Digest Home |
2001 |
May, 2001
Throwaway bread wrappers carry gospel to hundreds of West African families
Adoption agency pioneers finding wombs for frozen human embryos
Violent kids, irresponsible parents, immoral society -- from dodgeball?
Federal judge blocks funds for embryonic stem cell research
Syria's Assad in Egypt for talks with Egyptian president
IDF to use emergency notices to draft reservists
EU signals tougher line on Israeli settlements and exports
IDF fires missiles at Palestinian targets in West Bank, Gaza
Bombs explode in Jerusalem, Gaza Strip
PA lobbying US for involvement in Mideast peacemaking
US Senators question aid to Egypt, Palestinians
NY politicians call for removal of Yasser Arafat bust from wax museum
Russia says it will back Annan for a second term
MICROSOFT ADOPTS EU's TOUGHER PRIVACY RULES
YAHOO SHRINKS NUMBER OF "ADULT" SERVICES
NEW DOMAIN NAMES COMING
To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Fatah Tanzim terrorize Palestinians in Bethlehem and Beit Jalah
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 14:02:37 -0400
--------
Fatah Tanzim terrorize Palestinians in Bethlehem and Beit Jalah
Aaron Lerner Date: 16 May 2001
Israel Radio reported today that Israeli security sources say Palestinians
living in Bethlehem and Beit Jalah are so frustrated with the reign of
terror they are subjected to by Yasser Arafat's Fatah Tanzim that they are
providing Israel with information so that they might be stopped from
attacking Israel.
The Palestinians are not just concerned about the return fire that Tanzim
attacks draw to Palestinian neighborhoods, they also complain of Tanzim
violence against their own community.
Recently a local Palestinian girl was raped by Tanzim members in the
Tanzim'
s club in Beit Jalah. The girl's family slaughtered her since the rape
defamed the family. No action was taken against the rapists.
The report also noted that Tanzim collects protection money from local
businesses. They also get payments from the PA for attacks against Israeli
targets. The reporter observed that while Arafat may not be able to
instantly halt Tanzim attacks, his control on the purse strings that PAY for
the attacks enable him to put a halt on the action within a short period of
time if he wants to.
Dr. Aaron Lerner, Director
IMRA (Independent Media Review & Analysis)
(mail POB 982 Kfar Sava)
Tel 972-9-7604719/Fax 972-3-5480092
INTERNET ADDRESS: imra@netvision.net.il
pager 03-6750750 subscriber 4811
Website: http://www.imra.org.il
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Subject: [bprlist] The Name Yeshua in Hebrew
From: "Moza"
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 14:03:57 -0400
--------
From: Mayim Hayim Ministries
Subject: The Name Yeshua in Hebrew
Shalom to all,
If you look at the Hebrew name of our Lord, Yeshua, you can see a wonderful
truth. It is: Yod Shin Vav Ayin.
Now a Yod stands for Hand. The Shin stands for El Shaddi,
and can be seen on just about every Jewish home in Israel. Vav is a picture
of a Nail, and Ayin stand for the Eye, meaning: to See.
Now, Hebrew is read backwards, so if you were to read these as pictures you
would read it this way: "See the Nail in El Shaddi's Hand." Yeshua!
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Subject: [bprlist] Mutant bacteria biowars threaten apocalypse now
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 14:14:41 -0400
--------
Mutant bacteria biowars threaten apocalypse now
Genetic engineers already have it within their grasp to devise a lethal
bio-weapon for terrorists and rogue states, the British science publication
Nature warns this week.
Small changes in the DNA of well-known bacteria and viruses could turn
these
agents into mass killers, the journal says.
The publication echoes warnings by a pair of Australian scientists, Dr Ron
Jackson and Dr Ian Ramshaw, who accidentally created an astonishingly
virulent strain of mousepox, a cousin of smallpox, among laboratory mice.
They realised that if similar genetic manipulation was carried out on
smallpox, an unstoppable killer could be unleashed. They decided to publish
their findings in January to draw attention to the potential misuse of
biotechnology.
Nature warns: "Making subtle genetic alterations to existing pathogens to
increase their virulence or durability in the environment, or to make them
harder to detect or to treat with drugs, is within the limits of today's
technology.
"With the decoding of a pathogen's entire genome now commonplace, and
transgenic techniques advancing all the time, some researchers believe that
the sinister potential of biology can no longer be ignored."
Biowarfare - use of germs or viruses such as anthrax or smallpox - has long
been considered by military strategists. However, the risk has increased
thanks to advances in knowledge about how genes work, new techniques for
moving pieces of DNA around, and the relative ease with which a rogue
organisation could build or hire a lab to build such a weapon.
Scientists interviewed by Nature ruled out, for the time being, the ability
to build new, artificial agents from a set of component parts.
A far simpler way would be to tweak the performance of an existing bacteria
to make it more resistant to antibiotics, they said.
The genetic sequences of bacteria such as tuberculosis, cholera, leprosy and
the plague are already in the public domain - as is that of a food poisoning
bug, Staphylococcus aureus, that is already becoming resistant to
antibiotics.
By identifying the genes from Staphylococcus aureus that make the bug
resistant, and inserting them into the other bacteria, a scientist could
make a killer for which there would be scant defence.
Dr Willem Stemmer, chief scientist with Maxygen, a California
pharmaceutical
research firm, used one of these techniques to explore how resistance genes
work, Nature reports.
He created a strain of the common intestinal bug Escherichia coli that was
32,000 times more resistant to the antibiotic cefotaxime than conventional
strains. He destroyed the superbug in response to the American Society for
Microbiology's concerns about potential misuse.
"It's time for biologists to begin asking what means we have to keep the
technology from being used in subverted ways," said Harvard University
molecular biologist Professor Matthew Meselson, who has often spoken of
the
dangers of biowarfare.
Agence France-Presse
http://www.smh.com.au/news/0105/17/world/world3.html
via: isml@yahoogroups.com
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NDIAGANIAO, Senegal (BP)--The 8-year-old boy waits impatiently, peeking
around his mother's skirt, as she buys a loaf of French bread. When he sees
the merchant wrap it in newsprint with a large picture of bread on it, a huge
smile breaks out.
He grabs the newsprint from his mother and runs through the crowded, open-
air market with his mother close behind. Cutting through a vegetable stand
and then dodging some stray goats, the two finally arrive at their destination --
a crowded table.
The boy pushes his way through the crowd of people and proudly says to the
man sitting at the table, "Here's my paper. I am here for my prize." His
mother quickly adds that they want prize number four.
Songo Faye looks up the family's name, enters the redeemable newsprint in
the record book and hands them the coveted prize -- a single Bible story
written in their own language, Sereer. There are more than 1 million Sereer
speakers in Senegal and Gambia. The majority have little or no access to
the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ.
"The Sereer want to know about God and Jesus," the evangelist says. "The
Bread of Life project is making it possible for many to hear."
A picture of a loaf of bread with the words "Bread of Life" adorns the front of
the newsprint. The inside print instructs participants to go to their nearest
distributor for a prize. The prizes are 14 different Bible stories and Bible verse
memory cards in the Sereer language.
Missionaries Phillip and Karen Brown came up with the idea for the bread
wrappers after seeing their own trash used as bread wrappers at the
marketplace. The Browns have served as missionaries in West Africa since
they were appointed in 1997 by the International Mission Board, a Southern
Baptist Convention agency supported by gifts through the Cooperative
Program and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering.
"They use anything they can find to wrap up the bread," Brown says. "I
watched one guy sit down and read his bread wrapper. I asked him why he
was reading a piece of trash. He answered that it had words on it -- so it
must be read."
The Bread of Life project is a natural fit for the Sereer, especially since
custom requires a person traveling to town or market to bring something
home that is not available in the villages -- bread.
One million wrappers were printed and distributed to bread vendors, free of
charge. Sereer evangelists and pastors man the distribution booths at each
market to give out the Bible stories and witness to any who will listen. There
also are distribution points in different villages.
Brown says the wrappers are currently being used in 10 markets, but
because each vendor attends a different market every day of the week,
almost all 160 Sereer markets are receiving the wrappers.
"This just amazes me how so many people from all over Sereer land are
being reached by this," he says. "The first year Karen and I were here, we
spent all our time driving to get to villages and didn't make it to half of them.
With this ministry, we have reached almost every village and have seen more
people than we ever thought possible."
Original plans called for printing Bible stories on the bread wrappers. But the
Browns opted to use a redeemable prize system because of the Sereer's
respect for Scripture.
"A Muslim wouldn't put the Koran on a bread wrapper; it would be degrading
to God," Brown says. "We wanted this to reach everyone, so [we] invented a
points and trading system."
After getting a bread wrapper, a Sereer turns it in for one of 14 Bible stories.
The evangelists keep records on what Bible stories each person has read.
The records allow them to know which villages are receiving the wrappers
and returning for more. Each story also has a study sheet for each
participant to fill out. When that is returned, more points are earned.
Once all 14 lessons are done, the participant has earned 50 points and the
privilege of the "Jesus" film coming to his village. The evangelists make the
film showing a huge celebration and bring other Christians to the village to
worship.
"We don't really know how many people are responding because we aren't
keeping track of numbers," Faye says. "I would say hundreds and hundreds
and hundreds.
"That one Bible story paper passes through 40 or 50 hands in each village
several times before the next story makes it to them," he says. "The story
on paper allows them to read it, think about it and understand it. We are
reaching whole households at a time."
"I've heard many of the old men say, 'If this is truly God, why is it not in our
language? Our God must speak Sereer or else how could he make us?'"
Brown says. "With all of our material in Sereer and the illustrations drawn by
a Sereer artist, we are welcome anywhere we go."
Less than 1 percent of the Sereer are evangelical Christians while 15 percent
are Catholic and 54 percent are Muslim. Missions researchers estimate 85
percent of the Sereer include animistic beliefs in their everyday religious
practices.
One of the biggest struggles the Browns face is getting the Sereer to
embrace Christianity as the "only" way to Christ. The tendency is to add
some Christian beliefs to their traditional beliefs in Pango, a mixture of fears
and superstitions.
Evangelists teach and help the people understand that ancestors and spirits
do not bring the peace they are searching for. One young boy read the
stories and constantly spoke with the evangelists about the Bible. After
months of quizzing the pastors, the boy announced that he and his family
were ready to be baptized.
"You see, many are interested in God," Faye says. "We just need to take
the Word to them."
----------------
Adoption agency pioneers finding
wombs for frozen human embryos
By Christine Hall
WASHINGTON (BP)--A California adoption agency thinks it has found a
solution to the dilemma of what to do with an estimated 100,000 frozen
human embryos "left over" from in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Adoption is more palatable to some couples than the choices offered by IVF
facilities, which include giving up the embryos for research; discarding them;
or blindly donating them to another couple.
"We're an adoption agency," JoAnn L. Davidson, director of the Snowflakes
Embryo Adoption Program, a project of the Nightlight Christian Adoptions
agency in Fullerton, Calif., said in a CNSNews.com story May 15. "We have
families coming to us from both sides [biological parents and adoptive
parents] and we do the matching."
Since the program started four years ago, Snowflakes has matched 30
genetic families with 22 adopting families, resulting in seven babies being
born. Couples who seek out Snowflakes are typically those who are unable
to provide eggs or sperm of their own.
Unlike the option of donation offered by many IVF clinics, adoption offers
genetic parents control over who can adopt their embryos and raise their
children. Genetic parents get to specify traits such as the age, religion and
years of marriage of the adoptive parents. Some have stipulated heterosexual
couples only.
The catalyst for creating the Snowflakes program was a British law
mandating that embryos left over after IVF must be discarded after five years.
"So they had a mass destruction of embryos in 1996," Davidson said. "I
know there were 5,000-some embryos that were destroyed."
That's when Nightlight's executive director and a prospective adopting couple
hatched the idea of adopting embryos.
"In 1997, one of our adopting families had been going through infertility and
needed an egg donor and didn't feel good about that," Davidson recounted to
CNSNews.com. "Her doctor said she could get embryos from another family.
