Standing with Israel
Filed under Israel & The Jewish People, News on September 19th, 2011 by Christine ColbertBy Christine Colbert
A number of nations, including the US and the UK, have withdrawn from participation in the September 2011 Durban III conference. This gathering is a forum for those who hate Israel to get together for the purpose of condemning her attempts to protect her citizens.
On a very different note, the World Council of Churches in May 2011 hosted “World Week for Peace in Palestine.” On its official site the Methodist Church’s Rev. John Calhoun, identified in an editor’s note as a member of the New York Annual Conference and convener of World Week for Peace in “Palestine Israel,” described the uprisings in Arab countries that have come to be known as “Arab Spring.” He characterized these overthrows in this way: “. . . ordinary citizens have been rising up against their illegitimate leaders and demanding political freedoms.” He mentioned the regimes that “already have fallen in Tunisia and Egypt.”
In Calhoun’s article, this language flows directly into: “Those living under [Israel's] illegitimate control are the Palestinians of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.” The title of this article, reflected in a banner photo of Palestinians walking beside a heavily-graffitied wall, is “It’s time for Palestine.”
It should be recognized that “Palestine” is a name that was first applied to the larger area of Israel by Roman occupiers. This applied name was continued by the British during the time of their mandate after WWI. Prior to the Roman occupation, Israel was Israel.
Further, the words “Illegitimate control” need to be considered. The piece cites various UN resolutions relating to Israeli territories that Israel has “defied” by not yielding these in various ways to “Palestinians.”
Our understanding of Scripture is that Israel was given sovereignty in the Land forever, although not to the exclusion of residency and participation for other nationalities. Arabs live in Israel and even participate in the Knesset. Throughout Israel in many places one sees a green “Palestinian”/Arab flag flying alongside of the Israeli flag. This openness is not extended to Israelis in Arab nations. Further, Israel is not firing on or terrorizing “Palestinians.”
Walid Shoebat, who is a Jordanian by birth, speaks of the time in 1967, immediately following the 1967 War (in which Jordan and other Arab neighbors attacked Israel, resulting in Israel’s winning the war and regaining control of Jerusalem); he indicates that at that time he “suddenly became a ‘Palestinian’ — before this I was a Jordanian.”
This is key information.
Calhoun cites the Wesleyan tradition of social responsibility within the church. He mentions a church publication that encourages visitors to the Holy Land to worship with “indigenous Christians.” Further, he cites a Methodist publication entitled “Opposition to Israeli Settlements in Palestinian Land.” This publication states:
The United Methodist Church opposes continued military occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem, the confiscation of Palestinian land and water resources, the destruction of Palestinian homes, the continued building of illegal Jewish settlements, and any vision of a “Greater Israel” that includes the occupied territories and the whole of Jerusalem and its surroundings (Resolution 6073).
One wonders whether Methodist administrators have glanced at the Old Testament recently.
A recent report within the Presbyterian church recommends continuing the “phased, selective divestment” from companies that do business with Israel, which was enacted in 2004. “The church has been split on this for years,” general presbyter for the Hudson Valley Susan Andrews told Jewish Telegraphic Agency reporter Dan Klein.
On a brighter note, Canada’s conservative prime minister Stephen Harper recently indicated that “Canada will always stand by Israel” in national policy.
Sources:
http://www.umc-gbcs.org/site/apps/nlnet/content.aspx?c=frLJK2PKLqF&b=6683235&ct=9284281
http://www.jta.org/news/article/2011/09/15/3089405/presbyterians-to-reconsider-divestment-from-cosin-israel
http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/03/10/canada-%E2%80%98will-always-stand-by%E2%80%99-israel-harper-says/
Tags: christians, conservative, israel, Old Testament, palestinians, world council of churches
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What about Ron Paul’s standpoint — NOT getting involved: for the better nor the worse?
What do you think about that? If we simply do not have the MONEY to get involved?
Thank you for your questions. I haven’t seen Ron Paul’s comments. The US has for decades directed substantial funds to other countries. The precarious nature of our economy has become increasingly clear in recent years. So this line of thinking appears to be accurate from a purely pragmatic perspective. We have a responsibility (as do all nations that are able) to understand the true nature of the long-going conflict in Israel and throughout the Middle East and to interact appropriately.
Sadly , just give this time and the Anti-Christian sentiment
will rise up in the Arab Spring and make the news .
Walter
What does ‘standing by Israel’ mean?
If it’s standing up for them against surrounding potential invaders, fair enough. But Palestinian people live in the state of Israel. And they are horribly discriminated against. Settlements are bulldozed and residents made homeless for new Israeli towns to be built, so it can never be said that there was already a settlement there. Palestinian people are discriminated against in terms of water access and even road access, with an special card being required, one not given to these people.
