THE VATICAN, ISRAEL AND ISLAM IN THE HEADLINES:
Vatican Denounces Saddam's Execution as 'Tragic'
Associated Press December 30, 2006
Walk in harmony with Muslims, pope urges Christians at pilgrimage end
Catholic News Service December 1, 2006 John Thavis
Pope hailed for praying toward Mecca like Muslims
Reuters December 1, 2006 Philip Pullella and Tom Heneghan
Turkey: Pope Visit To Ephesus Highlights Mary's Interfaith Role
Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty November 29, 2006 Jeffrey Donovan
Vatican, Patriarchate both Seek Dialogue with Islam
Zaman November 26, 2006 Erkan Acar
Holy Land churches, and The Vatican's envoy, attack Christian Zionism
Reuters - Wash. Post August 31, 2006 Matthew Tostevin
Pontificating Against Israel (Why isn’t the Vatican allowing self-defense against terrorism?)
Frontpagemag.com July 25, 2006 Joseph D'Hippolito
Lebanon Turns to the Vatican to Halt Israeli Offensive
Arutz Sheva/(IsraelNN.com) July 20, 2006 (24 Tammuz 5766)
Vatican Condemns Israel for Attacks on Lebanon
Reuters July 14, 2006
(suggested alternate headline - " Vatican: 'At least Hezbollah doesn't use artificial contraception!' " - AT)
Jerusalem Church leaders urge int’l community not to boycott Palestinians
Catholic News Agency April 13, 2006
Vatican Says Jerusalem "Issue" is Too Important to Leave to Israel, PA
www.arutzsheva.net January 3, 2006 (3 Tevet 5766)
Papal Official Wants to Divide Jerusalem
Arutz Sheva December 24, 2005 (23 Kislev 5766)
Vatican: Parts of David’s Tomb to Be Under Papal Control
Israel National News Oct. 20, 2005 Naomi Grossman
The Vatican's Terrorism Omission
FrontPageMagazine.com August 1, 2005 Alan M. Dershowitz
Israel protests Papal silence on terror
Jerusalem Post July 26, 2005
Vatican criticises Israel over pope's anti-terror message
Agence France-Presse July 25, 2005
Vatican relocating Jerusalem institute for Jewish studies to Rome
Associated Press January 24, 2003
Vatican Condemns Israel’s Ban on Arafat’s Travels to Bethlehem
IsraelNationalNews.com December 24, 2001 (9 Tevet 5762)
Israel Protests Vatican-PA Agreement on Jerusalem
CNSNews.com February 15, 2000
Israel says Vatican making baseless accusations in Nazareth dispute
Associated Press November 24, 1999
Vatican condemns 'divisive' Israel
Sunday Times (UK) November 24, 1999 Sam Kiley
Pope Kisses the Islamic Koran
FIDES News Service June 1, 1999
THE CATHOLIC OPINION OF ISRAEL:
"It implied the claim that this society now constituted the true people of God that the Old Covenant was passing away, and that He, the promised Messias, was inaugurating a New Covenant with a New Israel."
"They [the Catholic Church] are the new congregation of Israel -- the theocratic polity: they are the people (laos) of God."
- New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia
THE TRADITIONALIST CATHOLIC (TO THE FAR RIGHT OF THE VATICAN) VIEW OF ISRAEL:
"Regarding religion, I am against the Jews and Muslims. Regarding politics, I think that the only solution for the Holy Land is to be a Catholic Kingdom, as established and held by the Crusaders for 200 years.... Is God behind the confusion of the interminable Arab-Israeli mutual destruction? If He is, it would explain how He is punishing those who pretend to be the owners of His Holy Land: Jews and Arabs."
- Atila Sinke Guimarães, Tradition In Action editorial, August 9, 2006
THE TRADITIONALIST CATHOLIC VIEW OF PROTESTANT CHRISTIANS:
"There is no salvation for those outside the [Catholic] Church ... I believe it ... Put it this way. My wife is a saint. She’s a much better person than I am. Honestly. She’s, like, Episcopalian, Church of England. She prays, she believes in God, she knows Jesus, she believes in that stuff. And it’s just not fair if she doesn’t make it, she’s better than I am. But that is a pronouncement from the chair. I go with it."
- Mel Gibson in a September 2003 interview with Peter Boyer for the New Yorker, on the very audience who made his film a success (the ADL should've jumped on this one and publicized it to the Evangelical Christian community).
