About the Writers

Jim Hutchens
Dr. James M. Hutchens is a man on a mission for Israel–a mission to make God’s purposes for Israel and the Jewish people an unavoidable issue. As President of The Jerusalem Connection, International and Editor of The Jerusalem Connection Report, he is on the forward edge of the battle area of informing, educating and activating the Christian community on issues related to Israel, from a Biblical perspective.  From his military experience, Jim is well acquainted with the concept of “Mission.”  He came to faith in Christ as an enlisted paratrooper, under the ministry of a chaplain.  After college and seminary, Jim returned to the Army as a chaplain. Decorated for personal bravery in Vietnam, including the Purple Heart, where he served with the famous 173rd Airborne Brigade, and later with the celebrated “Green Berets,” he retired with the rank of Brigadier General in 1994.  His book, Beyond Combat , tells of his experience as a combat chaplain in Vietnam.

Dr. Hutchens was ordained to the ministry in 1962 and has served, concurrent with his chaplain duties, as a church planter and senior pastor for over 24 years.   His wife, Patty, is an exhibiting artist and teacher at the Corcoran School of Art in Washington, D.C. and the Northern Virginia Community College system. The Hutchens have three married children and eleven grand children.  Jim and Patty tell of their life-long love for Israel in their newly released book, Guilty: Keeping God’s Covenant Love with Israel.  “The General” now brings his military leadership skills and pastoral devotion to duty to accomplish the mission of The Jerusalem Connection, International.

Shelley Neese
Shelley Neese is currently the managing editor for The Jerusalem Connection Report. She writes a regular column for the Report, and her articles have also appeared in The Jerusalem Post, Arutz Sheva, and FrontPage Magazine.   Shelley is also a public speaker for The Jerusalem Connection and is part of the Jewish National Fund’s speakers bureau.

While living in Boston, she had been the assistant to the Consul General at the Consulate of Israel to New England. In addition, Ms. Neese worked as a consultant at Conflict Management Group, a NGO connected to Harvard Law School, for their Middle East program portfolio.

Shelley studied in Beer Sheva, Israel from 2000 -2003, where she received her M.A in Middle Eastern Studies and completed her thesis on “Multiparty Mediation in Crisis Contexts: A Case Study of the Church of the Nativity Negotiations.”   Currently she resides in San Antonio, TX with her husband–a family doctor for the U.S. Air Force–and their two children, Micah and Elisheva.

Pat Mercer Hutchens
Dr. Pat Mercer Hutchens has wide experience in teaching, writing and the visual arts, having earned an MFA from Northwestern University (Evanston, IL), a Masters in Management & Development in Human Resources from National Lewis University (Evanston, IL) and a PhD in Theology from Louisiana Baptist University with a concentration in language and Hebrew studies, focusing attention on the languages of the Levant and the origins of written communications. She was chosen for inclusion in The National Honor Society (Hebrew Studies). With her husband, Dr. James M. Hutchens, she co-authored Guilty, Keeping God’s Covenant of Love with Israel as well as her own book, Hebrew for the Goyim (Bible Codes). Pat has taught at several schools, including the Corcoran College of Art and Design in Washington, DC, George Mason University (VA), Northern Virginia Community College, Lord Fairfax College (VA) and Dominion Theological Seminary. Pat is the founder and director of Washington Artworks, and wrote and presented a paper on “Spirituality in the Visual Arts” for the Isley Washington Arts Group as part the USA team participating in the 300 year anniversary of St. Petersburg, Russia at the Hermitage. Pat writes for The Jerusalem Connection Report, an online magazine, and supports charities such as The National Museum of the American Indian, Children’s Inn at NIH, Princeton Hospital and other worthy causes for orphanages or children in need. She is presently working on a series of “Historical Paintings” of the Northern Virginia, Washington Metro area, concentrating on late 1800’s and early 1900’s, with a goal of publishing a book for children.

Richard Booker
Richard Booker, MBA, Ph.D., is an ordained Christian minister, President of Sounds of the Trumpet, Inc., and the Founder/Director of the Institute for Hebraic-Christian Studies. Prior to entering the ministry, Dr. Booker had a successful business career. He is the author of over thirty books which are used by churches and Bible schools around the world. He has also developed many seminars and Bible college level courses and writes regularly for Christian magazines.
 
Dr. Booker has traveled extensively for over thirty years teaching in churches and at conferences on various aspects of the Christian life as well as Israel, Jewish-Christian relationships, and the Hebraic roots of Christianity. He and his wife, Peggy, lead yearly tours to Israel where, for eighteen years, Richard was a speaker at the International Christian Celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem. This gathering is attended by 5,000 Christians from 100 nations. He has made approximately 400 television programs on the above subjects.
 
Dr. Booker is a pioneer and spiritual father to many with a prophetic voice for our times. If you would like Dr. Booker to speak to your group, or order his materials, see his web site at www.rbooker.com.

Victor Sharpe
Born and educated in England, Victor Sharpe was a correspondent for the U.K magazine – Britain & Israel – produced and edited by the late, great Anglo-Irish Christian Zionist, the Hon. Terence Prittie.  Sharpe is a featured writer for the Israel Hasbara (information) website and a freelance writer with many articles and essays published in newspapers, magazines and websites including FrontPageMag.com, Townhall.com, Outpost, Wall Street Journal, London Daily Telegraph, Jewish Review, Jewish Telegraph, American Thinker, Israel National News – Arutz Sheva, and many others.   Sharpe has had his articles acknowledged by Melanie Phillips of the UK Daily Mail newspaper and Brigitte Gabriel of Act for America. 

He is author of the book: Politicide – The attempted murder of the Jewish State and the book The Blue Hour and Other Strange Tales.  Sharpe is currently working on a sequel to Politicide.  Both books are available from his publisher www.lulu.com

Daniel McCabe
Daniel graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary in 1989 with a Masters in Christian Education and in 1992 with a Masters in Theology.   He also graduated from Denver Conservative Baptist Seminary with a Doctorate in Pastoral Ministry in 2005. Daniel has pastored churches in Lousiana and Texas and curretly serves as Pastor of Faith Bible Church in Spring, Texas. 

Daniel also serves as adjunct instructor in the Bible and Theology department at the College of Biblical Studies in Houston, Texas.

Stan Goodenough
Jerusalem Watchman is Stan Goodenough; a Christian Zionist; a South African national; a Mayflower descendant; an 18-year resident of the State of Israel; husband to a wonderful wife; father to five extra-ordinary children; a journalist by profession; and a Bible-believer by God’s mercy and grace.