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2. Israel - God's Timepiece Israel looks to the next election
With Israel now headed for new general elections probably some time early next year, supporters and opponents of Tzipi Livni are putting a very different gloss on her failure to form a governing coalition. Opponents say Livni’s inability shows she is not yet seasoned enough to lead. Supporters counter that the reasons for her failure show precisely why she is the best candidate. Livni says that had she been willing to give in to excessive political and budgetary demands by prospective coalition partners, she easily could have formed a government. Instead she took a stand. Her opponents suggest a less high-minded narrative: They say Livni bungled coalition negotiations because of a fundamental lack of experience. Livni's coalition effort was badly hurt by the adept political maneuvering of opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu, the head of the Likud Party. Netanyahu was able to convince three of Livni's prospective coalition partners -- the Sephardic Orthodox Shas Party, United Torah Judaism and the Pensioners' Party -- that he probably would win in a general election campaign and would be more amenable to their political and budgetary demands than Livni. Netanyahu focused on Shas, the largest of the three with 12 Knesset seats. The former prime minister spoke of renewing the "historic alliance" between Likud and the right-wing Shas, declaring that if he won the election Shas would be the first party he would ask to join his coalition................ read more Concern in Israel as Egyptian war games simulate war with Israel
Israel is upset over Egyptian military exercises in which the simulated “enemy” is Israel, and some are calling on the U.S. to reconsider its aid to Egypt because of it. Israel and Egypt – two U.S. regional allies – signed a U.S.-sponsored peace treaty in 1979 – Israel’s first with an Arab nation. The Egyptian navy reportedly carried out the largest exercise in its history last week. Dubbed Victory 41, the military maneuvers marked the Egyptian sinking of the Israeli Naval vessel Eilat 41 years ago, in which 47 Israeli sailors were killed and 91 wounded. The paper also quoted the Egyptian Navy commander in chief Vice Admiral Mohad Mamish in an interview with the Arabic newspaper Al Ahram, saying that the Egyptian Naval vessels were outfitted with advanced missiles and the Navy had supply contracts with Germany, Russia and the U.S. “Unfortunately now for more than 10 years most of the big Egyptian exercises are simulating war against Israel,” said Dr. Yuval Steinitz, member of the Israeli Knesset’s influential Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. Despite the peace agreement between the two countries, Egypt is anti-Israel in most international bodies and is also educating the public “for hatred and not for peace.” Earlier this year, the Anti-Defamation League told the House Foreign Affairs Committee that its analysts had found the Egyptian press to be “a leading propagator of anti-Semitic images” for many years and that that trend was now spreading to other newspapers in the region. In 2006, a poll found that 92 percent of Egyptians regarded Israel as an enemy nation, and 50 percent regarded the U.S. as an enemy................ read more Anti-Israel Sentiment Grows in Germany
Israeli Foreign Ministry officials are concerned about increasing anti-Israel sentiment in Germany. While German Chancellor Angela Merkel has expressed her country's strong support for the Jewish state, public opinion against Israel is beginning to sway government officials. Israeli officials fear that the public's anti-Israel mood will take its toll on Germany's willingness to stand behind Israel, especially with the increasing threat of a nuclear-armed Iran. "The Germans are filled with prejudice against Israel. Our public relations delegates are pulling their hair out in frustration when they meet young and old people there," a senior official told YNet news. "More than once, they hear remarks like, 'That's not your country,' 'It's a shame that a Jewish country was established on stolen land,' 'Israel is treating the Palestinians like the Nazis treated the Jews,' We are equally responsible for the Palestinians as we are for the Jews,'" he said. Germany does more business with Iran than any other European country, with projected exports of 4 billion euros in 2008. ................ read more King Solomon's 3,000-Year-Old Copper Mine Discovered?
