18. Kingd o m F esti va l E v en t 2023 8 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4

32. 14 M od ern Histo ry U p g r a d e f o r t h e A n c i e n t T o w e r o f D a v i d A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 J udi th Sega l o ff n T uck ed inside the J affa Gate of J erusalem ’ s O ld C ity stands an edifice that personifies the resilience of Israel ’ s eternal capital. The T ower of D a vid has ser ved as a H erodian f ortress, a C rusaders ’ palace, an Ottoman entrance gate, and now hosts the renewed and state-of- the- art T ower of D a vid J erusalem M useum. T h e $ 5 0 m i l l i o n r e n e w a l a n d c o n s e r v a t i o n o f t h e m u s e u m , t h a n k s t o D a m e V i v i e n D u ffi e l d t h r o u g h t h e C l o r e I s r a e l F o u n d a t i o n , t h e J e r u s a l e m M u n i c i p a l i t y a n d o t h e r p h i l a n t h r o p i c f u n d i n g , h a s t r a n s f o r m e d a c o m p o u n d d e s i g n e d t o k e e p i n t r u d e r s o u t t o c a r e f u l l y p l o t t e d g a l l e r i e s fi l l e d w i t h e x h i b i t s t h a t e x p l o r e a n d t r a c e t h e h i s t o r y a n d t h e s p i r i t o f J e r u s a l e m . T u r n i n g t h e a n c i e n t s t r u c t u r e i n t o a m o d e r n a n d a c c e s s i b l e m u s e u m w a s a f o r m i d a b l e c h a l l e n g e f o r t h e a r c h i t e c t s a n d d e s i g n t e a m o n t h e p r o j e c t . U s i n g a l l t h e o r i g i n a l a r c h i t e c t u r e , e x c e p t f o r o n e c e i l i n g , t h e y t r a n s f o r m e d t h e fi r s t - c e n t u ry f o r t r e s s i n t o a w e l c o m i n g , c o m f o r t a b l e , a n d h a n d i c a p p e d - a c c e s s i b l e m o d e r n m u s e u m w i t h 2 1 5 , 0 0 0 s q u a r e f e e t o f g a l l e r i e s d e t a i l i n g J e r u s a l e m ’ s 4 , 0 0 0 - y e a r s i g n i fi c a n c e t o J u d a i s m , C h r i s t i a n i t y a n d I s l a m . A f t e r 1 0 y e a r s o f p l a n n i n g , t h r e e y e a r s o f c o n s t r u c t i o n a n d t h e i n s t a l l a t i o n o f a m i l e o f fi b e r o p t i c c a b l e s , t h e m u s e u m , o r i g i n a l l y f o u n d e d i n 1 9 8 9 , o ffi c i a l l y o p e n e d o n 1 J u n e , w i t h a n a d d i t i o n a l c o n t e m p o r a ry a r t g a l l e ry o p e n i n g i n N o v e m b e r . Accor ding to Caroline Shapiro, director of external affairs f or the museum, the new flow that begins adjacent to the J affa Gate tak es visitors through the museum in a wa y designed to showcase the city of J erusalem. I t still off ers shady outdoor areas where tour guides gather their groups or where visitors can meet bef ore beginning their exploration. C u r a t o r T a l K o b o a n d h e r s e v e n c o r e t e a m m e m b e r s c o m b i n e d a c t u a l a r t i f a c t s c u l l e d f r o m t h e s i t e d u r i n g e x c a v a t i o n s b y t e a m s o f a r c h e o l o g i s t s d u r i n g t h e r e n o v a t i o n w i t h 3 - D t o u c h s c r e e n s , m o u n t e d c a r e f u l l y t o h i g h l i g h t t h e s t o n e w a l l s b e h i n d t h e g l a s s . E ilat Lieber , chief curator of the museum, understood the nature of the diverse audiences she had to reach, after her son took a school trip to the museum prior to its renovation and pronounced it ‘boring. ’ Histor y , he said , is boring. She pondered how to mak e it relevant to our time— and to the man y diff erent communities that con verge in J erusalem. “ W e d e c i d e d t o u s e a n i n t e r a c t i v e p r o c e s s , ” s h e e x p l a i n e d . “ W e h a v e t h e p e r f e c t l o c a t i o n , a n d t h i s b u i l d i n g r e p r e s e n t s a l l t h e l a y e r s o f h i s t o r y a n d o f c o n fl i c t , ” s h e s a i d . “ W e r e a l i s e d t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e o f t h e p a s t w i l l t e l l t h e s t o r y i n d i ff e r e n t w a y s a n d e n g a g e v i s i t o r s t o fi n d w h a t i s m e a n i n g f u l t o e a c h d i ff e r e n t p e r s o n . T h e T o w e r o f D a v i d i s o n e o f t h e m o s t b e a u t i f u l a n d w e l l - p r e s e r v e d f o r t r e s s e s i n t h e w o r l d . T h e h i s t o r y o f J e r u s a l e m m u s t b e t o l d t h r o u g h t e c h n o l o g y a n d b e a u t i f u l d e s i g n . ” W ith headsets and audio tours, her son came back on a class trip to experience the ‘ new’ museum. This time he didn ’ t sa y boring. “This,” he said , “ is cool!” The technology team f or the museum comprised more than 50 people in five separate studios. The designers chose a clean, minimalistic look to contrast with the hea vy stone structure and enhance the power of the site. E ven the cracks between the stones were conser ved. G routing was replaced by limestone. Elevators and ramps were installed. “The two elevators were six years of heated discussion with the antiquities commission,” recalls prof essor T al R oih de Lange of S tudio de Lange, one of the designers. “ T h e i m p o r t a n t d e s i g n p r i n c i p l e w a s t o m a i n t a i n c o n t e x t w i t h t h e c i t y , ” h e e x p l a i n e d . “ E a c h s p a c e i s d i ff e r e n t i n b o t h a r c h i t e c t u r e a n d c o n t e x t . “ C o m m u n i c a t i o n c a b l e s , e l e c t r i c w i r e s a n d e v e n l i g h t i n g fi x t u r e s w e r e c a r e f u l l y h i d d e n . ” B ut how do you light 215,000 square f eet of castle without beams and ugly cables strung across the ancient ceilings? The architects and designers met the challenge using ‘ floating’ cement floors with LED lighting in between the crevice between floor and wall. H eating and cooling emanates from under the floors as well. S mall but powerful sconces inserted in the limestone cracks between the stones were used to augment the natural lighting of the vaulted ceilings. The glass displa ys light up as well, off ering eff ective and dramatic interaction. And don ’ t think the acoustics in a castle are optimal. Accor ding to Architect Y otam C ohen Sagi, they used 3D scans to conduct acoustic studies and tried three diff erent materials until they were able to ensure that the sound tra veled properly throughout the galleries. “ I ha ve never been on so man y site visits and to so man y meetings f or a pr oject,” Sagi exp lained. “Ther e wer e so man y la y ers, and we used o ld fashi oned methods of measuring and l eveling— ho lding strings. And then, just w hen y ou think y ou know w hat y ou ’ r e doing, y ou find anci en t r emains or artifacts and ha ve to stop ever ything and call in the Israel An tiquiti es A uthority ,” he said. E ver y window and skylight is visible. At one point the visitor looks through a displa y and a window beyond the exhibit highlights the modern city of J erusalem. Histor y connects with high - tech J erusalem itself. A l l t h e 3 D m o d e l s f a c e i n t h e a c t u a l d i r e c t i o n o f t h e i r o r i e n t a t i o n , t r a n s p o r t i n g t h e v i s i t o r t o t h e i r e x a c t l o c a t i o n w i t h i n t h e s p a c e o f t h e m u s e u m . A s l a r g e a s e a c h s p a c e i s , t h e e x h i b i t s a r e d e s i g n e d t o k e e p v i s i t o r s e n g a g e d , w i t h o u t f a t i g u e f r o m t h e c o n s t a n t c o n t e n t . T h e t e c h n o l o g y i s d e s i g n e d t o c o m m u n i c a t e v a r i o u s c o n t e n t i n d i ff e r e n t w a y s . T r a n s p a r e n t t o u c h s c r e e n s a l l o w 3 6 0 - d e g r e e c l o s e - u p s o f r e a l a r t i f a c t s l o c a t e d i n n e a r b y c a s e s i n o n e s p a c e . A n o t h e r s p a c e l e n d s i t s e l f t o c e i l i n g p r o j e c t i o n s , a n d a n o t h e r t o m u l t i m e d i a p r e s e n t a t i o n s . The first galler y off ers 3,000 years of histor y in three minutes— a multimedia presentation by Israeli cinematographer and Golden Globe winner Ari F olman. Through classic animation and video mapping, it traces the histor y and culture of J erusalem. A ‘ B unting Map ’ from the Middle Ages portra ys J erusalem as the center of the world , flank ed by E urope, Asia and Africa; the city on the shores of eternity . As you progress through the galler y , it’ s lik e being in a time tunnel, with a 40- f oot- long interactive wall fueled by 12 computers. As you progress through the Mamluks and Ottomans and finally find the interactive 3D globe, you are brought to almost the present time with a letter from Israel ’ s first president, D a vid Ben - G urion, to a young boy . If you enjoy maps, there are 14 interactive ones on off er , including an elevation map of J erusalem, enhanced by special lighting and a 2. 5 minute video that displa ys the entire city . Don ’ t f orget your audio guide (it’ s in three languages ). As you progress through the museum, it will tell you what you ’ re looking at, because at some point, it can become over whelming. Y ou will see a five- and - a - half- minute film by J erusalem filmmak er Y air M oss, and D ale Chihuly glass exhibits adjacent to cannonballs from the J erusalem revolt in da ys of yore. E a c h r e l i g i o n i s g i v e n i t s d u e . T h e J e w i s h r o o m f e a t u r e s t h e m o s a i c o f B e t A l p h a ’ s B i n d i n g o f I s a a c a n d a l a r g e m o d e l o f t h e S e c o n d T e m p l e , c o m p l e t e w i t h a r t i f a c t s f r o m t h a t p e r i o d, i n c l u d i n g a c o i n p r e s s f o r H a s m o n i a n c o i n s a n d a fi r s t - c e n t u r y l i l y c o i n . A Y e s h i v a U n i v e r s i t y - c r e a t e d 3 D s c a n o f t h e A r c h o f T i t u s h a s b e e n c o l o u r e d a n d a n i m a t e d, c a p p i n g o ff t h e J e w i s h e x h i b i t . A J or danian Madaba Map with crusader coins f eatures the T ower of D a vid on the coins, with some f eaturing the C rusader kings and queens who took up residence in this ver y castle. U nderneath the minaret, which ser ved as a mosque at various times during the city’ s histor y , there is a large model of the T emple M ount complex, f eaturing the Al Aqsa M osque and a cuta wa y of the famed Dome of the R ock. F or those of us who ha ve never been near or inside it, it is illuminating to see the F oundation S tone and other f eatures of the M ount. “With all its la yers and incarnations, the T ower of D a vid has never been a ‘holy place, ’ explains T al K obo. “ B ut the artifacts and the histor y symbolise the yearning to come back to J erusalem.” F o r c h i l d r e n w h o s t i l l t h i n k ‘ h i s t o ry i s b o r i n g , ’ i n a d d i t i o n t o a l l t h e d i s p l a y s a n d v i s u a l s , e v e ry r o o m i s e q u i p p e d w i t h f u n i n t e r a c t i v e g a m e s a n d q u i z z e s f o r c h i l d r e n . F o r t h e o l d e r g e n e r a t i o n a n d f o r t h o s e w i t h s p e c i a l n e e d s , t h e m u s e u m i s o n e o f t h e m o s t a c c e s s i b l e a t t r a c t i o n s i n J e r u s a l e m . “W e had to get permission f or ever ything,” explained Reut K ozak , accessibility coor dinator f or the museum. “ F rom hanging signs to buildings and structuring the floors. The Mamluks didn ’ t mak e the door wa ys wide enough f or wheelchairs,” she said. All told , only 15% of the museum is not completely accessible, she added. F amous f or its light shows at night, the new museum will f eature noise reduction headphones and relax ed perf ormances f or people on the autism spectrum or who ha ve sensitivities to sound. An app uses B luetooth to access hearing aids f or the hearing impaired and customises the sound f or each ear , and there are audio descriptions f or the sight impaired. A sensor y map provides a guide that details dark , light and the noisier rooms, and there is a special audio tour guide f or sight impaired. There are visuals with sign language on the app f or the hearing- impaired. The only area not accessible to an yone who cannot na vigate the final 50 steps is the O bser vation Deck , but the museum has created a Virtual Reality experience f or those left behind that will help them enjoy the 360-degree panoramic view from their phone. And , thanks to the new flow , when you come out of the T ower of D a vid , through what used to be the original entrance, the O ld C ity is at your f eet, ready to be explored in real time. Originally published at www .jns.or g. R epublished with permission. View of the T ower of D avid museum in the O ld C ity of J erusalem. | Photo: Flash90 I S R A E L Celebrating

14. P oli ti ca l Ana l ysis 4 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 Dr R o n W eiser AM n H onorary Life Presiden t of the Zionist Counci l of NSW Against the background of increasingly heated internal opposition, the direction of the Israeli government is becoming clearer . Depending on one ’ s political point of view , Prime Minister N etan yahu is either unable or un willing to resist the internal f orces within large sections of his party and coalition or is proactively pushing his agenda. Whilst the government has dropped some parts of its original judicial ref orm proposals, it is currently moving f or war d on removing the power of the judiciar y to be able to use the assessment of ‘ reasonableness ’ when dealing with decisions by individual cabinet ministers. This is the f ocus of the current demonstrations and various refusals to do voluntar y reser ve duty . S imultaneously , on other fronts, the government is proceeding with its agenda, such as to allow increased settlement construction. In a widely covered podcast with Lex F ridman, N etan yahu outlined , in some detail, his idea of a resolution to the Israeli/ P alestinian situation. Based in part on the T rump Plan of 2020, which left all Israelis and Arabs in situ in Area C , with neither ha ving to move from their homes, but connecting J ewish towns and villages with each other by a series of roads, bridges or tunnels and similarly connecting Arab towns and villages to each other . And without changing the status quo in Areas A and B , where there are no J ewish settlements. N etan yahu said: “They’ re going to live in encla ves in sovereign Israel, and we ’ re going to live in probably encla ves there, probably through transportation contiguity as opposed to territorial contiguity . W e can live among Arabs, and Arabs can live among J ews. What is being advanced by those people who sa y that we can ’ t live in our ancestral homeland in these disputed areas— nobody sa ys that these are P alestinian areas, and nobody sa ys that these are Israeli areas. W e claim them, they claim them. W e ’ve only been attached to this land f or , oh, 3, 500 years. B ut it’ s a dispute, I agree. B ut I don ’ t agree that we should throw out the Arabs, and I don ’ t think that they should throw out the J ews.” Regar ding the future P alestinian entity , N etan yahu said: “ P eople sa y ‘Y eah, but it’ s not a perf ect state. ’ O ka y . Call it ‘limited sovereignty . ’ Call it ‘ autonom y- plus. ’ Call it whatever you want to call it. B ut that’ s the reality .” The B iden administration continues to attempt to influence the Israeli political situation directly , openly and in a wa y it would not with other close allies whilst maintaining or even increasing militar y and intelligence cooperation with Israel in a two- tier approach. They are pushing Israel to minimise judicial ref orm under the slogan of ‘ shared vales ’ and opposing an ything that damages the mantra of the ‘T wo S tate solution ’ . The US is signalling support f or Israel generally whilst at the same time showing its displeasure with the government. This approach is well demonstrated by in viting President H erzog to a meeting at the White H ouse and with the added rare honour of addressing the joint H ouses of the US C ongress, whilst at the same time, only just now , issuing Prime Minister N etan yahu a belated in vitation to meet with President B iden. This tension in US - Israel relations is unhealth y f or the relationship and f or those watching on who might seek to tak e advantage of it. Whilst the US relationship with Israel is crucial, it is important to remember that other countries also ha ve a role to pla y in international f orums, such as the U nited N ations and elsewhere, and ever y countr y counts. What a diff erent atmosphere it was on the Gold C oast on the 3r d and 4th of J uly when, f or the second time only in Australia, over 500 people gathered f or the J erusalem Pra yer B reakfast ( JPB ). The JPB is held in various cities all over the world. The B reakfast was two da ys of uplifting emotions, support f or Israel, a general f eeling that the J ewish P eople are not alone and the knowledge that Israel has man y friends. T o quote Albert V eksler , who with R obert Ilatov are the worldwide co-chairs of these events, and who came from Israel, especially f or the Australian JPB : “W e sa w something phenomenal that we ha ven ’ t seen bef ore - governments sent their official representatives to the J erusalem Pra yer B reakfast Gold C oast: Prime Minister of F iji, S itiveni Rabuka sent Deputy Prime Minister Ga voka; Prime Minister of P apua N ew G uinea, J ames Marape sent the Minister of C ommunity Development and R eligion, the H on J ason P eter MP ; the V anuatuan Prime Minister Kalsakau sent the Deputy S peak er of the V anuatu P arliament, the H on N oris Kalmet MP and J ean Baptist T ama MP ; the C ook Islands were represented by Minister of the C rown, H on V ainetutai R ose T oki - B rown MP and the Solomon Islands were represented by the H on P eter K enilorea J r . MP .” Altogether representatives from 16 nations took part. The Ma yor of the Gold C oast, T om T ate, hosted , and there were other dignitaries present from Australia as well. I t was amazing to see the coming together of so man y Christian Z ionist groups at the one event. The Australian J ewish community participated with a number of attendees, of which NSW J ewish Boar d of Deputies President D a vid Ossip , D a yan of the Beth Din Rabbi M oshe G utnick , H ead of the NSW Rabbinic C ouncil Rabbi Shua Solomon, J ewish Agency and Aliyah Shlicha Orit Elka yam C ohen and m yself on behalf of the Z ionist F ederation, spok e at the event itself. Local organisers headed by P astor J amie Pr yor and J ane O ’N eill did a fantastic job in ensuring the JPB was a major success. Importantly , Israel was ably represented by two members of the Knesset, O had T al MK and T atiana Mazarsky MK , along with Ambassador Amir Maimon, showing the support and appreciation all sides in Israel ha ve f or the JPB . Indeed , if the demonstration of unity and dialogue and commonality of purpose presented by the two MKs, one from Bezalel S motrich ’ s party and the other from Y air Lapid ’ s, could be duplicated more widely inside Israel, as well as with the world generally , the situation would be ver y diff erent. Dr R on W eiser AM is a Life M ember of the ZF A Ex ecutive, P ast P resident of the ZF A and H on Life P resident of the Zionist C ouncil of NSW . U n i t y o n t h e G o l d C o a s t PM Benjamin N etan yahu at the White H ouse in W ashington, DC . 15 September 2020. | Photo: Shutterstock

6. N ews 4 M elani e Phi l li ps n T he moral corr uption of this global body has knock ed the free world off its compass. The malevolent scapegoating of Israel by the U nited N ations has long been a scandal. These abuses are regularly highlighted by tireless UN watchdogs such as Hillel N euer , the ex ecutive director of UN W atch, and Anne Ba yefsky , president of H uman Rights V oices and director of T ouro ’ s Institute on H uman Rights and the H olocaust. Last week , N euer testified bef ore the US H ouse F oreign Affairs C ommittee. H e described how Israel is routinely demonised by the UN General Assembly , the UN H uman Rights C ouncil (UNHR C) and the W orld H ealth Organisation ( WHO ). N e u e r a l s o r e v e a l e d t h a t , i n r e t a l i a t i o n f o r e x p o s i n g t h i s b i a s , t h e h e a d o f U N H R C E r i c T i s t o u n e t h a s b e e n r u n n i n g a n a n t i s e m i t i c d i r t y t r i c k s c a m p a i g n a g a i n s t h i m . A f t e r h e a r i n g t h i s , t h e c h a i r m a n o f t h e h e a r i n g , R e p C h r i s S m i t h ( R - N J ) e x p r e s s e d o u t r a g e a n d p r o m i s e d t o t a k e u p t h i s h a r a s s m e n t w i t h U N S e c r e t a ry - G e n e r a l A n t o n i o G u t e r r e s i n o r d e r t o p u t a s t o p t o i t . The problem with the U nited N ations, however , is far more fundamental. In Ma y 2021, after Israel took militar y action in Gaza against Hamas and P alestinian Islamic J ihad (PIJ ), which had been firing thousands of rock ets at Israeli civilians, the UNHR C created a commission that targeted not the attack ers but their Israeli victims. The commission ’ s scope is vast and one- sided , covering the ‘ root causes ’ of the Middle East conflict and alleged ‘ systematic discrimination based on race. ’ U nprecedentedly , it has no end date—because the UN’ s animus towar ds Israel is never -ending. The UNHR C appointed N a vi Pilla y as head of the commission. Pilla y had previously called f or sanctions against ‘ apartheid Israel ’ — the signature big lie of Israel - haters. The second commissioner , Miloon K othari, had ranted about ‘ the J ewish lobby . ’ The thir d commissioner , Chris S idoti, had said that “ accusations of antisemitism are thrown around lik e rice at a wedding.” The commission has now released a report that widens its scope still further , attacking not only Israel but also its def enders, including private individuals and non -governmental organisations ‘worldwide. ’ The UN’ s campaign of double standar ds against Israel, ignoring or sanitising attacks against it while damning it falsely as a human - rights abuser , goes on week in, week out. T h e U N ’ s r e s i d e n t r e p r e s e n t a t i v e i n J e r u s a l e m , N o rw e g i a n d i p l o m a t T o r W e n n e s l a n d , r e c e n t l y m a d e a s e r i e s o f w i l l f u l l y d i s t o r t e d , i n fl a m m a t o ry a n d d i s g u s t i n g s t a t e m e n t s . I g n o r i n g t h e b a r r a g e s o f r o c k e t a t t a c k s f r o m G a z a d i r e c t e d a t I s r a e l i c i v i l i a n s e a r l i e r t h i s y e a r , W e n n e s l a n d c o n d e m n e d I s r a e l ’ s r e m a r k a b l y p r e c i s e m i l i t a ry s t r i k e s a g a i n s t P I J l e a d e r s a s ‘ u n a c c e p t a b l e ’ b e c a u s e o f t h e f e w c i v i l i a n d e a t h s t h a t w e r e u n a v o i d a b l y i n v o l v e d . In an even more egregious attempt to a void ref erring to P alestinian Arab terrorism, W ennesland ref erred to Lucy , Maia and Rina Dee, who were shot dead at point-blank range in their car by P alestinian terrorists, as ha ving been killed “by perpetrators in a car with P alestinian plates.” Last December , W ennesland tweeted that he was ‘horrified ’ that a P alestinian terrorist, who had attack ed an Israeli soldier and bor der police officers, was killed in what he called a ‘ scuffle. ’ H e sent ‘heartf elt condolences ’ to the terrorist’ s ‘berea ved family . ’ R ecently , the U nited S tates, U nited Kingdom and 25 other UN member states objected to the Pilla y commission, which they said was “ further demonstration of long-standing, disproportionate attention given to Israel in the council, and must stop .” That was a welcome move. H owever , the U nited S tates and the rest of the free world should be going much further . They should be sa ying that the U nited N ations itself isn ’ t fit f or purpose. This is because the world body contained the seeds of its own corruption right from the start. The U nited N ations was created after the Second W orld W ar as an institution that would bring the world together to promote peace and justice. Y et most countries are not democracies and do not uphold human rights. So, by definition, an y such world body was unlik ely to promote peace and justice and more lik ely to promote the opposite. So it has proved. Last year , the UN General Assembly condemned Israel in no f ewer than 15 resolutions compared to 13 f or the rest of the world together , with just one resolution on Iran, one on N orth K orea and one on S yria. As N euer obser ved , the UN gives most of the world ’ s worst human rights abusers a free pass. M ore surreal, abusers such as China, C uba, Q atar and P akistan actually sit on the UNHR C . Last month, the UNHR C appointed to the chairmanship of its social f orum the Islamic Republic of Iran, the world ’ s most dangerous terrorist state, which beats women to death f or failing to wear approved head coverings and hangs ga y people from cranes. Y et the only countr y with a standing agenda all to itself at the UNHR C is Israel — the sole upholder of human rights and democracy in the Middle East. F rom 2006, the council has adopted more resolutions on Israel than on Iran, N orth K orea and S yria combined. L a s t y e a r , t h e U N H R C a p p o i n t e d F r a n c e s c a A l b a n e s e a s a s p e c i a l r a p p o r t e u r o n ‘ P a l e s t i n e ’ w i t h a m a n d a t e t o i n v e s t i g a t e o n l y I s r a e l ’ s s u p p o s e d v i o l a t i o n s . Albanese is not an honest brok er . She has repeatedly equated P alestinian suff ering with the H olocaust, falsely accused Israel of war crimes and genocide, and in 201 9 wrote that America was “ subjugated by the J ewish lobby .” Last year , she told Hamas, “Y ou ha ve a right to resist.” In Ma y the UN commemorated ‘ N akba Day , ’ the propaganda term the P alestinian Arabs ha ve given to the date on which the S tate of Israel was f ounded. I t in vited the head of the P alestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas to address it. H e used that platf orm to repeat the P A ’ s mur derous lie that B ritain and the US had decided “ f or their own colonialist purposes ” to establish “ another entity in our historical homeland ” because they “wanted to get rid of the J ews and enjoy ha ving them in P alestine— two bir ds with one stone.” As f or the WHO , N euer obser ved that ever y year its annual assembly deviates from sur veying global public health to hold a special debate singling out Israel. There is no such f ocus on S yria, where hospitals are repeatedly bombed by S yrian and R ussian f orces; nor on N orth K orea, which has one of the worst health systems in the world. On the contrar y , the WH O recently elected N orth K orea to its ex ecutive boar d. As ever , the deranged onslaught upon Israel stands pro xy f or the endangerment of the world itself. A WHO mission to study the C ovid pandemic ’ s origins in China announced in F ebruar y that the possibility that the virus had escaped from a laborator y needed no further in vestigation. The mission had been put under pressure to reach that conclusion by Chinese scientists who made up half the team. T h e U n i t e d N a t i o n s h a s b e e n i m p o t e n t o v e r C h i n a ’ s s y s t e m i c a b u s e s o f i t s p o p u l a t i o n a n d o v e r R u s s i a ’ s w a r a g a i n s t U k r a i n e . W h o c a n b e s u r p r i s e d ? B o t h C h i n a a n d R u s s i a h a v e p l a c e s o n t h e U N S e c u r i t y C o u n c i l w i t h v e t o p o w e r . T h e U n i t e d N a t i o n s p l a c e s f o x e s i n c h a r g e o f i t s h e n h o u s e . In a similar vein, Iran, which is racing towar ds developing nuclear weapons to further its war on the US and its intention to wipe Israel off the map , has been made vice president of the General Assembly . E ven more grotesquely , Iran has been made rapporteur of the General Assembly’ s Disarmament and N on - Prolif eration C ommittee. This is despite its persistent violations of the Security C ouncil resolution banning its ballistic - missile programme and its refusal to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency . The U nited N ations isn ’ t just anti - Israel. I t is morally corrupt at its ver y core. As a result, it doesn ’ t just victimise Israel and empower its attack ers. I t doesn ’ t just betra y its charter commitments by endangering the wider world. B y supposedly promoting global peace and justice but actually promoting those dedicated to war , terror and tyrann y while demonising their victims, the world body has also knock ed the free world off its moral compass. That world will only stand a chance of regaining its balance if it walks a wa y from the U nited N ations and creates an alliance of democracies instead. M elanie Phillips, a British journalist, broadcaster and author , writes a weekly c olumn for JNS. Currently , a c olumnist for The Times of L ondon, her personal and political memoir G uar dian Angel has been published by Bombar dier , which also published her first novel, The Legacy . Go to melaniephillips.substack.c om to ac c ess her work. Originally published at www .jns.or g. R epublished with permission. I t ’ s T i m e t o D i s m a n t l e t h e U n i t e d N a t i o n s A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 View of the General Assembly Hall of the U nited N ations. | Photo: Flash90 L a s t y e a r , t h e U N G e n e r a l A s s e m b l y c o n d e m n e d I s r a e l i n n o f e w e r t h a n 1 5 r e s o l u t i o n s c o m p a r e d t o 1 3 f o r t h e r e s t o f t h e w o r l d t o g e t h e r . . . I S R A E L Celebrating