She said, 'That's interesting, but could I know who that family is, like I could
in an adoption,' and he said, 'No.'
"So the idea had come up between the two of them in discussion that why
couldn't we know who the family is? Why can't we do this like an adoption?"
On Dec. 31, 1998, after two "transfers" of embryos, the first embryo adoption
was a success. The result was a little girl Davidson calls "Grace."
Four years later, Snowflakes is still one of a kind. Davidson has not heard of
any other embryo adoption program that mirrors the regular adoption process
by giving decision-making power to the genetic parents. And since laws
governing regular adoption do not apply to embryo adoption, the burden of
setting a precedent sits squarely on the shoulders of Snowflakes.
"We're hoping to set precedents that embryos are treated with the same
rights and respect that any other child placed for adoption is given," Davidson
said. "By using the same standards, we're saying, 'Hey, we believe these are
children; we believe they need to be safeguarded and protected like any
other child.'"
The standards include a home study, fingerprints for criminal background
checks, child abuse index screening, credit checks, references, employment
verification and meeting with social workers who help prepare adopting
parents for what it will be like to have an adopted child.
"When the legislators step in to say we need to decide what's going to
happen with embryos," Davidson said, "now, it's like, here it is! We've got 30
cases right here of how it's been handled."
The only opposition to embryo adoption that Snowflakes has encountered,
Davidson said, has come from a handful of Catholic laypeople that believe
that embryo adoption is wrong because the Catholic Church has condemned
IVF.
"Our response always is, well, premarital sex is wrong, and every teenager
who walks in here had premarital sex," Davidson said. "But we don't say,
'You're pregnant because of sin, so go away.' Our response to them is that
these embryos were created, they're children, they exist -- what would you
have us do?"
But critics of IVF may not be the only obstacles to adoption. In the midst of
the ongoing controversy over the use of human embryos for stem cell
research, researchers may come to view adoption as an unwanted
competitor.
"They're going to see us as a competitor if they want to look at it that way,"
said Davidson, who has a ready response for the court of public opinion.
"We have seven babies we can show you, and we have another five on the
way," she said. An important difference between adoption and research, she
said, is that adoption produces something tangible -- a child. The result of
research is "maybe, potentially somebody gets to walk that doesn't walk
now. But that's a maybe potential. Right now I've got 12 babies, and I've
matched 30 families with 22 adopting families."
----------------------
FIRST-PERSON
Violent kids, irresponsible parents,
immoral society -- from dodgeball?
By Tim Ellsworth
BENTON, Ill. (BP)--After witnessing episode after episode of gun-toting
students rampaging through the halls of their schools, it's comforting to know
someone has finally pinpointed the problem's source.
It's not what you might think.
The Austin, Texas, school district seems to believe the problem involves
more than lousy parents or gun-toting students who should held responsible
for their own actions or the disappearance of morals in virtually every aspect
of society.
The real culprit? Dodgeball.
In a May 6 New York Times story, Austin school officials seem to believe
dodgeball games create menacing students. "This is something that should
not be used in today's classroom, especially in today's society," curriculum
specialist Diane Farr told the newspaper. "With Columbine and all the
violence that we are having, we have to be very careful with how we teach our
children."
Austin is among several school districts that have banned the gym class
game because they consider it too aggressive and unwholesome in nature.
In Cecil County, Md., school officials have gone so far as to discourage all
"human target" sports, including football.
Let's think about this for a minute. If children have been playing dodgeball in
school for decades, and if school shootings like Columbine started only a
couple of years ago, it's probably a safe bet that harmless dodgeball games
aren't responsible for transforming children into cold-blooded killers.
Doesn't logic dictate something here? If a direct link between dodgeball and
a maniacal mindset in kids existed, wouldn't the school shootings have
started shortly after dodgeball was invented? How many people played
dodgeball as children and yet managed to become productive members of
society? Maybe we're all just adept at suppressing the bloodthirsty desires
instilled in us by throwing a rubber ball at a classmate.
People like Farr who come up with such notions would be better off
addressing more glaring shortcomings in society than dodgeball games.
There's no scarcity of problems to blame for tragic school shootings like
Columbine.
Blame it on absentee parents who never spend any time with their kids
because they're too busy working. Too many parents care more about their
personal fulfillment and career advancement than they do about their own
families. And too many parents think they're doing their job because they
buy their kids expensive gadgets like TVs, VCRs and CD players.
Blame it on graphic violence and sex in movies and music. Artists (in the
loosest sense of the word) like Marilyn Manson and Eminem glorify all that's
decadent and promote every kind of debauchery imaginable. And mindless
parents, clueless about what their children are absorbing, do nothing to keep
their kids from listening to this garbage. Of course, it's these same parents
who drop their kids off at the movie theater to watch raunchy movies they
have no business seeing. The old "garbage in, garbage out" credo is pretty
profound.
Blame it on a society that has abandoned God, morality and any belief in
absolute truth. Children aren't taught anymore that some things are right and
some things are wrong, period, because most adults don't believe that. Nor
are they taught that their actions come with consequences and that God has
certain expectations of people. As a result, children do what they want to do
without any regard for anyone else.
Blame it on any number of things. But please, don't blame it on dodgeball. --
30--
Ellsworth is a reporter for the Benton (Ill.) Evening News and a member of
Immanuel Baptist Church in Benton.
------------------
Federal judge blocks funds for
embryonic stem cell research
By Tom Strode
WASHINGTON (BP)--A federal judge has temporarily handed opponents of
research on human embryos a victory.
Royce Lamberth of the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia issued
an order May 9 blocking the federal government from funding embryonic stem
cell research until the Bush administration completes its review of
controversial guidelines permitting funds for such experimentation.
Foes of the research, which requires the destruction of human embryos,
applauded Lamberth's action, which came in a suit filed against the
Department of Health and Human Services and a subsidiary, the National
Institutes of Health.
"The court's stay is an encouraging sign. At least the court recognizes the
merits of the case," said C. Ben Mitchell, biomedical consultant for the
Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.
"This is a victory for ethics, science and the law," said Wendy Wright,
Concerned Women for America's communications director, in a written
release.
HHS is expected to complete its review of the NIH guidelines in June, HHS
Secretary Tommy Thompson said recently. Those guidelines were issued
last August under the Clinton administration to strong protests from
members of Congress and other opponents of embryonic stem cell research.
The foes argued the rules violate a federal law prohibiting funds for research
involving the destruction of human embryos. The ERLC and other opponents
of such research have called for President Bush to rescind those rules, but
he announced earlier this year HHS would review them. Whatever HHS and
the White House decide, Lamberth's order assures there will be no funding of
such research until a decision is announced based on the review.
"We are encouraged that funding for embryonic stem cell research is going
to be re-examined," said Mitchell, associate professor of bioethics and
contemporary culture at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in suburban
Chicago. "The court's stay will at least delay the destruction of human
embryos.
"We are hopeful that under Secretary Thompson's leadership NIH will
ultimately do the right thing and refuse to participate in research which is
illegal, immoral and unnecessary," Thompson said.
The suit contends funding the research is illegal, as well as "arbitrary and
capricious." Not only do the guidelines violate a congressional ban, but they
ignore the evidence that cells derived from sources not requiring the
destruction of human life are effective, the suit says. The parties in the suit
are Nightlight Christian Adoptions, a California agency that helps in the
adoption of live human embryos in storage at in vitro fertilization clinics; the
Christian Medical Association; adoptive or potentially adoptive parents of
human embryos; and David Prentice, an adult stem cell researcher at
Indiana State University.
The NIH rules issued last year allow funds for research using stem cells, as
long as the cells are procured, in the process destroying the embryos, when
using private funds.
Stem cells are primitive cells from which cells and tissue develop. Their
isolation in recent years has produced hopes for using them as
replacements to cure such afflictions as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's
disease and diabetes. Meanwhile, stem cells from other sources, such as
bone marrow, umbilical cord blood and placentas, have yielded effective
results without the ethical problems. In addition, recent tests showed human
fat also is able to produce cells.
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Subject: [bprlist] Weekend News Today items (5/16/01)
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 19:20:31 -0400
--------
Syria's Assad in Egypt for talks with Egyptian president
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: DPA/Ha'aretz
Wed May 16,2001 -- Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived in Egypt on
Wednesday for a visit that is expected to last two days. Bashar was met at
Sharm el-Sheikh airport by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. In a rather
unusal move, Mubarak sat behind the wheel of their Mercedes and drove the
car away from the aircraft to the VIP lounge, with Bashar sitting next to him
in the front seat. The two leaders were scheduled to have dinner later
Wednesday and meet for more talks Thurday.
Meanwhile Syrian official radio said the situation in the Middle East was
"very serious" and that Bashar's visit to Egypt was to coordinate stances to
encounter possible developments. "The situation [in the region] is
approaching the moment of explosion," Damascus Radio, which reflects
official views, said in a commentary.
Defence Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer warned Syria on Tuesday of the risks
posed by any new rocket attacks by the Lebanese guerilla group Hezbollah.
The radio accused the Israeli government of escalating the situation through
its racist and terrorist policy and threats by IDF generals to expand attacks
to include Syria and Lebanon. It added these developments necessitated
more coordination among Arabs and a reactivation of the resolutions of Arab
summits.
IDF to use emergency notices to draft reservists
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: Ha'aretz
Wed May 16,2001 -- Deputy Defense Minister Dalia Rabin-Pelossof said
Wednesday that the IDF will use emergency notices to call up military
reservists for duty. The notices will be used because government refusal to
extend the maximum length of the total tour of reserve duty to 46 days a
year, as requested by the IDF. Rabin-Pelossof said that, in light of the
Intifada, the IDF had asked to pass a bill extending the number of days from
30 to 40, and then again from 40 to 46 days. When the request was
declined, IDF Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz decided to take advantage of a sub-
article in the law, which permits the IDF to call up reservists for an extra 7
days beyond the maximum amount that can be served.
EU signals tougher line on Israeli settlements and exports
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: DPA/Ha'aretz
Wed May 16,2001 -- European Union officials, voicing increased impatience
over expanding settlements in Gaza and the West Bank, warned
Wednesday of tougher action against exports from the Jewish territories.
"Settlements are a violation of international law that cannot be allowed to
continue unabated," European External Relations Commissioner Chris
Patten said in an unusually robust public rebuke. The settlement activities in
Gaza, the West Bank including East Jerusalem and on the Golan Heights
"are illegal under international law and constitute an obstacle to peace,"
Patten told the European Parliament.
Exports from the settlements could not therefore benefit from special tax and
customs rebates earmarked for Israeli goods under an EU-Israel cooperation
treaty signed in 1995, Patten warned. "Preferential access to EU markets for
exports originating in Israeli settlements... contravenes agreed rules of origin
since these territories do not form part of the state of Israel under public
international law," the Commissioner told the EU assembly. "The EU must
uphold the rule of law," the EU foreign policy chief cautioned.
IDF fires missiles at Palestinian targets in West Bank, Gaza
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: Ha´aretz/Reuters
Wed May 16,2001 -- IDF helicopter gunships attacked Wednesday night
Palestinian Authority targets in the West Bank city of Jenin. A Palestinian
security building, which an IDF spokesman described as used to
manufacture weapons such as mortars, was bombed. IDF helicopter
gunships pounded a Palestinian security post in the Gaza Strip with missiles
earlier Wednesday evening, Palestinian police said.
They said helicopters fired at least four missiles at the Palestinian Preventive
Security headquarters in the Jabalya refugee camp in the northern Gaza
Strip. An eyewitness said he saw one missile flying towards northern Gaza
and other Palestinian witnesses said they saw two other missiles. Israel
Radio reported that four Palestinians were lightly wounded.
Bombs explode in Jerusalem, Gaza Strip
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: Jerusalem Post
Wed May 16,2001 -- A bomb exploded on a main thoroughfare in eastern
Jerusalem a short time ago. No one was wounded when the device exploded
near a Palestinian transit stop on Nablus Road. A small explosive device in a
plastic bag went off outside the walls of Jerusalem's Old City, but no one
was hurt, Israeli police spokesman Shmuel Ben-Ruby said. A Palestinian
man saw the suspicious package on the ground and threw it into an open
grassy area, where it exploded, said witness Omar Julani.
