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16. 6 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Biblical Insights One day a year (Day of Atonement / Yom Kippur), the High Priest would enter through the third veil into the Holy of Holies, with hot holy coals, incense, and blood (Lev.16). This veil had golden Cherubim embroidered on it. A picture, or reminder, of the Cherubim God placed east of Eden guarding the way back to the Tree of Life (Ex.26:31; Gen.3:24). Inside this innermost chamber was the Ark of the Covenant; a wooden box covered with gold and a solid gold lid, with two gold Cherubim at either end facing each other (Ex.25:10-22; Ex.26:34; Ex.37:1-9). Here the glory of God came to dwell (Ex.29:43; Ex.40:34-35). It was a picture of God’s throne in heaven, where He sits enthroned above the cherubim (Ps.80:1; 99:1; Is.37:16; 1 Chron.13:6; 1 Sam.4:4; 2 Sam.6:2; 2 Kings 19:15). God had told Moses that when it was built, He would come and speak to Moses from between the Cherubim (Ex.25:22; Nu.7:89). Inside the Ark were the second copy of the two stone tablets of the law that God had written (Ex.25:21; Deut.10:1-5; 1 kings 8:9). The original tablets had been thrown down and broken at the base of Mt. Sinai, when Moses found the children of Israel had broken their covenant with God by worshipping a golden calf idol (Ex.32:19; Deut.9:10-17). These tablets were a testimony to The Word of God. Outside and in front of the Ark was a golden bowel of Manna to remind the people of the bread with which God fed them in the wilderness, the bread from heaven which was God’s provision (Ex.16:32-34). Also, outside and in front of the Ark was Aarons rod, with his name on it, that budded and fruited overnight to prove that God had chosen Aaron as High priest. Nu.17:1-11. The rod was a dead stick that came to life overnight. It is a clear symbol of resurrection; a testimony that Aaron was God’s choice. Numbers 17:8 says it budded, blossomed and produced ripe almonds all at the same time. The almond tree is the first fruit tree to blossom every spring, and the last fruit tree to set its fruit around 9 months later. This makes it a symbol of first and last. God’s people were shut away from His presence. The Cherubim were still guarding the way back to Him, and Life in total fellowship and intimate relationship with Him, as it was in the Garden of Eden: ‘...but into the second [inner tabernacle, the Holy of Holies], only the high priest enters [and then only] once a year, and never without [bringing a sacrifice of] blood, which he offers [as a substitutionary atonement] for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance. By this the Holy Spirit signifies that the way into the Holy Place [the true Holy of Holies and the presence of God] has not yet been disclosed as long as the first or outer tabernacle is still standing.’ – Heb 9:7-8 The High Priest would, once a year, represent the people and enter the inner sanctuary with blood to atone for, cleanse from, and take away the sin that was separating them from God. It was a picture, a foreshadowing, of what God had planned to finish once and for all. He Himself would come and atone, cleanse and take away sin forever. To make us anew, a new creation without the inbuilt iniquity, so that He can be in a glorious relationship with us: ‘Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].’ – 2 Cor 5:17 (See also 1 John 3:9). When Yeshua died on the cross and completed our atonement, cleansing, and taking our sin away; the curtain before the Holy of Holies with the Cherubim, was torn from top to bottom (Matt.27:50-51; Mark 15:37-38; Luke 23:45- 46). God removed the Cherubim guards that He had put there, and now the way is open for us to return to His presence In the Messiah. It is a representation of the torn body of the Messiah, that we may now enter in. ‘...by this new and living way which He initiated and opened for us through the veil [as in the Holy of Holies], that is, through His flesh...’ – Heb 10:20 The Ark represented God’s earthly throne, and the items associated with it represented the Messiah and are listed as being inside the Ark (Heb 9:3-5). Even the incense altar is spoken as if it was in the Holy of Holies. My take on this is that the curtain was gone so yes, the golden altar is in front of the Ark. The stone tablets, Manna, and the rod that budded, all together represent Yeshua. The Word of God (John 1:1-5 & 14). The Bread from Heaven (John 6:35 & 38 & 58). The Almond Rod (raised from the dead). He is The Resurrection and The Life (John 11:25; Acts 2:29-32; Romans 1:3-4). After completing His mission as the Pure Passover Lamb of God, He was raised from the dead, the seal of God’s choice of Messiah (Is.26:19; Matt.22:31-32; Luke 20:35-38; Acts 3:15; Acts 4:2, 10; Acts 10:41-43). The Almond Rod (first to flower; last to fruit) The First and the Last! Christ is called the first fruit from the dead (1 Cor.15:20, 23). He is also called the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End (Rev.1:8, 11; Rev.21:6; Rev.22:13). The Holy items, as God asked them to be placed in the Tabernacle, form a cross on the ground; therefore, you could say that The Cross is the foundation of the tabernacle. These Holy Items had to be carried by hand (Nu.4:15), never on an ox cart; Christ carried His own cross (John 19:16-17). Such a great price God paid to be able to bring us back into intimate relationship with Him, never to be separated again. Halellujah. ________________________________________________________ Alison Marshall is a New Zealand born believer in Jesus and has been a Tour Guide for the Tabernacle in the Wilderness since 1999 at Timna Park in Israel. www.berean-to-berean.com The Glorious Relationship with God — An Overview of the Tabernacle - Part 5 Alison Marshall Tour Guide for the Tabernacle in the Wilderness at Timna Park in Israel The Ark represented God’s earthly throne, and the items associated with it represented the Messiah Photo taken at Timna Park inside the Tabernacle in the Wilderness. It depicts what the Ark of the Covenant, Ten Commandments on tablets, and Aaron’s budded staff may have looked like inside the Holy of Holies.

26. 24 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Lawfare 12 Yoram Ettinger n Former Ambassador | Head of Second Thought: A US- Israel Initiative The suggestion that the application of the Israeli law to the Jordan Valley and parts of Judea and Samaria would severely undermine Israeli interests, jeopardise Israel’s peace treaties with Jordan and Egypt and Israel’s overall ties with Arab countries, is divorced from the Israeli track record and the Middle East reality. Israel’s Track Record The resurgence of the Jewish State from the ashes of WW2 to global prominence, technologically, scientifically, medically, agriculturally, economically, diplomatically and militarily – despite systematic adverse global pressure and Arab wars and terrorism – has demonstrated that there are no free lunches for independent nations, especially in the Middle East. For example, in 1948, Prime Minister Ben Gurion, Israel’s Founding Father, did not wait for a green light from the White House, in order to declare independence. He was aware that a declaration of independence would trigger a costly Arab military invasion. The CIA estimated that it could amount to ‘a second Holocaust.’ However, Ben Gurion concluded that achieving a supreme goal was preconditioned upon the willingness to pay a supreme cost. Indeed, the war against the Arab invasion c onsumed 1% (6,000) of the Jewish population (600,000). Fending off the Arab invasion, Israel expanded its borders by 30%, and would not retreat to the suicidal 1947 lines, despite brutal global (including US) pressure. The pressure on Israel dissipated, but Israel’s buttressed borders were preserved. In June 1967, Prime Minister Eshkol preempted a planned Egypt-Syria-Jordan joint offensive, in defiance of a strong red light from the White House and despite prominent Israelis who preferred the venue of negotiation and mediation, and who predicted a resounding Israeli defeat on the battlefield. Eshkol was aware that Israel’s existence, in the violently intolerant and unpredictable Middle East, required a firm posture of deterrence, which could entail heavy cost. In the aftermath of the war, Eshkol reunited Jerusalem and renewed Jewish population beyond the 1949/1967 indefensible Green Line, despite a very heavy US and global pressure. While the pressure on Israel has subsided, the Jewish presence in Judea, Samaria and eastern Jerusalem has surged to 700,000. In June 1981, Prime Minister Begin ordered the destruction of Iraq’s nuclear reactor, notwithstanding the menacing red light from the White House and the opposition by the Mossad, the IDF Intelligence and additional Israeli defence authorities. The naysayers were certain that an Israeli attack had a very slim chance of success. They feared that this would trigger a global Islamic assault on Israel; it would produce a European boycott of Israel, would create an irreparable rift with the USA and would doom Israel, economically and diplomatically. Begin decided that sparing Israel a traumatic nuclear assault justified even a traumatic cost. While the pessimistic assessments crashed on the rocks of reality, the Iraqi nuclear threat was terminated. In December 1981, Begin applied Israeli law to the Golan Heights, disregarding the brutal US opposition, which included the suspension of a US-Israel strategic accord and the supply of advanced military systems. While the heavy US sanctions were replaced by an unprecedented US-Israel strategic cooperation, the Golan Heights have become an integral part of the Jewish State. The aforementioned Israeli Prime Ministers defied international pressure and therefore were burdened with a short-term loss of global popularity. However, they earned long-term respect for their willingness to defy the odds at a severe cost. Thus, they bolstered Israel’s posture of deterrence, which has played a key role in enhancing Israel’s national security and Israel ’s regional/global standing, including its unprecedented military and commercial cooperation with all pro-US Arab countries. Middle East Reality (Israel-Arab Relations) Conventional wisdom is that an Israeli application of its law to the Jordan Valley and parts of Judea and Samaria would threaten the Israel-Jordan and Israel-Egypt peace treaties and could abort the burgeoning relations between Israel and all Arab Gulf States. Such a school of thought underestimates key Arab national security priorities, which have always transcended the Palestinian issue. It ignores the significant role played by Israel’s posture of deterrence in the national security strategy of Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, B ahrain, Oman and Kuwait. For example, the 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty reflects Jordanian national security priorities, rather than a Jordanian reconciliation with the existence of an ‘infidel’ Jewish State in the ‘abode of Islam.’ Just like all Arab regimes – and especially since the eruption of the still raging Arab Tsunami in 2010 – the pro-US regime in Amman is highly vulnerable, domestically and regionally. Irrespective of its pro-Palestinian rhetoric, Jordan’s actions – since 1949 when it occupied Judea and Samaria while prohibiting Palestinian political activity – have represented the overall Arab view of the Palestinians as a role model of intra-Arab subversion and terrorism. Jordan’s Hashemite regime considers the proposed Palestinian state a clear and present lethal threat. At the same time, it considers Israel’s posture of deterrence as its most effective line of defence against lethal threats, domestically (subversion by Palestinians, Muslim Brotherhood, ISIS and hostile southern Bedouin) and externally (Iran’s Ayatollahs, Iraq and Syria). King Abdullah II is aware of the key role played by Israel’s posture of deterrence in forcing a retreat of the 1970 Syrian invasion of Jordan when the US was unable to extend military help. Jordan considers Israel a unique source of intelligence and counter-terrorism assistance. Israel supplies water to the 1.5 million refugees from Syria, provides Jordan with commercial access to the port of Haifa and price- discounted offshore natural gas. Moreover, Israel is the most effective lobby for Jordan in Washington, DC. In addition, Israel has accorded Jordan a prominent inter- Islamic plum: the custodian of Jerusalem’s Moslem and Christian holy sites. Is King Abdullah II expected to cut off his nose to spite his face? Saudi Arabia and the other Arab Gulf States, as well as Egypt, regard Israel as a most reliable and effective ally in the face of mutual threats, such as Iran’s Ayatollahs, the Muslim Brotherhood, ISIS, Turkey’s Erdogan and potential tectonic spillovers from Iraq and Syria. This Saudi-Israel congruence of national security interests eclipses the role played by the Palestinian issue in Riyadh’s order of national priorities. Furthermore, Saudi Arabia appreciates the Israeli technological and potential scientific contribution to its effort to diversify their oil-dependent economy. In fact, Riyadh considers the proposed Palestinian state a potential rogue regime, siding with its arch enemies. Hence, the effective Saudi opposition (contrary to its rhetoric) to the establishment of a Palestinian state. Thus, the national security concerns of the pro-US Arab countries are advanced by a reinforced Israeli posture of deterrence. On the other hand, a hesitant, appeasing and retreating Israel, which sacrifices its independence of national security action on the altar of overseas green lights, whets the appetite of terrorists and rogue regimes, which threatens the national security of Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and all other pro-US Arab countries. Originally published in Breaking Israel News The Cost of Israeli Sovereignty August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Aerial view of East Jerusalem. | Photo: Flash90 Just like all Arab regimes ... the pro-US regime in Amman is highly vulnerable , domestically and regionally.

6. 16 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 News 4 Muslim Sheikh Honoured for Combating Anti-Semitism Aviel Schneider n Chief Editor | Israel Today The head of the Muslim World League has ‘Jesus’ in his name and defends the Jews. Go figure. Sheikh Mohammed Al-Issa is Secretary-General of the Muslim World League (MWL) based in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. He was recently recognised for his contribution to combating anti-Semitism as the first recipient of the annual Combat Anti-Semitism Award. Sheikh Al-Issa has been recognised before for uniting people of all faiths in publicly condemning Holocaust denial and inspiring the next generation to fight hatred and promote peace. At the beginning of the year, Sheikh Al-Issa and other high-ranking Islamic dignitaries from all over the world visited the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz- Birkenau, where many Jews perished in the Holocaust. The award was presented to the former Minister of Justice of Saudi Arabia in an online event due to the corona crisis. No mention has been made of Sheikh Mohammed Al-Issa in the Palestinian media. On the contrary, Palestinian publications, including school textbooks, still engage in Holocaust denial and incitement against the Jewish people. In his online speech, Sheikh Al-Issa sharply condemned the Holocaust deniers in the Muslim world for spreading lies. “Jews and Muslims have lived together for centuries, but unfortunately our paths have diverged in the past few decades,” emphasised Al-Issa, who bears the Arabic name for Jesus, meaning Sheikh Mohammed Al-Jesus. “We absolutely need to build new bridges for dialogue between the two communities. Since becoming the Secretary-General of the Muslim World League, I have been committed to fighting hatred and violence. When I was in Auschwitz-Birkenau, I stood next to my Jewish siblings and told them that the Holocaust was the greatest horror in history and promised that this should never happen again.” The sheikh stressed that as long as there are those who distort hist ory and deny the Holocaust, “we will stand against those liars, no matter where they are. Denial of history serves the extremists who only promote hatred and racism. As Muslims, we have a duty to study history and to stand by the international community as part of our faith.” The Muslim cleric also took aim at those exploiting the coronavirus crisis to further spread hate: “The coronavirus is a common enemy that makes no distinction between Muslims and Jews. Extremists are taking advantage of the global pandemic to promote the ideology of hate and separation. We have to join forces to fight the virus if we want to keep hope alive against this threat.” Indeed, both in the Middle East and in the West, the Jews have been blamed for the coronavirus crisis. There is no logic or reason behind such claims. Hate leads to blind madness. Voices like these from Sheikh Mohammed Al-Issa are therefore crucial, especially amid a sea of hateful voices like those in Tehran, from Hezbollah in Lebanon or from Hamas in the Gaza Strip, all of whom speak and dream primarily of Israel’s destruction. Incidentally, when you speak to Palestinians about the Holocaust and the extermination of Jews, about half of them still insist that this is a Zionist lie. What Does ECI do? Dr Emilie Noteboom n Director of Outreach, European Coalition for Israel The European Coalition for Israel (ECI) is a pan- European group of Christians who are a voice of support for the Jewish people and the Jewish State at the UN, the EU and national governments. At the highest diplomatic levels, it is mostly Israeli or American organisations, often with a distinctly Jewish identity, that stand with Israel. Since ECI is European and not Jewish, our approach is different from those groups, sometimes resulting in doors opening in unprecedented ways. Our message is that we as Europeans have made multiple mistakes when it comes to treatment of the Jewish people. From that sober place we invite decision-makers to learn from our mistakes and choose differently. As non-Jews, we can also build bridges and plead the Jewish cause as an ‘objective third party’. It means we are positioned to celebrate the Jewish people and their contribution to Western civilisation and culture. Without the Jews, Europe would not be Europe and the West would not have developed its Judeo-Christian civilisation. A practical way we have celebrated Jewish culture in the past years has been by organising a Passover Seder at the UN he adquarters in New York. The story of liberation out of slavery is one that speaks to all people and is particularly meaningful to African leaders. ECI hosts the event and invites UN dignitaries to be our guests. Israeli diplomats are given the place of honour and lead those gathered through the story of Moses bringing the people out of Egypt. Such events have a unique impact by allowing diplomats, representing nations that are not always friends of Israel, to see a different side of Israel and learn about Jewish culture and history. It highlights the humanity of a people too often portrayed only through the distorting lens of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This year we could not celebrate a Passover Seder at the UN because headquarters had closed due to the pandemic. Inspired by a little-known Jewish tradition that gives those who were not able to celebrate Passover at its Biblically appointed time another chance to do so, we hosted a virtual Second Passover (Pesach Sheni) for UN officials in May. With ‘Hope through Music and Literature’ as the theme, world-renowned violinist Renaud Capuçon performed selected pieces of music. Katharina von Schnurbein, the European Commission’s Coordinator in the combat against anti-semitism, read texts by celebrated Israeli writers. Tomas Sandell, ECI’s founder, and Gregory Lafitte, ECI’s Director of UN Affairs, shared their thoughts on hope in times of deep distress and the Jewish contribution to culture, in particular to the French language. Tomas and Gregory have since started hosting a weekly webinar in which they discuss current events with dignitaries. ECI warmly invites you to join them! To receive invites to the webinars, sign up for ECI’s monthly newsletter at www.ec4i.org. August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Dr Emilie Noteboom, European Coalition for Israel’s Director of Outreach (right) with Katharina von Schnurbein, European Commission Coordinator on combating Antisemitism at European Parliament Sheikh Mohammed Al-Issa. | Photo: Creative Commons

18. 8 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Magen David Adom Tamara Lowbeer Donor Relations Manager for Magen David Adom Magen David Adom Heads Up The Battle Against Covid-19 In Israel Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in Israel, Magen David Adom has been at the frontline of the struggle against the virus. Appointed by the Israeli Government to take on this massive operation, MDA’s tactics in combatting COVID-19 have been critical in preventing an even larger crisis in Israel. Since MDA’s inception 90 years ago, its purpose has been to provide real-time medical assistance to the people of Israel, regardless of race, religion or background. MDA’s unique structure of more than 24,000 volunteers, who undergo annual professional medical training and 4000 professional staff has enabled Israel to save countless lives and prevent the overcrowding of hospitals during the pandemic. Responding to wars, bombings, rocket attacks, stabbings and disease, Magen David Adom has literally been on the frontline of every battle, not to wage war but to save lives. From the start of the pandemic, MDA set up emergency call centres with hundreds of volunteers to help the public. Since the first days of the coronavirus in February, MDA call centres were answering around 6,000 calls a day and rapidly grew to over 100,000 calls each day. Volunteers and staff are trained to provide accurate information and medical advice and instructions. When patients need to be tested, MDA medics in protective gear and masks bring the medical tests to the patients in quarantine, rather than have the patients risk exposing others by going to the hospital. Even post diagnosis, MDA medical staff assists patients, whether cases are severe and need hospitalisation or simply require monitoring at home. As the crisis grows, MDA continues to open more Drive Through testing centres, minimizing hospitalisation as much as possible. More than 450,000 COVID-19 tests have already been conducted by MDA and testing continues. The early detection of COVID-19 helps prevent the wide scale spread of the virus. MDA’s medics and volunteers are also continuing to treat every day medical emergencies without having to take patients to hospital, which could put them at risk of exposure to COVID-19. Magen David Adom has started the plasma collection project collecting blood from patients who have recovered from COVID-19, with the aim of giving an infusion to patients in moderate and severe condition. The blood from recovered patients contains antibodies which will provide ill patients with a ‘passive vaccine’ that may help them cope with the disease and enable recovery. By the beginning of June, Magen David Adom had successfully treated over one hundred patients with the donor plasma collected by MDA’s Blood Services. MDA teams who have shown endless dedication, professionalism and compassion, setting some of the highest medical standards in the world. MDA is Israel’s life support. Note: At the time of writing this article, the situation in Israel was changing with a second spike becoming apparent. We hope and pray that soon the health and lives of the people in Israel and around the world will soon be free of the scourge of COVID-19. ________________________________________________________ Enquiries www.magendavidadom.org.au or phone 9358 2521 The blood from recovered [COVID19] patients contains antibodies which will provide ill patients with a ‘passive vaccine’ MDA Collecting blood for plasma from recovered COVID patients. Contact-free mobile testing station set up in Jerusalem Dedicated ambulances and crews transport COVID patients

