Note: This is not meant as any derision of an American President but should be viewed from a biblical and prophetic perspective.
I realize that this is a few months old but still has timely bearings.
I realize that this is a few months old but still has timely bearings.
if Jesus were alive today, the US State Department would likely criticize him for being a Jewish settler and an obstacle to peace.
After all, according to the Christian bible, Jesus was a Jew born in Bethlehem, which is south of Jerusalem in what Colin Powell considers the "occupied territory" of Judea. His parents were Jews who undoubtedly prayed at a local Bethlehem synagogue, learned Torah at a local study-hall, and bought food at the local kosher marketplace. Thus, they were Jewish settlers in every respect. Needless to say, the Christian bible itself contains no mention of the word "Palestine" or "Palestinians", for the simple reason that they did not exist. All told, in the Torah and the Christian bible, the terms "Judah" or "Judea" appear 877 times, and "Samaria" is used on 123 occasions. There is no reference to phrases such as the "West Bank" or "occupied territories," as Islam had not yet even come into being.
It is therefore hard to understand why the President would consent to pressure Israel to turn over Judea, Samaria and Gaza to the Palestinians, for he would appear to be acting contrary to what his own hallowed text would seem to demonstrate, namely that these areas belong to the Jewish people and no one else.
The same goes for Israel's capital, where many of the events in the Christian bible, such as the last supper on Mount Zion, the denunciation in the Garden of Gethsemane and the crucifixion on Golgotha are all described as having taken place in Jerusalem --- in Roman-occupied Jewish Jerusalem, that is. Hence, Christians who accept Palestinian demands to Jerusalem are essentially denying the validity of their own traditions.
Bush's Choice: Powell or the Prophets?It is imperative, then, that American Christian supporters of Israel launch an all-out effort to remind President Bush of these facts, and to counter the pressure he is coming under from the likes of Tony Blair and Colin Powell. Bush is an honest and decent man, who is true to himself and to his belief system. But he is facing enormous pressure to mollify the Arabs at the expense of the Jewish state, and will therefore need a great deal of public backing behind him if he is to stand up against such pressure.