Is fear of being called ‘anti-semitic’ stopping people from saying anything about this? I’m all for ‘standing by Israel’, but this is horrible! If the Israeli government doesn’t stop trampling on these poor people (also beloved children of God, I might add), these surrounding Arab countries are going to have an excuse for invading this country!
You said,
”This openness is not extended to Israelis in Arab nations. Further, Israel is not firing on or terrorizing “Palestinians.””
Since when does other people’s actions justify your own? That’s eye for an eye! You talked about Scripture, ever hear of ”Love your enemies. Do good to those who persecute you.”? And Israel IS terrorizing Palestinians!
The actions of Palestinian terrorists are deplorable. But these are people who have been driven to the edge, and who felt they had no choice! For every one of these extremists, there are a thousand good honest people who put up with their suffering without striking back. People who don’t believe that someone treating you awfully gives you the right to treat them awfully.
We do not have to hurt people, or kick them out of and bulldoze their homes, or forbid them access to water, in order to preserve a country. This is what destroys a country.
I think we should help israel, we always have been a United nation with them. I think it’s the ‘right’ thing to do, for all the people. I know it’s some people who just dont get it at all. the wonder, why are we doing all these things for them in Israel, well as Christians it’s the only right thing to do. we have to show a united front towards them. For all these years, we have backed israel in many ways. We will not allow nobody to go to war with them and hurt them up, or we’ll jump into action and do all we can for them. Israel is a ‘special’ place on this earth, unlike any where else, that’s why we love her and will die to protect her in all of our days.
Alice, you are right – we should help Israel. I think your heart is in exactly the right place, and yes of course, as Christians we must help each other. But there’s a difference between helping people and letting them do awful things, just so as not to offend them in any way. We are not helping Israeli people by allowing their government to oppress Palestinian people.
Not all of these people are terrorists. As Christians, the only right thing to do, is to realise that these people are human beings, just like me and you, who have families, homes, favourite hobbies, and so on. These are real people, and deserve every bit of our love as the Israeli people.
I’m sorry if my previous comment seemed angry, and I can see you genuinely think that ‘standing by israel’ is a morally right thing to do. So I urge you, please try and get a hold of the documentary ‘Occupation 101′ or anything like it if you can, alice. You have a good heart, and it shows, but we have to stay vigilant and stay awake, and not be tricked into thinking helping the Israeli government occupy Palestine and destroy people’s homes and discriminate against them is the right thing to do. God is mercy. God is love. We have to love Palestinians AND Israelis in all our days. Equally.
What’s going on in Palestine is horrible. I was of your viewpoint before I saw this film, (Occupation 101). Like I said, see if you can find a copy, it’s important to know the truth. God bless you, Alice, and take care. :)
I was able to travel freely through the West Bank summer of 2000, and went again to Israel in 2008. My brother-in-law lived in Bethlehem in 2000, but had to return to the states after the suicide bombing by the Hebrew University.
I hear the ‘deplorable’ comment a lot, but what I saw growing up in the Old South in the 60′s between black and white was worse. Economic disparity in Israel? Yes. But this can be seen as infrastructure more than racism. In ’08, you better not be seen in East Jerusalem after dark if you were Jewish or foreign; but not vice versa. This is similar to many cities in the U.S. Prejudice works both ways.
I am not unsympathetic to the poverty of the Palestinians; but most Israeli Arabs are many times better off than much of the populace in Syria, Libya, or even Egypt right now. Focusing on how horrible the Jews are to their neighbors, in this context, is nearly laughable.
In Him, Ron M.
I am sorry Ron but that is rubbish! How is bulldozing entire villages and paving new settlements over them ‘economic disparity’? And your comment:
”In 08, you better not be seen in East Jerusalem after dark if you were Jewish or foreign; but not vice versa”
is not true! We can’t justify apartheid with ‘eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth’. You say prejudice works both ways. I give people a chance, have some mercy, and you might be surprised at the results. As for:
”most Israeli Arabs are many times better off than much of the populace in Syria, Libya, or even Egypt right now”
There’s a problem with this statement: You are comparing Israeli Arabs conditions to those of countries in total chaos at a global standard. This logic is insane! Can’t you see that? It’s like saying, ”Never mind that little boy those bullies are beating to a pulp, at least he’s not dead yet.” There being worse things going on than something does not justify that something.
And ”nearly laughable” is a cruel and callous comment. Put yourself in these people’s shoes and say that again.
Not every Palestinian man, woman and child constitutes a ‘threat to the State of Israel’, so how can we justify punishing an entire people for the actions of a fraction of them, who (wrongly, but understandably) fought back? The annual figures for Palestinian casualties vs Israeli casualities are vastly disproportionate. I do not believe the Palestinian people should use violence in response to this apartheid. But we are just asking someone to fight back when we continually show them so little mercy or compassion.