21. 11 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Political Commentary Alex Ryvchin Author and co-Chief Executive Director — Executive Council of Australian Jewry How Blindness to Antisemitism Threatens Parties and Movements Keir Starmer, the post-Corbyn leader of the British Labour party acted swiftly to demote 1 a Member of Parliament who tweeted an article containing a paragraph linking Israel to the killing of George Floyd. In truth, when Labour MP Rebecca Long- Bailey tweeted the interview with the actress Maxine Peake in which she made the appalling and unfounded claim, Long- Bailey may have had no sinister intentions. Indeed, she may have missed the offending paragraph altogether. So common has the obsession with Israel become in the left fringes of social-democratic parties, so accustomed must Long-Bailey be to hearing Israel blamed for all of the world’s ills at branch meetings and in her social media feed that a casual reference to the Jewish State masterminding violence on the other side of the world would hardly raise an eyebrow. Instead, Long-Bailey tweeted out the article with no caveats or qualifications intervening only to point out that the actress who made the accusation was an “absolute diamond”. The allegation that Israel trains American officers to kneel on the necks of suspects is the sort of half-baked musing one might overhear on a university library lawn. But while such theories often originate on campuses or in the disturbed minds of people like Roger Waters—the musician made 2 the identical claim in a recent interview with a Hamas-affiliated news agency—they rarely stay there. Such theories now have a voice in Congress and in parliaments throughout the world. This can partly be attributed to the nature of modern communications which means that fanatical political ideas and prejudices no longer reside in pamphlets that no one outside the movement reads but are now manufactured into compelling content, entirely stripped of context or truth, and instantly directed it into the eyeballs of millions. It is also a symptom of the mainstreaming of once-fringe elements who have shifted from micro-parties and occasionally the backbenches, to the corridors of power. More than that, it shows how society, stricken by pandemic, discord and fatigue has embraced conspiratorial thinking. A common feature of all conspiracies is the belief that something is concealed, that the truth is known only to an enlightened few, and that all our misfortunes are the cause of someone else, some unseen hand that rests upon the levers of power—finance, government, the media. Historically, these delusions have found the Jew to be a suitable enemy. Until the mid-20th century, the Jews were a stateless people, scattered throughout the world, lacking a cohesiveness and a national centre and therefore both physically vulnerable and uniquely suited to being cast as a mysterious arch-villain in the fantasies of both the far- left and the far-right. Jewish survival in the face of unparalleled calamites, the ability of the Jews to revive their ancient tongue as a language of everyday use, rebuild scorched communities and contribute beyond their numbers to the societies in which they live only fed the belief that the Jews were some phantasmic, supernatural presence. They were feared and hated in equal measure. The Jewish national movement, Zionism, was supposed to render all that irrelevant. By being rescued from exile and restored to a national home approximating the territories they controlled in ancient times, the Jews should have attained equality with other peoples who had homelands, flags, distinct languages, national traditions and the rest. But so deeply ingrained was the characterisation of the Jews and so compelling is the desire to blame a despised other for our own failings, that the return of the Jews to their homeland nearly two millennia after their expulsion by the Romans, an event unprecedented in human history, was not universally greeted with wonder and admiration. Rather it spawned new feelings of loathing and hardened the perception that this people were bound up in something suspiciously extraordinary, even supernatural. In fact, far from curing antisemitism and the conspiracy theories that so often give effect to it, Zionism and the State of Israel offered a new medium through which to express irrational feelings towards the Jews. As Nazi-era race theories about immutable Jewish inferiority were completely discredited and older religious-based contempt for the Jews lacked relevance in contemporary times, particularly among the secular hard-left, Zionism and Israel became the new outlets for those driven to apoplexy by Jewish assertiveness, perceived success, and stubborn refusal to submit and disappear. Pseudo-political accusations of genocide, ethnic cleansing, apartheid, collective punishment replaced classical accusations of ritual murder, bloodlust, a cunning malevolence, and a people standing in the way of a better world and therefore uniquely deserving of punishment. It is this modern politicisation of antisemitism that ensured that Rebecca Long-Bailey, who would have been instantly awake to a racist jibe directed at any other minority group, could mistake the antisemitism in the interview for benign criticism of a state she doesn’t much care for. The belief that every injustice can be traced to Israeli evil was perhaps best demonstrated by another British Labour politician (now mercifully retired) Clare Short, who claimed 3 during a pro-Palestinian conference in Brussels in 2007 that not only was Israel “much worse than the original apartheid state”, but that it “undermines the international community’s reaction to global warming.” Given Short’s conclusion that global warming could “end the human race” , one can readily connect the dots about how loathsome and threatening Israel must be and what should be done with it. For good measure, Israel has also been accused 4 of causing domestic violence in Gaza as passionate Palestinian men have no choice but to beat their wives to assert their masculinity in the face of Israeli aggression. More recently, Black Lives Matter , a group ostensibly formed to combat racism adopted 5 a manifesto that amidst the discourse on incarceration rates, police conduct and racial profiling, also accuses Israel of being an “apartheid state” and committing “genocide” of the Palestinians, whose population throughout the Holy Land has undergone a continuous and spectacular increase since the advent of modern Zionism in the nineteenth century. The UK arm of the movement then paused in its tweets on black lives to spray off an anti-Israel medley including offering its weighty legal opinion that Israel is in breach of international law and lamenting the “gagging” of attacks on Zionism. The campaign to attach Zionism to every grievance and injustice has its origins in Stalin’s deteriorating mind during the last years of his reign. It became the basis for official Soviet anti-Zionism and remains as a vestige in far-left political movements today. But in a sense, it runs even deeper than that. It is the hallmark of an irrational, fanatical mind, incapable of grasping the nuance and complexity of life. Just as traditional antisemitism brought ruin and misery, anti-Zionism will corrupt noble movements and worthy causes unless it is finally stamped out. 1. www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-53187789 2. www.jpost.com/bds-threat/roger-waters- technique-used-in-george-floyds-death-taught-by- idf-632292 3. www.wsj.com/articles/SB118877270728215947 4. www.jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and- diplomacy/israel-slams-un-report-blaming-it-for- domestic-abuse-of-palestinian-women-447198 5. www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/08/ why-did-black-american-activists-start-caring- about-palestine/496088 ________________________________________________________ Alex Ryvchin is the author of Zionism – The Concise History and is the Co-Chief Executive Officer of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry. www.alexryvchin.com BLM... accuses Israel of being an “apartheid state” and committing “genocide” of the Palestinians Former leadership candidate Ms Long-Bailey was sacked as shadow education secretary by Sir Keir Starmer after linking to an interview by actress Maxine Peake.

15. 5 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 ICEJ & Jewish Agency Helping Jews Make Aliyah The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem funded an Aliyah flight for 57 Russian-speaking Jews which arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport on Tuesday 16 June 2020 morning, which brings to 1,000 the total number of new Jewish immigrants the ICEJ has sponsored on flights to Israel arranged by The Jewish Agency for Israel since February, despite the Coronavirus outbreak. These newest arrivals also needed a total of nine connecting flights, crossing some eight time zones all across the former Soviet Union, before flying on to Tel Aviv early this morning. As global air travel has ground to a halt over recent months, many in Israel were expecting a pause in Jewish immigration due to the COVID-19 threat. But surprisingly the door of Aliyah has remained open, as interest in moving to Israel is on the rise. Many Jewish families worldwide even have decided to move up plans to immigrate to a country they view as safer and better positioned for economic recovery. In response, Israeli and Jewish Agency officials have managed to arrange ‘evacuation flights’ over the past three months which are bringing the new immigrants home to Israel, in line with its history as a nation always open to Jewish immigration. The Christian Embassy has supported these extraordinary efforts during the Corona crisis by funding Aliyah flights for 234 Ethiopian Jews and 766 Jews from across the former Soviet Union since February 20. This has required a total of 85 flights in all, including connecting flights for Russian-speaking olim coming from all across the vast regions of the FSU. In addition, the ICEJ has covered many of the extra costs for making Aliyah over recent months, including two-week stays in Corona-mandated quarantine for 292 of the new immigrants once they have reached Israel. Even with most regular international flights still suspended at this time, Israel and the Jewish Agency have been working to partner in emergency flights from nations around the world, which are bringing back stranded Israeli citizens as well as Jews from abroad who are approved for immigration to Israel. Many of these recent Jewish arrivals are coming from regions of the former Soviet Union, where the local economies are struggling and the Corona threat is still peaking. Even travel within these countries is difficult and in some areas not even allowed. Yet Jewish families are making incredible efforts to board the flights for Israel. In several recent instances, pregnant mothers nearing term were determined to reach Israel in time to give birth in the Jewish homeland. And Israeli and Jewish Agency officials are exploring all avenues to safely funnel these people through airports even when most people are not allowed to fly. “The Corona pandemic has brought much suffering and negative headlines all over the world, but one of the positive stories coming out of this crisis is the surprising surge in Aliyah, as many Jewish families are seeking a way to reach Israel as soon as possible”, said ICEJ President Dr. Jürgen Bühler. “We are both honored and elated to play a key role in this unique chapter in the modern-day return to Israel, as even a global pandemic could not stop Jewish people from finding their way home to Israel.” Since its founding in September 1980, the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem has now assisted over 157,000 Jews in making Aliyah to Israel from dozens of countries worldwide. ________________________________________________________ To Contact David Parsons: Israeli Cell: 052-381-6214 Email: david.parsons@icej.org David Parsons Vice President & Senior Spokesman International Christian Embassy Jerusalem ICEJ Sponsors Aliyah Flights for 1000 Jewish Immigrants Since February 2020 30th Anniversarry Flight for Jews making Aliyah. Photo: courtesy of JAFI/ICEJ Victoria making Aliyah from the Ukraine. Photo: courtesy of JAFI/ICEJ Ethiopian Olim coming home to Israel February 2020. Photo: courtesy of JAFI/ICEJ ...travel within these countries is difficult... Yet Jewish families are making incredible efforts to board the flights for Israel

3. 13 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Covid-19: Jewish Communities 4 Muslim Sheikh Honoured Understanding Israel and world events from a Biblical perspective & Christians Today ISRAEL August 2020 Av - Elul 5780 Israel & Christians Today is the premier publication of Christians for Israel 10 Jewish New Year 16 A Way in the Wilderness | Photo: Flash90 With All My Heart Two young Israeli women stand proudly on a hilltop in Samaria. This land is perhaps the most controversial real estate in the world. It has been stamped ‘Occupied Palestinian Territory’ by the international community. And yet, many Jews believe with all their heart in the promises of God regarding these mountains. We can read those promises in the book of the Prophet Ezekiel: “As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and all the settlements in the land. I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.” Jews who seek to walk and live in obedience to these promises are condemned as ‘settlers’, and their communities have been declared ‘illegal’. They are accused of taking land from the Palestinians. The media and many politicians believe with all their hearts in this, and work to perpetuate the narrative. Governments form their foreign policies accordingly. But the reality is different. There is enough room for Jews and Palestinians on the mountains of Israel. And – with exceptions, of course – Jewish settlers are not seeking confrontation, but simply want to live in peace in the land and build beautiful, fruitful communities, bringing blessing to the land and all its residents. “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deut. 10:12). Which story do we believe? Do we blindly follow the images and messages of the secular media? Or do we believe that God is doing a miracle, by fulfilling before our very eyes His own promises so many centuries ago: “I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety. They will be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me so that they will never turn away from me. I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.” (Jeremiah 32:37-41). Or do we believe that God is doing a miracle, by fulfilling before our very eyes His own promises so many centuries ago. AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIA www.c4israel.com.au | info@c4israel.com.au

2. Informs • Inspires • Comforts TEL. 07 3088 6900 EMAIL info@c4israel.com.au www.c4israel.com.au Visiting address: 3398 Pacific Highway Springwood QLD 4127 P.O. Box 1508 Springwood QLD 4127 Australia ABN: 79 941 819 693 Christians for Israel Australia Inc. / Other Easy Ways To Donate Name on card: My Donation Today: $ Exp Date The 3 digits of the reverse of your credit card. (4 digits if using Amex) Card No Visa Mastercard Amex (Payable to Christian’s for Israel Australia Inc) Cheque/Money Order Credit Card *CVC Cardholder’s signature: Over the Phone 07 3088 6900 (during office hours) Securely Online c4israel.com.au a pastoral resource that teaches on Islam, Jesus and the Cross. It identifies the dhimma pact of surrender to Muslim rule, and the shahada—the Muslim confession of faith—as covenants which must be rejected by followers of Christ and explains how the Cross ultimatley can set these people free. Order a copy now for yourself or your friends. It’s only $15 but if you order more than one copy you’ll receive further discounts— see over on the donation slip for order details. I’m confident your included copy of Israel & Christians Today will once again bless you and I pray the Lord continues to bring you favour and strength for the season ahead. In His strong and mighty name, Ian Worby, National Leader ...and the Christians for Israel Australia team PS. Thanks for your continued prayerful support. And remember, when your heart and your giving are joined in faith to extend the good news of the Kingdom, It always results in a fruitful life... ‘not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit.’ – Philippians 4:17 ESV Easy ways to Give 1. If you have setup your online account you can give securely at myaccount.c4israel.com.au 2. You can use the back page form of your included Newspaper, the form on the bottom of this letter or you can donate securely online at: c4israel.com.au/donate 3. You can give via bank transfer—see details at the bottom of the response form. Bank Transfer BSB: 014-279 ACC: 405318551 REF: Member Number Liberty to the Captives Freedom from Islam and Dhimmitude through the Cross $15 inc P&H

12. 2 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 MegaVoice Can you imagine being Moses, listening to God speak to him on Mount Sinai and then receiving from His hands two tablets of stone, inscribed exquisitely on both sides with the ten commandments, ‘by the finger of God?’ Then further wide-ranging texts followed: written, etched, engraved by men and women on stone, clay, metal, papyrus, animal skin and of course, scribes writing on parchment and then paper - often with splashes of colour, anything to help people access the message. The Gutenberg Printing Press In 1455 Johann Gutenberg in Mainz invented movable type and the printing press. It took him three to five years to print 180 copies of his 1286-page Latin Bible on paper and also on vellum and weighing 14 pounds. His faithful, dedicated work shaped history. Billions of us have benefited greatly from the printed word ever since. The printed Bible continues to be used mightily by God to lead people to the salvation He offers through His son the Lord Jesus Christ, and to walk daily as He leads us. However, for 70% of the world, the printed Bible is a closed book. In 1985 Tom Treseder as the State Director of the Bible Society of Australia (NSW-ACT) was reading from the Bible Society Charter: “To provide the Word of God, to the people of the world, in a language they can understand, at a price they can afford, in a form they can use and with which they can engage.” Tom was burdened. He as aware that within that 70% were over 1 billion illiterate people, some were blind, deaf, aged, dyslectic, handicapped, limited with leprosy, many with a language still not in written form, some do not or will not read, better known as, ‘oral preference learners and oral preference communicators.’ So, for all these people, God’s precious Word in print form is a closed book! He prayed, asking the Lord for help to design a Bible for everyone. It needed to have: no moving parts to wear out, to be robust, lightweight, pocket size, easy for use by the blind, attractive for the business executive and with any message in any language, secure, unable to be tampered with and be powered in some way without a mains power supply because most people in the world did not have this luxury! The first sketch of his inspired invention was finished on 11 January 1988. Tom says he was intrigued by talking dolls and Mazda cars that said, “shut the door.” He learned that these little ten-second messages were stored on tiny silicon (stone) chips. He was conscious that the Lord was leading him and felt if he were to put two of these chips together, he would get 20 seconds, three then 30 seconds and so on: hardly rocket science! To some, his vision sounded impossible, even crazy. Such a thing did not exist! However, he was encouraged by the Bible promise, ‘With man, it is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.’ – Matthew 19:26 He tells how he was clearly led by God to meet a very dear American brother, Ken Crowell who had established a distinguished, electronics company on the shores of the Sea of Galilee in the city of Tiberias. Ken’s immediate reaction was, “it has never been done before, but with God’s help we’ll do it!” It was a time of great rejoicing when the 23rd Psalm was stored - one minute long. Then five minutes, fifteen, sixty and now an amazing, 1600 hours of the Bible recorded on the player. And it is brilliantly solar and battery-powered. In hostile and highly restricted countries, listeners to our visually discreet MegaVoice players, unlike mobile phones, cannot be tracked or put their lives at risk. Tom called the player and the ministry, ‘MegaVoice’ so that even when other messages are loaded on it, God’s name ‘Alpha and Omega’ is still there. Over three decades generous donors around the globe, our industrial designers in Australia and a dedicated, skilled electronics team in Tiberias and world- wide, have enabled millions of people, in over 160 countries, to “ Hear the Word of the Lord.” Through the highly focused operation in Galilee, MegaVoice has enriched the lives and wellbeing of many of the country’s families, fellowships, supporters, visitors to Israel and the land itself. Praise God, the Word of the Lord is going out from Zion, through our many distribution partners, to the “nations, tribes, tongues and people,” to a greater extent than has ever before been imagined. He Speaks Again from the Cloud Through the MegaVoice audio Bible library managed and continually expanding in Galilee, (and in the cloud,) individuals, churches, Bible colleges and missions, can access tens of thousands of Bibles and Scriptures in thousands of languages and dialects, anywhere at any time. These truly are miraculous times. The Lord is again doing ‘a new thing’ in His world. To God, be the glory, for the things He has done! All people, anywhere are able to purchase and obtain any number of these unique, highly attractive Bibles and as the statement above says, “In a language, you can understand, at a price you can afford and in a form with which you can engage.” ________________________________________________________ Orders and information: GregLow@megavoice.com Greg Low National Director, Megavoice Australia Ltd “Hear the Sounds of His Words” In a language you can understand, at a price you can afford and in a form with which you can engage Tom Treseder, inventor of the Megavoice Bible Close-up of the MegaVoice Bible player Man enjoying listening to a MegaVoice Ambassador Audio Bible player

14. 4 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Commentary COVID 19 Sparks Aliyah A hymn written by William Cowper in 1773 says ‘God moves in a mysterious ways.’ It is a phrase from his poem ‘Light Shining in Darkness’ a very appropriate heading for Aliyah, 2020. Aliyah describes the act of going up “ascent”. Originally it referred to Jews going up to Jerusalem for three major Biblical feasts— Passover, Pentecost and Tabernacles. Today Aliyah refers to Jews relocating from the four corners of the world to live in Israel. The Bible actually reports Two Returns. Jeremiah declared the First: ‘This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfil my good promise to bring you back to this place.  For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”’ – Jeremiah 29: 10,11 Ezra described the fulfilment of Jeremiah (Ezra 1: 1-4) through the edict of Cyrus. King of Persia. Jeremiah says God spoke emphatically of the Second Return. “I will restore them to the land I gave their ancestors.” (Jeremiah 16: 16b) The intention is made very clear: “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number.” – Jeremiah 23: 3 All of this is very relevant today in the light of the devastation cause by the COVID 19 pandemic. There is great ‘Light in this Darkness.’ In June 2020 Nefech B’Nefesh (Hebrew meaning ‘soul to soul”) signed the Israeli airline El Al for 14 ‘Group Aliyah Flights’ from New York to be filled over three months. In June 2019 Nefesh B’Nefesh totalled 399 applicants. This year they recorded more than 900! The Jewish Agency has also recorded significant numbers particularly from North America and France. The International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem (ICEJ) has been proactive assisting Aliyah applicants. This year ICEJ has sponsored 1000 Jewish immigrants to Israel as at June. 57 arrived from Russia on one flight. An ICEJ news release said: “As global air travel has ground to a halt over recent months, many in Israel were expecting a pause in Jewish immigration due to the COVID-19 threat. But surprisingly the door of Aliyah has remained open, as interest in moving to Israel is on the rise. Many Jewish families worldwide even have decided to move up plans to immigrate to a country they view as safer and better positioned for economic recovery. In response, Israeli and Jewish Agency officials have managed to arrange ‘evacuation flights’ over the past three months which are bringing the new immigrants home to Israel, in line with its history as a nation always open to Jewish immigration.” Even with most regular international flights still suspended, Israel and the Jewish Agency have been working to partner in emergency flights from nations around the world, which are bringing back stranded Israeli citizens as well as Jews from abroad who are approved for immigration to Israel. Many of these recent Jewish arrivals are coming from regions of the former Soviet Union, where the local economies are struggling and the Corona threat is still peaking. Even travel within these countries is difficult and in some areas not even allowed. Yet Jewish families are making incredible efforts to board the flights for Israel. In several recent instances, pregnant mothers nearing term were determined to reach Israel in time to give birth in the Jewish homeland. And Israeli and Jewish Agency officials are exploring all avenues to safely funnel these people through airports even when most people are not allowed to fly. The personal stories display the great passion of Aliyah. ICEJ have allowed us to observe. For Ekaterina Belyaev and her family, it was the birth of her daughter four years ago that sparked their desire to come home to Israel. During the Soviet era, she explained, her family had suppressed their Jewish roots. But after her daughter was born in 2016, she started reading books on parenting in Russian and noticed all the best authors on the subject were Jewish. This drove her to start attending Jewish community events in Moscow and to inquire into making aliyah. Her husband was very supportive, and they were scheduled to come to Israel earlier this year. But then they got delayed by the pandemic and have been in limbo. But now they are here, waiting for the end of their two-week quarantine and eager to start anew in the Jewish homeland. Another new arrival, David Movsesyan, 34, knew of his family’s Jewish heritage from a young age but he only discovered in 2017 while browsing the Internet that he could move to Israel. As he collected documents to prove his Jewishness, he learned the history of his own family and now has photo albums and mementos that will preserve their memories. “Right now, I’m sitting in quarantine in a hotel,” he said. “But I already feel a deep connection with Israel and I’m starting life anew here. I want to try something new, like a new profession, and I have a lot of dreams.” David thanked the Jewish Agency and all the Christians who helped him make Aliyah, adding: “For the first time in my life, I feel that the state is taking care of me.” Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, co-founder and executive director of Nefesh B’Nefesh said, “This new wave of Jews seeking to return to their homeland fills us with hope, energy and optimism. We look forward to welcoming each and every one of the slim to their new home.” _______________________________________ Ron Ross worked as a newsman in Jerusalem, broadcasting Middle East reports internationally. He is the Middle East correspondent for Vision Christian Radio and a popular speaker. www.ronross.org | ronandyvonne@mac.com Ron Ross Author and Middle East correspondent and commentator Jewish families completing Aliyah and arriving in Israel. Photo credit: Jewish Agency. ...many in Israel were expecting a pause in Jewish immigration ...surprisingly ...interest in moving to Israel is on the rise

13. 3 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Have you downloaded the FREE C4I app yet? • Read the latest editions of Israel & Christians Today, as well as past editions. • Easily access all current and past topical articles. • Listen and watch teaching resources about Israel and the Church from a Biblical perspective. • Access current and past prayer calenders , so you know what and how to pray for our ministry. • Make secure online donations towards Israeli Projects, C4I A ustralia and teaching resources. • You can also stay in touch by sending us secure messages via an easy-to-use form. SEARCH: ‘C4I’ in your app store DOWNLOAD TODAY! Inspiring and informative content, wherever you are. Verses for Zion Keith Buxton Former National Director for Bridges for Peace Australia Great New Initiative to Teach Children About God’s Connection to Israel Jonathan Feldstein, who made aliyah to Israel from the United States in 2004, is married and the father of six and became a grandfather in 2018. Throughout his life and career, he has been blessed by the calling to fellowship with Christian supporters of Israel and serves as a respected bridge between Jews and Christians. He writes regularly on major Christian web sites about Israel and shares experiences of living as an Orthodox Jew in Israel. He is the founder of the Genesis 123 Foundation , a US based non-profit organisation established to provide new, unique and meaningful ways to connect Jews and Christians with Israel in ways that will bless Israel. Jonathan Feldstein is keen to promote here in Australia his new initiative Verses for Zion ( www.VersesforZion.com ). This online program was launched in May and is designed to help Christian children (up to age 13) learn about God’s heart for Israel by memorising—in Israel’s 72nd year as a modern state—72 verses from the Bible that describe the beauty and spiritual significance of Israel. Families can gather around the Bible at home with parents and siblings, or by phone and video with grandparents and other family members, and learn about the wonderful promises that God has made to the Jewish people. With the program open into September, it is possible to dedicate less than 10-15 minutes a day and complete the whole self-study. Children who memorise all 72 verses will receive special recognition and be eligible for a range of gifts, including being entered in a draw for a free trip to Israel! You may attend a pro-Israel church and your pastor may even lead regular trips to Israel, but in reality there are few ways for children to connect with Israel in ways that are Biblically based and age appropriate—until now. Participation in this program is free so if you are interested do register soon (use the website to the left). Individual churches, youth groups, home groups, or Christian schools that have a heart for Israel and the Jewish people, and wish to deepen their understanding of God’s Word about Israel and how that relates to us today, are also encouraged to explore incorporating this initiative into their regular programs, in order to create awareness of and a connection to the Biblical significance of modern Israel. “Restoration of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel is a direct fulfilment of God’s promise, pointing to the fact that His Word is true, that He is faithful, and He keeps His covenant promises,” says Jonathan Feldstein. “Verses for Zion provides a tangible way for Christian children to connect with this ongoing miracle.” ________________________________________________________ Keith Buxton is the former National Director for Bridges for Peace Australia. www.bridgesforpeace.com a tangible way for Christian children to connect with [Israel’s] ongoing miracle.