The wise Solomon was Israel's 3rd king from 965 BC to 925 BC, the son of King David (from the story of David and Goliath), and the owner of an enormous harem and incommensurate wealth gathered by means of mining and trading. H. Rider Haggard's best-selling novel, “King Solomon's Mines,” fueled the imagination of hundreds of treasure hunters searching for the hidden wealth of gold and diamonds described to have been contained in the depths of the mining shafts. During the 1970s and the 1980s, some digs in the region of the Jordan Valley known as Khirbat en-Nahas, (Arabic for “ruins of copper”) uncovered an ancient giant copper mine. The research performed at the time indicated that the metalworking activities took place on the site sometimes during the 7th century BC, ruling out the possibility of King Solomon's involvement in any way. However, based on recent findings and technology, Dr. Thomas Levy from the University of California in San Diego, together with Mohammed Najjar from Jordan's Friends of Archeology, has managed to date the mine to the 10th century BC, in the time of Solomon's rule. The site is comprised of about 100 buildings and a fortress amidst a 24-acre area, all covered in black slag and large enough to be spotted by satellite. The dating was also backed up by the discovery of an Egyptian scarab and amulet from the same period. “We have evidence that complex societies were indeed active in the 10th and 9th centuries BC, and that brings us back to the debate about the historicity of the Bible narratives related to this period,” Dr. Levy explains. The finding will shed new light on the old topic of the Old Testament's historical validity and accuracy, since it provides some interesting data that coincides both with Bible writings and with historical records. “We can't believe everything ancient writings tell us. But this research represents a confluence between the archaeological and scientific data and the Bible,” states Levy.. .............. read more Archaeologists report finding oldest Hebrew text
Archaeologists in Israel said Thursday they had unearthed the oldest Hebrew text ever found, while excavating a fortress city overlooking a valley where the Bible says David slew Goliath. Experts have not yet been able to decipher fully the five lines of text written in black ink on a shard of pottery dug up at a five-acre (two-hectare) archaeological site called Elah Fortress, or Khirbet Qeiyafa. The Bible says David, later to become the famed Jewish king, killed Goliath, a Philistine warrior, in a battle in the Valley of Elah, now the site of wineries and an Israeli satellite station. Archaeologists at Hebrew University said carbon dating of artefacts found at the fortress site, about 20 km (12 miles) southwest of Jerusalem, indicate the Hebrew inscription was written some 3,000 years ago, predating the Dead Sea Scrolls by 1,000 years. They have been able to make out some of its words, including "judge," "slave" and "king." Yosef Garfinkel, the lead archaeologist at the site, said the findings could shed significant light on the period of King David's rule over the Israelites. "The chronology and geography of Khirbet Qeiyafa create a unique meeting point between the mythology, history, historiography and archaeology of King David," Garfinkel said................ read more
4. The Gog/Magog War Iran opens new naval facilities at Gulf entrance, enabling blockage of entry into the Gulf
Iran has opened new naval facilities east of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow entrance to the Gulf which is key to oil supplies, state media say. Naval chief Admiral Habibollah Sayyari was quoted as saying the base in the town of Jask would enable Iran to block the entry of an "enemy" into the Gulf. Iran has threatened to close the strait in response to a potential military strike over its nuclear activities. The Strait of Hormuz is "by far the world's most important chokepoint," according to the US government's Energy Information Administration. About 20% of oil traded worldwide passes through the narrow waterway, the body says. ................. read more Iranian Nuke Scientist: Weekend Quake was a Nuclear Test
A weekend 5.0 Richter earthquake in Iran was actually a nuclear bomb test, says an Iranian nuclear scientist claiming to be working on the project. This past Saturday night, southern Iran experienced what was reported as a significant earthquake - a seismic event measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale. Its epicenter was just north of the strategic Straits of Hormuz, which separates Iran from Abu Dhabi and Oman and which is the gateway to the Persian Gulf. The report quotes an Iranian nuclear scientist who claims to be working in uranium enrichment for the project, and who said that the "quake" was actually an underground nuclear bomb test. Israel Insider adds that the test/quake was actually the second in a series. Nine days ago, a 4.8 Richter scale event occurred, with its epicenter only five kilometers away from the weekend tremor. The Israel Insider source reports that two nuclear rockets are currently ready - and are intended for use against Israel in the coming months. If the report is correct, it would belie previous speculation that Iran would not begin nuclear testing until it had more nuclear-bomb production capability. The geographical location of the test has several advantages. It is exposed to significant seismic activity, which could serve to mask nuclear tests; it is believed to be close to Iran's nuclear development facility; delivery and transport of material and personnel can be effected easily through the Hormuz Strait; and Iranian enemies would hesitate to bomb the area because that would threaten the flow of a substantial percentage of the world's oil.. ................. read more Libya offers to host Russian military base: report
Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, who visits Moscow Friday for the first time since 1985, will offer to host a Russian naval base in his north African country, a Russian newspaper reported. "Libya is ready to host a Russian naval military base," the Kommersant reported, citing a source close to the preparations for Kadhafi's first visit here since the days of the Soviet Union. The base could be located at the port of Benghazi, the source said. "The Russian military presence will be a guarantee of non-aggression against Libya from the United States, which is not in a hurry to embrace Kadhafi despite gestures of reconciliation," the newspaper said. Kadhafi is scheduled to visit Russia from Friday to Sunday. ................. read more
5. Apostate Christianity 'Jesus was not God' book written by Catholic Priest being sold in churches
Jesus Christ was not God, and Mary was not a virgin, according to a controversial new book written by an Australian Catholic priest. In the booklet, ‘God is Big. Real Big’, which has gone on sale for $20 in several churches, Bathurst priest Peter Dresser argues Jesus could not have been God. “This whole matter regarding Jesus being God ... not only does violence to my own intelligence, but must be a sticking point,” he says. “For millions of people trying to make some kind of sense of the Christian religion ... No human being can ever be God, and Jesus was a human being. It is as simple as that.” Father Dresser claims Joseph was Jesus’s father, Mary was not a virgin – and actually had six children – and that the story of the resurrection should not be taken literally. The booklet has angered conservative Catholics, such as Sydney priest Anthony Robbie. “What a breathtaking know-all, to claim he knows the mind of Christ contrary to scripture and tradition. His words rob Christianity entirely of its meaning and purpose,” Father Robbie told News Ltd................. read more
6. The Rise of Islam Muslims behead Christian convert from Islam in Somalia
Among at least 24 aid workers killed in Somalia this year was one who was beheaded last month specifically for converting from Islam to Christianity, among other charges, according to an eyewitness. Muslim extremists from the al Shabab group fighting the transitional government on Sept. 23 sliced the head off of Mansuur Mohammed, 25, a World Food Program worker, before horrified onlookers of Manyafulka village. Sources close to Mohammed’s family said he converted from Islam to Christianity in 2005. The eyewitness, who requested anonymity for security reasons, said the militants that afternoon gathered the villagers of Manyafulka, telling them that they would prepare a feast for them. The people gathered anticipating the slaughter of a sheep, goat or camel according to local custom. Five masked men emerged carrying guns, wielding Somali swords and dragging the handcuffed Mohammed. One pulled back Mohammed’s head, exposing his face as he scraped his sword against his short hair as if to sharpen it. Another recited the Quran as he proclaimed that Mohammed was a “murtid,” an Arabic term for one who converts from Islam to Christianity. Mohammed remained calm with an expressionless face, never uttering a word, said the eyewitness. As the chanting of “Allah Akubar [God is greater]” rose to a crescendo, one of the militiamen twisted his head, allowing the other to slit his neck. When the head was finally severed from the torso, the killers cheered as they displayed it to the petrified crowd. The militants allowed one of their accomplices to take a video of the slaughter using a mobile phone. The video was later circulated secretly and sold in Somalia and in neighboring countries in what many see as a strategy to instill fear among those contemplating conversion from Islam to Christianity................ read more Afghan journalism student sentenced to 20 years for insulting Islam
An Afghan journalism student sentenced to death for allegedly ’insulting Islam’ had his conviction upheld but his sentence reduced to 20 years in prison by an Afghan central appeal court today. The prosecution alleged that Sayed Perwez Kambashkh, 24, downloaded from the internet and distributed an article by an Iranian writer questioning some of the tenets of Islam relating women’s rights. He has always denied the charges. He is alleged to have added three paragraphs to the offending article himself, one of which read: “This is the real face of Islam... the prophet Mohammad wrote verses of the Holy Quran just for his own benefit.” At his appeal court trial today five professors of Balkh University, where the defendant was a student, claimed that Kambakhsh disrupted classes by asking “anti-Islam and insulting questions.” The case has drawn widespread criticism from human rights organisations and Western