God bless you Ron, and I’m sorry if I come across overly passionate, but I think this is an important issue. And I think the US is making a huge mistake in constantly vetoing UN Security Council decisions to act on the human rights crisis in Israel. Watch ‘Occupation 101′. And if you have (because you sound like a knowledgeable guy on this topic), please watch it again, with an open heart. God is love. It’s not complicated.
I recently heard someone say “If the ‘Palestinians’ laid down their weapons, there would be no more war. If Israel laid down its weapons, there would be no more Israel.”
I’m sorry, but making innocent people suffer is no way to protect your country. If Israel wants to keep its weapons as a precaution against invasion by other Arab nations, ok, I can understand that.
But it is in no way necessary to plough down Palestinian settlements and to ruthlessly try to make smaller the Palestinian population by sneaky methods like not allowing Palestinians to return home if they leave for however short a period, or by trying to drive them out by taking away access to water, roads and basic necessities.
Also, treating Palestinian people like this only gives those other Arab nations ammunition, an all-too legitimate excuse to be against Israel.
Claire, the thing your friend said, that “If the Palestinians laid down their weapons, there would be no more war. If Israel laid down its weapons, there would be no more Israel.” There’s a few problems with this phrase:
1. It suggests Israel and Palestine are on a par as powers. They are not.
2. What’s happening in Israel isn’t war. It’s an oppressively governed state with some misguided violent terrorists. That happened in the 80s in the North of my country (Ireland, that is) but they still didn’t call it a war.
3. The human rights problem in Israel has nothing to do with Israel ‘laying down weapons’. In fact nobody has asked Israel to do that. What many (the UN, Amnesty International, the International Committee of the Red Cross among them) have asked is that the Israeli government would treat Palestinian people with the respect a human being deserves.
Treating people with respect does not threaten a country.
I watched an IDF training video shot in actual circumstances. The Hamas person toting an automatic weapon grabbed a child as a human shield, threatening the child, and all the crowded streets around him. Another very young adolescent boy appeared on the scene with a suicide belt, part of the culture of death. It is too simplistic to claim all Palestinian people in disputed territory as victims, no matter how it is spun. From out of the heart come forth attitudes, actions, and opposition to basic civilized give and take.
Part of what is building up now between Iran and the area is the basic tension of two major types of Islam, and what succeeds some area power vacuum as the old regimes fall. Unfortunately, it is the most militant who assume power and taunt their oppressive and inistent laws doctrine. Why then, if Israel is the supposed oppressor, do these people continue to kill one another, and spend so much time and energy on obsessive pursuits of violence and weapons uses? I watched another video of Hamas coming into a Gaza wedding and blowing away all participants. Some perspective on such lawlessness and sirespect of self dignity needs to come into the mix of pronouncements and assumptions about “occupation”. Under Sharon Gaza was left to these folks, and what happened? Their very own oppressive supposed civil war is what. The tunnels continued the flow of weapons to the real oppressors. Rockets red glare simply was not about self determination, already present in the fervor and fragmentation of Gaza. Come with proposals for civilization to negotiations, not with a breakdown in basic law and order, with quiet and collective mutual regard, then peace could come.,
This has very little to do with how Israel responds to policing, governing, security and defense, and ethical force training–as the latter was shown situation by situation in the IDF response video. All those news report fail to show the heart in motion, which the hate rhetoric embraces from the supposedly oppressed.
I know it seems incomprehensible when Israeli policy involves some bulldozer responses on given occasions. In our blessed nation we simply do not easily get to an eye for an eye, due to years of justice, mercy, kindness, and faithfulness formed together in society in the mix of what was a nation once founded of faith, hope, and love. Even so, we have not had literal murderous blocks of hatred living next door, ready to murder, and destroy on any possible opening of vulnerability. Yet we have a wolf in sheep’s clothing administration currently attempting to change the foundations we have taken for granted most of our lives. There is a consistent spiritual battle now, over which we must overcome, solicit the power of the blood and cross, and become interdependent on hearing God’s present counsel, praying, and responding accordingly.
Last evening my family came under a literal spiritual attack, which literally incapacitated my body for a few hours. My elementary age son came home from public school with rebellious thoughts, and ideations, and words and actions which are uncharacteristic of him, and even his persistent likes and dislikes, and values. We dropped out of cub scouts after winter break to take together a father/son class using the book the Sword and the Scroll, on the temptations and struggles coming for him after 5th grade, as was developed by a Christian school in the area. He has talked in the past few weeks about being bombarded in automatic thoughts not of his own origin, and feeling powerless to not have these. My wife too last PM was attacked by a spiritual force uttering a language which can only be called overshadowing confusion.
I had prayed directly to Christ for the period of the attack, and had to lay down to resist it. My wife joined me and also experienced the warfare. These times, these spirits, this challenge must be aired and shared among the entire body of believers to overcome; this was not just my battle, it was indicative of the evil attempting to take control of this Continent and its people.
