Hate and Haters
Hate and Haters
By Terry James
Explosive confrontations were spawned by an Israeli crackdown because of the murder of two Jewish policeman guarding a Temple Mount entranceway.
If there is one word that can define the tumult surrounding the Temple Mount in Jerusalem at this late hour of this dispensation, that word is hate. Hatred against the Jewish race and against Israel has again come to the boiling point. It is coming from, in addition to the usual suspects, a source considered by a large part of the world’s population to be a bastion of not hatred, but love.
Since this source is supposedly Christian–the Catholic pope–there is reason, from my point of view, to analyze the matters involved through troubled cogitation. I say this because much of the Christian world–the world to which I belong–believe the Jewish race and the nation Israel to be under satanic attack.
My view is that those who are outraged at the Jews and at Israel come not from a godly perspective, but from undiluted hatred. It is profoundly disconcerting, to say the least, that all of this vitriol comes from those claiming the Christian religion as their own.
Pope Francis is joined in his mild-mannered but sub-surface rage against Israel by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The Christian conglomerate, consisting of 13 religious bodies within the Jerusalem community, issued a joint statement condemning the violence surrounding the Temple Mount.
Although it was a condemnation of violence in general, the language reflects that of Pope Francis which, in tenor, was slanted toward support of the Muslim side. For example, the communiqué addressed all references to the sites of the area in Arabic terms rather than in Jewish or Christian terms. The statement clearly disregarded any connection of the Temple Mount area to the Jewish or Christian religions.
The statement read:
We, the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem, express our serious concern regarding recent escalation in violent developments around Haram ash-Sharif and our grief for the loss of human life and strongly condemn any act of violence.
The statement, like the Pope, placed the blame for the ongoing violence on the metal detectors and cameras Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has placed in key areas to prevent further terroristic acts. Netanyahu, it is reported, has agreed to remove the metal detectors at some point, but not all safeguards. He will keep cameras and other devices in place in spite of the tremendous criticism of governments around the world and of threats of further attacks from the Arab-Muslim troublemakers.
The 13-member Latin Patriarchate stated in its declaration:
We are worried about any change to historical (Status Quo) situation in al-Aqsa Mosque (Haram ash-Sharif) and its courtyard, and in the holy city of Jerusalem. Any threat to its continuity and integrity could easily lead to serious and unpredictable consequences, which would be most unwelcome in the present tense religious climate.
We value the continued custody of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan on Al-Aqsa Mosque and the holy places in Jerusalem and the Holy Land which guarantees the right for all Muslims to free access and worship to al Aqsa Mosque according to the prevailing Status Quo.
The following news item frames the “Christian” community’s condemning tone, directed toward Israel.
The statement made no mention of the Muslim terror attack that led to Israel placing the metal detectors at the entrances to the site. Nor did it refer to the horrific Palestinian terror attack on Friday.
Bishop Munib Younan, head of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land, said on Vatican radio that the metal detectors are a form of “collective punishment” which should not be permitted “because of an attack by two persons.”
The bishop claimed that thousands of Muslims pray at the site during Ramadan and “everything goes smoothly”. He did not mention the murder of IDF Border Policewoman Hadas Malkah, which took place during Ramadan.
“It’s essential to find a political solution to end the Israeli occupation, which is considered illegal,” the bishop concluded. (Catholic Churches in Jerusalem Blame Israel for Muslim Violence, Deny Biblical Roots of Temple Mount, By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz, Israel News, July 23, 2017)
Though couched in high-sounding phraseology of religion-diplomatic speak, the hatred for the Jewish state is there. It is even more hateful in its thrust than such vitriol issued by other sources. This is because these are those who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ.
It is hate-speech of the most troubling sort, in my opinion.
Jesus, who is God,and, incidentally, is Israel’s Messiah, loves the Jewish people. To hate them and falsely accuse them, even though they certainly have erred greatly as have all other peoples, is to show hatred for Jesus.
The issuance of such condemnation, falling in line with all other hate-filled antagonists of God’s chosen people, invites, ultimately, the curse of God (Genesis 12:1-3).
Claiming to be “Christians”–if they are indeed so–these have no excuse for their deliberate denial that the Temple Mount as well as all the contested territory and far beyond was given to Israel in perpetuity by God, Himself.
Those who claim Christianity as their faith base should take into consideration what it means to hate that which the Lord loves. About hate and hatred, the Lord–who here was addressing Jews first, as the Church wasn’t born until Pentecost–said the following.
If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me…
They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me. ” (Jn 15: 18-21; 16: 2-3)
–Terry