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Kansas Board of Education Urged to Reject "Shameful" Proposal to Delete Tuskegee Experiment and Other Science Abuses from State Curriculum
Source: http://www.blackprwire.com/display-news.asp?id=2934
(BLACK PR WIRE) (February 13, 2007) TOPEKA--A national group is urging the Kansas State Board of Education to reject a plan to delete coverage of the historical misuses of science from state curriculum standards, including a reference to the infamous Tuskegee syphilis experiment targeting African-Americans.
"The board's plan to whitewash the history of science is shameful," said Dr. John West, Vice at Discovery Institute's Center for Science and Culture. West sent a letter to the board on Monday opposing the change. "Especially disturbing is the board's proposal--during Black History month no less--to eliminate any mention of the infamous Tuskegee syphilis experiment from the state curriculum.”
The Tuskegee experiment, which took place from the 1930s to the early 1970s, left nearly 400 African-American men untreated during the late stages of syphilis in order to collect medical data from their autopsies. The experiment is one of the most infamous examples of the abuse of human research subjects. "
It is only by studying these past abuses that students--our scientists of the future--can learn about the critical importance of science operating within ethical standards," wrote West to the board.
Kansas' current standards call for students to understand that: "modern science can sometimes be abused by scientists and policymakers, leading to significant negative consequences for society and violations of human dignity (e.g., the eugenics movement in America and Germany; the Tuskegee syphilis experiments; and scientific justifications of eugenics and racism)."
The latter language would be deleted under the proposal to be voted on Tuesday, which is part of a package of changes being championed by the new pro-Darwin majority on the state board.Discovery Institute is a non-profit, non-partisan education and research organization. For more information please www.discovery.org.
(BLACK PR WIRE) (February 13, 2007) TOPEKA--A national group is urging the Kansas State Board of Education to reject a plan to delete coverage of the historical misuses of science from state curriculum standards, including a reference to the infamous Tuskegee syphilis experiment targeting African-Americans.
"The board's plan to whitewash the history of science is shameful," said Dr. John West, Vice at Discovery Institute's Center for Science and Culture. West sent a letter to the board on Monday opposing the change. "Especially disturbing is the board's proposal--during Black History month no less--to eliminate any mention of the infamous Tuskegee syphilis experiment from the state curriculum.”
The Tuskegee experiment, which took place from the 1930s to the early 1970s, left nearly 400 African-American men untreated during the late stages of syphilis in order to collect medical data from their autopsies. The experiment is one of the most infamous examples of the abuse of human research subjects. "
It is only by studying these past abuses that students--our scientists of the future--can learn about the critical importance of science operating within ethical standards," wrote West to the board.
Kansas' current standards call for students to understand that: "modern science can sometimes be abused by scientists and policymakers, leading to significant negative consequences for society and violations of human dignity (e.g., the eugenics movement in America and Germany; the Tuskegee syphilis experiments; and scientific justifications of eugenics and racism)."
The latter language would be deleted under the proposal to be voted on Tuesday, which is part of a package of changes being championed by the new pro-Darwin majority on the state board.Discovery Institute is a non-profit, non-partisan education and research organization. For more information please www.discovery.org.
Sunday, February 4, 2007
ANTI-SEMITISM AND CHRISTIAN RECONSTRUCTIONISM
"The rejection of Israel is essential to the unbiblical Reconstruction/Kingdom/Dominion teaching that a Christian elite has a mandate to take over the world and set up the Kingdom, (a theocracy), as a condition of Christ's return. Only Jesus Christ himself can be trusted with such power. That is why it is so distressing to hear the Paulks, Norths, et al. laying claim to this absolute theocratic power in Christ's name. This is but one of many reasons why King Jesus himself must set up His kingdom and personally rule over it—a teaching increasingly rejected in the church today." - Dave Hunt
Read full article: http://www.thebereancall.org/Newsletter/html/1988/aug88.php
Read full article: http://www.thebereancall.org/Newsletter/html/1988/aug88.php
HOW "PROSPERITY GOSPEL" TEACHINGS HARM BLACK AMERICA
(While I believe the primary emphasis of a Christian church should be getting people saved as opposed to reforming society, the author makes some important points. The money filling the coffers of these millionaire megachurch CEOs/pastors is money that won't be used to invest in black-owned businesses or give alternatives to inner-city children trapped in failing public schools. Tithing is not a requirement on the New Testament Church anyway, but whatever we giving we do, we should give joyfully and not out of necessity as per 2 Cor 9:7. That giving should be to those in need, i.e. local ministries and those serving full-time in the ministry, widows, orphans, the poor; not to those who own a private jet or two. And it should be for no other motive than to bless others, not to make God subordinate to your personal wishes, which is the way of occult religions. - AT)
Commentary: Emphasis on Wealth in Some Black Churches Costs in Spiritual Currency
Date: Wednesday, May 17, 2006
By: Tonyaa Weathersbee, BlackAmericaWeb.com
www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/sayitloud/weathersbee517
It’s the kind of controversy that I pray will turn into a productive conversation among black people of faith. Last weekend, James H. Cone, a prominent theologian who has used the teachings of compassion for the downtrodden espoused by Martin Luther King Jr. to shape a generation of black ministers, decided to sit out graduation ceremonies at the Interdenominational Theological Center after officials invited Bishop Eddie Long to speak at its commencement. A number of students had also threatened to boycott the ceremony as well. Long is senior pastor at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, an Atlanta church that boasts more than 25,000 members.