8. 18 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Yossi Aloni n Israel Today Israel takes the lead in helping Jewish communities around the world recover from Corona crisis. For the first time, a global Corona roundtable was convened by the Diaspora and Jewish Agency with around 30 global and regional Jewish organisations to discuss the challenges of the Jewish people and the rehabilitation of Jewish communities. Jewish Agency chairman Yitzhak Herzog and Diaspora Affairs Minister Omer Yankelevich led the roundtable, which set out to assess the impact of the Coronavirus on Jewish communities around the world and prepare a practical plan for their rehabilitation on the ‘day after.’ The organisations discussed the current state of affairs in the communities. They discussed the consequences of the current crisis for each community, as well as the challenges faced, the opportunities and the possible responses. The Global Roundtable held on Zoom from around the world opened with comments by Yankelevich and Herzog, who presented the key issues that organisations will discuss over the next few months until the rehabilitation of the affected Jewish communities. The k ey issues included: Ÿ steps for the rehabilitation of communities, Ÿ coping with routine and crisis, Ÿ raising resources for the period of rehabilitation, Ÿ strengthening leadership, Ÿ cohesion and mutual commitment, Ÿ future community needs, Ÿ preparing for other challenges, such as increasing anti-Semitism worldwide. Afterward, the leaders of the organisations presented their views on challenges. Jewish Agency Chairman Isaac Herzog said: “Today we are making history. This is the first time in the history of the State of Israel that the bodies of the Israeli government and the Jewish Agency are setting up a formal forum to assist Jewish communities around the world, apart from an emergency situation facing one specific community. This is a paradigm shift of ‘All Israel becoming guarantors for each other.’ The Roundtable will identify, map and broadly analyse and assess the steps needed to strengthen Jewish communities and community institutions throughout the Jewish world, in addressing the implications of the Corona crisis over a period of rehabilitation that is expected to be long.” Diaspora Minister Omer Yankelevich said: “I marvel at the conduct of Jewish communities during these troubled times and how they strive to share ideas, learn from mistakes and grow together. Their unified spirit is inspiring, as they establish a system to provide stable and permanent aid to those in need. Together with worldwide Jewry, we will set up an active, strong forum to find practical solutions for all communities. Our office wants to work with all communities everywhere, so that they will have a connection to Israel and Israel to them. This will make them proud that Israel is a real part of their lives and their identities, just as we in Israel are proud to realise that Jewish life abroad is a real and active part of our own identity.” The roundtable is expected to convene in its broad forum once every two weeks over the next few months. Subcommittees will be set up to discuss in depth the challenges leading up to a global recovery from the Corona crisis. The forum will be run and coordinated operatively by the Director General of the Diaspora Ministry, Dvir Kahana, and the Director General of the Jewish Agency, Amira Aharonovitch. Shirley Heller, Senior Advisor to the Jewish Agency Chairman, will manage the forum’s office. The office will function together with the Jewish Agency office, headed by Jewish Agency Secretary General Josh Schwartz. Among the organisations and bodies that participated in the roundtable: a distinguished representation of the Israeli government from the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prime Minister’s Office; the Jewish Federation of North America, the Keren Hayesod, World Zionist Organisation, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the Confere nce of Presidents, JDC, JNF , Orthodox Union, Conservative Movement, Reform Movement, World Jewish Congress, European Jewish Congress, European Conference of Rabbis and more. In April, the Jewish Agency together with Keren Hayesod and the Jewish Federation of North America, launched a special loan fund, with $10 million, to help the Jewish communities affected by the Coronavirus. Since the foundation was established , dozens of communities in over 70 countries around the world have asked for assistance. Since the outbreak of the Corona epidemic, there have been numerous reports of the great damage the Coronavirus has caused to Jewish communities around the world, including a high number of fatalities. According to data compiled by the Diaspora Ministry and the Jewish Agency, fatalities among Jewish communities around the world number in the thousands. Many of these communities have been paralysed or are on the brink of collapse. Iran’s Long Arm The main Iranian threat to Israel is Iran’s use of so-called ‘proxy militias’. These are militant movements that unconditionally support the ideas of an Islamic revolution, as preached by Islamic religious leaders. There are also groups which support Iran with money and therefore support it indirectly. This map gives an incomplete overview, but, clearly shows that Iran is in the process of encircling Israel with a network of armed forces. TURKEY CYPRUS SYRIA LEBANON IRAN IRAQ SAUDI-ARABIA EGYPT ISRAEL JORDAN MEDITERRANEAN SEA Hamas Islamic Jihad Hezbollah Quds Force Hamas Islamic Jihad Wilayat Sinai (IS) Badr Brigades Hezbollah Brigades Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq Abu al-Fadl al-Abbas Brigade Facts Speak 6 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Israel News United Response to Covid-19 Attack on Jewish Communities Jewish Agency chairman Yitzhak Herzog attending a rally at Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square, Israel | Photo: Flash90 “I marvel at the conduct of Jewish communities during these troubled time s and how they strive to share ideas, learn from mistakes and grow together.”

23. 21 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 9 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Analysis Andrew Tucker n International Editor | Christians for Israel International The rapid global rise of the radical Black Lives Matter (‘BLM’) movement has caught the world off-guard. But actually, it comes as no surprise at all. It is the fruit of a potent mix of radical Islam and progressive secular values that has taken root in Western society over the past decades. It is also radically anti-Semitic. Tragically, many Jews and Christians are being deceived. BLM was formed in 2014 as a merger of activists from the anti-Semitic Nation of Islam, the anti-Semitic Black Panthers and Dream Catchers. In 2016, BLM published a platform that has since been removed from its website. The platform accused Israel of committing ‘genocide’ and referred to the Jewish state as an ‘apartheid’ state. The platform accused Israel and its supporters of pushing the US into wars in the Middle East. The platform also officially joined BLM with the anti-Semitic BDS campaign to boycott, divest and sanction Israel. BDS campaign leader Omar Barghouti has acknowledged that the goal of the BDS campaign is to destroy Israel. According to Jewish writer Caroline Glick, “[f]or American Jews, the violent riots constitute a challenge on several levels. First, there is the challenge of squaring their political identity with their Jewish identity. As the 2014 Pew survey of American Jews showed, around half of American Jews identify as progressives. As progressives, many American Jews share the views of their non-Jewish progressive counterparts regarding the need to prioritise the interests of minority communities over their own interests. ...But the Jews’ progressive desire to work on behalf of those demonstrating for African Americans places their political identity on a collision course with their Jewish identity. Black Lives Matter, the radical group leading the demonstrations, is an anti-Semitic organisation.” “BLM’s platform’s publication [in 2016 – ed.] was greeted with wall-to-wall condemnations by Jewish organisations from across the political spectrum. But today, Jewish progressive are hard-pressed to turn their backs on the group, despite its anti-Semitism. As white progressives, they believe they must fight America’s ‘structural racism’ even at the cost of empowering social forces that reject their civil rights as Jews. As Jews, they feel that their rights should be protected. One progressive Jew tried to square the circle writing in the Los Angeles Jewish Journal, ‘Today Jews need to support Black Lives Matter; tomorrow we can talk about Israel.’” Glick continues: “As white progressives radicalised over the past decade, radical Jewish progressives built a formidable Jewish organisational framework whose mission is to advance the progressive revolution. They have worked to recast Judaism itself as the apotheosis of progressive revolutionary ideals under the banner of ‘tikkun olam’ [’repairing the world’].” Glick notes that BLM has wholeheartedly adopted the Palestinian narrative: “Between BLM’s establishment in 2014 and the publication of its platform in 2016, anti- Israel activists went to great lengths to create an utterly false conceptual linkage between the Palestinians and African Americans. Today, anti-Israel activists in the US have stepped up their efforts to capitalise on the riots. Anti-Israel activists in Bethlehem painted a picture of George Floyd wearing a kaffiyeh and draped in a Palestinian flag on the separation barrier. Photos of the picture are being heavily promoted on social media.” Leading Evangelical Christian leader Laurie Cardoza- Moore has spoken out publicly against BLM’s anti-Semitic manifesto after synagogues and churches were attacked and defaced in America. “All true American patriots wept bitter tears at the brutal and needless death of George Floyd. Jews, Christians and people of conscience understand the inherent problems within our society that need to be addressed and healed. Racism of any kind does not belong in America and must be relegated to the annals of history. On the same token, it would be hypocritical of Christian leaders to support the Black Lives Matter movement while ignoring their past calls to boycott the one and only Jewish State, outrageous claims that Israel has perpetrated genocide and their total denial of the Jewish people’s right to self- determination. We are reminded in Deuteronomy 16:20; Justice, justice, thou must pursue. These positions are anti-Semitic to their core and cannot go unmentioned,” said Cardoza-Moore. She added, “Synagogues and Churches were vandalised and defaced with anti-Semitic, anti-Israel and anti- Christian slogans during Black Lives Matter riots across the country. Destroying holy books or defacing houses of worship will not move forward the cause of Black America. These are hate crimes that must be called out by the leaders of the movement if they want to retain any gravitas as anti-racists. Black Lives Matter cannot lead the charge against racism while advocating the destruction of the only Jewish State and staying silent when churches and synagogues come under attack during their protests.” Cardoza-Moore concluded, “Historically Jews and Christians of all backgrounds stood toe-to-toe in the American civil rights struggle. The late Reverend Martin Luther King was a Christian minister who stood alongside Rabbis in his peaceful marches for justice. Allowing the legacy of Reverend King and this movement to be hijacked by anti-Semitic, anti-Christian and anti- American forces is a great injustice in itself that needs to be rectified for the sake of our shared Judeo-Christian values and the future of these United States. There is a vacuum of spiritual leadership in this movement and it's time for Jewish and Christian leaders to unite publicly to call upon the leadership of the Black Lives Matter movement to fully renounce all hate from their platform and condemn hate crimes perpetrated in their name immediately so that the process of healing and restoration can begin.” The quotation of Laurie Cardoza-Moore in this article is based on a report in www.israelnationalnews.com on 12 June 2020. To read Caroline Glick’s analyses of BLM, visit her website: www.carolineglick.com. Today, anti-Israel activists in the US have stepped up their efforts to capitalise on the riots. Black Lives Matter’s Anti-Semitic Agenda Israelis hold signs during a protest against the death of Georg e Floyd outside the US consulate in Tel Aviv on 2 June 2020. | Photo: Flash90 C4I Writes to WCC and WEA Continued from page 7 And we think Israel and the Palestinians are best placed to determine how they should act in the context of their negotiations under the framework of the Oslo agreements. We believe that a genuine and lasting agreement will only be possible if there is adequate recognition of the difficult position in which Israel and the Jewish people find themselves, and of the history and legal status of the territories involved. We also have to remember that the Jewish people have always constituted an important community in Palestine, that they have suffered from anti-Semitism, persecution and expulsion throughout the Middle East and that Jews have been confronted with Arab violence in the Promised Land even long before the state of Israel existed. And the aspiration to destroy the Jewish State is still as alive as it has always been in the Middle East. Arabs have rejected every peace proposal that has been presented over many decades. We reminded the WEA that, for the reasons above, and the fact that the areas to be ‘annexed’ are located in the biblical heartland of Israel, land which the Lord promised to bring back His own people in preparation of the coming of the Kingdom of the Messiah, we believe that Churches and Christians should not prejudge the issues and should be cautious before admonishing Israel. We believe it is important that the Jewish people are not confronted with a Christian church that is condemning them, but with a church that shows solidarity and love with them. In view of the past, it is appropriate for the Church to take a modest and humble attitude towards Israel, even if opinions on certain issues differ. May the Lord protect Israel and give the Christian Churches worldwide wisdom by His Holy Spirit. ... the one-sided criticism of Israel is unacceptable

11. Dear faithful readers, partners and friends (chavorim), It’s hard to believe that it’s August already and winter is nearly over and the beautiful spring weather is upon us. As I write this I see friends in Israel are sweltering and the land there is dry and parched. I was hoping to be reporting on the successful completion of Israel extending its sovereignty over the ancient Biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria, as had been planned by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—much to the distain of most of the world including our own Foreign Minister here in Australia. Christians for Israel and a dozen or more other pro- zionist organisations put our name to an open letter sent to our Foreign Minister showing our concern and pointing out the many historical and legal principles that Australia has always abided by in recognising Israel’s sovereignty. Australia was one of the first to recognise since the mandate of resolution 80 in November 1947, and after Balfour and the liberation of Beersheba in October 1917 and the San Remo declaration in 1920. But news has recently emerged that the push for “annexation” has been put on hold and delayed because America isn’t listening or ready just now. This is because the Trump administration is currently focused on many more pressing issues including the second wave of the Pandemic and the civil unrest with riots over the rekindled “Black Lives Matters” movement who have come out openly with plans to destabilise the government in the lead up to the November elections. Without the approval and support of America, Netanyahu’s government is not willing to go it alone. Let us continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and for our national Leaders— that God’s Will be done. Good Response to our Aliyah and Projects Donation Drive Despite all of the destabilisation and disruption caused by the ongoing and protracted effect of the COVID19 pandemic to our economy I’m very pleased to report that we had a good response to our last newspaper’s call for donations and we have met our operational expenses and were able to send off some very welcome Aliyah support with over $35,000 received to help bring more Jewish family home to Israel from the Ukraine, Asia and France for the last quarter. We also were able to send nearly $25,000 to assist in many of the various humanitarian projects that help feed, clothe and comfort the Lord’s people in Israel and in the diaspora. So a big and heartfelt ‘Toda Roba’ (thank you) to everyone who has given so generously and faithfully. I’m sure our Heavenly Father smiles when He sees this happen. Application for Charity Status and Tax Deductibility Needing Some Professional Help. For over a year now we have been preparing our submission to the Australian Charities and Not for Profit authority (ACNC) to have Christians for Israel Australia Inc. qualify for charity status and also for Deductible Gift Recipient status (DGR) which would enable our supporters to receive tax deductibility on donation given for our organisation and its humanitarian projects. However with the eligibility rules and increasingly more complex compliance requirements we are needing to seek some professional assistance with our submissions. We have received an estimate from a reputable law firm with experience in successfully acquiring these outcomes for other organisations and so we are asking if you would like to assist with meeting these legal fees. If you are capable of assiting us financially in this matter then that would be most appreciated. The current estimate is less than $8,000. However this might be more if we need to change our current structure from an Incorporated Association to something else. We hope to have this process completed by the end of this year so next year we will be both a registered Charity and have tax deductibility status for donations received. We really believe that having charitable status and DGR will be a huge benefit and attract even more donations, enabling us to comfort more families in need than we have done before. We Hope to be Moving into Our Shared Office Space Soon. Another good news update, is that we have finally agreed to sharing office facilities with our friends at United Israel Appeal (UIA) otherwise known as Karen Hayesod . This means our Christians for Israel Australia volunteers can work along side our Jewish counterparts in a spirit of unity and solidarity. The office is located in the heart of Brisbane’s CBD and will open up new opportunities in serving alongside the Jewish community of Brisbane. I’m hoping that in the next edition of Israel & Christians Today we can publish some photos of the new office setup. I’m reminded of the scripture that says “Behold how good and pleasant it is when brethren work together in unity...for there the Lord commands a blessing.” – Psalm 133 Israel Tours for 2021 Our next tour to Israel will be in September/October 2021 and it will have a new option of starting in Egypt. After our very successful Vision Christian Tour to Jordan, Israel and Greece earlier this year, we have been working on something very special. Our next tour will have an optional extension starting in Cairo Egypt, visiting the ancient pyramids and cruising the Nile River, reaping the story of Joseph and Mosses leading the Children of Israel out of Egypt into the wilderness in Jordan. Imagine standing on Mt Nebo where Moses could see the promised land but not enter. We will travel through the ancient Rose City of Petra and then we enter the Land of Promise—Israel, at its southern port of Eilat on the Red Sea, and journey north via the Negev Desert to visit the Tabernacle in the Wilderness and Beersheba. Then onto the ancient sea port of Joffa, up to Caesarea, Mt Carmel, Sail on the Galilee, climb Mt Hermon and see the gates of hell in the North. Then we’ll visit the lowest place on earth at the Dead Sea, then visit Judea and Samaria and the gates of heaven before entering Jerusalem the City of the Great King. Please join my wife Mandy and I and our very popular tour guide Stan Goodenough on this epic once in a life time tour. It is over 21 days of walking through the pages of the Bible in the lands of the Patriarchs, Prophets, Jesus and the Apostles. We already have heaps of interest in this tour, so if you are keen to come or learn more, please contact our wonderful tour agents at Olive Tree Travel on 1300 830 550 and get your seats reserved ASAP. After leading nearly 20 successful tours; Mandy and I can honestly say the experience is life changing and your spiritual walk and understanding of the Bible, Israel’s land and it’s people will be forever changed—it’s an investment into eternity! Share Our Premiere Publication with Your Family and Friends Please think about introducing your friends and family to Israel and Christians Today with a free subscription and a great Commemorative Israel 70 Magazine or Willem Glashouwer’s most recent resource— The Signs of the Times DVD. We still have a quantity of these Magazines and DVD’s to give away as our thank you gift for those introducing others to C4I and this Newspaper. Bring Comfort to God’s People by Supporting Israeli Projects Also we still have lots of families wanting to make Aliyah back home to Israel from the Ukraine, Asia and other locations that need help with the process and to be accommodated, fed and supported before they travel—then on arrival in Israel until they settle in. Please prayerfully consider what projects you, your church or home group could support by looking at the response form on the back page or via our newly updated and improved secure and mobile friendly Website www.c4israel.com.au – You can give using your credit card or make a direct deposit via bank transfer, or post a cheque or money order made out to Christian for Israel Australia Inc . If you need assistance or have any questions call Rudy or Eric on 07 3088 6900 . May the Lord bless you, keep you and cause His face to shine on you. In the Messiah’s wonderful name. _____________________________________ Ian Worby National Leader & Regional Director for Christians for Israel Australia & Oceania. August 2020 Report From Our National Leader Comforts Informs Inspires Ian Worby C4I Australia National Leader and Regional Director for Oceania Ian and Mandy Worby at Sachne springs near Mt Gilboa Israel

24. 22 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Theology 10 Jewish Festivals Tu B’Av Minor Jewish holiday of love 5 August 2020 Tu B’Av (the fifteenth of the month Av) is a minor Jewish holiday. In modern-day Israel, it is celebrated as a holiday of love (Hag HaAhava), similar to Valentine’s Day. It has been said to be a ‘great day for weddings’. Tu B’Av begins at sundown on 4 August 2020. Leil Selichot Prayers for Forgiveness 12 September 2020 Selichot or slichot are Jewish penitential poems and prayers, especially those said in the period leading up to the High Holidays, and on Fast Days. In the Ashkenazic tradition, it begins on the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah. If, however, the first day of Rosh Hashanah falls on Monday or Tuesday, Selichot are said beginning the Saturday night prior to ensure that Selichot are recited at least four times. Leil Selichot begins after nightfall on 12 September 2020. Rosh Hashanah The Jewish New Year 19-20 September 2020 Rosh Hashanah, (‘head of the year’), is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holidays or Yamim Noraim (‘Days of Awe’), celebrated ten days before Yom Kippur. Rosh Hashanah is observed on the first two days of Tishrei, the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar. It is described in the Torah as Yom Teru’ah, a day of sounding (the Shofar). Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on 18 September 2020. Yom Kippur Day of Atonement 28 September 2020 Yom Kippur, also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue services. Yom Kippur completes the annual period known in Judaism as the High Holy Days (or sometimes ‘the Days of Awe’). Yom Kippur begins at sundown on 27 September 2020. A boy blows a shofar near the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. | Photo: Flash90 Jewish New Year Kees de Vreugd n Theologian | Christians for Israel International & Editor | Israel & the Church Rosh Hashanah (literally meaning ‘the head of the year’) is celebrated on the first two days of the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar (in 2020, this is on 19 and 20 September). The first month is the month in which Pesach falls. This is the beginning of the feast calendar, while Rosh Hashanah could be compared with the beginning of the ‘civil year’. In the Bible, this day is referred to only as a ‘day for blowing trumpets’ (Leviticus 23:24; Numbers 29:1). Therefore, the central instruction for this day is ‘to hear the shofar’. Sabbath years and jubilees were counted from this day. Jewish tradition connects Rosh Hashanah to the beginning of creation. It is the anniversary of the world and humanity. Adam was created on Rosh Hashanah. Rosh Hashanah is the first day of a period of ten so-called Days of Awe, culminating with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Biblically, this period is not linked to the remembrance of liberation (like Pesach or Purim) or commemoration of catastrophe (like the destruction of the Temple on the 9th of Av). Its concentration is not on events in Israel’s history, but on the personal, on mortality and the meaning of life, and the Lord as Creator and Judge of mankind. The day of the trumpets is the Day of the Lord, the Day of Judgment. When God completed the work of creation, He saw that it was ‘very good’ (Genesis 1:31), thus giving creation value, purpose and meaning. Every year again, the question posed by this season is: does humanity, does the world answer to God’s plan? The central theme of the Days of Awe, therefore, is trial. The individual stands before the One who knows all. On Rosh Hashanah, it is decided who shall live and who shall die. It is repeatedly said in the prayers: “Write us in the Book of Life.” True soul-searching, true repentance, during those ten days will influence the decision. The prayers of this season hail God as King and as Father. The shofar blown on Rosh Hashana, first of all, proclaims that the Lord is King and Ruler. But it is, according to the great medieval scholar, Maimonides (12th century Spain/Egypt), also a wake-up call: “Wake up from your deep sleep, you who are fast asleep. Search your deeds and repent.” Third, the shofar recalls the revelation at Sinai and calls on God’s mercy. Finally, on Yom Kippur, the Eternal Judge moves from His seat of righteousness to His seat of mercy. The final blast on the shofar, concluding the Yom Kippur service, proclaims life and mercy. The people of Israel come out of Yom Kippur reborn. As another great medieval scholar, Nachmanides (13th century Spain/Israel) said: “Rosh Hashana is a day of judgment with mercy; Yom Kippur is a day of mercy with judgment.” August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Book Review By Kees de Vreugd This book has been on my shelf for years, probably because I tended to avoid the challenge. It makes the case for evangelism among the Jews in the 21st century, based on the apostle Paul’s saying in Romans 1:16, referred to in the title: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” This is presented in every chapter of the book as an ongoing commitment for every Jewish and gentile believing Christian. The book fails to properly address the Jewish response to evangelisation, though. Both the content of the book and the boldness of its tone – sometimes bordering on arrogance, raise a lot of questions. In saying this, I realise I am responding from a context of European continental history and theology, with a centuries-long heritage of ‘teaching of contempt’ of the Jews, culminating in the Holocaust as a reality that is still impossible to grasp, if it will ever be – a reality that has shaken church and theology – and should continue to do so. True, the book has a chapter devoted to the Holocaust, but it uses the Holocaust to underscore the necessity of Jewish evangelism in a way which I cannot understand, and which I only can accept because it is written by a Jesus- believing Jew (Barry R. Leventhal). I agree with the recurring thesis that if the gospel means good news to the gentiles, then it should also mean good news to the Jews. However, do we understand what that good news is? The writers seem to narrow this good news to individual salvation for eternity. But what about Jesus’ commitment to the Torah, to bringing all Israel back to the Torah? What about the restoration of Israel and the throne of David? True, most contributors note that traditional theology had lost sight of the future of Israel. But what about the present reality of Israel? Is that only as an object of evangelism? In my view, Christians should positively affirm Israel’s faithfulness to the Torah as a witness to God. In this, Jews and Christians could stand side by side. Secondly, Christians should affirm Jesus’ loyalty to the Torah. So often, it has been falsely taught that Christ made the Torah obsolete, thus turning Him into an enemy of Israel, instead of her Saviour. This theological homework should make gentile Christians humble in telling Jews what they ought to believe. Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids 2008 ISBN 978-0-8254-3658-1 To the Jews First The Case for Jewish Evangelism in Scripture and History by Darrell L. Bock & Mitch Glaser (eds.)