governments. Kambakhsh claimed he made a confession after being tortured by officials from the Afghan security services. He claims his accusers were motivated by personal enimities to bring the charges against him. The proceedings of the original trial were criticised by the European Union amongst others, after it emerged that the trial was held in closed session with only three judges, a court clerk and prosecutor present. Kambakhsh was given only three minutes to defend himself before being sentenced to death. International observers and human rights groups also attacked today’s appeal proceedings, held in open court. The trial has aroused similarly strong passions among conservative Afghans. Mohammad Jawed, a lawyer from Mazar-e-Sharif who also attended today’s trial said: “This judge is against Muslims, this is a very low sentence. He should be hanged"................ read more Commemoration of Munich massacre "may offend Muslims"
Specialist advice is being given to Scotland Yard on how to reduce tensions between police and Muslims during the London Olympics because of growing concerns about the Games clashing with the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast during the day, The Times has learnt. Experts will also warn the Metropolitan Police to ensure that the planned commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the massacre of Israeli athletes by Palestinian terrorists at the Munich Games does not offend local and travelling Muslims. The recommendations have been made by inter-faith advisers to Scotland Yard, where antiterrorism police are preparing to combat any possible Islamic terrorist threat to the Games. Community tensions in the lead-up to the games have already been raised by a controversial Muslim movement, Tablighi Jamaat, which plans to build Britain’s largest mosque and Islamic complex near the 2012 Olympic stadium site. Michael Mumisa, an Islamic scholar, and one of four experts hired by Scotland Yard who began training the police this week on inter-faith issues, said that the commemoration of the 11 Israeli athletes, killed by Palestinian militants from the Black September Organisation at the 1972 Munich Games, could become a national security threat if it was not managed properly and was perceived by Muslims to be “hijacking” the Games. Edward Kessler, executive director of the Woolfe Institute, which deals with inter-faith dialogue, teaching and research, said that police needed to have a “minimum level of faith literacy” to help them deal with religious issues during the London Games. Dr Kessler said: “During Ramadan you’re going to have a lot of tired, hungry, less evenly tempered people because they haven’t eaten for 18 hours.” ............... read more Sharia Banking On The Rise
The swift rise of the Islamic finance industry could hit a wall in the coming years as the sector struggles to find enough experts to do the job, an industry official said yesterday. Shariah banking’s sudden popularity has created a scramble for bankers, scholars and lawyers conversant in both conventional finance and Islamic economics, and produced a shortage that sometimes compromises the quality of products, experts say. The Islamic industry’s rapid growth has outpaced the rate at which the sector is able to churn out workers, said Agil Natt, CEO of Kuala Lumpur-based INCEIF, which says it is the world’s only dedicated Islamic finance university. “We want to bring the Islamic finance professionals closer to understanding Shariah principles and we want the Shariah advisers to be able to understand some of the problems of practitioners,” Natt said in an interview. About 30,000 Islamic finance professionals will be needed in the Middle East in the next ten years, he said, citing figures from consultancy AT Kearney. In Malaysia, another leading centre of Islamic finance, an estimated 8,600 Shariah bankers would be needed by 2012, almost double the 4,800 available now, according to the central bank. ............... read more
7. Increase in Knowledge/New Technologies Australia to implement mandatory internet censorship
Australia will join China in implementing mandatory censoring of the internet under plans put forward by the Federal Government. The government has declared it will not let internet users opt out of the proposed national internet filter. The plan was first created as a way to combat child pornography and adult content, but could be extended to include controversial websites on euthanasia or anorexia. Communications minister Stephen Conroy revealed the mandatory censorship to the Senate estimates committee as the Global Network Initiative, bringing together leading companies, human rights organisations, academics and investors, committed the technology firms to "protect the freedom of expression and privacy rights of their users". Mr Conroy said trials were yet to be carried out, but "we are talking about mandatory blocking, where possible, of illegal material." The net nanny proposal was originally going to allow Australians who wanted uncensored access to the web the option of contacting their internet service provider to be excluded from the service. Human Rights Watch has condemned internet censorship, and argued to the US Senate "there is a real danger of a Virtual Curtain dividing the internet, much as the Iron Curtain did during the Cold War, because some governments fear the potential of the internet, and want to control it" Groups including the System Administrators Guild of Australia and Electronic Frontiers Australia have attacked the proposal, saying it would unfairly restrict Australians' access to the web, slow internet speeds and raise the price of internet access......................... read more One Web ID To Rule Them All