Let us begin the warfare as ONE. Let us trim and burn our lamps in concert with our purity of heart, mind, and actions to not give the Satan any foothold in this present season. It really must begin this day, this hour, this minute. Rally as ONE> this will defeat our enemy, gain ground, and raise the candlestick of Christ with and in us. We must gather as ONE to do the battle, significant ground has been yielded, but we yield no more. We refuse to call evil good and good evil, simply put.
As written above, seeing so-called Palestinians as the oppressed is to totally ignore the spiritual forces invovled, who heads the unseen armies which both oppose Israel and its unrecognized Messiah, and the heavenly army of opposition to yielding that Land, People, and its Book to these forces (though they will prevail a short season, as is written, that season is quite short in years). Alignments in the heavenlies, and the incarnations of evil now present through militant obsessions of natred simply cannot be excused by armchair liberalism, and blindness as to what is behind these forces in conflict, there, or here. The supposed intellectuals would have us believe this is only about rights and the underdog, it is far more encompassing of a battle between righteousness, mercy, and justice than we can presently comprehend from our pleasure based massaged media information. The power of the air is not the power of God revealed in the person of Jesus the Messiah, yet the world has gone after this. We see this in the kind of labeling assumptions and attacks coming Michael Brown’s way since he took the stand he is taking; let us not let him stand alone. Stand With him, Stand with the Word, Stand with our Lord. Seek the counsel of God while it can be found, and a godly power of allegiance will fight the battles we have not the strength of flesh to fight. We must call again and again on the Name in our weakness, trials, and tribulations. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Yeshua, Yeshua, Yeshua!
Thank you, Jabez. Your observation that we need to become “interdependent” with God by opening ourselves to His presence and counsel is powerful and insightful. Interdependence is absolutely the goal. We need Him; He works through us.
I don’t have personal experience with some of the unusual occurrences that your family has just survived. As you said, when we feel so shocked or overwhelmed that we can’t really even formulate a sentence — there is power in “the Name.” Whether we choose Jesus, Yeshua, HaShem, Elohim, Yahweh, Adonai, or simply Abba — all are One.
I find Psalm 139:7-10, “Where shall I go from Your spirit? . . . ,” and Psalm 91 to be most effective as protection prayers. I like to visualize loved ones with an angel on either side — wherever they go, and also as dwelling under the “hupa” or “kipporah” (kippa) of God’s love and protection, based on Jewish traditions. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the ultimate kipporah or covering.
It is well known that the darker manifestations occur where there is great light. But that light also has the power to dispel all darkness. One person put it that Jesus gave us “power of attorney” on His behalf, regarding all dark manifestations in this world. I believe the referenced verse may be the one about our being “given authority” (by Jesus) to “trample on scorpions,” etc., perhaps in Luke.
Your insights regarding Israel are appreciated.
You and your little family are in our prayers this day.
This AM, after getting kids to the bus, and affirming a parent teacher conference for next week, my wife and I compared notes on last evening. I had gone to our bedroom, from a downstairs couch where the battle started, reclined on the bed, then, when she walked by in the upper hallway, I asked her to come in and pray with me. When she snuggled to my back she then too experienced the evil presence I attempted to relate above, experiencing the spinning spirit of confusion and the darkness involved. It had a grip over my head and shoulders which was wearing on my clarity of being.
She shared this AM that she too was praying and experiencing the battle once coming to my side. She had a significant vision of Jesus in those minutes, above an out of focus Jerusalem just below Him, standing above it as its protector and Messiah. This vision persisted the whole time we prayed. Both passed to sleep there about midnight.
It was not until I awoke with the morning alarm to get our nongrownup children up and going that I realized the battle had lifted. Eva was impressed by the presence of Messiah holding back the forces coming against Jerusalem–the place to have His literally promised future government–though He was not physically there, but in the heavenlies, ever present above it doing His appointed work. Imagine, the Cross we speak of as complete, finished, and positionally defeating the Satan, yet there was Jesus, HaShem, doing his service of truth, righteousness, peace, and grace. He never gives up after arising and and having filled the Universe with His Lorship. It is the planet which remains incomplete. When we seek the power of the almightly to overcome the present darkness, let us walk as ONE in His everlasting counsel.
P Ronald,
A few days after Sharon visited the Temple Mount, the ‘insurrection’ began. Call it what you want; when a nation isn’t allowed to build its own national sanctuary; when a neighboring nation declares it is going to “wipe Israel off the face of the earth”; when a political faction within a country refuses to acknowledge the ruling nation whatsoever; call it anarchy or whatever you want; I call it war. Considering that Israel is already at war, its treatment of its enemy is many times more humane than neighboring Arab dictators are treating their own subjects. What about trading a thousand political prisoners for one? Who would do that? Israel didn’t build the wall to make the Palestinians poorer; they built it so suicide bombers wouldn’t go in and blow up whoever got in their way; and you know that.