1. Please send mail-in donations to: Christians for Israel Australia PO Box 1508 Springwood QLD 4127 AUSTRALIAN EDITION EMAIL: info@c4israel.com.a u PHONE: 07 3088 6900 ABN: 79 941 819 693 Thanks for your financial sup port $ ____________ MY TOTAL DONATION TO: Christians for Israel Australia Inc. See over for credit card and other giving options My Gift Your latest edition of Israel & Christian’s Today is enclosed. We hope you enjoy and are greatly encouraged by the latest News articles and stories. Simple. Just visit myaccount.c4israel.com.au and login with your username and password. Haven’t setup your online account? Go to myaccount.c4israel.com.au/page/ registeremail and follow the instructions. Need to change your address or Newspaper order? 17 August 2020 Full Name:_______________________________________________ Member Number (If Known): __________________________ You’re Bringing Light into a Dark World! Dear friend, I’m pleased and encouraged to let you know that in the last 3 to 4 months we have seen an incredible response to our needs and I am thrilled to let you know C4I is currently in a strong financial position—even amidst the continued uncertainty of COVID19. If you’re one of those who’ve been praying for us and/or was able to give during this time, thank you! Your continued support of Christians for Israel means the hope and encouragement of God’s Word can continue to shine light into what is becoming an increasingly dark world— informing and inspiring the Church about God’s ongoing redemptive plan, and comforting the Lord’s people in times of distress and need (Isaiah 40:1). Right now there are many displaced Jews needing your help to bring them home to Israel! You can help fulfill Biblical prophecy by partnering with God in His end times plan (Isaiah 49:22). Extended Deals on Teaching Resources Good news —if you have not yet given or you’re still looking to invest in yourself or your friends with our curated, trusted teaching resources, we have decided to extend the deal from the last edition. Remember, all proceeds help the ministry continue to grow and reach more people with practical and spiritual help. See page 12 of our insert for details. Two books have now been added to our existing resource library, both from Australian pastor and scholar, Dr Mark Durie. ‘ Liberty to the Captives’ is continued over... LeN0820 Yes Ian, I’d like to give a special one-off donation towards... $__________ Aliyah: $350=1 person $1250=5 people $6250=25 people $__________ for Newspaper Printing & Postage *please don’t use staples* $__________ Liberty to the Captives BOOK: 1=$15 2=$25 3=$40 6=$50

17. 7 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Tour to Warsaw, Ukraine and Israel in 2021 I have written in previous articles about the fact that Christians have been given specific scriptural directives from our Sovereign God regarding our interaction with our Jewish brethren. He has grafted us into the Olive Tree, through Messiah, and asks us to lovingly embrace our older brethren, they whose ‘warfare is nearly at an end’ (Isaiah 40:2). In addition to prayer and financial support for the prophetic work being carried out by people of faith in Ukraine, is the Lord calling and equipping us to step with Him into an additional and specific assignment? What will we do to stand with the Jewish people and the Jewish State at this time in history? The COVID-19 pandemic has propelled many Jews still in the Diaspora to make Aliyah. The work therefore is growing, as is anti-Semitism, and the time is shortening. Many Jews, including Ukrainian Jews, are questioning whether there is a future for them and their children outside of Israel. Surely this is Almighty God’s ongoing dealings with His first-born son and the warning is very clear. First the fishers and then the hunters (Jeremiah 16:16). We are currently in the time of the fishers but the time of the hunters is again very near and approaching rapidly. This is a clear word of warning to the Jewish population and also to Christians. There are explicit instructions from the Lord concerning the gentile nations’ responsibility to Israel. As Christians we are the flag bearers to this truth. Three directives that move my heart deeply are to comfort His people (Isaiah 40:1); to bring the Jews home from the Diaspora where He drove them in his anger (Jeremiah 32:37; Isaiah 49:22) and to provoke our older Jewish brother to jealousy (Romans 11:14). The rest of God’s dealings with His first-born son (Exodus 4:21-23) we must leave to Him. The holocaust in Ukraine (1941-1944) is described as a catastrophe. I was largely unaware of the extent of the disaster prior to visiting this land and having the opportunity to listen to those who were children during those years. Whereas Jews in other countries were deported to gas chambers to be exterminated, the vast majority of Ukraine’s Jews were either shot or starved to death, their bodies left to rot in an unknown number of unmarked graves. In a Kiev ravine, known as Babi Yar, 33,771 Jews were shot in over just two days in September 1941. Elderly Jews who survived these horrific years are now ill, lonely, impoverished and still suffering. The Lord God wants them home and He is beckoning to the gentiles to assist Him. I therefore invite you to join me on my third visit to volunteer with the Christians for Israel team in Ukraine. There is an option of visiting Israel afterwards where we shall visit a C4I project which assists those leaving Ukraine to begin their new lives in Israel. “Return, O backsliding children,” says the LORD; “for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion” – Jeremiah 3:14. Surely this is a picture of those who survived the holocaust in European cities, and their descendants— those God is bringing home today. This is a unique opportunity to show another face of Christianity as we serve those Jewish people still suffering in the Diaspora (Matthew 25:40). Luke 12:48 tells us “to whom much is given, much is expected” . It is easy to assume that only wealthy people have been “given much” but, in truth, we have all been given much (1 Corinthians 4:7). “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms” — 1 Peter 4:10; Romans 15:27. In Ukraine we serve with deep humility, love, gentleness, and sensitivity. This is a response emanating from a profound need to repent of the terrible sins perpetrated upon our older Jewish brother over millennia, largely by the so-called church. Isaiah 49:22 is a call specifically to Christians and serves as a mandate to fulfil that scripture. This prophetic message, written thousands of years ago, is a communication which signals to us today, the generation into which the Lord ordained we would be born. He longs for us to come to an understanding and to take hold of the stunning invitation from the Lord God of Israel Himself, to bring His people home. Since I have been to Ukraine, the following Scripture from Deuteronomy speaks to me clearly and often. This verse is inscribed on a memorial over a mass grave wherein lies the remains of Jews murdered during the holocaust. It warns me never to forget the horror of that which lies buried here, but also speaks powerfully to future generations of the hope of God’s promised protection and restoration of His people to the Land of Israel, the beating heart of Jewish consciousness. “However, be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you don’t forget the things which you have seen with your own eyes. Don’t let them fade from your memory as long as you live. Teach them to your children and grandchildren.” – Deuteronomy 4.9 “The work of ‘Bring the Jews Home’ has given numerous Christians an insight into the topicality of God’s promises to Israel. It has opened the eyes of many Christians in the West to the prophetic Word” (Koen Carlier: Christians for Israel’s Aliyah fieldworker Ukraine). ________________________________________________________ For further information contact Judy Russell: judy.russell@iinet.net.au | 0410 403 616 or Trish Cortizo, Olive Tree Travel : 1300 550 830 | trish@olivetreetravel.com.au Judy Russell is an advocate for Christians for Israel Australia. Judy Russell Christian’s for Israel Advocate and host of popular worldview meetings, Parliament House, Sydney What Would I Have Done? What Can I Do Now If I Had The Chance? Olim coming home to Israel from Ukraine. Photo: courtesy of the Jewish Agency A 4-Day Jewish Heritage Tour To Warsaw 10-14 September 2021 FOLLOWED BY FOLLOWED BY An 8-Day Christians For Israel Working Tour In Ukraine 14-22 September 2021 | Including Babi Yar, Kiev, Vinnitsa, Odessa A 14-Day Comprehesive Tour In Israel 22 September-5 October 2021 FOR MORE DETAILS PHONE .......... 1300 550 830 Call Olive Tree T ravel , our expert travel agents EMAIL .......... info@olivetreetravel. com.au  

10. 20 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 8 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 C4I Events Raphael Jordan n National Leader | Christians for Israel Fiji Greetings from the ‘ends of the earth’ . If your feet are in Jerusalem, the most distant piece of land from Israel is Fiji. Each month, a group of Bible-believing supporters for Israel gather to pray for Israel, using the material in the Christians for Israel International prayer calendar. During the March-May Coronavirus lockdown, we met fortnightly from our own homes. Christians for Israel Fiji began the year 2020 with a blast. On 8 January, we were blessed to meet our Prime Minister, Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama. In our discussions, we gave a brief outline of ‘Who we were?’ ‘What do we do?’ and ‘Why we do the things we do?’ We presented him with a written plea, signed by a good number of Bible-believing Christians, urging our government to support Israel at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and to openly declare Jerusalem as the eternal and undivided capital of the Jewish State. Our visit culminated with a further presentation of a very special gift – a Magen David carved out of Fijian hardwood ‘Vesi’ and engraved on its base were two Bible verses: Genesis 12:3 (front) and Isaiah 40:1 (back). In February, we were invited to make presentations in Suva, Nadi and Lautoka, to educate the Church and the leaders of our country, of God’s separate biblical plans for Israel through the Holy Bible. Before President Rivlin’s arrival, we had liaised with churches of different Christian denominations regarding his visit to Nadi and Lautoka City (Western urban centers), bearing in mind that this was a first for the west and also for Fiji to show support for Israel. The support Christians for Israel Fiji received was overwhelming, especially from surrounding villages of Narewa, Namotomoto, Saunaka and Sabeto. Upon President Rivlin’s arrival at Nadi International Airport and as his motorcade drove onto the tarmac, his entourage was greeted with a sea of Israeli flags held by supporters of Israel, who stood, for some, on the roadside as early as 3am, waving their flags and cheering. This reception continued along the designated route from the airport to Pullman Nadi Bay Resort & Spa Fiji, where our visitors were accommodated. The Christians for Israel Fiji team was also blessed to be invited to meet Israel’s Non-Resident Ambassador to Fiji, Tibor Shalev Schlosser and Pacific Islands Advisor (PIA), Sara Sofer at the Resort after the state dinner. Sara Sofer later told us that the words buzzing amongst our Jewish visitors, from President Rivlin, to the last member of their team was – “unbelievable” and an “awesome surprise”. Most of them were first-time visitors to Fiji and didn’t know what to expect. President Rivlin, in his official remarks, reminded Fiji and Pacific Island leaders to support Israel at the United Nations (UN), because of the UN’s grossly biased attacks on the Jewish State. He expressed Israel’s appreciation for the Pacific Island states support at the UN and expressed that it was not enough to abstain from voting on anti-Israel resolutions but should be opposed by Israel’s friends. This was the first-ever gathering by Christian-Fijian- Israeli supporters to show support and love to such a high-level delegate from the Holy Land at his arrival and also on his departure for Australia the following day. We are emerging from this global pandemic with full blessings from the Lord himself. Wherever you are... stay blessed and may God continue to part our global pandemic, as he parted the Red Sea. Update from Christians for Israel Fiji Non-Resident Israel Ambassador to Fiji, Tibor Shalev Schlosser (standing 7th from left) and Israeli Pacific Islands Advisor, Sara Sofer (standing 7th from right) at Pullman Nadi Bay Resort & Spa Fiji on 20 February 2020. Christians for Israel Fiji shows overwhelming support to President of the State of Israel, H.E. Reuven Ruvi Rivlin and Israeli delegation on their visit to Fiji in February 2020 Possibilities Despite Coronavirus Rev Cornelis Kant n Executive Director | Christians for Israel International In many countries around the world, governments have imposed restrictions to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus. In some countries, the measures are extremely strict. This also has consequences for the activities of Christians for Israel in many countries. Conferences, lectures, and other activities were cancelled in almost all countries. Also, planning new activities later this year is hardly possible because there are still many uncertainties. Fortunately, the digital era offers a solution. With a great deal of ingenuity, our teams in various countries are organising online meetings and lectures. Italy: Our team in Italy, for instance, arranged a digital meeting about the work of C4I in Ukraine. Koen Carlier, our Aliyah fieldworker Ukraine, and wife Ira participated in this meeting, as well as Aliyah fieldworker Nataliya. They spoke about the distribution of food parcels and Meals on Wheels to Holocaust survivors and members of the Jewish community living in poverty. The participants in the meeting experienced this as wonderful and inspiring. “I am so happy meeting you all in this session and meeting Koen and Ira, thank you, thank you...”, Edda Foggarolo, team leader in Italy, told the participants. In a fairly simple way, many people can be reached. Malaysia: Our speakers worldwide can also be easily deployed ‘live’. Our team in Malaysia organised an online Bible study meeting on Israel at the beginning of June. As many as 157 people logged in and attended the meeting. These people all came from different churches from all over Malaysia and several participants will host a ‘Why Israel’ Bible study group in the time to come. At the end of the session, there was an opportunity for questions. One of the pastors wrote an email after the zoom session saying: “Thank you very much, and we want to invite you to visit us in Malaysia and teach us about Israel.” Vietnam: In Vietnam, they have been familiar with online Bible studies about Israel, even long before Coronavirus broke out. Just as many countries are familiar with the Alpha course, our team in Vietnam is running courses about Israel, where they study the Bible with each other over ten evenings via Skype and other online means of communication. Netherlands: In the Netherlands, the team organises daily live streams via YouTube and the Dutch website of Christians for Israel. A variety of C4I speakers and other well-known pastors teach about Israel every evening, except on Sunday. About 400 people watch the live stream and over 2000 or more people watch it afterwards. “Every evening I watch your live streams and I am so encouraged and inspired by it. I am learning every day”, a woman told us when she visited the C4I centre in Nijkerk in June. Some of these live streams are now also recorded in English, German or French and made available to our teams abroad, who can distribute them via their own (social media) network. In times of Coronavirus, we are incredibly grateful that we have these modern means of communication at our disposal so that the work can continue, albeit in a different way. Chiara Canciani (Italy) talking to Aliyah fieldworker Natalia in Ukraine. The live stream recording at the C4I Centre in Nijkerk.

28. 26 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Walk through the Land 14 Mysterious Dead Sea Scrolls The Dead Scrolls contain the oldest copies of biblical texts and consists of some 25,000 fragments of leather and papyrus. An international team of researchers successfully decoded ancient DNA extracted from the fragments made of animal skins. The DNA sequences revealed that the parchments were mostly made from sheep and cows, whereas before it was thought they all had been written on goat skin. Some of the scrolls were brought from other areas, and were not originally from the area around the caves were the scrolls were found. | Photo: Flash90 Digital Saxophone Israeli start-up Emeo Team has launched the Emeo, the first-ever digital practice saxophone, which allows saxophone players to practice and play anywhere, as long as the device is hooked up to their computers or smartphones. The Emeo connects to the devices using USB, MIDI, and Bluetooth and offers a cutting edge solution to the problem of the inherently loud volume of the saxophone, limiting sax players greatly in the manner in which they may practice and play. Israel Aerospace Industries to Cooperate with UAE The UAE and Israel have no official diplomatic ties, with Jordan and Egypt being the only two Arab countries to have signed peace treaties with Israel. Arab states in the Gulf, including the UAE, have increasingly built informal ties with Israel in recent years amid shared concerns over Iran. Last month, a flight undertaken by Etihad Airways - the UAE’s flag carrier - laden with COVID-19 related medical supplies for the Palestinian Authority made a rare landing in Tel Aviv. While the UAE has been critical of Israel’s plan to apply sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, its Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Anwar Mohammed Gargash, said two weeks ago, “I think we can have a political disagreement with Israel and try to bridge other differences.” Short News Kameel Majdali n Director | Teach All Nations Inc. It has a special role to play in the geography of Israel and served as the stage of one of the most electrifying events in Scripture. While it has high name recognition, it is little known nor understood. In this edition of Walk Through the Land, we will leave the coastal plain and ascend one of the most famous peaks of the Bible: Mount Carmel. The term ‘Mount Carmel’ is used only four times in Scripture, and ‘Carmel’ is 26 times. While most references mean the mount, there is also a ‘Carmel’ southeast of Hebron in Judah. This is where Nabal and Abigail lived (1 Samuel 25:5). Mount Carmel is the location of Israel’s third largest city and major port, Haifa. Its greatest acclaim was the famous contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal held on or near its summit in I Kings 18. Though we refer to it as a ‘mount,’ in reality Carmel is a mountain range that goes for 39 km in length, 6.4 to 8 km in width, and 450 meters in height. Unlike the majestic cedars in the high mountains of Lebanon, Carmel has predominantly scrubby woodlands. The range runs in a northwest-southeast direction, starting from the northwest corner of Samaria and continuing in that direction until it juts into the Mediterranean Sea. Look on any map of the holy land and you will see how Mount Carmel redefines the otherwise straight coastal plain. To the south are the plains of Sharon and Philistia. To the north is the Plain of Acre. To the west is the Mediterranean and the east is the Valley of Armageddon. As we learned in an earlier article, the ancient Egyptians called Mount Carmel and the ‘headland’ at Haifa, the ‘antelope’s nose.’ Apart from its striking appearance, this ‘nose’ had a very practical function: it stopped the Sahara Desert sand, brought via the Nile River, and delivered by the counter-clockwise Mediterranean current, from going any further north. Thus, the ports in the south were sand choked yet to the north they were functional. So, Israel relied on agriculture while Phoenicia became a great maritime nation. Eventually, there was a trade-off between the two nations: Israel provided the food and Phoenicia with the shipping. This was noted in the days of Hiram king of Tyre (2 Samuel 5:11; 1 Kings 5:1), and even in the time of Herod Agrippa I (Acts 12:20). In every way, Mount Carmel serve as a natural boundary or ‘fence’ between Phoenicia and Israel, meaning the Plain of Acre was in Phoenician hands most of the Biblical period. Being a high mount, Carmel was considered a sacred place. We know it had an altar to the Lord, which was broken down (1 Kings 18:30) and probably provided a high place(s) for Baal worship. Apart from being a sacred site, it was also symbolic of beauty. Solomon wrote of his beloved that, ‘Thine head upon thee is like Carmel’ Song 7:5. Isaiah 35:2 speaks glowingly of the ‘the excellency of Carmel and Sharon.’ When Nahum 1:4 speaks the languishing or withering of Carmel, it is a sign of overflowing judgement. On a Biblical tour, the main attraction is a visit to Muhraka (‘the Scorching’) on the southeast peak. It is the traditional site of the contest between Elijah and Jezebel’s Baal prophets. It has a stone statue of the Elijah, raising his sword to slay Baal’s prophets. Nearby is the Carmelite monastery and a nature reserve. There is a great view of the Valley of Armageddon, also known as Esraelon, and down below is the brook Kishon, where Baal’s prophets were slain after losing the contest. Also, at the foot of the mountain range is the site of Tell Megiddo, where Armageddon (Mountain of Megiddo) gets its name. Contest on Carmel Elijah’s ministry corresponded to a time of horrific apostasy in the Northern Kingdom, which included the ten tribes of Israel. They were already in trouble with the Lord because of King Jeroboam’s sin, namely the sanctuaries to the golden calves in Bethel and Dan. To add to this scandal, King Ahab married a Phoenician princess named Jezebel. She was a zealous follower and missionary for Baal. Through her efforts, Baal worship quickly becomes the de facto religion of Israel. Baal was the false god of the Phoenicians, Carthage, and Canaan. He was associated with agriculture and fertility. For an agrarian nation, his favour was highly sought. To appease Baal, his cult included sex worship, religious prostitution, and human sacrifice, particularly of children. Such worship was an abomination to the God of Israel, and He raised Elijah of Tishbite from Gilead to deal with it. First, the prophet prayed for a drought to judge Israel, which lasted three and a half years. Then he ordered the contest on Mount Carmel with Ahab present, along with 450 prophets of Baal and 400 of Asherah. Whichever God answered by fire would prevail. Not coincidentally, Elijah asked Israel how long it would sit on the fence, figuratively and literally Mount Carmel. Baal failed the test; his prophets were slain and Israel confessed that the Lord is God. Faith Lessons from Elijah Confession: Once Baal was defeated; the drought could be broken. Elijah confessed “I hear the sound of the abundance of rain,” though the sky was deep blue and there were no clouds (2 Corinthians 5:7). Prevailing Prayer: He prayed fervently to break the drought (James 5:17). First-fruits (Exodus 34:22): When finally, a cotton-ball cloud appeared, like the first- fruits of the crops, Elijah knew that the dark rain clouds would follow and warned Ahab as such. The clouds came, the rain descended, and the drought broke. Walk through the Land for many more faith lessons. Rev Kameel Majdali, PhD (Melb) is Director of Teach All Nations (tan.org.au). His MA degree is ‘Historical Geography of the Holy Land’ from the Institute of Holy Land Studies. Panoramic view of Mt. Carmel in Israel. | Photo: Shutterstock Introducing Mount Carmel August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 When finally, a cotton-ball cloud appeared, like the first-fruits of the crops, Elijah knew that the dark rain clouds would follow and warned Ahab as such.

