To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Caves
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1999 16:29:11 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
In my reading today I came across the following which might help
explain Isaiah 2:19 "And they shall go into the holes of the rocks,
and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the
glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth."
-----begin-----
Chapter 99
Subterraneous places. Mines. Caves.
Thus having taken some notice of the superficies of the land, let us a
little search into its bowels. You may divide the subterraneous
country into three parts: the metal mines, the caves, and the places
of burial.
This land was eminently noted for metal mines, so that "its stones,"
in very many places, "were iron, and out of its hills was digged
brass," Deuteronomy 8:9. From these gain accrued to the Jews: but to
the Christians, not seldom slavery and misery; being frequently
condemned hither by tyrants. So Eusebius of Edesius, "He was condemned
to the metal mines of Palestine." And again, concerning others, "Then
passing to the other confessors of Christ, he condemns them all to the
brass mines, which were in Pheno of Palestine."
On the north part of the land, in the country of Asher, were mines of
metal. Hence is that in Deuteronomy 33:25, "Thy shoes shall be iron
and brass." On the south, in the desert of Sin, the utmost bounds of
Judea, were mines also: hence--and shall pass to Zin, as our
translation reads, Numbers 34:4,--in the Jerusalem Targumist, is
over-against the mountain of iron: and in Jonathan, unto the
palm-trees of the mountain of iron: and in the Talmudists, the
palm-trees of the mountain of iron are fit to make a small bundle to
carry in the hand in the feast of Tabernacles. On the east coast of
Perea was also "an iron mountain,"--witness Josephus. And without
doubt there were other such-like mines, scattered here and there in
other parts of that land, though of them we have no mention.
You will not at all wonder at these underminings of the earth, seeing
they brought so much profit and gain with them, and were so necessary
to the life of man. But what shall we say of those dens and caves in
rocks and mountains, whence no gain seemed to be digged, but rather
danger arose to the neighbouring places oftentimes? For what were
these, but lurking-places for wild beasts and robbers? There is
infinite mention of these caves both in the Holy Scriptures and in
other writings, especially in Josephus, where subterraneous passages,
and dens, are mentioned a thousand times. And many of these were of a
vast largeness, scarcely to be credited; those especially in the
Talmudists, which are called "The dens of Zedekiah," not a few miles
in distance.
But were those hollows the work of nature, or of the hands and
industry of man? By one example, taken out of Josephus, the thing may
be determined. Relating the story of a castle built by Hyrcanus in
Perea, among other things he speaks thus: "Out of the rock against the
mountain, having cut in two the prominent parts of it, he made dens of
many furlongs long." And a little after, "He made the mouths that
opened into these dens to be strait, that but one might go in at a
time, and no more": "and this he did on purpose for security's sake,
and for avoiding danger, in case he should be besieged by his
brethren."
These dens, therefore, were cut out of mountains and rocks for the
uses of war, that they might serve for refuge and strength. And it is
probable the Canaanites, a warlike and gigantic nation, had digged
very many of these caves before the entrance of the Israelites into
that land; and that the Israelites also increased the number of them.
See concerning these caves, Joshua 10:16; Judges 6:2; 1 Samuel 22:1,
and 24:3; 1 Kings 18:13; Isaiah 2:19, &c.
A Commentary on the New Testament from the Talmud and Hebraica, A
Chorographical Century, John Lightfoot
http://www.mv.com/ipusers/butterfly/comment/cent10.htm#nine
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Marking/Stoning
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1999 16:40:51 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
In my reading today I came across the following that made me think of
Revelation and its mention of "marking" and "stoning":
"A tree which shook off its fruits before they were ripe, they mark
with red, and load it with stones."
A Commentary on the New Testament from the Talmud and Hebraica, A
Chorographical Century, John Lightfoot
http://www.mv.com/ipusers/butterfly/comment/cent10.htm#eight
----------
For more info on stoning please see:
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/s-010-01.htm
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Preparations for the Third Temple
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1999 19:41:05 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
*The Temple Institute in Jerusalem has been creating what they call
a "Temple-in-waiting" in the Jewish Quarter. They have detailed
blueprints which were drawn up according to the Bible, Mishnah and
Josephus (with additions like electricity that agree with Jewish
Law).
They have also been producing things necessary for Temple services:
*high priest's robe
*high priest's crown
*high priest's breastplate
*priestly garments
*11 sacrificial incense spices
*urns
*ewers
*incense pans
*forks
*shovels
*carts (for burnt offerings)
*gold and silver vessels
*gold laver
*flasks
*measuring cups
*vessels for meal offerings
*lottery boxes
*mortar and pestle
*gold menorah
*cleaning instruments
*oil pitchers
*silver trumpets
*barley altar
*The 70 seat Supreme Court building which will house the Sanhedrin
has also been built close to the Temple Mount. "Since 1984, the legal
stipulations that the Sanhedrin will use to govern Israel's
relationship to the rebuilt Temple and its services have already been
researched and progressively published by the Research Center for
Jewish Thought."
*The priests who will make up the Sanhedrin and serve in the Temple
are being identified and trained. According to Rabbinic tradition,
men of the tribe of Levi are forbidden to change their names, so all
Levis, Cohens (and derivatives of those names) are potential
candidates. Recent DNA studies of Jewish males claiming levitical
descent have found a unique Y-chromosone that distinguishes them from
other Jews who do not claim such a heritage.
*There are a few schools in Israel now training young Levites for
priestly service.
*Some red heifers have been found in Mississippi and deemed
qualified.
*A few families in Israel have volunteered their unborn children to
be raised as pure priests. When these boys reach their 13th birthday,
they will be qualified to burn the red heifer and distribute its
ashes (required to cleanse from ritual impurity).
Jerusalem in Prophecy (1998) by Randall Price
----------
For more info on the Temple, please see:
http://www.mv.com/ipusers/butterfly/rev/temple.htm
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Dragon and Sea
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 11:04:01 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
In the "Anchor Bible Dictionary" under "Dragon and Sea, God's
Conflict with" is the following (mostly my paraphrase):
In the OT there are many references to God's conflict with the dragon
and the sea. Sometimes it's associated with 1. the creation of the
world, 2. with a specific foreign nation, and 3. projected into the
end times.
1. For a long time, the background for this imagery was considered to
have come from Babylon. Enuma Elish was the Babylonian creation epic
that depicted Marduk defeating the sea monster Tiamat. However, the
discovery of the Ugaritic mythological texts has shed new light on
this theory and seems to point to a Canaanite origin.
The Ugaritic texts describe Baal's defeat of the sea-god Yam,
"conflicts between Baal or Anat and the sea monster Leviathan (also
known as the twisting serpent, the crooked serpent, and the dragon, in
addition to other monsters..."
The allusions to creation had their natural expression during New
Year's festivals (yearly renewal). "It seems likely that the theme of
Yahweh's conflict with the dragon and the sea was a motif in the
celebration of Yahweh's kingship at the autumn festival (feast of
tabernacles) in the Jerusalem cult." Marduk defeats the sea monster
Tiamat in Babylon, Baal defeats the sea-god Yam at Ugarit, Yahweh is
victorious over the sea.
Psalm 29 "The LORD sitteth upon the flood; yea, the LORD sitteth King
for ever." Psalm 74 "Thou didst divide the sea by thy strength: thou
brakest the heads of the dragons in the waters."
Psalm 93 "The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many
waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea."
2. The dragon/conflict with the chaotic sea are also applied to
specific entities. Egypt and the Exodus prompt Moses to compose a song
to the Lord (Exo 15:1-21) which interestingly begins and ends by
saying "...the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea" which
reminds me of the horses and their riders in Revelation 6. Assyria,
Babylon and groups of nations are also represented.
3. Another area where the dragon/sea play a part is in the end-times.
Isaiah 27:1 "In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong
sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that
crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea."
Daniel chapter 7 and the Ugaritic texts show similarities
regarding the imagery of the end-times.
Daniel 7:13,14 "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the
Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of
days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him
dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and
languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be
destroyed."
Ugaritic Texts:
1. The Canaanites' supreme god was called El, "Father of Years" and
was depicted as an old man with gray hair. 2. The Canaanite god Baal
is often called the "Rider of the clouds" and he was only allowed to
rule through El's authority.
[Revelation 1:7 "Behold he cometh with clouds..."]
This last paragraph is straight from the Anchor Bible article:
"In the present form of the text the 'one like a son of man' may
denote the angel Michael (cf. Dan 12:1). One may compare Rev 12,
where Michael defeats the seven-headed dragon (=Satan). It is striking
that Michael, not Christ, defeats the dragon; this may reflect an
underlying Jewish tradition equating the 'one like a son of man' with
Michael. Interestingly, the next chapter of Rev (i.e., chapter 13; cf.
17:3) presents another creature derived from Leviathan, the
seven-headed beast, symbolizng Rome (Rev 13:1-10) as well as another
beast, symbolizing the false prophet, who appears to derive from
Behemoth (Rev 13:11-18)."
----------
For more info please see the following BPR Research Files:
Dragons:
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/d-001-01.htm
Studies on Revelation 12:
Hydra, the water serpent in the sky:
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/List_Studies/Revelation/rev-1-5.htm
The Dragon and Pagan Rome:
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/List_Studies/Revelation/rev-1-7.htm
Herod the Great, an Agent of the Dragon:
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/List_Studies/Revelation/rev-1-8.htm
The Tail of the Dragon:
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/List_Studies/Revelation/rev-1-9.htm
More History of the Dragon and Its Association with Water:
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/List_Studies/Revelation/rev-1-e.htm
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: (Fwd) Citizens' Public Trust Treaty - Press Release
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 10:03:22 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
CITIZENS' PUBLIC TRUST TREATY RELEASED FOR WORLDWIDE
SIGNATURES
LAUNCHED JANUARY 1, 1999
On January 1st, 1999, the Citizens' Public Trust Treaty is circulating
worldwide for signing by individuals, community groups and non
governmental organizations. It is released initially in English, French
and Spanish, with translations into the other official languages of the
United Nations to follow. Eventually, it is intended that the proposed
Treaty with signatures will be submitted to state goverments and to
the United Nations.
The Citizens' Public Trust Treaty calls upon member states of the
United Nations to carry out and extend the international obligations,
commitments and expectations they have made to fulfill the global
public trust. This Treaty will provide an effective means of
counteracting the process of corporate globalization that threatens to
undermine over 50 years of international agreements related to the
following obligations, commitments, and expectations:
1. to Promote and fully guarantee respect for human rights, including
labour rights, the right to adequate food, shelter and health care, and
social justice; 2. to Enable socially equitable and environmentally
sound development; 3. to Achieve a state of peace, justice and
security; 4. to Create a global structure that respects the rule of law;
and 5. to Ensure the preservation and protection of the environment,
respect the inherent worth of nature beyond human purpose, reduce
the ecological footprint and move away from the current model of over-
consumptive development;
[..edit..]
The Online Treaty can be found at:
Northern Hemisphere
http://www.gn.apc.org/negreens/cptt.htm
Southern Hemisphere
http://www.isis.aust.com/cptt
French and Spanish verson, and background documents
http://www.coastnet.com/~jrussow/francis.htm
.rtf (English) downloadable document for hardcopy reproduction
http://www.isis.aust.com/cptt/sign.htm
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Saturday begins rare back-to-back 'blue' moons
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 10:03:22 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID
WASHINGTON (December 31, 1998 3:06 p.m. EST
http://www.nandotimes.com)
When the full moon takes its place in Friday night's cold winter sky it
will begin an unusual series of full moons not seen in more than eight
decades. There will be two full moons in January, none in February,
and two again in March. That last occurred in 1915, reported Geoff
Chester of the U.S. Naval Observatory.
January's first full moon, the moon after Yule or old moon, becomes
full at 9:50 p.m. EST Friday.
The month's second full moon occurs at 11:07 a.m. Jan. 31.
When a month has two full moons the second is known as a "blue"
moon, though it only rarely has a blue tint that unusual atmospheric
conditions can supply.
Occasionally the moon takes on unusual colors, but most often it
tends to be reddish, reports Guy Ottewell of Furman University in
Greenville, S.C.