A scheme to allow people to use one name and password on lots of different websites has got a boost from Google and Microsoft The two tech giants have unveiled plans that will sign-up their users into the Open ID scheme. The move means the scheme will soon be able to add more than 400 million users to the initiative. The two firms join others, such as Yahoo and AOL, as backers of the single sign-on scheme. Open ID was dreamed up as a way to ease the mental and administrative burden of having a different login identity and password for almost every website. The idea should mean that anyone with an Open ID identifier can use it to log in to, and use, any and every other site that has signed up to the scheme. On 28 October, Microsoft announced that it was starting technical trials that would lead to all the users of its Windows Live service being enrolled in Open ID in 2009. Google has taken a similar route and announced plans to test its implementation of the Open ID technology. This will allow other websites to use logins for Gmail and other Google services alongside their own ID systems. About 10,000 websites are thought now to accept Open ID as a login route. When both trials by Google and Microsoft are completed, more than 750 million user accounts will be enrolled in the system.......................... read more Designer babies: Creating the perfect child
Bring your partner, grab a seat, pick up your baby catalog and start choosing. Will you go for the brown hair or blond? Would you prefer tall or short? Funny or clever? Girl or boy? And do you want them to be a muscle-bound sports hero? Or a slender and intelligent book worm? When you're done selecting, head to the counter and it's time to start creating your new child. Does this sound like a scary thought? With rapid advances in scientific knowledge of the human genome and our increasing ability to modify and change genes, this scenario of "designing" your baby could well be possible in the near future......................... read more 'Big Brother' bothers Britain
Each day, the average London resident is filmed 300 times as he or she walks their children to school, takes the train to the office or relaxes after work at a sidewalk cafe. Britain has 4.2 million closed-circuit surveillance cameras, one for every 15 people in the country, security experts say. But a new round of government proposals—to dramatically expand surveillance and data collection and to strengthen other anti-terror measures—has some public officials warning that the government must not go too far in this city where George Orwell set "1984," the famous novel about the dangers of an all-seeing "Big Brother" government. "We need to take very great care not to fall into a way of life in which freedom's back is broken by the relentless pressure of a security state," warned Sir Ken Macdonald, Britain's director of public prosecutions, in a speech last week. New technological advances are giving government the ability to track people "every second of every day, in everything we do," he warned. Before passing laws permitting the government to do just that, "we should take very great care to imagine the world we are creating before we build it. We might end up living with something we can't bear." Like Chicago, London has an ever-growing number of discreet security cameras keeping an eye on schools, trains and city streets, particularly in high-crime areas. A growing number of London's cameras can automatically read license plates on cars, compare passing faces to those of criminal suspects and notify authorities about suspicious behaviors. British spy agencies, like those in the U.S., also have access to telephone records. But Britain's government wants to begin keeping databases of e-mails sent, calls made on Skype, exchanges on social networking sites, chats on gaming sites, communications made through eBay and a variety of other Internet interactions. In addition, the government proposes to begin requiring registration of all mobile phones in the country—today more than half are unregistered pre-paids—and it hopes to issue a national identity card for everyone living in Britain, with details stored on a central database. It also proposes giving each newborn child an identity number that will follow them through life......................... read more
8. Christian Worldview/Issues 'There's probably no God': atheists start advertising