In Him, Ron M.
Follow-up. The child with the suicide belt too was terrified of it, and the IDF members present had no way to know how and when it would be triggered, as is often remotely done. And the child, who had the vest on, did not want it on. Talk about peer pressure, desiring to live, yet wearing the vest of death and its extension from the supposed suppressed Palestinians. And he was exposed on a public street, near a checkpoint to go into Israel.
Risk going to the child, to remove it, and be blown up by its sudden remote triggering? Or risk certain steps to help the child remove the vest? Whatof so-called innocent bystanders? No easy solution in context, whatever. In the meantime all the people around the child remain at risk, including the IDF viewpoint folks videoing the presenting child bomber phenomena. These are the dilemmas examined by each member of the IDF through training videos. Take the child out with a sniper? Place him in a bombproof environment to set off his belt so as to have its immediate danger removed? This is no armchair situation, for sure.
And I feel concerned for the limited understanding P.R. has permitted to date..
Thank you, Jabez and Ron M.
Jabez, with the situation resulting from Iran’s genocidal rhetoric and nuclear “ambitions,” your wife’s vision is *most* reassuring. Our precious Lion of Judah! This is a time for everyone to send up prayers whenever this dark situation comes to mind. Remember Jesus’ saying “the time is coming when no one can work.”
And Ron, your observations here are insightful. Have you seen the videos on YouTube about Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri’s posthumous revelation of Yeshua as Messiah? They are wonderful and stunning. Rabbi Kaduri lived more than 100 years; he said that Jesus had revealed to him in a vision, shortly before his death, that His return would be “after Ariel Sharon dies.”
I saw a bumper sticker a couple of years back that read “Who would Israel bomb?” It seemed to be right in line with your observations above. However, developments in Iran may unfortunately be providing an answer to that question other than what its author had in mind.
You DO NOT have to wipe out entire villages and leave normal people, normal families homeless, in order to protect the security of your country. I am talking about the movements of the Israeli government against people, not against terrorists. They are NOT the same thing.
You are right Jabez, the actions of these terrorists are absolutely inexcusable, despite the awful conditions of their people, and these actions cannot be justified. But I am telling you that they are not the only ones toting guns. Look at the figures for casualties on the two sides, taken from the Israeli Ministry for Foreign Affairs, in case you don’t believe me:
Year Civilian Deaths (under 18s)
Palestinians Israelis
2011 20 (4) 16 (4)
2010 81 (9) 8 (0)
2009 1034 (314) 9 (1)
2008 887 (128) 35 (4)
And Ron M, that wall is illegal according to international law, due to its nature of ignoring the methods of peaceful negotiation and effectively cutting off a large portion of the West Bank and preventing people there from accessing work, education and decent health care facilities, turning the area into a large ghetto in effect. Not to mention the vast amount of farmland belonging to normal farmers, not terrorists, that was destroyed to facilitate its construction, I don’t think the Wall is a great example of the rightness of the Israeli government.
Jabez, don’t be blinded by your desire to protect Israeli people. You talked about uniting as one, but where do Palestinians come into this. Please, open your eyes and see that this is total hypocrisy. You speak of fighting evil, the Palestinian people are not ‘evil’! These are creatures of God we are talking about here, every bit as entitled to human dignity as you or I. Don’t get lost in believing that harming innocent people is a ‘greater good’ or a ‘necessary’ evil. You seem very sure that God is with the Israeli authorities on their treatment of Israeli people. But Jesus didn’t talk about ‘necessary’ evils, He talked about love. And only love. I will say again, as much as Satan would have you believe otherwise, it is not complicated.
Hatred only breeds hatred, and by attacking all Palestinian people so ruthlessly with apartheid, for the crimes of their terrorists, you inspire waves more to take up arms. This is not the way to go.
In the late sixties, while I was still in high school, there was a ‘counterculture’ that sprung up against the gov’t. and the Viet nam War in conjunction with the Civil Rights movement. It took me many decades to sort this out: this was not a black-and-white issue, but many shades of gray.
The argument went something like this: “Look at the poor blacks. Look at the poor Native Americans. Christianity is evil; secular humanism is modern, superior, and good.”
This is basically the same argument that is being presented today, be it the Palestinians, woman’s rights, gays, and many other social issues. Is GOD angry and outdated because some of His followers are abusive and controlling? Or could it be that it is still so hard to use power wisely even though true Christianity teaches us differently?
It is easy to blame GOD for everything because He made everything; it is easy for my children to blame me for everything to give them an excuse to do whatever they want. Both positions are wrong. The fear of the LORD is still the beginning of wisdom; and, yes, GOD is still love.