12. So mething to thinc. abou t 2 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 A ndrew Tu ck er n Director Genera l | The Hague Initia ti ve for In terna tiona l Coopera tion (th i nc.) | www .thinc.info T he UN H uman Rights C ouncil ’ s C ommission of Inquir y into Israel and the P alestinian territories has demonstrated its incapacity to function as an independent tribunal based on the r ule of la w . I ts incompetence was made clear during the recent presentation of the C ommittee ’ s thir d report. At that presentation, one of the members of the C ommittee— Mr Miloon K othari —claimed that Ukraine and ‘ P alestine ’ should be ‘ dealt with ’ in the same wa y , namely , “ international la w uphold[ s ] correctly the rights of Ukrainians to resist, and we would lik e to see the same standar ds being applied to the case in Israel and P alestine.” This absur d claim is not only false, it is grossly misleading by suggesting that Israel has somehow illegally attack ed territor y belonging to the S tate of P alestine. Accor ding to Prof essor Geoffrey C orn, a leading international expert on international humanitarian la w ( the la w of war ), “ equating Ukraine ’ s international legal status in response to R ussian aggression with that of the P alestinian T erritories is a fundamental distortion of international la w .” Prof essor C orn explains: “S ince the adoption of the Charter of the U nited N ations, there ha ve been f ew clearer examples of a member S tate ’ s right— pursuant to Article 51 of the Charter — to act in self-def ence, and the right of other M ember S tates to come to that victim S tate ’ s aid , than the situation Ukraine. R ussia ’ s initial and most recent in vasion of Ukrainian territor y was a blatant violation of Article 2(4) of the Charter prohibiting the use of f orce against another member S tate. Ukraine ’ s ‘ resistance ’ is not only legally sanctioned by Article 51 but also by deeply rooted principles of customar y international la w permitting a S tate, which is the victim of an armed attack , to use all proportional means to protect and def end itself.” C orn: “ N othing about the ongoing situation between Israel and the T erritories is even remotely analogous to this situation. F irst, Israel ’ s continuing presence in the T erritories is not the result of an unla wful armed attack against a P alestinian S tate. Indeed , even the notion of such a S tate remains contested between the P arties, both of which entered into an international agreement [ the Oslo Accor ds—ed.] indicating that the final status of the T erritories must be decided through mutual subsequent agreement. Second , even accepting the generally agreed position that Israel is bound by the international la w of belligerent occupation in the T erritories as the result of gaining control through militar y action in 1 967 ( not against P alestine, but against J or dan), that la w provides no ‘ right’ of self- def ence analogous to Article 51.” “ A t b e s t , t h e l a w o f b e l l i g e r e n t o c c u p a t i o n a c k n o w l e d g e s t h a t t h e o c c u p y i n g p o w e r w i l l e n c o u n t e r r e s i s t a n c e e ff o r t s w i t h i n t h e o c c u p i e d t e r r i t o r y ; a n d , w h e n t h o s e r e s i s t a n c e fi g h t e r s o p e r a t e o n b e h a l f o f t h e St a t e w h o s e s o v e r e i g n t e r r i t o r y i s u n d e r o c c u p a t i o n , i n t e r n a t i o n a l l a w m a y a c c o r d s u c h i n d i v i d u a l s p r i s o n e r o f w a r s t a t u s i f c a p t u r e d . B u t o c c u p a t i o n l a w i s f u n d a m e n t a l l y n e u t r a l o n t h e i s s u e o f w h e t h e r t h e o c c u p y i n g o r o c c u p i e d St a t e w a s o r w a s n o t a c t i n g a s a n a g g r e s s o r o r i n s e l f - d e f e n c e ; i t i s i n s t e a d a l e g a l r e g i m e t r i g g e r e d b y t h e d e f a c t o r e a l i t y o f o c c u p a t i o n . T h e r e f o r e , s u g g e s t i n g t h a t Pa l e s t i n i a n s a r e v e s t e d w i t h a ‘ r i g h t ’ o f r e s i s t a n c e a n a l o g o u s t o t h a t o f t h e U k r a i n i a n p e o p l e —a r i g h t o s t e n s i b l y d e r i v e d f r o m t h e a s s u m p t i o n t h a t Pa l e s t i n e , l i k e U k r a i n e , i s t h e v i c t i m o f a n a r m e d a t t a c k i n v i o l a t i o n o f t h e C h a r t e r o f t h e Un i t e d Na t i o n s a n d i s t h e r e f o r e e x e r c i s i n g a n i n h e r e n t r i g h t o f St a t e s e l f - d e f e n c e —i s f a c t u a l l y u n t e n a b l e , h i s t o r i c a l l y d i s t o r t e d , a n d l e g a l l y i n v a l i d . ” In 2022, Mr K othari stated in an inter view that Israel ’ s occupation has “been illegal from the beginning”. That is untrue: occupation is not illegal under international la w . H e added , “ I would go as far as to raise the question of wh y [Israel is ] even a member of the U nited N ations. Because... the Israeli government does not respect its own obligations as a UN member state. They , in fact, consistently , either directly or through the U nited S tates, tr y to undermine UN mechanisms ”. Mr K othari is not a la wyer and should not be placed in a position where he can misrepresent and misuse legal principles and mechanisms— without an y possibility of review or appeal — to advance his own political agenda. As UN W atch and other organisations ha ve demonstrably shown, the C ommittee is fundamentally one-sided , and members of the C ommittee are all hea vily biased against Israel. B ut as Mr K othari ’ s recent statements show , the C ommission is not only biased; it is also incompetent. I t is time f or UN member states to tak e their responsibility seriously and disband this dangerous body . F or further information, and to mak e a donation directly to thinc. www . thinc -isr ael.or g U N N o t O n l y B i a s e d — A l s o I n c o m p e t e n t P alestinian demonstrators burn tires during a protest over the Israeli militar y operation in J enin on 3 J uly 2023. | Photo: Flash90 A Daily Dev otional b y R e v . Willem J.J. Glashouw er Get daily readings in your inbox Did you know the Book of Revelation is the only book of the Bible to give a special blessing to those who read, hear and apply its message? (Rev 1:3) Study God’s roadmap for the future, step- by-step. You only need a couple of minutes each day to study one or two verses of the Book of Revelation to come to a clearer understanding of its major themes and messages. Subscribe Free Today at www.beholdhecomes.life

5. N ews 3 A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 Y ochanan V isser n Corresponden t in Israel Israel is facing a new Iranian front in J udea and Samaria, the hear tland of the J ewish state. This new front is, in fact, an old one, as Israel has been coping with never relenting P alestinian terror emanating from towns and cities under the control of the P alestinian Authority , ever since the late PLO leader Y asser Arafat was allowed to set up camp in Ramallah. The current wa ve of terror that is plaguing Israel started at the end of March 2022 when what then was thought to be ‘lone- wolf ’ terrorists staged deadly terror attacks in Israeli cities such as Beer Sheva and T el A viv . The wa ve of terror attacks resulted in a new comprehensive ID F operation that was dubbed W a ve B reak er . This operation f ocused on the arrest of terrorists in various P alestinian cities and villages, mostly during nightly raids, and on completing Israel ’ s security f ence. Although the Israeli security ser vices said these raids were successful, they did not reduce the number of terror attacks. The only things that changed were that the terror attacks were more and more carried out in J udea and Samaria with the terrorists increasingly using rifles and other f ire weapons in their attempts to mur der Israelis. In contrast to the lone- wolf attacks that mark ed the f irst wa ve of terror last year , the current wa ve is organised by Hamas and P alestinian Islamic J ihad , a wholly Iran -sponsored terror organisation. There is even evidence that the lone- wolf attacks were inspired by Iran ’ s activities on the internet, where the regime created accounts which spread anti - Z ionist propaganda and incited the P alestinian masses. The regime in T ehran is not only sponsoring P alestinian Islamic J ihad (PIJ ) but supports Hamas as well. Both P alestinian terror groups ha ve been busy establishing new terror squads in virtually all cities under P A control after receiving instructions from the Iranian regime. The Iranian leaders openly brag about this new front in J udea and Samaria. In J une, Iranian S upreme Leader A yatollah Al Khamenei wrote on his T witter account that “ Islamic J ihad and other P alestinian resistance movements ha ve f ound the main k ey to f ighting the Z ionist regime. The continually growing authority of resistance groups in the W est Bank is the k ey to bringing the Z ionist enem y to its knees, and this course must be continued.” H ossein Salami, the commander of the Islamic R evolutionar y G uar ds C orps, furthermore, admitted his organisation had f ound wa ys to supply weapons to the terror groups in P A -controlled territor y under the noses of the Israeli security ser vices. The weapons mostly enter J udea and Samaria via the J or danian bor der , as the arrest of a J or danian diplomat with his car full of f irearms recently made clear . In another instance, a J or danian doctor was caught with more than a thousand bullets in the trunk of his car at the beginning of J uly . Theft of f irearms and other militar y items from ID F bases is another source f or the deliver y of weapons to the various terror groups. After another ID F operation in the town of J enin which ended up in an hours- long gun battle and sa w PIJ using tactics that it had copied from H ezbollah, such as the use of powerful roadside bombs, the political echelon, together with the security brass realised the strategy had to be changed. As in Gaza, during the last mini - war against PIJ , the Israeli security ser vices had to deliver a devastating blow to the terror groups in J enin and had to dismantle the terror infrastructure in the town of 49.000. The decision to change the strategy against the Iranian pro xies was no doubt also inspired by what two P alestinian leaders had said about the Iranian build - up in the territories under P A control. F irst, there was an anon ymous P A off icial who said that the Iranians “ are already here ” in the P A -controlled areas. Then there was a speech by PIJ terror group leader Z iyad al - N akhalah that made it clear Israel should tak e decisive action against Iran ’ s growing influence in the P A - controlled cities. The Secretar y General of PIJ said his group was “ establishing battalions of f ighters in all P alestinian cities in the W est Bank.” Al - N akhalah especially praised the J enin battalion, which had lost man y members through ID F actions or terror attacks. The PIJ leader also revealed that there was close cooperation with Hamas and that some newly established battalions had a mix ed PIJ / Hamas cadre. The terror groups in Samaria and J udea are controlled by the joint Hamas/ PIJ war room in Gaza, N akhalah said , while he also revealed Iran ga ve instructions to his organisation to f orm the new terror groups. During al - N akhalah ’ s recent visit to T ehran, he and Hamas leaders had been told by Iran ’ s leaders that there was a strong need to “better organise and arm the resistance ” in J udea and Samaria. T oda y , P alestinian terror groups in Israel ’ s heartland can produce lighter weapons locally , the PIJ leader added. Shortly after al - N akhala gave his speech, the ID F , together with the Israeli Border P olice and in cooperation with the internal security ser vice Shin Beth began an operation in J enin that had the hallmarks of the last mini - war against PIJ in Gaza. The operation, dubbed Ba yit V a Gan, unexpectedly started with airstrik es carried out by drones against 20 selected targets in J enin. Thereafter huge D9 bulldozers sprang into action ploughing through the verges of access roads. The bulldozers were used to detect and destroy mines and roadside bombs after , during the previous ID F action in J enin, ID F soldiers were injured when a powerful roadside bomb was detonated under their armoured vehicle. Thereafter troops entered J enin, accompanied by airborne f ighter jets of the Israeli Air F orce that circled in the skies above J enin. The ID F soldiers and Bor der P olice knew exactly where the weapon storages and the laboratories that produced weapons and even crude rock ets were located , some of them underground. The Israeli show of f orce apparently over whelmed the roughly 300 P alestinian terrorists in J enin who decided to go into hiding or fled the town. The Israeli operation ma y ha ve led to a ( temporar y ) halt of the terror emanating from J enin but inspired others to step up their attacks elsewhere. Shortly after the end of the J enin incursion, rock ets were launched at Israel from Gaza and from southern Lebanon as P alestinian terrorists stepped up their attacks against Israelis in both Samaria and T el A viv . I t has become clear that the so-called Iranian ‘ R esistance Axis ’ was not deterred and would continue the war of attrition against Israel in preparation f or the long- anticipated multi - front war against Israel. T h e N e w I r a n i a n F r o n t i n I s r a e l ’ s H e a r t l a n d S h o r t N e w s I srael’ s F irefi g h ting Efforts in Greece I n J uly , I srael assisted fir efighting eff orts in G r eec e f or a number of da ys under extr eme temperatur es, ex c eeding 45 degr ees C elsius. Over two da ys, I sraeli air crafts c onducted numer ous sorties in c oor dination with G r eek c ounterparts, dr opping substantial quantities of water on raging blaz es. I sraeli N ational Security M inister I tamar Ben-G vir said: “The fir efighting planes of the ‘Elad’ squadr on operated with gr eat pr of essionalism and c ompleted their operational activity . The pilots and gr ound cr ews of the Fir e and R escue Servic es and the I srael P olic e ha ve enabled the S tate of I srael to assist G r eec e during critical times. ” The fir es in G r eec e caused sever e damage, mainly to f or ests and buildings. | Photo: I srael P olic e S pok esperson ’ s U nit. N etan yah u S uccessfu l l y U ndergoes P acemaker S urgery I s r a e l i P r i m e M i n i s t e r B e n j a m i n N e t a n y a h u u n d e r w e n t a c a r d i a c p a c e m a k e r i m p l a n t a t i o n p r o c e d u r e i n J u l y . D o c t o r s a t S h e b a M e d i c a l C e n t e r i n R a m a t G a n s a i d t h e o p e r a t i o n w a s s u c c e s s f u l a n d t h e 7 3 - y e a r - o l d N e t a n y a h u w a s d i s c h a r g e d a f e w d a y s l a t e r . D u r i n g t h e o p e r a t i o n , w h i c h w a s c a r r i e d o u t u n d e r g e n e r a l a n e s t h e s i a , J u s t i c e M i n i s t e r a n d D e p u t y P r i m e M i n i s t e r Y a r i v L e v i n a c t e d i n N e t a n y a h u ’ s p l a c e . F esti va l for Bookw orms Books, books, books: the H ebr ew Book W eek took plac e in I srael in J une. T h i s a n n u a l we e k - l o n g e ve n t ce l e b r at e s H e b re w l i t e r at u re . L a r g e o p e n - a i r b o o k f a i r s i n c i t i e s s u c h a s J e r u s a l e m a n d T e l A v i v a re a ve r i t a b l e fe a s t fo r b o o k wo r m s . Y o u n g a n d o l d a l i k e c a n n o t re s i s t t h e at t r a c t i o n o f t h e m a r k e t s . I t at t r a c t s t h o u s a n d s o f v i s i t o r s . B o o k s a re o f t e n o ffe re d at a re a s o n a b l e p r i ce , a n d t h e re a re s p e c i a l o ffe r s at b o o k s t o re s . B e s i d e s t h e b o o k f a i r s , t h e re a re a l s o v a r i o u s l i t e r a r y e ve n t s , s u c h a s l e c t u re s , m e e t- a n d - g re e t s w i t h a u t h o r s a n d wo r k s h o p s . | Ph o t o : Fl a s h 9 0 The curren t wa ve of terror tha t is plaguing I srael started a t the end of March 2022 w hen w ha t then was thoug h t to be ‘l one-w olf’ terrorists staged dead l y terror a ttacks in I sraeli ci ties such as Beer Sheva and T el A vi v . I S R A E L Celebrating

13. P oli ti ca l I srael 3 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 L uk e H i l to n n Mark eting Director | Ha Y ovel | The Israel Gu ys After the mid - J uly events in Israel, which included Israel sending an Apache helicopter into J enin to rescue stranded and wounded ID F f orces who had been struck by an IED , AND a terrorist attack at a gas station in Samaria which left three Israeli civilians dead , Israel announced the approval of 1,000 new homes to be built in Eli, Samaria. This is in addition to the 5,000 new homes that were also approved to be built throughout J udea and Samaria, which mak es 2023 a recor d -breaking year f or new construction approved f or Israel ’ s biblical heartland. As expected , Israel received harsh criticism from the international community , including the US S tate Department, who iterated again that they publicly oppose the expansion of settlements in J udea and Samaria and believe that their construction directly hinders the advancement of a two-state solution. Whilst polls repeatedly indicate that support f or the two-state solution is decreasing amongst conser vative Israelis AND P alestinian civilians, left- wing pundits continue to fight to k eep this dying idea alive. They ha ve no regar d f or whether or not a P alestinian state would be good f or Israel O R the P alestinians ( a thought which must be explored further in a diff erent article ). T o do this, they continually claim that Israel ’ s settlements are illegal under international la w . T o put to rest the decades-old claim that Israel is in violation of international la w , we will briefly examine the argument and wh y new homes being constructed in J erusalem, J udea, and Samaria are NOT in violation of an y la w , national or international, in an y wa y , shape, or f orm. Is Israel in V iola tion of I n terna tional La w? A popular argument f or J ew- hating, anti - Israel activists is to quote international la w in regar d to Israel ’ s actions. If you ’ re speaking to someone who is inf ormed on the issue, they will sa y that it is widely considered to be illegal under international la w f or Israel to build or expand the settlements in the ‘W est Bank’ . Someone who ma y not know much about the issue will ignorantly claim that Israel ’ s settlements are completely illegal under international la w . I t is time to separate fact from falsehood. While it IS true that some scholars and so-called experts ma y consider Israel ’ s actions in developing J udea and Samaria to be illegal under international la w , this doesn ’ t mak e it true. T o prove it, one simply needs to check into which la ws they are ref erring to. The 4th Geneva Con ven tion Man y lik e to quote Article 49 of the F ourth Geneva C on vention, which states: “The Occupying P ower shall not deport or transf er parts of its own civilian population into the territor y it occupies.” A quick histor y lesson. The U nited N ations inherited a mandate from the League of N ations, which is held up under the UN Charter , to establish a J ewish state in the area, which was then known as P alestine. F ollowing the UN’ s partition plan, Israel accepted and declared statehood on 14 Ma y 1 948. They then f ought a war of self-def ence against six Arab nations, who immediately attempted to eradicate them. F or the next nineteen years, J or dan occupied the area that we now know as East J erusalem, J udea, and Samaria, E gypt occupied the S inai P eninsula, and S yria occupied the Golan H eights. In 1 967, while fighting another war of self-def ence, Israel recaptured all of the above territor y . S ince no one could legally la y claim to these areas, at most, they should be considered disputed. A short time after the war of 1 967, Israel began allowing limited settlement in J udea and Samaria. Organisations and individuals began building communities, and pioneers began to farm and settle the land. At no point did Israel transf er or deport portions of their civilian population into an y part of these areas. R esol u tion 242 Those who claim Israel is in violation of international la w will also quote UN resolutions, their strongest being UN R esolution 242, which called f or the f ollowing: “Withdra wal of Israeli armed f orces from territories occupied in the recent conflict.” “T ermination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect f or and acknowledgement of the sovereignty , territorial integrity and political independence of ever y S tate in the area and their right to live in peace within secure and recognised boundaries free from threats or acts of f orce.” T wo notes about R esolution 242: E ven though this was a UN Security C ouncil resolution, it was specifically a non -binding recommendation under Chapter VI of the UN charter ( as opposed to a binding resolution under Chapter VII). T o date, Israel has withdra wn from the S inai P eninsula, which it ga ve to E gypt in ex change f or a peace agreement, and from the Gaza S trip , which was eventually tak en over by Hamas, a recognised terrorist organisation. This accounts f or 94% of the territor y which Israel captured in the W ar of 1 967. E v e n t h o u g h I s r a e l w a s n o t re q u i re d t o w i t h d r aw f ro m t h e t e r r i t o r y t h e y l i b e r a t e d i n a w a r o f s e l f - d e f e n c e , t h e y h av e g e n e ro u s ly d o n e s o i n a n a t t e m p t t o b r i n g p e a c e t o t h e re g io n . U n f o r t u n a t e ly , I s r a e l’ s w i t h d r aw a l f ro m Ga z a o n ly re s u lt e d i n t e n s o f t h o u s a n d s o f ro c k e t s b e i n g s h o t i nt o t h e i r s o u t h e r n re g io n i n c o n fl ic t a f t e r c o n fl ic t . Another interesting note is that directly after the W ar of 1 967, Israel off ered to give the P alestinians all of the territor y that they captured in ex change f or a peace agreement. The result was what came to be known as the Khartoum Resolution, which famously included the ‘3 N o ’ s. ’ Ÿ N o peace with Israel Ÿ N o recognition of Israel Ÿ N o negotiations with Israel The next time someone claims that Israel is somehow in violation of international la w or that the growth or building of settlements in J udea and Samaria is a war crime or illegal, ask them which la w they are ref erring to. If they ref er to the F ourth Geneva C on vention, UN R esolution 242, or an y other UN resolution, you ’ll ha ve the tools you need to easily debunk their false claims. N ot only are the 800,000 Israeli J ews who live in J erusalem, J udea, and Samaria NOT in violation of international la w , but they bring peace and stability to a region that other wise would most certainly be ruled over by an oppressive, dictatorship , terrorist entity . Israel ’ s withdra wal from the biblical heartland would be a repeat of what happened in Gaza —ex cept one hundred times worse. N ot only would it mean suicide f or Israel with a terrorist state overlooking their coastal plain from the mountains, but it would mean oppression f or the P alestinian Arabs themselves to be ruled by an oppressive government. At the end of the da y , Israel ’ s sovereignty in the entire land of Israel means peace f or this region and peace f or the world. D e b u n k i n g t h e L i e t h a t I s r a e l i s i n V i o l a t i o n o f I n t e r n a t i o n a l L a w

25. J erusa lem Pra y er B r eakfast 15 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 A l bert V eksl er n J erusa lem Pra yer Breakfast Globa l Director W e sa w something phenomenal that we ha ven ’ t seen bef ore— governments sent their official representatives to the J erusalem Pra yer B reakfast Gold C oast: Prime Minister of F iji, H on S itiveni Rabuka sent Deputy Prime Minister Ga voka; Prime Minister of P apua N ew G uinea, H on J ames Marape sent the Minister of C ommunity Development, Religion and Y outh, the H on J ason P eter; the Prime Minister of V anuatu H on Ishmael Kalsakau sent the Deputy S peak er of the P arliament of V anuatu, H on N orris Kalmet and J ean Baptist MP . The C ook Islands was represented by the Minister of the C rown, H on V ainetutai R ose T oki - B rown and the Solomon Islands was represented by the M ember of P arliament H on P eter K enilorea J r . F rom Australia, we had Mr Robert M oelhoek , a M ember of the Queensland P arliament, and the H on S tuart Robert, a ( recently retired) M ember of the Australian P arliament. R obert Ilatov , the co-chair of the J erusalem Pra yer B reakfast, M embers of the Knesset O had T al and T atiana Mazarsky represented Israel. In addition, we had delegates from F iji, Samoa, N ew Zealand , the Province of P apua in Indonesia, the Philippines, T aiwan, Estonia, S witzerland , the U nited Kingdom and the U nited S tates. Deputy Prime Minister Ga voka shared how God had turned around the political situation in F iji, after the opposition leader , f ormer PM S itiveni Rabuka pra yed at the JPB Canberra in 2020, and promised to recognise J erusalem as Israel ’ s capital. The Israeli ambassador to Australia HE Amir Maimon also spok e at the event. N ot only did the H ead of the Opposition become Prime Minister again, but recently the cabinet made the decision to open the Embassy in Israel. T o v i e w t h e t e s t i m o n i e s , p r a y e r s , a n d s p e e c h e s , c l i c k h e r e : https://www . youtube.com/watch?v=5zj0K gl U6X0 Please continue to pra y f or us as we tra vel from nation to nation, pleading with them to recognise God ’ s plans with J erusalem. W e E x p e r i e n c e d S o m e t h i n g V e ry P o w e r f u l The Mayor of the C ity of Gold Coast T om T ate was our host and we had dignitaries present from Australia, F iji, P apua N ew G uinea, V anuatu, the Cook Islands, Solomon Islands and Israel — altogether 16 nations prayed f or the peace of J erusalem. R abbi I saac R i esenberg n The Lan tern F ounda tion The H olocaust was one of the dark est chapters of histor y , not only f or the J ewish people, but truly , f or all humanity . When six million J ews were being mur dered , the world remained silent. Over the decades, since the H olocaust, man y stories of faith, goodness, and humanity in the face of adversity ha ve emerged. These stories shed a ra y of hope over this dark period. As a child of H olocaust sur vivors, I would lik e share some these stories of faith with you. A f t e r r e a d i n g t h e s e s t o r i e s , s h o u l d y o u w i s h t o s p o n s o r a H o l o c a u s t s u rv i v o r i n t h e U k r a i n e e v e ry m o n t h o r w i t h a $ 2 5 f o o d p a r c e l , o r $ 1 0 h o t m e a l t o c o m f o r t a n d a m e s s a g e t h a t y o u c a r e , p l e a s e d o n a t e o n t h e c o u p o n o n t h e b a c k p a g e o f t h i s n e w s p a p e r o r c 4 I s r a e l . c o m . a u / d o n a t i o n s . T h e fi r s t s t o ry I w o u l d l i k e t o s h a r e w i t h y o u i s o n e t o l d t o m e b y m y f r i e n d , J a n i n e R a n k i n : “ E ven though I had visited Israel several times, together with Y ad V ashem, in 2017 in J erusalem, I came across a book , O lder Y ounger B rother , written by a B ritish clergyman, Canon Andrew White. The book highlighted the extent of antisemitism in Christian E urope throughout the centuries. I was mortified by what read , and wanted to learn more about the H olocaust and the roots of antisemitism. On m y return to M elbourne, I began to regularly visit the J ewish H olocaust C entre ( JH C) (M elbourne H olocaust M useum). I attended events held there, talks by sur vivors, book launches and documentaries. I would often walk around the exhibits taking in bits of inf ormation because it could be over whelming. On one occasion, I noticed beautiful delicate sculptures of a family of f our during the H olocaust and wondered about the identity of the sculptor , Sarah Saaroni. Then in 2020, due to C ovid , the JH C was closed. The staff sent an email out requesting people to write to sur vivors who were missing ha ving contact from visitors. I replied that I wanted to assist. Sarah Saaroni, a sur vivor , reached out to me and in vited me to her home. She showed me her beautiful gar den and her pride and joy , her magnificent galler y of sculpted J ewish figurines that she had made. Sarah subsequently told me her stor y . Sarah was born in P oland in 1 926, the youngest of f our children. When WWII began in September 1 939 with the N azis entering P oland , they immediately began to enf orce their antisemitic persecution of J ews. In 1 940 the family were f orced into the Lublin Ghetto, which was an open Ghetto where J ews had to wear the S tar of D a vid on their outer garment, identifying them as J ews. Sarah ’ s parents managed to arrange false papers f or her , and she was registered as a Christian P ole. Sarah tra velled under her new false identity with f orty-seven girls to Hamburg, where they work ed in a factor y . H owever , she was soon denounced by P olish friends and tak en to Gestapo H eadquarters, where she was interrogated , denied f ood or sleep , and left to stand f or three da ys. She finally admitted she was J ewish and then sent to Majdanek E xtermination Camp . On the journey to the Camp , when the train stopped at Leipzig S tation, German y , Sarah miraculously escaped and boar ded another train ending up in a small village. There she f ound a job in a bak er y and was given a roll with jam as pa yment; this taste, she told me, “S till lingers on her palette to this da y!” After the W ar , in August 1 945, Sarah tra velled back to Lublin in search of her family . Sadly , she f ound out that the N azis mur dered her parents and sister and her large extended family . I n 1 9 4 6 S a r a h j o i n e d a g r o u p o f o r p h a n e d a n d h o m e l e s s y o u n g p e o p l e a n d t r a v e l l e d t o P a l e s t i n e , w h e r e s h e w a s r e u n i t e d w i t h h e r b r o t h e r s . S a r a h m a r r i e d L e w i S a a r o n i f o u r d a y s b e f o r e t h e S t a t e o f I s r a e l w a s e s t a b l i s h e d . T h e y j o i n e d t h e H a g a n a h a n d l a t e r h a d t w o c h i l d r e n . H o w e v e r , l i f e i n I s r a e l a t t h a t t i m e w a s d i ffi c u l t , a n d i n 1 9 5 3 t h e y m i g r a t e d t o M e l b o u r n e , w h e r e l i f e b e g a n a n e w . In 1 981, Sarah started to work in cla y , first as a potter and then turning to her real ambition as a sculptor . H er lif e achievements in Australia were acknowledged in 2015 when she was a war ded an Or der of Australia. I ha ve been in regular contact with Sarah since 2020. R ecently I was privileged to be with her to celebrate her 97th birthda y with family and friends. I can honestly sa y I ha ve received so much more than I ha ve given in visiting this wonderful, inspirational lady and sur vivor , Sarah Saaroni.” R abbi I saac R iesenber g of the Lantern F oundation is c ommitted to f acilitating deeper relationships between Christians and J ews through the dissemination of our shared biblical values. Please reach out on R abbi.riesenber g@gmail.c om A n I n s p i r a t i o n a l S u rv i v o r

26. A d o pt a H ol oca ust S urvi v o r 16 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 C e l e b r a t i n g L i f e i n t h e M i d s t o f W a r A nemo ne R ü ger n Christians for Israel H olocaust sur vivors in Ukraine are deeply thankful f or the suppor t they get from Christian sponsors. W e are driving through a beautiful countr y at war . What a strange mixture. T errible things happen; miracles happen. These two realities stand side by side in Ukraine as our team tries to bring hope and joy to the man y H olocaust sur vivors who depend on local help . F or ever y smile on their faces, the eff ort is worth it. “ H ere in this village is where the R ussian troops stood ,” m y colleague K olya tells me as we head to the outskirts of Kiev f or our next visit with H olocaust sur vivors and J ewish seniors in need. “They came in via Belarus, all the wa y here to B usovar . F rom here, they were going to tak e the capital. See that apartment block over there? That’ s the one they hit.” Again and again, K olya points to a destroyed bridge, a damaged house. Y ou ha ve to look closely , as man y of the countr y’ s wounds are hidden behind nature ’ s lush green. C olourful flowerbeds line the simple houses in the villages. I t’ s har d to imagine that just a f ew hundred kilometres to the east, lif e has been hell f or man y months now . On the eve of the outbreak of war a year ago, K olya sa ys, he returned tired from a trip and considered putting off refuelling until the next da y . “ B ut I f elt prompted to do it right a wa y . The next morning, around five, we wok e up to war . As terrible as it was— we were prepared. W e grabbed our things and were able to escape to a quieter area with our car filled up just bef ore the big panic traffic jam.” “Wha t you do for us cannot be measured!” T oda y , the J ewish community of Bela ya T serk ov is waiting f or us. W e ha ve in vited the mobile seniors from our programme to a restaurant— an unaff or dable luxur y f or most and , f or us, a good opportunity to spend some quality time with man y of our elderly friends simultaneously . P eople are approaching from all directions of the little square, welcoming us with a big hug and radiant smile. A wonderful sense of anticipation is in the air . I see a wheelchair arriving. Ludmila, a warm - hearted sur vivor who lost her mother in the H olocaust, embraces me, har dly wanting to let me go. “ H ow happy I am, I cannot tell you!” I t’ s the first time we see each other since the C ovid1 9 pandemic and the outbreak of the war . “When we ask ed our people who would lik e to ha ve coff ee with Anemone and Alina, we could har dly manage the over whelming response,” sa ys T an ya, our contact person. “ Ludmila can barely walk , but she was determined to be here!” Slowly , the room is filling up . The long tables are getting set with vareniki (Ukrainian corn dumplings ), blinchiki ( stuff ed crepes ), salads and pastries. T an ya opens our gathering and a trio of musicians begins to pla y nostalgic coff eehouse music. I tak e a moment to look around and study the faces of all the needy and elderly , who are usually just happy that we help them sur vive with some extra f ood and medication, and I realise what a special afternoon it is f or ever yone. I con vey the greetings of hundreds and thousands of sponsors and friends to these war children of yester year grown old. They ha ve become so dear to our hearts, and I encourage them to dra w hope from the P salms f or each new da y . Soon, I begin to eat as well, expecting the music and f ellowship to continue at ease f or the rest of the afternoon. Then the first lady stands up and asks f or attention. “What you do f or us is beyond measure!” she sa ys, her voice breaking. She wipes her eyes and hands us a bouquet of flowers. One woman thank ed us f or the hair dresser who restored a bit of dignity and joy to her lif e with her home visit. Another praises the medical f oot care, thanks to which she can now walk again. A H olocaust sur vivor calls me over and sa ys in German f or all to hear , “W e love you!” A well -dressed older gentleman approaches me and sa ys, “ If one of our officials had spok en here, he might ha ve made big wor ds, but people don ’ t care about such things. Y ou spok e from your heart, how you believe and how you help practically— that went straight to our hearts. Y ou ga ve such hope to the people here! I t’ s so important that we hear wor ds lik e that now!” Then the music pla ys a well - known Ukrainian love song, and the seniors in vite the ladies to dance. The tears often come after war ds when I put these precious moments on paper . I received so much love and gratitude on behalf of you, dear friends and supporters when all I really wanted was simply to bring a ra y of joy to the orphans and widows who had grown old. E ver yone wanted to shak e m y hand again, to sa y thank you again; man y were in tears. A moment of hea ven on earth in the middle of the war . Esca ped from Sla vyansk At the ver y end , Mr Abramov approaches me. H e recites a poem full of warmth and gratitude and asks Alina to recor d it so that I can look at it again and again. H e fled from Sla vyansk , located in the middle of the war zone in eastern Ukraine, a year ago. T an ya asks me to write down his stor y— ma ybe we can include him in our programme. I van was born in 1 948, the year Israel was f ounded. “ I didn ’ t ha ve a father; I never knew an ything about him,” I van begins his account. Instead of ‘ unknown, ’ the authorities simply put ‘ I van I vanovich ’ on his birth certificate. “ B ut I know quite a bit about M om ’ s family ,” I van continues. “They lived in a village near Izyum, not far from Khark ov . There was a J ewish estate manager there bef ore the revolution. When m y grandfather Samuil lost his wif e in 1 908, the estate manager adopted his three sons. G randpa then married his maid and had three more children; one of them was m y mother .” When W orld W ar II began, P a wel, the beloved brother of I van ’ s mother , had to go to the battlefront; G randfather Samuil had already died. P a vel ended up a prisoner of war in German y . H e spent f our years in a camp; he barely sur vived. U pon his return to the Soviet U nion, S talin sentenced him to another ten years in the G ulag, punishing him f or ha ving fallen captive. “ M om and G randma didn ’ t escape,” I van reports. “Somehow , they managed to sur vive. They hid here and there in the villages. G randma had destroyed her J ewish papers. Those were horrible times. They went through so much there that neither of them ever talk ed about it.” In 1 949, the family went to Sla vyansk. I van became a mechanic, started a family , and helped build two businesses. A year ago, his whole family had to flee the burning Donbass. The J ewish community in Bela ya T serk ov took them in. E x cept f or a tin y pension, I van has no income, and his children who fled ha ve not yet f ound work. All expenses, especially those related to health care, ha ve to be paid privately . Man y families find it difficult to lea ve as long as their conscripted relatives are not allowed to lea ve the countr y due to the ongoing war . F or the elderly , it is an almost insurmountable hur dle to start over somewhere else in their advanced age. Thank God f or the local J ewish community work ers who continue to be there f or those in need in all the cities in our programme. And thankfully , there are alwa ys people in peaceful and more prosperous countries lik e yours who mak e room in their hearts and budgets to adopt the needy—one sur vivor at a time. W ould you lik e to help? H undr eds of J ewish seniors and H olocaust survivors in U kraine and M oldova ar e waiting f or a sponsor , who will not only pr ovide f or them materially , but also give them the f eeling that they ar e not alone in this difficult time. I f you would lik e to sponsor a H olocaust survivor , go to our website f or mor e inf ormation: c4israel.c om.au/ adopt T eam member Anemone with H olocaust sur vivor Ludmila W ar damages nearby Kiev . | Photos: C4I Visit with I gor , who became bedridden after multiple surgeries

8. 6 I srael in the Midd le East A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 ( 12 J une 2023). Israeli government ministries on S unda y approved a plan to la y fiber -optic cables along the oil pipeline between E ilat and Ashk elon. The creation of an international communications corridor along the E urope Asia Pipeline C o. (EAPC) would allow f or the transmission of digital data between Asian countries, with an emphasis on Abraham Accor ds nations, to E urope and the W est, said Israeli officials. Israel believes this will lead to in vestment by international companies, the establishment of ser ver farms, economic growth, the creation of jobs and more, and “ catapult Israel ’ s econom y to new heights.” “ T o d a y w e a r e r e a p i n g m o r e f r u i t o f t h e h i s t o r i c A b r a h a m A c c o r d s t h a t w e b r o u g h t . W e w i l l c o n n e c t fi b e r - o p t i c c a b l e s f r o m A s i a , A r a b n a t i o n s , f r o m E i l a t t o A s h k e l o n a n d t h e r e s t o f t h e w o r l d . T h i s w i l l a t t r a c t i n v e s t o r s a n d t u r n I s r a e l i n t o a g l o b a l c o m m u n i c a t i o n s c e n t e r . T h i s w i l l j u m p - s t a r t t h e I s r a e l i e c o n o m y , ” s a i d I s r a e l i P r i m e M i n i s t e r B e n j a m i n N e t a n y a h u . The T rump administration -brok ered Abraham Accor ds normalised relations between Israel and f our Arab countries— the U nited Arab E mirates, Bahrain, M orocco and S udan. “This is certainly major news, mainly f or the South and the cities of the peripher y ,” said C ommunications Minister Shlomo Karhi, adding: “ In [Satur da y’ s ] T orah portion, we read ( N umbers 13:17 ):’ ‘ Go up here into the N egev , and go up into the mountains. ’ T ogether , we ha ve already conquered the summit of this mountain and , with God ’ s help , we will yet conquer more mountains.” In its statement, the PMO ref erenced the S pice R oute, one of the most well - known and important trade routes of antiquity , extending from the southern Arabian P eninsula to the M editerranean Sea coast. I t was part of a network of trade routes between E urope and the East, along which goods such as spices, silk , precious stones, dyes and ex otic animals were transported. “T oda y , in the modern digital world , the products are inf ormation, knowledge and technology . W e are again turning the S tate of Israel into the vital route of the world through which will pass knowledge and bits along fiber optic cables that will link Asia and E urope,” said a statement from the Prime Minister’ s Office. Originally published at www .jns.or g. R epublished with permission. I s r a e l L e v e r a g e s A b r a h a m A c c o r d s t o B e c o m e ‘ G l o b a l C o m m u n i c a t i o n s P o w e r ’ F rom left: U AE F oreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al N ah yani, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin N etan yahu, US President Donald T rump and Bahraini F oreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al - Zayani at the signing of the Abraham Accor ds at the White H ouse, 15 September 2020. | Photo: White H ouse J osh ua Mar ks n ( 21 J une 2023). Rabat repor tedly made the decision in response to Israeli announcements on expanding communities in J udea and Samaria. The M oroccan government has canceled plans to host the N egev F orum next month over recent Israeli announcements regar ding the expansion of J ewish communities in J udea and Samaria. US and Israeli officials confirmed Rabat’ s decision to the Times of Israel on T uesda y . I t would ha ve been the second gathering of f oreign ministers from Israel, M orocco, the U nited Arab Emirates, Bahrain, E gypt and the U nited S tates in the spirit of building upon the Abraham Accor ds normalisation agreements. The inaugural event was held in southern Israel in March 2022, and since then three steering committee meetings ha ve tak en place— in J une 2022 in Bahrain, a virtual meeting in October 2022 and in Abu D habi in J anuar y 2023. “ I t is another sign in the deterioration of the Abraham Accor ds,” Prof essor E ytan G ilboa, an expert on US - Israel relations at Bar - Ilan U niversity in Ramat Gan and a senior f ellow at the J erusalem Institute f or S trategy and Security , told JNS . T h e M o r o c c o e v e n t w a s o r i g i n a l l y p l a n n e d f o r M a r c h , b u t t h e N o r t h A f r i c a n c o u n t r y ’ s g o v e r n m e n t p o s t p o n e d i t f o u r t i m e s b e f o r e c a n c e l i n g i t c o m p l e t e l y . T h e U S o ffi c i a l s a i d t h a t a d a t e h a d n o t b e e n fi n a l i s e d b u t h a d b e e n ‘ p r e t t y l o c k e d u p ’ f o r m i d - J u l y . Accor ding to the official, two announcements regar ding Israeli communities in J udea and Samaria had derailed the summit. On S unda y , Israeli F inance Minister Bezalel S motrich announced the approval of more than 4, 500 new housing units f or residents of J udea and Samaria. H ours later , Prime Minister Benjamin N etan yahu ’ s Cabinet passed a resolution handing S motrich near - full control over planning approval f or existing Israeli communities in J udea and Samaria. S motrich, the leader of the Religious Z ionism P arty , is also a minister in the Def ense Ministr y . The resolution also reduces red tape f or expanding existing Israeli communities and retroactively legalises some outposts in J udea and Samaria. G ilboa said that Israel has alwa ys maintained good diplomatic relations with M orocco but that the African countr y had no choice but to nix the summit because Israel went against commitments it made at the Aqaba and Sharm el - Sheikh summits. Accor ding to a joint statement from the 1 9 March meeting in Sharm el - Sheikh released by the U nited S tates, that included an “ Israeli commitment to stop discussion of an y new settlement units f or f our months, and to stop authorisation of an y outposts f or six months.” G ilboa said that it was a difficult decision f or M orocco to mak e as the host countr y f or the F orum. “ M orocco didn ’ t really ha ve a choice but to cancel this meeting because the meeting signifies the importance of the Abraham Accor ds and I believe that there is some crisis between Israel and members of those Abraham Accor ds,” G ilboa said , calling the developments ‘ disappointing. ’ E xpanding Israeli communities in J udea and Samaria ‘ taints the atmosphere ’ around the B iden administration ’ s eff orts to f orge a diplomatic agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, the US official added. “ I would be singularly f ocused on doing absolutely nothing that would prevent the Saudi deal from getting done, but they ha ven ’ t been able to do that,” the official said. G ilboa said that N etan yahu was beholden to his Likud P arty’ s coalition agreements with other parties in his government. “The more extreme members of his coalition are applying pressure on him that is stronger than his f oreign policy considerations lik e the Abraham Accor ds and relations with the U nited S tates,” the prof essor said. Originally published at www .jns.or g. R epublished with permission. M o r o c c o C a n c e l s H o s t i n g N e g e v F o r u m T h e s t e e r i n g c o m m i t t e e o f t h e N e g e v F o r u m i n A b u D h a b i , 9 J a n u a r y 2 0 2 3 . | P h o t o : U A E F o r e i g n M i n i s t r y / J N S I S R A E L Celebrating

24. The F rui ts o f Zi o n & H a Y esod 14 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 B o a z M i c h a e l n F ounder & Director } F irst F ruits of Zion Wh y does Israel matter to Christians? A Gen til e Christian living in the P el oponnesian G r eek city of C orin th 1,950 y ears ago would ha ve r ep li ed, “ I abandoned m y gods to worship the God of Israel. I separated m yself fr om famil y and comm unity f or the sak e of the M essiah of Israel. The J ewish peop l e ha ve become m y kinsmen by faith. The Scriptur es of Israel enligh ten and instruct me. The King of Israel ( ma y H e r eturn qui ckl y ) is m y King, and w hen H e r eturns, H e will summon me to ser ve Him in the Land of Israel, in the ho l y city of J erusal em, w her e H e will be en thr oned!” Initially , Christianity was an inherently J ewish religion, with J esus, his disciples, and early f ollowers all being J ewish. C entred in Israel, the faith had strong ties to the Land , people, and Scriptures of Israel. H owever , replacement theology gradually buried these J ewish f oundations, leading to the evolution of Christianity into various global f orms detached from or even hostile to its J ewish origins. The loss of Christianity’ s J ewish f oundation has resulted in spiritual disconnection and hindered its potential. Churches that f orget the J ewish J esus cannot stand strong. Israel appears remote, the people of Israel unfamiliar , and the Scriptures of Israel difficult to understand. R estoring Christianity’ s spiritual strength requires returning to its original f oundation. H a Y esod is a ten - lesson online programme that aims to fix this historical problem. All ten lessons are intended to clarify the believer’ s relationship to the Land , the P eople, and the Scriptures of Israel. The B ible predicts that when J esus returns, the J ewish f oundation will be restored. All Israel will be sa ved , and the nations will learn the T orah from King M essiah. The rediscover y of Christianity’ s J ewish roots signals the beginning of this prophetic restoration, reconnecting believers with their f oundational heritage. E mbracing the theological challenges a J ewish perspective presents on the N ew T estament can be daunting. Reevaluating preconceptions about Y eshua and the B ible can be unsettling. H owever , Y eshua said believers must be lik e new wineskins, prepared to confront old misconceptions about the B ible, Israel, and Y eshua himself ( Luke 5:37-38). The journey into the Land , people, and Scriptures of Israel ma y be a less- tra velled path, but it is rewar ding f or those who choose to embark on it. After almost two thousand years, J ewish people are beginning to reconsider J esus, and man y are declaring Him to be the M essiah. Christians are rediscovering their own relationship with Israel and the J ewish people. N ew insights into the B ible are yielding rich results. God is on the move, and the wheels of biblical prophecy ha ve begun to turn. This is one of the most ex citing times in histor y to be alive, and H a Y esod: The F oundation is your introduction to the ex citement. This August, a brand new edition of H a Y esod: The F oundation will be a vailable, guiding Christians on a logical journey to uncover the J ewish f oundations of their faith. H a Y esod is an essential tool f or helping your Christian friends establish a meaningful and transf ormative connection to the Land , people, and Scriptures of Israel. Boaz M ichael is the F ounder and Director of F irst F ruits of Zion. H e resides in J erusalem, I sr ael, from where he directs F irst F ruits of Zion ’ s international efforts. T h e L a n d , t h e P e o p l e a n d t h e S c r i p t u r e s o f I s r a e l