27. 25 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Lawfare 12 Yoram Ettinger n Former Ambassador | Head of Second Thought: A US- Israel Initiative The suggestion that the application of the Israeli law to the Jordan Valley and parts of Judea and Samaria would severely undermine Israeli interests, jeopardise Israel’s peace treaties with Jordan and Egypt and Israel’s overall ties with Arab countries, is divorced from the Israeli track record and the Middle East reality. Israel’s Track Record The resurgence of the Jewish State from the ashes of WW2 to global prominence, technologically, scientifically, medically, agriculturally, economically, diplomatically and militarily – despite systematic adverse global pressure and Arab wars and terrorism – has demonstrated that there are no free lunches for independent nations, especially in the Middle East. For example, in 1948, Prime Minister Ben Gurion, Israel’s Founding Father, did not wait for a green light from the White House, in order to declare independence. He was aware that a declaration of independence would trigger a costly Arab military invasion. The CIA estimated that it could amount to ‘a second Holocaust.’ However, Ben Gurion concluded that achieving a supreme goal was preconditioned upon the willingness to pay a supreme cost. Indeed, the war against the Arab invasion c onsumed 1% (6,000) of the Jewish population (600,000). Fending off the Arab invasion, Israel expanded its borders by 30%, and would not retreat to the suicidal 1947 lines, despite brutal global (including US) pressure. The pressure on Israel dissipated, but Israel’s buttressed borders were preserved. In June 1967, Prime Minister Eshkol preempted a planned Egypt-Syria-Jordan joint offensive, in defiance of a strong red light from the White House and despite prominent Israelis who preferred the venue of negotiation and mediation, and who predicted a resounding Israeli defeat on the battlefield. Eshkol was aware that Israel’s existence, in the violently intolerant and unpredictable Middle East, required a firm posture of deterrence, which could entail heavy cost. In the aftermath of the war, Eshkol reunited Jerusalem and renewed Jewish population beyond the 1949/1967 indefensible Green Line, despite a very heavy US and global pressure. While the pressure on Israel has subsided, the Jewish presence in Judea, Samaria and eastern Jerusalem has surged to 700,000. In June 1981, Prime Minister Begin ordered the destruction of Iraq’s nuclear reactor, notwithstanding the menacing red light from the White House and the opposition by the Mossad, the IDF Intelligence and additional Israeli defence authorities. The naysayers were certain that an Israeli attack had a very slim chance of success. They feared that this would trigger a global Islamic assault on Israel; it would produce a European boycott of Israel, would create an irreparable rift with the USA and would doom Israel, economically and diplomatically. Begin decided that sparing Israel a traumatic nuclear assault justified even a traumatic cost. While the pessimistic assessments crashed on the rocks of reality, the Iraqi nuclear threat was terminated. In December 1981, Begin applied Israeli law to the Golan Heights, disregarding the brutal US opposition, which included the suspension of a US-Israel strategic accord and the supply of advanced military systems. While the heavy US sanctions were replaced by an unprecedented US-Israel strategic cooperation, the Golan Heights have become an integral part of the Jewish State. The aforementioned Israeli Prime Ministers defied international pressure and therefore were burdened with a short-term loss of global popularity. However, they earned long-term respect for their willingness to defy the odds at a severe cost. Thus, they bolstered Israel’s posture of deterrence, which has played a key role in enhancing Israel’s national security and Israel ’s regional/global standing, including its unprecedented military and commercial cooperation with all pro-US Arab countries. Middle East Reality (Israel-Arab Relations) Conventional wisdom is that an Israeli application of its law to the Jordan Valley and parts of Judea and Samaria would threaten the Israel-Jordan and Israel-Egypt peace treaties and could abort the burgeoning relations between Israel and all Arab Gulf States. Such a school of thought underestimates key Arab national security priorities, which have always transcended the Palestinian issue. It ignores the significant role played by Israel’s posture of deterrence in the national security strategy of Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, B ahrain, Oman and Kuwait. For example, the 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty reflects Jordanian national security priorities, rather than a Jordanian reconciliation with the existence of an ‘infidel’ Jewish State in the ‘abode of Islam.’ Just like all Arab regimes – and especially since the eruption of the still raging Arab Tsunami in 2010 – the pro-US regime in Amman is highly vulnerable, domestically and regionally. Irrespective of its pro-Palestinian rhetoric, Jordan’s actions – since 1949 when it occupied Judea and Samaria while prohibiting Palestinian political activity – have represented the overall Arab view of the Palestinians as a role model of intra-Arab subversion and terrorism. Jordan’s Hashemite regime considers the proposed Palestinian state a clear and present lethal threat. At the same time, it considers Israel’s posture of deterrence as its most effective line of defence against lethal threats, domestically (subversion by Palestinians, Muslim Brotherhood, ISIS and hostile southern Bedouin) and externally (Iran’s Ayatollahs, Iraq and Syria). King Abdullah II is aware of the key role played by Israel’s posture of deterrence in forcing a retreat of the 1970 Syrian invasion of Jordan when the US was unable to extend military help. Jordan considers Israel a unique source of intelligence and counter-terrorism assistance. Israel supplies water to the 1.5 million refugees from Syria, provides Jordan with commercial access to the port of Haifa and price- discounted offshore natural gas. Moreover, Israel is the most effective lobby for Jordan in Washington, DC. In addition, Israel has accorded Jordan a prominent inter- Islamic plum: the custodian of Jerusalem’s Moslem and Christian holy sites. Is King Abdullah II expected to cut off his nose to spite his face? Saudi Arabia and the other Arab Gulf States, as well as Egypt, regard Israel as a most reliable and effective ally in the face of mutual threats, such as Iran’s Ayatollahs, the Muslim Brotherhood, ISIS, Turkey’s Erdogan and potential tectonic spillovers from Iraq and Syria. This Saudi-Israel congruence of national security interests eclipses the role played by the Palestinian issue in Riyadh’s order of national priorities. Furthermore, Saudi Arabia appreciates the Israeli technological and potential scientific contribution to its effort to diversify their oil-dependent economy. In fact, Riyadh considers the proposed Palestinian state a potential rogue regime, siding with its arch enemies. Hence, the effective Saudi opposition (contrary to its rhetoric) to the establishment of a Palestinian state. Thus, the national security concerns of the pro-US Arab countries are advanced by a reinforced Israeli posture of deterrence. On the other hand, a hesitant, appeasing and retreating Israel, which sacrifices its independence of national security action on the altar of overseas green lights, whets the appetite of terrorists and rogue regimes, which threatens the national security of Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and all other pro-US Arab countries. Originally published in Breaking Israel News The Cost of Israeli Sovereignty August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Aerial view of East Jerusalem. | Photo: Flash90 Just like all Arab regimes ... the pro-US regime in Amman is highly vulnerable, domestically and regionally. Archeology 13 Sarah Sarah means Princess. In the Bible, she is the wife of Abraham. First, she was called Sarai (Genesis 12:5) . Together with Abraham, the Lord God gave her a new name. The change of the name implies a new calling, you could say. Abram was the father, or prince, of his own tribe only. But like Abraham, he is the father of a multitude of nations. Likewise, the name Sarai suggests a certain limitation — the suffix ai means ‘my’. She is the princess only of her own people. However, the limitation is annulled by the change into Sarah. Then she b ecomes princess over all nations. The Jewish tradition which is the source of the above exposition still gives other interpretations of this name change. I would like to share a few with you. It is said, for example, that no Yod will be deleted from the Torah. The Yod (the letter i or y) is the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet. The Lord Jesus, too, teaches that not the smallest letter (iota) or stroke shall pass from the Law (Matthew 5:18). But the yod disappears from Sarai’s name. How can this be? Does it somewhere return? For that, we have read on in the Torah. When Moses calls Hosea Joshua (Numbers 13:16), the ‘disappeared’ yod is again added. There it returns. It is also said that a change of name suggests a change of what is within someone’s range. Abram could not conceive children, Abraham can. Sarai could not have children, Sarah can. Was Sarah really the sister of Abraham? You could ask yourself what Abraham meant when he told Abimelech that she was the daughter of his father, but not of his mother (Genesis 20:12). Sarah’s mother is nowhere mentioned. That leaves room to the supposition that Sarah was the daughter of Abraham’s brother Haran. Then she could be the same person as Iscah (Genesis 11:29). Haran died while his father was still alive. Terah was, as it were, at the same time grandfather and father for his granddaughters. Moreover, it was not uncommon to call your granddaughter your daughter. Likewise, the sister can sometimes mean cousin. Biblical Names By Kees de Vreugd August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Kay Wilson n Israeli Tour Guide | Author | Cartoonist Due to the slaughter of Jews and Muslims perpetrated by the Crusaders in, and on their way to, ‘liberate the Holy Land’, the Crusaders are largely despised in Israel and throughout the Middle East. Their stay in Israel, was less than 200 years, and, according to most historians, their cultural impact - compared to others who conquered the region - was ‘minimal’. One of the most impressive yet puzzling Crusader castles is the Monfort in Upper Galilee. It is located in a nature reserve and a national park and is a popular place for Israeli hikers. The castle sits high on a ridge densely covered with trees. Below is the Brook of Kziv, a 20- kilometre seasonal river where water flows only during parts of the year. Although popular for school trips and a refreshing Sabbath activity, the place is puzzling. The Crusaders had sworn an oath to establish hospitals and protect pilgrims en route to Jerusalem. But this 13th- century castle neither overlooked hospitals, settlements or any road. And it defended absolutely nothing. History shows that due to moral decay, every great empire has imploded from within. The internal weakening of empires made it easy for other powers to rise in their place. The Crusaders are no different. Before their kingdom fell to Egyptian converts to Islam, it first fell apart due to the different Crusader Orders bickering among themselves. This squabbling could be the only clue as to the location of the fortress. One theory proposes that it was initially built to move the Crusader archives and treasury from the coast to this more isolated location but as a result of the later tension between the Crusaders, the Teutonic Order barricaded themselves in after learning that their ‘Brothers in Arms’, the Templa rs and the Hospitallers, wanted it for themselves. The Teutonics incidentally, were German knights who joined the Crusader army under Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa - the name Hitler chose for his invasion of the Soviet Union in World War II. Digging for eight consecutive years at the Monfort, Israeli archaeologists and students from London recently unearthed a magnificent ceremonial hall. It had Gothic architecture, a plastered floor, stained glass and walls over two meters thick. The hall would have been used for guests and dining. Possibly it could have also served as a chapter house where the Crusaders assembled and discussed the ins and outs of life in the castle. In addition, the team discovered fine glassware, jewellery and Nine Man Morris, a strategy board game that people played way back in the Roman Empire, as well as luxurious apartments with glided wood and decorative walls. Other finds show that the Crusaders enjoyed types of food that Israelis would squirm at. Bones from domestic European pigs were found and the remains of turtles. The ongoing conflict with other Crusaders made the Teutonics show-case Montfort, an isolated island in expanding Muslim territory. Its name, which means ‘strong fort’ was ironically easy prey. The Egyptian Mamluk siege took a mere 15 days. Despite his brutal reputation, Baibars the leader spared the Germans. One theory is, he valued the humiliation of escorting them back to the coast and flaunting his victory over finishing them off with his sword which would be out of sight and out of mind. Baibars returned to destroy the castle on the 4th of July - no relation to American Independence Day - and it was never inhabited again. As an aside, the siege debris discovered at Montfort is the first solid evidence of the Mamluk attack that had previously only been known from medieval sources. The archaeological finds are one more step in helping archaeologists understand the Crusaders, and what they actually did all day. But until more is unearthed, what we know for now is that those who lived there (supposedly in the spirit of a humble monastic lifestyle), appeared to do so in boredom, self-gratuity and blatant luxury which ultimately caught them off guard. Brothers in Arms Above: Ruined Crusaders Montfort Castle ( ‘Mountain Fortress’ ) in the Upper Galilee mountains National park, in the north of Israel. Below: Small waterfall on Kziv stream. | Photos: Shutterstock

19. 9 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Book Review Maxine Carlill Writer and Volunteer with International Christian Embassy Jerusalem Gleaning in Ancient Fields a Christian’s Guide to the First Five Books of the Bible Like Ruth, the Gentile girl from Moab for whom the fields of Boaz provided sustenance, Gentile believers in the God of Israel can glean in Jewish fields. In this book, you will be introduced to Jewish scholarship which over the centuries, has explored every nuance of meaning of God’s words. These studies will also show how the teaching of Torah flows throughout the New Testament. For a period of 20 years, my husband and I spent a lot of time in Israel. We were staff members of ICEJ and also volunteered with Israeli Aid Organisations. During that period, we availed ourselves of the opportunities to learn more about Judaism, including studying with an Orthodox Rabbi. Each week within the Jewish community worldwide, a passage is read from the Torah, the five books of Moses. I delighted in this habit of studying and discussing a part of Scripture along with much of the population. Torah means aiming for a mark, instruction, and I began to appreciate its foundational truths on which much of the rest of Scripture is built. When Christians discover the Hebraic roots of their faith, the Scriptures can suddenly be seen in a whole new light. New understandings add to the appreciation of God’s Word; the Jewish calendar contains observances throughout the year which reveal God’s unfolding redemption and are a joy in which to partake as we are able. However, the part of Torah that was given to the Jewish people, the Mosaic law, can bring confusion to believers in the Jewish Messiah who desire to ‘keep His commandments’ as proof of love for Him. According to the important and gracious decision of the Jerusalem Council of Acts 15, the non-Jewish part of God’s family is not bound by its legal obligations. However, patterns, principles and pictures are embedded in the Torah’s historical narratives and detailed rituals, and are for our instruction. Gleaning in Ancient Fields was written to show that by following these criteria we will live within God’s boundaries and guidelines as a holy set apart people. Many Christians do not even read these books much beyond the stories that give an introduction of God’s Word to children such as Noah’s Ark, the Prince of Egypt, Moses in his floating basket etc! And yet, the narratives are only a part of an amazing set of Books of which a wider study I believe will yield treasure and is essential for a fuller understanding of the rest of the Bible. We are told in 2 Timothy 2:16 that “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable...” . If the Torah is an unfamiliar part of the Bible for you, Gleaning in Ancient Fields opens the way to a journey of discovery. In each chapter you will find interwoven in both narrative and lists of commandments, standards that God has intended for all to follow. ________________________________________________________ Cost of book $25 plus postage, write to order from mjcarlill@gmail.com ...a wider study I believe will yield treasure and is essential for a fuller understanding of the rest of the Bible Sign up a friend to ‘Israel & Christians Today’ Newspaper and receive the ‘ Israel 70 Years Magazine ’ or the new ‘ The Signs of the Times DVD ’ FREE * ! Your Full Name: ____________________________ Address: _________________________________ _________________________________________ State: ________________ P ostcode: __________ Friends Full Name: _________________________ Address: _________________________________ _________________________________________ State: ________________ P ostcode: __________ Number of Newspapers Bi-monthly: c 1 c 2 c 5 c Other: __________________ *1 Magazine/DVD per person. limited offer. while stocks last. SEND DETAILS TO: Christians for Israel, Australia , PO Box 1508, Springwood, QLD, 4127 Israel 70 Years Commemorative Magazine Please choose ONE of the below gifts to receive upon successfully signing up a new friend to ‘ Israel & Christians Today’ Newspaper. The Signs of the Times DVD ( 7+ Hours Teaching) The friend/church you nominate to receive the Israel & Christians Today Bi-monthly Newspaper will also receive a complimentary copy of ‘The Signs of the Times’ DVD as well.

20. 10 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Continuing the Legacy of Peter Kentley Beersheba Vision was founded by the late Peter Kentley in 2017 in order to maintain the memory of that pivotal battle at Beersheba in 1917 between the British Empire and her Allies and the Ottoman Empire. As is known, that was the beginning of the end of Ottoman rule in the Holy Land and the modern day State of Israel came into being 3 decades later. The organisation also wanted to make known and remember the incredible military skills and feats of two great Australians, Generals Sir John Monash and Sir Harry Chauvel who helped take the world from war to peace in WW1. One of Beersheba Vision’s early achievements was the hosting of an Armistice Day Event at Scotch College to honour Monash and Chauvel that attracted over 1000 people. It was a mixed audience of Jews, Christians and Indigenous and was widely acclaimed by all who attended due to the very moving content and the professional manner in which it was presented by Peter and other Committee Members. A synopsis of Monash and Chauvel’s lives provided by speakers on the day was pre recorded by David Jack and is titled ‘From War to Peace’ . It’s available at www.muralstudio.com.au/styled and a recording of highlights from the day will be available shortly. Another remarkable achievement by a Beersheba Vision Committee person, namely Jennifer Marshall , was the creation of the model for the Statue to Indigenous ANZACS at Semakh in Israel which was unveiled in 2019. The Statue was funded by voluntary donations and by Christian For Israel who matched a $1.00 for a $1.00. Many indigenous participated in this battle at Semakh on September 25th 1918, but as with their service in all wars their participation has been largely overlooked. The battle that was just as strategic and courageous as that at Beersheba has also been largely overlooked, but thanks to a visit by the 2007 Light Horse Reenactment Tour nearby Kinneret College undertook refurbishing of the site and it is now a fitting memorial to our ANZACS. As well as periodic ANZAC presentations by Peter and Jill Curry over the years, Beersheba Vision also organised a highly successful Nations Bless Israel Event in conjunction with Rabbi Riesenberg from the Caulfield Central Shul . The short 5 minute presentations from pro Israel organisations in Australia brought tears to many a Jewish eye which had not experienced or knew of the love and support from so many Christians before. Peter’s last project was to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the San Remo Resolution in order to raise awareness of Israel’s legal rights to the Land according to international law. A sudden downturn in Peter’s health at that time meant that all other members of the Committee had to suddenly step up in order to proceed with the information meeting he had planned, which again involved representatives from Aussie pro Israel organisations and interested parties from the political and public domain. Although the Committee was unable to host its own Commemoration we were thrilled that Kelvin Crombie’s virtual presentation to the UK Parliament was made available by Christians Friends of Israel and there was also a moving event in Jerusalem hosted by the European Coalition for Israel. Hugh Kitson and Andrew Tucker also participated in a Hetz Webinar on the same topic. At our invitation Senator Amanda Stoker also spoke to San Remo in Federal Parliament on May 13th—the only known Politician to do so although the Prime Minister sent a strong letter of support to ECI’s Commemoration that was publicly acknowledged. Sadly (for us) Peter was promoted to glory on February the 11th but I half write this article to let people know his legacy lives on and also to give praise to God for what has been achieved since then, as it defies all Committee Member’s imaginings. Another highly successful Nations Bless Israel was held on May 14th 2020, which had to be presented by Zoom and Facebook due to COVID19. We estimate that it was viewed nearly 1000 times and has led to a smaller version of this format now occurring on a monthly basis again in partnership with Rabbi Riesenberg. A mix of Jewish and Christians experts in their field present via Zoom followed by a musical item. It has adopted the name Southern Cross Alliance For Israel (to hopefully include the South Pacific Islands in the future ) and the next events will be on August the 13th and September the 17th at 7.30 pm for a 7.45 pm start. John Lockwood is the Chairperson of this sub- committee of Beersheba Vision. In addition Barry Rodgers OAM (of Light Horse Reenactment fame) has moved from being a Patron of Beersheba Vision Incorporated to being a fully fledged Committee Member given that he was kindly undertaking far too many activities to warrant wearing just the former hat. With the assistance of his grandson Nathanael Lawrence he has designed a new web site for Beersheba Vision www.beershebavision.org and with the help of C4I both have now set up a home recording studio to continue Peter’s weekly radio broadcasts at J-Air 87.8FM . Interviews of representatives from Christian pro Israel organisations and other items of interest will be able to be heard at 2.00 pm on Wednesdays . Finally with input from Educationalist Dr Jennie Bickmore-Brand the Committee is continuing to explore ways to bring our ANZAC story and in particular its connection to Israel to the younger generation. We will also be planning how the significant dates of the Battles of Semakh and Beersheba and Armistice Day can continue to be commemorated as Peter would have wished. As well as the members mentioned above the Committee is made up of Russell Gray, (Acting President and Treasurer), Joy Heylen, (Acting Secretary), Judy Russell and Matthew Thorn (both C4I Reps) and Deon van Baalens (Rep for Hayovel). ________________________________________________________ Joy Heylen retired Social Worker, Intercessor for Israel, National Coordinator of Stan Goodenough’s Speaking Tours to Australia and the Australian Representative for Christian Friends of Israel Communities (Judea & Samaria). Joy Heylen Retired Social Worker and Intercessor for the Nation of Israel BeershebaVision.org with the help of C4I both have now set up a home recording studio to continue Peter’s weekly radio broadcasts The Australian Lighthorse (ALHA) in the Negev - following in the steps of the ANZACS journeyed along to Beersheba in 1917.

7. 17 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Biblical Reflection 5 Short News Nine Israeli-Founded Unicorns Now Based in New York Nine Israeli unicorns, which refers to privately held start-up companies valued at over $1 billion, are now based in New York, highlighting the growing influence of Israeli companies in the US. Some of the companies listed include prominent names in the tech world, focusing heavily on software and consumer payment services, such as Riskified, Sisense, VAST Data, and Via join Compass, Lemonade, Payoneer, Taboola and The We Company. The number of Israeli- founded unicorns based in New York has nearly doubled over the past year. | Photo: Unsplash Washable Face Mask The Israeli company SonoviaTech developed a reusable anti-viral mask that will be able to neutralise about 99% of coronavirus. The washable masks are coated in zinc oxide nano- particles that destroy bacteria, fungi and viruses. Masks have been donated by Sonovia to hospitals in Israel and Germany. In May the SonoMasks entered the market in the USA. Iran Urges Action Against Israel After Natanz Blast On 3 July, ImageSat International (ISI) revealed images of the Khojir facility, which blew up on 26 June. That was the first of four explosions. The ISI assessment says that gas tanks were damaged under a shed and that the gas was destined for a missile facility nearby. Another incident occurred at a medical center days later in Tehran and then on 2 July a further explosion damaged the Natanz nuclear facility. According to experts, the Natanz explosion has set back Iran’s nuclear programme by more than a year. Iran called for action against Israel, blaming the blast on the Jewish state. On 4 July yet another massive fire damaged a power plant in Khuzestan. Quietly, Iran is letting it be known, including through commentary as its major media outlets, that suggest it might respond to the attacks. | Photo: Times of Israel Biblical Borders of Israel Johannes Gerloff n Theologian, Journalist, Lecturer & Author This article is the second instalment of the tw0-part series. The first article was published in the June issue. The Heartland is West of the Jordan Joshua 22:9-34 reports an interesting event that is relevant in this context. The Israelite tribes of Reuben and Gad and half of the tribe of Manasseh had settled in the East Bank between ‘Arnon and Hermon’. They had built an altar near the Jordan ‘on the border of the territory of Israel’ (verse 11). In the context of the dispute that resulted, the East Bank is strictly distinguished ‘from the land that belongs to the Lord, in which the Lord’s tabernacle dwells’ (verse 19). If we go back to the south west of the country, the border with Egypt is marked at ‘the river of Egypt’, which is the river Nile, ‘the Red Sea’, the ‘Shihor of Egypt’ or ‘the creek of Egypt’. This ‘brook of Egypt’ is often identified with the Wadi El-Arish, which is located approximately in the middle of northern Sinai Peninsula. In the time of the Maccabees, the extent of what is today’s modern State of Israel is described fairly precisely when 1 Maccabees 11.59 speaks ‘from the Tyrian ladder’, today’s Rosh HaNiqra, ‘to the border of Egypt’. The Subjective Reference Despite this vast amount of border information, it is quite difficult to establish from Scripture a clearly-defined territory for the Promised Land for the chosen people. When we consider the subjective aspect that repeatedly emerges in the environment of biblical statements about the borders of the land, it becomes clear that the Promised Land does not have definitive boundaries. We find the first border definition of the Promised Land in Genesis 13:14-15. There God tells to Abram: “Lift up your eyes. From the place where you are standing, look to the north, towards the Negev, to the east and in the direction of the sea. All the land that you see, I will give to you and your descendants.” A Panoramic View “What you see, I will give to you!” – It remains unclear exactly where Abram stood when God made this promise, at what time of day, in what season of the year it happened, and what the weather was like. The biblical text leaves the reader in the dark about how good the eyes of the then 75-year-old were. These would have been decisive facto rs in setting the borders. With Moses, the biblical tradition is clearer. At the age of 120 years, Moses is not allowed to enter the Promised Land. As with Abraham, the drawing of boundaries is done subjectively from the perspective of the observer. However, it is clear that this is done from Mount Nebo, from one of the peaks of the mountain ridge east of the Jordan River. And it is reported of Moses that “his eyes were not weakened” (Deuteronomy 34:7). The text also clearly states what Moses sees: From ‘Gilead to Dan’ – that is, the whole mountain range east of the Jordan, including today‘s Golan Heights up to Mt Hermon. ‘All of Naphtali’ – the eastern edge of the Galilean mountains. ‘The whole land of Ephraim and Manasseh and the land of Judah to the sea on the west’ – the central Israeli mountain range with the Shefelah and the coastal plain reaching to the Mediterranean in the background. And then turning left towards the south: ‘The Negev’, the wilderness of Judah, the Dead Sea and right in front of Moses’ feet ‘Jericho, the city of palm trees’ (Genesis 34:1-3). To Accept As An Inheritance The personal perspective of Moses, the one who received the promise, based on his relationship with God and his relationship with the land, is decisive for defining boundaries in the Promised Land. This way of thinking also becomes clear when Scripture stresses dozens of times that God gives the land to the people with a mandate, namely, ‘to accept it as an inheritance.’ The Hebrew word yarash is translated as ‘to inherit’, ‘to bequeath’, ‘to take as possession’, ‘to conquer’, ‘to expel’, ‘to settle’, depending on the context. Connected with the land promise is thus the quite subjective task of entering, inspecting and actively taking possession of the land as an inheritance. This is why the commandment to live in the land of Israel is so important for rabbinical tradition, or, conversely, the ban on leaving the land of Israel. Stepping on the Land God had not told Abram much about the land God had promised to him. Only: It is ‘the land that I will show you’ (Genesis 12:1). Decisive for further progress was that ‘Abram went’ (verse 4), that he arrived in the land of Canaan together with his extended family (verse 5) and passed through the land (verse 6). After Abram had sought peace with Lot by giving him the best part of the Promised Land (Genesis 13:1-12), God repeated His purposes with regard to Abram and his descendants (verses 14-16). Then God gave Abram the command (verse 17), “Get up! Move through the land in length and breadth, for I will give it to you.” Several generations and centuries later, Moses described the land that God intended to give to his people by announcing (Genesis 11:24), “Every place the sole of your foot will step on will be yours.” Immediately after Moses’ death, the Lord repeated this instruc tion to Joshua, the successor of Moses (Joshua 1:2-4): “Get up! Cross over this Jordan, you and all these people, into the land I am about to give to them, to the children of Israel. Every place the sole of your foot will step on, I have given to you as I spoke to Moses.” In biblical thinking, stepping on the ground determines how big the Promised Land will be. Only that land which the one who received the promise will practically enter and accept as an inheritance by stepping on it, will be the land that God gives him. In reverse, it is true: “If you do not tread the ground, it does not belong to you.” Thus, King Ahab took possession of Naboth’s vineyard by entering it (1 K ings 21:18-19). And ‘Ploni-Almoni’ ceded his right to the inheritance of Elimelech to the redeemer Boaz by giving him a shoe (Ruth 4:7-8), the very ‘tool’ that enabled him to step on the land. This way of thinking runs through the language of the entire Holy Scriptures. God has never given his people a land with borders set once for all, a plot of property that would be clearly defined in any land register – and that an ‘Israelite’ residing in New York, Tokyo, Berlin or even Tel Aviv would be able to make work for him from a distance or even exploit it as real estate speculator. From a biblical point of view, the size of the land and its boundaries depend on the individual’s inspection of the land, and acceptance of it as an inheritance, by stepping on it with the sole of one’s foot. Obedience to the original commission of the Creator to ‘cultivate and preserve the land’ (Genesis 2:15) and a life in accordance with his will emerge as decisive elements considering the borders of the Promised Land. Republished with permission August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 A chart of cities in Israel on the top of mount Nebo. Mount Nebo is where the Moses was given a view of the promised land that God was giving to the Jews. | Photo: Flash90 Nitai Eliash