Theologians such as Cone and others have begun to speak out against the teachings of many megachurch pastors because they tend to focus on worship as the path towards earning personal riches rather than as a tool to enrich the lives of people who grapple with injustice and oppression. In other words, they preach -- or rather, the message that many in their flock absorb -- is that obedience to God is all about making their wallets fatter, not making the world a better place. That trend troubles Cone. And it troubles me as well.
In a stark turnabout from the days in which King conjured the powers of the black church to fight segregation and other forms of injustice that sapped opportunities and esteem for black people, prosperity gospel has now made the quest for personal riches a spiritual rather than an earthly desire. Not long ago, for example, The Washington Post reported that heavy tithing -- an offshoot of the prosperity gospel movement -- had catapulted predominantly black Prince George’s County, Md., into the top five counties in the nation for charitable giving. It also reported that among all black people, nine out of 10 charitable dollars went to religious institutions.
Yet, none of the tithing people whom the Post quoted said a thing about giving in the hope that the Lord might bless Prince George’s -- which struggles with bad schools and burgeoning crime -- with a solution to those problems. All these people talked about was how their own financial situation or their personal blessings improved once they began giving.
In a way, there’s nothing wrong with that. Obviously, if someone’s personal finances improve, he or she is in a better situation to give money to help others or to make a difference. Yet, I rarely, if ever, hear regular church givers make that argument. All I hear them say is that by giving their 10 percent, they’ll get more blessings, i.e., money, in return.
To me, that makes worship more shallow than spiritual.
Now, I’m not one who believes that modest living ought to be the price of piety. I like being able to live well just like everyone else. But when I give to charities -- and I give to charities regularly -- I don’t give simply on the hope that I will be blessed with more stuff. I give because I want to see others blessed. When I give to Doctors Without Borders, for example, which goes into places like Haiti and the Congo to provide desperately-needed medical care, I do so in the hope that one less child will die from a preventable illness. The reward, for me, comes with the knowledge that I’ve done something to make a difference for those who don’t have the power to make a difference for themselves, not because I’ve contributed to building a new house of worship, or because I might get a new house or car.
Another problem that I have with an emphasis on giving as a means of getting back is that it further exacerbates the crass materialism that, in many ways, has hurt black communities. It feeds a culture that causes young black men to rationalize selling drugs as being business as usual. It also is the thing that drives rappers to have no qualms about thanking God when their profanity-filled, bitch-and-ho videos win awards. Because they see their prosperity as a blessing, they figure they must be doing something right. That’s a shame.
So I hope that at some point, pastors such as Long and Cone begin a dialogue on the spiritual direction of black people, on how to harness our generosity and compassion so that more of us find our blessings in seeing unjust laws change and social justice realized -- not in just getting a raise or a new Mercedes.
If that doesn’t happen, or if too many of us continue to equal material gain with godliness, we’ll be writing a prescription for spiritual death, not life.
Commentary: Emphasis on Wealth in Some Black Churches Costs in Spiritual Currency
Date: Wednesday, May 17, 2006
By: Tonyaa Weathersbee, BlackAmericaWeb.com
www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/sayitloud/weathersbee517
It’s the kind of controversy that I pray will turn into a productive conversation among black people of faith. Last weekend, James H. Cone, a prominent theologian who has used the teachings of compassion for the downtrodden espoused by Martin Luther King Jr. to shape a generation of black ministers, decided to sit out graduation ceremonies at the Interdenominational Theological Center after officials invited Bishop Eddie Long to speak at its commencement. A number of students had also threatened to boycott the ceremony as well. Long is senior pastor at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, an Atlanta church that boasts more than 25,000 members.