10. R ev Co rnelis Kan t n Ex ecuti ve Director | Christians for Israel In terna tiona l O v e r 4 0 0 C h r i s t i a n s f r o m 5 0 c o u n t r i e s g a t h e r e d i n J e r u s a l e m i n J u n e f o r t h e s e v e n t h a n n u a l J e r u s a l e m P r a y e r B r e a k f a s t . T h e g a t h e r i n g f o l l o w s t h e b i b l i c a l c o m m a n d i n P s a l m 1 2 2 : 6 t o p r a y f o r t h e P e a c e o f J e r u s a l e m . J e w i s h r a b b i s a n d I s r a e l i M e m b e r s o f K n e s s e t a t t e n d e d t h i s t w o - d a y P r a y e r e v e n t i n J e r u s a l e m . E v e ry y e a r t h i s p r a y e r e v e n t t a k e s p l a c e a t t h e i n v i t a t i o n o f M e m b e r s o f t h e K n e s s e t . T h i s y e a r M e m b e r o f t h e K n e s s e t , M r M a t a n K a h a n a , w a s o u r g u e s t h o s t i n t h e K n e s s e t . M a n y p a s t o r s a n d l e a d e r s o f C h r i s t i a n I s r a e l o r g a n i s a t i o n s a t t e n d t h i s p r a y e r e v e n t , i n c l u d i n g s e v e r a l C h r i s t i a n s f o r I s r a e l l e a d e r s . I s r a e l i P r e s i d e n t I s a a c H e r z o g w e l c o m e d t h e a u d i e n c e w i t h a v i d e o s p e e c h e x p r e s s i n g h i s g r a t i t u d e t o t h e C h r i s t i a n c o m m u n i t i e s f o r s t a n d i n g w i t h I s r a e l . I s r a e l ’ s F o r e i g n M i n i s t e r E l i C o h e n a n n o u n c e d t h a t H u n g a r y w i l l m o v e i t s E m b a s s y t o J e r u s a l e m . T h e K n e s s e t s p o k e s m a n a p o l o g i s e d f o r t h e r e c e n t p r o t e s t f r o m o r t h o d o x J e w s a g a i n s t a C h r i s t i a n p r a y e r e v e n t n e a r t h e T e m p l e M o u n t . H e e m p h a s i s e d t h a t f r e e d o m f o r a l l r e l i g i o n s i s f u n d a m e n t a l t o I s r a e l , a s e x p r e s s e d i n I s r a e l ’ s D e c l a r a t i o n o f I n d e p e n d e n c e . T h i s w a s h i g h l y a p p r e c i a t e d b y t h e a u d i e n c e . A v a r i e t y o f s p e a k e r s a d d r e s s e d t h e a u d i e n c e , s u c h a s A l b e r t V e k s l e r , d i r e c t o r o f t h e J e r u s a l e m P r a y e r B r e a k f a s t a n d A m e r i c a n - I s r a e l i c o m m u n i c a t i o n s s t r a t e g i s t a n d b e s t - s e l l i n g a u t h o r , J o e l R o s e n b e r g . Hanan ya N aftali, the media advisor f or Prime Minister N etan yahu, told us that it is important “ to win together with Israel in the M edia storm ”. Ze ’ ev Or enstein, dir ector of In ternati onal Affairs f or the C ity of D a vid F oundati on, r eveal ed how a “busted sewage pipe ma y ha ve sa ved the bib li cal heritage of Israel ”. H e exp lained how during the r epair of a sewage pipe south of the T emp l e M oun t, the access r oad fr om the S il oam pond to the T emp l e M oun t fr om bib li cal times was discover ed. This has now been comp l etel y ex ca vated and is open to the pub li c. F rederik Ekholm, Vice Chair of International Christian Chamber of C ommerce, spok e about how Christian businessmen can support Israeli business. On behalf of Christians f or Israel, I was in vited to speak about the biblical connection between the city of J erusalem and the J ewish people. I explained from the B ible wh y it is impossible to divide the city into East and W est or to transf er the city under international super vision. J erusalem belongs to the J ewish people. Rabbi Y ehuda Glick called upon all Christians worldwide to come to J erusalem and pra y on the T emple M ount. S i n c e i t b e g a n i n 2 0 1 7 , t h e J e r u s a l e m P r a y e r B r e a k f a s t h a s e x p e r i e n c e d m i r a c u l o u s g r o w t h . I t h a s b e e n h e l d i n m a n y n a t i o n s , f r o m D a l l a s a n d H o u s t o n i n t h e U S , R o m e , T h e H a g u e a n d T a l l i n i n E u r o p e , K a m p a l a a n d G h a n a i n A f r i c a , a n d r e c e n t l y i n A u s t r a l i a . I t i s a l w a y s e n c o u r a g i n g t o a t t e n d t h i s p r a y e r e v e n t , t o j o i n i n p r a y e r s , t o l i s t e n t o g o o d s p e e c h e s a n d t o m e e t m a n y b r o t h e r s a n d s i s t e r s w o r l d w i d e . 8 C4I N ews J e r u s a l e m P r a y e r B r e a k f a s t ‘ 2 3 A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 M a t a n K a h a n a , M e m b e r o f t h e K n e s s e t , s p e a k i n g a t t h e J e r u s a l e m P r a y e r B r e a k f a s t . | P h o t o : C h r i s t i a n s f o r I s r a e l Dana N o wak n Christians for Israel German y 75 years of Israel and 25 years of Christians f or Israel German y—100 good reasons to celebrate. T his was the motto of the big anniversar y celebration of C4I German y during March in N eu - Ulm ( southern German y ). T he main speak er was historian Michael W olffsohn. R epresentatives of J ewish and Christian organisations addressed the audience. T he President of the S tate of Israel, Y itzchak H erzog, expressed his gratitude to C4I German y in a video message. President H erzog praised the work of C4I German y . On the occasion of the anniversar y conf erence, he sent a video greeting from J erusalem, stating, “ I am pleased to be able to attend this event from afar and to congratulate you and show m y appreciation f or an organisation that has done so much f or Israel and f or German - Israeli relations. “ C4I German y was f ounded on a strong sense of ethical responsibility f or the J ewish people.” The organisation has “ transf ormed the cruel treatment of our people in a dark past into an attitude of solidarity and generosity in the present —especially when it comes to Aliyah, currently from Ukraine and E thiopia,” H erzog continued. H e ended by sa ying: “ I would lik e to thank all of you f or your eff orts to bring understanding and healing to histor y and to the relationship between the Christian and J ewish worlds. Ma y you continue to be a f orce f or good and generosity in this world f or man y years to come.” One speak er at the conf erence was historian and journalist Michael W olffsohn. In his lecture, he examined 75 years of the S tate of Israel in the context of 3,000 years of J ewish world histor y . J osias T erschüren, who heads the P olitics and Society division at C4I German y , spok e about the biblical roots of our mission —standing with Israel as Christians. H e emphasised that this mission also includes the political world and society . “W e believe that Israel has a glorious future. W e believe in Israel ’ s calling to ser ve as a blessing to the nations. W e believe in peace in the Middle East and throughout the world. W e a wait the coming of the J ewish M essiah and we know that until then we are commissioned to support God ’ s plans f or the restoration of Israel on all levels, in particular politically and through the media.” Among the guests were also representatives of Israeli organisations with which C4I German y has been working closely f or years. Rafi H eumann, an en voy of the J ewish organisation K eren Ha yesod , said in his greeting, “ As a J ew , as an Israeli, and as a representative of a Z ionist Israeli organisation, I would lik e to thank each of you ver y much f or your commitment to Israel, f or all that you do, and f or alwa ys ha ving Israel in your hearts.” Other speak ers at the conf erence were R ev C ornelis Kant, E x ecutive Director of Christians f or Israel International, and Roger van Oor dt, H onorar y C onsul of the S tate of Israel and f ormer E x ecutive Director of Christians f or Israel N etherlands. V an Oor dt pointed out that C4I is on Iran ’ s sanctions list. H e stressed the importance of pra ying f or Israel and the work of C4I. “ God ’ s enem y does not want us to do this work ,” van Oor dt said. H e encouraged the guests to pra y f or the J ewish state in their congregations, even if Israel is not a topic there. During the conf erence long- time C4I German y chairman Harald Eck ert was given a ceremonial farewell. Harald led the organisation f or 15 years and then handed over the chairmanship to Luca H ezel. Closing the conf erence, C4I German y Chairman Luca H ezel thank ed all guests, friends and supporters. “W e will continue to stand with Israel. All of us, not only the staff, are Christians f or Israel.” | Photos: Christians f or I srael Germany I s r a e l E x p r e s s e s G r a t i t u d e t o C 4 I G e r m a n y C4I Germany Chairman Luca H ezel (left ) pr esents f ormer chairman H arald E ck ert with a c opy of the first issue of the newspaper ‘I sr aelaktuell’ , of which E ck ert was the editor . H istorian M ichael W olffsohn with C4I Germany’ s J osias T erschür en and D ana N owak The music duo Shaul and J ulia Ben H ar fr om I srael I S R A E L Celebrating

9. 7 I srael in the Midd le East A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 ( 2 J uly 2023). “ T he expansion will allow us to supply more energy to the local, regional and global mark et.” The Leviathan gas field , located in Israel ’ s ex clusive economic zone (EEZ) in the eastern M editerranean, will soon increase production, an energy consortium announced on S unda y . The $568 million project will see a thir d pipeline laid from Leviathan to an existing production platf orm about ten kilometres ( six miles ) off the coast near M osha v Dor and Z ichron Y a ’ ak ov , with the gas flow starting in the second half of 2025. Accor ding to the partners behind the project— N ew M ed E nergy , Chevron M editerranean Limited and Ratio E nergies— the new pipeline will boost production capacity from about 12 billion cubic metres annually to nearly 14 billion cubic metres per year . Leviathan is the largest gas field in Israel ’ s ex clusive economic zone, located about 120 kilometres (75 miles ) west of Haifa. I t was discovered in 2010 with estimates of 605 billion cubic meters of exploitable gas reser ves. “The thir d pipeline project is an initial, significant and important step in expanding Leviathan,” said Y ossi Abu, CEO of N ew M ed E nergy . The expansion “will allow us to supply more natural gas to the local, regional and , ver y soon, also the global mark et,” Abu continued. Leviathan currently supplies gas to Israel, J or dan and E gypt. The Israeli Cabinet in Ma y approved a 900 million shek el ($246 million) project to expand natural gas exports to E gypt. A 65 kilometre (40 mile ) pipeline will be constructed along a route between Ramat H ova v , south of Beersheva, and N itzana, near the S inai bor der , via Ashalim, allowing f or an additional 6 billion cubic metres of natural gas to be exported to E gypt each year . Also in Ma y , Israel ’ s E nergy Ministr y certified the discover y of a new maritime natural gas deposit, the countr y’ s f ourth - largest to date. B ritish - G reek energy compan y Energean can now begin dra wing up plans to develop the field , named Katlan, which is entirely inside Israeli territorial waters. Originally published at www .jns.or g. R epublished with permission. T h i r d P i p e l i n e t o B o o s t O u t p u t a t I s r a e l ’ s L e v i a t h a n G a s F i e l d View of the Israeli Leviathan gas f ield gas processing rig. | Photo: Flash90 Dr Y echi el M Lei ter n With the announcement of the rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Iran, it appeared that the strategic direction of the Middle East had reversed course. What seemed to man y as a one- wa y drive along the Abraham Accor ds freewa y towar d normalisation and peace was suddenly thrust across the political guar drail into oncoming traffic. An embrace of Iran appears, pr ima facie, to be a shunning of Israel. H o w e v e r , w h i l e t h a t r e a d i n g i s a p o s s i b l e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , i t i s a n u n l i k e l y o n e . I n s t e a d, w e w i l l a r g u e t h a t t h e S a u d i A r a b i a o f M o h a m m e d b i n S a l m a n i s c o m m i t t e d b o t h t o d e p r i v i n g I r a n o f n u c l e a r w e a p o n s a n d, a t t h e s a m e t i m e , g r a d u a l l y n o r m a l i s i n g r e l a t i o n s w i t h I s r a e l . Ÿ Saudi Arabia ’ s return to ‘ diplomatic relations ’ with the Iranian regime neither contradicts its commitment to alliances intended to prevent the a yatollahs from attaining nuclear weapons nor does it jettison a process of normalisation with Israel. Ÿ There is an argument to be made that Riyadh ’ s unexpected re-engagement with the Iranian regime is a change of tactics, not strategy; a bearhug, intended to squeeze the belligerency out of its nemesis. Ÿ T h e S a u d i s ’ i n t e n t i o n i s t o f e e d a s t a rv i n g I r a n i a n p o p u l a t i o n , b u i l d t h e i r c r u m b l i n g r o a d s , b r i d g e s , w a t e rw a y s , a n d u r b a n i n f r a s t r u c t u r e , a n d e m p o w e r t h e I r a n i a n p e o p l e t o r e g a i n t h e i r d i g n i t y a n d i d e n t i t y ; t h e n u s e i t s e c o n o m i c l e v e r a g e t o d e r a i l t h e n u c l e a r p r o g r a m a n d b r i n g d o w n t h e t e r r o r - s p o n s o r i n g a y a t o l l a h s w i t h i t . Ÿ If the Saudis thought rapprochement would enable Iran to move closer to achieving its nuclear ambitions, they would obviously not pursue such a deal. The conclusion must be dra wn, then, that this is a move intended to stop or at least stymie their menacing neighbour . Ÿ M e a n w h i l e , a f u n c t i o n a l r a p p r o c h e m e n t b e t w e e n I s r a e l a n d S a u d i A r a b i a h a s b e e n i n p l a c e f o r a n u m b e r o f y e a r s a n d i s p r o g r e s s i n g , q u a l i t a t i v e l y a n d q u a n t i t a t i v e l y , a t a n i m p r e s s i v e r a t e . F r o m j o i n t b u s i n e s s v e n t u r e s t o m e e t i n g s o f i n t e l l e c t u a l s a n d p o l i c y r e s e a r c h e r s a t i n t e r n a t i o n a l c o n f e r e n c e s , f r o m S a u d i A r a b i a o p e n i n g i t s a i r s p a c e t o I s r a e l i o v e r fl i g h t s a n d I s r a e l i p a r t i c i p a n t s a t s p o r t s e v e n t s o n S a u d i s o i l , t o t h e K i n g d o m ’ s b l e s s i n g o f t h e A b r a h a m A c c o r d s , t h e r a p p r o c h e m e n t w i t h I s r a e l i s p r a c t i c a l , w h i l e t h e r a p p r o c h e m e n t w i t h I r a n i s , a s y e t , d e c l a r a t i v e . And as I ha ve argued , Saudi Arabia ’ s rapprochement with Iran might actually be the cleverest aspect of the ongoing Saudi rapprochement with Israel. R ead the full article: https:/ /jcpa.or g/ article/ saudi-ir an- r approchement-and-saudi-isr ael-normalization-no- c ontr adiction-intended/ Dr . Y echiel M. Leiter is Director -Gener al of the J erusalem C enter for Public A ff airs. H e has served in senior government positions in education, financ e, and tr ansportation. H e rec eived his doctor ate in political philosophy from the U niversity of H aif a. H is post- doctor ate study of J ohn L ock e and the H ebrew Bible was published by Cambridge U niversity P ress. Published by J erusalem C enter for Public A ff airs on 24 M ay 2023. R epublished with permission. S a u d i - I r a n R a p p r o c h e m e n t a n d S a u d i - I s r a e l N o r m a l i s a t i o n : N o C o n t r a d i c t i o n I n t e n d e d T o p C h i n e s e d i p l o m a t W a n g Y i ( c e n t e r ) a t t e n d s a m e e t i n g w i t h S e c r e t a r y o f I r a n ’ s S u p r e m e N a t i o n a l S e c u r i t y C o u n c i l A l i S h a m k h a n i ( r i g h t ) a n d M i n i s t e r o f S t a t e a n d n a t i o n a l s e c u r i t y a d v i s e r o f S a u d i A r a b i a M u s a a d b i n M o h a m m e d A l A i b a n ( l e f t ) i n B e i j i n g o n 1 0 M a r c h 2 0 2 3 . | P h o t o : C h i n a D a i l y I S R A E L Celebrating

3. Unders tanding Isr ael and w orld e v en ts fr om a Biblical perspectiv e Israel & Christians T oda y is the premier publica tion of Christians for Israel 1 0 T obias Krämer A warded a Doctora te 1 4 U pgrade f or the Ancien t T ower of Da vid R oger F . van Oo rd t & n R ev Co rnelis Kan t Christians for Israel In terna tiona l Israel is going through a time of crisis. T he population is deeply divided, and polarisation only seems to be intensifying. On M onda y , 24 J uly , the Knesset voted in fa vour of the government’ s proposed ref orms concerning the powers of the S upreme C ourt. An yone who reads the analyses and comments carefully gets the impression that this is actually more of a battle f or or against the person of N etan yahu. Israel has lived in an en vironment of enmity and threat since its re-establishment in 1 948. Also, in international politics, Israel is often isolated. H owever , because of the current internal divisions, it seems as if Israel no longer needs enemies, one political commentator wrote. This is certainly disastrous f or a countr y and people lik e Israel. After all, the people of Israel are still called to be ‘ a kingdom of priests and a holy nation ’ ( E xodus 1 9:6) to the God of Israel. I n t h e B i b l e , w e a l s o r e a d t h a t t h e p e o p l e o f I s r a e l s o m e t i m e s w e n t t h r o u g h a p e r i o d o f i n t e r n a l d i v i s i o n a n d s t r i f e . A t t h e t i m e o f Ne h e m i a h , t h e Je w i s h p e o p l e r e t u r n e d f r o m t h e B a b y l o n i a n e x i l e a n d t h e w a l l s o f Je r u s a l e m a n d t h e t e m p l e w e r e r e b u i l t . Ho w e v e r , i t w a s n o t a n e a s y t a s k . T h e I s r a e l i t e s f a c e d o p p o s i t i o n f r o m t h e o u t s i d e , a s w e l l a s i n t e r n a l d i v i s i o n s . It w a s a n e x t r e m e l y d a n g e r o u s s i t u a t i o n t h a t m a d e t h e p e o p l e e v e n m o r e v u l n e r a b l e . It i s s t r i k i n g h o w m a n y s i m i l a r i t i e s t h e r e a r e b e t w e e n t h e s i t u a t i o n o f Ne h e m i a h a n d E z r a t h e n a n d t h e s i t u a t i o n i n w h i c h I s r a e l fi n d s i t s e l f t o d a y . A t t h e t i m e o f Ne h e m i a h , t h e p r o b l e m s w e r e r e v e a l e d i n a n i m p r e s s i v e w a y : t h e p e o p l e a s a w h o l e c o n f e s s e d t h e i r g u i l t a n d h u m b l e d t h e m s e l v e s b e f o r e G o d (N e h e m i a h 9) . T h e y a l s o p r o m i s e d t o l i v e a c c o r d i n g t o t h e W o r d o f G o d f r o m t h e n o n . As Christians f or Israel, it is not appropriate to choose sides. The J ewish people ha ve their own government and parliament. W e ha ve told the J ews f or almost 2,000 years what they should and should not think and do. Although ever yone will ha ve his or her opinion, we alwa ys want to stand with the people of Israel because the God of Israel has made an everlasting covenant with the J ewish people as a whole. What we can do is pra y f or Israel. T o add our supplications and humiliation to the supplications of Israel so that the God of Abraham, Isaac and J acob ma y ha ve mercy on His land and people. “ B ut Y ou, O Lor d , abide f orever , and Y our name to all generations. Y ou will arise and ha ve compassion on Z ion; F or it is time to be gracious to her , f or the appointed time has come.” ( Psalm 102: 12- 13 ) W e would lik e to encourage you to read and meditate on the entire B ible book of N ehemiah in your quiet time with God in this period. S t a n d i n g w i t h I s r a e l i n P r a y e r Augus t 2023 A v — Tishr ei 5784 I S R A E L Celebrating J e r u s a l e m P r a y e r B r e a k f a s t ‘ 2 3 8 4 I t’ s Time to Disman tle the U ni ted N a ti ons A J ewish man praying on the Dead Sea shore. | Photo: Flash90 A USTRA LIA A USTRA LIA www .c4isr ael.c om.au | in f o@c4isr ael.c om.au

22. Opini o n Pi ece fr o m Beersheba V isi o n 12 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 Barry n R od gers O AM Presiden t of Beersheba V ision Ma jor General Orde W inga te DSO I n S e p t e m b e r 1 9 3 6 , O r d e W i n g a t e , a c o m m i t t e d C h r i s t i a n f r o m t h e U K, w a s a s s i g n e d t o a p o s i t i o n o f I n t e l l i g e n c e O ffi c e r i n t h e B r i t i s h M a n d a t e o f P a l e s t i n e . F r o m t h e s t a r t , h e s a w t h i s a s a n o p p o r t u n i t y t o f u l fi l t h e Z i o n i s t a s p i r a t i o n s h e h e l d s o d e e p l y . H e i m m e d i a t e l y p u t h i m s e l f i n t o a b s o l u t e a l l i a n c e w i t h J e w i s h p o l i t i c a l l e a d e r s . H e a r r i v e d a t a t u m u l t u o u s t i m e w i t h P a l e s t i n i a n A r a b g u e r r i l l a s m o u n t i n g a c a m p a i g n o f a t t a c k s a g a i n s t b o t h B r i t i s h M a n d a t e o ffi c i a l s a n d J e w i s h c o m m u n i t i e s . H e u s e d h i s m i l i t a r y s k i l l s t o t e a c h J e w i s h fi g h t e r s h o w t o d e f e n d t h e m s e l v e s a g a i n s t A r a b r e b e l s w h o w e r e a t t a c k i n g J e w s a n d J e w i s h v i l l a g e r s . H e u s e d t a c t i c s o f a m b u s h a n d s u r p r i s e a t t a c k s , o f t e n a t n i g h t , t h a t k e p t t h e e n e m y o n t h e b a c k f o o t . H i s l e a d e r s h i p w a s m o d e l l e d o n t h e O l d T e s t a m e n t w a r r i o r s l i k e G i d e o n , w h o a l w a y s l e d t h e i r m e n i n t o b a t t l e . H e was great friends with Chaim W eizmann, who became the first president of Israel. His support of the J ewish people was prof oundly significant as it must be remembered that the majority of his B ritish officers were pro- Arab and did not support his views, which mak es his amazing contribution to the J ewish people even more remarkable. WW2 and the Crea tion of Gideon F orce W h e n W W 2 b e g a n , h e r e p e a t e d l y m a d e p r o p o s a l s t o t h e a r m y a n d g o v e r n m e n t f o r t h e c r e a t i o n o f a J e w i s h a r m y i n P a l e s t i n e t o s u p p o r t t h e A l l i e d e ff o r t i n t h e M i d d l e E a s t . H i s f r i e n d G e n e r a l W a v e l l , w h o w a s c o m m a n d e r - i n - c h i e f o f M i d d l e E a s t C o m m a n d b a s e d i n C a i r o , i n v i t e d h i m t o S u d a n t o b e g i n o p e r a t i o n s a g a i n s t I t a l i a n o c c u p a t i o n f o r c e s i n E t h i o p i a a n d r e s t o r e t h e o u s t e d E m p e r o r H a i l e S e l a s s i e . O r d h a d a p a r t i c u l a r a ffi n i t y f o r t h e b i b l i c a l h e r o o f G i d e o n , w h o , w i t h a s m a l l b a n d o f m e n , w o n a d e c i s i v e v i c t o r y o v e r t h e M i d i a n i t e a r m y d e s p i t e a v a s t n u m e r i c a l d i s a d v a n t a g e . H e c r e a t e d ‘ G i d e o n F o r c e ’ a n d, u s i n g t h e e l e m e n t o f s u r p r i s e a n d d a r i n g , o v e r t h r e w t h e v a s t l y s u p e r i o r I t a l i a n a r m y . W i n g a t e w a s a l e a d e r o f i n t e g r i t y a n d p r a c t i s e d l e a d e r s h i p b y e x a m p l e , a s t i c k l e r f o r t h e t r u t h , a b h o r r i n g d i s t o r t i o n s a n d r u m o u r s , w h i c h w a s f a r e a s i e r s a i d t h a n d o n e . T r a g i c a l l y O r d W i n g a t e w a s k i l l e d w h e n fl y i n g i n a U S A M i t c h e l l b o m b e r t h a t c r a s h e d n o t l o n g a f t e r t a k e - o ff . M a n y b o o k s h a v e b e e n w r i t t e n a b o u t t h i s e n i g m a t i c a n d c o n t r o v e r s i a l m i l i t a ry c o m m a n d e r . T h e r e i s n o d o u b t h i s p a s s i o n a t e Z i o n i s m a n d h i s d i s l i k e o f s t r i c t m i l i t a ry p r o t o c o l s m a d e h i m u n p o p u l a r w i t h m u c h o f t h e B r i t i s h m i l i t a ry e l i t e , n o t t o m e n t i o n h i s o f t e n e c c e n t r i c b e h a v i o u r , l i k e e a t i n g n i n e r a w o n i o n s a d a y t o d i s c o u r a g e m a l a r i a l - c a r ry i n g m o s q u i t o s . W h e t h e r i t w o r k e d f o r m o s q u i t o s i s d e b a t a b l e ; h o w e v e r , t h e r e i s l i t t l e d o u b t i t w o u l d h a v e k e p t h i s c o m r a d e s a t a d i s t a n c e . P erhaps a man of similar characteristics, namely the great B ritish wartime leader Winston Churchill should ha ve the final sa y . In a tribute to Wingate, Churchill called him “ one of the most brilliant and courageous figures of the Second W orld W ar ... a man of genius who might well ha ve also become a man of destin y”. Orde W inga te—‘F a ther of the Israel Defence F orce’ The article below is an extract from an article in The Times of Israel, published in 2020 and highlights the significance of this remarkable man. “ B ible -toting, raw-onion -eating B r itish officer killed in a plane crash in B ur ma on 24 M arch 1 944, has been called the father of the Israel Defence F orces.” The article below is an extract from an article in The Times of Israel, March 2023 “The IDF today remains Wingatean in ter ms of its tactics,” said K nesset member M ichael Oren and histor ian. Legendar y Israeli militar y commander M oshe Dayan, one of the men Wingate trained, called him a “ militar y genius and a wonder ful man ”. “Wingate dr illed his men in an ethos of utilising offence over defence ”. D a vid Ben G uri on, Israel ’ s first Prime Minister , said of W ingate that he migh t ha ve become the Israel Def ence F or ces ’ first chi ef of staff had he sur vived, such was the standing of this Christian man. T oda y members of the Ameri can J ewish V eteran Associati on still ho ld an ann ual memorial ser vi ce at Arlington N ati onal C emeter y , w her e Or de W ingate is buri ed. 75 years after his death, Or de Wingate remains a hero in Israel. His legacy lives on in the man y streets ( pictured below ) and squares named after him, the Academic C ollege at Wingate is a centre of tertiar y learning, and the Or de Wingate Institute is a renowned facility f or sports and ph ysical education. T o c ontact Barry , email admin@beershebavision.or g. I f you would lik e to know more about Beersheba Vision, go to their website at www .beershebavision.or g H o w a C h r i s t i a n Z i o n i s t S h a p e d B o t h I s r a e l i E d u c a t i o n a n d t h e I D F (Left) P ortrait of Or de Wingate. (Right) Or de Wingate on horseback entering Addis Ababa