The occasional blue or bluish-green moon can take place when a lot of
dust is present in the air, such as after a volcanic eruption, Ottewell
notes in his Astronomical Calendar 1999.
After January's double full moon, February manages to skip a full
moon. At 28 days, it's the only month short enough to accomplish the
feat.
The moon's cycle varies from 29.2 days to 29.9 days, averaging 29.53.
Thus, a month with 30 or 31 days has a complete cycle of all four
phases of the moon.
February last lacked a full moon in 1961 and will miss one again in
2018, Chester said.
After January, the first full moon will be March 2 at 1:59 a.m. EST.
The full moon of March is variously known as the sap moon, crow
moon or Lenten moon. And at 5:49 p.m. March 31 will come another
blue moon, the second in the same month.
The remaining full moons of 1999 will be:
-April 30, called the grass moon or egg moon.
-May 30, the planting moon or milk moon.
-June 28, the rose moon, flower moon or strawberry moon.
-July 28, the thunder moon or hay moon.
-Aug. 26, the green corn moon or grain moon.
-Sept. 25, the harvest moon or fruit moon.
-Oct. 24, the hunters moon.
-Nov. 23, the frosty moon or beaver moon.
-Dec. 22, the moon before Yule.
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Radioactive Tumbleweeds Blowing Across American We
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 10:03:22 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
Date sent: Fri, 1 Jan 1999 16:43:09 -0400
From: Mark Graffis <ab758@VIRGIN.USVI.NET>
Subject: Radioactive Tumbleweeds Blowing Across American
West
EarthVision Reports
12/31/98
RICHLAND, WA, December 31, 1998 -- The romantic, yet
stereotypical image of a tumbleweed blowing across a dusty road in
the American West could now be considered a dangerous event.
According to a report from The Associated Press, which quotes a new
government study, many of these tumbleweeds near the Hanford
nuclear complex could be radioactive.
According to the report, the Department of Energy found 20
contaminated tumbleweeds in the first six months of 1998, compared
with 11 during all of 1995. The DOE expects to find more as it steps up
its efforts to search the area. The plants, which have 15-foot roots,
grow all over the 560-square-mile government reservation, which is the
site of the world's largest environmental cleanup effort. The roots
reportedly suck up contaminated groundwater, and spread the
radiation across the landscape once they break free in the wind.
Previously, the government released data on radioactive ants, flies
and gnats found in the area. According to the article, Hanford stopped
producing plutonium in the 1980s, but some areas remain highly
radioactive. The government is reportedly spending billions of dollars
cleaning up the site, which is located along the Columbia River.
References
1. http://www.hanford.gov/
2. http://204.255.211.112/ColdFusion/news_top10.cfm
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: New Study
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 10:33:11 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Hi everyone,
Moza and I (and anyone wishing to join us) will be focusing our
attention and study time on the various temples mentioned in the
bible. Our study will be based on the outline below:
[The following outline is taken from "Nelson's Complete Book of Bible
Maps & Charts, (c) 1996]
The Temples of the Bible
1. The Tabernacle (mobile temple)
Date: 1444 b.c.
Refs: Ex 25-30; 35:30-40:38; Lev 10:1-7
Desc: Detailed plan received by Moses from the Lord; constructed by
divinely appointed artisans; descrated by Nadab and Abihu
2. Solomon's Temple
Date: 966-586 b.c.
Refs: 2 Sam 7:1-29; 1 Ki 8:1-66; Jer 32:28-44
Desc: Planned by David; constructed by Solomon; destroyed by
Nebuchadnezzar
3. Zerubbabel's Temple
Date: 516-169 b.c.
Refs: Ezra 6:1-22; 3:1-8; 4:1-14; Matt 24:15
Desc: Envisioned by Zerubbabel; constructed by Zerubbabel and the
elders of the Jews; descrated by Antiochus Ephiphanes
4. Herod's Temple
Date: 19 b.c. - 70 a.d.
Refs: Mark 13:2, 14-23; Luke 1:11-20; 2:22-38; 2:42-51; 4:21-24; Acts
21:27-33
Desc: Zerubbabel's temple restored by Herod the Great; destroyed by
the Romans
5. The Present Temple
Date: Present age
Refs: 1 Cor 6:19,20; 2 Cor 6:16-18
Desc: Found in the heart of the believer; the body of the believer is
the Lord's only temple until the Messiah returns
6. The Temple of Revelation 11
Date: Tribulation Period
Refs: Dan 9:2; Matt 24:15; 2 Thess 2:4; Rev 17:18
Desc: To be constructed during the tribulation by the antiChrist; to
be descrated and destroyed
7. Ezekiel's (Millennial) Temple
Date: Millennium
Refs: Ezek 40:1-42:20; Zech 6:12,13
Desc: Envisioned by the prophet Ezekiel; to be built by the Messiah
during His millennial reign
8. The Eternal Temple of His Presence
Date: The Eternal Kingdom
Refs: Rev 21:22; 22:1-21
Desc: The greatest temple of all ("The Lord God Almighty and the Lamb
are its temple"); a spiritual temple
==========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Jan 3, 1999 TV Programs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 10:33:42 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
6:00 PM Eastern
A&E - THE UNEXPLAINED - Prophets and Doom. A look at prophesies
many people believe have come true.
7:00
A&E - ANCIENT MYSTERIES - The Great Pyramid: Gateway to The Stars. A look into the intriguing
theory that the pyramids were not built to be tombs for the
pharaohs, but were actually designed to propel the
souls of the pharaohs to the heavens.
8:00
DISC - THE MYSTERY OF THE SPHINX - Revised theories
illuminate the age of the Sphinx and how it was
constructed.(CC)(TVG)
TLC - ATLANTIS: THE LOST CONTINENT - Computer graphics and
digital video explore the lifestyle and environment of the
lost island.(CC)(TVG)
9:00
DISC - EGYPT UNCOVERED - "Mummies: Into the Afterlife" -
Scientists discover older strains of modern diseases in the
organs of the dead.(CC)(TVG)
HIST - SWORN TO SECRECY - "Secret Weapons of the Third
Reich" - Espionage plays a crucial role in the development of
secret weapons.(CC)(TVG)
10:00
CNN - NEWSTAND - Gene Genie, Dubious Achievements of 1998,
Dalai Lama
HIST - HISTORY UNDERCOVER - "Piercing the Reich:
American Spies Inside Nazi Germany" - The U.S. secret service
infiltrates Germany to capture
Hitler.(CC)(TVPG)
1:30 AM
CNN - SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY WEEK - The status of the
Y2K problem.(CC)
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Aeroflot to Open Moscow-Gaza Route
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 10:56:02 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Aeroflot To Open Moscow-Gaza Route
Ramallah's Al-Ayyam Dec. 30 reports from Gaza the Russian
ambassador accredited to the National Authority, Alexi Chistakov, has
said that the Russian airline Aeroflot is expected to sign an
agreement in January with the Palestinian Civil Airport Authority to
open an air route between Gaza and Moscow.
In an interview with Al-Ayyam, Chistakov said that "the signing of
this agreement follows talks on 17 December between the official in
charge of Aeroflot marketing for the Middle and Far East and North
Africa, Uri Wasilinko, and the head of the Palestinian Civil Airport
Authority General Fayiz Zaydan.
He added that a high-ranking Russian delegation would come to
Palestine next month to finalize the issue. He said that the
conclusion of the air route agreement would be part of the cooperation
in many other fields between the two sides. He said that the air route
agreement would strengthen cooperation between the two sides in the
trade and marketing of goods.
The Russian ambassador said, "I expect that during the next few
months that will follow the signing of the agreement, the number of
Russian visitors to Palestine and vice versa would increase
significantly, particularly during the celebrations for the second
millenium of the birth of Christ."
He said flights would be organized outside the framework of the
regular Aeroflot flights where charter flights will carry passengers
on the route. He added that the route would activate trade and
increase the numbers of Palestinian students traveling to Russia and
Russian students studying Arabic in Palestinian universities. In this
field, the Russian ambassador said, "Due to the difficult
transportation between Russia and Gaza as a result of the existing
measures, few Russian students are studying in the al-Azhar University
in Gaza." He expected the number of students to increase significantly
when these flights are organized.
He went on to say that "there is a joint effort between the
Palestinian Ministry of Higher Education, the Russian Friendship
University, and the al-Azhar University in Gaza to open an educational
center in Gaza and another in the [West] Bank. Students and teachers
will be exchanged among the three institutions."
He pointed out that the centers would also offer a one-year course
in the Russian language for Palestinian students wishing to study in
Russian universities to spare them the expenses of learning the
language and travel and residence in Russia for this purpose.
Meanwhile, the Russian ambassador said the agreement signed late
last November by Palestinian Minister of Tourism Mitri Abu-'Aytah and
the Russian Tourism Ministry would help encourage tourism in the
future once the air route is opened, particularly during the second
millenium of Christ's birth.
He pointed out that both the Palestinian and Russian Ministers of
Tourism agreed to encourage tourism in the two countries through the
direct flights, saying this agreement has won the approval of the
Russian officials and people.
Israeli & Global News
http://www.cmep.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Residential Projects in Jerusalem
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 10:56:02 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
EL-AD WORKS FOR JEWISH CONTINUITY: Within the next two
months, eight families will move into the El-Ad neighborhood in the
City of David neighborhood of Shiloach (known in Arabic as Silwan),
bringing the total number of Jewish families there to 30. The
residential project is in eastern Jerusalem, below the entrance to the
Western Wall. El-Ad's projects are an attempt to compete with illegal
PA/PLO-funded construction in the area. The City of David enterprise
is one of several El- Ad initiatives aimed at creating a corridor that
will hinder the development of Palestinian villages springing up
around Jerusalem. For example, Bidu and Nebi Samuel were built by
Arabs just north of Jerusalem in order to prevent Givat Ze'ev from
being connected to Jerusalem. Another example is the PA/PLO's attempt
to build an Arab town in the El Azaria and Abu Dis area in eastern
Jerusalem, aimed at breaking the contiguity between Jerusalem and
Ma'aleh Adumim. Of late, a 100-dunam (25 acres) project in the
vicinity of Jerusalem's Armon Hanetziv neighborhood - funded by Jewish
philanthropist Jacques Nasser - has gained government approval. El-Ad
spokesman David Be'eri told ARUTZ-7 that a short time ago, he saw
several Arabs digging pits on the site slated for the neighborhood. "I
asked them what they were doing there, and they responded, 'What do
you care, who are you?'. I left, and called the police. It turns out
that they were hired by the Muslim Waqf, and were in the midst of
setting the foundations of a mosque on the location. One more day, and
the foundations would have been laid for a mosque in the heart of the
neighborhood. Who would've been able to destroy a mosque?" This week,
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu openly encouraged more Jews to make
Shiloach their home. The prime minister maintains that restrictions on
settlement activity implied in the Wye River agreement and other
Israeli-Arab peace deals don't apply to Jerusalem because of Israel's
sovereignty over the city.
Meanwhile, Be'eri says that the PA/PLO and Jordanian security
personnel have been trying to prevent Arabs from selling houses to
Jews. He notes that not only the PA/PLO but also Jordanian security
personnel arrested several local Arabs when they visited Amman and
interrogated them about the sale of houses to Jews. (ARUTZ SHEVA, KOL
YISRAEL, ISRAEL & GLOBAL NEWS)
FYI - Israel in the News
http://www.tzemach.org/fyi
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Israeli MPs back bill barring non-Orthodox Jews
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 11:22:47 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Israeli MPs back bill barring non-Orthodox Jews
from religious councils
Copyright 1998 by Agence France-Presse
JERUSALEM, Dec 28 (AFP) - The Israeli parliament passed in the first
of three votes Monday a bill to bar non-Orthodox Jews from sitting on
local Jewish religious councils, which manage synagogues and provide
religious services.
The parliament adopted the government bill 51-46 on the first reading,
but it must be approved three times before it becomes law.
Arab members of the Israeli parliament abstained, saying they did not
want to interfere in internal Jewish community affairs.
"However, we rather oppose this bill in principle," MP Taleb Sanaa
said.