In Him, Ron M.
Well, the new wave has hit the Island and has come back with us, as #18,
The premises shared are that
1) So-called Palestinians are innocent lamb bystanders, so to speak, as preyed on by Israelis
A. so they deserve the ‘rights’ mentioned as are now extant in western nonMuslim countries
B. e.g., i.e. unspecified uncited and certainly implied ‘rights of women, and gays’
1. including, of course, abortion and infanticide practices of enlightened western nations
2. including, of course, freedom to practice homosex and other liberated assumptions of
a pastoral innocent conduct
3. including, of course, the posting of related propaganda in public elementary schools
as equally represented principles of a civilized and innocent society set before young minds
and eyes. These are wise practices offering children an enlightened informed choice
4. including, of course, current textbook depictions of Israelis and Jews in Palestinian
schools textbooks, including, of course, math subtraction problems which eliminate Jews
as part and parcel to their equations, with children banishing automatic weapons and
other peaceful practices embraced as social norms of this innocent population
C. these innocents are not in any measure terrorists
1. they follow the innocent teachings of Muhammed, known for his peaceful approaches
to establishing his gentle religion. Jihad is a meditative and peaceful practice of these
innocents regard, as is depicted as the central ‘pillar’ of faith in two ‘holy books’ and other
gently submissive teachings of their pure hearted and naturally quiet culture: where mention
of Jews and Christians as disposable human beings are actually mistranslations of the texts into
western languages
2. Muhammed did not employ a sword in his establishments, wipe out the Jewish culture of his
home town, nor take the Jewish women remaining into sex slavery. He did not misrepresent
the Pentatuch, in the religious books accredited to him, but represented it more faithfully as to
its original intention as promises as given to the descendants of Ishmael and Esau in reference
to the land of Canaan (Palestine), Judea, and Samaria. This distinction from the Jewish Bible as
to who inherits the Land set conditions for pastoral innocence among those so following its
advocacies and ways as were faithfully promised by God in Muhammed’s teachings books
3. we all know that because technology has sped up communications from western developed
nations, over time, that the followers of Muhammed have become rapidly innocently
enlightened to follow western trends of tolerance, equality, self determination, and offer
access to widening educational opportunities to further enlighten their resulting innocence; the
cultures and teachings of Muhammed have thus adopted and shape shifted to fit these trends,
thus, the recent so-called Arab Spring uprisings have brought about among these innocents:
passive resistance, nonviolence, and enlightened governments in areas where they have
occurred, and will continue to do so among a supposed as enlightened new Palestine; this is why
Fata and Hamas have united in their approaches to civilized establishments of government,
truth, and related problem solving, as now composes a united leadership modes established for
greater tolerance, equality, and innocence among so-called Palestinians. Missing stockpiled
weapons from revolutionized lands have, of course, been disposed of by other innocents in
order to establish a more peace-loving populace in their present proximity. They will not end up
among the Palestinians of Gaza, because Israel removed its settlements there as a gesture of its
unyielding dominance of land grabbing intention
4. seeing the so-called Palestinian innocents dance with joy in the streets with news of the Twin
Towers collapsing, on 9-11, was simply because of being interested in expressive dance among all
age groups of their population so dancing and joyously firing weapons into the air
a. though their children are taught to use automatic weapons from age four, it is because the
b. toy stores there have no orange tipped plastic toy guns to play with
5. of their population only the terrorists sent thousands of rockets into Israel from Gaza, which the
everyday family housed lambs knew nothing about and would not agree with, after all, the
families attacked of Israelis are
a. aggressive oppressors
b. it is well known that the democratic Israeli government is a predatory monster, so to speak
c. intent on wiping out entire innocent bystander villages, so to speak
2) The defensive barrier wall is intrusive, divisive, and evil, so to speak
A. It should be removed to offer the free flow of deceptively equipped suicide bombers to move
from the disputed territories into Israel proper
B. It ‘occupies’ space in doing what it does
C. Though suicide bombings and intrusions have reduced 90% since it was built (with local area
concrete supplied by enterprising supposed Palestinians), it is an abomination to equality for all
D. It has no relationship to area history, violence, maintaining oder, nor civilized intention
E. There is no front line on terrorism in Israel, only a front line oppressing the right of equality for all
in all circumstances
F. ‘YOU’, ‘I’ am wiping out innocent villages with bulldozers by the above statements perspective
correction to text. 1) C. 5., ending in ‘are’, should be ‘as’, and so end its segment in ‘as’
And I wanted to address separately #18s notion of Jesus’ ‘love’.
Jesus did not call the scribes and pharisees a generation of vipers, nort did He call them down on hypocrisy or other practices not meauring up to the standards of Judaism in His visitation season in Israel.