PA lobbying US for involvement in Mideast peacemaking
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: AP/Jerusalem Post
Wed May 16,2001 -- Top aides to Yasser Arafat are fanning out in the United
States to promote the idea of restarting peace talks even as violence keeps
escalating in the Mideast. Their efforts center on getting the Bush
administration to embrace a report written by a U.S.-led commission, which
calls for a Jewish settlement freeze as a basis for negotiations. Israel on
Tuesday rejected the recommendations for a settlement freeze on lands it
has won in battle. The Palestinians want those for their independent state,
arguing the issue should remain a matter for the negotiating table. The
Palestinians have accepted the report on the violence by an international
commission led by former U.S. Senator George Mitchell.
"The real test is how the Americans are going to handle the report," senior
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Tuesday in New York. At the same
time, Arafat's deputy, Mahmoud Abbas, met in Washington with Secretary of
State Colin Powell and President George W. Bush's national security
advisor, Condoleezza Rice. Powell appealed again Tuesday for an end to the
violence and said "We need to pursue the opportunities" presented by the
Mitchell report and a joint Egyptian-Jordanian peace initiative. Erekat said he
and his colleagues are trying to send a "clear message" to the Bush
administration that the Palestinians - "in the darkest hour of our history" -
want the Mitchell Commission findings and the Arab proposal to form the
basis of a new round of peace talks.
Palestinian Planning Minister Nabil Shaath wrote in a Washington Post
editorial Tuesday that "nothing would bolster the peacemakers more than to
hear President Bush formally endorse the Mitchell Report." The report was
submitted last week to the Bush administration, which then gave the findings
to Israel, the Palestinians and U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. It has yet
to be made public. Yossi Beilin, a former Israeli justice minister and an
architect of the Israeli-Palestinian peace accords, called the report "the best
paper written" about the current situation. "It is objective, it is balanced, it is
emotional," he told a gathering in New York of American activists for Mideast
peace.
US Senators question aid to Egypt, Palestinians
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: AP/Jerusalem Post
Wed May 16,2001 -- The bountiful US aid package for Egypt, unchallenged
for two decades, was questioned Tuesday by a powerful Republican senator
who complained that Egypt's government-supported press had "been
spewing anti-Semitism at an all-time high." Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian
leader, also came under criticism by Sen. Mitch McConnell, a Republican
from Kentucky, for walking away "from the best deal the Palestinians will
likely ever see." "What more can Israel offer?" McConnell asked Secretary of
State Colin Powell at a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing into the
Bush administration's budget request for $15.2 billion for foreign operations -
a boost of about 2 percent over this year. McConnell chairs the
subcommittee. Powell urged Congress not to cut the $2 billion ticketed for
Egypt, second in annual U.S. aid only to Israel's almost $3 billion.
McConnell cautioned, however: "I do not view foreign assistance as an
entitlement and will be reviewing more closely country-specific aid
packages." For example, he questioned the justification for offering $75
million in aid to Palestinians on the West Bank and in Gaza when no end to
their violent confrontation with Israel is in sight. Referring to both Egypt and
the Palestinians, McConnell told Powell: "It's hard to see how any of them in
a visible way have tried to move the process in the right direction." In Egypt,
he said, "government-sponsored newspapers support Adolf Hitler and incite
violence against Jews and Israel. Is this kind of relationship worth the request
of $2 billion?"
Similarly, Sen. Mary Landrieu, a Democrat from Louisiana, urged the Bush
administration to reassess the U.S. relationship with the Palestinians. She
referred to a letter to President George W. Bush from 60 senators in April
accusing the "highest level" of Palestinian security forces of planning terrorist
attacks on Israel. Powell agreed with McConnell that Israel last year made a
generous offer to the Palestinians. It included statehood on virtually all the
West Bank and Gaza and control over part of Jerusalem. Arafat held out for
sovereignty over East Jerusalem and a "right of return" for millions of
Palestinians to Israel.
Under quizzing by Sen. Arlen Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania,
Powell insisted that Israel should not overreact to Palestinian attacks.
Specter nevertheless defended Israel's retaliatory strikes. He said Arafat had
denied to him "eyeball to eyeball" in the Palestinian leader's office that the
Palestinians had fired mortars at Israel. Yet U.S. intelligence confirmed to
him that Arafat was behind the mortar attack, Specter said. "While Israel did
respond very, very forcefully, Israel could have responded even much more
forcefully," Specter said.
NY politicians call for removal of Yasser Arafat bust from wax museum
Weekend News Today
Lead: Leo
Source: Tampa Bay Online/AP
Wed May 16,2001 -- State legislators have petitioned the governor asking for
the removal of a wax figure of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat from a
museum. "Arafat, alive and breathing or with wax in his lungs, does not
belong in any venue in New York," state Assemblyman Dov Hikind said in a
statement Tuesday.
An Orthodox Jew, Hikind said he and 55 state legislators signed letters to
Gov. George Pataki and New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani asking for the
removal of the wax figure from Madame Tussaud's museum. Pataki said he
was unsure what powers the state might have to remove the piece but
added, "I would certainly urge that a flattering portrayal of Yasser Arafat has
no place in New York, in my view has no place anywhere." Janine Scarpello,
the museum's general manager, said Madame Tussaud's chronicles history
and current events without political bias. "The decision to portray an
individual is irrespective of any political or religious stance," Scarpello said in
a statement.
Giuliani's press office said the mayor had no comment.
Russia says it will back Annan for a second term
Weekend News Today
Lead: Leo
Source: Tampa Bay Online/AP
Wed May 16,2001 -- Russia will support U.N. Secretary General Kofi
Annan's bid for a second term, Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said Wednesday.
"Russia highly values Mr. Annan's personal contribution to strengthening the
role and the authority of the United Nations, and Russia will be ready to
support Kofi Annan's candidacy for a second term," Ivanov said following
talks with Annan.
The 63-year-old Ghanaian's term expires Dec. 31. Support from Russia is
key, since as a permanent member of the Security Council it can veto a
nomination before it is sent on to the General Assembly for a final vote.
In the course of their meeting, Ivanov said, he and Annan discussed conflicts
in the Middle East, the Balkans and Afghanistan and "ways to enhance the
role of the United Nations." Meeting with Annan on Tuesday, President
Vladimir Putin said the role of the U.N. should be strengthened. Putin has
championed a greater U.N. role in some international conflicts, along with the
concept of a "multipolar world" - meaning efforts to oppose alleged U.S.
dominance of world affairs. After Wednesday's talks with Ivanov, Annan said
he would continue working with member states to strengthen the United
Nations and make it "the organization that it ought to be for the 21st
century."
http://216.219.160.226/cgi-
bin/readnews.cgi?day=01_05_16&item=#990051619
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To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Computer runs at quantum light speed
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 19:33:20 -0400
--------
COMPUTER RUNS AT QUANTUM LIGHT SPEED
Researchers at the University of Rochester have developed a
computer that creates interference patterns from light. The
computer operates at speeds that allow tasks to be performed
nearly instantaneously. The breakthrough could lead to computers
that operate even more quickly than quantum computers, according
to a bulletin from the American Institute of Physics. Quantum
computers are operated by manipulating small physics particles,
while conventional computers operate through electrons.
(USA Today, 16 May 2001)
via: Edupage, May 16, 2001
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To: bprlist <BPRLIST@YAHOOGROUPS.COM>
Subject: [bprlist] HSG: BBC News | SCI/TECH | Mystery force tug
From: "Patt A."
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 18:10:03 -0700 (PDT)
--------
Subject: HSG: BBC News | SCI/TECH | Mystery force tugs distant probes
From: John A. Kassebaum, JKassebaum@Escient.Com
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1332000/1332368.stm
An unexplained force is pulling on distant spacecraft.
Researchers have come to this conclusion after a
thorough analysis of the deep-space probes'
trajectories.
Here is an interesting phenomenon which is probably threatening to all
current theories of gravity. An explanation of this effect, if available
within Dr. Mills theory, would be another feather in the theory's cap.
So far Dr. mills has explained almost every enigma that I've seen, from
the muon moment to the 'electrinos' problem. I suspect this one may be
difficult
though because Dr. Mills' theory is in accord with the current theories
of relativity
and gravity on the macroscopic scale. Anyway - fuel for the fire!
-John
--
John A. Kassebaum
Project Engineer, Advanced Development Group
OpenGlobe, Inc. (An Escient Technologies Affiliate)
6325 Digital Way
Indianapolis, IN 46278
USA
(317) 616-6519 Direct Phone & Fax
(317) 616-6789 Main
mailto:JKassebaum@OpenGlobe.Net
Hydrino Study Group (HSG):
A serious look at the novel theory of Dr. Randell Mills.
Web Site http://www.hydrino.org
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Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Auctions $2 Million Sweepstakes - Got something to sell?
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To: <BPRLIST@YAHOOGROUPS.COM>
Subject: [bprlist] NEw thinking?
From: "Beverly"
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 01:00:43 -0400
--------
Someone once told me that the first time and agreement was signed the man from the tribe of Ishamel which was Anwar Saddat was killed and then the 2nd agreement the Jewish man ,Rabin, was killed and the 3rd signed agreement that the American or who ever signed with them will be..
Has anyone ever heard this reasoning or I wonder why they even said this .. Just something that went thru my mind .. thought I would throw it out there.
It is late and my mind may not be working right ....
Has anyone heard anything like this ?
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To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Pattern, not Just Prediction: Midrash Hermeneutics
From: "Moza"
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 08:33:06 -0400
--------
Pattern, not Just Prediction: Midrash Hermeneutics
by Chuck Missler
The interpretation of Scripture is called hermeneutics. Our approach to
hermeneutics will always be influenced by our worldview, our own culture,
and the presuppositions we bring to the task.
The interpretations understood by Jewish rabbis like Jesus and Paul in the
first century were largely based on something called Midrash. The basic
principles of Midrash were listed in the original seven points, called
midoth, of Rabbi Hillel. Hillel is regarded as the greatest of the Hebrew
sages of the Second Temple period and was the grandfather of Rabbi
Gamaliel, the tutor of Paul, who defended the rights of Jewish believers
in the book of Acts.
As the Gospel spread throughout the Greco-Roman world, the Church began
to
lose sight of its Jewish roots. This, of course, proved increasingly
tragic for the Jews - the subsequent atrocities perpetuated throughout the
centuries in the name of Christ are virtually incomprehensible to the
modern Christian who hasn't done his homework.
But it was also tragic for the Church as it abandoned its Jewish heritage
and understanding. The increasing influence of the Greek worldview began
to redefine Biblical truth on the basis of the philosophies of Aristotle
and Plato, instead of the context that produced it.
Centuries later, the early Puritans recognized the limitations of
Protestant hermeneutics, as did the later Plymouth Brethren who sought a
proper understanding of Biblical typology. In the 19th century the
Plymouth Brethren tried to construct a model of Biblical interpretation
that emphasized typology from the viewpoint of Old Testament
foreshadowings of the new covenant. This may have been the closest that
the predominantly Gentile Church has ever come to returning to its Jewish
roots in the area of interpretation.
In a similar manner, early Methodism, realizing the failures of
Protestantism, attempted to restore mission to the Church, and the early
Pentecostals tried to restore the charismatic gifts in their attempt to
return to a New Testament Christianity. The Puritans John Robinson and
John Lightfoot were among the first to recognize the need to restore a
Jewish approach to Biblical interpretation along Midrashic lines with its
sensitivities to typological patterns.
Since that time, most Judeo-Christian scholarship has generally focused on
the Judaic background of the Gospels. This probably commenced with the
Jewish Christians such as Franz Delitzche and Alfred Edersheim. Today the
trend continues in the work of Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Yakov Prasch and
others. Such scholarship is vital.