Jews belonging to the Reform and Conservative movements, a small
minority in Israel but the majority of US Jews, complain that they are
the victims of discrimination here.
The religious council jobs are civil service posts whose occupants are
appointed by municipalities.
The orthodox, who are stricter in their observance of Jewish law,
monopolize Jewish affairs in Israel.
The bill was submitted after a Reform Jew was appointed last year to
the religious council of Netanya, a town north of Tel Aviv, angering
Orthodox Jews.
The measure was speeded up after the government, with its heavy
Orthodox representation, learned that a Reform Jew might be named to
sit on Jerusalem's religious council.
Former prime minister Shimon Peres, of the opposition Labor party,
criticized the bill as "discriminatory."
He worried about the effect the bill will have on ties with Jews in
the United States and elsewhere in the diaspora.
Dedi Zucker, an MP from the smaller opposition Meretz party, called
the bill a "reinforcement of the Orthodox monopoly in Israel."
"Israel will have the sad privilege of being the only country in the
world where Conservative and Reform Jews will be the victims of
discrimination," he said.
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Netanyahu sends his prayer scroll in for tune-up
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 11:25:28 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Netanyahu sends his prayer scroll in for tune-up
Copyright 1998 by Agence France-Presse
JERUSALEM, Dec 31 (AFP) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a
bit down on his luck since the collapse of his ruling coalition last
week, sent his prayer scroll in for a tune-up, the Maariv newspaper
reported Thursday.
Rabbi Moshe Bentov added the words "so as to heighten your luck" to
Netanyahu's mezuza, which contains a Jewish prayer written on
parchment and which the prime minister keeps on his office door, the
paper said.
The rabbi promised Netanyahu the textual amendment would guarantee his
re-election in May.
"Carry on and you will be prime minister until the Messiah arrives,"
Bentov said.
Netanyahu's office told AFP the paper's report was "wrong," but the
Maariv correspondent, Shalom Yerushalmi, insisted on the accuracy of
his story.
The rabbi has correctly forceast success for Netanyahu before. In
1993, when a videotape was discovered during the Likud party primaries
that forced Netanyahu to admit publicly he had cheated on his wife
Sarah, Bentov accurately predicted he would go on to become head of
Likud and then prime minister.
"The disgrace atoned for the sin," Bentov said at the time.
This time Bentov told Netanyahu to stick to his hardline stance on
peace withthe Palestinians and urged him never to sack Defence
Minister Yitzhak Mordechai.
"Be firm about the points you presented to the Palestinians and then
the Wye agreement will fall because (Palestinian leader Yasser) Arafat
will not be able to carry them out," Bentov said.
"Free (Communications Minister) Limor Livnat -- let her go -- but
don't let Mordechai leave," Bentov added.
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Iranian president sends New Year's, Christmas greetings to
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 11:29:41 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Iranian president sends New Year's, Christmas
greetings to pope
Copyright 1998 by Agence France-Presse
TEHRAN, Dec 31 (AFP) - Iranian President Mohammad Khatami sent Pope
John Paul II a message Thursday with holiday greetings to all
Christians on the beginning of 1999 and the anniversary of the birth
of Jesus Christ.
"I congratulate sincerely your excellency, Christian freedom lovers
and all the monotheists on the auspicious birthday anniversary of
Jesus Christ and advent of the Christian year 1999," the message said,
according to the official IRNA news agency.
He stressed that the "valuable teachings of Jesus Christ, son of
Mary," are cited in the Koran as "spirit of God" and "word of God."
The "valuable teachings of that great messenger and all the divine
prophets are a new approach towards releasing man and society at the
end of a century full of uproar, violence and selfishness," Khatami
said.
The president added that he hoped the new year would be one "of
understanding, peace, civility, solidarity and cooperation among all
human beings and societies."
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Weekend News Today items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 20:15:36 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Russians turn to sorcery to bring snow???
Weekend News Today
By Staff Writer
Source: Nando Times
Wed Dec 30 , 1998 -- A coven of witches and wizards will try to use
their supernatural powers on New Year's Eve to change Moscow's
unseasonably mild weather and bring snow to the Russian capital,
Reuters quoted RIA news. It said the sorcerers would gather on Red
Square in front of the Kremlin with barrels of ice-cold water which
they plan to whack with their broomsticks. The flying water is then
supposed to turn into snow with the help of various arcane rituals and
spells, RIA said, quoting sources "close to the supernatural powers."
The witches and wizards decided to hold their meet after Muscovites
complained of a big drop in temperatures, which has turned the
capital's traditional snow into slush and puddles.
Letter: North America may be hit hard in 1999
Weekend News Today
By Staff Writer
Source: Temple Mount News
Wed Dec 30 , 1998 -- According to the News from the Temple Mount, "a
very hard prediction was made last week in the Holy City, Jerusalem by
leading Kabalest* that stated that, North America will be hit very
hard this coming year with big "natural disasters". The root of this,
the Rabbis stated was the betrayal of U.S. policy to Israel as the
Bible tells us 'I will Bless those who Bless you and curse those who
curse you.'" The news editor then went on to say: "We are already
beginning to see this phenomena taking place, and we are praying for
you all."
Syria calls on Pope to take stand against the Jews in Jerusalem
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: Arabic News
Thu Dec 31 , 1998 -- Syrian Mufti Sheikh Ahmad Kiftaro has called upon
Pope John Paul II to take "a stronger stand towards the Judaizing of
Jerusalem and to stand against aggression and corruption in the
world." In a message Kiftaro addressed on Tuesday to the Pope on the
occasion of the Christmas and the new year, Kiftaro said "How much I
was optimistic when I met in 1986 when I learnt from your highness the
regret of the church over the crusaders' wars and the hostile
onslaughts that took place in the Middle Ages and the consequences in
inflicted on humanity and civilization of damages and pains." After he
indicated that the "West in general and the US in particular support
the Zionist aggressions against Palestine and Jerusalem, in
particular," he indicated that "Western churches did not move to
denounce, condemn or to stop these repressive situations, which are
imposed on the Islamic world in Palestine, Iraq, Sudan and Libya." He
indicated that one member of the British parliament compared "the
aggression on Iraq by missiles and warplanes as a new crusade, but not
led by Richard the Lionheart, rather by the US President Bill Clinton
and the British Premier Tony Blair." Kiftaro concluded by addressing
the Pope: "The world expects from you a strong stand towards the
Judaizing of Jerusalem and the expulsion of its people, Muslims and
Christians."
Southwestern China rocked by earthquake
Weekend News Today
By Staff Writer
Source: Yahoo!
Sun Jan 3 , 1999 -- An earthquake with magnitude 5.0 rocked
southwestern China early Sunday, Reuters reported. The quake, which
struck shortly before 2 a.m. Sunday (1800 GMT Saturday), affected
rural Yunnan province, where two deadly tremors in November killed
five and left tens of thousands homeless. The Yunnan earthquake bureau
has sent a team to hard-hit Ninglang county to investigate. Ninglang
officials have already asked international aid organizations for
access to relief supplies left in the county following the deadly
November quakes.
New Zealand hit by earthquake
Weekend News Today
By Staff Writer
Source: Yahoo!
Sun Jan 3 , 1999 -- In New Zealand on Sunday, an earthquake rattled
the capital, Wellington, AP reported. The New Zealand earthquake had a
magnitude of 5.2, enough to cause moderate damage. The quake hit
Sunday night about 20 miles northwest of Wellington, according to the
Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences.
Earthquake jolts Indonesia
Weekend News Today
By Staff Writer
Source: Yahoo!
Sun Jan 3 , 1999 -- An earthquake with magnitude 5.9 jolted eastern
Indonesia just after Saturday afternoon, shaking buildings and causing
panicked residents to flee their homes, AP reported. Its epicenter was
in the Timor Sea, 35 miles southeast of Kupang, the capital of East
Nusa Tenggara province. The city has a population of 400,000 and lies
1,170 miles southeast of the capital, Jakarta.
Weekend News Today
http://upway.com/cgi-bin/went
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: (Fwd) STRATFOR's 1999 Annual Forecast
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 21:26:39 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Global Intelligence Update
Red Alert
January 4, 1999
1999 Annual Forecast: A New and Dangerous World
SUMMARY
* Russia will begin the process of recreating old Soviet empire
in 1999. The most important question of 1999: will Ukraine
follow Belarus into federation with Russia?
* Russia and China will be moving into a closer, primarily anti-
American alliance in 1999.
* Asian economies will not recover in 1999. Japan will see
further deterioration. So will China. Singapore and South Korea
will show the strongest tendency toward recovery.
* China will try to contain discontent over economic policies by
increasing repression not only on dissidents, but the urban
unemployed and unhappy small business people. Tensions will
rise.
* Asia will attempt to protect itself from U.S. economic and
political pressures. Asian economic institutions, like an Asian
Monetary Fund, will emerge in 1999.
* The Serbs, supported by the Russians, will test the United
States in Kosovo. There is increasing danger of a simultaneous
challenge from Serbia and Iraq, straining U.S. military
capabilities dramatically.
* The main question in Europe will be Germany's reaction to the
new Russia. The Germans will try to avoid answering that
question for most of the year.
* Latin America appears ready to resume its economic expansion,
beginning late in 1999.
[Visit http://www.stratfor.com for additional information]
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: (Fwd) Preparing for the false prophet
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 21:26:39 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
JERUSALEM POST NEWS & FEATURE SERVICE
JANUARY 3, 1999
Preparing for the false prophet
By Judy Siegel-Itzkovich
(Some of the millions of Christian pilgrims drawn to visit Jerusalem in
the year 2000 will find themselves in the capital's psychiatric center)
--------------------------------------------------------
If you thought Jerusalem's Ben-Yehuda mall on a Friday morning
hosts the most concentrated collection of oddballs in the world, wait
until 2000 - when Israel will be a magnet for Christians who fervently
believe that the Second Coming of Jesus is going to play itself out on
the Mount of Olives.
Some of the millions of Christian pilgrims expected here in 2000 will
be so moved by walking in the footsteps of Jesus through
Jerusalem's Old City, Bethlehem and Nazareth, that their emotional
bearings will be shaken. A small minority will believe that they are the
biblical players of a repeated epic. Most will find themselves in the
Kfar Shaul Mental Health Center, a state psychiatric hospital in the
capital's Givat Shaul quarter and a mecca for the treatment of
"Jerusalem Syndrome" in recent years.
Israeli authorities aren't renowned for advance planning, but the
Israel Psychiatric Society's Jerusalem branch and the Israel Medical
Association's scientific council last week had the prescience to hold
a six-hour symposium on "Tourism and Psychopathology, Jerusalem
Toward the Year 2000."
It was only about two decades ago that psychiatrists formally named
the Jerusalem Syndrome. Usually temporary but sometimes
permanent, the condition affects religious pilgrims - mostly Christian,
but occasionally Jews - who begin to exhibit strange behavior while
touring holy sites, sometimes proclaiming that they are ancient
religious figures sent on a mission.
The phenomenon was identified in the 1930s by Dr. Heinz Herman,
the father of Israeli psychiatry.
Prof. Eliezer Witztum of Herzog Memorial Hospital- Ezrat Nashim
spoke at the symposium about what attracts people to certain
geographical areas.
"People go to Florence because of their love for great art, and a few
dozen tourists each year are hospitalized with emotional disturbances
resulting from that experience," he said. "There are those who lose
their minds in Lourdes or Mecca.
"Others, who seem perfectly normal, head for the White House, and
tell the guards that they are the president, or that the man in the Oval
Office is an impostor. The main difference is the symbolism evoked
by each site."
But in Jerusalem, the problem is more complex, Witztum explained.
"Christians view Jerusalem as the navel of the world, the future site
of Armageddon and the Second Coming. At the end of the First
Millennium, Jerusalem was a real backwater, a Siberia-like end of the
world important only to Jews and Christians. But then, near the end
of the 19th century, it suddenly emerged from its slumber.
"There was construction; consulates opened. Jerusalem had 22,000
residents, and tourists began to come sporadically. Inns for pilgrims
and a railway line were built."
The psychiatrist retold documented accounts of crazy people who
came to Jerusalem as early as the 1870s claiming they were biblical
figures.
"There is the story of an Austrian who introduced himself as Elijah
the Prophet and was regarded by those he met as insane. People sent
him away from Jerusalem back to Jaffa in the hope that he would
disappear, but he was later found naked in a field; the Austrians, with
no alternative, took care of him."
"Then there was the American Jewish convert to Christianity who
came to Jerusalem's American Colony hostel declaring he was Elijah.
He stayed with Anna and Horatio Spafford, the famed American
couple who immigrated from Chicago in 1881 and set up their hostel
in the lovely building that became the American Colony Hotel. They
regarded him as a real headache.
"The convert went to the Mount of Olives claiming he would 'split in
two.' When he failed, he returned to the Spafford hostel.
"After leaving Palestine for the US, he later returned to Jerusalem as
a salesman for a portable vacuum-cleaner company; the only one he
sold was to Anna Spafford."
On the other hand, Witztum continued, pilgrimages to Jerusalem
naturally resulted from a Jewish tradition that began thousands of
years ago with the First Temple.
"Some Jews come here because they believe the building of the Third
Temple is imminent, that the ancient animal sacrifices will be restored
and the Messiah will arrive."
Dr. Yair Barel, the Jerusalem district psychiatrist who for years served
as director of the Kfar Shaul hospital, noted that over the past two
decades, three types of Jerusalem Syndrome patients have been
treated there.
"There are people who had a history of psychiatric problems before
they came. They aimed for Jerusalem because they identified with
characters in the Bible; interestingly, Jews identify with Jewish
images and Christians with Christian figures - it never crosses over.
"I recall one young American Jew with a lot of muscles who claimed
to be Samson and wanted to 'replace' the stones of the Western Wall.
His appearance at the holy site caused a furor, and he was
immediately sent to us.
"When one of our psychiatrists insisted he was not Samson, the
young man ran away, but he eventually returned and his father took
him home."
IN an unusual instance of cooperation with the Palestinian
Authority, Palestinian police once found a man marching toward
Jericho, speaking incoherently and wearing only a leather loincloth.
They contacted an Israel Defense Forces officer who brought him to
Kfar Shaul; doctors there had no trouble figuring out his identity:
They had seen "John the Baptist" twice before. It isn't only men
who "reveal" themselves.
Barel remembered a woman who ran naked through the streets of
Jerusalem, shouting that she would "make everything green again."
She was taken to the hospital claiming she was the "Queen of the
Night" and "better than Golda."
Another type of Jerusalem Syndrome patient comes on a group tour,
with no clear psychopathology, said Barel.
"They suddenly develop hallucinations that have nothing to do with
Jerusalem. Among them are Jews who claim they want to recreate the
Red Heifer and work in the Temple, or identify the 12 types of
precious stones in the breastplate of the High Priest.
The third type is represented by even fewer patients.
"They are healthy, and have no drug, family or employment problem.
They arrive as regular tourists, then suddenly become anxious. They
may tell the tour guide that they want to tour Jerusalem alone; many
hotels and guides send such people straight to Kfar Shaul out of
habit. Some of them put on white toga-like clothes and start singing
hymns.
"It all passes in a week or so, and when they 'come to,' they are
extremely embarrassed. They don't even want to talk about it," Barel
related.
The patients in this group "tend to come from ultra- religious families
in which the Bible is The Book - sometimes the only book in the
house. Their families read the Bible together every week. If
somebody had a problem, the father asked the youngest child to
open the Bible to a page at random to find an answer.
"These people," explained Witztum, "have an ideal image of
Jerusalem and can't cope with the real city."
Ziva Straus, a Kfar Shaul hospital social worker, reported on
individuals - Jews and Christians - who "sold all their property and
brought the money with them from abroad. They gave the money to
charity and were left with nothing. Some of them lost their passports
and didn't even remember their name or address.
"There were young yeshiva students who might have been having a
sexual-identity or adolescent crisis; recently, there have been more
and more foreign workers who become disturbed. We have quite a
time locating their families and getting them to take them back.
"US consular officials in Jerusalem are very helpful - like part of the
team - but diplomats from some other countries want nothing to do
with it."
Among the short-term treatments are medications and therapy, but
sometimes no one in the hospital speaks the patient's language, and
then the social workers have to look for a translator.
Prof. Richard Landes, an expert in medieval history at Boston
University and director of its Center for Millennial Studies, wowed
the participants with his predictions.
AN Orthodox Jew who has studied the last 1,000 years of Jewish-
Christian relations, Landes said that in the year 1033 - the 1,000th
anniversary of Jesus's crucifixion - hordes of people came to
Jerusalem to mark the event, and many refused to leave.
This, he suggested, could repeat itself now, at least to some extent.
Since there is a dispute about when the new millennium will actually
arrive - in 2000 or 2001, Landes said that the pilgrims who come next
year to find that "nothing" apocalyptic has occurred will become
very anxious and explain it away by noting that the new millennium
really is to start in 2001.
"They will suffer cognitive dissonance from the conflict between
their expectations and reality; some will lose faith or convert to
another religion. The phenomenon will extend over two years at
least."
He also predicted that within a year or two, messianic Lubavitch Jews
"who don't accept the fact that their rebbe has died may try to
convert Christian pilgrims."
The formation of "new Christian religious movements" as a result of
the mass pilgrimages is also likely, and some apocalyptic Christians,
he said, "will try to convert fellow Christians to their beliefs; some
will want to reach Jews as well."
The millennium could affect Moslems as well, as they will fear an
imagined "alliance between hard-core apocalyptic Christians and
messianic Jews conniving to blow up the mosque of Omar on the
Temple Mount."
Landes's Boston University Millennial Studies Center, which will
closely follow what happens in Jerusalem during the next three years,
uses a graphic symbol depicting a rooster and an owl. "Roosters
crow at dawn to wake everyone up, while owls say: it's still the
middle of the night - go back to sleep.
"I say that the Christians are coming, and it's time for the Israelis to
wake up. Like the millennium computer bug, this phenomenon is not
something we should ignore or panic about. It will be an enormous
opportunity to create a new relationship between Israel and the the
rest of the world. The media will be watching."
(c) Jerusalem Post 1998
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: New money for New Year
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 09:43:47 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
New money for a New Year
Agreeing to a single European currency
is one thing; history is another
LONDON, Dec. 28 _ The last people successfully to impose a single
currency on Europe were the Romans. Two thousand years ago, their
coins of brass and silver circulated from Rome through France and
England and across the Mediterranean basin to the Middle East. Now,
Europe is ready to try again. After the New Year holiday, 290 million
people in eleven countries will go to work and learn to live with (and
hopefully to love) a brand new kind of money _ the euro.
By Jonathan Miller
MSNBC CONTRIBUTOR
http://www.msnbc.com/news/225696.asp
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: 2000 Festivities Get Underway
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 09:53:28 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
2000 Festivities Get Underway
By ROBERT SEELY
Associated Press Writer
LONDON (AP) _ Now comes the real celebrating. For Christian
pilgrims, civic boosters and seasoned revelers everywhere, the
millennium is shaping up to be the longest party in history.
Festivities in many countries are starting early and going on
late _ right through to 2001 _ when purists mark the millennium,
2,000 years after Year One.
At the Vatican, the Roman Catholic church will lead spiritual
celebrations to mark 2000. Britain, home of Greenwich Mean Time and
the world's prime meridian, plans a lavish celebration at the
Millennium Dome, a futuristic exhibition hall being built over 20
acres in Greenwich.
Pitt Island, in New Zealand's remote Chatham Islands, claims it
will be the first spot of land to see the sun rise on the new
millennium _ at 4:04 a.m. Jan. 1, 2000 (11:04 a.m. EST Dec. 31,
1999). Just a shade west, Gisborne, New Zealand, is promoting
itself as the first city on Earth to catch the first rays of the new
year.
The turn of the century is expected to bring as many as 20
million people to Rome. The Vatican, sensitive to the press of so
many visitors, has scheduled major pilgrimages throughout the year to
spread out the crowds. One such event is likely to be in August for
World Youth Day.
After a visit to the United States and Mexico this month, and
barring a possible trip to the Holy Land, Pope John Paul II will
stick close to home in 2000. He will be giving daily blessings to
pilgrims flocking to Rome to mark the start of Christianity's third
millennium.
Britain's Millennium Commission is organizing the largest
celebratory construction, a $1.2 billion Millennium Dome and
exhibition just across the River Thames from the Royal Observatory at
Greenwich.
The dome, hailed as visionary by supporters and as a vapid waste
of money by critics, has a circumference of two-thirds of a mile and
is 165 feet high. Under the Teflon-coated glass fiber roof will be
exhibits looking ahead to life in the next 1,000 years.
The Millennium Commission, largely financed by lottery proceeds,
also plans to turn London's bridges into stages for party venues on
the eve of Jan. 1, 2000. Among other things, it has supported 187
building projects throughout Britain, and it plans to bathe 400
churches in the glow of floodlights and have chimes ring out from 100
new sets of church bells.
Berlin, Germany's new capital, is planning an open-air party
around the Brandenburg Gate, including a historical theater revue
with thousands of actors portraying ``important historical moments''
on 200 stages.
The focal point of millennium celebrations in France will be
Paris' main boulevard, the Champs-Elysees. Trees and gardens also are
to be planted along the Meridian line dividing the nation in a
symbolic attempt to show man must live together with the environment.
And three cities _ Paris, Lyon and Avignon _ will have exhibitions on
French history, language and beauty.
The United States is planning a series of events to honor its
past and imagine the future, including arts projects, education
campaigns and new goals for numerous national projects _ from
connecting every classroom and library in America to the Internet to
preserving treasured documents.
Other events include special evenings at the White House
featuring prominent creators and visionaries.
Russia and China have no big plans yet. A Russian government
committee meeting this month will decide on events to mark the
2,000th anniversary of Christianity. In China, a countdown clock in
Beijing's Tiananmen Square isn't keyed on the millennium, instead
it's ticking away time until the Dec. 20, 1999, handover, of the
Portuguese colony of Macau.
In Japan, which counts years by the length of an emperor's
reign, 2000 will be Heisei 12, the 12th year of the reign of
Akihito _ and few celebrations of the Western millennium are
planned.
Israeli religious authorities already have warned against
celebrations because New Year's Eve at the turn of the millennium
falls on a Friday night, the Jewish sabbath.
There has been longstanding tension between hotels and religious
authorities in Israel over celebrations of the Christian New Year.
The rabbinate traditionally threatens to withdraw kosher
certification from hotels that throw New Year's parties.
In Egypt, French musician Jean-Michael Jarre has been hired to
compose a new opera to be performed at the pyramids starting at
sunset Dec. 31, 1999, and lasting until sunrise the following day.
Egypt also plans to affix a gold-encased capstone on the Great
Pyramid, making it whole again, if only for the night.
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Infertile couples want Grade A eggs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 09:59:29 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
*** Infertile couples want Grade A eggs
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) - Some infertile couples want only Grade A
eggs. One of the nation's biggest fertility registries has focused
more advertising on newspapers at Ivy League schools as couples seek
out eggs they hope will grow into brainy kids. "Many parents are
willing to be more flexible on the health history than on academic
achievements and signs of intelligence," said Teri B. Royal, director
of the Los Angeles-based OPTIONS National Fertility Registry. The
number of couples requesting advertising at the Ivies has nearly
doubled each year since OPTIONS opened for business in 1992, Royal
said. She believes the public has grown more open to alternative
methods of reproduction, including people who went to the Ivies. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2557877288-84a
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: New Age Church Leader to Retire
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 10:05:04 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
09:13 PM ET 01/02/99
New Age Church Leader To Retire
CORWIN SPRINGS, Mont. (AP) _ Elizabeth Clare Prophet has
announced she will retire as spiritual leader of the Church
Universal and Triumphant, a New Age sect headquartered on a
sprawling ranch next to Yellowstone National Park.
Prophet, diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in
November, said she will retire sometime this summer to deal with
health concerns and to spend more time with her family, including a
4-year-old son.
The woman known as ``Mother'' to her followers said she
will be 60 in April. She stepped down as church president in
1996.
In the early 1980s, the church founded by Prophet's first
husband bought the 28,000-acre Royal Teton Ranch and based its
operations there.
A survivalist reputation developed and was
reinforced during a court case challenging the church's tax-exempt
status. In depositions, church officials acknowledged that in the
early 1990s, more than 100 firearms and two armored personnel
carriers werestored near a big fallout shelter at the ranch.
But Prophet insisted no church funds were used, and said
she was unaware of details of weapons purchases by individual church
members.
Prophet had been president of the church for 23 years when
she left the position in 1996. Her action came within weeks of the
announcement that she and second husband Ed Francis, then the
executive vice president of the church, were divorcing after 15
years of marriage.
Over the years, church followers were told Prophet was one
of two people through whom ``Ascended Masters'' relayed messages. The
other was the deceased Mark Prophet, her first husband, who founded
the church in 1958 in Washington, D.C.
Church Universal and Triumphant teachings incorporate
elements of Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism. Use of alcohol and
tobacco is denounced, as is gambling.
Prophet's retirement as spiritual leader was announced in
Miami at the church's annual New Year's conference, according to a
church news release dated Friday.
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Arab States Advise PA to Push Off Declaration
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 14:40:39 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
ARAB STATES ADVISE PA TO PUSH OFF DECLARATION
Senior figures in the Palestinian Authority have reported
that Egypt and Jordan are pressuring it to delay its declaration of a state.
Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman reports, "Of late, Arafat is
under real pressure from the Arab states not to declare a
Palestinian state on May 4th. They seem to feel that this might
play into the hands of Netanyahu, who may respond by annexing large
portions of Judea and Samaria. These countries prefer that any such
declaration should be issued when Israel finds itself in greater
isolation. Moreover, many Arab countries are not particularly
thrilled with the idea of a Palestinian state. Jordan is certainly
against the idea, and Syria sees Israel as 'Southern Syria' and the
Palestinian ambitions as an irritant. A few days ago, [Egyptian
President] Hosni Mubarak dumped a pail of cold water on his Arafat's
head, by also advising him to avoid the May declaration. Mubarak
was quite insulted when Jordan's King Hussein was given the honor of
participating in the Washington signing ceremony after the Wye
talks."
Huberman reports that the Palestinian Authority may go along with
the wishes of the Arab states, declaring only their 'right' to a
state, and not an actual state itself. "Arafat has a personal
interest in declaring the state as soon as possible, since he
doesn't know how much longer his health will hold out, and would
enjoy going to the next world as the president of a Palestinian
state," surmised Huberman.
Arutz-7
http://www.a-7.org
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: The Flood is Found (?)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 14:51:42 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
THE FLOOD IS FOUND
by D.Laing
In the late 1980's and early 1990's, Dr. Walter
Pitman and Dr. Bill Ryan, a pair of
geoscientists at Oxford University were working
on an exciting new discovery of a well recorded
ancient event - the Great Deluge. The team had
examined the description of the flood as recited
in the Sumerian epic Gilgamesh, and had
determined that there was in fact a possible
explanation for the ancient accounts. Based on
their studies and advice from scholars of the
Gilgamesh epic, they determined that there may
have been a flood that occurred even earlier
than that of the epic or of the one at Ur (5000
BC). They believed that this event occurred
around 7,000 BC based on radiocarbon dating of
shells from an underwater beach front, and that
the epic of Gilgamesh may have been adapted from
stories of this earlier flood. This would have
meant that it took place as the ice sheet from
the last period of glaciation was in retreat and
global sea levels were rising. Continuing that
logic and based on the account in Gilgamesh,
they determined that what they had read was a
description by a primitive people of a possible
event that was adapted by the Sumerians and
passed on in the form of an epic. They reasoned
that the description was of the flooding of a
large area of land that was below sea level (a
basin) due to the rise in global sea levels. The
result would be the same as if Death Valley in
California and Arizona were suddenly open to the
Pacific - a new sea. Armed with this theory,
they began to search the area surrounding the
Eastern Mediterranean for a body of water that
possibly would fit what they determined were
desirable parameters. The Persian Gulf, the Red
Sea, and the Caspian Sea were discarded as
suitable sites. This left the Black Sea with
its entry to the Mediterranean, the Bosphorous
Strait.
In considering which came first, and thanks to
the much later estimates of the
Deluge by Biblical scholars, the account in
Gilgamesh had been given the greatest credence,
and scholars for some time have believed that
the story of Noah had been borrowed in no small
part from Sumerian legends. Now however, obscure
references from other prehistoric cultures as
well as its proximity to the hills surrounding
Mount Ararat tended to favor the Black Sea Basin
and therefore Noah's Flood as the story of
greatest antiquity.
Full story:
http://www.BibleMysteries.com/library/Blacksea/
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: What's New at BPR?
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 04:27:23 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Bible Prophecy Research and Study List
Additions and updates made since Dec 22, 1998
Vol 1, Number 11
Jan 05, 1998
-----------
Hello everyone,
Just a couple of items to mention:
> Added: "A Chorographical Century"
http://philologos.org/__eb-jl/
This is ongoing project by Moza in converting John Lightfoot's
"A Commentary on the New Testament From the Talmud and
Hebraica" into HTML format for the web.
[chorography: the art of describing or mapping a region or
district. Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary]
-------------
> Updated: Two Witnesses
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/w-002-01.htm
Thank you!
owner-bpr@philologos.org
http://philologos.org
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Jan 6, 1999 TV Programs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 10:01:25 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
7:00 PM Eastern
HIST - 20th CENTURY - "Guarding the Gulf"
8:00 PM
HIST - THE BOY WHO GAVE AWAY THE BOMB - Declassified data
suggests a Harvard teen who worked on the Manhattan Project
gave A-bomb secrets to Russia.(CC)(TVG)
9:00
DISC - DISCOVER MAGAZINE - "Islands of Mystery" - Stone
palaces and temples of Nan Madol; two ships disappear near
Marble Island; temples of Malta.(CC)
TLC - WAR AND CIVILIZATION - "First Blood" - Greek phalanx
warfare; Philip of Macedon; Alexander the
Great.(CC)(TVPG)
10:00
CNN - SPECIAL REPORT - "Trial of the President"
TLC - WAR AND CIVILIZATION - "Empires and Armies" - The
Roman and Chinese empires build cultures on violence and
leave legacies of organization.(CC)(TVPG)
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Religion... the 'in' Thing
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 11:37:41 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
A Voice in the Wilderness
Commentary
January,1999
" Religion... the 'in' Thing "
In a recent communication from a friend the comment came forth something
to the effect, Of all years, this year it seems like "religion is the IN
thing" for everybody. This, after holiday visits with unregenerate
relatives; and everybody had included "manger scenes" along with their
festive decorations.
Indeed! In TV channel hopping, the theme this year seemed to be
"angels" as well. As a "bonus" it seemed like Roma Downey (star of
"Touched by an Angel") was popping up all over the place; hosting this,
narrating that, visiting with talk show hosts. And the ever-popular,
timeless "angel" show, "It's a Wonderful Life." Public TV, usually the
bastion of atheism, was one of the prime presenters of programs
commemorating of the birth of Christ. Everybody was on TV; the pope from
Rome, the Canadian brass with the Mormons, and various other assorted
sundry presentations.
In a recent local evening news cast a local "Russian Baptist"
church was featured. Apparently they've built a new building and have
already "filled" it, and it made quite a splash. As I first heard it, my
ears perked up. I'm always keeping an eye-n-ear out for a possible place
to attend for fellowship under the Word of God... Knowing of Russia's
"underground Church" and hearing that this was "Russian" I was curious
to see if it would possibly be a place that might also have
English-speaking services. As they interviewed some English-speaking
members; there was NOT ONE WORD about worshiping God, of learning from
God's Word. But there was much about it being a place where people could
come to be comforted, and have fellowship amongst fellow-Slovaks. And
the whole thing was summed up by the anchor, in glowing face absolutely
excitedly, that this was a place which was providing unity, finally, for
the local Russian community who were "so far away from their homeland."
Aaaah, yes. "Unity." Ecumenism.
Not having caught the whole story the first time the segment
aired, I got out the phone book, to see if I could find them listed in
the yellow pages. It's been a few years since I've looked for churches
in the yellow pages... And "how" they present themselves! "A Friendly
Bible church" "Church in a whole new light" "exciting Bible preaching"
"the people place" "After a week like yours... you need a church like
ours. Definitely NOT Boring! Warm accepting people - contemporary -
positive - action-packed - exciting - dynamic" Oh! And here's the one
that first caught my eye, in full-color, "The Recreational Family
Alternative." This one has a photo of a family splashing around in a
Swimming Pool, having a great ol' time. Yes... if your jaw just dropped
on that one, it's advertising a "church"!! ...not swimming pools! (I
wonder if the pastor "dives" into his sermons!?!) This is in what used
to be good ol' "conservative" Spokane, WA.
The first of the programs that aired, that I watched, was Robert
Shaw from Atlanta. You who know music, and know my background, will
understand when I tell you that my e-mail writing of the moment went "on
hold" while I cranked up the stereo when "Lo, How a Rose" came on. And
then as they sang, "King of kings, and Lord of lords, forever,
hallelujah...for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth" with the volume
cranked ever slightly more, I was caught up in the awe of our God
Almighty, the Most High, Who came in human form and "took upon Himself
the form of a servant...He humbled Himself and became obedient unto
death...therefore God has highly exalted Him, and has given Him a name
which is above every name..." (Phil2:6-9)
And here's the part I have been in WONDERMENT "this" Nativity
season. All these groups singing and proclaiming the birth of Christ,
singing words of His purpose in coming, that Mary "bore a Savior." That
He came to save His people from their sins. All these groups on
TV...UNREGENERATE! They sing and proclaim "a Savior" Even Robert Shaw,
turning around, facing the audience and in his rich narrative voice
reading from Luke 2, "For to you is born today, in the city of David, a
Savior, who is Christ the Lord." (vs11) (I've never heard that he might
be a Believing Christian)
Paul goes on, "..that at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow...and that EVERY TONGUE SHOULD CONFESS that Jesus Christ is Lord, to
the glory of God the Father." (Phil2:11)
Modern-day angels proclaim that "man is just as good as God." The
"angel of light" (2Cor11:14) so perverts religion that churches now
openly advertise themselves as being "in a [new] light." Modern beliefs
follow the occult near-death, out-of-body experiences where angels
proclaim love, peace and light. Of this Paul warns, "even if..an angel
from Heaven preach a gospel to you beside what we preached...let him be
accursed." (Gal1:8) Now-a-days it's no longer JUST the Mormons with
their angel who visited Joseph Smith. EVERYBODY is following angels.
...from charismatics doing spiritual warfare, casting out demons, to the
unregenerate praying to their guardian angels. You see, it's like my
friend said, "it's the -IN- thing."
"But the [Holy] Spirit expressly says that IN THE LATTER TIMES
some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and
teachings [doctrines] of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, being
seared in their own conscience.." (1Tm4:1-2) Remember, folks, that
DEMONS are "fallen" ANGELS.(Rev12:4) They still have the appearance and
abilities of the "good" angels. Until the "dragon" and "his angels"
(vs7,9) are cast out of heaven, they still have access to the
heavenlies. Since the "dragon" is "Lucifer" ("shining star")(Is14:12) it
is to be EXPECTED that he will be presented as "light." His counterfeits
will appear as "ministers of righteousness." (2Cor11:15)
OK. Is there a "point" to all these ramblings? Yes. God's
Sovereignty. His holiness. His righteousness. And mostly, His "WITNESS"
of Himself to all of humanity. And it's really quite a "clever" scheme
of things...
The unrighteousness of men "suppress the truth in
unrighteousness." (Rom1:18) They follow their "angel of light." They
establish "churches" for all sorts of reasons "under the sun." (Eccl)
They pursue "unity" while elevating man's "self." And in many cases,
churches purposely deny God Most High, as they worship man. God "doesn't
exist" in a Scriptural sense. We are all ..."gods."
However, God does not leave Himself without witness. He provided
creation for man's examination. (Rom1:20) He provides the daily
necessities for sustenance. (Acts14:17) And, God Who [IS] the Word
(Jn1:1) provides ready accessibility to His Word. "But the word is very
near you, in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may do it.
(De30:14) This word "goes out of [God's] mouth" (Is55:11) accomplishing
what it is sent for. It does "not return..void."
Men try to suppress the truth, but they cannot escape God.
Atheistic Public TV was proclaiming Christ's birth all season, through
the songs of Christ's nativity. When I was buying stamps for the January
postal mailing, over the intercom was playing "Hark the herald angels
sing...glory to the newborn King." "God" and "Jesus Christ" have
supposedly been legislated out of public life and government buildings,
and yet it was there at the post office. While I thought of making a
smart-aleck remark about the song of Christ being played in a "public
place", I kept my mouth shut, lest they would take notice, and actually
turn it off.
Back to Robert Shaw, now...as tears were welling up in my eyes
over God's glory and majesty. There were those marvelous musicians
performing gloriously, and likely 99% of them don't know the Christ of
whom they sing. Even though they rebel against God, "every tongue should
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
God's Word is near, in the mouth and in the heart...as people sing of
His birth and His gift of salvation. While they deny Him, they sing His
praises. Unbeknownst to them, they "confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord..."
This fact does not save them. Merely singing of Jesus does not
save. Believing that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and that,
historically, He died on a Roman cross...does not save. Religion and
church does not save.
But you see... when "the dead, the small and the great, stand
before God.." (Rev20:12) ...they will be WITHOUT EXCUSE. They will not
be able to claim, "I didn't know... if only I had known!!" Not only did
they reject "creation" ...the "Word" was in their hearts. Not only did
God provide a "conscience", He also
planted His Word, Himself, into each individual, so that He might be
known. Man was made in God's "image." (Gen1:27) And to the "heathen"
Paul proclaimed, "He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live
and move and have our being.." (Acts17:27-28) "..by Him all things
consist." (Col1:17)
However, having this "connection" to God does not save, unless
there is "righteousness of faith." (Rom9:30) God's righteousness is
revealed from faith. (Rom1:17) "Without faith it is impossible to please
[God], for he who comes to God must believe that He is [exists] and that
He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." (Heb11:6)
"Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is
near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his
thoughts; and let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him;
and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon." (Is55:6-7)
Amen!
http://www.cet.com/~voice
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: The plan for massive military mobilization (Y2k)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 11:45:55 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
The plan for massive military mobilization
National Guard exercises unprecedented
since World War II set for May Y2K test
By David M. Bresnahan
c 1999 WorldNetDaily.com
January 6, 1999
The National Guard is planning its first national mobilization of
troops since 1940 in preparation for civil unrest resulting from the
Y2K millennium bug, WorldNetDaily has learned. The National Guard
Bureau in Washington is currently formulating plans for a mobilization
test, in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. If
Y2K causes a complete shutdown of all communications, the National
Guard will need a way to mobilize troops, according to several
officers who believe their careers would be at risk if their names
were made public.
These officers spoke separately with WorldNetDaily. Each is in a
position to know about the plans at a national level within the
National Guard Bureau.
"What's driving this thing are the folks underneath the senior
leadership," said one officer. "Some of the IT guys and command and
control guys are the ones who are driving this because they see what
the problem is," one of the sources told WorldNetDaily in an exclusive
interview.
The plan as it is now being designed, will be a mock mobilization of
all 480,000 members of the National Guard in all 54 states and
territories. Exercise COMEX/MOBEX will be conducted without telephone,
radio, or television to get the word to all guard members.
"This will be a simulated COMM-Out," explained another member of the
group. "In other words, the standard method of recall, the telephone,
will not be an option. The driver for this exercise is Y2K," she
added.
Concern about potential panic and unrest over Y2K failures of
communications, power, and transportation has prompted the National
Guard Bureau to plan for the worst. If such a scenario occurs, the
guard will need to be mobilized through some means other than standard
electronic communications.
Exercise COMEX/MOBEX will be a test, not an actual mobilization. Guard
members will be contacted, but they will not actually have to report.
WorldNetDaily spoke with several full-time guard members who work at
the national level. Each is an officer, and each is concerned that the
public is not being properly informed of the extent and seriousness of
problems -- including civil liberties issues -- associated with the
Y2K computer bug.
"I've taken an oath, and I don't see some of the senior folks
following through on their oath," explained one officer of his reasons
for making this known. "Not only is my oath to the Constitution, but
it's to the people. As far as I'm concerned, the faster and sooner
people are educated on this stuff the less panic will ensue."
Another officer is equally concerned and agreed. He pointed out that
people panic when they are caught unprepared and unaware. He says the
Clinton administration should be doing more to prevent panic.
"No one with any leadership has stepped forward and said we need to
take prudent steps," he explained. "The Canadians are way ahead on
this. They've already told their folks. They're doing a good job of
letting their people know what's going on."
WorldNetDaily has also learned that all military and civilian federal
employees are scheduled to be paid a little differently in December
1999. Payroll for January 2000 will be paid a month early. One of the
officers says that is to place guard members in a situation where they
cannot refuse duty in the Y2K crisis because they will have already
been paid in advance.
"Our guess is, we've been paid so if we don't show up we're defrauding
the government. I think that's what the rationale is, although they'll
tell us it's to keep the troops happy. Bull. People won't be able to
get their money out of the banks anyway," predicted one of the
officers.
The Defense Department is reported to be far behind in preparations
for Y2K compliancy. It is working only on mission-critical systems,
according to Sen. Bob Bennett, R-UT, chairman of the Senate Special
Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem. The National Guard is
no exception.
"The field units are way behind," explained one source. "There's no
way in hell we're going to be compliant by March 31, 1999 (the target
date announced by the National Guard)."
A letter from the National Guard Bureau will soon be in the hands of
every adjutant general. The letter will inform the guard leaders of
each state about COMEX/MOBEX and how it will be conducted.
Although the exercise, tentatively scheduled for May 1 and 2, will be
no secret, the various aspects of the exercise will be kept under
wraps until the mobilization begins.
"Everyone knows it's coming, but there's going to be scenarios written
into it," explained one officer. "There will be as many different
things they can throw into it at once to see how the
command-and-control structure handles it."
The test will do little to simulate the actual panic that may be
involved in an actual Y2K mobilization.
"I think in a real situation, where you've got a guy standing there
with his wife looking at him with tears in her eyes and two kids
hanging on his leg, and he's being drug out the door by a couple MPs
-- not that he doesn't want to serve -- but it's got to be absolute
pandemonium at that point. I see that as a very difficult situation,"
said one of the sources.
Although the National Guard Bureau expects to be able to contact 95
percent of their troops for COMEX/MOBEX, far fewer will actually turn
out in an actual Y2K emergency. General panic by the public will
create a desire for many guard members to stay home and protect their
families, said some.
The logistics of such a mobilization are significant. The Clinton
administration will argue that the National Guard can be used as a
national police force, in spite of the Posse Comitatus Act. FEMA and
other federal agencies will also be involved in COMEX/MOBEX. Orders
will be given without the use of standard communications. The country
will be divided into seven different regions. Plans include imposing
restrictions on civilian travel and limits on bank withdrawals,
according to sources.
"I have no doubts about the bunker mentality of the Clinton
administration," said one of the officers. "Let's put it this way, our
civil rights are going to take a nosedive."
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_exnews/19990106_xex_the_plan_mas.shtml
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Ark of the Covenant
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 06 Jan 1999 09:42:41 -0500
From: owner-bpr@philologos.org
Ark of the Covenant
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/corbett/search_corbett.pl?
Range=All&Format=Standard&Terms=xckco
This URL is a bit long and will not fit on one line in this message.
If you are unable to visit this particular address, simply go to
WorldNetDaily at http://www.worldnetdaily.com and you should be able
to find the articles referenced below.
--------
Ethiopia's treasure may be cause for war Wednesday, January 6, 1999
by Kaye Corbett -- Editor's note: Ethiopia believes that the most
important historical, powerfu[l], and religious artifact, the Ark of
the Covenant, is located in the ... - 13 K - 6 Jan 99
Found: The Ark of the Covenant? Wednesday, December 30, 1998 by Kaye
Corbett -- Prince Stephanos (Stephen Mengesha) knows. Grant Jeffrey
knows. Graham Hancock knows. Lyle Harron knows. And so do I. Shrouded
in mystery and intrigue ... - 12 K - 30 Dec 98
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Businesses and Churches Market Religion
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 19:39:29 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
World Embracing Religion.
Businesses and Churches Market Religion.
Rio de Janeiro (ENI). Evangelical Christians in Brazil - who make up
about 12 per cent of the country's population - are divided over a
recent trend by some companies to target consumer products
specifically at Evangelicals. In recent months there has been a poster
campaign for Hosanna sweets featuring a well-known model, Aline
Barros, and the slogan, "The Word of God in every mouth", a reference
to the fact that there are biblical texts on the wrappers of the
sweets.
Other products aimed at Evangelicals include Freegels Gospel sweets,
in cherry, grape, strawberry and mint flavours, which depict biblical
figures. Even cosmetics, traditionally seen by many Evangelicals as
sinful, are being sold by Christian companies and are on the shopping
lists of many Evangelical consumers, while one company is now offering
perfumed oils for unction. (anointing).
Ecumenical News International
http://www.eni.ch
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Bleak outlook for badly needed rain
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 09:42:43 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
BLEAK OUTLOOK FOR BADLY NEEDED RAIN
Senior meteorologists are now predicting the anticipated
rainfall for this winter will be below average, with this already
being the driest winter in over 70 years. Earlier in the season,
they had predicted average or above average rain.
Despite last week's localized floods in the Carmel regions,
the rainfall from the brief showers did not effect the level of the
Sea of Galilee further to the east.
There has not been any significant rainfall this year, and
rabbis have urged everyone to continue to recite the prayer for
rainfall in the daily prayers.
Damage to farms and other sectors have been very high and
for the coming days, there are no predictions of any significant
precipitation. (IsraelWire, January 5, 1999)
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Astronomers Study Superflares
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 09:47:17 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Yale Astronomers Study Superflares on Stars Just Like Our Sun
New Haven, Conn. -- In the Greek myth of Phaethon, the chariot of the
Sun inadvertently drives too close to the Earth, creating the Sahara
desert with its scorching heat. Whether that myth is based in some
small part on observations of a "superflare" emanating from the Sun
and scorching the Earth in past millennia is a question that
intrigues Yale University astrophysicists Bradley E. Schaefer and
Eric P. Rubenstein.
At a news conference today during the annual meeting of the American
Astronomical Society in Austin, Tex., Schaefer and his colleagues
reported that nine stars on which superflares have been observed
during the past century are disturbingly similar to our Sun in size,
age, luminosity and rotation speed. (Other collaborators on the
research were Jeremy R. King, Space Telescope Science Institute,
Baltimore, Md.; and Constantine P. Deliyannis, Indiana University,
Bloomington).
"It's only natural to ask what would happen on Earth if such a
superflare were to suddenly occur on our Sun, or to speculate why
such flares apparently have not happened here," Schaefer said. He
noted that a superflare -- a flare 100 to 10 million times larger
than the largest flare ever seen on our Sun -- would severely disrupt
radio communication, burn out all orbiting satellites, black out
power grids worldwide, and create spectacular auroras visible from
the poles to the equator.
"Large superflares could warm a cold winter day into a hot summer
day," he said. "But the primary damage would come from high energy
radiation, which would react in the Earth's upper atmosphere to
destroy the protective ozone layer for several years, thereby
exposing the Earth's surface to harmful ultraviolet radiation with
subsequent collapse of the food chain."
Fortunately, such grim possibilities appear to be unlikely, the
researchers agreed. Any superflares on our Sun during the last 150
years of scientific monitoring would certainly have been noted, while
any superflare within the last two millenia would likely have
appeared in the historical record as a sudden heat wave or global
aurora, Schaefer said. Furthermore, a large superflare probably would
have melted the icy surfaces of moons around Jupiter and Saturn,
forming vast flood plains. The absence of smooth frozen surfaces on
these moons means that large superflares have not occurred in the
last billion years or so. "Despite the myth of Phaethon, our Sun
apparently has only rare superflares, if any," Schaefer concluded.
Stars like our Sun have superflares an average of about once a
century, the researchers calculated, and it is just this type of star
around which planets recently were discovered, opening the door to
the exciting possibility of organic life flourishing elsewhere. It is
unknown whether recurring superflares would encourage evolution by
providing an energy source for prebiotic chemical reactions or would
prevent new lifeforms from gaining a foothold.
-----edit-----
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Trading US Rights for UN Rules
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 10:08:41 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
This message was forwarded to me by a list member:
-----begin-----
_________________________________________________
Trading U.S. Rights for UN Rules
A report on Executive Order 13107
"The Implementation of Human Rights Treaties",
signed by President Clinton, December 10, 1998
-----------------------------------------------------
While Americans focused on more scintillating news, President
Clinton quietly signed a new executive order titled "The
Implementation of Human Rights Treaties." The media ignored it and
our leaders didn't tell us. Yet we will pay the cost in freedom as
well as dollars for the creationof a massive government bureaucracy
to promote, monitor, and enforce compliance with human rights
regulations mandated by the United Nations. Remember, this governing
body shows only contempt for biblical values, American sovereignty,
and the U.S. Constitution.
Clinton's timing was perfect. An attack on Iraq had been planned.
And after December's impeachment proceedings, Congress would
adjourn for the holidays. Without its objection, the executive
order would take effect within 30 days (not a hard and fast rule
1), and become a federal law. Once implemented, no one would be
free to do or say anything contrary to the new global ideology.
Hard to believe? Before studying the executive order itself, take a
look at the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It illustrates
the deceptive meanings behind the noble words used to persuade the
American people to accept unthinkable regulations. Even so, on
December 10, 1998, President Clinton used its 50th anniversary to
celebrate its ideals, to honor its late sponsor Eleanor Roosevelt, to
announce his Human Rights Initiatives, and to sign this executive
order.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
At the first glance, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
sounds good, as do all the intrusive UN human rights treaties.
Article 18 upholds "the right to freedom of thought, conscience and
religion..." Article 19 affirms "the right to freedom of opinion and
expression... and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas
through any media and regardless of frontiers."
But Article 29 states that "these rights and freedoms may in no
case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the
United Nations."
In other words, these "rights" or "freedoms" don't apply to those
who would criticize the UN or its policies. Your rights would be
conditioned on your compliance. Only if your message supports
official ideology are you free to speak it. As Andrei Vishinsky
wrote in The Law of the Soviet State, "There can be no place for
freedom of speech, press, and so on for the foes of socialism.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights:
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/a_udhr.htm
For Immediate Release December 10,
1998
EXECUTIVE ORDER
- - - - - - -
IMPLEMENTATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS TREATIES
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution
and the laws of the United States of America, and bearing in mind the
obligations of the United States pursuant to the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Convention
Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment (CAT), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Racial Discrimination (CERD), and other relevant treaties concerned
with the protection and promotion of human rights to which the United
States is now or may become a party in the future, it is hereby
ordered as follows:
Section 1. Implementation of Human Rights Obligations. (a)
It shall be the policy and practice of the Government of the United
States, being committed to the protection and promotion of human
rights and fundamental freedoms, fully to respect and implement its
obligations under the international human rights treaties to which it
is a party, including the ICCPR, the CAT, and the CERD.
(b) It shall also be the policy and practice of the Government of
the United States to promote respect for international human rights,
both in our relationships with all other countries and by working
with and strengthening the various international mechanisms for the
promotion of human rights, including, inter alia, those of the
United Nations, the International Labor Organization, and the
Organization of American
States.
Sec. 2. Responsibility of Executive Departments and Agencies.
(a) All executive departments and agencies (as defined in 5
U.S.C. 101-105, including boards and commissions, and hereinafter
referred to collectively as "agency" or "agencies") shall maintain a
current awareness of United States international human rights
obligations that are relevant to their functions and shall perform
such functions so as to respect and implement thoseobligations fully.
The head of each agency shall designate a single contact officer who
will be responsible for overall coordination of the implementation of
this order. Under this order, all such agencies shall retain their
established institutional roles in the implementation,
interpretation, and enforcement of Federal law and
policy.
(b) The heads of agencies shall have lead responsibility, in
coordination with other appropriate agencies, for questions
concerning implementation of human rights obligations that fall
within their respective operating and program responsibilities and
authorities or, to the extent that matters do not fall within the
operating and program responsibilities and authorities of any
agency, that most closely relate to their general areas of concern.
Sec. 3. Human Rights Inquiries and Complaints. Each agency
shall take lead responsibility, in coordination with other
appropriate agencies, for responding to inquiries, requests for
information, and complaints about violations of human rights
obligations that fall within its areas of responsibilityor, if the
matter does not fall within its areas of responsibility, referring it
to the appropriate agency for response.
Sec. 4. Interagency Working Group on Human Rights Treaties.
(a) There is hereby established an Interagency Working Group on
Human Rights Treaties for the purpose of providing guidance,
oversight, and coordination with respect to questions concerning
the adherence to and implementation of human rights obligations and
related matters.
(b) The designee of the Assistant to the President for National
Security Affairs shall chair the Interagency Working Group, which
shall consist of appropriate policy and legal representatives at
the Assistant Secretary level from the Department of State, the
Department of Justice, the Department of Labor, the Department of
Defense, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other agencies as the chair
deems appropriate. The principal members may designate alternates
to attend meetings in their stead.
(c) The principal functions of the Interagency Working Group
shall include:
(i) coordinating the interagency review of any significant issues
concerning the implementation of this order and analysis and
recommendations in connection with pursuing the ratification of
human rights treaties, as such questions may from time to time
arise;
(ii) coordinating the preparation of reports that are to be
submitted by the United States in fulfillment of treaty
obligations;
(iii) coordinating the responses of the United States Government to
complaints against it concerning alleged human rights violations
submitted to the United Nations, the Organization of American
States, and other international organizations;
(iv) developing effective mechanisms to ensure that legislation
proposed by the Administration is reviewed for conformity with
international human rights obligations and that these obligations
are taken into account in reviewing legislation under consideration
by the Congress as well;
(v) developing recommended proposals and mechanisms for improving
the monitoring of the actions by the various States, Commonwealths,
and territories of the United States and, where appropriate, of
Native Americans and Federally recognized Indian tribes, including
the review of State, Commonwealth, and territorial laws for their
conformity with relevant treaties, the provision of relevant
information for reports and other monitoring purposes, and the
promotion of effective remedial mechanisms; (vi) developing plans for
public outreach andeducation concerning the provisions of the ICCPR,
CAT, CERD, and other relevant treaties, and human rights-related
provisions of domestic law;
(vii) coordinating and directing an annual review of United States
reservations, declarations, and understandings to human rights
treaties, and matters as to which there have been non-trivial
complaints or allegations of inconsistency with or breach of
international human rights obligations, in order to determine
whether there should be onsideration of any modification of relevant
reservations, rights obligations, in order to determine whether there
should be consideration of any modification of relevant reservations,
declarations, andunderstandings to human rights treaties, or United
States practices or laws. The results and recommendations of this
review shall be reviewed by the head of each participating agency;
(viii) making such other recommendations as it shall deem
appropriate to the President, through the Assistant to the
President for National Security Affairs, concerning United States
adherence to or implementation of human rights treaties and related
matters;
(ix) and coordinating such other significant tasks in connection
with human rights treaties or international human rights
institutions, including the Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights and the Special Rapporteurs and complaints procedures
established by the United Nations Human Rights Commission.
(d) The work of the Interagency Working Group shall not supplant
the work of other interagency entities, including the President's
Committee on the International Labor Organization, that address
international human rights issues.
Sec. 5. Cooperation Among Executive Departments and Agencies.
All agencies shall cooperate in carrying out the provisions of
this order. The Interagency Working Group shall facilitate such
cooperative measures.
Sec. 6. Judicial Review, Scope, and Administration. (a)
Nothing in this order shall create any right or benefit,
substantive or procedural, enforceable by any party against the
United States, its agencies or instrumentalities, its officers or
employees, or any other person.
(b) This order does not supersede Federal statutes and does not
impose any justiciable obligations on the executive branch.
(c) The term "treaty obligations" shall mean treaty obligations
as approved by the Senate pursuant to Article II, section 2,
clause 2 of the United States Constitution.
(d) To the maximum extent practicable and subject to the
availability of appropriations, agencies shall carry out the
provisions of this order.
WILLIAM J. CLINTON
THE WHITE HOUSE,
December 10, 1998.
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Euro blamed for violent clashes at French post office
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 11:00:41 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Euro blamed for violent clashes at French post office
By Susannah Herbert in Paris
EUROPE'S first "euro-riot" erupted yesterday in Marseilles when
dozens of frustrated benefit claimants smashed up three post offices,
blaming the single currency for a major computer breakdown that has
blocked their payments since the new year.
Their protests, promptly suppressed by riot police, followed
unsuccessful attempts to claim unemployment benefit, child allowance
and income-support. Hundreds of thousands of savings-account holders
at La Poste - which doubles as one of France's biggest banks - were
also prevented from withdrawing money following the crash of the
computer system handling such transactions.
The system was adapted to make it "euro-compatible" last week
following the fixing of the franc-euro parities. Since the adaptation,
which required intensive work by thousands of technicians, the system
has repeatedly crashed, although La Poste has said this was a
coincidence.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=000144088531503&rtmo=3umxxY3M&atmo=rN
00bsGq &P4_FOLLOW_ON=/99/1/7/wrio07.html&pg=/et/99/1/7/wrio07.html
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: FEMA urges preparation for Y2K
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 11:01:55 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
FEMA urges preparation for Y2K
Agency says local communities need to focus on problem
By Stephan Archer
c 1999 WorldNetDaily.com
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is urging local communities,
the emergency services professionals and the general public to get
ready now for the Year 2000 computer bug problem.
Computer failures across the nation and world could be widespread if
the Y2K problem isn't resolved by Jan. 1, the agency warns. These
potential failures may result in serious consequences for the nation
at the turn of the millennium, says FEMA.
According to Mary Walker, a spokeswoman for FEMA in the Office of
Emergency Information, some of the consequences of Y2K-related
computer failures will be minimal, such as the shutdown of individual
personal computers. Others, however, could have dire consequences,
such as power and communication failures with immeasurable impact on
the nation's commerce and infrastructure.
According to FEMA, most states have expressed concerns about these
more serious consequences of Y2K. Power failures top the list of
issues raised by the states. FEMA said that many states are also
concerned about their limited resources to assess, test and remediate
systems.
Although many government agencies -- both statewide and nationwide --
are officially remaining optimistic that the computer problem will be
resolved by the Year 2000, Walker advised that everyone take
precautions as if planning for disaster.
"We recommend that people prepare for Y2K the way they would for any
other disaster," said Walker. "The thing to do is to get ready and
take the measures that need to be taken so that there isn't a
problem."
In other words, storing up supplies such as food, water, flashlights,
batteries, prescription drugs and warm blankets and making sure that
battery-operated radios work would be the normal procedure for
preparation of the potential millennial crisis.
Walker added that any problems associated with Y2K would be sporadic.
"We don't expect to see a Y2K problem on a massive scale," said
Walker.
Supporting this statement by Walker, a recent FEMA survey has shown
that although emergency management directors at the state levels are
well underway in their preparation for the Y2K crisis, the emergency
service systems at the local government level remain largely untested.
"Clearly, the most serious potential for problems is at the local
level, and this is what we are concerned about," said Mike Walker,
deputy director at FEMA headquarters in Washington.
Stressing the importance of Mary Walker's earlier statement about
preparation, Mike Walker said, "It is very important that counties,
municipalities, school districts and other organizations that have not
yet begun to work on Y2K issues, start now. While some failures will
be minor annoyances, some may have more serious consequences."
The Y2K computer bug is the result of many years of computer
programming in which year dates were recorded with two digits instead
of four. The year 1999, for example, would simply be 99.