31. 13 Histo ry S h o r t N e w s Drone T axis A s p a r t o f a g o v e r n m e n t - l e d i n i t i a t i v e , I s r a e l i s p r e p a r i n g i n f r a s t r u c t u r e f o r a n a t i o n a l a i r s p a c e n e t w o r k o f l a r g e d r o n e s t h a t a r e d e s i g n e d t o c a r r y p a s s e n g e r s a n d h e a v y c a r g o . T h e a i m i s t o r e l i e v e I s r a e l i r o a d t r a ffi c , w i t h i t s m a n y t r a ffi c j a m s , a n d t o p r o v i d e c o m m e r c i a l a n d p u b l i c s e r v i c e s m o r e e ffi c i e n t l y . T h e i n i t i a t i v e i s a c o l l a b o r a t i o n o f s e v e r a l g o v e r n m e n t a g e n c i e s l e d b y t h e T r a n s p o r t a t i o n M i n i s t r y . A s u c c e s s f u l w e e k o f t e s t fl i g h t s w a s r e c e n t l y c o m p l e t e d . | P h o t o : B Y C r e a t i v e & P r o d u c t i o n s A u tism R esearch B reakthroug h E very year , millions of people ar e diagnosed with autism. R esear ch fr om H ebr ew U niversity in J erusalem has r evealed a dir ect link between nitric o xide in the brain and autistic beha viour . D r H aitham Amal, who led the r esear ch, said: “I am hopeful that with our new understanding of the nitric o xide mechanism, we can begin to develop therapeutic drugs and help millions of childr en and adults living with autism ar ound the world. ” I srael S uccess N o f ew er than thr ee I sraeli startups w on priz es a t the A viram A war ds c er emony in M or oc c o. The first priz e was f or QD- SOL, a c ompany dev eloping technology to pr oduc e gr een hy dr ogen fr om wa ter using solar energy . The A viram A war ds is an annual c ompetition f or y oung entr epr eneurs and startups fr om the M iddle East and N orth A frica who w ork to impr ov e lif e thr ough business, innova tion and technology . H i g h-tech Com plex Opens in East J erusa lem I s r a e l o p e n s a n e w i n d u s t r i a l b u s i n e s s c a m p u s i n E a s t J e r u s a l e m t o l u r e I s r a e l i a n d i n t e r n a t i o n a l h i g h - t e c h c o m p a n i e s t o o p e r a t e i n t h e W a d i J o z n e i g h b o u r h o o d . I t i s p a r t o f t h e c i t y ’ s e ff o r t t o i n c r e a s e t h e p a r t i c i p a t i o n o f t h e A r a b p o p u l a t i o n i n t h e c o u n t r y ’ s w o r k f o r c e . T h e c a m p u s i s s u p p o r t e d b y a n i n v e s t m e n t o f $ 2 . 8 m i l l i o n . A b o u t 2 0 l o c a l p r o g r a m m e r s h a v e a l r e a d y s t a r t e d w o r k i n g a t t h e c a m p u s f o r o n e o f t h e t e c h c o m p a n i e s . | P h o t o : T h e T i m e s o f I s r a e l P s N i gel W ood l ey n F or the Protection of Zion I Speak U p | NZ After the h umiliating def eat of the Arab f or ces in 1 967, the Sovi et U ni on set about r earming a new br eed of Arab figh ters. In six y ears, Arab armi es wer e r ead y to strik e Israel again. Equipped with the latest in the Sovi et arsenal, incl uding w hat would pr ove to be the deadl y SAM missil e systems, they would strik e on the ho li est da y in the H ebr ew cal endar — Y om Kippur , 1 973. The Arabs won the war of secr ecy to start with. I t was onl y on the da y of the p lanned attack that news began to fil ter thr ough Israeli in telligence. Satur da y , 6 October , was a high ho l y da y , being both the Shabbat and the fast da y of atonemen t. Earl y morning p hone calls between the Israeli militar y and po liti cal l eaders began an urgen t mobilisati on of Israeli f or ces. I t usuall y too k 72 hours to full y mobilise their r eser ve arm y . The r egular arm y is suffi ci en t f or k eeping the peace but not f or going in to a major war . F or the first time in Israel ’ s histor y , her jet figh ters wer e fl ying l ow over civilian ar eas and br eaking the sanctity of Y om Kippur . I t was the signal to the r eser ve tr oops to pr epar e f or war . Secr et codes wer e br oadcast over the radi o, calling diff er en t battali ons to mobilise. All the secr et signals wer e to pr even t the enem y fr om knowing that the Israelis had l earned of their in ten ti ons. At precisely 14:00 hours, huge barrages of artiller y , tank and airpower were simultaneously hurled at the Israelis: by S yrian f orces on their northern front on the Golan H eights and by E gyptian f orces in the south along the S uez Canal. Initially , Israel was stunned. Casualties were high. In the first three da ys, Israel lost 50 of her state-of- the- art jet fighter - bombers. C oupled with that were major incursions of enem y f orces into their territor y . Thousands of E gyptian tanks and tens of thousands of their troops had managed to cross the Canal and entrench themselves well inside Israel ’ s front. In the north, the S yrians almost managed to push the Israelis off the Golan H eights. They came within minutes of crossing the vital B ’ not Y aak ov bridge just north of the Sea of Galilee. This was the door into Israel proper and would ha ve meant a disaster f or civilians living in Galilee. Lance Lambert, a M essianic J ew living in Israel, shared an interesting stor y in his book Battle for Israel: “ Another Israeli captain without an y religious beliefs said that at the height of the fighting on the Golan, he look ed up into the sky and sa w a great, grey hand pressing down war ds as if it were holding something back. In m y opinion, that describes exactly what happened; without the inter vention of God , Israel would ha ve been doomed ( Lambert 13 ).” T h e g r e a t e s t t a n k b a t t l e s s i n c e t h e S e c o n d W o r l d W a r w e r e t a k i n g p l a c e o n b o t h o f I s r a e l ’ s b a t t l e f r o n t s — i n t h e S i n a i a n d o n t h e G o l a n . B o t h w o r l d s u p e r p o w e r s b e c a m e i n v o l v e d . F i r s t , t h e S o v i e t s w e r e r e i n f o r c i n g t h e A r a b s w i t h h u n d r e d s o f t o n s o f s u p p l i e s e v e r y d a y . A r e l u c t a n t U n i t e d S t a t e s u n d e r P r e s i d e n t N i x o n a n d S e c r e t a r y o f S t a t e H e n r y K i s s i n g e r fi n a l l y s u c c u m b e d t o I s r a e l i p r e s s u r e . T h e I s r a e l i s r e m i n d e d t h e m t h a t t h e y s t i l l h a d a n u c l e a r a r s e n a l h i d d e n a w a y i n t h e v a u l t i f n e e d e d . T h e b i g g e s t p l a n e s i n t h e U S fl e e t b e g a n a h u g e r e - s u p p l y o p e r a t i o n f o r t h e I s r a e l i s j u s t i n t h e n i c k o f t i m e . T h e I s r a e l i s d i d n o t h a v e t o o p e n t h e i r n u c l e a r v a u l t . At crucial times in the war , both S yria and E gypt stumbled. They did not fully appreciate the advantages that were bef ore them, and each missed their opportunities. The S yrians had a clear path over the Golan and into Israel proper , but they hesitated and waited , and while they did , the Israeli reinf orcements began rolling into the Golan and drove the S yrians back. M uch the same happened in the south in the S inai: the E gyptians had the advantage, and if they had pressed on, they would ha ve been knocking on Israel ’ s back door in no time. Their hesitation, as in the north, ga ve the Israelis time to lick their wounds, regroup and strengthen their f orces f or the inevitable counterattack. Whereas the S ix - D a y W ar had made the Israelis overconfident, it had made the Arab armies over -cautious. Soviet training had led them to do ever ything by the book. They were not dashing nor daring enough to drive those advantages home. T h e r e s u l t w a s t h a t w i t h i n t h r e e d a y s i n t h e n o r t h , t h e I s r a e l i s h a d b o u n c e d b a c k, a n d t h e i r f o r c e s w e r e r o l l i n g o v e r t h e S y r i a n f r o n t i e r i n t o S y r i a p r o p e r . T h e S y r i a n c a p i t a l D a m a s c u s w a s n o w u n d e r t h r e a t o f b e i n g o c c u p i e d b y a n I s r a e l i a r m y . I t t o o k a b i t l o n g e r i n t h e s o u t h , b u t i n a n o t h e r w e e k o r s o , I s r a e l i t r o o p s w e r e c r o s s i n g t h e S u e z C a n a l , n o w t h r e a t e n i n g t h e E g y p t i a n c a p i t a l , C a i r o . F o r t h e fi r s t t i m e i n 3 , 3 0 0 y e a r s , a n I s r a e l i t e a r m y w a s b a c k i n s i d e E g y p t . E x o d u s 1 3 : 1 8 t e l l s u s t h a t w h e n t h e I s r a e l i t e s w e n t u p o u t o f E g y p t , t h e y w e n t u p a r m e d f o r b a t t l e . T h i s t i m e t h e y w e r e g o i n g b a c k d o w n i n t o E g y p t , a l s o a r m e d f o r b a t t l e . I f i t w e r e n o t f o r t h e e n f o r c e m e n t o f t h e U n i t e d N a t i o n s c e a s e fi r e l a t e r i n O c t o b e r , t h e n I s r a e l c o u l d h a v e p r e s s e d h e r a d v a n t a g e a l l t h e w a y t o b o t h A r a b c a p i t a l s — D a m a s c u s a n d C a i r o . The Israelis paid a high price in the Y om Kippur W ar of October 1 973. Appro ximately 2, 500 Israeli soldiers were killed in the fighting, and another 7, 500 wounded. F or a small countr y of three million at the time, to ha ve ten thousand casualties had a devastating impact. I t was a traumatic and painful war . N ot the prestigious victor y of 1 967, but a fight which, in the first f ew rounds, could ha ve seen the Israelis knock ed out completely . H owever , they managed to bounce back , and their momentum, in the end , could ha ve tak en them to the N ile in the south and the E uphrates in the north. Israeli ’ s Prime Minister at the time, Golda M eir , summed up the attitude of her nation during the emergency: “ T h i s P e o p l e , s m a l l a s i t i s , s u r r o u n d e d a s i t i s b y e n e m i e s , h a s d e c i d e d t o l i v e . A n d i f w e h a v e t o p a y t h e p r i c e f o r l i v i n g , w e h a v e t o p a y i t . T h i s i s n o t a p e o p l e t h a t c a n g i v e i n . A n d w e k n o w t h a t g i v i n g i n m e a n s d e a t h m e a n s t h e d e s t r u c t i o n o f o u r s o v e r e i g n t y a n d t h e p h y s i c a l d e s t r u c t i o n o f o u r e n t i r e p e o p l e . W e w i l l n o t b e d e s t r o y e d . W e d a r e n o t b e d e s t r o y e d . T h e r e f o r e , t h e s p i r i t o f o u r m e n o n t h e f r o n t , t h e s p i r i t o f o u r p e o p l e i n e v e ry h o m e , i n e v e ry c i t y , i n e v e ry v i l l a g e , i s a s p i r i t o f a p e o p l e w h o h a t e s w a r b u t k n o w s t h a t i n o r d e r t o l i v e , i t m u s t w i n t h e w a r t h a t h a s b e e n f o r c e d u p o n i t ( T h e S t o r y o f t h e Y o m K i p p u r W a r ) . ” Adapted from N igel W oodley’ s e Book M odern I sr ael is S till Biblical I sr ael: https:/ /fortheprotectionofzion.c om/ product/ modern-isr ael-is -still-biblical-isr ael/ 5 0 Y e a r s A g o : Y o m K i p p u r W a r Major Ariel Sharon (with his head bandaged) is holding the map of Operation ‘ K nights of H eart ’ . T o his left is Def ense Minister M oshe D ayan and Colonel Chaim Bar - Lev . | Photo: Wikimedia Commons A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 T h e I s r a e l i s p a i d a h i g h p r i c e i n t h e Y o m K i p p u r W a r o f O c t o b e r 1 9 7 3 . A p p r o x i m a t e l y 2 , 5 0 0 I s r a e l i s o l d i e r s w e r e k i l l e d i n t h e f i g h t i n g , a n d a n o t h e r 7 , 5 0 0 w o u n d e d . . . i t w a s a t r a u m a t i c a n d p a i n f u l w a r . I S R A E L Celebrating

11. Ian W o rby n C4I A ustra lia N a tiona l Leader and R egiona l Director for Oceania Dear precious readers and friends ( chavor im ). W elcome to this August- September Australia edition of Israel and Chr istians T oday . As I write this report f or you, we are in the ver y solemn da ys of Tisha B ’ A v , the 9th of A v f or the J ews, which is a da y of fasting, pra yer , and spending time with God in the synagogue, to remember the two tragic da ys when the T emple was destroyed , and man y other times great calamity came upon the J ewish people. The sages and Rabbis tell us in the T almud that these tragedies happened in part because of what they call S inat Chinam, which is H ebrew f or ‘baseless hatred ’ between f ellow J ews. This is the explanation of wh y God allowed the destruction of the second temple and the scattering of the J ews to the f our corners of the world f or the past 2,000 years. H owever , we are also seeing the fulfilment of what the Lor d promised in bringing them back from the lands of the north and south, and east and west as part of the prophesied restoration of the nation of Israel and the redemption of all things and all nations that will ultimately be fulfilled when the M essiah comes. Sadly , right now , we are also witnessing on the news great division and calamity amongst the people of Israel over political and cultural diff erences while man y of their enemies look on and possibly wonder if this is a good time to attack them while they are in derision. Let us stand in pra yer that this won ’ t happen. Our good friend , Sondra Oster Baras, from Christian F riends of Israeli communities, is an orthodo x J ew and teacher of the T orah. She recently wrote to me in her letter , “ Has Israel gone mad?” I share some of the things she wrote as her wa y of helping us mak e sense of what is happening and wh y? Sondra writes, “ Israel is going through a ver y har d time. The J udicial R ef orm that was first introduced by the government seven months ago has created a huge storm of protest and dissension both in the Knesset and on the streets. On M onda y ( 22 J uly ), the first la w connected to that ref orm was passed in the Knesset. I t was much more limited than originally conceived and was the least controversial of all the legislation originally proposed. And yet, in the da ys leading up to the Knesset vote and just after the vote, massive demonstrations spun out of control. And while tempers are flaring, the over whelming f eeling in the countr y toda y is one of prof ound sadness. H ow did we get to this point? ” ...and then later , Sondra goes on to sa y ... “ Israel is probably one of the strongest democracies on the planet, and the crazy demonstrations that we ha ve witnessed recently are a testament to that. There is total freedom of expression here, and these new la ws do not challenge that in an y wa y . H owever , there is a real problem in our countr y ... W e are a countr y made up of one people who ha ve been dispersed around the globe f or nearly 2,000 years. When we returned to the Land , we were united in our love f or the land and a huge sense of solidarity within our people. B ut there are ver y basic values that separate us as well. Some are devout in their faith but refuse to share the civil duties of the nation. Others are just as devout but are also in volved in ever y facet of lif e, including the militar y , the workf orce and the settlement movement. Others are totally secular but are bra ve fighters in the ID F . B ut most of the countr y is a combination of secular and devout, traditional in their religious outlook , secular in their beha viour , devoted to the countr y but politically centrist. J ewish histor y teaches us that it was infighting within the J ewish people of the time that enabled the R omans to seize J erusalem. That infighting began years earlier but culminated in the destruction of the f ood stockpiles by J ewish extremists, tr ying to prevent other J ews from taking a diff erent approach to the Romans. There is an over whelming sense of sadness in Israel toda y and gra ve f ear that we are facing a similar situation in our 75th year of independence. B ut there is one thing we do ha ve—despite the anger against the politicians, and the venom that is often present in the media, there is genuine solidarity among our people. S trangers will help strangers, and no one asks how they f eel about judicial ref orm. That is our strongest weapon. B ut all the same, the existing tension, even anarch y at times, is dangerous and disturbing. R egar dless of where we all stand on judicial ref orm, this is the time f or a break. A break that will be utilised f or a real con versation about the issues that divide us. I hope and pra y that our leaders, on both sides of the aisle, ha ve the wisdom to reach out to their opponents and talk. Really talk. This is what we need toda y .” Dear friends, can I ask you to stop and pra y f or the N ation of Israel and our J ewish brothers and sisters and pra y f or the peace of J erusalem. Also, please consider sending practical help to those suff ering; see the back page f or a whole range of diff erent wa ys you can comf ort Israel and send God ’ s love to them at this time. Inside this edition, you will see some ver y inspiring articles, stories, reports and speaking events from our man y wonderful contributors, that I hope will inf orm and inspire you to pra y and to share with your family and friends at Church or at work. C onsider or dering some extra copies so you can help us grow our reach and influence. Imagine if we could double the number of newspapers being read ever y edition. Ju s t t h i s w e e k , w e w e r e a b l e t o s e n d o v e r $ 5 1 , 0 0 0 t o h e l p b r i n g t h e Je w s h o m e f r o m U k r a i n e a n d Et h i o p i a a n d t o h e l p f e e d , s h e l t e r a n d p r o v i d e l o v i n g c a r e t o t h e p o o r , t h e e l d e r l y , a n d d i s a b l e d c h i l d r e n a s a n e x p r e s s i o n o f y o u r l o v e f o r G o d ’ s p e o p l e . T h i s i s a l l f r o m o u r r e a d e r s a n d s u p p o r t e r s o f t h i s n e w s p a p e r o v e r t h e p a s t t h r e e m o n t h s . W e a r e p l e a s e d t o m a k e t h e n e w s p a p e r f r e e l y a v a i l a b l e t o a ny o n e t h a t a s k s o r s u b s c r i b e s b e c a u s e o f t h e g e n e r o u s t a x - d e d u c t i b l e g i f t s w e r e c e i v e . Thanks again f or your faithful and generous support. T ogether we are seeing some wonderful stories of lives being blessed because of your love f or the Lor d and f or his brethren. I am sure our H ea venly F ather smiles when H e sees His children show such unconditional love and generosity to ‘ these, the least of H is brethren ’ as we read J esus ’ wor ds in M atthew 25:37-40. P S: W h e n s e n d i n g c h e q u e s o r m o n e y o r d e r s o r d e p o s i t i n g f u n d s i n t o o u r b a n k a c c o u n t , p l e a s e u s e t h e n e w l e g a l n a m e C h r i s t i a n s fo r I s r a e l Au s t r a l i a F o u n d a t i o n L t d . F a i l u r e t o d o s o c o u l d m e a n y o u r p a y m e n t s m a y n o t b e h o n o u r e d b y t h e b a n k . P l e a s e n o t e t h e s e c h a n g e s o n t h e r e s p o n s e f o r m o n t h e b a c k o f t h e n e w s p a p e r a n d o n o u r w e b s i t e . T h a n k y o u f o r b e i n g p r a y e r f u l a n d g e n e r o u s a s y o u m a k e y o u r t a x - d e d u c t i b l e d o n a t i o n o n t h e b a c k p a g e o f t h i s n e w s p a p e r o r o n l i n e a t w w w . c 4 i s r a e l . c o m . a u / d o n a t e I an W orby is the N ational leader for Christians for I sr ael Austr alia F oundation L td. A u gust 2023 R epo rt F r o m Our N a ti o na l Lead er W h e n w e r e t u r n e d t o t h e L a n d , w e w e r e u n i t e d i n o u r l o v e f o r t h e l a n d a n d a h u g e s e n s e o f s o l i d a r i t y w i t h i n o u r p e o p l e . Ian W orby and Sondra Oster Baras