Pattern, Not Just Prediction
The western mind views prophecy merely as prediction and fulfillment. The
Jewish mind saw prophecy as a pattern being recapitulated, where a pattern
of events illuminates a thematic replay in the future. The "western"
(Gentile) misunderstandings are crucial in understanding the errors of
dominionism, restorationism, and preterism, which continue to confuse
current eschatology (the study of "last things").
Among the illuminating warnings are the attribution by Matthew of the
return of Joseph, Mary and the infant Jesus from Egypt to the quote from
Hosea. There is no rational way to view the Hosea passage as Messianic in
the traditional sense. The academic overemphasis on context seems to
break down when viewed too narrowly. The answer is pattern, not just
prediction. Matthew's allusion to Jeremiah regarding Herod's murder of the
babies in Bethlehem is another example.
The richness and understanding that accompanies the rediscovery of the
Midrashic hermeneutic is one of the most exciting aspects of studying the
Old Testament.
For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our
learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might
have hope. - Romans 15:4
Joseph as a Type
The life of the Messiah was prefigured by Joseph, the son of Jacob, in
Genesis.
As Joseph was betrayed by his Jewish brothers into the hands of Gentiles
and God turned that betrayal around and made it the means for all Israel
and all the world to be saved, so too Jesus was betrayed by His Jewish
brothers into Gentile hands with the same - but more cosmic - result.
Joseph was betrayed by his brother Yehuda (Judah) for twenty pieces of
silver. Jesus, the son of Joseph, was also betrayed specifically by
Yehuda (Judas) for thirty pieces of silver.
Joseph and Jesus were both condemned with two criminals - one of whom
lived while the other died. Joseph was taken from a place of condemnation
to a place of exaltation - after a three-day interval - as was Jesus in
His resurrection. Upon his exaltation, every knee bowed to Joseph as
every knee shall one day bow to Jesus.
Upon his exaltation, Joseph took a Gentile bride - as does Jesus as the
Bridegroom. Joseph was not recognized by his Jewish brothers at his first
coming, but at the second they wept over him. Jesus was not recognized by
His Jewish brothers at His First Coming, but at the Second they, too,
shall weep.
Joseph was beloved of his father - as is Jesus. Joseph was despised for
his prophetic gift; Jesus was despised for who He claimed to be. Joseph
was falsely accused at an unfair trial, as was Jesus. Joseph's cloak was
taken as proof that he was no longer in the pit, as Jesus' burial cloak
was taken as proof that He was no longer in the tomb.
Coming Out of Egypt
Just as the descendants of Jacob ultimately come out of Egypt, Paul tells
us we, too, have come out of Egypt. Pharaoh, worshiped as God by the
Egyptians, becomes a metaphor for the Devil, the god of this world. Just
as Moses made a covenant using blood sprinkled on the people, Jesus, a
prophet like Moses, makes a new covenant in His blood covering His people.
Just as Moses led the children of Israel through the Red Sea, Jesus leads
us out of the world through baptism, etc.
The failure of Moses at Meribah in striking the rock the second time takes
on an additional significance: he was to strike on the first occasion, but
not on the second. Had he followed God's instructions more precisely it
would have anticipated the First and Second Comings of "the Rock that was
Christ."
In the book of Revelation we see the same judgments against Egypt replayed
in the final judgments of God upon a sinful world. Just as Pharaoh's
magicians were able to counterfeit the miracles of Moses and Aaron, so the
Antichrist and the False Prophet will counterfeit the miracles of Jesus
and His witnesses.
The Song of Moses sung by Mirian in the Exodus narrative is sung again in
Revelation, where the destruction of Pharaoh and his army are seen as a
type of the judgment of Satan and his demon cohorts. Just as Joseph's
bones were brought out of Egypt, so the dead in Christ will rise first
when we come out of the world at Jesus' return.
The Exodus of Jesus from Egypt in Matthew's nativity narrative fits
precisely into the same pattern following the same theme. A wicked king
is again judged - this time Herod - and the Messiah comes out of Egypt
where he had fled in time of trouble. Here Jesus is pictured as the
embodiment of Israel, in much the same way as the Church is the Body of
Christ.
Old Testament citations such as "Israel, My Glory" and "Israel, My
Firstborn" may now be understood for what they are: allusions to the
Messiah.
Approaching Matthew's nativity story from this Jewish perspective, instead
of a western one, we can better understand how and why his words as found
in the text of Hosea 11:1 apply to Jesus upon the death of Herod.
A Caveat
A serious caveat regarding the Midrashic hermeneutic stems from the
misunderstanding and misuse of it by liberal theological writers. The
Midrash never uses typology or allegory as a basis for doctrine, only as
an illustration of it. Paul's Midrash on Sarah and Hagar in Galatians
and the Epistle to the Hebrews as a commentary on Leviticus are two
examples.
Thus, Enoch, who was translated before the flood, was "pre-flood" in his
eschatology, not post-flood or mid-flood! But we don't base our views on
this illustration alone.
It really is a grand adventure, isn't it?
http://www.prophecyupdate.com
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To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] TV: Acts The Movie
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 08:39:48 -0400
--------
TBN 10:00 PM Eastern
Wednesday, May 16, 2001
Tape - "Acts The Movie"
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To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) Continuing the Intifada: Palestinian Concerns and Consi
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 08:44:20 -0400
--------
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: "MEMRI" <MEMRI@MEMRI.ORG>
Subject: Continuing the Intifada: Palestinian Concerns and Considerations
Date sent: Tue, 15 May 2001 19:40:52 -0400
Special Dispatch - PA
May 16, 2001
No. 217
Continuing the Intifada:
Palestinian Concerns and Considerations
The escalation of military operations in the Intifada on
the one hand, and the Egyptian-Jordanian political
initiative on the other hand, have raised concerns among
the leadership and the activists of the Intifada over how
to continue it.
The Political Process and Security Agreements
The PA leadership sees the Egyptian-Jordanian initiative as
a basis for the resumption of the political process, and
rejects any changes that Israel suggests, claiming that
they damage its essence.(1) However, many Palestinians
object to this initiative, including Fatah Secretary
General in the West Bank, Marwan Al-Barghuthi, who
explained that "no initiative that does not put an end to
the occupation can succeed... no one on the Palestinian
side can promise Israel to stop the operations against the
occupation." Al-Barghuthi also criticized the security
coordination meetings: "These meetings are useless and
unnecessary. As long as there is no basis for a political
settlement, there can be no security coordination."(2)
In an interview with United Arab Emirate's Al-Bayan
newspaper, Al-Barghuthi clarified his position on the
political process: "The PA must adopt the position of all
the political forces in the Palestinian public, namely that
a return to the negotiation table according to the previous
principles is a waste of time and gives Israel the
opportunity to change the situation on the ground even
more. It is [also] useless to agree on the resumption of
negotiations through American arbitration because the US is
not an arbitrator but rather a partner with Israel in its
aggression against the Palestinian people..."
"The Palestinians and the Arabs must find a new formula for
the negotiations in the framework of the UN and under the
auspices of the European community and Russia... The
Intifada is not merely a response to Sharon's visit to
Al-Haram Al-Qudsi [the site of the Mosques]... this visit
was the straw that broke the camel's back. The Intifada is
a protest against the occupation and against the peace
process in its previous formula..."
"If the Intifada stops, the negotiations will not succeed.
The Intifada and the struggle are two basic conditions for
the success of the negotiations. There is no point in
sitting at the negotiation table without the support and
aid of the national struggle. The Americans and the
Israelis have in the past turned the Palestinians into
captives of the negotiations, but we will not agree to such
a situation again. It is in the PA's interest to continue
the Intifada because we cannot return to square one."(3)
A Columnist in the London daily Al-Hayat, Jihad Al-Khazen,
described the Palestinian position as it was presented to
him in a telephone call from Gaza [apparently by the head
of the "Preventive Security" apparatus, Muhammad Dahlan],
as follows: "A security agreement with the Israelis is
impossible if it does not include an agreement about the
political negotiations that will take place in a limited
time frame. The struggle will not stop completely as Ariel
Sharon wants and the quiet will not last for weeks before
the beginning of the negotiations. The political
negotiations [must take place] on the basis of agreements
that have been signed, as stated in the Egyptian-Jordanian
initiative; the leadership can stop the confrontation
immediately once the political negotiations are agreed
upon. Al-Khazen adds that he asked one of the
field-leaders of the Intifada if Arafat can really stop the
violence and was answered that "if the instruction is given
to the youth to stay at home... it will be carried out."(4)
Mortars against Israel
The Palestinian "Supreme National Security Council" gave
instructions to stop shooting from among houses and
slinging mortars at Israeli targets. According to General
Secretary of the PA Presidency, Al-Tayyeb Abd Al-Rahim,
this decision was made in response to the public request
not to use mortars in the Intifada, "because the negative
effects [of this action] are greater than its
effectiveness." Abd Al-Rahim explained that "the Israeli
side is trying to describe the situation as if there are
mutual raids, and this gives Israel the justification for
escalating its aggression against the Palestinian people
and for using new heavy weapons."(5)
In an interview in the daily Al-Quds, head of Military
intelligence, Musa Arafat, explained his opposition to
using mortars: "From a purely military perspective I
believe that the mortars have an effect solely on morale,
and have no military results. All of the mortars that have
been fired since the beginning of the Intifada have hit
[Israeli targets] only once or twice because they do not
have a precise aiming system. I hope that we will develop
our weapons in order to create effective military
results... I am not opposed [on principle to firing
mortars], but as a result of the use of this weapon we have
suffered much greater casualties than the other side. I
wish that the Israelis would have greater casualties so
that they might understand that our Intifada is durable,
and be convinced that continuing the occupation will do
them no good... shooting mortars gives Israel [the]
unjustified [opportunity]... to appear as if it is attacked
while in truth it is the aggressor. We are capable of
using [other] means that will deny them this bargaining
chip, through the popular Intifada and the armed
struggle."(6)
On the other hand, Fatah Secretary in the West Bank, Marwan
Al-Barghuthi, explained the effectiveness of firing
mortars: "The mortars are one of the Intifada's chips.
Although they are a weapon of limited [accuracy] - and
indeed dozens of mortars have been fired without causing
any damage whatsoever - they [still] send an important
message from the Intifada to the Israelis: 'We are not only
in a position to retaliate, but we have the ability to
initiate surprising actions and to invent new means of
struggle. When mortars have reached Israeli territory and
the settlements, the Israelis have been forced to
reconsider their considerations and understand that the arm
of the struggle is long."' Al-Barghuthi emphasized the
legitimacy of using mortars: "It is our right to use any
means available to us in order to fight the enemy; any
means that deters the enemy is legitimate; we still have
many [means] and the mortars are not the last of them."(7)
The Decision to Dismantle the 'Popular Struggle Committees'
Since the firing of mortars did not stop, it was decided at
an emergency meeting of the PA's "Supreme Military Council"
on April 28, 2001, to take a number of steps towards
implementing the decision. As part of these steps, it was
decided to dismantle the "Popular Struggle Committees"
which have been established throughout the Intifada and
were responsible for a number of lethal attacks with
weapons, explosives, and mortars. Since members of the
security apparatuses and the police are also members of
these committees, they were re-called to the PA's security
apparatuses to which they belonged. Likewise, it was
decided to increase security patrols in order to prevent
the shooting of mortars.(8)
A leader in the Fatah Movement, Munzir Rashid, explained
that, "Arafat made the tactical decision to dismantle the
Popular Committees so that Sharon would lose the
opportunity to retaliate fiercely against the shooting of
mortars at Israeli targets and because he wishes for the
Egyptian-Jordanian initiative to succeed."(9)
Head of General Intelligence apparatus, Amin Al-Hindi,
emphasized the need to adhere to the decisions of the
political leadership and to dismantle the Popular Struggle
Committees: "The political leadership decides what are the
supreme national interests, and no group can replace the
PA, which is the sole political and military authority for
all of the security apparatuses. Groups that wish to
establish new political frameworks must ... apply for a
permit."(10)
Head of Military Intelligence apparatus, Musa Arafat,
explained that the decision was made in order to prevent
overlapping authorities and to conduct the struggle in an
orderly and coordinated fashion. According to Arafat:
"About 90% of these committee members are members of the
[PA] security apparatuses. We do not want there to be two
groups in our apparatuses, and [therefore] we just decided
to set internal order within our ranks. I stress the need
for restraint and for order within the PA's apparatuses.