9. 19 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Yossi Aloni n Israel Today Israel takes the lead in helping Jewish communities around the world recover from Corona crisis. For the first time, a global Corona roundtable was convened by the Diaspora and Jewish Agency with around 30 global and regional Jewish organisations to discuss the challenges of the Jewish people and the rehabilitation of Jewish communities. Jewish Agency chairman Yitzhak Herzog and Diaspora Affairs Minister Omer Yankelevich led the roundtable, which set out to assess the impact of the Coronavirus on Jewish communities around the world and prepare a practical plan for their rehabilitation on the ‘day after.’ The organisations discussed the current state of affairs in the communities. They discussed the consequences of the current crisis for each community, as well as the challenges faced, the opportunities and the possible responses. The Global Roundtable held on Zoom from around the world opened with comments by Yankelevich and Herzog, who presented the key issues that organisations will discuss over the next few months until the rehabilitation of the affected Jewish communities. The k ey issues included: Ÿ steps for the rehabilitation of communities, Ÿ coping with routine and crisis, Ÿ raising resources for the period of rehabilitation, Ÿ strengthening leadership, Ÿ cohesion and mutual commitment, Ÿ future community needs, Ÿ preparing for other challenges, such as increasing anti-Semitism worldwide. Afterward, the leaders of the organisations presented their views on challenges. Jewish Agency Chairman Isaac Herzog said: “Today we are making history. This is the first time in the history of the State of Israel that the bodies of the Israeli government and the Jewish Agency are setting up a formal forum to assist Jewish communities around the world, apart from an emergency situation facing one specific community. This is a paradigm shift of ‘All Israel becoming guarantors for each other.’ The Roundtable will identify, map and broadly analyse and assess the steps needed to strengthen Jewish communities and community institutions throughout the Jewish world, in addressing the implications of the Corona crisis over a period of rehabilitation that is expected to be long.” Diaspora Minister Omer Yankelevich said: “I marvel at the conduct of Jewish communities during these troubled times and how they strive to share ideas, learn from mistakes and grow together. Their unified spirit is inspiring, as they establish a system to provide stable and permanent aid to those in need. Together with worldwide Jewry, we will set up an active, strong forum to find practical solutions for all communities. Our office wants to work with all communities everywhere, so that they will have a connection to Israel and Israel to them. This will make them proud that Israel is a real part of their lives and their identities, just as we in Israel are proud to realise that Jewish life abroad is a real and active part of our own identity.” The roundtable is expected to convene in its broad forum once every two weeks over the next few months. Subcommittees will be set up to discuss in depth the challenges leading up to a global recovery from the Corona crisis. The forum will be run and coordinated operatively by the Director General of the Diaspora Ministry, Dvir Kahana, and the Director General of the Jewish Agency, Amira Aharonovitch. Shirley Heller, Senior Advisor to the Jewish Agency Chairman, will manage the forum’s office. The office will function together with the Jewish Agency office, headed by Jewish Agency Secretary General Josh Schwartz. Among the organisations and bodies that participated in the roundtable: a distinguished representation of the Israeli government from the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prime Minister’s Office; the Jewish Federation of North America, the Keren Hayesod, World Zionist Organisation, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the Confere nce of Presidents, JDC, JNF , Orthodox Union, Conservative Movement, Reform Movement, World Jewish Congress, European Jewish Congress, European Conference of Rabbis and more. In April, the Jewish Agency together with Keren Hayesod and the Jewish Federation of North America, launched a special loan fund, with $10 million, to help the Jewish communities affected by the Coronavirus. Since the foundation was established , dozens of communities in over 70 countries around the world have asked for assistance. Since the outbreak of the Corona epidemic, there have been numerous reports of the great damage the Coronavirus has caused to Jewish communities around the world, including a high number of fatalities. According to data compiled by the Diaspora Ministry and the Jewish Agency, fatalities among Jewish communities around the world number in the thousands. Many of these communities have been paralysed or are on the brink of collapse. Iran’s Long Arm The main Iranian threat to Israel is Iran’s use of so-called ‘proxy militias’. These are militant movements that unconditionally support the ideas of an Islamic revolution, as preached by Islamic religious leaders. There are also groups which support Iran with money and therefore support it indirectly. This map gives an incomplete overview, but, clearly shows that Iran is in the process of encircling Israel with a network of armed forces. TURKEY CYPRUS SYRIA LEBANON IRAN IRAQ SAUDI-ARABIA EGYPT ISRAEL JORDAN MEDITERRANEAN SEA Hamas Islamic Jihad Hezbollah Quds Force Hamas Islamic Jihad Wilayat Sinai (IS) Badr Brigades Hezbollah Brigades Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq Abu al-Fadl al-Abbas Brigade Facts Speak 6 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Israel News United Response to Covid-19 Attack on Jewish Communities Jewish Agency chairman Yitzhak Herzog attending a rally at Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square, Israel | Photo: Flash90 “I marvel at the conduct of Jewish communities during these troubled times and how they strive to share ideas, learn from mistakes and grow together.” 7 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 C4I Events Marie-Louise Weissenböck is Chairperson of Christians for Israel Austria. She is also Regional Director Europe, and a member of the Board of Christians for Israel International. She grew up in South Africa and came to Vienna to study piano. She has lived there ever since. Why and how did you start working with Christians for Israel? “When I came to Austria in 1980, I noticed that there was not much communication between Jews and non- Jews/Christians in Vienna. As a young person I could not understand this, as already 35 years had passed since WWII, and for a young student that is a long time! The Jewish Museum in Vienna had not reopened yet and there was no official Holocaust remembrance. I prayed to God that if he wanted to use me in some form to help further dialogue and understanding between Jews and Christians, I would make myself available. When I heard the teachings of Willem Glashouwer in Vienna in 2005 and 2007, my biblical understanding of the role of Israel (the land and the people) was confirmed and of course deepened/broadened immensely. In 2007 I was invited to participate in a Christians for Israel “Train the Trainers” weekend in the Netherlands and from there my involvement grew. The Austrian branch of C4I was founded in January 2008.” What inspires you most about C4I? “What inspires me most is the ministry’s deep and sincere love of Israel and the Jewish people. I grew up with Jewish friends as a kid and it was heartwarming to meet a whole family of Christians who resonated this love and respect that I already felt from a young age. It is based on love for the God of Israel and for Jesus the Jew - which is related to the love of the Jewish people - His first love. Through getting to know the Jewish character of Jesus better, we gain a deeper understanding of what it means as gentiles to be engrafted into the Jewish Olive tree. Meeting and talking with Karel van Oordt - the founder of Christians for Israel - was a blessing in my life. His deep love for God, for the Jewish people, and for the Word of God, together with his humble character, touched me deeply. He is unforgettable!” You have pioneered the establishment of Christians for Israel in Austria - which is not exactly the most pro-Jewish country in the world. What have been some of the highlights of this important work (difficulties, challenges and successes)? “Austria today has a very Israel-friendly government. Our chancellor, Sebastian Kurz has a very good relationship with Netanyahu and Israel. He has been there often in the past years. Netanyahu was the one warning our chancellor against coronavirus and Austria took similar actions concerning the lockdown as those in Israel. Austria is also at the forefront in Europe in the fight against anti-Semitism. Two very important international conferences against anti-Semitism have been held in Vienna in the past years. A highlight, or rather a blessing, is our really good relationship with the Jewish community, the Israeli Embassy and the Holocaust survivors living in the Jewish Retirement home (Maimonides Centre) in Vienna. We cooperate with the Jewish Museums in different cities, and we have developed a relationship of trust and respect. This is invaluable. I get invitations to speak about Israel from Catholic, Charismatic and Protestant Christians, which is a great blessing. Our Israel tours are inter-denominational - apart from getting to know Israel and learning more about our roots in Judaism, we also learn from each other, resulting in deeper understanding between different Christian denominations. A big challenge for us is that our support group is getting older. The generation above 60 is definitely more supportive than the generation below 60. This seems to be a challenge in many countries.” You are also the Regional Director for Europe. What does that involve? I am responsible for overseeing the work of C4I in Europe. Our German, Belgian and Dutch branches are large and independent, though they work closely with each other, and have been very supportive of our teams in other countries. I work closely with our “younger” branches - helping them get established, training and inspiring them, and developing strategies for reaching the churches in their countries. Our team in Italy is doing a great job, in an exceedingly difficult and complex country. The work in the Ukraine led by Koen and Ira Carlier is simply wonderful. A highlight has been to establish branches in Denmark and Switzerland in the past three years, and to work with our wonderful representatives in Greece and Albania. The message about God's purposes for Israel in connection to His purposes for the Church in redemptive history is continuing to be spread throughout Europe. I am so thankful!” Looking forward, what opportunities and challenges do you see for the ministry in the coming years? “I think the biggest challenge is the rise of anti-Semitism and anti-Judaism throughout the globe - from the right and the left. Radical Islam is also a challenge. Another big challenge is connecting with the young generation. At the same time, we have a tremendous opportunity to reach a new generation through social media.” Bringing Israel Back to the Church Marie-Louise delivering her thank-you speech after receiving a WIZO Gold Award in Vienna, October 2019 C4I Writes to WCC and WEA Rev Cornelis Kant n Executive Director | Christians for Israel International In June the World Council of Churches in Geneva (WCC) sent a letter to the EU Ministers of Foreign Affairs, appealing for a firm and principled stance by the European Union against any ‘annexation’ by the State of Israel. The WCC urged condemnation of Israel and economic sanctions. The WCC has built a long-standing reputation for one- sided condemnations of Israel. We wrote a letter to the WCC urging them to refrain from putting pressure on the EU Ministers. We said that we recognise that there are very different views on this issue both within Israel and within the churches. However, the one-sided criticism of Israel is unacceptable. “For more than ten years, the Palestinian Authority has refused to sit down with Israel in order to reach an agreement to come to a peaceful solution. For years the Palestinian Authority has been investing in hate education through schoolbooks. For years the Palestinian Authority pays terrorists who attack Jews. Thousands of rockets have been fired from Gaza after Israel handed it over to the Palestinians in 2005. As you all know, Israel is the only safe place for Christians in the Middle East where they can freely confess their faith. In many Middle East countries Christians have been massacred or have fled because of the many religiously motivated wars. The appalling consequence is that there is almost no more room for Christians. However, when Israel takes a step, the World Council of Churches gets moving and calls for the suspension of the EU trade relationship with Israel. We find this shocking, shameful and unworthy of the Christian Church. We are afraid that there is a theology underlying this, in which the enduring place of the Biblical nation of Israel in salvation history is ignored and denied.” Soon afterwards, the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) issued a statement expressing “concerns” about Israeli “annexation plans”. We wrote to the WEA to let them know we appreciate WEA’s desire to contribute to the current discussions. However, in our view, their statement does not accurately reflect the history of this conflict, the realities on the ground, or the legal status of these territories. It thus runs the risk of impeding, rather than promoting, a peaceful resolution of this dispute. Christians for Israel does not defend the Israeli government’s proposal to apply Israeli law or sovereignty to parts of the ‘West Bank’. But we do defend its right to do so if it sees fit. Continued on page 9

25. 23 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Theology 10 Jewish Festivals Tu B’Av Minor Jewish holiday of love 5 August 2020 Tu B’Av (the fifteenth of the month Av) is a minor Jewish holiday. In modern-day Israel, it is celebrated as a holiday of love (Hag HaAhava), similar to Valentine’s Day. It has been said to be a ‘great day for weddings’. Tu B’Av begins at sundown on 4 August 2020. Leil Selichot Prayers for Forgiveness 12 September 2020 Selichot or slichot are Jewish penitential poems and prayers, especially those said in the period leading up to the High Holidays, and on Fast Days. In the Ashkenazic tradition, it begins on the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah. If, however, the first day of Rosh Hashanah falls on Monday or Tuesday, Selichot are said beginning the Saturday night prior to ensure that Selichot are recited at least four times. Leil Selichot begins after nightfall on 12 September 2020. Rosh Hashanah The Jewish New Year 19-20 September 2020 Rosh Hashanah, (‘head of the year’), is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holidays or Yamim Noraim (‘Days of Awe’), celebrated ten days before Yom Kippur. Rosh Hashanah is observed on the first two days of Tishrei, the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar. It is described in the Torah as Yom Teru’ah, a day of sounding (the Shofar). Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on 18 September 2020. Yom Kippur Day of Atonement 28 September 2020 Yom Kippur, also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue services. Yom Kippur completes the annual period known in Judaism as the High Holy Days (or sometimes ‘the Days of Awe’). Yom Kippur begins at sundown on 27 September 2020. A boy blows a shofar near the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. | Photo: Flash90 Jewish New Year Kees de Vreugd n Theologian | Christians for Israel International & Editor | Israel & the Church Rosh Hashanah (literally meaning ‘the head of the year’) is celebrated on the first two days of the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar (in 2020, this is on 19 and 20 September). The first month is the month in which Pesach falls. This is the beginning of the feast calendar, while Rosh Hashanah could be compared with the beginning of the ‘civil year’. In the Bible, this day is referred to only as a ‘day for blowing trumpets’ (Leviticus 23:24; Numbers 29:1). Therefore, the central instruction for this day is ‘to hear the shofar’. Sabbath years and jubilees were counted from this day. Jewish tradition connects Rosh Hashanah to the beginning of creation. It is the anniversary of the world and humanity. Adam was created on Rosh Hashanah. Rosh Hashanah is the first day of a period of ten so-called Days of Awe, culminating with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Biblically, this period is not linked to the remembrance of liberation (like Pesach or Purim) or commemoration of catastrophe (like the destruction of the Temple on the 9th of Av). Its concentration is not on events in Israel’s history, but on the personal, on mortality and the meaning of life, and the Lord as Creator and Judge of mankind. The day of the trumpets is the Day of the Lord, the Day of Judgment. When God completed the work of creation, He saw that it was ‘very good’ (Genesis 1:31), thus giving creation value, purpose and meaning. Every year again, the question posed by this season is: does humanity, does the world answer to God’s plan? The central theme of the Days of Awe, therefore, is trial. The individual stands before the One who knows all. On Rosh Hashanah, it is decided who shall live and who shall die. It is repeatedly said in the prayers: “Write us in the Book of Life.” True soul-searching, true repentance, during those ten days will influence the decision. The prayers of this season hail God as King and as Father. The shofar blown on Rosh Hashana, first of all, proclaims that the Lord is King and Ruler. But it is, according to the great medieval scholar, Maimonides (12th century Spain/Egypt), also a wake-up call: “Wake up from your deep sleep, you who are fast asleep. Search your deeds and repent.” Third, the shofar recalls the revelation at Sinai and calls on God’s mercy. Finally, on Yom Kippur, the Eternal Judge moves from His seat of righteousness to His seat of mercy. The final blast on the shofar, concluding the Yom Kippur service, proclaims life and mercy. The people of Israel come out of Yom Kippur reborn. As another great medieval scholar, Nachmanides (13th century Spain/Israel) said: “Rosh Hashana is a day of judgment with mercy; Yom Kippur is a day of mercy with judgment.” August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Book Review By Kees de Vreugd This book has been on my shelf for years, probably because I tended to avoid the challenge. It makes the case for evangelism among the Jews in the 21st century, based on the apostle Paul’s saying in Romans 1:16, referred to in the title: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” This is presented in every chapter of the book as an ongoing commitment for every Jewish and gentile believing Christian. The book fails to properly address the Jewish response to evangelisation, though. Both the content of the book and the boldness of its tone – sometimes bordering on arrogance, raise a lot of questions. In saying this, I realise I am responding from a context of European continental history and theology, with a centuries-long heritage of ‘teaching of contempt’ of the Jews, culminating in the Holocaust as a reality that is still impossible to grasp, if it will ever be – a reality that has shaken church and theology – and should continue to do so. True, the book has a chapter devoted to the Holocaust, but it uses the Holocaust to underscore the necessity of Jewish evangelism in a way which I cannot understand, and which I only can accept because it is written by a Jesus- believing Jew (Barry R. Leventhal). I agree with the recurring thesis that if the gospel means good news to the gentiles, then it should also mean good news to the Jews. However, do we understand what that good news is? The writers seem to narrow this good news to individual salvation for eternity. But what about Jesus’ commitment to the Torah, to bringing all Israel back to the Torah? What about the restoration of Israel and the throne of David? True, most contributors note that traditional theology had lost sight of the future of Israel. But what about the present reality of Israel? Is that only as an object of evangelism? In my view, Christians should positively affirm Israel’s faithfulness to the Torah as a witness to God. In this, Jews and Christians could stand side by side. Secondly, Christians should affirm Jesus’ loyalty to the Torah. So often, it has been falsely taught that Christ made the Torah obsolete, thus turning Him into an enemy of Israel, instead of her Saviour. This theological homework should make gentile Christians humble in telling Jews what they ought to believe. Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids 2008 ISBN 978-0-8254-3658-1 To the Jews First The Case for Jewish Evangelism in Scripture and History by Darrell L. Bock & Mitch Glaser (eds.) Theology 11 A Heavenly Country? Mandy Worby n Christians for Israel Australia Yes, the Jews learned the hard way the consequences of not obeying God’s laws. Yes, during the first church era, many Gentiles were coming to faith but there was division among the Jewish leadership over whether these Gentiles needed to obey the law of Moses in order to be saved. This resulted in the council in Jerusalem being convened in Acts 15. Paul and Barnabas and the other Apostles travelled to Jerusalem for this counsel to deal with theological dilemma. Peter and Paul addressed the council, telling how God was saving Gentiles without restriction and freely giving to them the same gift of His Spirit that they themselves had received, without requiring them to become Jews first. Acts 15:9, ‘...and He (that is God) made no distinction between us (the Jews) and them (the Gentiles), cleansing their hearts by faith.’ [Words in brackets added] The Apostles explained that if the burden of the Jews - circumcision and keeping the Law - was too hard for the Jews to carry, how could they possibly expect the Gentiles to carry it! Not only that, but God was demonstrating His acceptance of them by pouring out His Spirit on them. The end result of the council was that Gentiles were not required to convert to Judaism, they were not required to be circumcised or eat Kosher. There were however four requirements expected of Gentiles believers and James detailed them in a letter for them. These are the essentials: 1. Don’t eat food that has been sacrificed to idols 2. Don’t eat blood 3. Don’t eat the meat of animals that have been strangled 4. Avoid fornication or sexual immorality I might add that these four things cover a whole lot of things that are actually unpacked in other New Testament books. As far as being saved, we Gentiles don't need to become Jewish. Do Gentiles Have to Become Jews to be Saved? Part 3 The star of David with blossoms on a fruit tree in spring. | Photo: Unsplash August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Kees de Vreugd n Theologian | Christians for Israel International & Editor | Israel & the Church “But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.” Hebrews 11:16 At first sight, you could conclude from the letter to the Hebrews, that we should not take the land promise too literally. The letter speaks of a better, a heavenly country, and calls on its readers/hearers “to go outside the camp, bearing His reproach. For here we do not have a lasting city” (Hebrews 13:13-14). Earlier in this passage, the writer seems to confirm that their earthly city is temporary, or does it? “By faith he [Abraham] lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fello w heirs of the same promise” (11:9). The reference to the land of promise, as found in Genesis 17:8 and 24:3, is unmistakable. But the question remains open: “Has the promise been fulfilled?” Abraham did live in the promised land, but as an alien, in tents. The promise was not yet completely fulfilled. That was still to happen. In Hebrews 11:9-10, two realities are contrasted. We have to read those verses carefully. The ‘city which has foundations’ is opposed to the ‘tents’, and not to the land in which Abraham is sojourning. Abraham expected God to establish that city in the land of promise. Then, it would no longer be a ‘foreign land’, but finally, he and his offspring would inherit it, according to the promise. Nowhere, does the letter to the Hebrews claim that the promise to — or covenant with, Abraham, is annulled. When the letter to the Hebrews speaks of the Law as a shadow (Hebrews 10:1), or of a covenant that is ready to disappear (8:13), it is clearly about the covenant of Sinai, and even more precisely, about the sacrificial service, and not about the covenant with Abraham. Moreover, we have to keep the historic context of the letter in mind. Jerusalem was occupied by the Romans. The temple was destroyed or was threatened with destruction. The faithful found the mselves in the land in the same way as Abraham: as strangers and sojourners in a land, that was promised to them, but still occupied by other nations and other gods. Or, they are in exile, outside the promised land of Israel and the beloved city of Jerusalem. Therefore, the writer calls on them to look forward to the realisation of the divine city and the temple, the model of which is in heaven (compare Exodus 25:9, Hebrews 8:5). All this will become reality on earth, when finally, Jerusalem and Israel, and the whole world, will answer to their original destination. This is the expectation th e writer of the letter to the Hebrews encourages his hearers to cherish. Sunset in Gerizim, Israel. | Photo: Flash90