19. Histo ri ca l P erspecti v e 9 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 K el vin Cr o mbi e n A ustra lian Historian | Documen tor & F ounder of H eritage R esources In 2023 J ewish and Christian peoples the world over are celebrating the 75th anniversar y of the establishment of the S tate of Israel. H owever , the year 2023 also marks another equally significant event— it is 200 years since the J ewish J esus was restored to J erusalem. On 15 December 1823, an evangelical Anglican society from B ritain named Church ’ s M inistr y among J ewish 1 P eople ( CMJ ) decided to officially establish their base in J erusalem. CMJ had been established in London in 1809 as a non - denominational society dedicated to introducing J esus to the J ewish people. I t became an E vangelical Anglican society in 1815. CMJ also encouraged J ewish f ollowers of J esus in their faith, educated the Gentile Church about their J ewish heritage, and encouraged the ph ysical restoration of the J ewish people to the land of Israel. I ts f ounder was a German -born J ewish f ollower of J esus named J oseph F rey , and among its early vice- Presidents was William Wilberf orce MP . H e was f ollowed by Lor d Shaftesbur y , who was in leadership of the Society f or some fifty years. An y Christian work in which these leaders of evangelical Christianity were in volved must be worth y of serious consideration. What’ s of particular importance in these anniversar y events is the concept of restoration —of the J ewish J esus to J erusalem after an absence of some 1700 years and the ph ysical restoration of Israel after 1800 years. Both are closely link ed. The P eriod of the Exi le A restoration inf ers that there must first ha ve been an exile. Indeed there was. This dual exile and restoration are symbolised by two buildings in J erusalem, the C itadel or T ower of D a vid and the Anglican Christ Church directly opposite. The C itadel was mostly built by King H erod as a f ortress to protect his palace and J erusalem. Man y leading scholars now contend that the trial of J esus bef ore P ontius Pilate took place in this area. When the Romans destroyed J erusalem, including the T emple, during the F irst R evolt in 70 AD , they left part of this domineering building remaining to be, as the historian J osephus stated , a symbol of Roman triumph and J ewish def eat. J ewish def eat resulted in ph ysical exile from the land of covenant promise. Then after the Second or Bar K ockba R evo l t, 132- 135 AD , the R omans wer e again vi ctori ous and again exil ed man y of the J ewish sur vivors. They also changed the name of J erusal em to Aeo lia Capito lina and the name of the land of Israel to S yria P alestina — ther eby attempting to sever all J ewish connecti ons to the city and land. Both of these names ar e synon ymous with pagan en titi es. They also f orbade J ewish peop l e fr om living in J erusal em and the r egi on of J udea — incl uding those J ewish peop l e w ho beli eved that J esus was the M essiah and w ho wer e in covenan t uni on with Him ( J eremiah 31: 31-34 ). The J ewish Church then basically ceased to exist in J erusalem. U ntil that point, there had been some fifteen J ewish leaders, or bishops, of this J ewish Church. The P eriod of Exi le There was a definite disconnect at this time, a time synon ymous with the ph ysical exile of Israel and the exile of the J ewish J esus from J erusalem. The Church thereafter became a Gentile Church, and lik e elsewhere, the face of the J ewish J esus became a Gentile face. This Gentile face of J esus was equated by the J ewish people to the terrible persecution meted out by the Gentile- led Church against them through the f ollowing centuries. During those ver y same centuries, numerous empires took control over J erusalem, each upholding ideologies and worldviews which were contrar y to Almighty God ’ s purpose f or the C ity of the G reat King— accor ding to which J esus was destined to return and reign there as the King of Israel and over the redeemed of the nations. The most signifi can t of these ideo l ogi es was Islam w hi ch main tained that the land of Israel was part of Dar al I slam — the territor y of Islam. U nder Islam, in w hatever guise, ther e could be no p h ysi cal r estorati on of Israel. Y et toda y , the C itadel or T ower of D a vid is the M useum of J erusalem which is the capital of the restored J ewish S tate— and the Israeli flag flies from its summit. H ow did this happen? Basi call y , it was a miracl e engineer ed by Almigh ty God thr ough world geopo liti cs and w hi ch in vo l ved man y diff er en t a ven ues, nati ons, instituti ons and peop l e. I term it God ’ s geo- po liti cal p lan f or world r edempti on. This p h ysi cal r estorati on was br ough t about by the same d ynami cs, w hi ch sa w the r eturn of the J ewish J esus to J erusal em and r esul ted in the building of Christ Ch ur ch. T angible R estora tion Begins When CMJ decreed to establish their presence in J erusalem in 1823, they began the process of restoring the J ewish J esus to the C ity and Land. Opposition from the ecclesiastical leaders of J erusalem, especially the M uslims, though, rendered making their permanent presence ver y difficult. CMJ ’ s supporters then pra yed f or both a B ritish consulate in J erusalem and f or a change of regime. Then in 1832, the more lenient E gyptians replaced the intolerant T urks, and CMJ established the first Protestant base in J erusalem in 1833. The presence of B ritish subjects, together with geo- political factors, resulted in the B ritish Government establishing a consulate in J erusalem in 1838. Among the first instructions to C onsul Y oung were ‘ to aff or d protection to the J ews generally’ . This was an extraor dinar y step . The consulate and CMJ were closely aligned , and C onsul Y oung wrote to the F oreign Secretar y: ‘ If a J ew ... were to attempt to pass the door of the Church of the H oly Sepulchre, it would in all probability cost him his lif e— this is not ver y Christian 2 lik e, considering Christ Himself was a J ew . ’ Y oung also wrote: “There are two parties here who will doubtless ha ve some voice in the future disposition of affairs—‘The one is the J ew— unto whom God originally ga ve this land f or a possession, and the other , the Protestant Christian, his legitimate offspring. ’ Of both 3 of these, G reat B ritain seems the natural guar dian.” A l s o , i n 1 8 3 8 C M J p u r c h a s e d t h e fi r s t p r o p e r t y t o b e o w n e d b y P r o t e s t a n t s i n J e r u s a l e m — o p p o s i t e t h e C i t a d e l . I n t h a t y e a r , R e v J o h n N i c o l a y s o n a n d s e v e r a l J e w i s h f o l l o w e r s o f J e s u s b e g a n d a i l y p r a y e r m e e t i n g s — i n H e b r e w — u s i n g t h e A n g l i c a n B o o k o f C o m m o n P r a y e r , w h i c h h a d b e e n t r a n s l a t e d i n t o H e b r e w i n L o n d o n . W h e n a c o n fl i c t b r o k e o u t i n 1 8 4 0 ( t h e ‘ S y r i a n C r i s i s ’ ) , B r i t a i n a s s i s t e d T u r k e y i n o u s t i n g t h e E g y p t i a n s . C M J t h e r e a f t e r l e d t h e w a y i n e n c o u r a g i n g t h e B r i t i s h G o v e r n m e n t t o c a l l f o r I s r a e l ’ s p h y s i c a l r e s t o r a t i o n . I n f a c t , o n e o f t h e i r J e r u s a l e m s t a ff , E r a s m u s S c o t t C a l m a n , w r o t e a M e m o r a n d u m o n I s r a e l ’ s r e s t o r a t i o n , w h i c h w a s u t i l i s e d b y t h e B r i t i s h G o v e r n m e n t i n i t s c a l l t o t h e O t t o m a n T u r k i s h G o v e r n m e n t ( P o r t e ) f o r t h i s J e w i s h r e s t o r a t i o n . Although the desired ph ysical restoration didn ’ t occur , it did provok e reactions which were far - reaching. The eminent B ritish J ewish historian Leonar d S tein wrote in his f oundational book The Balfour Declaration of these E vangelical Christians: “The r eal f or ce behind the movemen t f or the r estorati on of the J ews to P al estine was the ‘ r eligi ous party’... a bod y of devout and high - minded E nglish Christians w ho, l oo king at the f ermen t in the East, beli eved that the time was at hand f or the fulfilmen t of pr op hecy by the r eturn of the Chosen P eop l e to the H o l y Land and that it was God ’ s will that the B ritish nati on should be the 4 instrumen t f or achi eving this purpose.” There is little doubt that these J ewish and Gentile f ollowers of J esus, mostly Anglicans, were the pioneer ‘Z ionists ’, to use a contemporar y wor d , to live in J erusalem — although in those da ys, the wor d ‘ restorationist’ would ha ve been more commonly used. One important outcome of the 1840 ‘S yrian C risis ’ was the establishment of the Anglo- Prussian Protestant B ishopric in 1841— and the appointment of a German - speaking f ormer rabbi, Michael Solomon Alexander , as the first Anglican Protestant bishop in Alexander . Alexander’ s appointment and arrival on 21 J anuar y 1842 also heralded the beginning point of Prussian/German in volvement in the city and land. B ishop Alexander was the first bishop of J ewish heritage since 135 AD , and this move was a further sign of the restoration of the J ewish J esus to J erusalem. T o be continued. F r o m E x i l e t o R e s t o r a t i o n — P a r t 1 Picture by E A F inn from book S tirr ing Times by J ames F inn

7. 5 In tervi ew Sara van Oo rd t- n J o nckheere Christians for Israel N etherlands P alestinian F atah leader J ibril Rajoub called I tamar Marcus the ‘Goebbels of the 21st centur y , ’ ref erring to the N azi propaganda minister during W orld W ar II. I tamar: “ Rajoub accuses us of spreading lies, but we only expose the shocking tr uth. I bear his insult lik e a badge of honour . W e reveal things about the P alestinian A uthority they pref er to k eep hidden.” “ E ver y child wants to be a martyr .” “The J ews are the descendants of monk eys and pigs ”. “W e love death as others love lif e ”. These are not statements by fringe fanatics, but they are statements— in Arabic —on the off icial media outlets of the P alestinian Authority , often made by leaders of the same authority . I t a m a r M a r c u s i s t h e f o u n d e r a n d d i r e c t o r o f ‘ P a l e s t i n i a n M e d i a W a t c h ’ ( P M W ) , a r e s e a r c h i n s t i t u t e t h a t m o n i t o r s P a l e s t i n i a n A u t h o r i t y - c o n t r o l l e d m e d i a : r a d i o , t e l e v i s i o n , n e w s p a p e r s , t e x t b o o k s a n d o n l i n e b r o a d c a s t s . A t e a m o f P M W A r a b i c t r a n s l a t o r s s p e n d s m a n y h o u r s a d a y m o n i t o r i n g , t r a n s l a t i n g a n d a n a l y s i n g v a r i o u s m e d i a f r o m t h e P a l e s t i n i a n A u t h o r i t y , F a t a h a n d H a m a s . T h e t r a n s l a t e d m a t e r i a l i s p u b l i s h e d b y P M W a n d u s e d t o e x p o s e t h e a b u s e s w o r l d w i d e . T h e y d o t h i s b e c a u s e P a l e s t i n i a n l e a d e r s u s e d i f f e r e n t m e s s a g e s t o t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l c o m m u n i t y i n E n g l i s h t h a n t o t h e i r o w n c i t i z e n s i n A r a b i c . P M W n o t e s t h a t t h e P a l e s t i n i a n s a r e l i e d t o a n d b r a i n w a s h e d o n a l a r g e s c a l e b y t h e i r o w n l e a d e r s . T h e P A t e l l s i t s p e o p l e t h a t t h e J e w s a r e s o e v i l a n d r a c i s t t h a t t h e w h o l e w o r l d h a t e s t h e m . C h i l d r e n a r e u r g e d t o b e c o m e m a r t y r s f o r A l l a h , f o r t h e ‘ P a l e s t i n i a n c a u s e ’ . P M W b r i n g s t h e s e p r a c t i c e s t o l i g h t a n d r a i s e s t h e i s s u e i n i n t e r n a t i o n a l p o l i t i c s a n d m e d i a . R ecen tl y P MW exposed another shocking examp l e of the P al estinian A uthority’ s gl orif i cati on of terr or . T wo P al estinian terr orists m ur der ed an Israeli woman, Lucy Dee, and her two daugh ters, Maia and Rina, in April this y ear . A mon th later , w hen the terr orists wer e caugh t and kill ed in a shootout, P A Prime Minister M o hammad Sh ta yy eh posted pi ctur es of the two m ur der ers on his F aceboo k page with the wor ds, “ Gl or y and eternity to our righ teous martyrs.” The P A sees the m ur der of thr ee innocen t women as a gl ori ous wa y to achi eve eternity . F atah posted a video on its F aceboo k page of a 10- y ear -o ld girl r eciting a poem: “Y ou ar e not made f or happiness but f or martyr dom.” I tamar: “ Inciting childr en to martyr dom is pur e child abuse. I t is crucial f or the futur e of Israeli and P al estinian childr en that we bring this to ligh t.” Why did you star t P MW? I tamar: “W e ha ve to go back thirty years in histor y to answer this question. In 1 993, the Oslo Accor ds were signed between Israel and the PLO (P alestinian Liberation Organisation). The P alestinian Authority (P A) was created as the off icial representative of the PLO . F or a moment, there was hope f or a peaceful solution. B ut barely a year later , P alestinian suicide bombings began. I hired two Arabic translators, and from m y parents ’ house in J erusalem, we watched P alestinian television broadcasts. N o one in Israel had the faintest idea that the P A ’ s messages in the international media were ver y diff erent from what they presented to their own people.” “ I decided we should f ocus on what the P alestinian leaders are teaching their children. P alestinian children on T V called on other children to become martyrs, to mur der Israelis with machine guns. R eligious leaders were already calling f or a genocide of the J ews.” “When I started PMW in 1 996, we had no idea where this would lead to. As early as 1 998, we published a report on incitement in P alestinian textbooks. The inf ormation was there, but bef ore PMW started , nobody was a ware or took it seriously . I k ept hoping that politicians and journalists would listen and wak e up . Clearly , the P alestinian leadership never had the intention of genuinely pursuing peace. M ost Israelis realise this now . B ut because the government did not tak e the signals seriously at the time, we had to pa y an incredible price f or our naivety: 2,000 deaths.” H ow do the P alestinian leaders react to what you are doing? “ T h e y h a v e n i c k n a m e s f o r u s . J i b r i l R a j o u b ( a p r o m i n e n t F a t a h l e a d e r ) o n c e c a l l e d m e G o e b b e l s , r e f e r r i n g t o t h e N a z i p r o p a g a n d a m i n i s t e r . T h e c o m p a r i s o n i s , o f c o u r s e , b i z a r r e b e c a u s e J o s e p h G o e b b e l s s p r e a d s l i e s w h i l e w e e x p o s e t h e l i e s . I t ’ s s a d, b u t c o m i n g f r o m h i s m o u t h , I t a k e t h i s i n s u l t a s a b a d g e o f h o n o u r . H a n a n A s h r a w i ( a p r o m i n e n t P a l e s t i n i a n M P ) o n c e s a i d : “ P M W w a i t s u n t i l a P a l e s t i n i a n o p e n s h i s m o u t h , a n d t h e n t h e y p o u n c e o n i t . ” T h e P A o n c e w r o t e i n a n a r t i c l e a b o u t u s : T h e f a c t t h a t t h e P A i s n o t h a p p y w i t h u s p r o v e s t o m e t h a t w e a r e o n t h e r i g h t t r a c k, t h a t w e a r e d o i n g s o m e t h i n g r i g h t , r e v e a l i n g w h a t t h e y p r e f e r t o k e e p h i d d e n . ” W h a t i s t h e i m p a c t o f y o u r w o r k ? “ I speak in parliaments all over the world. R ecently I was in N or wa y , S weden, S pain, the N etherlands and Belgium. Soon I will be speaking in the US C ongress and in Ireland. E ver ywhere I go, I meet government leaders and members of parliament and point out the shocking facts of P alestinian indoctrination and their child abuse. And that regularly leads to changes in f oreign policy and condemnations of violence.” Y o u h a v e b e e n d o i n g t h i s w o r k f o r a l m o s t t h i r t y y e a r s n o w . W h e n i s y o u r w o r k d o n e ? “When the world recognises that the P A is not a peace partner . Leaders around the world mak e the crucial mistak e of f ighting the symptoms rather than the cause. F or example, they sa y: “ Is there incitement in P alestinian schoolbooks? Then we will correct those books.” B ut this does not solve the underlying problem. These are not isolated mistak es of the P alestinian leadership; it is a reflection of their policy . If they change the books because we f orce them, they will teach hate elsewhere. They encourage terror , they give bonuses to terrorists, they raise their children in hatred , and they proclaim that Israel will be destroyed. They really believe this. There must be a new leadership , enf orced by the international community .” W h a t c a n p e o p l e d o t o s u p p o r t y o u r w o r k ? “ P M W i s a n o n - p r o f i t o r g a n i s a t i o n ; w e l i v e o n d o n a t i o n s . Y o u c a n s u p p o r t o u r w o r k f i n a n c i a l l y . B u t y o u c a n a l s o d o m o r e . I m e e t p e o p l e a l l o v e r t h e w o r l d w h o t e l l m e t h a t t h e y h a v e b e e n u s i n g a n d d i s t r i b u t i n g P M W m a t e r i a l s f o r y e a r s . M y c a l l i s : g o t o o u r w e b s i t e w w w . p a l w a t c h . o r g a n d s i g n u p f o r o u r n e w s l e t t e r . S t u d y o u r m a t e r i a l a n d f o r w a r d i t t o j o u r n a l i s t s a n d p o l i t i c i a n s . I f y o u r e a d a r t i c l e s a c c u s i n g I s r a e l , p l e a s e c o n t a c t t h e s e j o u r n a l i s t s a n d f o r w a r d o u r m a t e r i a l t o t h e m . N o t e v e r y j o u r n a l i s t w h o w r i t e s n e g a t i v e l y a b o u t I s r a e l h a t e s I s r a e l . M a n y o f t h e m a r e s i m p l y m i s i n f o r m e d . T h e s a m e g o e s f o r m a n y p o l i t i c i a n s a n d m i n i s t e r s . E v e r y t i m e y o u i n f o r m s o m e o n e , y o u m a k e s u r e t h e t r u t h c o m e s o u t . T h i s i s t h e b e s t w a y t o h e l p I s r a e l . ” W atch the full interview here: https:/ /www .c4isr ael.or g/ news/interview-itamar / Or scan on the QR c ode. “ I B e a r t h e I n s u l t ‘ G o e b b e l s ’ a s a B a d g e o f H o n o u r ” I tamar Marcus, f ounder and director of P alestinian M edia W atch (PMW) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 S h o r t N e w s The I srael A n tiqui ties A u thori ty The I srael Antiquities Authority The Antiquities Department of I srael has launched a major campaign to gather ar chaeological finds owned by private citizens. Citiz ens r egularly tak e- home special finds, often una war e of the historical value of their disc overy . I n many cases, these ar e c oins, metal tools and books. H eritage M inister Eliyahu said: “The antiquities that ar e r eturned help c ompile I srael’ s historical narrative. ” | Photo: Shutterstock A n tisemi tic Cartoon B ritish daily The G uar dian has apologised f or posting a cartoon depicting J ewish and outgoing BBC chairman R ichar d S harp . Some sa y it was a typical antisemitic caricatur e of S harp . The cartoonist dr ew him with a mean-looking grin and a strikingly large nose. I t also depicted a squid, which is often used to portra y that J ews ar e supposedly in c ontr ol of all parts of society . A fter much criticism, the cartoon was r emoved. I srael’ s P o pu la tion N ears 10 Mi l lion Is r a e l ’ s p o p u l a t i o n n e a r s 1 0 m i l l i o n . T h i s r e p r e s e n t s a 1 2 -f o l d i n c r e a s e i n t h e p o p u l a t i o n s i n c e t h e s t a t e ’ s f o u n d i n g i n 19 4 8 . T h e C e n t r a l B u r e a u o f St a t i s t i c s p u b l i s h e d t h e fi g u r e s t o m a r k t h e c o u n t r y ’ s 7 5 t h I n d e p e n d e n c e D a y . T h e r e a r e 9 , 7 2 7 , 0 0 0 p e o p l e l i v i n g i n Is r a e l . O f t h o s e , a b o u t 7 3 . 5 p e r c e n t a r e Je w i s h , 2 1 p e r c e n t a r e A r a b , a n d 5 . 5 p e r c e n t b e l o n g t o o n e o f t h e m i n o r i t i e s . Extraordinary M ura l Me x i c a n a r t i s t Ju l i o C a r r a s co B re t ó n c re a t e d a h u g e m u r a l w h i c h i s 4 4 m e t re s l o n g a n d fi v e m e t re s h i g h . T h e m u r a l e n t i t l e d ‘ A m Y i s ra e l C h a i ’ d e p i c t s t h e h i s t o r y o f t h e Je w i s h p e o p l e , f ro m t h e c re a t i o n o f t h e fi r s t h u m a n b e i n g t o t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f t h e s t a t e o f Is r a e l . T h e m u r a l a d o r n s t h e a r r i v a l s h a l l a t B e n - G u r i o n A i r p o r t a n d w a s u n v e i l e d o n 2 0 Ju n e . It w a s g i f t e d b y Me x i co i n ce l e b r a t i o n o f t h e Je w i s h s t a t e ’ s 7 5 t h In d e p e n d e n ce Day . | P h o t o : Fl a s h 9 0 I S R A E L Celebrating

15. P asto ra l Insi gh ts 5 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 K ei th Buxto n n F ormer N a tiona l Director | Bridges for P eace A ustra lia In this issue of Israel & Chr istians T oday , I am sharing some further pastoral reflections on the T orah portion, or parsha, named Ekev— Deuteronomy 7:12- 11:25— which is the 46th weekly T orah portion in the annual J ewish cycle of T orah reading, and read this year on 5 August. M oses, now 120 years of age, continues with his series of farewell messages to the children of Israel as the Promised Land a waits them across the J or dan River . M o s e s e n c o u r a g e s t h e I s r a e l i t e s w h o h a v e s u r v i v e d f o r t y y e a r s o f w i l d e r n e s s w a n d e r i n g t o c o n q u e r a n d s e t t l e t h e l a n d, t o t r u s t i n G o d, a n d t o d i s c o v e r t h e w o n d e r f u l w a y s i n w h i c h H e w i l l a b u n d a n t l y b l e s s t h e m . I s r a e l ’ s e x p e r i e n c e o f t h e s e m a n y p r o m i s e d b l e s s i n g s i s , h o w e v e r , d e p e n d e n t u p o n a n u m b e r o f i m p o r t a n t c o n d i t i o n s t h a t a r e h i g h l i g h t e d i n v a r i o u s w a y s i n o u r t e x t . W e sa w earlier that it was true f or the children of Israel — and true f or ever y believer — that he shall receive blessing from the Lor d who ( W - H - O ) holds fast to the W or d of God , displa ys true humility , and demonstrates obedience to our Lor d. Our T orah passage develops these three important conditions f or experiencing the amazing blessing of our God. W e ha ve considered the importance of holding fast to the W or d of God and now explore the significance of a humble heart and an obedient spirit. I n t h i s f a r e w e l l a d d r e s s t o t h e n e w g e n e r a t i o n o f G o d ’ s p e o p l e a b o u t t o e n t e r i n t o t h e l a n d p r o m i s e d t o H i s p e o p l e , M o s e s r e c a l l s t h e h a r d s h i p s t h e I s r a e l i t e p e o p l e f a c e d d u r i n g t h e i r f o r t y y e a r s i n t h e d e s e r t . Y e t , d e s p i t e e v e r y t h i n g , t h e y s u r v i v e d — t h e i r c l o t h i n g d i d n o t w e a r o u t , t h e i r fe e t d i d n o t s w e l l , a n d t h e r e w a s m a n n a t o e a t . God graciously watched over them and provided f or them. As we read earlier in Deuteronomy 8:3: “ H e humbled you, allowed you to hunger , and f ed you with manna....” Again and again, throughout this parsha, M oses stresses to the people that they must obey the commandments and maintain their faith in God. In so doing, the people will enjoy lives of abundant goodness. B ut when the blessings come, they must be careful not to tak e credit f or all their wealth. “ Beware that you do not f orget the Lor d your God by not k eeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you toda y , lest— when you ha ve eaten and are full, and ha ve built beautiful houses and dwell in them; and when your her ds and your flocks multiply , and your silver and your gold are multiplied , and all that you ha ve is multiplied; when your heart is lifted up , and you f orget the Lor d your God who brought you out of the land of E gypt, from the house of bondage: “Who l ed y ou thr ough that gr eat and terrib l e wilderness, in w hi ch wer e fi er y serpen ts and scorpi ons and thirsty land w her e ther e was no water; w ho br ough t water f or y ou out of the flin ty r ock; w ho f ed y ou in the wilderness with manna, w hi ch y our fathers did not know , that H e migh t h umb l e y ou and that H e migh t test y ou, to do y ou good in the end — then y ou sa y in y our heart, ‘ M y power and the migh t of m y hand ha ve gained me this weal th. ’ “ And you shall remember the Lor d your God , f or it is H e who gives you power to get wealth, that H e ma y establish His covenant which H e swore to your fathers, as it is this da y .” ( Deuteronomy 8:11- 18) W e tend to f eel that when things go well, it is all —or at least mostly—our doing, and God ma y not get much, if an y , of the credit. On the other hand , if things go poorly , we ma y be tempted to sa y that it is God ’ s fault and not ours. P salm 14 9:4 sa ys: F or the Lor d tak es pleasure in His people; H e will beautify the humble with salvation. J ames 4:6 reminds us that “ God resists the proud , but gives grace to the humble.” W rites Adam Lieberman, a J ewish businessman who helps J ews of all backgrounds to see the beauty and relevance of their heritage: “ In the same wa y you don ’ t tak e credit f or your sparkling blue eyes, the picturesque sunset, or the gorgeous multi -coloured rose bush, so too, don ’ t tak e credit f or your monetar y success. Know that the same source of ‘ nature ’ that surrounds you is the same source of ever ything else you ha ve. If you can live with this reality , know that you ’ll literally be walking with God.” T h e i d e a o f ‘ w a l k i n g w i t h G o d ’ h a s a r e a l a p p e a l t o m e a n d b r i n g s t o m i n d t h e d e c l a r a t i o n o f t h e p r o p h e t M i c a h : H e h a s s h o w n y o u , O m a n , w h a t i s g o o d ; a n d w h a t d o e s t h e L o r d r e q u i r e o f y o u b u t t o d o j u s t l y , t o l o v e m e r c y , a n d t o w a l k h u m b l y w i t h y o u r G o d ? ( M i c a h 6 : 8 ) The humble really do recognise that all that they ha ve comes from God , and in all that they do, they seek to give Him all the glor y . B ut humility goes further than not taking credit f or what God alone has accomplished on our behalf. I t is more, too, than not ‘ puffing yourself up ’ when you are recognised f or your achievements. T h a t r e m i n d s m e , b y t h e w a y , o f t h e s t o ry o f t h e p e r s o n w h o w a s g i v e n a m e d a l f o r h u m i l i t y — w h i c h w a s p r o m p t l y t a k e n f r o m h i m w h e n h e w a l k e d a r o u n d w e a r i n g i t ! Importantly , humility means not being so caught up with our own interests that we care little f or others who ma y need our help and support. Isaiah 57:15 reminds us that the humble heart is, in fact, the ver y dwelling place of our caring and compassionate God: F or thus sa ys the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity , whose name is H oly: “ I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” H ow amazing it is that the infinite, all - powerful, almighty God of all creation is here described as caring intimately f or those who are most in need — those who are acutely a ware of their need of restoration; the f orgotten, marginalised and brok en in society . T o care only f or ourselves, and ma ybe also those immediately dependent on us is simply not God ’ s wa y . W e ’ll return to this thought a little later . Also at the heart of this T orah portion is the clarion call to the Israelites to be a people who obey their God. In the ver y first verse ( Deuteronomy 7:12 ), we read: “Then it shall come to pass, because you listen to these judgments, and k eep and do them, that the Lor d your God will k eep with you the covenant and the mercy which H e swore to your fathers.” T o be continued. K eith Buxton is an or dained pastor . H e currently serves on the Christians for I sr ael ( C4I) Austr alia management c ommittee and is a liaison with C4I Oc eania I sland affiliates. I m p o r t a n t C o n d i t i o n s f o r E x p e r i e n c i n g t h e A m a z i n g B l e s s i n g o f O u r G o d — P a r t 2 The Gathering of the Manna (watercolour circa 1896–1 902 by J ames T issot) T h e h u m b l e r e a l l y d o r e c o g n i s e t h a t a l l t h a t t h e y h a v e c o m e s f r o m G o d , a n d i n a l l t h a t t h e y d o , t h e y s e e k t o g i v e H i m a l l t h e g l o r y . B u t h u m i l i t y g o e s f u r t h e r t h a n n o t t a k i n g c r e d i t f o r w h a t G o d a l o n e h a s a c c o m p l i s h e d o n o u r b e h a l f .