This will be accomplished sooner or later, because we will
not allow the chaos to continue."(11)
However, some Palestinian officials refused to accept the
decision to dismantle the committees. According to Fatah
Secretary General in the West Bank, Marwan Al-Barghuthi,
"the Popular Struggle Committees will continue their
struggle until the end of the Israeli occupation... It is
the right of members of the Fatah movement and other
groups, as well as individuals, to join these committees
and to be active in them." Al-Barghuthi clarified that
Yasser Arafat, who participated in the meeting of the
Supreme Military Council in Gaza by telephone from Ramallah
"did not demand that these committees be dismantled, and
[the decision] can by no means be interpreted as an attempt
to stop the Intifada or something like that." However,
Al-Barghuthi noted that he is not happy with the decision
and that in his opinion, "everyone must participate in the
struggle against Israel."(12)
In his Al-Bayan interview, Al-Barghuthi added: "These
committees cannot be dismantled because they were created
by the popular Intifada, and they are spread out in all of
the Palestinian cities, neighborhoods, and villages.
Furthermore, they are running the Intifada everywhere. No
one has the right to dismantle these committees."(13)
Member of the Fatah's High Council, Samir Al-Masharawi,
explained that the decision related only to the members of
the security apparatuses in the committees, with the goal,
"to re-organize their daily operations, following the
excessive violence by the occupation forces against PA
bases." He noted that there is no need for a decision in
the matter because those in charge of the security
apparatuses are capable of overseeing [the return of their
people to their jobs], and added that the number of people
involved is limited.(14)
Commanders in the committees reported that their leadership
received no official notification of the decision to
dismantle them, but that they heard about it through the
media. One of the leaders of the Popular Struggle
Committees, Abu Al-Sa'id, explained: "We are not a party,
an organization or a union; we [need] no one's permission
to use our right and our duty to struggle and fight in
order to liberate our Palestinian people... our goal as
Palestinians is to live in freedom and honor on our land,
because no one can give up his homeland and his rights, not
to mention the fact that the international resolutions and
divine laws promise our people the right to struggle and to
protect its country and its homeland... We in the Popular
Committees will continue in our struggle."
Another prominent leader in The Popular Struggle
Committees, Yasser Za'anun, said similar things: "The
Struggle Committees were not established by a decision and
they will not be dismantled by a decision. The
justification for their existence still stands, and it is
the presence of the occupation on Palestinian land. The
Popular Struggle Committees will continue to defend
themselves and the Palestinian people until their rights
are achieved." Yasser Za'anun discounted the claim that
the committees are subordinate to the Fatah movement alone
and explained that they are a public body comprised of
elements from all of the national and Islamic groups,
although some of their activists work in the PA's
apparatuses. Za'anun added that members of the committees
are willing to resign from the PA's security apparatuses if
it embarrasses the PA.(15)
The Use of Explosives
Following a number of lethal explosions that happened
recently inside Palestinian cities, the PA decided to stop
the "irresponsible actions" and not merely to automatically
and categorically lay the blame on Israel. On May 2, 2001
the PA published instructions banning the sale of chemical
substances that can be used to make explosives. Head of
General Intelligence apparatus, Amin Al-Hindi, told the
Voice of Palestine radio that the PA "demands that those
who are dealing with explosives in populated areas will
stop." According to Al-Hindi: "The PA is calling on all of
the factions to stop these actions that have turned into a
dangerous phenomenon, and that it will invest most of its
efforts to stopping these childish actions that harm the
Palestinian people and increase the number of
casualties."(16)
Head of Military Intelligence apparatus, Musa Arafat,
addressed the "efforts of some of the Intifada's activists
who sometimes lack the precise technical know-how": "I must
direct the public's attention to the incorrect ways of
handling explosives. These are not at all amusing; the
first mistake is the last and deadly one. I hope that they
will learn the correct ways of using explosives... there
are trained military men who reap good results from their
operations, and they are capable of struggling against the
Israeli technological advancements...we have experts in
these fields."(17)
ENDNOTES:
1 Al-Ayyam (PA), April 26, 2001.
2 Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), April 26, 2001.
3 Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (PA), May 8, 2001.
4 Al-Hayat (London), May 5, 2001.
5 Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (PA), May 1, 2001.
6 Al-Quds (PA), May 5, 2001
7 Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (PA), April 29, 2001.
8 Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (PA), May 1, 2001.
9 Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London ), May 3, 2001.
10 Al-Quds (PA), May, 2, 2001.
11 Al-Quds (PA), May 5, 2001.
12 Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (PA), May 1, 2001.
13 Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (PA), May 8, 2001.
14 Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (PA), May 3, 2001.
15 Al-Ayyam (PA), April 30, 2001.
16 Al-Ayyam (PA), May 3, 2001.
17 Al-Quds (PA), May 5, 2001.
************************
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) is an
independent, non-profit organization that translates and
analyzes the media of the Middle East. Copies of articles
and documents cited, as well as background information, are
available on request.
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI)
P.O. Box 27837, Washington, DC 20038-7837
Phone: (202) 955-9070
Fax: (202) 955-9077
E-Mail: memri@memri.org
www.memri.org
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Subject: [bprlist] Low Doses of Chemicals in Packaging May Affect Reproduction
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 08:48:34 -0400
--------
Low Doses of Chemicals in Packaging May Affect Reproduction
By Cat Lazaroff
WASHINGTON, DC, May 15, 2001 (ENS) - A panel of academic, government
and industry scientists has determined that there is "credible evidence" that
some hormone like chemicals can affect test animals at very low levels well
below the "no effect" levels determined by traditional testing. However, other
credible studies failed to observe such low dose effects, reported the panel,
which found no obvious reason for the different outcomes.
The 36 member panel reviewed the chemicals, called environmental
estrogens and endocrine disruptors, at the request of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA). After reviewing dozens of prior studies, the panel
concluded that these hormone like chemicals deserve greater scrutiny and
additional research.
Plastic trash bags and many other common
plastic products can contain hormone
disrupting chemicals (Photo courtesy Universal
Plastic)
Some of the hormones, like estrogen and testosterone, occur naturally.
Other, chemically related substances are manufactured for packaging,
plastics and other products of modern life.
Because of years of controversy over some of the studies and their meaning,
the review has attracted attention from environmentalists, industry,
government and academic scientists worldwide.
"In a first for this kind of review, the panel was able to obtain the raw data
from nearly all of the studies. Nearly 100 percent of the scientists were able
to cooperate in this," said Dr. Kenneth Olden, director of the National
Toxicology Program and the National Institute of Environmental Health
Sciences.
"This permitted a statistical reanalysis of the data, rather than merely a
reliance on the conclusions of published papers," Olden said. "In fact, some
of the data are from papers still to be published."
Under current regulations, studies are undertaken at three or four levels
where each dose may be two to four fold less than the next highest. The
highest dose at which no effect on the animals is observed is called the "no
effect" level.
But the panel said the raw data suggested that at even lower levels, an effect
might occur, so that the traditional study may need to be re-thought.
Some pesticides contain
hormone disrupting
chemicals (Photo courtesy U.S.
Agricultural Research Service)
The panel found enough evidence of low level effects to recommend
additional studies of low level doses of bisphenol A, a plastics building block
used for a wide line of products, from safety helmets and impact resistant
eye glass lenses to food packaging.
A subpanel of the review committee found there was "credible evidence" of
bodily changes, such as in increased prostate weight, in some rodents
exposed to low levels of bisphenol A.
However, "due to the inability of other credible studies... to observe low dose
effects... and the consistency of these negative studies, the subpanel is not
persuaded that a low dose effect of BPA has been conclusively established
as a general or reproducible finding."
While the panel stopped short of finding any of the effects to be either
harmful or benign - it was not asked by EPA to make that judgement - it
found evidence that increases in prostate weight and changes in female
reproductive organs can occur in rodents or other test animals from low
doses of estrogen. Several other estrogenic compounds, including the
insecticide methoxychlor and a dietary component derived from soy known
as genistein, can also cause such changes.
Five types of studies were recommended for a group of chemicals related to
testosterone, called androgens and antiandrogens. These chemicals include
the fungicide vinclozolin, which appeared to cause changes in the
reproductive organs of both female and male offspring when pregnant rats
were exposed to the chemical.
The panel said the EPA should obtain the best advice of experts who design
tests and then consider rewriting the guidelines that industry must follow in
having their new products tested before obtaining EPA approval. The panel
said that additional multi-generational studies might use a range of different
dosages to better determine if any reproductive problems result in the
offspring or grand-offspring of exposed animals.
Hormone disrupting chemicals have
been linked to unusual sexual
characteristics in some species. Here,
University of Idaho professor James
Nagler examines chinook salmon from
the Columbia River's Hanford Reach
(Photo courtesy University of Idaho)
The panel also suggested to the EPA that it consider which strains and ages
of rodents are best for such tests.
The National Toxicology Program, which is headquartered at the National
Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in North Carolina, released the
experts' draft report on Monday. The draft will be available for 60 days to
collect comments from other scientists, industry representatives and
consumers, before the report is sent to the EPA.
The comments will not change the report but will be attached to it, said Dr.
Ronald Melnick of NIEHS, who chaired the peer review organizing
committee.
The full report is available at: http://ntp-server.niehs.nih.gov
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/may2001/2001L-05-15-06.html
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Subject: [bprlist] Cheap Drinking Water Undermines Environmental Protections
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 08:51:16 -0400
--------
Cheap Drinking Water Undermines Environmental Protections
By Cat Lazaroff
WASHINGTON, DC, May 15, 2001 (ENS) - A new study by the World
Resources Institute reveals that water policies in most of the world are failing
to protect the world's freshwater systems, resulting in growing water scarcity
and alarming declines in the numbers of aquatic plants and animals. The
study recommends that water prices should reflect the cost of supplying
water and protecting watersheds.
"Freshwater is undervalued the world over," said coauthor Nels Johnson,
deputy director of the World Resources Institute's (WRI) Biological
Resources Program. "Freshwater ecosystems are not being managed
effectively for people or for nature."
Tapwater prices in most areas do not
reflect the full price of supplying water, the
WRI report says (Photo courtesy Texas State Soil &
Water Conservation Board)
Governments continue to subsidize water due to opposition from farmers and
urban poor against raising water prices, the report says. The study,
"Managing Water for People and Nature," is published in this week's issue of
the journal "Science."
The study recommends that the costs of distributing water and protecting
watersheds should be included in the price of water. Polluters should also be
charged for their discharges, the report says.
Water is not only becoming scarce because of increased demand, but also
because of higher pollution levels and habitat degradation.
"The state of plant and animal life in freshwater ecosystems is far worse than
for forests, grasslands or coastal areas," said coauthor Carmen Revenga.
Freshwater ecosystems occupy less than one percent of the earth's surface.
Carmen Revenga, coauthor of the
report, is also lead author of the WRI
report Pilot Analysis of Global
Ecosystems: Freshwater Systems,
which analyzes quantitative and
qualitative information and develops
indicators of the condition of the world's
freshwater systems. (Photo courtesy WRI)
The study says that contamination denies as many as 3.3 billion people
access to clean water. More than 20 percent of the world's freshwater fish
have become extinct, endangered or threatened in recent decades, largely
due to pollution and habitat loss.
The authors said that without reforms in the pricing of water, freshwater
supplies will continue to grow scarce. They project that by 2025, five out of
every 10 people will be living in water stressed river basins. Currently, 38
percent of the world's population live in such areas.
"Farmers and the urban residents will support full cost pricing of water if they
can be assured of a reliable supply," argued Jaime Echeverria, a WRI
economist and co-author of the study.
For example, price reforms in Chile reduced the use of irrigated water by as
much as 26 percent and saved $400 million in new water infrastructure. In
Andhra Pradesh, India, farmers agreed to a three fold increase in water
prices as part of a package that also boosted their role in running the
irrigation agency.
