right to defend of ourselves and our interests," Carrillo concluded.

Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, President of the NHCLC (www.nhclc.org), also known as the Hispanic Evangelical Association, the nation's largest Christian Hispanic organization, said, "Hispanic Evangelicals demonstrate a strong affinity towards the Holy Land, La Tierra Santa. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem and stand committed to serving as an engaged community in both prayer and travel to this precious land. In addition, via the conduit of this campaign, we will strengthen the ties between Hispanic Christians and the people of Israel."

The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference is the Hispanic Evangelical Association unifying, serving and representing the Hispanic Born Again Community via 34,200 member churches and 16 million constituents by reconciling the vertical and horizontal of the Christian message through the 7 Directives of Life, Family, Great Commission, Stewardship, Justice, Education and Youth. 

SOURCE National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference