BPR Mailing List Digest: 11/22/99

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
November 22, 1999

Digest Home | 1999 | November, 1999

To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Religion Today items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 08:44:03 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

C U R R E N T N E W S S U M M A R Y
by the Editors at ReligionToday.com

November 22, 1999

Preaching the Gospel in Israel would be a crime under a proposed
law. The Knesset Internal Affairs Committee held a hearing Nov.
10 on a bill that would impose prison sentences for any kind of
direct or indirect evangelistic activity. It was proposed by
Rabbi Porush of the National Religious Party, Newsroom said.
...The bill calls for a five-year sentence for those convicted of
trying to persuade an Israeli citizen to change faiths, 10 years
for tying to convert a minor or "needy" person, 3 years for using
advertising to encourage people to change faiths, and 1 year for
bringing a minor or "needy" person to an event sponsored by a
religious group other than their own. It also calls for a 10-year
sentence for someone convicted of persuading someone to change
faiths, even if the conversion occurs outside of Israel.
...Porush said he believes the bill will pass the first of four
votes in the legislature. Former Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu and his cabinet approved a similar measure that was
ultimately withdrawn in 1998 (see link #1 below). The Israeli
government has received a flood of mail and faxes opposing
anti-missionary legislation, Newsroom said.

God is described as a mother in a new prayer used by the Church
of England. Bishops, who rejected a similar prayer in 1996,
overwhelmingly approved the prayer at the church's General Synod
Nov. 18, The Times of London said. The prayer reads: "As a mother
tenderly gathers her children, you embraced a people as your
own."
...Bishops denied a feminist influence. "Is it not vital to have,
in at least one Eucharistic prayer today, some image of
motherhood of feminine imagery," Rt. Rev. Richard Harris, who
proposed the prayer, said. Old Testament and New Testament
writers used the image of motherhood to refer to God, advocates
of the prayer said. Jesus said he longed to gather his people
"even as a hen gathereth her chicken under her wings," in the
book of Matthew, they noted. In Isaiah, the image of a mother
suckling her child is used to describe God's compassion for His
people.
...The prayer is one of eight to be included in the church's new
book, Common Worship, a collection to be used on lap-top and
palm-held computers. Church members can buy the book on
software
disks or download it off of the World Wide Web, and scroll along
through the service from their pews.

The federal government is giving churches money to strengthen
fathers and their families. The U.S. House of Representatives
approved the Fathers Count Act Nov. 10. It gives churches,
synagogues, and other houses of worship federal funding to
support non-religious ministries to fathers and families,
Associated Baptist Press said. An amendment to require houses of
worship to establish separate entities before they perform
secular work was defeated.
...Allowing churches access to federal funds threatens their
independence, some religious groups say. It inevitably will lead
"to government control and oversight of religion," Melissa Rogers
of the Baptist Joint Committee said. Legislators acknowledge that
groups that accept the money will be regulated. "If it's federal
dollars, you are accountable," Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-Conn.) said.
Many religious organizations have not applied for federal funds
made available to them under a 1996 welfare reform law because
they don't want the government interfering in their work, ABP
said.
...Aside from questions of government intrusion, the programs are
a good idea, supporters say. At the grass-roots level "the
organizations that are by far the most effective are
faith-based," Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) said.

RELATED LINKS:
1: http://www.religiontoday.com/Archive/NewsSummary/view.cgi?file=19990413.brf.html

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========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Nov 22, 1999 TV Programs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 08:44:03 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

9:00 PM Eastern

PBS - FRONTLINE - "Apocalypse!" - Scholars examine the
origins of the Book of Revelation and how it has shaped
Western perceptions of the apocalypse.(CC)

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Infobeat News items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 08:55:54 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

*** Unity urged against Christianity

LUMBINI, Nepal (AP) - Three weeks after the pope called for
missionaries to spread Catholicism throughout Asia, Hindu and
Buddhist priests Sunday passed a resolution to stay united against
proselytizing. The pledge made by 1,000 delegates from across
Asia came at the end of a three-day conference in southern Nepal.
It made no direct reference to Pope John Paul II, who made the call
during his visit to New Delhi earlier this month. But the sense of
crisis within Asian religions was evident throughout the conference
at this small town close to Nepal's border with India, the birthplace
of Gautama Buddha. During the assembly, delegates publicly and
privately said they were concerned by the pope's comments. Many
described conversions as a "war against Hindus and Buddhists"
and a "spiritual crime." See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562194429-7f4

*** NBC runs disclaimer on Y2K movie

NEW YORK (AP) - It's only a movie. That was the gist of the
disclaimer NBC ran Sunday night before airing "Y2K," a TV movie
about a world gone haywire on New Year's Eve 1999. "This
program is a purely fictional thriller," said the disclaimer. "The
characters and situations are not based on fact. This program does
not suggest or imply that any of these events could actually
occur." The Y2K computer bug is a result of programming
shortcuts that used two digits to denote the year. Experts have
warned that systems could fail if computers are not fixed to
properly read 2000. In the movie, starring Ken Olin and Joe Morton,
a chunk of the East Coast is hit by power outages, and nuclear
meltdown threatens when computers misread 2000 as 1900. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562199233-a35

*** Arnold faces devil in new film

NEW YORK (AP) - Arnold Schwarzenegger takes on another
mighty foe in his latest action film, but the actor says the sparks
really fly when he argues with his wife, Maria Shriver. "Maria's very
strong-willed, and I am, too," Schwarzenegger said in an interview
in Sunday's edition of the New York Daily News. "When we have
disagreements, people run out of the room." In the upcoming
thriller, "End of Days," which opens Wednesday, the actor finds an
on-screen villain in the devil. "I've fought every conceivable enemy,"
he said. "Here was a chance to fight someone really big." It's a
departure from the comic book-like violence that has been his
hallmark. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562188888-be1

*** 4,000-year-old palace found in Syria

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) - Archaeologists have discovered the
ruins of a royal palace believed to be 4,000 years old near
Damascus, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported Saturday. It
said "highly valued ruins" were discovered by a joint German,
Italian and Syrian expedition in Qatanah, about 12 miles southwest
of the Syrian capital. The palace dates back to 2000 B.C., the
news agency said. It did not give a more precise year or say which
ruler built it. Historians believe that the Amorites, who came from
the Arabian peninsula around 2100 B.C., were the first important
Semitic settlers in the area, and that they established many small
states. The palace contains a throne hall that is 70 feet by 132 feet
with 6-foot high adobe walls, the agency said. In the center of the
hall, an unbroken jar with "amazing decoration" was found stuck to
the ground, the agency said. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562168247-89f

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Russia's Military Gets Tough, Yeltsin Yields
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 12:22:25 -0500

From: owner-bpr@philologos.org

Russia's Military Gets Tough, Yeltsin Yields

NewsMax.com
November 22, 1999

Why did Russian President Boris Yeltsin storm out on Western
leaders last week as they scolded him to end his war in Chechnya?

Was it because, as he bellowed back, he wants them to butt out
of Russia's business in its own Caucasian backyard?

Or was it because he was afraid they would find out he is no
longer effectively in charge of the Russian military?

And why has Russia's military in recent months stepped up test
intercontinental ballistic missile launches -- and deployed
submarines and aircraft -- in ways reminiscent of the Cold War?

The international press, which often pays closer attention to
Russian-American relations than do newspapers in the United
States, is painting an unsettling picture of a more-aggressive
military now wagging Russia's civilian government. The growling
Russian bear has returned.

Full story:
http://newsmax.com/articles/?a=1999/11/21/160117

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Israel moves toward abolishing 51-year-old state of emergency
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 12:26:23 -0500

From: owner-bpr@philologos.org

Israel moves toward abolishing 51-year-old state of emergency
By SARI BASHI

JERUSALEM (November 22, 1999 6:18 a.m. EST
http://www.nandotimes.com) - Calling it a step toward protecting
human rights, Israel's government recommended legislative
procedures Sunday that would abolish the country's 51-year old
state of emergency...If parliament adopts the recommendation,
the state of emergency would expire on July 28, 2000.

Full story:
http://www.nandotimes.com/noframes/story/0,2107,500060144-
500099295-500408995-0,00.html

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Religions see the end through many lenses
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 12:37:27 -0500

From: owner-bpr@philologos.org

Religions see the end through many lenses

11/20/99
By Michael E. Young / The Dallas Morning News

In the midst of millennial fever, with all of its apocalyptic
predictions, it's easy to forget this is primarily a Christian
phenomenon.

While other major religious traditions teach about the "end
times," none looks toward the year 2000 as anything but a turn
of the calendar -perhaps because none use the Western calendar
to mark religious traditions.

Still, Judaism and Islam offer some remarkable parallels to
Christianity, including the Muslim belief in the second coming
of Jesus. But the differences in basic theology result in
different views on how the world will end.

Full story:
http://www.dallasnews.com/religion/1120rel2theend.htm

-----------

And while at Dallas Morning News you may want to read up
on this story as well:

Apocalypse when?
As 2000 approaches, Christians remain divided over the Book of
Revelation

11/20/99
By Kimberly Winston / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning
News

It is a book that abounds in some of the most vivid and
terrifying images in Western literature - many-headed beasts,
sword-tongued avengers, tortured men and women burning in lakes
of fire and a Beast who would conquer the earth by plagues and
war.

The Revelation of St. John the Divine - the Bible's final
chapter - also speaks of a 1,000-year rule of Christ and of an
apocalyptic battle that heralds a "new heaven and new earth."

Are the images literal predictions of things to come in the
21st century or beyond? Are they allegorical renderings of the
pull between good and evil? Or might they merely depict events
and crises of the first century?

After 2,000 years, Christians still can't get on the same page
when it comes to Revelation.

Full story:
http://www.dallasnews.com/religion/1120rel1revelations.htm

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Stratfor Analysis: From Jerusalem to Grozny
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 12:38:46 -0500

From: owner-bpr@philologos.org

http://www.stratfor.com/

STRATFOR.COM
Global Intelligence Update
November 22, 1999

From Jerusalem to Grozny: Replotting the Eastern Hemisphere's
Pivot

Summary:

Draw a circle with a thousand-mile radius around Ankara,
Turkey. That circle is the pivot of the Eastern Hemisphere. It
is the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa, and the place
where empires are made and broken. What would be minor elsewhere
can be of enormous significance within this pivotal circle.
During the 1980s, ancient feuds between tiny Lebanese clans had
global significance. Today, hatreds in Kosovo trigger major
powers to massive exertion. Following the retreat of the Russian
empire, the area of significant instability has shifted to the
west and north of Turkey. The Golan Heights has become globally
insignificant. The futures of Grozny and Sarajevo have become
vital. Understanding this is the key to policy making today.

Analysis:

This week's visit to Turkey by OSCE nations' leaders gives us
an opportunity to consider some of the extraordinary
geopolitical shifts currently under way. Ever since the Cold War
ended, we have been dealing with places that history seemed to
have buried generations ago. Who, in 1985, would have imagined
world leaders obsessed with cities like Sarajevo, Pristina and
Grozny? Who would have thought that Beirut, Damascus and
Jerusalem would be relegated to the sidelines and that a meeting
of world leaders would deal with them only in passing. It is
extraordinary how a decade has reshaped the geography of crisis.

This redirection of leaders' attention represents a fundamental
shift in the geopolitics of the region where Asia, Europe and
Africa meet, the pivot of the Eastern Hemisphere. At the center
is Turkey, host of the OSCE summit. Also in this pivot are the
Levant countries, the eastern coast of the Mediterranean, the
highway to and from Egypt and Africa, including Syria, Lebanon
and Israel. To the east is Iran, the land route to India and the
rest of Asia. To the northwest are the Balkans and the trans-
Danubian countries, the road to and from Europe. And finally, to
the north is the Caucasus region, the road to and from the
Russian heartland. (See the map at
[http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/middle_east_an
d_asia/Middle_East98.jpg ]

If you drew a circle with a 1,000-mile radius and Ankara as the
centerpoint, it would contain both the crossroads of the Eastern
Hemisphere and the persistent center of political crisis since
Roman times. The circle, of course, does not contain every
trouble spot in the world, but over the centuries, every inch of
it has been a focus of conflict. Empires have been created and
destroyed in this region. No global power can exist that does
not define its policy in the Eastern Hemisphere. No nation can
have a policy in the Eastern Hemisphere without a coherent
policy in the hemisphere's pivot. A coherent policy necessitates
understanding the hemisphere's dynamic.

The region abounds in small, fragmented and hostile nations, an
inevitable result of its geography. The creation of a European,
African or Asian empire south of the Himalayas requires securing
this region. Would-be conquerors must subjugate either a
significant portion or its entirety, or else they must form
alliances with strategic elements. The ability of these nations
to survive over time is reinforced by topography. The area is
replete with rugged mountains and desolate deserts, making it
difficult to mount conclusive military operations. In this
terrain, nations can survive endless shifts in the political
winds.

From the Balkans to the Caucasus, and to the Lebanese
highlands, a dizzying array of ancient peoples live in close
contact. They generally despise one another with a passion
difficult for outsiders to grasp. Each clan or nation has a
thousand years of resentment toward their neighbors piled up.
Each can name a thousand atrocities committed against it. Each
justifies its own atrocities as just retribution. Any outsider
trying to develop a moral calculus for assigning blame will
quickly go mad.

The intractable, petty regional geopolitics makes it a good
place for outsiders to avoid. But that is impossible. Europe
cannot be secured without blocking the Balkans. Russia cannot be
secure with the Caucasus in chaos. Israel or Egypt cannot be
secure if the Lebanese mountains are uncontrolled. The defense
of the Persian Gulf begins in the hills north of Baghdad.
Nations do not go into the region seeking conquest. They go to
protect their conquests. They therefore never bring enough force
to settle anything and they leave behind debris of empire. The
term petty, we should add, is not meant to be derogatory, but
merely connotes the scale of regional interests compared with
the grand geopolitics of global forces.

To understand the region, it is important to understand the
interplay between the regional geopolitics and the grand
geopolitics of the global system. Relations among the native
regional powers are a permanent feature. As great empires rise,
they intrude, taking advantage of local animosities to build
their own power. Empires reshape the region, but are also
reshaped in the process. Grand geopolitics rise and fall. Petty
geopolitics last forever.

The last generation's regional geopolitics were defined by the
collision of the Soviet and American empires. At the end of
World War II, the United States chose to defend Western Europe
by building a defensive line surrounding Russia. The defense of
Western Europe depended on a coalition stationing forces in
western Germany. But Western Europe would quickly collapse if
the Soviets were able to strike at its southern coast. The
defense of the Mediterranean began by preventing Russian access
to ports. Three nations were critical to this: Yugoslavia,
Greece and Turkey. In other words, the United States was forced
to move into the pivot of the hemisphere to defend Western
Europe - a classic case of being drawn into the pivot for
reasons having nothing to do with any regional interest.

During the late 1940s, the Soviets urgently tried to seize the
region. They sponsored civil wars in Greece and Turkey.
Yugoslavia had a communist government, but unlike the rest of
Eastern Europe, it had liberated itself from Germany, and
understood that permitting Russian access to its ports would
mean the end of autonomy. It adopted a strategy of armed
neutrality, with a defensive posture directed toward the
Russians and quietly coordinated with NATO. The Greek and
Turkish insurrections were suppressed, and the American
containment line effectively ran through the heart of the
region, cutting the Caucasus in half and extending through Iran,
anchored on the mountains of northern Pakistan.

The failure of the Soviets to penetrate the region caused them
to pursue a fall-back strategy designed to encircle Turkey.
During the late 1950s, the Soviets participated in the creation
of anti-U.S. governments in both Syria and Iraq. Strategically,
this made perfect sense. Turkey was blocking Soviet expansion
southward. By trying to sandwich Turkey between Soviet clients
to the south, the Soviets hoped to increase pressure on Turkey
and, with some luck, cause Turkey to buckle under pressure.

The change in Syria's and Iraq's orientation increased U.S.
dependence on Israel, Saudi Arabia and Iran. Each of these drew
Syrian and Iraqi forces away from the Turkish border, decreasing
pressure on Turkey. Thus, where Israel was of minor strategic
importance to the United States in the 1950s, by the mid to late
1960s it had become a key strategic asset. Russia responded by
trying to create a Pan-Arab movement, primarily against Israel
but focused on conservative Arab states like Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait, and Iran as well.

During the Cold War, therefore, the focus of geopolitical
activity was south of Turkey. The line running from Yugoslavia,
along the Black Sea to the Turkish-Russian border in the
Caucasus was frozen in place. Nothing was happening on either
side of the frontier. The active area of the pivot was directly
south of Turkey. The core issues, therefore, involved the Arab-
Israeli conflict, the status of Lebanon and the Kurdish
question. But the underlying issue was the ability of Turkey to
contain Russia.

It is important to understand that none of the petty
geopolitical issues of the region were abolished. From Bosnia to
Armenia, the grand geopolitical forces in place had simply made
them inoperable. Those same forces, for their own reasons,
magnified the Arab-Israeli conflict out of all regional
proportions. Recall how in the 1980s, conflicts within the
Maronite Christian community of Lebanon had become globally
significant.

Today, the global significance of that conflict has ceased,
although it retains its regional importance. Following the Cold
War, the grand geopolitics of the region changed dramatically,
as the Russian empire retreated from its old frontiers. The
withdrawal of Soviet troops from Hungary ended the threat of a
Soviet invasion of Yugoslavia. Russia's withdrawal from the
Caucasus republics into the northern portions that rest inside
of the Russian Federation ended the threat to Turkey.

Russia's collapse meant that Turkey, in the role it occupied
from 1948 to 1992, was no longer relevant. With pressure
released on its northern frontier, Syria and Iraq became the
vulnerable countries. Syria was now sandwiched between Israel
and Turkey. Iraq was sandwiched between U.S. forces to the south
and Turkish and U.S. forces to the north, not to mention Iran to
the east.

With the Soviets out of the way, the Arab-Israeli conflict
ceased to be globally significant. Whether the Golan Heights
belongs to Israel or Syria is interesting for the two countries'
residents, but not to anyone else. The Lebanese civil war ceases
to represent a strategic challenge to the United States, but is
instead a minor regional squabble.

At the same time, the rest of the pivot becomes extremely
important. The withdrawal of the Russians from their imperial
frontiers released the pressure on Yugoslavia, allowing it to
shatter into its constituent, antagonistic parts. Similarly, the
area north of Turkey has thawed, with the entire Caucasus in
chaos, including those parts inside of the Russian Federation
itself.

It is clear that the area south of Turkey is now of minimal
significance to the grand geopolitics of the region. In spite of
reflexive U.S. involvement, minimal global interests are
involved. But less clear are U.S. strategic interests in the
Balkans. The only rational reason to move into the region is to
protect one's sphere of influence against another great power.
U.S. involvement in the Balkans makes sense as a preventive
measure should the Russian empire return to Romania and
Bulgaria. But it is not clear that the United States is acting
with this in mind.

Events north of Turkey have the potential to be critically
important. The Russian attack on Chechnya represents a strategic
decision indicating Russia believes the empire's disintegration
has reached its limit. Chechnya will not be permitted to become
independent. What must be understood, however, is that as long
as the area between Turkey and Russia remains fragmented as a
series of small nations, Russian control over Chechnya or
Dagestan will never be truly secure. Russian frontiers went as
far south as they did for a reason. If Russia plans to keep
Chechnya, the geopolitical logic will draw them south, back to
the Turkish frontier.

Turkey has an interest in a buffer zone between itself and
Russia. Turkey has an interest in the Balkans, where it has sent
peacekeepers, and where Muslims see Turkey as a defender of
their interests. Turkey has an interest in northern Iraq and in
the Kurds. As the Russians become more active, their interest
and Turkish interests will inevitably collide. Russian support
for Iraq, for example, will be partly conditioned on tying down
Turkey.

As the conversation shifts from Jerusalem to Grozny, two issues
emerge. The first is the Turkish question. As the center of the
pivot, what, if anything are Turkey's policies and capabilities?
The second question concerns the United States. As the only
superpower, and the effective owner of the epoch's grand
geopolitics, what are its designs for the region? What is the
U.S. policy in the Caucases? At what point will it shift its
attention from last generation's issues (Israel, Iraq) to the
next generation's (Armenia, Georgia). This is happening, to be
sure, but it is a diffused shift, without a clear focus.

The regional conflicts will never go away. Israelis and
Palestinians will continue to hate each other, as will Albanians
and Serbs, Armenians and Turks, and so forth. No person in his
or her right mind goes into the Eastern Hemisphere's pivot with
the hope of ending hatred. One goes there as a last resort, in
pursuit of an interest that cannot be secured any other way.
That is what led the United States into the region after World
War II. Now, the real question is simple: does the United States
have any interest in the region and if so, what is it? And if
the United States has no interest in the region, then what are
the forces that will shape the intractable, petty geopolitics of
the hemisphere's pivot, the thousand-mile radius around Ankara?

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - What's New at BPR?
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 15:29:31 -0500

From: owner-bpr@philologos.org

Bible Prophecy Research
Additions and updates made since Nov 9, 1999
Issue #35
November 22, 1999
=========================

Greetings folks! Here's the latest additions and revisions
to our site:

> Added: "...in the twinkling of an eye..."
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/t009.htm

"The Amidah is broken up into eighteen benedictions with the
12th being the one we are concerned with in this article. The
Birkath-ha-Minim is the 'Benediction Concerning Heretics'
although in many sources it is referred to as the "curse on the
Christians."

-----

> Added: "Look to the Skies (Week of Nov 14, 1999)"
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/Sky_Signs/ss-016.htm

A look at noteworthy astronomical events, according to Sky &
Telescope, for the week of November 14th.

-----

> Added: "...a new name..."
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/n013.htm

(Revelation 2:17) He that hath an ear, let him hear what the
Spirit saith unto the churches...and will give him a white
stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth
saving he that receiveth it.

-----

> Updated: Mark
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/m002a.htm

We added the following link to this file:

S.C.A.N. INDIVIDUAL MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY F.A.Q.
(Frequently Asked Questions)
http://www.networkusa.org/fingerprint/page5a/fp-chip-faq.html

===========
MISC SITE INFO

1. Added: "The Letters to the Seven Churches" by W.M. Ramsay
http://philologos.org/__eb-lttsc

The complete title of this 1904 work by Ramsay, prepared and
edited for online viewing by Moza, is "The Letters to the Seven
Churches of Asia and their place in the plan of the
Apocalypse."

2. Added the following links to our "tools" page:

Dictionaries and Reference Texts
http://www.ccomm.com/~users/cchamberlin/cac/dictionary.html

Dogpile.com (per request)
http://www.dogpile.com

===========
BOOK RECOMMENDATION

Eyewitness to Jesus : Amazing New Manuscript Evidence About the
Origin of the Gospels
by Carsten Peter Thiede (Contributor), Matthew D'Ancona

Hardcover (April 1996)
Doubleday
ISBN: 0385480512

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

"Christmas Eve 1994 would have come and gone like any other,
had it not been for three tiny papyrus fragments discussed in
The Times of London's sensational front-page story. The
avalanche of letters to the editor jarred the world into
realizing that Matthew d'Ancona's story was as big as the
discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The flood of calls received
by Dr. Carsten Peter Thiede, the scholar behind the story, and
the international controversy that spread like wildfire, give us
an inkling as to why the Magdalen Papyrus has embroiled
Christianity in a high-stakes tug-of-war over the Bible.

"Thiede and d'Ancona boldly tell the story of two scholars a
century apart who stumbled on the oldest known remains of the
New Testament--hard evidence confirming that St. Matthew's
Gospel is the account of an eyewitness to Jesus. It starts in
1901 when the Reverend Charles B. Huleatt acquires three pieces
of a manuscript on the murky antiquities market of Luxor, Egypt.
He donates the papyrus fragments to his alma mater, Magdalen
College in Oxford, England, where they are kept in a butterfly
display case, along with Oscar Wilde's ring. For nearly a
century, visitors hardly notice the Matthew fragments, initially
dated to a.d.180-200; but after Dr. Thiede redates them to
roughly a.d. 60, people flock to the library wanting to behold a
first-century copy of the Gospel.

"But what is all the fuss about? How can three ancient papyrus
fragments be so significant? How did Thiede arrive at this
radical early dating? And what does it mean to the average
Christian? Now we have authoritative answers to these pivotal
questions. Indeed, the Magdalen Papyrus corroborates the
tradition that St. Matthew actually wrote the Gospel bearing his
name, that he wrote it within a generation of Jesus' death, and
that the Gospel stories about Jesus are true. Some will
vehemently deny Thiede's claims, others will embrace them, but
nobody can ignore Eyewitness to Jesus.

AMAZON.COM CUSTOMER COMMENTS:

"This volume presents 'non- theological,' papyrological
evidence for the early dating (pre-70 AD) of the gospels.
Without theological bias, the authors have presented the
technical and scholarly evidence that revolutionizes New
Testament studies. It is my opinion, sadly, that many New
Testament scholars will ignore this volume because it overturns
the methodological procedures of the historical-critical school
of scholarly study."

"I am amazed that this book has not received more attention...
This book provides more evidence that the gospels were written
as eyewitness accounts. This is no surprise to evangelical
scholars, but it is more vindication nonetheless. The most
amazing fact to me continues to be the lack of attention to this
amazing find by the theological, cultural and media
establishments. It should rightly turn Biblical scholarship on
its head, but this age's disdain for truth in the face of
comfortable old paradigns (e.g. holding to the theory of
evolution despite mounting evidence that it is impossible in a
thousand different ways) is exasperating!!"

For further information and a Table of Contents:
http://philologos.org/guide/books/d'ancona.matthew.1.htm

Also available in video by The Learning Channel:
http://philologos.org/guide/videos/page2.htm

Additional book review found at:
http://criticalreviews.com/bookreviews1/etj.html

Although I haven't seen the video, I imagine it would
compliment the book quite well, especially when it gets
into the technical aspects of the Magdalen papyrus.

===========

"It has seemed to me fit and proper that [the gifts of God]
should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged with
one heart and one voice by the whole American people. I do,
therefore, invite my fellow citizens . . . to set apart and
observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of
thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in
the heavens."

--Thanksgiving proclamation, 1863
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

Have a good couple of weeks everyone!

=========
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========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Nov 23, 1999 TV Programs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 18:16:23 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

8:00 PM Eastern

PBS - INTIMATE STRANGERS: UNSEEN LIFE ON EARTH -
"Dangerous Friends and Friendly Enemies" - Infectious disease occurs
when microbes change.(CC)(TVG)

HIST - ANCIENT INVENTIONS - Fire; pyramids; flight
technology; weapons; tools; the quest for eternal
life.(CC)(TVG)

9:00

TLC - IN PURSUIT OF THE SHROUD - Scholars subject the
Shroud of Turin to a battery of tests to identify its
mysterious image.(CC)(TVG)

10:00

PBS - FRONTLINE - "Justice for Sale" - Money from
special interest groups threatens to compromise judicial
impartiality.(CC)

TLC - NEFERTITI: EGYPT'S MYSTERIOUS QUEEN -
Archaeologists search for the tomb of King Tut's
stepmother.(CC)(TVG)

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Infobeat News items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 19:55:26 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

*** Final Mideast status talks to begin

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) - Palestinian and Israeli negotiators
will start detailed negotiations next week in hopes of reaching a
February deadline on a final peace treaty framework, they said
Monday. So far the talks have touched in general on the sensitive
issues of Jerusalem, refugees, final borders, Jewish settlements
and water. The sides will go into painstaking details next Monday.
"We are going into a very crucial stage in our relationship, a very
important stage," said Israeli negotiator Oded Eran. Palestinian
negotiator Yasser Abed Rabbo said the Israelis presented their
position on some issues, but he would not give any details. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562208349-fde

*** Israel religious leaders seek peace

KURSI, Golan Heights (AP) - From the same Sea of Galilee shores
where Jesus preached his message of peace, religious leaders
have appealed to their followers to stop making religion a source of
conflict in the next millennium. Rabbis, imams, priests and
Buddhist monks - many from opposing religious and political
factions - attended the three-day conference. The Dalai Lama gave
the opening speech Sunday, urging people to use politics as a tool
for peace. Held at a fifth century Byzantine monastery built over the
spot where Christians say Jesus exorcised demons from a
possessed man, the gathering included unlikely hugs and
handshakes from leaders of rival and sometimes warring groups.
See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562208154-9f4
*** Also: Proselytizing criticized in Nepal, see
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562209442-002

*** Churches close throughout Holy Land

NAZARETH, Israel (AP) - Churches closed throughout the Holy
Land Monday as part of a dispute that has soured Christian-Muslim
relations and left Israel caught in the middle. At the heart of the
dispute is a controversy over what to build - a Muslim mosque or a
Christian visitors' plaza - on a plot of land in Nazareth, the town of
Jesus' boyhood. By closing the churches for two days, Christians
hope to draw the world's attention to what they say are growing
threats to their shrines. In Bethlehem, believed to be the site of
Jesus' birth, the small iron doors of the Church of the Nativity were
closed to dozens of would-be visitors. Pilgrims were also unable to
enter the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, on the site
where many Christians believe Jesus was crucified. The protest
may help spoil Israel's millennium pitch that Christians, Muslims
and Jews live in harmony. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562209054-742

*** Taiwan company uses cartoon Hitler

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - Adolf Hitler is one of this century's most
monstrous figures, but that didn't discourage a Taiwanese
company from using his image in an advertising campaign for
German-made electric space heaters. "We decided to use Hitler
because as soon as you see him, you think of Germany. It leaves
a deep impression," Yu-shan Shen, of the K.E. and Kingstone
trading firm in Taipei, said Monday. The company's subway ads in
Taipei feature a smiling caricature of the Nazi leader in a khaki
uniform and black jackboots, his right arm raised high in a salute.
Above him is a white space heater and the slogan "Declare war on
the cold front!" There are no swastikas in the ad, but the Hitler
figure wears a red band around his left arm with a white circle
bearing the name of the heater's manufacturer, DBK. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2562210594-79b

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

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