20. Histo ri ca l P erspecti v e 10 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 H u g h K i t s o n n W riter, Director & Producer of the W hose La nd? Documen tary W e ha ve recently released the S ix - D a y W ar E pisode in the Whose Land? documentar y series presented by C olonel Richar d K emp . This is the thir d of nine episodes that will comprise P art T wo of Whose Land? which has the overall subtitle The Law of W ar and the S tatus of J er usalem. The opening sequence of E pisode 13 is tak en fr om a film I made nearl y 25 y ears ago— J erusalem, The C ovenant C ity . I t grap hi call y documen ts and carri es the emoti on of one of the most momen tous even ts in all of J erusal em ’ s l ong histor y as the bel oved anci en t capital city of Israel was liberated by the ID F and came back under J ewish sover eign ty f or the first time in mor e than 2,000 y ears. Because we ar e aiming at a secular audi ence with Whose Land? we don ’ t quote texts fr om Scriptur e. N everthel ess, the opening thr ee verses of P salm 126 exp li citl y describe that momen t in histor y: “When the Lor d br ough t back the captivity of Z i on, we wer e lik e those w ho dr eam. Then our mouth was fill ed with laugh ter , and our tongue with singing. Then they said among the nati ons, ‘The Lor d has done gr eat things f or them. ’ The Lor d has done gr eat things f or us, and we ar e glad.” C o u l d t h i s b e a d i r e c t f u l fi l m e n t o f p r o p h e c y ? I t h i n k s o . T h e l a t e G e r s h o n S a l a m o n , w h o w a s a m o n g t h e fi r s t I D F s o l d i e r s t o e n t e r t h e T e m p l e M o u n t o n 7 J u n e 1 9 6 7 , t h o u g h t s o t o o . H i s i n t e rv i e w , w h i c h I fi l m e d f o r J e r u s a l e m , T h e C o v e n a n t C i t y , i s r e p l a y e d i n t h i s e p i s o d e o f W h o s e L a n d ? S o o n a f t e r t h e r e c a p t u r e o f t h e O l d C i t y , h e f o u n d e d T h e T e m p l e M o u n t F a i t h f u l . Y o u w i l l n o t e t h a t a B B C fi l m c r e w w a s p r e s e n t w i t h t h e I D F s o l d i e r s a s t h e y r e j o i c e d a t t h e K o t e l ! E v e n t h e y w e r e s t u n n e d b y I s r a e l ’ s a m a z i n g v i c t o ry i n J u n e 1 9 6 7 . S a d l y , t h a t i s n o l o n g e r t h e c a s e a t a l l , a s a n e w ‘ n a r r a t i v e ’ h a s b e e n i n v e n t e d . Which is wh y it is so necessar y f or us to mak e this documentar y series— to counter the lies that are propagated through the international media, the U nited N ations, the E uropean U nion and most nations around the world. Their agenda is to disinherit the J ewish S tate of their anci en t capital city and even del egitimise their existence al together . Inspir ed by the one w hom J esus described as ‘ the father of li es ’, they ar e r ewriting histor y , and they ar e doing it ostensib l y in the name of ‘ in ternati onal la w’ . One of the r easons they ar e ab l e to get a wa y with this ‘la wfar e ’ is that ver y f ew peop l e understand the princip l es of in ternati onal la w that cl earl y back Israel ’ s l egal righ t of domi cil e and sover eign ty over all of J erusal em as well as the w ho l e of J udea and Samaria. The first two episodes of Whose Land? P art T wo— E pisodes 11 and 12—examine something that is left out of the modern - da y narrative: the illegal in vasion by the surrounding Arab nations with the sole aim of annihilating the nascent J ewish state. That would ha ve resulted in another genocide of the J ewish people just three years after the H olocaust— had the Lor d not inter vened , which H e did! The Arab intention was well documented at the time. Our team of prominent international la wyers, which includes Andrew T uck er , tells us that the in vasion, which was back ed by G reat B ritain, was a violation of Article 2 of the UN Charter , as was J or dan ’ s subsequent annexation of Israel ’ s B iblical heartland. Lik e R ussia ’ s in vasion of Ukraine, that occupation and annexation has no justification under an y doctrinal principle of international la w . I n E p i s o d e 1 3 , f o l l o w i n g I s r a e l ’ s s t u n n i n g v i c t o r y i n a d e f e n s i v e w a r , o u r t e a m o f l a w y e r s u n p a c k t h e l e g a l s i t u a t i o n . I s t h e r e p o s s e s s e d t e r r i t o r y ‘ o c c u p i e d ’ o r n o t ? I n d e e d, t h i s q u e s t i o n r e c u r s i n s u b s e q u e n t e p i s o d e s a s t h e l a w y e r s s c r u t i n i s e w h a t o b l i g a t i o n s U N R e s o l u t i o n 2 4 2 a c t u a l l y r e q u i r e s o f b o t h I s r a e l a n d i t s A r a b n e i g h b o u r s . A n d t h e n t h e r e i s t h e q u e s t i o n o f t h e s o - c a l l e d ‘ s e t t l e m e n t s ’ . A r e t h e y l e g a l o r n o t ? W h e r e d i d t h e t e r m ‘ O c c u p i e d P a l e s t i n i a n T e r r i t o r y ’ c o m e f r o m ? W h a t b a s i s d o e s i t h a v e i n i n t e r n a t i o n a l l a w — i f a n y ? After a long wait, the completion of the P art T wo episodes is now well on the wa y , thanks to a fund - raising drive by the Australian J ewish Association and others, who ha ve raised more than half of what is needed. B ut we still need more. Once all nine episodes are released , we will compile them into a f eature- length documentar y which will be a vailable f or public screenings. T o view all of the Whose Land? episodes released to date, please go to our website: c4israel.com.au/whose- land P a r t T h r e e o f W h o s e L a n d ? — s u b t i t l e d T w o - S t a t e S o l u t i o n ? — i s a l s o i n t h e p i p e l i n e . I t w i l l n o t o n l y e x a m i n e t h e o r i g i n s o f t h e P L O b u t e x p o s e i t s r e a l a g e n d a : t h e e l i m i n a t i o n o f t h e J e w i s h s t a t e . W e w i l l a l s o s e e k t o a n s w e r t h e q u e s t i o n , w h y a r e t h e n a t i o n s o f t h e w o r l d s o h e l l - b e n t o n c r e a t i n g a h o s t i l e ‘ S t a t e o f P a l e s t i n e ’ i n I s r a e l ’ s h i s t o r i c h e a r t l a n d ? D o e s i t h a v e a n y j u s t i fi c a t i o n i n i n t e r n a t i o n a l l a w ? I t m o s t c e r t a i n l y h a s n o j u s t i fi c a t i o n i n t h e S c r i p t u r e s . E v e n t h o u g h w e a r e n o t e n g a g i n g i n a s t u d y o f t h e B i b l e i n W h o s e L a n d ? w e c a n n e v e r t h e l e s s s e e t h e n a t i o n s o f t h e w o r l d c h a r g i n g h e a d l o n g t o w a r d s t h e f u l fi l m e n t o f t h e fi n a l t h r e e c h a p t e r s o f t h e p r o p h e c y o f Z e c h a r i a h . M o r e t h a n h a l f o f t h e f u n d s n e e d e d f o r t h e c o m p l e t i o n o f t h e P a r t T w o e p i s o d e s h a s b e e n r e c e i v e d , a n d w e a r e p l e a s e d t o g i v e y o u a l i n k t o E p i s o d e 1 3 o n t h e S i x - D a y W a r o f 1 9 6 7 , w h i c h r u n s 1 3 m i n u t e s : h t t p s : / / v i m e o . c o m / 8 4 1 2 6 7 4 3 5 / d e f 0 9 7 4 1 3 8 H ugh Kitson is a documentary filmmak er who has made many films about I sr ael. H is films about the British M andate for P alestine include ‘The F orsak en P romise ’ —a three-part series ( H atikvah F ilm T rust 2006) and ‘W hose Land?’ presented by C olonel R ichar d K emp (Title Deed M edia 2017 )—see www . whoseland. tv . T o c ontact H ugh Kitson please email him: hugh.kitson@titledeedmedia.c om T h e S i x - D a y W a r E p i s o d e o f W h o s e L a n d ? Andrew T uck er in Whose Land? W estern W all 7 J une 1 967 S ix - D ay W ar — Israeli paratroopers stand in front of the W estern W all. | Photo: Wikimedia Commons

23. B ibli ca l Insi gh ts 13 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 Maxine Carli l l n I CEJ A ustra lia H ow amazing that in 1 980, God ask ed a group of pra ying believers residing at the time in J erusalem to be His agents of fulfilling prophecy . Zechar iah 14:16- 1 9 speaks of a time in the future, seemingly in the M essianic age, when the nations will be required to go up to J erusalem to celebrate the F east of T abernacles. “ And it shall come to pass that ever yone who is left of all the nations which came against J erusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lor d of hosts, and to k eep the F east of T abernacles.” There will even be the withholding of rain f or the nation that does not go! In 1 980, nations began to ascend to J erusalem to celebrate the F east! Astonishingly the church has by and large ignored this yearly appointment with the Lor d , which, f ollowing the dramatic events that usher in M essiah ’ s appearing, will remain as a commandment. And yet it is the culmination of R edemption! J ust as P assover is the beginning of R edemption. The Beginning of R edem ption P assover celebrates deliverance from sla ver y . The dramatic E x odus from E gypt required only that the Israelite sla ves had to put their trust in the blood of the lamb . Deliverance was by God ’ s Hand alone. Our redemption begins when we put our trust in the P assover Lamb , as 1 C or inthians 5:7 indicates. If P assover is freedom from a sinful lif e, P entecost ( Shavuot ) is accepting a holy lif e. I t is another milestone in the redemption stor y . Confirming of R edem ption When the people of Israel arrived at the f oot of M t S inai fifty da ys after their deliverance, they were free people but freedom without responsibility is not true freedom. There they received God ’ s divine instructions, the T orah, to ensure that as people in covenant with a holy God , they would live holy lives. That event is remembered each year . I t was on the da y of Shavuot that God poured out the H oly S pirit on the first M essianic believers. That da y also, the first fruits were off ered to the Lor d to celebrate the har vest. A wonderful symbol of the outworking of redemption in our lives as we produce the fruit of the S pirit. “ And do not grieve the H oly S pirit of God , by whom you were sealed f or the da y of redemption.” E phesians 4. 30 Com pletion of R edem ption T h e u n f u l fi l l e d f e a s t , T a b e r n a c l e s ( S u k k o t ) , l o o k s b a c k e a c h y e a r t o G o d ’ s p r o v i s i o n a n d p r o t e c t i o n f o r H i s p e o p l e i n t h e i r w a n d e r i n g s . T h e f r a g i l e s h e l t e r s t h a t a r e e r e c t e d a n d l i v e d i n f o r s e v e n d a y s a r e a r e m i n d e r t h a t o u r s e c u r i t y i s n o t i n s e e m i n g l y s o l i d c i r c u m s t a n c e s a n d m a t e r i a l c o m f o r t s b u t i n G o d a l o n e . I t i s a l s o t h e fi n a l i n g a t h e r i n g o f t h e h a r v e s t , a n d l o o k s f o r w a r d t o t h e fi n a l r e d e m p t i o n . R evelation 21:3 “ And I hear d a loud voice from hea ven sa ying, “ Behold , the tabernacle of God is with men, and H e will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.” In a wa y , we cannot imagine with our finite minds, we will be dwelling with God and H e with us. N ow that’ s a celebration to look f or war d to. J oining the Celebra tion N ow F or over 40 years, there has been a f oretaste of the future millennial global celebration. I t began in a school with about 1,000 Christians from diff erent nations. Over the years, it has swelled up to 8,000. The presence of so man y from the nations bringing messages of encouragement and friendship has blessed Israelis, who are more used to hearing messages of hate. Those who know the H ebrew Scriptures see prophecy coming true. “ Our prophets declare that in the M essianic times, all gentiles will come to J erusalem to celebrate this f east with us. When you ask ed me toda y , I hear d the f ootsteps of M essiah.” ex claimed a senior Rabbi in wonder when ask ed by those Christians back in 1 980 about a Christian celebration of S ukkot. Our distant lands of Australia and N ew Zealand and others in the Oceania region ha ve been represented among the nations year after year . And twice, from the tropical north and the desert lands of Australia, our F irst N ations people ha ve tak en a sacrifice of praise and worship to J erusalem and presented it bef ore the assembled pilgrims. P salm 97:1, “The Lor d reigns; Let the earth rejoice; Let the multitude of isles be glad!” And so, isolated islands, even to the ends of the earth, ha ve rejoiced in J erusalem during S ukkot. Lik e the island of F iji! This year f or the first time, an entire charter plane will fly directly from S uva to T el A viv , carr ying a recor d number of pilgrims. R emarkably , there ha ve been reports of unexpected but welcome falls of rain in countries where citizens of that countr y ha ve been worshipping at the F east, including Australia. C e l e b r a t i n g t h e F e a s t o f T a b e r n a c l e s h a s b e e n e a g e r l y e m b r a c e d b y m a n y C h r i s t i a n s w h o u n d e r s t a n d t h e j o y i t r e p r e s e n t s . S u k k o t f o l l o w s a t i m e o f d e e p s o u l s e a r c h i n g , c o n f e s s i o n a n d r e p e n t a n c e d u r i n g a p e r i o d o n t h e b i b l i c a l c a l e n d a r k n o w n a s t h e D a y s o f A w e , e n d i n g w i t h t h e s o l e m n D a y o f A t o n e m e n t . T h e d a y s t h e y p r o p h e t i c a l l y p o i n t t o , t h e o n e s t h a t b e l o n g t o ‘ t h e g r e a t a n d t e r r i b l e d a y o f t h e L o r d ’ ( J o e l 2 : 1 1 ) w i l l a l s o b e f o l l o w e d w i t h r e j o i c i n g u n d r e a m t o f , a s a l l ‘ t e a r s w i l l b e w i p e d a w a y ’ . H ow blessed to ha ve the opportunity to be part of that amazing gift the Lor d handed to gentile Christians begin a prophetic process. W e surely do not want to neglect such a gift. C elebrate it this year . Pra y that churches will a wak e to the significance and joy of this wonderful f east that points to the final redemption f or which we yearn. “ N ot only that, but we also who ha ve the first fruits of the S pirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting f or the adoption, the redemption of our body .” R omans 8:23 Scan the QR c ode to watch and r ead mor e about the F east of T abernacles and our annual Aussie T our or phone 03 8001 6001 to chat with us about how you can still join the nations in J erusalem this year! A M a n d a t e f r o m H e a v e n F east of T abernacles event in J erusalem, 2021. | Photos: ICEJ Australia

33. 15 F r o m Our Pr o jects P art of our mission is to c omf ort I srael and the J ewish people thr ough pra yer and action. I f you would lik e to support one of our pr ojects you can c omplete the c oupon on page 16 or mak e an online donation. Thank you very much f or your support! A l i y a h Aliyah is the H ebr ew wor d f or the r eturn of the J ewish people to I srael. W e support Aliyah mainly fr om U kraine ( and the f ormer Soviet U nion ), but also fr om I ndia and F ranc e. F urthermor e, we help new immigrants (in H ebr ew: olim ) to integrate into I sraeli society . H i n e n i " S o u p " K i t c h e n W e help the poor of I srael, by pr oviding them with f ood. W e do this in partnership with the H ineni C enter in J erusalem, headed by Benjamin Philip . Y our gift f or the soup kitchen goes dir ectly to the pur chase of f ood. H o l o c a u s t " S u r v i v o r s W e support impoverished H olocaust survivors in I srael and U kraine thr ough various pr ojects which pr ovide assistanc e to survivors of the H olocaust. Those survivors ar e elderly and will not be among us f or long, and ther e is a gr owing demand f or practical assistanc e. C h r i s t i a n " F r i e n d s " o f " I s r a e l i " C o m m u n i t i e s " ( C F O I C ) Y ou can support the J ewish c ommunities in J udea and Samaria, the heart of B iblical I srael. The main purpose is to enc ourage the people in the B iblical H eartland and to show them that ther e ar e Christians thr oughout the world who support them and shar e the belief that the ar eas of J udea and Samaria ar e part of I srael’ s inheritanc e. F o o d " P a r c e l " C a m p a i g n " U k r a i n e W e distribute f ood par c els amongst J ewish people in U kraine. These par c els ar e handed out to H olocaust survivors, needy families, and the sick. Those f ood par c els ar e a sign of friendship that demonstrates your support f or our J ewish br others and sisters and that they ar e not alone. A r a b " C h r i s t i a n s Lif e f or Christians in Bethlehem is often not easy . Christians f or I srael supports the First Baptist Chur ch of R ev N aim Khoury in Bethlehem and J erusalem. The members of this chur ch spr ead the gospel among Arabs and shar e their love and heart f or I srael and the J ewish people. F or c ountry-specific or further information on our projects, go to our website, www .c4isr ael.c om.au O v e r v i e w o f o u r p r o j e c t s H e l p i n g i n a l l C i r c u m s t a n c e s A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 K oen C arlier about the situation in Ukraine (Left) K oen Carlier distributes f ood parcels in Zaporizhzhia thanks to your support. (Right) Often times our team in Ukraine is confronted with the devastation and miser y of war as they visit people in towns and villages to provide f ood parcels, or pick them up f or departure to Israel | Photos: C4I M a r i j k e T e r l o u w n Christians for Israel N etherlands E ver since the first ner ve- racking weeks f ollowing the outbreak of war in Ukraine in F ebr uar y 2022, hopes f or peace remain unfulfilled. T he war f orced thousands to flee the countr y , seeking saf ety . Our team continued to do their impor tant work and was sustained by your pra yers. T he situation has not improved in recent times. P eople ha ve been displaced, prices are rising, and unemployment is enormous. In these conditions, the work of our C4I team continues. K oen Carlier shares about the situation. “ P erhaps you could sa y that our work has not changed much after more than sixteen months of war . W e continue to do what we alwa ys did: help people in need , provide them with f ood , and assist with transportation to the airport when people want to immigrate to Israel. E x cept now people don ’ t lea ve from Ukraine but from M oldova. The most important thing we off er to people is hope. H ope f or the future. The fact that we are able to help , comf ort and listen is in valuable.” Why do people leave Ukraine? “ Because of the war , there are no signs of improvement, and the end of the war is not yet in sight. Apartments are damaged , and will not be repaired f or the time being, so this also doesn ’ t give people an y hope. And relatives from Israel tell them: ‘ C ome to Israel ’ . F or thousands of J ews, the war has accelerated their plans to go to Israel. E ver y week we drive to Kishenov , M oldova, two or three times to bring people to the Israeli consul f or an inter view , and shortly thereafter , they can depart f or Israel. As a result of the mobilisation la w , however , men between the ages of 18 and 60 are not allowed to lea ve. Theref ore, man y families wait and sta y in Ukraine. When the mobilisation ends, we expect that at least a f ew thousand people will want to lea ve f or Israel when they are able to lea ve as a family .” K oen, at the beginning of the war , you said, “Y our prayer is the fuel that allows us to do this work .” H ow do you feel about this today ? “This was relevant back then, and it’ s still true toda y . In times of need , you help those in need. W e must not f orget that this need was already there bef ore the war . In 2014, C rimea was occupied , and the conflict started in the east of the countr y , in Lugansk and Donetsk. Then came C ovid1 9, and now worse: a war in which the whole countr y is in volved. W e ask f or God ’ s protection and security . Of course, that is no guarantee. So we should not be careless about it. The Lor d sa ys: ‘ I will call the nations to bring M y people home ’ . I t does not sa y: ‘ I will call the nations when it is saf e, when it is quiet when it is summertime. ’ In other wor ds, it sa ys: under all circumstances. W e ha ve alwa ys been spared , and we see it as grace, as His protection. Because basically , an ything can happen.” S urely you must encounter a lot of suffer ing when you meet and pick up people. “Y ou hear about what is happening on the news. And at the same time, you pick people up from apartments that ha ve been destroyed. This really aff ects you as a person. Y ou listen; you hear what happened. The stories about families, about sons who are no longer there, the miser y . B ut being there, helping, being able to comf ort and encourage, that really mak es a diff erence. W e sa y to the people: we don ’ t understand ever ything either , but we know that the Almighty brings you home. This is true hope.” Do you read the B ible differently than before the war ? “‘ M ost certainly! When I think of Zechar iah 2, flee from the land of the north and sa ve yourself to Z ion. This is a warning to flee, but at the same time, there is a plan B after people flee: go to Z ion. This is actually what I ha ve been experiencing since 2014 when the conflict in eastern Ukraine brok e out. The war f orced man y people to flee to Israel. G radually , the bor ders closed more since 2014.” C ould the situation get worse than it is now? “Y es, you ha ve to expect that to happen. R ussia can ’ t really go back; they started this. And if Ukraine would recapture territor y , we ha ve no idea how R ussia will react. So we live from da y to da y .” So what does that mean for the work you and the team do? “ Bef ore the war , we were well prepared. And we still are. W e ha ve f ood supplies; we ha ve fuel storage; we ha ve a warehouse, a generator , shelters and enough minibuses. If something happens and there is a new flood of J ewish refugees, we can help them.” I f you would lik e to support our work among the needy J ews in U kraine, please c omplete the c oupon on the back of this newspaper . ... y ou pick peo ple u p from a partmen ts tha t ha ve been destro yed. This rea l l y affects y ou as a person. I S R A E L Celebrating

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: 58 655 970 086 Christians for Israel Australia Foundation Ltd. 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 Cheque/Money Order Credit Card *CVC Cardholder’s signature: Over the Phone 07 3088 6900 Securely Online c4israel.com.au Ian Worby National Leader And the Christians for Israel Australia team Bank Transfer BSB: 014-279 ACC: 433641954 REF: Member Number To make your donation and become an ‘Adopt a Holocaust Survivor’ sponsor, please visit c4israel.com.au/adopt and follow these four easy steps: Step 1: Enter Your Details Enter your name and login email address used to access your C4I Donor Portal. Step 2: Select Period Select the length of your sponsorship: • 1 Year (12 Payments of $45) • 2 Years (24 Payments of $45) Step 3: Register Your Card Register your Credit/Debit card to generate a payment token. Step 4: Await Advice C4I will allocate your adoptee and set up a recurring payment as per Step 3. You will then receive an email notification with the details. How You Can Adopt a Holocaust Survivor Moreover, if you are able, I invite you to support Jewish individuals on a monthly basis, particularly those still grappling with the long-term consequences of the Holocaust. These survivors, due to age and physical limitations, are unable to make Aliyah, but you can make a difference in their lives by Adopting a Holocaust Survivor. With a commitment of just $45 a month for either 12 or 24 months, you can practically show the love of God to these brave souls, who carry profound memories of past traumas and loneliness. Your sponsorship will provide crucial support for medication, food, clothing, and repairs, all organized and managed by our dedicated local team in Ukraine. As a sponsor, you will also receive a biography of the person you support, allowing you to forge a personal connection with their journey. Together, as the Lord leads and enables us, we can make a profound impact on their lives. I’m reminded of the wisdom of Proverbs 19:17, which tells us that “whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will reward them for what they have done.” (NIV) May God bless you abundantly as you give, and may His love shine through your every act of kindness. In His Strong and Mighty Name, P.S. Your support matters! With just $350, you can bring a Jew home to Israel or $45/month to adopt a Holocaust survivor. Make a lasting impact on Jewish lives in Ukraine, showing them the love and hope of God for His people. Thank you for your kindness. (during office hours)