4. 14 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Editorial 2 Colophon Israel & Christians Today is the premier publication of Christians for Israel Mission Our mission is to bring Biblical understanding in the Church and among the nations concerning God’s purposes for Israel and to promote comfort of Israel through prayer and action. Editorial Team Andrew Tucker International Editor-in-Chief atucker@c4israel.org Cathy Coldicutt Managing Editor newspaper@c4israel.org Marloes van Westing International Communications Manager international@c4israel.org Ian Worby, Bryce Turner, Rita Quartel, Marie-Louise Weissenböck and Marijke Terlouw Scripture references: THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. C4I Offices Christians for Israel International Leon Meijer, Chairman Rev Willem J.J. Glashouwer, President Rev Cornelis Kant, Executive Director P.O. Box 1100 | 3860 BC Nijkerk, The Netherlands | Tel: +31 33 422 0405 info@c4israel.org | www.c4israel.org The English Edition of Israel & Christians Today is published by the following English speaking branches: Christians for Israel - Australia Ian Worby, National Leader PO Box 1508, Springwood Queensland, Australia 4127 Tel: +61 (7) 3088 6900, info@c4israel.com.au www.c4israel.com.au Christians for Israel - New Zealand Bryce Turner, National Executive Director PO Box 12 006, Penrose, Auckland, New Zealand 1642 Tel: +64 9 525 7564, info@c4israel.org.nz www.c4israel.org.nz Christians for Israel - South Korea Tel: +61 410 430 677 email: wijung@gmail.com www.c4israel.org/korea Christians for Israel - USA Fred J van Westing, CEO PO Box 2589, Manteca, CA 95336, USA Tel/Fax: +1 209 665 4280 fredvanwesting@c4israel.org www.c4israel.us DISCLAIMER - Articles printed in Israel & Christians Today expr ess the views of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Editors or that of the Board of Christians for Israel. The printing of articles or advertising in Israel & Christians Today does not necessarily imply either endorsement or agreement. ©Christians for Israel International Reproduction, or storage in a retrieval system or in any other form, is prohibited without permission. Please contact the Managing Editor should you wish to syndicate or republish any articles or materials appearing in Israel & Christians Today. www.facebook.com/c4israel Andrew Tucker n International Editor | Christians for Israel The controversy about ‘annexation’ takes us to the heart of Zionism. What is Zionism? Do the Jewish people need sovereignty in the land in order to fulfil their calling as a nation? If so, which land? And what about the non-Jews in the land? These are the subject of the debate that has erupted around a recent essay by Jewish writer Peter Beinart calling for a bi- national State of Israel-Palestine. Beinart – a North American Jew - argues that the two-state vision (ie. the separation of Israel from the Palestinians) is dead. The current ‘brutal and undemocratic’ regime, in which Israel controls the West Bank but Palestinians have fewer rights, is unacceptable. The only alternative, he argues, is a bi-national state between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River, in which every person has an equal vote, and the Jewish and Palestinian peoples have equal status. “It is time for liberal Zionists to abandon the goal of Jewish–Palestinian separation and embrace the goal of Jewish–Palestinian equality.” Beinart’s essay has provoked vigorous debate in the Jewish world. Daniel Gordis, – a leading Jewish Zionist educator based in Jerusalem - accuses Beinart of dishonesty. Gordis says he shares Beinart’s concern for the ‘plight of the Palestinians’ and admits that the status quo is ‘not tenable in the long run’. But he believes Beinart deliberately ignores the fact that the reason Israel has become so successful, is because it has become a safe haven free of threats of annihilation. And he accuses Beinart of downplaying the hatred of the Jewish people within Palestinian and Arab society and argues that unless the Jewish people have a sovereign state of their own, they will again be threatened with persecution. Of course, none of this is new. Ever since the beginning of the Zionist movement in the 19th century, the Jewish people have been debating about what it means to be ‘Jewish’ – how important is it for Jews to be in the land, what does a ‘Jewish homeland’ mean? Gordis offers a powerful plea for Jewish sovereignty. “What Beinart does know is that the revitalisation of Jewish life that is Israel’s hallmark would end with his proposal. We might well not be annihilated. But Jews would quickly become a minority here, just as they were in Europe. They would be surrounded by hostile masses, just as they were in Europe, and that would certainly (and rapidly) destroy the Jewish confidence that has been at the core of the Judaism’s revitalisation in Israel. ... As heretical as this will sound to the Jewish universalist progressives who are Beinart’s minions, I care about both the Palestinians and the future of Judaism’s richness — but if forced to choose (which would not be the case if the Palestinian position was different), I’m going with the People I am blessed to be a part of.” Gordis continues: “The unfettered quest for self-immolation, the intellectual thinness of cancel culture, the rage that pulls down statues of Christopher Columbus and advocates abandoning capitalism for socialism without any regard for how Marx’s and Lenin’s theories unfolded in the Soviet Union, in China, in Cuba or elsewhere – all that is a distinctly American response. Israelis, for all their many faults, show little sign of the cultural fatigue, intellectual sloppiness or willed oblivion-to- consequences that are now emblematic of America’s youth. What Beinart has done is to essentially take America’s desire for self-destruction and ask Israelis to adopt it. No thanks. ...Israel was created not to be perfect, but to restore the Jewish people to its ancestral homeland, and thus to allow the Jewish people and its culture to thrive and flourish as it can nowhere else on earth. Looked at that way, Israel is not only miraculous, but it is also an extraordinary success. We Israelis can see our terrible mistakes and still take pride in what we’ve accomplished; many of us are horrified by what is still not right here, but we have no interest in Beinart’s suggestion that we, therefore, commit national suicide.” How should we view all of this, as Gentile Christians? There is much to say, but here are a couple of thoughts: First of all, we should acknowledge that this is very much an intra-Jewish dialogue. The Jewish people themselves need to work out between themselves what their identity and calling are. It is God who is bringing them home, in fulfilment of His covenants with them. They need to decide how they respond to God’s calling. Second, the Jewish people don’t need Gentiles telling them what to do. If asked for advice, we can (and, I would suggest, should) encourage them to look to the Lord alone for wisdom and strength. Third, it is no surprise the nations of the world condemn Israel. Fourth, the Jewish people have always been called to look after the “stranger” in the land. ( Lev. 19:33-34). The Palestinians have rights that must be respected. The Jewish people will be blessed as they ‘love them as themselves’. That seems impossible when the leaders of those people seek to annihilate the Jewish State. But the Biblical principle would seem to apply. A Jewish Homeland in Palestine Prayer Points By Pieter Bénard Israel l Pray for wisdom for the Israeli government with regard to the application of Israeli law to parts of Judea and Samaria. We see that many see the possession of biblical territory as controversial, while the Bible clearly speaks of the return of the Jewish people to these parts of the land. Pray that governments take this as a starting point and that countries will not be influenced by the many political threats from the EU, UN and Middle Eastern countries. l Pray for Israel’s protection from attacks by Iran. At present, Iran operates mainly indirectly through Hezbollah in Lebanon. Pray for wisdom for the Israeli army. Israel & the Nations l “He rules forever by his power, his eyes watch the nations— let not the rebellious rise up against him.” (Psalm 66:7). Give thanks that God reigns over the earth. And pray that the nations of the earth will acknowledge this. l Recently the World Council of Churches in Geneva (WCC) sent a letter to the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of all countries that are part of the European Union. In this letter, they appeal for a firm and principled stance by the European Union against any annexation by the State of Israel. Pray that Christians will take a stand against this and that the letter will have no effect. l Pray for the protection of the Jewish people as the number of anti-Semitic incidents continues to rise in many countries. Christians for Israel l David Ben Gurion once famously said: “Our future depends not on what the Gentiles say but on what the Jews do”. It is our task as Christians to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, peace for the land, and peace for all in the land. l “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” (Luke 21:33). Thank God for His Word, which is trustworthy, and pray that Christians will fill their minds with His word and be assured that God's faithfulness to Israel never ends. l Give thanks that Christians for Israel inspires and calls on many people to support Israel and the Jewish people. Strong anti-Zionism can also be present among Christians. Pray that this will be broken. For daily Prayer Points, go to our website www.c4israel.com.au Continued on page 3 “Israel was created not to be perfect, but to restore the Jewish people to its ancestral homeland, and thus to allow the Jewish people and its culture to thrive and flourish.”

22. 12 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 ‘Redeeming the Time’ Resource Specials * REV WILLEM J.J. GLASHOUWER RESOURCES: Why Israel? + DVD BOOK Why End Times? + DVD BOOK Why Jerusalem? + DVD BOOK + Study Guide & Facilitators Guide free when you get both the Book & DVD Israel: Covenant & Kingdom BOOK KELVIN CROMBIE RESOURCES: The Battle of Beersheba FREE WITH EVERY ORDER BOOKLET Gallipoli: The Road to Jerusalem DVD BOOK ( stock limited so be quick ) Israel, Jesus & Covenant BOOK ( stock limited so be quick ) 31 October: Destiny’s Date DVD ( stock limited so be quick ) OTHER TRUSTED RESOURCES: The Light Horse Centenary (ALHA Documentary) DVD 70 Questions About Israel (Chan Siew Fong) BOOK ( stock limited so be quick ) The Third Choice (Dr Mark Durie) BOOK ( stock limited so be quick ) Liberty to the Captives (Dr Mark Durie) BOOK Revelation (Dr Mark Durie) BOOK ( stock limited so be quick ) Islam Rising (Dr Stuart Robinson) BOOKLET While many of us are still experiencing complete or partial isolation due to the Corona Virus now is a great opportunity to make the most of the extra time we have to study and reflect on God, His Word and His promises for Israel and the Church. You can either cut this page out and send it in to our mailing address, or if you would prefer not to cut up your newspaper, consider scanning the page first or ordering your resources online at c4israel.com.au/store ‘Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.’ Ephesians 5:16 N LT PLEASE COMPLETE FORM & RETURN TO: ATT: Christians for Israel Australia, PO Box 1508, Springwood, QLD 4127 MY TOTAL DONATION $___________ 1 = $15 2 = $25 4 = $40 6 = $50 It’s our gift for your gift of support for C4I Australia Tick the resource Books or DVDs you want + send us your order Christians for Israel Australia ABN: 79 941 819 693 ICT-RTT0820 *While stocks last or until October 1, 2020. **If you select an item we are out of stock, you can choose another item, or ask for a refund. Please post cheque or money order to: Christians for Israel Australia Inc (don’t use staples) NEW INTERNET BANKING DETAILS: BSB: ANZ BANK – 014-279 Account No: 405318551 Ref: Your name & donation purpose. Please confirm by emailing info@c4israel.com.au MY DETAILS Name: __________________________________________________ If you don ’t know or have your Member ID please include: Address: _________________________________________________ Phone: __________________________________________________ Email: ___________________________________________________ Member ID (If Known) : C4IA

29. 27 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Walk through the Land 14 Mysterious Dead Sea Scrolls The Dead Scrolls contain the oldest copies of biblical texts and consists of some 25,000 fragments of leather and papyrus. An international team of researchers successfully decoded ancient DNA extracted from the fragments made of animal skins. The DNA sequences revealed that the parchments were mostly made from sheep and cows, whereas before it was thought they all had been written on goat skin. Some of the scrolls were brought from other areas, and were not originally from the area around the caves were the scrolls were found. | Photo: Flash90 Digital Saxophone Israeli start-up Emeo Team has launched the Emeo, the first-ever digital practice saxophone, which allows saxophone players to practice and play anywhere, as long as the device is hooked up to their computers or smartphones. The Emeo connects to the devices using USB, MIDI, and Bluetooth and offers a cutting edge solution to the problem of the inherently loud volume of the saxophone, limiting sax players greatly in the manner in which they may practice and play. Israel Aerospace Industries to Cooperate with UAE The UAE and Israel have no official diplomatic ties, with Jordan and Egypt being the only two Arab countries to have signed peace treaties with Israel. Arab states in the Gulf, including the UAE, have increasingly built informal ties with Israel in recent years amid shared concerns over Iran. Last month, a flight undertaken by Etihad Airways - the UAE’s flag carrier - laden with COVID-19 related medical supplies for the Palestinian Authority made a rare landing in Tel Aviv. While the UAE has been critical of Israel’s plan to apply sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, its Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Anwar Mohammed Gargash, said two weeks ago, “I think we can have a political disagreement with Israel and try to bridge other differences.” Short News Kameel Majdali n Director | Teach All Nations Inc. It has a special role to play in the geography of Israel and served as the stage of one of the most electrifying events in Scripture. While it has high name recognition, it is little known nor understood. In this edition of Walk Through the Land, we will leave the coastal plain and ascend one of the most famous peaks of the Bible: Mount Carmel. The term ‘Mount Carmel’ is used only four times in Scripture, and ‘Carmel’ is 26 times. While most references mean the mount, there is also a ‘Carmel’ southeast of Hebron in Judah. This is where Nabal and Abigail lived (1 Samuel 25:5). Mount Carmel is the location of Israel’s third largest city and major port, Haifa. Its greatest acclaim was the famous contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal held on or near its summit in I Kings 18. Though we refer to it as a ‘mount,’ in reality Carmel is a mountain range that goes for 39 km in length, 6.4 to 8 km in width, and 450 meters in height. Unlike the majestic cedars in the high mountains of Lebanon, Carmel has predominantly scrubby woodlands. The range runs in a northwest-southeast direction, starting from the northwest corner of Samaria and continuing in that direction until it juts into the Mediterranean Sea. Look on any map of the holy land and you will see how Mount Carmel redefines the otherwise straight coastal plain. To the south are the plains of Sharon and Philistia. To the north is the Plain of Acre. To the west is the Mediterranean and the east is the Valley of Armageddon. As we learned in an earlier article, the ancient Egyptians called Mount Carmel and the ‘headland’ at Haifa, the ‘antelope’s nose.’ Apart from its striking appearance, this ‘nose’ had a very practical function: it stopped the Sahara Desert sand, brought via the Nile River, and delivered by the counter-clockwise Mediterranean current, from going any further north. Thus, the ports in the south were sand choked yet to the north they were functional. So, Israel relied on agriculture while Phoenicia became a great maritime nation. Eventually, there was a trade-off between the two nations: Israel provided the food and Phoenicia with the shipping. This was noted in the days of Hiram king of Tyre (2 Samuel 5:11; 1 Kings 5:1), and even in the time of Herod Agrippa I (Acts 12:20). In every way, Mount Carmel serve as a natural boundary or ‘fence’ between Phoenicia and Israel, meaning the Plain of Acre was in Phoenician hands most of the Biblical period. Being a high mount, Carmel was considered a sacred place. We know it had an altar to the Lord, which was broken down (1 Kings 18:30) and probably provided a high place(s) for Baal worship. Apart from being a sacred site, it was also symbolic of beauty. Solomon wrote of his beloved that, ‘Thine head upon thee is like Carmel’ Song 7:5. Isaiah 35:2 speaks glowingly of the ‘the excellency of Carmel and Sharon.’ When Nahum 1:4 speaks the languishing or withering of Carmel, it is a sign of overflowing judgement. On a Biblical tour, the main attraction is a visit to Muhraka (‘the Scorching’) on the southeast peak. It is the traditional site of the contest between Elijah and Jezebel’s Baal prophets. It has a stone statue of the Elijah, raising his sword to slay Baal’s prophets. Nearby is the Carmelite monastery and a nature reserve. There is a great view of the Valley of Armageddon, also known as Esraelon, and down below is the brook Kishon, where Baal’s prophets were slain after losing the contest. Also, at the foot of the mountain range is the site of Tell Megiddo, where Armageddon (Mountain of Megiddo) gets its name. Contest on Carmel Elijah’s ministry corresponded to a time of horrific apostasy in the Northern Kingdom, which included the ten tribes of Israel. They were already in trouble with the Lord because of King Jeroboam’s sin, namely the sanctuaries to the golden calves in Bethel and Dan. To add to this scandal, King Ahab married a Phoenician princess named Jezebel. She was a zealous follower and missionary for Baal. Through her efforts, Baal worship quickly becomes the de facto religion of Israel. Baal was the false god of the Phoenicians, Carthage, and Canaan. He was associated with agriculture and fertility. For an agrarian nation, his favour was highly sought. To appease Baal, his cult included sex worship, religious prostitution, and human sacrifice, particularly of children. Such worship was an abomination to the God of Israel, and He raised Elijah of Tishbite from Gilead to deal with it. First, the prophet prayed for a drought to judge Israel, which lasted three and a half years. Then he ordered the contest on Mount Carmel with Ahab present, along with 450 prophets of Baal and 400 of Asherah. Whichever God answered by fire would prevail. Not coincidentally, Elijah asked Israel how long it would sit on the fence, figuratively and literally Mount Carmel. Baal failed the test; his prophets were slain and Israel confessed that the Lord is God. Faith Lessons from Elijah Confession: Once Baal was defeated; the drought could be broken. Elijah confessed “I hear the sound of the abundance of rain,” though the sky was deep blue and there were no clouds (2 Corinthians 5:7). Prevailing Prayer: He prayed fervently to break the drought (James 5:17). First-fruits (Exodus 34:22): When finally, a cotton-ball cloud appeared, like the first- fruits of the crops, Elijah knew that the dark rain clouds would follow and warned Ahab as such. The clouds came, the rain descended, and the drought broke. Walk through the Land for many more faith lessons. Rev Kameel Majdali, PhD (Melb) is Director of Teach All Nations (tan.org.au). His MA degree is ‘Historical Geography of the Holy Land’ from the Institute of Holy Land Studies. Panoramic view of Mt. Carmel in Israel. | Photo: Shutterstock Introducing Mount Carmel August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 When finally, a cotton-ball cloud appeared, like the first-fruits of the crops, Elijah knew that the dark rain clouds would follow and warned Ahab as such. Our Projects 15 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Part of our mission is to comfort Israel and the Jewish people through prayer and action. If you would like to support one of our projects you can complete the coupon on page 16 or make an online donation. Thank you very much for your support! Aliyah Aliyah is the Hebrew word for the return of the Jewish people to Israel. We support Aliyah mainly from Ukraine (and the former Soviet Union), but also from India and France. Furthermore, we help new immigrants (in Hebrew: olim ) to integrate into Israeli society. Hineni Soup Kitchen We help the poor of Israel, by providing them with food. We do this in partnership with the Hineni Center in Jerusalem, headed by Benjamin Philip. Your gift for the soup kitchen goes directly to the purchase of food. Holocaust Survivors We support impoverished Holocaust survivors in Israel and Ukraine through various projects which provide assistance to survivors of the Holocaust. Those survivors are elderly and will not be among us for long, and there is a growing demand for practical assistance. Christian Friends of Israeli Communities (CFOIC) You can support the Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, the heart of Biblical Israel. The main purpose is to encourage the people in the Biblical Heartland and to show them that there are Christians throughout the world who support them and share the belief that the areas of Judea and Samaria are part of Israel’s inheritance. Food Parcel Campaign Ukraine We distribute food parcels amongst Jewish people in Ukraine. These parcels are handed out to Holocaust survivors, needy families, and the sick. Those food parcels are a sign of friendship that demonstrates your support for our Jewish brothers and sisters and that they are not alone. Arab Christians Life for Christians in Bethlehem is often not easy. Christians for Israel supports the First Baptist Church of Rev Naim Khoury in Bethlehem and Jerusalem. The members of this church spread the gospel among Arabs and share their love and heart for Israel and the Jewish people. For country-specific or further information on our projects, go to our website, www.c4israel.com.au Overview of our projects Summer holidays are in full swing in Israel, and many parents face a challenge: how do you ensure that the children enjoy themselves during this time of year? Especially now that many children were forced to sit at home for many weeks because of the coronavirus. Going on holiday is financially impossible for many families in Israel. This also goes for Arab-Israeli families. Parents do not always succeed in keeping their children entertained for long periods, causing children to hang out on the street - which sometimes has negative consequences. Fortunately, these parents are offered a helping hand by Rev. Naim Khoury and his church in Bethlehem. Will you help them so that they can reach Arab children in Israel with God's love this summer? As Christians for Israel, we have been friends with Rev. Naim Khoury and his wife Elvira many years. They have it on their hearts not only to reach their Arab fellow citizens with the Gospel but also to teach them to love Israel and the Jewish people. Based on God's promises for Israel. We can warmly recommend their request for help. Here is a letter from Rev Naim Khoury, pastor of First Baptist Church in Bethlehem: Give Arab Children in Israel a Wonderful Summer Archive image of a Vacation Bible School at First Baptist Church in Bethlehem. Dear friends, As you may know, my wife Elvira and I have been organising summer activities for children in Bethlehem and surroundings for many years. Our goal is to introduce these children to the Gospel, as well as their parents. Besides that we find it important to teach Arab children love for Israel, God's covenant people! This summer we had to plan a different kind of Vacation Bible School because of the corona restrictions. We decided to split the programme into three parts: Ÿ For primary school children, we spread the programme over three weeks, so we can receive many children but not all at the same time. It will be an enormous blessing for the children that they can finally undertake activities again after sitting at home for a long time. We will introduce them to the Bible, both Old and New Testament, in an accessible way! Ÿ For high school students, we organise two days of worship, discipleship training, games, Bible study and good food. We believe that this will inspire the young generation and make them realise that it is not an option to be hopeless. We want to refresh the young generation with this programme. Ÿ We are planning a Revival weekend for members of our congregation, with music and testimonials. After the three-month quarantine and the har dships that people have been going through it is good to meet each other and remind each other that we are not alone. We hope that you will support these important activities! Shalom from Bethlehem, Rev. Naim Khoury & Elvira If you would like to support Arab Christians, please complete the coupon on page 16.