But raising the cost of clean drinking water could prove devastating to the
world's poorest people. Bolivian labor leader Oscar Olivera became an
advocate for universal rights to affordable, clean water in 1999 when the
Bolivian government responded to structural adjustment policies of the World
Bank by privatizing the water system of its third largest city, Cochabamba.
The new water company, a consortium led by Italian owned International
Water Ltd. and U.S. based Bechtel Enterprise Holdings, raised prices. With
the minimum wage at less than $65 a month, many of the poor had water
bills of $20 a month.
Olivera, executive secretary of the Cochabamba Federation of Factory
Workers and spokesman for the Coalition in Defense of Water and Life,
known as La Coordinadora, led demands for the water system to stay under
local public control. Thousand of citizens protested for weeks.
The Bolivian army killed one person, injured hundreds and arrested several
coalition leaders. Olivera negotiated with the government and won when the
government canceled the privatization contract and turned over control of the
water system, including its debt, to La Coordinadora, which Olivera
continues to lead.
Olivera was honored last month with a Goldman Environmental Prize for his
efforts to protect the water rights of the Bolivian people.
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/may2001/2001L-05-15-07.html
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Subject: [bprlist] Peres: Israel is in battle for existence
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 09:13:21 -0400
--------
Wednesday, May 16, 2001
Peres: Israel is in battle for existence
By Aluf Benn
Ha'aretz Diplomatic Correspondent
Israel is locked in a "battle for its existence," says Foreign Minister Shimon
Peres. "The problems are existential, and in all my days I have never known
their like," he said yesterday in an interview with Ha'aretz.
"There were similar situations in the past, but then everybody was
mobilized... Today, too, everyone must mobilize. Then, it was to survive, and
now it is to prevent the danger of war and attain peace."
Peres said he feels "a heavy responsibility" to prevent "a retreat into the past
of isolation and violence." He said it is very important to prevent a situation in
which Western countries make excuses for Palestinian terrorism.
"They must not tell us 'there is terror because of your settlements' ... It is
very important there should be no justification or excuses [for terrorism] and I
am running from place to place like a madman in order to explain this point."
In a meeting at the Foreign Ministry yesterday morning, Peres noted that
while the United States has taken a firm stand against terrorism, "in Europe
it isn't easy. There, they accept the equation of settlements versus terror.
We must not let this happen in America as well."
Based on his talks with Palestinian officials, Peres said, he believes that
despite the growing hatred there remains a chance to gain control of the
situation. What is needed, he said, is to build "verbal and political bridges."
Because of the violence "these bridges are more complicated and need more
cement ... this is what I am trying to do."
Israel yesterday submitted its official response to the Mitchell Committee
report, in which the government accepted most of the report's
recommendations, but disagreed with its demand for a complete freeze on
settlement construction, and its link between such a freeze and a cease-fire.
In the coming days, Peres will try to find some formula for the settlements
acceptable to both Israel and the committee that could be included in the
final version of the report. "The dictionary is very rich," he said. Peres said
Israel supports the basic game plan laid down in the report - a cease-fire,
confidence-building measures, and a cooling-off period leading to resumed
negotiations. "The main problem lies in the Palestinians' court - can they
stop the terror? I don't want people to say we are responsible, that it's
because of the settlements. Ending the terror is the basis for everything."
Four principles, he added, will govern Israel's behavior regarding the
settlements:
l No new settlements will be built.
l No land will be expropriated for the settlements.
l The settlements will be discussed in diplomatic negotiations.
l Israel will not exploit the term "natural growth" in the settlements for other
purposes.
Peres rejected the criticism he has been absorbing from the left regarding his
support for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, pointing out that creating a majority
in favor of an agreement is as necessary as reaching one. He said the public
wants "left-wing policies but a right-wing government."
He said he believes the unity government will survive, and that he doubts new
elections "would change the balance of forces." Peres said the unity
government has taken several steps to ease the Palestinians' economic
plight, such as permitting more workers into Israel. But he defended the
IDF's incursions into Area A (Palestinian-controlled territory). "If they would
take away the mortars, we wouldn't go in," he said. "We aren't initiating the
disturbances.
http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=5/16/01&i
d=119503
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Subject: [bprlist] Ha'aretz: No leads in Druze restaurant explosion in Golan Heights
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 09:29:06 -0400
--------
Ha'aretz: No leads in Druze restaurant explosion in Golan Heights frequented
by Israeli soldiers
By Sharon Gal Ha'aretz Correspondent Ha'aretz 16 May 2001
While Israeli security officials continue to suspect that Monday's explosion
at a restaurant in Masadeh, a Druze village on the Golan Heights, was
perpetrated by anti-Israel extremists, police lack substantive leads in the
case. Nobody was injured in the mysterious blast.
Soldiers from the Israel Defense Forces battalion deployed in the region
were ordered yesterday to stay away from restaurants in Masadeh.
The bombs were hidden in vegetable crates. Eyewitnesses reported that three
Arabs arrived at the restaurant Monday afternoon, and left the boxes of
vegetables outside. They told the restaurant proprietor that the boxes would
be collected within a few hours. Rough composite sketches of two of the
suspects have been drawn using eyewitness reports.
The explosion, which occurred at 4 P.M., was apparently triggered via a cell
phone. No customers were in the restaurant at the time of the blast. Some
damage was caused to the establishment. Security officials believe that
parties responsible for the explosion wanted to harm soldiers who are
regular patrons of restaurants at Masadeh.
--------------------------------------------
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
Website: www.imra.org.il
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To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] IDF attacked Palestinian position used regularly as terror base
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 09:30:32 -0400
--------
IDF attacked Palestinian position used regularly as terror base when it may
not have been manned by attackers
Focus/The type of mistake that happens in war
By Ze'ev Schiff Ha'aretz 16 May 2001
The operation by the Israel Defense Forces in the West Bank village of
Bitounia on Monday was meant to strike at members of Force 17, Yasser
Arafat's presidential guard, which has been involved in numerous attacks on
Israelis. Instead, by mistake, five members of the Palestinian security
service headed by Haj Ismail were killed. The error stemmed from an
intelligence failure.
IDF Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz offered only a terse comment on the incident
to the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee yesterday: "This
wasn't the outcome we intended." But he offered no details as to how the
error occurred, nor did he express regret.
The Bitounia operation should be seen as part of a broader tactic the IDF
has used recently. In the past, the IDF merely responded to Palestinian
attacks, or occasionally engaged in preventive operations. Recently,
however, it has been allowed to initiate action, including attacks on
Palestinian military targets. Instead of waiting for a Palestinian attack,
the IDF can now launch assaults on Palestinian forces even if they do not
constitute an immediate danger. Examples include the attacks this week on
a
Palestinian armored vehicle and on Palestinian naval outposts in Gaza. For
the IDF, taking the offensive against Palestinian violence is new. But each
specific measure is still approved by the political echelon first.
One reason for the change in policy was reliable intelligence information
indicating that Arafat's Fatah faction of the PLO has also begun to engage
in suicide bombings. But the danger in the new approach is that the
Palestinian Authority will also expand its activity and permit its security
services, which have until now not been directly involved in the violence,
to conduct operations against Israel.
The Bitounia outpost has been considered a high-priority target for some
time, due to numerous intelligence reports indicating that it served as a
base from which Palestinians would go out to shoot at Israeli vehicles on
nearby roads. There is also constant shooting from this outpost at the IDF's
Ofer base, and attacks on IDF roadblocks.
But the approval given for the operation by the political echelon was also
based on intelligence reports indicating that the attackers coming from this
outpost were Force 17 men. This information was confirmed by the IDF
Central
Command's intelligence unit, and the Shin Bet security service did not
contradict it. But it turned out that the intelligence reports missed the
fact that the outpost was normally manned by members of Ismail's General
Security Service. From time to time, it seems, Force 17 men either assumed
temporary responsibility for the post or made use of it as a base for
attacks, but they have not been there on a regular basis. Therefore, the
Israeli soldiers who carried out the operation did not realize that they
might be targeting the wrong men. The mistake was discovered only when the
PA announced the identity of those who were killed.
This mistake will not hold back the IDF as it conducts its new offensive,
which is rooted in a political-security decision based on a significantly
different approach toward the eight-month-old conflict. The offensive will
continue until the Palestinians agree to a full-fledged cease-fire. To the
IDF, the Bitounia mistake is merely the type of mistake that happens
sometimes during a war.
--------------------------------------------
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Subject: [bprlist] IDF Spokesperson: Summary of the Nights Events
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 09:31:12 -0400
--------
IDF Spokesperson: Summary of the Nights Events in the West Bank and the
Gaza Strip (as of 24:00 May 15th, 2001)
West Bank:
An Israeli woman was killed this evening and another citizen wounded lightly
by shots fired from an ambush at the car in which they rode on the Ma'ale
Micmash-Jerusalem road. The citizen was evacuated for medical treatment in
hospital. The IDF is searching the area.
Shots were fired during the night at:
· An IDF military vehicle near the village of Al-Khader,
· At IDF forces in the area,
· The community of Bat Hefer,
· At IDF posts near the village of Hawara south of Nablus,
· At Rachel's tomb near Bethlehem,
· At an IDF force in Shdema
· At the village of Psagot
· At the IDF post in Tel Aras, south of Nablus
In the events in which the source of the shots were identified, the IDF
returned fire.
There were no casualties from any of the above events.
The Gaza Strip:
Three mortar bombs were fired tonight by Palestinians at Israeli communities
in the area of the Gaza Strip:
Two mortar bombs were fired into Israeli territory, near the border fence in
the north of the Gaza Strip. The bombs fell in open area. There were no
casualties and no damage was done.
An additional mortar bomb was fired from the village of Dir Al-Balah and
landed on the roof of a private house in the Israeli village of Kfar Darom.
There were no casualties although damage was done to the roof of the house.
The residents were directed to go into their protected bomb shelters. The
IDF returned fire towards the sources of the shots, and the IDF is now
conducting searches in the area.
In addition there were four shooting attacks recorded tonight (15 May) in
the Gaza Strip-two from Han Junis at IDF posts near the village of Gadid,
one at an IDF force on the Israel-Egypt border and another shooting attack
at an IDF force on the northern border fence of the Gaza Strip. There were
no casualties from any of the events. The IDF soldiers returned fire towards
the sources of the shots.
Moreover, rockets were fired from the direction of Han Junis at the
industrial area of Neve-Dekalim. There were no casualties and no damage
was
done. The soldiers did not return fire.
--------------------------------------------
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
Website: www.imra.org.il
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Subject: [bprlist] NewsScan items (5/16/01)
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 09:34:28 -0400
--------
MICROSOFT ADOPTS EU's TOUGHER PRIVACY RULES
Making a commitment to what is known as the "safe harbor" agreement
between the European Union and the U.S., Microsoft will use the EU's more
stringent data protection standards when transferring information globally. The
company's privacy director says: "Responsible data management practices
designed to protect individual privacy makes good business sense. Executive
management in U.S. companies must become engaged in growing
consumer anxiety about privacy." (Financial Times 15 May 2001)
http://www.ft.com/
YAHOO SHRINKS NUMBER OF "ADULT" SERVICES
Thousands of Yahoo users are protesting the way the company's been
making it more difficult to find sexually explicit chat rooms and clubs on its
site. Although the protesters are charging censorship, Michael Goodwin of
the Center for Democracy and Technology, a privacy advocate group, points
out that censorship issues arise only if the government is involved, not when a
private company decides to place restrictions on access to some material.