He loved his enemy, the fallen angel, the Satan, for He was a pastoral lamb, slain before the foundations of this world.
He did not fulfill the prophecies of old at all during His visitation, regarding being slain from the foundations of this world, for, His love was only a passive action, not an active intention.
He did not prophecy over Jerusalem, as to when and how they might see Him again, nor state a price involved for having this result of restoration of the promised Kingdom to Israel, for the Revelation depicts His
eyes and posture on return as primarily Gandhiesque, and holding a bundle of Valentine flowers to be
given His valentines who will join Him in the air, and in no way will He Return as a Lion leading a heavenly army in defense of Israel’s Jerusalem. After all, He is, as #18 depicts Him to be: coming to present Himself in
Glory to talk about love and only about love.
Ron, I remember the counterculture; I was in high school too in the ’60s. What a time it was to be young. Sometimes it seemed that we — or was it the Beatles? — were creating a new world. But then that is God’s work! It is also true that to some extent He achieves it through us.
How easily a parent’s heart is hurt by thoughtless or angry words from a grown-up child. As with everyone — our children are not really ours to judge — but to love.
Regarding the oversimplifications that have culminated in secular humanism — it took me a long time to recognize the darker side of secular humanism. It is so popular! It has been said that liberals are tolerant toward everyone who thinks the same way they do.
Basically it represents a worldview that has eliminated the sacred Story — or the need for it.
Church history has been exceedingly “checkered,” to say the very least. And think of what our Jewish brothers and sisters must forgive in those who purported to be “Christian” — before they can see their own beautiful Yeshua, for example. But to delete the sacred Story because of the darker aspects of church history is an extreme example of throwing the baby out with the bath water.
Jabez, there is music and poetry in your words. But I was concerned that some might not immediately perceive the irony or sarcasm that you intended. A long-going situation that is not recognized for what it really is can make us feel the need to turn to sarcasm for a break or lifting of the dark weight. Your words are expressive and deep.
God bless you both!
Christine,
I was born in the year Israel became a nation, went to high school in the 1960s, and the school of the Lord since 1970. What I wrote I wrote with the tempering of grace, truth, and being called His son, by Him.
I’m a ’49er, Jabez. I think we may have a few years on Ron. He may be “just a kid.”
Are you referring to 1 John 3:1, regarding God’s calling you His son? This verse — and in particular 1 John 3:2 — are so very precious! And 1 John 3:3 as well. The three verses together, with 2 being special-special.
All of Scripture is precious, but this three-verse passage has long been on my “top five” short list.
C. & R.,
It may be ironic, those words summarizing the premises of the #18 posting, but to accept them as accurate, which history takes to task, would be to bury my own head in the same sand of these assumptions, for, who are the ‘innocents’? Those who embrace a belief system obsessed with hatred, violence, and extreme relativism (once called sin)?
C.,
No, I was referring to the voice of the Father, coming into our air by His Spirit, directly calling me ‘my Son’. This was a life changing existential affirmation, sore needed in the face of what was a difficult childhood, as then a child of divorce, and newly found faith in my Messiah (1970). I recall when I received faith and the promise, it took over a minute to realize the songs I was hearing in a new language were coming out of my own mouth. I was sitting in an old car, left in a Farmer’s field. Then, in the body of new found believers, in that fresh season of grace, He called me over and over ‘my son’.
I now take a life transistion and trust, Squire and the Scroll class prior mentioned with my youngest son of four, Joshua, age 11–to bind and do the effort of trust of our Father for the challenges ahead in these times, as he goes to middle school next Fall.
That is quite a testimony, Jabez! Thank you for sharing this.
My parents divorced when I was 11. At that time, divorce was strange and unusual in the community and schools I grew up in. So I understand some of what you experienced. I’m thinking that for God to have manifested His presence in such an unmistakable way to you that you may have suffered far more than your parents’ divorce.
I’m sure that you know the scriptural verse regarding God’s being a Father to the fatherless. Perhaps from Isaiah or Psalms. The lovely manifestation you experienced seems to be along these lines. And to hear yourself singing in a heavenly language — how wonderful!
And now you, who understand your truer sonship, are blessed with sons.
God is in the adoption business. He is not finished with us yet. And, this is the decade for moving ahead with steps for redemption of his regathered covenants people. He is Lord.
Amen!
1952.
This week was a tough one; down in Fla. again; my daughter went to an “encounter” (36-hr. intensive “meeting with GOD”- mostly AofG sponsored); then later met with my best friend (a “seer”) who she hadn’t seen in a few yrs.; showing off my 4 mo. grandbaby (our first) to firends and relatives.