Theologians such as Cone and others have begun to speak out against the teachings of many megachurch pastors because they tend to focus on worship as the path towards earning personal riches rather than as a tool to enrich the lives of people who grapple with injustice and oppression. In other words, they preach -- or rather, the message that many in their flock absorb -- is that obedience to God is all about making their wallets fatter, not making the world a better place. That trend troubles Cone. And it troubles me as well.
In a stark turnabout from the days in which King conjured the powers of the black church to fight segregation and other forms of injustice that sapped opportunities and esteem for black people, prosperity gospel has now made the quest for personal riches a spiritual rather than an earthly desire. Not long ago, for example, The Washington Post reported that heavy tithing -- an offshoot of the prosperity gospel movement -- had catapulted predominantly black Prince George’s County, Md., into the top five counties in the nation for charitable giving. It also reported that among all black people, nine out of 10 charitable dollars went to religious institutions.
Yet, none of the tithing people whom the Post quoted said a thing about giving in the hope that the Lord might bless Prince George’s -- which struggles with bad schools and burgeoning crime -- with a solution to those problems. All these people talked about was how their own financial situation or their personal blessings improved once they began giving.
In a way, there’s nothing wrong with that. Obviously, if someone’s personal finances improve, he or she is in a better situation to give money to help others or to make a difference. Yet, I rarely, if ever, hear regular church givers make that argument. All I hear them say is that by giving their 10 percent, they’ll get more blessings, i.e., money, in return.
To me, that makes worship more shallow than spiritual.
Now, I’m not one who believes that modest living ought to be the price of piety. I like being able to live well just like everyone else. But when I give to charities -- and I give to charities regularly -- I don’t give simply on the hope that I will be blessed with more stuff. I give because I want to see others blessed. When I give to Doctors Without Borders, for example, which goes into places like Haiti and the Congo to provide desperately-needed medical care, I do so in the hope that one less child will die from a preventable illness. The reward, for me, comes with the knowledge that I’ve done something to make a difference for those who don’t have the power to make a difference for themselves, not because I’ve contributed to building a new house of worship, or because I might get a new house or car.
Another problem that I have with an emphasis on giving as a means of getting back is that it further exacerbates the crass materialism that, in many ways, has hurt black communities. It feeds a culture that causes young black men to rationalize selling drugs as being business as usual. It also is the thing that drives rappers to have no qualms about thanking God when their profanity-filled, bitch-and-ho videos win awards. Because they see their prosperity as a blessing, they figure they must be doing something right. That’s a shame.
So I hope that at some point, pastors such as Long and Cone begin a dialogue on the spiritual direction of black people, on how to harness our generosity and compassion so that more of us find our blessings in seeing unjust laws change and social justice realized -- not in just getting a raise or a new Mercedes.
If that doesn’t happen, or if too many of us continue to equal material gain with godliness, we’ll be writing a prescription for spiritual death, not life.
ABORTING FOR THE PATRIARCHY
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=18173
10 Million Fewer Girls Born in India
Associated Press
December 19, 2006
By NIRMALA GEORGE
Lawmakers and women's rights activists raised an alarm Monday over new evidence indicating about 7,000 fewer girls than expected are born each day in India, where women routinely suffer discrimination and parents often abort female fetuses. The spread of ultrasound technology allowing parents to find out the gender of their unborn children has resulted in the large-scale 'disappearance' of girls here. One study released earlier this year estimated that 10 million fewer girls were born here than expected in the past 20 years. The government must 'rise in revolt against the male child mania,' said lawmaker Gurudas Dasgupta during a parliamentary debate Monday.
The debate was spurred in part by a report last week from UNICEF, which estimated that 7,000 girls go unborn each day in India, where abortions are legal and a ban on finding out the sex of unborn children and aborting female fetuses is widely flouted. The result is a skewed gender ratio - many districts in the country of more than 1 billion people routinely report only 800 females born for every 1,000 males. According to the latest census figures in India, the number of girls per 1,000 boys declined from 945 to 927 between 1991 and 2001. In China, where there is a similar preference for male offspring, official figures show 117 boys are born in China for every 100 girls, according to the Xinhua News Agency. China bans the use of ultrasound or other means to determine the sex of a fetus, but doctors who do so usually face only administrative penalties, not criminal charges. The situation in India is driving activists to demand the government declare a 'national emergency' and take tough measures to enforce existing laws. 'It is truly a state of emergency and the government has to act,' said women's rights activist Ranjana Kumari.