Online pornography opponent Donna Rice Hughes says that all of the
mainstream portals and sites will have to be making the same choices as
Yahoo and will have to decide whether "we're going to be in the porn
industry and be upfront about it, or we're not." (New York Times 16 May
2001)
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/16/technology/16YAHO.html
NEW DOMAIN NAMES COMING
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has
entered into contracts with the companies that will register two of the new
Internet domain names the organization recently approved. Ireland-based
Afilias will register names in the ".info" domain and Virginia-based NeuLevel
will register names in the ".biz" domain. The two companies plan to promote
the suffixes as alternatives to the U.S.-centric ".com" domain. (AP/San Jose
Mercury News 16 May 2001)
http://www.siliconvalley.com/docs/news/svfront/042699.htm
http://www.newsscan.com/
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To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) Jerusalem Day - The March to the Temple Mount
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 09:50:20 -0400
--------
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: Gershon Salomon <GERSHON@TEMPLEMOUNTFAITHFUL.ORG>
Subject: Jerusalem Day - The March to the Temple Mount
Date sent: Wed, 16 May 2001 15:54:20 +0200
Jerusalem Day - The March to the Temple Mount
On Monday, 21st May 2001 The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful
Movement with many other supporters will hold its annual Jerusalem Day
march to the Temple Mount. The event will start from the tank on Ammunition
Hill at 10:00AM.
We shall never forget the great miracle which G–d did for Israel in the
Six-Day war of 1967 when He gave back the Temple Mount, the heart, soul and
focus of Israel to His people. At the same time, we shall also not forget
the hundreds of young soldiers who gave their lives to liberate the holy
Temple Mount for the honour of G–d and to glorify Him on His holy hill as
the Israelites did in Biblical times. On this godly day our hearts will be
with the G–d of Israel and His heroes. Our hearts will also be in prayer to
the G–d of Israel to redeem His holy hill and to rebuild His holy house -
the Third Temple - to redeem His people Israel from the hatred and attacks
of all her enemies who are again gathering themselves around Israel to take
away from her her beloved capital, Jerusalem, and the land which G–d gave
her in an eternal covenant. On this day we shall give the enemies of the
G–d and people of Israel a very clear answer exactly as our forefathers in
Biblical times did to their enemies: we shall never move from the land
which G–d gave to Israel forever and the Temple Mount and Jerusalem will
never fall again as G–d promised us in His holy Word.
We shall swear faithfulness to the Temple Mount, Jerusalem and the land of
Israel in the same boundaries which G–d specified in the covenant which He
made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their seed, Israel. We know that
nobody can break this Word of G–d and those who are trying to do this will
very soon be judged by G–d. We shall stand before the G–d of Israel on His
holy hill and we shall swear faithfulness to the mission which He gave us
on the Temple Mount, Jerusalem and the land of Israel with no fear of any
of the enemies only of G–d , Himself.
On the hill of G–d the brave dedicated and devoted soldiers of G–d from the
Temple Mount Faithful will state very clearly in the ears of all the world
that we shall continue our godly struggle and campaign for the G–d of
Israel and His prophetic end-time plans until all of them are fulfilled
which we believe will be very soon and until we shall see the house of G–d
rebuilt on His holy hill with the Israeli flag flying above it and until
the Word of G–d in Isaiah will become a reality in our lifetime.
“And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the
Lord's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be
exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it. And many people
shall go and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to
the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we
will walk in his paths; for from Zion shall go forth Torah, and the word of
the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall
decide for many people; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against
nation, nor shall they learn war any more. O house of Jacob, come, and let
us walk in the light of the Lord.” (Isaiah2:2-5)
On this day we shall also demand that the enemies of Israel immediately
stop their bloody attacks against Israel and that they listen and obey the
Word of G–d Who decided to give the Temple Mount, Jerusalem and all the
land of Israel to His people Israel alone as a land where they will fulfill
their godly historical mission to be a holy nation, a kingdom of priests
and a treasure among all the nations. (Exodus 19:5-6) We shall advise them
that they should learn from their own experience over the last 53 years
since G–d founded the State of Israel in 1948 and gave back to His people
the Temple Mount, Jerusalem and the promised land of Israel, and to
understand that G–d will defeat all the enemies of Israel and will not
allow them to destroy His prophetic end-time plans for Israel which will
also redeem all the world. They have no chance, The G–d and people of
Israel are determined not to allow any one to stop the major godly event
that is occurring in the land of Israel. They are ready to fight for this
exactly as G–d repeatedly stated in His holy Word.
“Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he
fought in the day of battle.” (Zechariah14:3)
“And on that day I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all the
peoples; all who burden themselves with it shall be grievously hurt. And
all the peoples of the earth shall be gathered together against it.
... And the Lord shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of
the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not
magnify themselves against Judah. On that day shall the Lord defend the
inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he who is feeble among them shall be as David
on that day; and the house of David shall be like a divine being, like the
angel of the Lord before them. And it shall come to pass on that day, that
I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I
will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
the spirit of grace and of supplication; and they shall look towards me,
regarding those whom the nations have pierced; and they shall mourn for
him, as one mourns for an only son, and shall be in bitterness over him, as
one who is in bitterness for his firstborn.” (Zechariah12:3,7-10)
Israel has a great responsibility not only for herself but for all the
world. On this day we shall say to all the world that the destiny of all
mankind is connected and depends on the destiny of Israel and the
redemption of the Temple Mount, Jerusalem and the land of Israel. Exactly
as G–d stated in His Word to Isaiah, a real peace will come to Israel and
all mankind only when this godly vision is fulfilled and the house of G–d,
the Third Temple, is built on the Temple Mount on the same site where the
First and second Temples stood. The glory of this house will be greater
than at any time in the past as the prophet Haggai wrote.
“The glory of this latter house shall be greater than that of the former,
says the Lord of hosts; and in this place I will give peace, says the Lord
of hosts.” (Haggai 2:9)
On Jerusalem Day we shall stand on the Temple Mount and we shall pray for
the renewal of the kingdom of G–d and King David on this hill, Jerusalem
and throughout all the land of Israel and all the world.
Psalm 122
A Song of Ascents of David. I was glad when they said to me, Let us go into
the house of the Lord.
Our feet shall stand inside your gates, O Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is built as a city which is bound firmly together;
There the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the Lord.
For thrones of judgment were set there, the thrones of the house of David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; those who love you shall prosper.
Peace be within your walls, and prosperity within your palaces.
For my brothers and companions' sakes, I will now say, Peace be within you.
Because of the house of the Lord our God I will seek your good.
The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement calls on everyone to
participate in this godly march to the Temple Mount on the day
commemorating the liberation of Jerusalem and to be a part of G–d´s
prophetic end-time activities. We call on everyone in the world to assist
and support the people of Israel and to stand with them in their battle to
bring about all these godly visions and prophecies. We also call on the
enemies of Israel to give up their hostilities and violent plans against
Israel, to throw away their weapons and to accept Israel with love and to
accept G–d´s prophetic Word and covenant to give Israel the Temple Mount,
Jerusalem and all the promised land to His people Israel as an opening for
the redemption of all the nations. We are looking forward to meeting you on
Ammunition Hill on Monday 21st May at 10:00AM. The G–d of Israel will be
with all of us.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement
P.O. Box 18325
Yochanan Horkanos 4
Jerusalem 91182 Israel
gershon@templemountfaithful.org
http://www.templemountfaithful.org
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) Jerusalem Day - The March to the Temple Mount
From: "research-bpr" <RESEARCH-BPR@PHILOLOGOS.ORG>
Date: Thu, 24 May 2001 18:44:22 -0400
--------
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: Gershon Salomon <GERSHON@TEMPLEMOUNTFAITHFUL.ORG>
Subject: Jerusalem Day - The March to the Temple Mount
Date sent: Thu, 24 May 2001 17:17:17 +0200
Jerusalem Day - The March to the Temple Mount
The Motive - We Shall Never Move From Here Again and
Jerusalem Will Never Fall Again
On Monday 21st May 2001, The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful
Movement and many other supporters from Israel and abroad marched to the
Temple Mount, the holy hill of G–d which was liberated 34 years ago forever
in a godly war.
In 1967 the Arab enemies of Israel surrounded her on all sides and stated
that they were starting a war to finally destroy the State of Israel and
throw the Israeli nation into the Mediterranean Sea. They were sure that
they would succeed to fulfil what they had not been able to do in all the
wars that they had conducted against Israel from 1948. However they made a
terrible mistake. They again did not take into account the main factor
which defeated them in all their former wars - the G–d of Israel Who can be
defeated by no power or person. They did not learn from their own
experience that they have no way to defeat Him and His determination of
thousands of years to protect and save Israel from all her enemies. They
were defeated despite they fact that again they were a great majority and
Israel a small minority. G–d, together with His faithful Israeli soldiers,
defeated them in only 6 days. Actually, He defeated them after 3 hours on
the first day when the Israeli Air Force destroyed the Arab air forces
within 3 hours of the start of the battle. This war came about unexpectedly
and Israel was attacked from all sides - from the south by Egypt, from the
east by Jordan, from the north by Syria and even from the Mediterranean.
Israel was not prepared for this war and her army was small especially in
comparison to the forces which surrounded her from all sides. But as in
Biblical times G–d wanted to show the Israelis, their enemies and all the
world that He would fight for them no matter the numbers of the enemies and
He will defeat them. Suddenly, the Biblical story of Gideon again became a
reality when he came to fight against the Midianite enemy with 32,000
soldiers and G–d told him to send everyone home except for 300 who would
take part in the battle.
"And the Lord said to Gideon, The people who are with you are too many for
me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves
against me, saying, My own hand has saved me. ... And the Lord said to
Gideon, By the three hundred men who lapped will I save you, and deliver
the Midianites to your hand; and let all the other people go every man to
his place." (Judges 7:2,7)
This was really a godly war. The Israeli Defence Forces and all the house
of Israel felt the presence of G–d in all the battles in this war. Nobody
in Israel and all over the world could even imagine what would be the plans
of G–d in this war but He handled and led the war in His way with His
prophetic end-time purposes and He used all the enemies as with Pharaoh in
Egypt to fulfil His goals. His goal was to start another stage in the
end-time process of the redemption of Israel and to open another page in
the history fo the Zionist revolution. In 6 days He brought Israel to the
main Biblical land of their forefathers again, the land which He gave them
in an eternal covenant, to Judea, Samaria, Gaza, the Golan and Sinai. This
is the land of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their seed, Israel, where they
dwelt and were later taken into exile by their enemies. Now G–d returned
the land to them exactly as He promised in prophesy. The climax of the war
occurred after 3 days when G–d brought Israel back to the place which for
thousands of years after G–d spoke to Abraham was and will forever be, the
heart, soul and focus of the G–d and people of Israel - the Temple Mount
and Jerusalem - the place without which Israel cannot exist. The reason is
that here dwells the beloved G–d of Israel, their Creator and the reason
for everything in their life. It was the dream of hundreds of generations
over almost 2,000 years to return to this place and to the land which G–d
gave them; to rebuild His house, the temple; to glorify Him; to worship Him
in the place where He chose to dwell among His people, Israel. Now G–d, in
His timing and special ways, had answered their prayers and dreams and
fulfilled His promises. This was a major time in the history of the
relationship between G–d and the people of Israel when He appeared with all
His glory, love and strong hand.
When the Temple Mount Faithful marched from Ammunition Hill to the Temple
Mount on Jerusalem Day it was like all this great time and its glory
appeared again. We marched in the same areas where G–d and His soldiers
fought in the Six Day War on their way to the Temple Mount. We remembered
how G–d was determined in that war to bring Israel to the Temple Mount and
Jerusalem and how He did it in such a special way. The Israeli Government
sent a message to King Hussein of Jordan that he should not attack Israel
and that they would not occupy the Temple Mount and Jerusalem if would
comply. However G–d hardened his heart as He did with Pharaoh and he
refused and attacked Israel in Jerusalem. G–d defeated him and gave the
Temple Mount and Jerusalem - the focus of all His dreams and those of His
people, Israel - back to Israel. We again felt the presence of G–d so
strongly on our march and He led us to Biblical Jerusalem and to His holy
hill.
On the way we commemorated the more than 200 Israeli soldiers who died and
gave their lives in the battle for the liberation of the Temple Mount and
Jerusalem from the foreign Arab occupiers. In front of Orient House, which
is today the focus of the so-called "Palestinian" enemy in Jerusalem, we
demonstrated against the new violence, war and more than 70 Israeli who
they have killed since they started their attacks 7 months ago. We
demonstrated against the existence of the so-called "Palestinian Authority"
in the midst of Jerusalem, on the Temple Mount and in the land of Israel.