British atheists have raised a pile of cash to tell Londoners there's probably no God and to get on with life. The nation's first atheist advertising campaign has beaten its funding target in less than 24 hours, raising nearly nine times the amount it needed to posts its ads on public buses in London. Organisers hope to run more than 5,000 ads in the city over a month, telling people: "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life". Writer Ariane Sherine suggested the idea in a blog carried on The Guardian website. She believes an atheist advertising blitz will provide a reassuring counter-message to religious slogans threatening non-Christians with hell and damnation. "Ours is a fun and light-hearted message but it does have a serious point to it - that atheists want a secular country, we want a secular school and a secular government," she told The Guardian. " A spokesman for the Church of England said seven in every 10 people in Britain described themselves as Christian and understood the joy faith could bring. "Christian belief is not about worrying or not enjoying life. Quite the opposite: our faith liberates us to put this life into a proper perspective," he said. ............. read more GodTube-Banned Pastor Tackles the "Anything But God" Church
An Emmy award-winning pastor who was banned from GodTube has released a book about his “absurd religion,” challenging today’s Christian and Evangelical leaders and churches with the question “Is religion to blame for the current American crisis?” Though the idea behind My Absurd Religion may itself be absurd, as author Steve Gray himself admits, the Kansas City pastor says his goal is to help people get away from the clutter and get down to where they can really encounter God. What people need is to encounter God, Gray insists, an encounter that many churchgoers are not able to experience in most traditional churches and even newer, seeker-friendly churches, which he claims are “trying anything to get people interested.” “People are going to church and not actually encountering God,” Gray said in an appearance on the Christian Broadcasting Network’s 700 Club. “They’re encountering inspiration, they’re encountering good friends, they’re encountering groups and supports groups but not encountering God.” Once people encounter God, “gimmicks” and “tricks” are not needed to keep them in church, he added. In fact, people have grown tired of them, Grey said. According to The Barna Group, there was around a 90 percent increase in the number of unchurched Americans in the last decade. In 1991 there were 39 million unchurched Americans compared with 75 million found in 2004. A more recent study released earlier this year further found that tens of millions of people are experiencing and expressing their faith in God independent of any connection to a conventional church. In his appearance on the 700 Club, Gray claimed that the decline in church attendance reveals the need for churches that are God-centered rather than people-centered. When the church is one “God would attend, that makes it God-centered,” he explained. “Instead of making it seeker-sensitive – is this too long, too short, too loud, too much – you get that away. We recreate as best we can the atmosphere of Heaven, biblically speaking. And I’m finding God will attend that, and He comes down,” Gray continued. With this in mind, the Kansas City pastor says it’s time to step out of “absurd religion” that is “faithless, powerless, pointless.”............. read more Disturbing Stories Expose Dark Realities of Christian Persecution
A solemn atmosphere descended upon a room full of culturally diverse evangelical leaders on Wednesday as disturbing accounts of religious persecution poured forth from those living in anti-Christian hotspots. One by one, panelists shared stories of attacks against Christians in their country that included atrocious acts such as beheadings, gang rape, and genocide. Stories were especially poignant because of the speakers’ closeness to the actual persecution, of which some were personally experienced. The Rev. Godfrey Yogarajah of Sri Lanka, the new director of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) Religious Liberty Commission, shared that just a few days prior to his arrival in Thailand for the WEA General Assembly, one of the WEA pastors in his country of Sri Lanka was murdered and the pastor’s body thrown in a river. A Vietnamese pastor named “Daniel” (full name cannot be disclosed for security reason) on the panel spoke about his father, a pastor, who was imprisoned for six years for his faith following the communist takeover in 1975. The Vietnamese government now continues its persecution of his family for a second generation by denying Daniel citizenship because of his leadership in a major house church organization. His wife has to carry the burden of representing his family in every legal procedureBut perhaps the most emotionally-charged testimony came from the Rev. Dr. Richard Howell, the general secretary of Evangelical Fellowship of India and Asia Evangelical Alliance. Howell went beyond informing the evangelical leaders in the audience about the recent anti-Christian rampage in India to explain the reason behind Hindus’ hatred of Christians. Hindu nationalist political parties believe and promote an ideology that promotes Hindu nation, Hindu culture, and Hindu people – “nationalism linked to Hindu religion,” said Howell. “If you are not a Hindu, by definition, you are an anti-national,” he states. “So the hatred of Christian is hatred of Christian identity. They don’t like us not because of what we do – they definitely hate what we do – but also who we are.” “They want to turn India into a Hindu nation, that is why Christians are hated,” the evangelical leader said.............. read more |
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