UNICEF's report included dire warnings about the social fallout from the skewed gender ratio - girls getting married at younger ages, dropping out of school and dying earlier after being forced bear children when they are too young. It could also result in more violence against girls and women, UNICEF said. The government says it is clamping down on doctors who tell parents the sex of their unborn children and abort female fetuses. But in more than a decade, only one such doctor has been convicted, and some senior officials acknowledge tougher action is needed. 'Female feticide should be treated as a crime and not just a social evil, therefore stringent punishment and punitive action is required,' said Renuka Choudhury, India's women and child development minister. Indian families traditionally have preferred boys, partly because of the widespread Hindu religious belief that only a son could perform the last rites when his father dies.
In addition, girls are seen as a burden on the family, requiring a huge dowry that many families cannot afford. They are generally the last to be educated or get medical treatment when ill. Choudhury said the government was planning to offer incentives to village councils that worked to change such discriminatory attitudes. But as India's ponderous bureaucracy cranks up for a nationwide awareness campaign, non-governmental organizations, student groups and civil society organizations have already taken up the task to publicly explain the urgency of the issue. In recent weeks, hundreds of students, both men and women, have held demonstrations and candlelight vigils in many cities to create awareness. 'It's a message we hope to take to the people - invest in girls, realize their value, help them realize their potential, let them live,' Kumari said.
10 Million Fewer Girls Born in India
Associated Press
December 19, 2006
By NIRMALA GEORGE
Lawmakers and women's rights activists raised an alarm Monday over new evidence indicating about 7,000 fewer girls than expected are born each day in India, where women routinely suffer discrimination and parents often abort female fetuses. The spread of ultrasound technology allowing parents to find out the gender of their unborn children has resulted in the large-scale 'disappearance' of girls here. One study released earlier this year estimated that 10 million fewer girls were born here than expected in the past 20 years. The government must 'rise in revolt against the male child mania,' said lawmaker Gurudas Dasgupta during a parliamentary debate Monday.
The debate was spurred in part by a report last week from UNICEF, which estimated that 7,000 girls go unborn each day in India, where abortions are legal and a ban on finding out the sex of unborn children and aborting female fetuses is widely flouted. The result is a skewed gender ratio - many districts in the country of more than 1 billion people routinely report only 800 females born for every 1,000 males. According to the latest census figures in India, the number of girls per 1,000 boys declined from 945 to 927 between 1991 and 2001. In China, where there is a similar preference for male offspring, official figures show 117 boys are born in China for every 100 girls, according to the Xinhua News Agency. China bans the use of ultrasound or other means to determine the sex of a fetus, but doctors who do so usually face only administrative penalties, not criminal charges. The situation in India is driving activists to demand the government declare a 'national emergency' and take tough measures to enforce existing laws. 'It is truly a state of emergency and the government has to act,' said women's rights activist Ranjana Kumari.
UNICEF's report included dire warnings about the social fallout from the skewed gender ratio - girls getting married at younger ages, dropping out of school and dying earlier after being forced bear children when they are too young. It could also result in more violence against girls and women, UNICEF said. The government says it is clamping down on doctors who tell parents the sex of their unborn children and abort female fetuses. But in more than a decade, only one such doctor has been convicted, and some senior officials acknowledge tougher action is needed. 'Female feticide should be treated as a crime and not just a social evil, therefore stringent punishment and punitive action is required,' said Renuka Choudhury, India's women and child development minister. Indian families traditionally have preferred boys, partly because of the widespread Hindu religious belief that only a son could perform the last rites when his father dies.
In addition, girls are seen as a burden on the family, requiring a huge dowry that many families cannot afford. They are generally the last to be educated or get medical treatment when ill. Choudhury said the government was planning to offer incentives to village councils that worked to change such discriminatory attitudes. But as India's ponderous bureaucracy cranks up for a nationwide awareness campaign, non-governmental organizations, student groups and civil society organizations have already taken up the task to publicly explain the urgency of the issue. In recent weeks, hundreds of students, both men and women, have held demonstrations and candlelight vigils in many cities to create awareness. 'It's a message we hope to take to the people - invest in girls, realize their value, help them realize their potential, let them live,' Kumari said.
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