Israel

Controversial Synod statement on Israel was a “prudential judgment.”

CNA reports that the Synod for the Middle East, a historic gathering of bishops in Rome, ended on October 24 with some criticisms of its concluding statement. The bishops’ concluding “Message to the People of God” criticized Israel in detail, but omitted most of the criticisms made against Islamic governments during the synod. Some observers … Read more

You can’t be any poorer than dead. UPDATED

Trick-or-treaters might be coming around with UNICEF donation boxes.  Don’t give ‘em a dime — UNICEF pushes for abortion and sterilization as part of its efforts to improve the lives of women and children.  Beyond the immediate irony of that idea, it’s not even good policy.  According to CatholicCulture.org (emphasis mine): Pro-family UN watchers are … Read more

Empty Space

I’m sitting here in an airport during one of those countless little bubbles in time where nothing big is going on. I’m between flights, having just arrived in Detroit from Seattle and (soon) heading out for Pellston, Michigan. So I’m taking this time to write a bit — and reflect on the empty space in … Read more

Israel and Palestine Give the Two-State Solution Another Look

Direct peace negotiations between Israel and Palestine will resume on September 2 in Washington, D.C. The announcement of the talks has been greeted with a polite but skeptical nod from the media and a rolling of the eyes from experts in the realpolitik of international affairs. The assumption behind these dismissals is that peace talks … Read more

The Last Gasp of the Two State Solution

Danny Seidemann is an Israeli attorney and the region’s leading expert on land and property rights. An immigrant to Israel as a young man and a committed Zionist, Seidemann insisted to me today that the only real pro-Israel position is one that fully supports a two-state solution to the conflict with Palestinians. “There is still … Read more

A Common Friend to Both: A Visit with Archbishop Chacour

Archbishop Elias Chacour of the Melkite Church in Israel is a remarkable man. Nominated several times for the Nobel Peace Prize, the author of three books on religion, and now in his early 70s, he’s an internationally recognized leader in the effort to find a peaceful solution to the hostilities between Jews and Arabs. “We … Read more

The Mystery of Israel

Years ago, I was sharing an office at Hunter College with a very observant Orthodox Jew, Michael Wyschogrod. He is a distinguished Jewish theologian — not only did he faithfully follow the Torah, but his religion was clearly at the very center of his life. This created a deep bond between us, finding ourselves in … Read more

Instruct the Ignorant

Back in 1971, when experiments in educational theory from pointy-headed intellectuals with no children were just starting to become all the rage, my fellow seventh graders and I were pulled out of what used to be called a “junior high” and packed off to a newly built experiment in education called Eisenhower Middle School. It … Read more

Strange days have found us.

Via The Anchoress : Pounding his piano in blue-tinted sunglasses before nearly 50,000 screaming fans, Elton John took center stage in a battle over Israel’s image. The legendary British rocker’s concert on Thursday night followed a string of cancellations by artists like Elvis Costello and the Pixies. Resisting a growing wave of calls from pro-Palestinian … Read more

Helen Thomas retires.

Veteran journalist and public irritant Helen Thomas just announced her retirement, effective immediately. I wonder what might have prompted that? Her decision comes after her controversial remarks about Israel hit the blogosphere. She later apologized for her comments, saying she “deeply regretted” making them…. The reaction of most reporters, friends and former White House officials … Read more

A Reagan Republican On Peace In the Middle East

Marshall J. Breger was a special assistant to President Reagan and is now a professor of law at the Catholic University of America. He also served in senior positions at the Bush ’41” White House.  His article from Moment Magazine on “A Republican’s Case for Peace” is quite interesting.  Here is his introduction: There is … Read more

The largest mammal in the Atlantic?

Scientists are stunned by the recent sighting of a grey whale off the shores of Israel. Grey whales haven’t been seen outside the Pacific ocean for several hundred years. This one has traveled thousands of miles from the north Pacific. “What has amazed the entire marine mammal research community is there haven’t been any grey … Read more

Remember the Palestinians

The Holy Land is a place of stories. Everyone has a story about Israel and the occupied territory called Palestine by those who live there. Many of the events are drenched in blood — often that of relatives present or past — which is why, when story is pitted against story, death against death, little … Read more

Why Evangelicals Support Israel

“Israel is not just necessary to the return of Christ, it is essential to it.” So says the Rev. A. R. Bernard, pastor of the Christian Cultural Center in New York City. His sentiments are shared by millions of Christians around the world who steadfastly believe that a Jewish state is necessary for the Second … Read more

‘All Your Body Are Belong To Us’

Every time my inner paranoid thinks it can take a little break, something like this comes along: New York State Assemblyman Richard Brodsky nearly lost his daughter, Willie, at 4 years old when she needed a kidney transplant, and again 10 years later when her second kidney failed. “We have 10,000 New Yorkers on the … Read more

When Love Conquers Politics

A Cracking of the Heart David Horowitz, Regnery, 188 pages, $24.95   David Horowitz remembers the moment well. The author of Radical Son, fresh off his political conversion, was having dinner with his family one night, explaining why he had become a conservative — and why they should, too. At that point, he admits, he … Read more

The Lord Is with Thee

  The Rosary is a deeply scriptural prayer, and the words “The Lord is with thee” root that profoundly Christian prayer, not merely in Scripture but in Old Testament Scripture. One of the things that marks the writers of the New Testament is their appreciation for the fact that, since Scripture is primarily the work … Read more

Israel acknowledges misuse of artillery

Remember those white phosphorus shells that the Israeli government swore up and down were never used on the United Nations compound in Gaza last January? Well, they were wrong. Paul Wood of BBC News in Jerusalem reports: Buried in paragraph 108 of the Israeli report to the UN is the key fact of the document. Two … Read more

The Need for Dialogue

It is not always easy to live under Islamic rule, or even under Islamic “influence.” Yet we share a planet, and with no other habitable planets within easy journey, we must find ways to get along. Consider for a moment: There are more than a million Arab Muslims in Israel. There are zero Jews in … Read more

Little House in Nazareth

This is pretty cool: Archaeologists in Israel say they have discovered the remains of the first home in Nazareth that can be dated to the time of Jesus. The dwelling and older discoveries of nearby tombs in burial caves suggest that Nazareth was an out-of-the-way hamlet of around 50 houses on a patch of about … Read more

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