Although computers were programmed in this fashion to save memory
space, this practice has now created the current Y2K problem because
computer functions that rely on year date records won't know if the
date record "00" (for the Year 2000) should actually be 1900 or 2000.
It's this programming method that can cause computer failures across
the world creating havoc for thousands of agencies, businesses and
individuals.
"Every community, every organization and every individual has an
obligation to learn more about their vulnerabilities and take action
to prevent potential problems before they occur," said Mike Walker.
"Potential problems need to be identified and addressed now."
For those who want to find out more about how Y2K could affect them, a
Y2K consumer hotline has been set up. They can be reached at
1-888-USA-4-Y2K or 1-888-872-4925. More information is available at
FEMA's website
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_exnews/19990108_xex_fema_urges_p.
shtml
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Will electricity flow in the year 2000?
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 11:08:20 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Will Electricity Flow In The Year 2000?
An Interview With Y2K Power Expert Rick Cowles
Electricity has emerged as the the biggest concern among all the
myriad of Y2K worries (after all, as has been often said, it doesn't
make much difference if systems are compliant if there's no
electricity to keep them running). Rick Cowles is widely considered
the leading expert on Y2K and power utilities in the US. He has
testified on Y2K before a Congressional subcommittee, speaks
frequently on the subject, and has appeared on various programs
(including Nightline, the Today show, and NPR's Morning Edition). He
has served as a Y2K Program Manager for DEC (Digital Equipment
Corporation) and a Y2K consulting program manager for DuPont Merck
Pharmaceuticals (here's his full biography). Cowles is the author of
the book Electric Utilities and Y2K, as well as the host of a new
video (Zapped- A Household Primer for Dealing with Long Power Outages)
which teaches people how to prepare for power outages beyond Y2K (bad
weather, etc). Both are available from his site.
The power industry itself obviously considers Cowles sufficiently
authoritative; NERC (the North American Electric Reliability Council,
the agency charged by the Department of Energy with handling Y2K and
the electric utility industry) links to his Web site from their own.
In addition, the President's Council On Year 2000 Conversion also
links to his site.
The idea behind this interview was to take an in-depth look at the
current state of the power industry, primarily in the US, although we
also touched on the subject of the international power situation.
Cowles has spent a lot of time "living on the edge" of this issue, as
he put it at one point in our conversation, and that, along with his
extensive experience in the industry, certainly qualifies him to make
some educated guesses about electric power and Y2K (although, as he
says, no one person has the final word on Y2K, including himself).
This is obviously a long interview (nearly 10,000 words). It was
conducted over the course of two phone calls (in late October and
mid-November). Over the several weeks, I cut down the (long)
transcripts of the conversations (while still maintaining the daily
site), and finalized the interview by e-mail with Rick (in my attempt
to be certain that I had properly represented his views as I cleaned
up and polished the literal text of our phone calls). I decided to
"modularize"the interview by subject, hopefully making it easier to
read. In this format, people can pass over subjects they consider of
little interest to them, while still easily finding the information
they consider valuable. We'll keep this interview posted on the site
until the end of January.
One final point: you may notice that one subject I referred to at
different times in the interview was the potential economic impact of
Y2K problems in the power grid. Y2K and the economy is one of the key
subjects I keep an eye on, so it naturally came up as a recurring
theme in my questions.
-Drew Parkhill
Includes:
*'The industry isn't as far down the path as their statements would
lead you to believe'
*The power industry's bell curve on readiness
*How can people determine their power company's readiness?
*Can power companies isolate themselves from the grid?
*More on how determining a power company's Y2K status
*What contingency plans are power companies developing? Can they go
manual?
*Other contingency plans: identifying risks- and the resulting economic
impact
*So who gets power if there are shortages?
*Are embedded systems a serious threat?
*The equipment backlog & post-Y2K embedded manufacturing deadline
*What about the power companies' "help" network & the "natural
disaster" analogy?
*How are things outside the US?
*More on the nuclear power industry
*The overall picture: the interdependency problem
*The Global Positioning System & the power grid
*The "Fix On Failure" strategy, and economic impact again
*Y2K "readiness" vs Y2K "compliance"
*What about Y2K's financial impact on utilities themselves?
*The media, personal research, & the causes of theY2K information
blackout
*The bottom line: how will Y2K play out for power?
http://www.cbn.org/y2k/cowles.htm
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: German Archeologists Find Palace of Ramses II
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 15:53:16 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Exodus 1:11 "...And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom
and Raamses."
--------------------
"In Exodus 1:11, the Hebrews are building Raamses, whence also they
are said to have set out on the Exodus (12:37); the 'land of Rameses'
(Gen 47:11) is a reflex of the same name and place. This place is
Pi-Ramesse ["Domain of Rameses"], the east-delta city built by
Rameses II." (Anchor Bible Dictionary, "Exodus")
--------------------
GERMAN ARCHEOLOGISTS FIND PALACE OF RAMSES II
Two feet below the dusty surface of the Nile delta, German
archeologists from the Roemer- und Pelizaeus-Museum in Hildesheim
(Lower Saxony) have discovered remnants of a 3,250-year-old palace
once occupied by the pharaoh Ramses II. The extraordinary find is the
result of more than ten years of digging in the ancient Egyptian city
of Pi-Ramesse, some 60 miles north of Cairo. Excavation leader Edgar
Pusch gave reporters a breathless account of the moment the team
realized what they had found. "It was December 6 at 7:00 in the
morning," he recalled. "A foreman said, there's a piece here, it looks
like something special. I thought, that's a cartouche. You can read
it. We used a blowdryer to blow away the silt. First a radiant
Egyptian blue appeared, than yellow and red. The name began with "Ra,"
and the Maat feather was on the hat." That day his Egyptian workers
got double wages and a round of champagne. The 4-by-10-inch cartouche
bearing the name of Ramses II, who ruled Egypt from 1290 to 1224 B.C.,
revealed the identity of the site's palatial ruins. Pusch said he had
a feeling he was on the right track when the team uncovered a gilded
floor. Its composition offers just a brief glimpse of the
indescribable wealth in the hands of the Egyptian pharaohs. The
engineers who led the construction of the palace must have poured a
sack of gold dust into some plaster, Pusch said. "The plaster was then
laid out as flooring, and there's hardly a cubic centimeter without
gold. When you walked across the floor, tiny specs of gold dust would
get released. The result was a Lurex (Day-Glo) effect." The palace
ruins seem to confirm legends describing Pi-Ramesse as a city where
even the dust in the streets was made of gold.
Pusch said the palace has many rooms, and the 6-feet-thick sandstone
walls were "exquisitely constructed, plastered and decorated with
polychrome murals." Fine ceramics and statuettes are also among the
team's finds. Yet the sons of Ramses II don't seem to have been
particularly impressed by their father's opulent home. Archeological
records suggest they tore the palace down, hauled away the larger gold
pieces for recycling, and built a 1200-square-foot horse stall on top
of the golden floor.
The German team hopes their recent discovery will attract more private
funding so that excavations in the area can continue. Three years ago,
Pusch notes, American archeologist Kent Weeks was flooded with offers
of financial support after he discovered the tomb of the sons of
Ramses II. "You don't find a palace of Ramses II every day," he
explained. "The name of an expedition sponsor will have a permanent
place in the cultural history of humanity."
THE WEEK IN GERMANY
German Information Center
871 United Nations Plaza, New York NY 10017
Editors: David Lazar, Margaret Dornfeld
Date: January 8, 1999
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: News: Jordan to hand over land records to PA
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 16:31:47 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Jordan To Hand Over Land Records to Palestinian Authority
Jerusalem al-Quds in Arabic 4 Jan 99 p 2
Report from Amman on "Jordan handing over land records to
Palestinians"
Jordan intends to hand over to the Palestinian Authority copies
of all the documents and registries of West Bank land up to 1967 and
will provide the Palestinian Authority with any document it may
request relevant to the title deeds and types of West Bank land.
Jordanian sources have said that Jordan will supply the
Palestinians with documents and registries pertaining to Palestinian
state land as the situation was in 1967, provided that the
Palestinians request so. The sources asserted that Jordan will
cooperate with the Palestinian Authority to the fullest extent
possible on this matter.
The Palestinian Authority is seeking to retrieve all the records
pertaining to the West Bank land for 1967, particularly the state land
whose area is estimated at well over 80 percent of the total
Palestinian lands. By this measure, the Palestinian Authority seeks to
keep under control certain practices currently being carried out
whereby offices of real estate commission agents are selling land
without the knowledge of their original owners. Furthermore, these
offices are engaged in forgery and imposture transactions.
It is noteworthy that the West Bank was part of Jordan from 1950
up until the Israeli occupation of 1967. Since 1967, the Israeli
occupied West Bank continued, from the legal standpoint, to be
administratively affiliated with Jordan until King Husayn made his
decision of legal and administrative disengagement between Jordan and
the West Bank in July 1988.
The aim of the Jordanian disengagement decision was to pave the
way for the proclamation of the Palestinian state which the
Palestinian National Council decided on during its meetings in
Algiers in late 1988.
It should be recalled that Jordan has at its disposal a copy of
the Palestinian land registration documents which were turned over to
Jordan by the British Mandate authorities prior to Britain's
withdrawal from Palestine to prepare the way for the proclamation of
the state of Israel in 1948.
Israeli & Global News
http://www.cmep.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: Weekend News Today items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 22:29:32 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Christians, Muslims share same beliefs, Vatican says
Weekend News Today
By Andy Laurents
Source: CNN Interactive
Fri Jan 8 , 1999 -- The Vatican, in a message to mark the Islamic holy
fasting month of Ramadan, said on Friday that Muslims and Christians
shared common beliefs which could be used as a basis to foster greater
understanding. "I write this message, conscious of the fact that
Christians and Muslims have not always loved and respected one another
as God asks," Cardinal Francis Arinze, head of the Vatican's Council
for Inter-Religious Dialogue, said in the message. "Unfortunately,
this lack of reciprocal love exists not just in history but also in
the present," he said. Arinze, whose native Nigeria has a large Muslim
community, said Christianity and Islam held similar beliefs about the
treatment of fellow human beings which could provide a basis for
greater understanding. "Affronts to love for one's neighbor are
numerous: ignorance of the needs of others, hatred, discrimination
based on sex, race or religion. Both religions condemn these faults,"
he said. "There is, between both our religions, deep agreement with
regards to the treatment of fellow human beings. Is there not here a
vast domain of collaboration which could be developed between Muslims
and Christians?" Editors note: The unification of the worlds main
religions continues to be spearheaded by the Vatican.
US Blames Israel for "Freeze" on Wye
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: IsraelWire
Fri Jan 8 , 1999 -- The United States Department of State has
indicated its satisfaction with PLO Authority (PA) compliance and has
expressed its dissatisfaction with what is calls Israel's freeze of
the Wye implementation. In addition, the Clinton administration has
rejected Israel's opposition to the possibility of a unilateral
declaration of statehood by the PA, which State Department
spokesperson James Rubin called a "new condition" which was being
added to the Wye agreement by Israel. Israel is standing firm in its
position, and maintains that a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian
state would be a gross violation of Wye, and rejected the US
criticism.
British-Japanese agree on the need to implement Wye
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: Arabic News
Fri Jan 8 , 1999 -- Britain and Japan on Wednesday underlined the
importance of implementing the Wye River agreement between the
Palestinians and the Israelis without imposing any new conditions.
This was expressed during the talks held in London on Wednesday
between Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura with his British
counterpart Robin Cook before the former headed to the Middle East for
a tour that will cover Egypt, Syria, Jordan and Israel. The two
ministers also stressed the importance of supporting and encouraging
other main parties concerned with the Middle East peace process,
especially Jordan. Concerning Iraq, the British Foreign Ministry said
that the two ministers held identical positions on the need to
continue further international pressure on Iraqi President Saddam
Hussein to carry out his obligations towards the UN. Komura and Cook
at the same time indicated the need to back international efforts to
meet the humanitarian requirements of the Iraqi people. Comments from
the two ministers came following the recent escalation between Iraq
and the US and Britain.
Weekend News Today
http://upway.com/cgi-bin/went
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