5. 15 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Editorial 2 Colophon Israel & Christians Today is the premier publication of Christians for Israel Mission Our mission is to bring Biblical understanding in the Church and among the nations concerning God’s purposes for Israel and to promote comfort of Israel through prayer and action. Editorial Team Andrew Tucker International Editor-in-Chief atucker@c4israel.org Cathy Coldicutt Managing Editor newspaper@c4israel.org Marloes van Westing International Communications Manager international@c4israel.org Ian Worby, Bryce Turner, Rita Quartel, Marie-Louise Weissenböck and Marijke Terlouw Scripture references: THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. C4I Offices Christians for Israel International Leon Meijer, Chairman Rev Willem J.J. Glashouwer, President Rev Cornelis Kant, Executive Director P.O. Box 1100 | 3860 BC Nijkerk, The Netherlands | Tel: +31 33 422 0405 info@c4israel.org | www.c4israel.org The English Edition of Israel & Christians Today is published by the following English speaking branches: Christians for Israel - Australia Ian Worby, National Leader PO Box 1508, Springwood Queensland, Australia 4127 Tel: +61 (7) 3088 6900, info@c4israel.com.au www.c4israel.com.au Christians for Israel - New Zealand Bryce Turner, National Executive Director PO Box 12 006, Penrose, Auckland, New Zealand 1642 Tel: +64 9 525 7564, info@c4israel.org.nz www.c4israel.org.nz Christians for Israel - South Korea Tel: +61 410 430 677 email: wijung@gmail.com www.c4israel.org/korea Christians for Israel - USA Fred J van Westing, CEO PO Box 2589, Manteca, CA 95336, USA Tel/Fax: +1 209 665 4280 fredvanwesting@c4israel.org www.c4israel.us DISCLAIMER - Articles printed in Israel & Christians Today expr ess the views of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Editors or that of the Board of Christians for Israel. The printing of articles or advertising in Israel & Christians Today does not necessarily imply either endorsement or agreement. ©Christians for Israel International Reproduction, or storage in a retrieval system or in any other form, is prohibited without permission. Please contact the Managing Editor should you wish to syndicate or republish any articles or materials appearing in Israel & Christians Today. www.facebook.com/c4israel Andrew Tucker n International Editor | Christians for Israel The controversy about ‘annexation’ takes us to the heart of Zionism. What is Zionism? Do the Jewish people need sovereignty in the land in order to fulfil their calling as a nation? If so, which land? And what about the non-Jews in the land? These are the subject of the debate that has erupted around a recent essay by Jewish writer Peter Beinart calling for a bi- national State of Israel-Palestine. Beinart – a North American Jew - argues that the two-state vision (ie. the separation of Israel from the Palestinians) is dead. The current ‘brutal and undemocratic’ regime, in which Israel controls the West Bank but Palestinians have fewer rights, is unacceptable. The only alternative, he argues, is a bi-national state between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River, in which every person has an equal vote, and the Jewish and Palestinian peoples have equal status. “It is time for liberal Zionists to abandon the goal of Jewish–Palestinian separation and embrace the goal of Jewish–Palestinian equality.” Beinart’s essay has provoked vigorous debate in the Jewish world. Daniel Gordis, – a leading Jewish Zionist educator based in Jerusalem - accuses Beinart of dishonesty. Gordis says he shares Beinart’s concern for the ‘plight of the Palestinians’ and admits that the status quo is ‘not tenable in the long run’. But he believes Beinart deliberately ignores the fact that the reason Israel has become so successful, is because it has become a safe haven free of threats of annihilation. And he accuses Beinart of downplaying the hatred of the Jewish people within Palestinian and Arab society and argues that unless the Jewish people have a sovereign state of their own, they will again be threatened with persecution. Of course, none of this is new. Ever since the beginning of the Zionist movement in the 19th century, the Jewish people have been debating about what it means to be ‘Jewish’ – how important is it for Jews to be in the land, what does a ‘Jewish homeland’ mean? Gordis offers a powerful plea for Jewish sovereignty. “What Beinart does know is that the revitalisation of Jewish life that is Israel’s hallmark would end with his proposal. We might well not be annihilated. But Jews would quickly become a minority here, just as they were in Europe. They would be surrounded by hostile masses, just as they were in Europe, and that would certainly (and rapidly) destroy the Jewish confidence that has been at the core of the Judaism’s revitalisation in Israel. ... As heretical as this will sound to the Jewish universalist progressives who are Beinart’s minions, I care about both the Palestinians and the future of Judaism’s richness — but if forced to choose (which would not be the case if the Palestinian position was different), I’m going with the People I am blessed to be a part of.” Gordis continues: “The unfettered quest for self-immolation, the intellectual thinness of cancel culture, the rage that pulls down statues of Christopher Columbus and advocates abandoning capitalism for socialism without any regard for how Marx’s and Lenin’s theories unfolded in the Soviet Union, in China, in Cuba or elsewhere – all that is a distinctly American response. Israelis, for all their many faults, show little sign of the cultural fatigue, intellectual sloppiness or willed oblivion-to- consequences that are now emblematic of America’s youth. What Beinart has done is to essentially take America’s desire for self-destruction and ask Israelis to adopt it. No thanks. ...Israel was created not to be perfect, but to restore the Jewish people to its ancestral homeland, and thus to allow the Jewish people and its culture to thrive and flourish as it can nowhere else on earth. Looked at that way, Israel is not only miraculous, but it is also an extraordinary success. We Israelis can see our terrible mistakes and still take pride in what we’ve accomplished; many of us are horrified by what is still not right here, but we have no interest in Beinart’s suggestion that we, therefore, commit national suicide.” How should we view all of this, as Gentile Christians? There is much to say, but here are a couple of thoughts: First of all, we should acknowledge that this is very much an intra-Jewish dialogue. The Jewish people themselves need to work out between themselves what their identity and calling are. It is God who is bringing them home, in fulfilment of His covenants with them. They need to decide how they respond to God’s calling. Second, the Jewish people don’t need Gentiles telling them what to do. If asked for advice, we can (and, I would suggest, should) encourage them to look to the Lord alone for wisdom and strength. Third, it is no surprise the nations of the world condemn Israel. Fourth, the Jewish people have always been called to look after the “stranger” in the land. ( Lev. 19:33-34). The Palestinians have rights that must be respected. The Jewish people will be blessed as they ‘love them as themselves’. That seems impossible when the leaders of those people seek to annihilate the Jewish State. But the Biblical principle would seem to apply. A Jewish Homeland in Palestine Prayer Points By Pieter Bénard Israel l Pray for wisdom for the Israeli government with regard to the application of Israeli law to parts of Judea and Samaria. We see that many see the possession of biblical territory as controversial, while the Bible clearly speaks of the return of the Jewish people to these parts of the land. Pray that governments take this as a starting point and that countries will not be influenced by the many political threats from the EU, UN and Middle Eastern countries. l Pray for Israel’s protection from attacks by Iran. At present, Iran operates mainly indirectly through Hezbollah in Lebanon. Pray for wisdom for the Israeli army. Israel & the Nations l “He rules forever by his power, his eyes watch the nations— let not the rebellious rise up against him.” (Psalm 66:7). Give thanks that God reigns over the earth. And pray that the nations of the earth will acknowledge this. l Recently the World Council of Churches in Geneva (WCC) sent a letter to the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of all countries that are part of the European Union. In this letter, they appeal for a firm and principled stance by the European Union against any annexation by the State of Israel. Pray that Christians will take a stand against this and that the letter will have no effect. l Pray for the protection of the Jewish people as the number of anti-Semitic incidents continues to rise in many countries. Christians for Israel l David Ben Gurion once famously said: “Our future depends not on what the Gentiles say but on what the Jews do”. It is our task as Christians to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, peace for the land, and peace for all in the land. l “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” (Luke 21:33). Thank God for His Word, which is trustworthy, and pray that Christians will fill their minds with His word and be assured that God's faithfulness to Israel never ends. l Give thanks that Christians for Israel inspires and calls on many people to support Israel and the Jewish people. Strong anti-Zionism can also be present among Christians. Pray that this will be broken. For daily Prayer Points, go to our website www.c4israel.com.au Continued on page 3 “Israel was created not to be perfect, but to restore the Jewish people to its ancestral homeland, and thus to allow the Jewish people and its culture to thrive and flourish.” News 3 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Hitler’s Birthplace The house where Nazi leader Adolf Hitler was born, in Braunau, Austria, became more and more a pilgrimage site for people with neo-Nazi sympathies. After a long legal battle with the owner of the house, it was now decided to use the building as a police station. | Photo: Wikimedia Commons Never Again Education Act US President Trump recently signed the ‘Never Again’ Education Act into law. This law expands Holocaust education in the US. It frees up budgets to improve awareness and understanding of the Holocaust and its lessons. Among other things, there will be a central database with teaching resources about the Holocaust for educators to teach both middle- and high school students. New York Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney who co-authored the bill: “Teaching our children about the dangers of anti-Semitism and hate is a proactive way to stop anti-Semitism before it even starts.” Time to go to Israel Rabbi Zecharia Wallerstein, a well- known rabbi from New York called on American Jews to make Aliyah to Israel. “All of us, we all need to get out of here. It's not for us anymore everybody. It's just not for us. We don’t belong here.” Rabbi Wallerstein also referred to other rabbis in the USA who called upon people to leave for Israel. | Photo: unsplash Experimental Drilling The plan had been there for some time, but it certainly is controversial: the extension of the new railway connection between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to the Old City. The track now ends in Jerusalem at an underground station at the entrance of the city. A tunnel of more than three kilometers should allow passengers to get off at the Dung Gate, close to the Western Wall. In mid-May the experimental drilling started near the Dung Gate. Short News Israel Bans God TV Israel & Christians n Today Staff Israel’s media watchdog has withdrawn the Israeli broadcast license from US- based evangelical network God TV, accusing it of seeking to target Jews with Christian content. The International Christian network’s God TV launched its Shelanu (Hebrew for ‘ours’) channel at the end of April on Israeli cable provider Hot, describing it as catering to Christians. This provoked an immediate outcry in Israel, with then-communications minister David Amsalem accusing it of being a ‘missionary channel’ seeking to convert Jews to Christianity. The Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Council launched an investigation to determine if God TV had misrepresented its content when it applied for a license. Late June, Council chairman Asher Bitton ordered Hot to cease Shelanu broadcasts. “The channel is aimed at Jews with Christian content, in contrast to the original broadcast request, which stated it was designated for Christians,” Bitton said in a council statement. The Council has ruled that a Christian channel for Jews won’t be automatically disqualified in the future, but that it will have to seek Council approval, which Shelanu had not done. In one promotional clip for Shelanu, God TV director Ward Simpson tells viewers, “we’re going to preach the Jewish Jesus to the nation of Israel... they’re going to hear the gospel presented to them in their native tongue.” Even in the Christian evangelical world, there was opposition to God TV’s enterprise. Laurie Cardoza-Moore, founder of Proclaiming Justice to the Nations, even wrote to the Israeli government encouraging them to withdraw God TV’s license. “At a time when global antisemitism is engulfing the world, God TV should be using its platform to teach Christians about their biblical responsibility to stand with our Jewish brethren and the State of Israel. Instead, they have chosen to stand on the wrong side of history, empowering the anti-Semites,” said Laurie Cardoza- Moore. Cardoza-Moore continued: “U nfortunately, because of biblical illiteracy, we are seeing a rise of antisemitism again in Christianity. Christians have adopted false doctrines and traditions known as ‘Replacement Theology’ and ‘Supersessionism’ that has mobilised the Amaleks of history. These false doctrines are what fuel the desire to force unbiblical principles on our Jewish brethren. God TV should be encouraging Christians to repent of the history of Christian arrogance and ignorance that has incited some of the worst antisemitic incidents in history, including the pogroms, the Inquisition, and more recently, the Holocaust. Instead , they should ask their Jewish brethren to teach them the Torah as was stated by the prophets.” Putting things into a historical perspective Cardoza-Moore said: “Unfortunately, Christian history is replete with examples of Christians forcing their doctrinal views on Jews; either through torture, or, with a disingenuous smile. As a descendant of Sephardic Jewish ancestry, I have studied the implications of where this type of ideology can lead. My ancestors were forced to convert to Catholicism during the period of the Spanish Inquisition. King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella blamed corruption in the Catholic Church on the Jews. In order to survive that dark period in history, they were forced to convert. For 500 years since then Jews hid their identity from generation to generation, only disclosing their hidden truth upon the matriarch’s or the patriarch’s passing. They were known as Conversos. Conversos were blamed for plagues, accused of poisoning wells and kidnapping Christian boys for their blood. Many of the Conversos were tortured or burned at the stake to test the authenticity of their conversion.” Cardoza-Moore concluded: “In recent decades, millions of Christians have felt the call to stand with the State of Israel and the Jewish people with no hidden agenda. Our only mandate to the Jewish people is to love and support them because they are God’s chosen people. Any attempts to convert Jews or downgrade their religion will only sow undue hatred at a time when we should unite in the face of darkness.” Photo: Unsplash Finally, isn’t it remarkable that this debate centres on the status of mountains of Judea and Samaria? From a Biblical perspective, these are at the heart of Jewish history and identity – and their future. The prophet Ezekiel said: “But you, mountains of Israel, will produce branches and fruit for my people Israel, for they will soon come home. I am concerned for you and will look on you with favour; you will be ploughed and sown, and I will cause many people to live on you—yes, all of Israel. The towns will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt. I will increase the number of people and animals living on you, and they will be fruitful and become numerous. I will settle people on you as in the past and will make you prosper more than before. Then you will know that I am the Lord. I will cause people, my people Israel, to live on you. They will possess you, and you will be their inheritance; you will never again deprive them of their children.” (Ezekiel 36:8-12) Have we come to a point in history when God is saying to the Jewish people: do you dare to take responsibility for the land (and people) that I am giving you? Continued from page 2

30. 28 August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av – Elul 5780 Koen Carlier n Aliyah Fieldworker | Christians for Israel Ukraine These are turbulent and uncertain times, and this doesn’t make our practical Aliyah work any easier. The Coronavirus is still spreading rapidly with an average of 1,000 new infections per day. Ukraine is constantly looking at Europe to see what decisions they make and seem to be copying what they do. Different measures are being taken but in practice, people cannot see the ‘forest for the trees’! There is confusion everywhere. Israel is also in a daily fight with an invisible and many visible enemies, however despite this, daily life is normal! Integration The return to Israel continues although there are more obstacles and challenges for the future olim (immigrants). People have to wait longer than usual for their immigration request to be approved, only two of the Israeli consulates are open instead of five. Once someone gets the green light, the Jewish Agency decides on which evacuation flight they can go to Israel and upon arrival, the olim have to stay in quarantine for two weeks. After that, the integration programme (Aliyah programme) starts and once this is completed, the biggest challenge will be to find a job during this difficult economic time. Most olim who leave at this moment follow an Aliyah programme, like 19-year-old Igor, whose mother is a chef at the Jewish school. Or like Dima, who is 34-years old. At the age of 20, he suddenly lost his hearing, but graduated from university and worked in IT in Kiev. However, when the quarantine began, he moved back in with his parents and finally decided to make Aliyah. By mid-July, we were able to assist Igor and Dima, with transportation to the airport together with 30 other olim. Six of them stayed in our shelter for the night, because they lived ten hours from the airport in Kiev. ’Fear Not’ In the photos, you may see smiling people but in reality, everyone is scared because of the Coronavirus and there are many questions and uncertainties. However, in this case, it is important to read Isaiah 43 verse 5 where it says do not fear because I bring you from the North and the rest of the world. Another special moment I want to share with you is the time we brought emergency food parcels to 50 young families and had a meeting with them. During that meeting, we had a Zoom session with the deputy mayor of Carmiel in Israel, who answered questions of the participants. Her viewpoint was that despite the challenges and obstacles of Coronavirus, it cannot be an excuse to delay the return from the diaspora. Carmiel is constantly building new apartments to welcome newcomers and the deputy mayor expressed her hope that many olim will settle there! Return During the Coronavirus Panedemic In the Bible, we read that the prophets speak about the return of the Jewish people time and again. In our generation, in a way, we can see the sea split and the Jewish people are allowed to return safely. As it is written in Isaiah 43:19 a way is being made in the wilderness. In July about 500 olim made Aliyah from Ukraine and Russia. Your prayers and contributions to help the olim prepare for their Aliyah really make a difference! It costs AUD $ $ 3 3 5 5 0 0 to help a Jewish person from Ukraine to Israel. Any amount is welcome; please fill out the coupon below to participate in this fulfilment of Biblical prophecy. “Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.” Isaiah 43:5 Our Projects 16 A Way in the Wilderness August 2020 | Israel & Christians Today Av - Elul 5780 Photos: Jewish Agency for Israel / Svetlana Soroka PLEASE COMPLETE FORM & RETURN TO: Christians for Israel Australia, PO Box 1508, Springwood, QLD 4127 or you can donate securely online c4israel.com.au/donate Yes, I would like to make a donation towards... C4I MINISTRY 1 TEACHING RESOURCES & PREMIUM GIFTS DONATION DONATION SEE OUR FULL RANGE AT: C4ISRAEL.COM.AU/STORE QUANTITY SUB TOTAL $___________ SUB TOTAL $__________ MY TOTAL DONATION $___________ $___________ My donation for general admin costs (inc print & post) $______ ___________ Israel and Christians Today Paper (free or by donation) $30 each The Signs of the Times (BOOK) by Willem Glashouwer The Signs of the Times (DVD) 7+ Hours Teaching The Signs of the Times (BOOK+DVD PACK) Save $7 ___________ ___________ $25 each ___________ NEW! Location Location Location (BOOK) by Rev Fraser Harding The Final Countdown (DVD) by Enoch Lavender The End Times Through Jewish Eyes (DVD) by Enoch Lavender $12 each ___________ $15 each ___________ $20 each $15 each ___________ C ovid-19: Jewish Communiti es 4 Muslim Sheikh Honoured Understanding Israel and world events from a Biblical perspective & Christians Today ISRAEL August 2020 Av - Elul 5780 Israel & Christians Today is the premier publication of Christians for Israel 10 Jewish New Year 16 A Way in the Wilderness | Photo: Flash90 With All My Heart Two young Israeli women stand proudly on a hilltop in Samaria. This land is perhaps the most controversial real estate in the world. It has been stamped ‘Occupied Palestinian Territory’ by the international community. And yet, many Jews believe with all their heart in the promises of God regarding these mountains. We can read those promises in the book of the Prophet Ezekiel: “As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and all the settlements in the land. I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.” Jews who seek to walk and live in obedience to these promises are condemned as ‘settlers’, and their communities have been declared ‘illegal’. They are accused of taking land from the Palestinians. The media and many politicians believe with all their hearts in this, and work to perpetuate the narrative. Governments form their foreign policies accordingly. But the reality is different. There is enough room for Jews and Palestinians on the mountains of Israel. And – with exceptions, of course – Jewish settlers are not seeking confrontation, but simply want to live in peace in the land and build beautiful, fruitful communities, bringing blessing to the land and all its residents. “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deut. 10:12). Which story do we believe? Do we blindly follow the images and messages of the secular media? Or do we believe that God is doing a miracle, by fulfilling before our very eyes His own promises so many centuries ago: “I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety. They will be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me so that they will never turn away from me. I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.” (Jeremiah 32:37-41). Or do we believe that God is doing a miracle, by fulfilling before our very eyes His own promises so many centuries ago. AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIA www.c4israel.com.au | info@c4israel.com.au Covid-19: Jewish Communities 4 Muslim Sheikh Honoured Understanding Israel and world events from a Biblical perspective & Christians Today ISRAEL August 2020 Av - Elul 5780 Israel & Christians Today is the premier publication of Christians for Israel 10 Jewish New Year 16 A Way in the Wilderness | Photo: Flash90 With All My Heart Two young Israeli women stand proudly on a hilltop in Samaria. This land is perhaps the most controversial real estate in the world. It has been stamped ‘Occupied Palestinian Territory’ by the international community. And yet, many Jews believe with all their heart in the promises of God regarding these mountains. We can read those promises in the book of the Prophet Ezekiel: “As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and all the settlements in the land. I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.” Jews who seek to walk and live in obedience to these promises are condemned as ‘settlers’, and their communities have been declared ‘illegal’. They are accused of taking land from the Palestinians. The media and many politicians believe with all their hearts in this, and work to perpetuate the narrative. Governments form their foreign policies accordingly. But the reality is different. There is enough room for Jews and Palestinians on the mountains of Israel. And – with exceptions, of course – Jewish settlers are not seeking confrontation, but simply want to live in peace in the land and build beautiful, fruitful communities, bringing blessing to the land and all its residents. “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deut. 10:12). Which story do we believe? Do we blindly follow the images and messages of the secular media? Or do we believe that God is doing a miracle, by fulfilling before our very eyes His own promises so many centuries ago: “I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety. They will be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me so that they will never turn away from me. I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.” (Jeremiah 32:37-41). Or do we believe that God is doing a miracle, by fulfilling before our very eyes His own promises so many centuries ago. AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIA www.c4israel.com.au | info@c4israel.com.au Covid-19: Jewish Communities 4 Muslim Sheikh Honoured Understanding Israel and world events from a Biblical perspective & Christians Today ISRAEL August 2020 Av - Elul 5780 Israel & Christians Today is the premier publication of Christians for Israel 10 Jewish New Year 16 A Way in the Wilderness | Photo: Flash90 With All My Heart Two young Israeli women stand proudly on a hilltop in Samaria. This land is perhaps the most controversial real estate in the world. It has been stamped ‘Occupied Palestinian Territory’ by the international community. And yet, many Jews believe with all their heart in the promises of God regarding these mountains. We can read those promises in the book of the Prophet Ezekiel: “As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and all the settlements in the land. I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.” Jews who seek to walk and live in obedience to these promises are condemned as ‘settlers’, and their communities have been declared ‘illegal’. They are accused of taking land from the Palestinians. The media and many politicians believe with all their hearts in this, and work to perpetuate the narrative. Governments form their foreign policies accordingly. But the reality is different. There is enough room for Jews and Palestinians on the mountains of Israel. And – with exceptions, of course – Jewish settlers are not seeking confrontation, but simply want to live in peace in the land and build beautiful, fruitful communities, bringing blessing to the land and all its residents. “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deut. 10:12). Which story do we believe? Do we blindly follow the images and messages of the secular media? Or do we believe that God is doing a miracle, by fulfilling before our very eyes His own promises so many centuries ago: “I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety. They will be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me so that they will never turn away from me. I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.” (Jeremiah 32:37-41). Or do we believe that God is doing a miracle, by fulfilling before our very eyes His own promises so many centuries ago. AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIA www.c4israel.com.au | info@c4israel.com.au Please post cheque or money order to: Christians for Israel Australia Inc (don’t use staples) NEW INTERNET BANKING DETAILS: BSB: ANZ BANK – 014-279 Account No: 405318551 Ref: Your name & donation purpose. Please confirm by emailing info@c4israel.com.au MY DETAILS Name: _________________________________________ If you don ’t know or have your Member ID please include: Address: ________________________________________ Phone: _________________________________________ Email: __________________________________________ Christians for Israel Australia ABN: 79 941 819 693 ICT0820 4 3 SOCIAL WELFARE PROJECTS $___________ Hineni soup kitchen ($10 per meal) $___________ First Baptist Church Bethlehem ($10 or your best gift) $___________ Meals on Wheels Ukraine ($15 per meal) $___________ First Home in the Homeland ($350 pp) $___________ Food Parcels ($15 per parcel) $___________ CFOIC (Judea and Samaria) Heartland ($30 or your best gift) NEW! 2 ALIYAH - BRING THE JEWS HOME $350 One Person* $6250 One Busload (25 persons)* $1460 Bnei Menashe - Asian Jews (1 person) $1250 One Family (5 persons)* *NOTE: Certificates for individuals and families from the Ukraine only. NOTE: NEW DONATION AMOUNTS DUE TO $ US EXCHANGE New Phone Number: 07 3088 6900 Member ID (If Known) : C4IA

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