The problem was: she was counseled by several people (Christian ‘safe’ houses incl.) that she had the freedom to leave her husband and take her daughter anywhere she wanted! She called her husband, said she was leaving him, and got out of the car before I hit the N. Fla. border. I called the police, but they took her side, saying BECAUSE she was married and had no court order against her, she could go to Timbuctu for all they cared! I responded that this probably accounted for 75% of the missing children pictures plastered all over the nation. What insane laws!
She called me from a ‘shelter’, and I convinced her to return home rather than be on the run the rest of her life (after the inevitable court order); the police took her baby yesterday, my disabled son’s 30th b’day, and she went to court this morn., with less than 24 hr. notification; and only because SHE called them yesterday after we couldn’t agree on how to meet with her husband and ma-in-law (who filed the papers Mon.; we wouldn’t have known). But she seems at peace about it right now; they told her that after she got a lawyer, there would be no problem with custody sharing (we’re praying). In NC, you have to be separated a year before you can get a divorce. (BTW, her husband is also disabled from a horrible car crash before they met).
I’m telling you all this because IF WE’RE SERIOUS ABOUT DEFENDING THE DOMA WE BETTER START LOOKING INTO ALL THE LEGAL ASPECTS OF OUR LUDICROUS LAWS (Incl. adoption).
In Him, Ron M.
What an experience, Ron!
You were a calming influence in this awful experience. What a blessing for your daughter — just to have you there! You were able to encourage right action during a time of stress and confusion.
Yes, law enforcement personnel and laws themselves can be — “surprising.”
God bless you all! Bless both young men with disabilities. And your precious grandson.
May Yeshua’s perfect shalom enfold all of you.
It is difficult to sort out all nuances for families of faithful possiblity for domestic tranquility or its lack being addressed through the sometimes conflicting values of different laws placed in the states for society’s regard. Family law once known and upheld through the middle of the last century helped give society its foundational stability. It was set up too to address challenges to the integrity of the family unit if a partner to the union wished to split from it. As such, it discouraged easy divorce. The body of long stated family protection laws have been set at odds since with newer domestic violence laws assumptions permitting accusations which empower individual choices for the family’s destruction through its legislation quickly permitting one partner’s voice to divide a family.
Today’s out of balance prosecutor and police ‘probable cause’ domestic violence laws quickly facilitate warrants which assert instant circumstantial negative interpretations to form assumptions for case by case police empowerment to reinforce individualism being upheld at all costs, including dissolving any family union through intimidation. The individuals value upheld by the enforcement of this body of laws inherent legal system uphold what someone may want above maintaining the balanced family unit. Iits assumptive processes then value quickly changeable family structure being carried by their framework of assumptive intention. In effect, individual accusation or abandonment of a married partner with unestablished claiming of personal trauma or assault by the other party has taken the place of adjudication by due process. This body of laws’ procedures has shifted a family stability outlook to family disuniton through its own legal system procedures regarding as priority any claims of victimization as constituting probable cause of unsafe domestic conditons becoming fast track reason for separating families. This happens when generally an individual marital partner’s accusing word being all it takes to erect a legal protection/isolation barrier between man and wife, and/or children as well.
Individual regard of status desire then is upheld over family system status regard. The benefit of onus and doubt placed by accusation on any family member remain the primary compelling mechanisms which can disrupt a famil’sy mutual dwelling due to momentary negative feelings coming forefront at the expense of marriage and the family. These two groups of supposed human ‘rights’ protections laws, i.e. family and domestic violence laws, often conflict with one another, the latter being the most often enforced without the due process of a hearing held once as the highest priority of intention for the sake of orderly family value in this land.
It can now be partner encounters found personally disorienting, petty loyalities, subjective feelings, likes and dislikes, differences between male and female individual attitudes and outlooks in the ‘one flesh’ relationship, and sorting out perceived justice vs. covenant demands which become oppositional to the notion of partners remaining in a family. Covenant as a legal and relational contract has been religated to the status of a Biblical term, not an unbendable boundary protecting and advancing family as priority over anyone’s independence. With this in mind, it is a poorly understood expectation to believe that police and court authorities will uphold a Biblical view of mutually submissive marriage as more valuable to society than personal human independence.
Yes, Jabez, even the Church has bought into the ‘individual’ lie over marriage, family, and tribe. Even the Whitney Houston memorial became an after-the-fact remembrance, rather than a testimony of how the Church helps, counsels, and triumphs.
So how do we witness to a world so seered in conscience, so smug in its own unbelief, that it even glorifies its own fallen stars in death?
How do we get their attention this year? Do you still see hope for America?
Ib Him, Ron M.
Ron,
In early March I am aiming at the counsel and power duo Message for a consecration season of Call to the body of the Messiah in North America. Please pray for these next couple of weeks, for the communication challenges involved, and the stages of the vision perspective to come across faithfully and productively. There is so much going on now looming to make things worse on our Continent, not better. So, a standard must be raised at that juncture.
–Jabez
AMEN!!!