We demonstrated against the evil, anti-godly Oslo Agreement which planted
this foreign enemy in the midst of the land of G–d against His Word and His
eternal covenant that He made with Israel and told them that He gave the
land to them alone in order that they should fulfil His mission amongst His
nation and all the world. He warned them not to make covenants with foreign
enemies and not to give them any piece of the land that He chose to be His
land and the land of His people, Israel. In this demonstration we brought
this Word of G–d to the attention of the government and people of Israel
and all the nations. We warned them and called on them to immediately
cancel the Oslo "covenant with death" as the prophet Isaiah called it; to
cancel its evil results and to liberate for G–d and His people, Israel,
all those parts of the land which were given away. We stated that the Word
of G–d warn Israel and all the nations that as long as this foreign enemy
exists on the Temple Mount, Jerusalem and the land of Israel and fight
against G–d and His people, there will never be peace in Jerusalem, the
holy land and all over the world. The Temple Mount will be like a volcano
which will shake like an earthquake because of the sadness of G–d that His
holy hill that He gave to Israel is imprisoned by her Arab enemies and His
Name and His house are in ruins and daily desecrated. We called on the
Israeli Government to fulfil G–d's expectations of them to liberate the
Temple Mount and all the parts of the land which were given away to the
so-called "Palestinian" enemy and to the other Arabs who are their allies;
to immediately purify the hill of G–d from the foreign desecration; and to
rebuild the house of G–d. In the ears of the Israeli Government we spoke
the Word of G–d as recorded in the prophet Isaiah who prophesied about this
anti-godly covenant.
"Therefore hear the word of the Lord, you scornful men, who rule this
people who is in Jerusalem. Because you have said, We have made a covenant
with death, and with Sheol are we at agreement; when the overflowing
scourge shall pass through, it shall not come to us; for we have made lies
our refuge, and under falsehood have we hidden ourselves; Therefore thus
said the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried
stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation; he who believes shall
not make haste. Judgment also will I lay by a line, and righteousness by a
plummet; and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters
shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be
annulled, and your agreement with Sheol shall not stand; when the
overflowing scourge shall pass through, then you shall be trampled down by
it. As often as it goes forth it shall take you; for morning by morning
shall it pass over, by day and by night; and it shall be a terror just to
understand the report. For the bed is too short for a man to stretch
himself on it; and the covering is too narrow for him to wrap himself in
it. For the Lord shall rise up as in Mount Perazim, he shall be angry as in
the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring
to do his act, his strange act. Now therefore do not be mockers, lest your
bands be made strong; for I have heard from the Lord God of hosts that a
destruction is decreed upon the whole land." Isaiah(28:14-22)
Everyone in the world should pay attention to this Word of G–d and then
they will understand that this evil covenant will never succeed. They will
also understand why, as a result of this covenant, Israel has again become
the focus of daily terror attacks and violence exactly as the prophet
prophesied. The feeling is that he could have spoken the prophecy this
morning and not more than 2,500 years ago. There is no doubt that he
prophesied about the situation which we now experience in Israel an it
would be better for the Israeli Government and all the powers in the world
to pay attention to this Word and obey it before it its too late.
When the enemies in Orient House started to counter-demonstrate against us
we answered them with what Nehemiah answered the Arab enemy of his time
who, in a similar situation, tried to prevent the G–d and people of Israel
from redeeming the Temple Mount, Jerusalem and the land through violence:
"When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard
of it, it displeased them greatly that a man had come seeking the welfare
of the people of Israel. ... Then I went up in the night by the brook, and
viewed the wall, and turned back, and entered by the Valley Gate, and so
returned. And the rulers did not know where I went, or what I did. And to
the Jews, and to the priests, and to the rulers, and to the rest who would
do the work, till then I had not told. Then I said to them, You see the
distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates are
burned by fire; Come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we no
longer should suffer insult. Then I told them of the hand of my God which
had been good upon me; and also of words that the king had spoken to me.
And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands
for this good work. But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the
servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arab, heard of it, they laughed at us
with scorn, and despised us, and said, What is this thing that you are
doing? Are you rebelling against the king? Then I answered them, and said
to them: The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will
arise and build; but you have no portion, no right, no memorial, in
Jerusalem." (Nehemiah2:10,15-20)
I am so glad to be able to say that all the media from Israel and the world
covered this event of the Temple Mount Faithful Movement and brought the
real Word of G–d through His messengers of this special time, His faithful
messengers of the Temple Mount Faithful Movement, to the government and
people of Israel and to all the nations. Again the Temple Mount Faithful
Movement showed G–d and everyone that with complete faithfulness they carry
the real Word of G–d with no fear of anyone and with all their devotion and
dedication.
From Orient House we marched to the other memorial stones for the soldiers
who fell in this godly war for His Name and covenant. On the way to the
Temple Mount we stopped near the cornerstone for the Third Temple which
lies not far from the Temple Mount and we prayed that G–d will open the
doors to us that we may soon lay it on the right place on the Temple Mount
and to start the building of the Third Temple. In front of the Damascus
Gate of the Old City in prayer and dance with the Israeli and Temple flags
which we had carried with us on our march, we celebrated the great event of
the Six Day War and we thanked G–d for returning to the Temple Mount,
Jerusalem and the land that He promised us.
"A Song of Ascents of David. I was glad when they said to me, Let us go
into the house of the Lord. Our feet shall stand inside your gates, O
Jerusalem. Jerusalem is built as a city which is bound firmly together;
There the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the Lord. For thrones of judgment were set
there, the thrones of the house of David. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem;
those who love you shall prosper. Peace be within your walls, and
prosperity within your palaces. For my brothers and companions' sakes, I
will now say, Peace be within you. Because of the house of the Lord our God
I will seek your good." (Psalm122)
All the way from the Damascus Gate through the Old City to the Temple Mount
we prayed and danced with the flags.
The Temple Mount and its gates were closed to the many marchers and all the
Israelis on this day as it has been for the last 7 months since the Arab
violence started. The foreign Arab occupiers of the holy hill of the G–d
and people of Israel again prevented access to Israelis, Jews , Christians
and anyone who is not a Moslem. The former Israeli Government of Barak did
not have the spiritual strength to open the gates and to trust G–d's
promises with no fear of their enemies. The current Prime Minister, Ariel
Sharon, stated immediately after election that he would open the Temple
Mount and he commanded the security forces of Israel to find the way to do
so. Unfortunately his word has not been fulfilled up til now and on
Jerusalem Day, the day of the liberation of the Temple Mount, the Temple
Mount was still closed to the children of G–d, exactly as the foreign Arabs
had previously done when they closed the Temple Mount in the face of Jews,
Christian and other non-Moslems and killed anyone who tried to enter. G–d
changed this evil situation in the six Day War and the Temple Mount
Faithful Movement marched and came to the Temple Mount to encourage the
Israeli Government to understand and accept with no fear of any of their
enemies what G–d gave to Israel in the Six Day War.
We called on everyone to understand that the destiny of Israel and all the
world will be decided on the Temple Mount when Israel will again liberate
the Temple Mount, purify it, rebuild the temple and consecrate it to G–d
and glorify His Name there and fulfil His desire exactly as He pronounced
it in Isaiah
"The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's
house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be
exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it. And many people
shall go and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to
the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we
will walk in his paths; for from Zion shall go forth Torah, and the word of
the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall
decide for many people; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against
nation, nor shall they learn war any more. O house of Jacob, come, and let
us walk in the light of the Lord." (Isaiah2:1-5)
The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement will continue this
march to the Temple Mount until this desire and holy Word of G–d becomes a
reality in our lifetime and the life of this generation. This is the
deepest desire of G–d and we shall continue to be His faithful messengers
to fulfil it with all our devotion. Everyone in Israel and all the world
who has the Word of the G–d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and His glorified
end-time desires in their hearts is called to give their support and
assistance to the Temple Mount Faithful Movement who are acting day and
night to make this Word of G–d a present reality. G–d expects everyone to
do so and to give a real godly significance to the life which G–d gave
them. At the same time we call on each one who reads this word of G–d in
this article to pray Psalm 79 together with us.
"A Psalm of Asaph. O God, nations have come into your inheritance; your
holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps. The dead
bodies of your servants have they given to be food to the birds of the sky,
the flesh of your pious ones to the beasts of the earth. Their blood have
they shed like water around Jerusalem; and there was none to bury them. We
have become a taunt to our neighbors, a scorn and derision to those who are
around us. How long, Lord? Will you be angry for ever? Shall your jealousy
burn like fire? Pour out your wrath on the nations that have not known you,
and on the kingdoms that have not called upon your name. For they have
devoured Jacob, and laid waste his dwelling place. O do not remember
against us our former iniquities; let your tender mercies speedily come to
meet us; for we are brought very low. Help us, O God of our salvation, for
the glory of your name; and save us, and forgive our sins, for your name's
sake. Why should the nations say, Where is their God? Let the
revenging of the blood of your servants which is shed be made manifest
among the nations, and before our eyes. Let the groans of the prisoner
come before you; according to the greatness of your power preserve those
who are appointed to die; And render to our neighbors sevenfold into their
bosom their insult, with which they have insulted you, O Lord. So we your
people and sheep of your pasture will give you thanks for ever; we will
tell your praise to all generations."
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement
P.O. Box 18325
Yochanan Horkanos 4
Jerusalem 91182 Israel
gershon@templemountfaithful.org
http://www.templemountfaithful.org
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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To: <BPRLIST@YAHOOGROUPS.COM>
Subject: [bprlist] Who Are "Christians"?
From: Pam
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 10:52:38 -0400
--------
This might be of interest to you, and the list. Praise the Lord!
----
Who Is A ‘Christian´?
Acts 11:26
"And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch."
Disciples
Webster´s New Word Dictionary, 1973, gives two definitions for
‘disciples´:
1. A person who follows another as his teacher or leader.
2. Any of the early followers of Jesus.
Since none of us can claim to be an ‘early follower´ of Jesus, I think
any person, who claims to be a ‘Christian´, must have Christ as their
teacher and leader. It follows, I think, that anyone who follows ‘the
teaching of Christ´ must believe that He is the teacher, or leader, they
are following. Further, in order to understand what is being taught,
they must, I think, have a text book, or text books, of some kind. The
‘text book´ I use is the Bible. I believe the New Testament was given
to us by Our Teacher, Jesus Christ, and since He frequently refers to
the Old Testament, which was given by God, I think we must use it, also,
in our studies. Praise the Lord!
In the world, today, we have many ‘Christian´ denominations: Anglican,
Presbyterian, Lutheran, etc. Members of each of these denominations
claim to be ‘Christians´. The denominations adhere to a ‘doctrine´ that
was introduced by some one, or some group, and the members of a
denomination are required to follow the doctrine of their denomination,
in addition to following the teachings of Jesus Christ. However, this
puts the members of a given denomination in the position of being a
disciple of the founder, or leader, in addition to being a disciple of
Jesus Christ. They are forced to try to serve two masters but, Matthew
6:24 and Luke 16:13, tell us: "No man can serve two masters: for either
he will hate the one, and love the other, or else he will hold to the
one, and despise the other." Praise the Lord!
From the above, I must conclude that, in any given denomination, there
will be some members who are seeking to serve God and some who are
seeking to serve the denomination of which they are members. There must
be some, in every Christian denomination, who are ‘Christians´,
followers of Jesus Christ, and ‘others´, call them what you will. The
voice of God, speaking from the cloud, tells us Jesus Christ is His Son
and instructs us to ‘hear Him´. (Matthew 17:5; Mark 9:7 and Luke 9:35)
Therefore, in order to serve God, who is the Master of all, the
Christian must ‘hear Him´, must be taught by Jesus Christ, not by anyone
else. Praise the Lord!
God Bless you. Charlie Baker.
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