16. I srael & the N a ti o ns Co nf er ence 6 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 J o hannes Gerl o ff n These chapters are famous because they speak about ‘ J acob ’ s T rouble ’ ( 30:7 ) and the unreliability and sin of the nation of Israel. At the same time, however , they describe God ’ s everlasting love and loyalty ( 31:2 ) and a N ew C ovenant with the house of Israel and the house of J udah ( 31:30 ). Thus, the people of Israel ma y be called a ‘ stubborn daughter’ ( 31:21 ) but several times also ‘virgin Israel ’ ( 31:3,20 ) in the same context. Against this background , the one true, living God , through the prophet J eremiah, gives the J ewish people a guarantee of existence that mak es it simply impossible f or an y B ible believer to even consider an existential threat to Israel as a realistic option ( 31:34-36). F rom a biblical point of view , it is cr ystal clear that an y hatred of the J ewish people never ever came close to extinguishing God ’ s chosen ones but rather alwa ys threatened the ver y existence of Israel ’ s enemies. This is not only obvious by looking at the fate of biblical personalities lik e Pharaoh, Balaam or Haman. I t is clear by examining the situation of the sworn enemies of the J ewish people in modern times. The main theme of J eremiah 30-32, however , is the prospect of the people of Israel returning to the land of Israel and the re-building of modern towns and cities on their original, ancient debris hills ( 30:18 — the actual archaeological technical term ‘ tell ’ is used here ). Describing these events, the text speaks of ver y specific places and gives astonishingly exact location details— whether we do understand them or not. The prophet’ s emphasis is, actually , that this development is not the result of human eff orts but the sovereign Lor d ’ s dealing with His land and His chosen people. Repeatedly , J eremiah emphasises the desire of our C reator’ s heart: to dwell among His chosen nation so that “ I will be God f or all the families of Israel and they will be a people to M e ” ( 30:25; 31:32 ). In chapter 32, the prophet J eremiah is ask ed by the Lor d to do something absolutely crazy: to buy from his uncle the hereditar y property of their family— even though he had just prophesied that the whole of the countr y would be devastated by the Babylonians. Looking at the overall scenario, an y real estate expert would ha ve thought J eremiah to be absolutely out of his mind. J eremiah wrote these texts during the last da ys of the ancient Kingdom of J udah, just a f ew weeks or even da ys bef ore the final conquest of the Land of Israel by the Babylonians. S pecifically , the prophet is told to “write f or yourselves all the wor ds that I ha ve spok en to you on a book scroll ” ( 30:2 ) and promised: “ In the end of the da ys ” — i.e. in the end times!—“you will understand this ” ( 30:24 ). Living in the modern state of Israel at the beginning of the 21st centur y , some of J eremiah ’ s statements look amazingly up to date. The serious question arises: Am I illegitimately transf erring an ancient text into our postmodern times? Or do we actually see the hand of God at work in our time, as in har dly an y time bef ore? And if, indeed , the one, true, living God , who revealed Himself as God of Israel, is at hand and active toda y , does H e call us into action in the framework of this scenario, even if this might look as crazy and as out of mind as J eremiah ’ s actions two and a half millennia ago? J e r e m i a h 3 0 - 3 2 P ete Stu ck en n F or over a hundred years now , the world has been eyewitness to a remarkable phenomenon: from a histor y of almost nineteen centuries of being scattered across the globe, an ancient people is returning to their covenanted homeland. I t began with just a trickle, then a growing stream, now tens of thousands each year . Ebenezer Operation E x odus has had a front- row seat in beholding this modern -da y miracle and participating in its outworking. During the first G ulf W ar , the ministr y’ s f ounder , G usta v Scheller , was taking part in the International Pra yer C onf erence in J erusalem in 1 991. H e already believed that God wanted the J ewish people to return to their homeland in fulfilment of the ancient biblical prophecies. N ow , when they were under attack , and the conf erence delegates were pra ying in a bomb shelter , G usta v sensed that God was urging him to start doing something practical to help bring them home. W ithin the same year , the fledgling ministr y was able to sponsor flights from B udapest, bringing 720 olim to Israel. A momentous occasion. The next year , G usta v and his team chartered a ship f or three sailings from Odessa in Ukraine to Haifa. I t was the first time a direct shipping route had been established between Ukraine and Israel and was f ollowed by man y more sailings over the ensuing decade. Ha ving started with just three people, Ebenezer now has a team numbering over 300, man y of them volunteers, working in the field and represented in over 50 nations. Ha ving been born out of a pra yer conf erence, pra yer has remained at the heart of the ministr y . The ministr y has helped well over 200,000 J ewish people mak e Aliyah ( return to Israel) from across man y nations: R ussia, Ukraine, Eastern and W estern E urope, C entral Asia, N orth and South America, India and Australia. H umanitarian aid distribution to needy J ewish families is a vital part of our programme. Our projects include medicines f or sur vivors of the Shoah and school supplies and winter shoes f or children. T h e R e t u r n o f t h e E x i l e s B nei M enashe arriving in Israel after making Aliyah, October 2021 DEREK PRINCE MINISTRIES & EBENEZER OPERA TION EX ODUS PRESENT SA TURD A Y 2 3 S E P T E M B E R ‘ 2 3 9.00am-1.00pm CONFERENCE VENUE Servant s of Jesus C entr e 15 P ark Road Sev en Hills NS W 214 7 ISRAEL & THE NA TIONS C ONFERENCE RE GISTER ONLINE A T www .der ekprinc e.c om.au PER PERSON $ 3 0 Johannes Gerloff writ es and t eaches on curr ent aff airs concerning Isr ael and it s surr ounding countries and theological issues f or media in Germany , Austria, Switz erland and the Cz ech Republic. He has author ed sev er al book s. Johannes Gerloff ’ s lectur es include up-dat es on the curr ent situation in the Middle East, but also t eachings concerning Christian-Jewish r elations and the meaning of the Jewish people and their r eturn t o the Land of Isr ael fr om a biblical perspectiv e. P et e Stuck en, who comes fr om a business backgr ound, serv es as Chairman of the Ebenez er Asia P acific Boar d. His wif e, Fiona, serv es as Pr ay er C oor dinat or f or the Asia P acific Region. They ar e based on the C entr al C oast, NS W , and hav e f our adult childr en and thr ee gr andchildr en. Since 2008, P et e has been speaking t o Christian chur ches and gr oups acr oss nations of Asia P acific, r aising awar eness in the Christian community of our r esponsibility t o stand in friendship and support of the nation of Isr ael and our o wn Jewish communities and t o be r eady t o help whenev er the need arises.

27. 9 Histo ry o f the Ch ur ch S i gns o f F ai th B y K ees de V r eugd L o e l a v In this series , ‘ Signs of F aith ’ , objects , pr oc edur es and c onc epts that expr ess Jewish faith ar e explained and discussed . W e find a r emarkable pr ec ept f or the F east of T abernacles in Leviticus 23 : 40 : “ N ow on the first da y you shall tak e f or yourselves the fruit of beautiful tr ees , palm branches and boughs of leafy tr ees and willows of the br ook , and you shall r ejoic e bef or e the Lor d your G od f or seven da ys . ” Y ou must ha ve seen it bef or e , the palm branch and the citrus fruit as attributes of the F east of T abernacles . On the seven da ys of the f east , every morning during morning pra y ers , the bundle of branches is tak en in the right hand and the lemon in the left hand and moved back and f orth in six dir ections : east ( f orwar d ) , south ( right) , west ( back ) , north ( left) , up and down , as a symbol of G od ’ s universal rule . M oving the lulav is associated with pra y ers f or rain , but the lulav is also tak en in hand during the singing of the H allel (P salms 113 -118 and 136 ) . P salm 118 c ontains the wor ds “ H osha ’ na — O Lor d , do sa ve , we beseech Y ou” ( verse 25) . On the seventh da y , while those wor ds ar e sung , the lulav is walk ed ar ound the bima ( the elevation wher e T or ah is r ead ) seven times . T his is called H osha ’ na r abba , the ‘ gr eat H osanna ’ . What fruits and branches ar e used ? T raditionally , the etrog citron ( etrog actually being the A ramaic wor d f or beautiful , desirable ) is tak en f or the fruit of beautiful tr ees . T he palm branch c omes fr om the date palm (Hebrew : T amar ) . T he wor d loelav f or palm branch c omes fr om post- Biblical times . In c ommon parlanc e , it also denotes the whole bundle of branches , which further c onsists of a branch of myrtle ( the ‘ leafy tr ee ’ ) and a willow branch . T hese so - called ‘f our species ’ tak e on all kinds of symbolic meanings . One of the oldest homiletic explanations in the Jewish tradition is that the etrog stands f or a man ’ s heart , the myrtle f or his eye , the willow f or his mouth and the lulav f or his spine ( showing backbone ) . Why these f our ? Ac c or ding to Maimonides , they wer e the most r eadily a vailable pr oducts in the land of Israel , r ecalling the f ertility of the land . T hey symbolise natur e , rain , the cycle of the seasons , and things shar ed by all humanity . A nd thus , writes R abbi J onathan S acks , they r epr esent the universal meaning of the f east . | Photo : Shutterstock R ev Co rnelis Kan t n Ex ecuti ve Director | Christians for Israel In terna tiona l In this series of ar ticles R ev C ornelis Kant explains how it happened that the role of Israel was seen as insignificant in the development of our Christian faith and in the histor y of Christian theology . A f t e r W o r l d W a r I I , t h e e ff e c t s o f a n t i s e m i t i s m a n d t h e d e e p t r a g e d y o f t h e H o l o c a u s t a r e s l o w l y p e r m e a t i n g t h e p o p u l a t i o n s o f W e s t e r n E u r o p e a n d b e y o n d . H o w c o u l d s i x m i l l i o n s J e w s b e h o r r i b l y m u r d e r e d i n t h e h e a r t o f C h r i s t i a n E u r o p e , j u s t b e c a u s e t h e y w e r e J e w s ? I n t h e 1 9 6 0 s a n d 1 9 7 0 s , c h u r c h e s w e r e a l s o s l o w l y b e c o m i n g a w a r e o f h o w c e n t u r i e s - o l d a n t i - J e w i s h t h e o l o g y c o n t r i b u t e d t o t h i s t r a g e d y . T h i s a w a r e n e s s , a l o n g w i t h t h e m i r a c u l o u s r e s t o r a t i o n o f t h e s t a t e o f I s r a e l i n 1 9 4 8 , c o n t r i b u t e d t o a r e n e w e d p e r s p e c t i v e o n J e w s a n d I s r a e l . M a n y c h u r c h e s h a v e c o n f e s s e d g u i l t f o r t h e i r f a i l u r e s t o w a r d s t h e J e w s , b o t h i n t h e i r t h e o l o g y a n d i n s t a n d i n g u p f o r t h e J e w s d u r i n g t h e N a z i r e g i m e . N o w e l l - i n t e n t i o n e d p e r s o n w o u l d w a n t a n d d a r e c a l l t h e m s e l v e s a n a n t i s e m i t e t o d a y . Dialogue During the Second V atican C ouncil (1 962- 1 965), the Roman Catholic Church renounced , in its document N ostra A etate , the age-old accusation that all J ews are guilty of the death of J esus. Churches came out with statements acknowledging that they had in the past considered J ews and J udaism in a wrong wa y . N ew working groups were created to engage in dialogue with J ews to learn from each other . Learning houses and Israeli organisations were established in numerous churches. In man y countries and churches worldwide, there is now a long- term and deep dialogue between Christians and church leaders on the one hand and J ews and J ewish rabbis on the other . These new and impressive developments in the relationship between J ews and Christians ha ve nevertheless not been able to prevent the fact that, in practice, replacement theology is still prominent within most churches. T rue, there are churches that, even in their church or der , speak of an ( unfailing) connection with the people of Israel, yet you cannot sa y that the classical wa y of looking at J ews and Israel among pastors and church members has thus disappeared. On the contrar y , man y Christians in all churches consciously believe in Israel ’ s continued place in God ’ s Salvation plan with the world , but they probably belong to a minority . F or man y pastors and church members, Israel and the J ewish people ha ve little or no significance an ymore in their personal faith or theological understanding. This is evidenced by the fact that Israel can count on fierce debates within churches. Israel has even become a sensitive topic within man y churches. Man y pastors pref er to a void the topic of Israel to a void divisions within the church community . R eplacemen t Theology R enewed The traditi onal wa y of l oo king at J ews and Israel, r ep lacemen t theo l ogy , has undergone a pr of ound change. Over the cen turi es, the classi c wa y of thinking was: the J ews ha ve r ejected and kill ed J esus, and so the covenan t between God and the J ewish peop l e has been br o k en. They ar e no l onger God ’ s chosen peop l e. The Christian ch ur ch has become the ( new ) peop l e of God. J ews ar e ex cl uded fr om God ’ s eternal sal vati on unl ess they r epen t, get baptised and join the Christian ch ur ch. Being a J ew and J udaism ar e meaningl ess. The all eged br eak between God and the J ewish peop l e has the character of punishmen t. This perspective has changed, parti cularl y after WWII. R ep lacemen t theo l ogy , or beli eving without Israel, is no l onger primaril y based on the idea of punishmen t among the vast majority of beli evers toda y . I t is now based on the perspective that Israel onl y had a temporar y r o l e in God ’ s sal vati on p lan. God started His sal vati on p lan f or the world with one man, Abraham, and one nati on, the J ewish peop l e. B ut it has been God ’ s in ten ti on fr om the beginning to incl ude the w ho l e world and all mankind in His sal vati on. The demar cati on to the bor ders of Israel and the J ewish peop l e was then temporar y . W ith the coming of the pr omised M essiah and Sa vi our , J esus Christ, God ’ s off er of sal vati on by grace wen t out to the w ho l e world and all mankind. W ith the commissi on of the apostl es to the ends of the world, the unique positi on of Israel and the J ewish peop l e then came to an end. Israel is th us no l onger God ’ s chosen peop l e because God ’ s el ecti on has br oadened to the w ho l e world, accor ding to this r enewed concepti on of r ep lacemen t theo l ogy . B e l i e v i n g W i t h o u t I s r a e l A fter the H olocaust— P art 6 A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 ‘Shoes on the Danube bank ’ — M emorial of the victims of the H olocaust on the bank of the D anube in B udapest, H ungar y . | Photo: Shutterstock R e p l a c e m e n t t h e o l o g y , o r b e l i e v i n g w i t h o u t I s r a e l , i s n o l o n g e r p r i m a r i l y b a s e d o n t h e i d e a o f p u n i s h m e n t a m o n g t h e v a s t m a j o r i t y o f b e l i e v e r s t o d a y . I t i s n o w b a s e d o n t h e p e r s p e c t i v e t h a t I s r a e l o n l y h a d a t e m p o r a r y r o l e i n G o d ’ s s a l v a t i o n p l a n . I S R A E L Celebrating

1. If undelivered return to: Christians for Israel Australia PO Box 1508 Springwood QLD 4127 100001451 PRINT POST POSTAGE PAID AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIAN EDITION EMAIL: info@c4israel.com.au PHONE: 07 3088 6900 ABN: 58 655 970 086 $ ____________ MY TOTAL DONATION TO: Christians for Israel Australia Foundation See over for credit card and other giving options My Gift Thanks for y our financial sup port 7 August 2023 Name: _______________________________ Member Number: ___________________ Saving Jewish Lives—Your Support Matters! Dear <first_name>, LeN0823 Yes Ian, I’d like to give a special one-off tax-deductible donation towards... continued over... Need to change your address or Newspaper order? Your latest edition of Israel & Christians 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/ web/signup and follow the instructions. “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” —Galatians 6:10 I have some truly wonderful news to share with you—our efforts to support the lonely and needy in Nikolayev, Ukraine, a city still enduring constant shelling, have been met with an outpouring of love, prayer, and generosity from supporters like you at C4I Australia. The impact of your compassionate giving has been so profound that C4I Ukraine has entrusted the city of Nikolayev entirely to Australian support. Together, we are providing hope and comfort to people facing immense challenges in this besieged city. You can read heart-warming stories of those from Nikolayev receiving the care and support they so desperately need on page 16 of your included Israel & Christian’s Today newspaper. We thank God for His loving kindness in making these initiatives possible and we celebrate with every one of you who have wholeheartedly supported our needy Jewish brothers and sisters. Your heartfelt contributions have and continue to make a significant difference, but the task at hand remains far from complete, and the need is still great. If you can, I humbly request that you prayerfully consider making a one-time donation to help more Jews make Aliyah to their homeland in Israel. For only $350, you can play a pivotal role in bringing one Jew home, offering them a fresh start and a future filled with hope. With $1250, you can help five Jews embark on this hope-filled journey, and for $6250, you can make it possible for an entire busload of 25 Jews to make Aliyah. $ Aliyah: ̈ $350=1 person ̈ $1250=5 people ̈ $6250=25 people __________ $ Food Parcels ($25 per parcel–see over for what's included) __________ $ General Donation (Admin, Print + Post Costs) __________ *please don't use staples*

28. 10 Theol ogy J o hannes Gerl o ff n Theologian, J ourna list, Lecturer & A uthor T his is par t twelve in a series of ar ticles based on the book R ejoice, Y ou N ations, with H is P eople, by J ohannes Gerloff. P aul declares his love f or the people of Israel ( R omans 9:1-3 ), the riches of the chosen people ( R omans 9:4-5 ) and God ’ s absolute sovereignty ( R omans 9:6-33 ) as the basis of his theology regar ding Israel. N ow , he emphasises a f ourth fundamentally crucial point: B rothers, m y hear t’ s desire and pra yer to the [ one, tr ue ] God f or them [is ] that they ma y be sa ved. ( R omans 10:1 ) The Apostle expresses his ‘heart’ s desire ’ in or der to put the cr y of his heart to his H ea venly F ather into wor ds: “That they ma y be sa ved!” P aul does not explain what his J ewish kinsmen are to be sa ved from. H e lea ves it to his readers to find this out through their own study of the Scriptures. In the letter to the R omans, ‘ salvation ’ describes the turning a wa y from all ‘ ungodliness ’ and the preser vation ‘ from God ’ s wrath ’ . Salvation is the restoration of the ‘ communion with God ’ that was destroyed by man ’ s sin. C ommunion with God is ‘lif e ’ . In contrast, sin, as separation from God , brings about ‘ death ’ ( R omans 6:23 ). W e ’ll ha ve to k eep this important obser vation in mind as we approach R omans 11:15, where the term ‘lif e from the dead ’ demands an explanation. The basic intention of R omans 10:1- 13 is to explain this personal dimension of salvation. ‘ H ow shall I be reconciled with God?’ is the question of ever y human being who has experienced “how evil and bitter it is f or you to f orsak e the Lor d , your God ” ( J eremiah 2:1 9 ). I t is this personal question that P aul has in mind. This is underlined by P aul ’ s choice of wor ding in verse 9, where he suddenly addresses the reader in a boldly personal manner , “ ...if you conf ess with your mouth... and if you believe in your heart... you will be sa ved ”. F r o m P a u l ’ s p o i n t o f v i e w , h o w e v e r , t h e s a l v a t i o n o f a n i n d i v i d u a l h u m a n b e i n g i s i n s e p a r a b l y c o n n e c t e d w i t h t h e g r o a n i n g o f t h e w h o l e o f c r e a t i o n ( R o m a n s 8 : 2 2 - 2 3 ) . T h e r e f o r e , i t i s n o a c c i d e n t t h a t o u r p a s s a g e c o n c l u d e s w i t h a q u o t e f r o m t h e P r o p h e t J o e l i n v e r s e 1 3 . I n t h e o r i g i n a l c o n t e x t o f J o e l 2 : 3 2 , w e r e a d o f a r e d e e m i n g e v e n t t h a t s h a k e s t h e f o u n d a t i o n s o f t h e u n i v e r s e . S u n a n d m o o n a r e b e i n g c h a n g e d , a n d G o d p l e a d s t o t h e G e n t i l e n a t i o n s , “ F o r m y p e o p l e a n d f o r m y h e r i t a g e I s r a e l ” ( J o e l 3 : 2 ) . God ’ s sa ving grace not onl y gives us a pur e consci ence in the pr esen t and all ows some of the el ect to en ter in to His Kingdom. God ’ s f or eto ld r edempti on con tains the power to cr eate a new hea ven and a new earth — in w hi ch ther e will be no tears, no death, no suff ering, no cr ying and no pain ever again ( R evelation 21:1,4 ). In B ib li cal thinking, the personal sal vati on of a singl e h uman being, the sal vati on of Israel, and the r e-cr eati on of the en tir e universe ar e indivisib l y in ter connected. R econciliation with God is only possible if a person has been redeemed from ‘ all iniquity’ — to be a part of God ’ s people which is “ zealous unto good works ” ( Titus 2:14 ). As a first obser vation regar ding the term ‘ righteousness ’, we need to k eep in mind that there are diff erent ‘ righteousnesses ’ . In our text, we read of a man ’ s ‘ own righteousness ’, which he seeks to establish, or of ‘ the righteousness which is of the la w’ ( verse 5 ) and which opposes ‘ the righteousness of faith ’ . F inally , in verse 3, the ‘ righteousness of God ’ is mentioned twice. ‘ Righteousness ’, then, is not an absolute term but a relative one. What is ‘ righteous ’ in the eyes of one person might be defined as ‘ sinful ’ by someone else. The decisive measure that defines what is ‘ righteous ’ and what is ‘ unrighteous ’ is the personality that sets the standar d. Whenever , theref ore, the term ‘ righteousness ’ appears without specification, f or example, in verses 4 and 10, it has to be explained by the context in which it appears and how it is used. The basic problem of mankind and the whole of creation is that they fall short of the glor y they should ha ve bef ore God ( R omans 3:23 ). They ha ve lost their connection with God. The relationship between C reator and creation is brok en. T oda y , human beings do not meet the standar d originally set by the C reator . God , when H e look ed at all the things H e had made, concluded , “ Behold , it is ver y good ” ( Genesis 1:31 ). In our da y , that is no longer the case. On the contrar y , “ the imagination of man ’ s heart is evil from his youth ” ( Genesis 8:21 ). Theref ore, the whole of creation has been subjected to sin and death. I t lacks the righteousness that counts bef ore God — the ‘ righteousness of God ’ . T h e O n l y W a y t o S a l v a t i o n A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 R ev Co rnelis Kan t n Ex ecuti ve Director | Christians for Israel In terna tiona l T o b i a s K r ä m e r , a t h e o l o g i a n c o n n e c t e d w i t h o u r G e r m a n b r a n c h , r e c e i v e d h i s d o c t o r a t e i n t h e o l o g y c u m l a u d e f r o m t h e U n i v e r s i t y i n B a s e l o n 5 J u n e 2 0 2 3 . H i s t h e s i s , s o m e 4 0 0 p a g e s l o n g , r e s e a r c h e s t h e o r i g i n o f C h r i s t i a n w a t e r b a p t i s m . H o w d o w e i m a g i n e t h e d e v e l o p m e n t f r o m J o h n ’ s b a p t i s m t o C h r i s t i a n b a p t i s m ? T o b i a s h a s r e s e a r c h e d t h a t q u e s t i o n i n d e t a i l . J esus, as God ’ s faithful Son and J ohn as God ’ s messenger shared the same expectation. They warned of coming judgement and waited f or the eternal kingdom of God. J esus was baptised by J ohn. This fact can har dly be overestimated. The baptism became a turning point f or J esus: J esus received the anointing of the H oly S pirit and , from then on, work ed as the M essiah ( the Anointed One ). J esus Himself ( parallel to J ohn) baptised f or a time but soon delegated baptism to his disciples ( J ohn 3:22 - 4:3 ). After His resurrection, J esus extended his commission to his disciple to include the making of disciples in a worldwide context ( M atthew 28:18- 20 ). F rom this perspective, baptism became a ‘ Christianised ’ f orm of J ohn ’ s baptism. J esus was baptised , H e Himself baptised and instructed others to baptise., I t is now in His N ame that baptism still tak es place. These are important stages in the development of Christian baptism. The origin of Christian baptism, however , lies in the baptism of the J ewish J ohn the Baptist. This is clear , not least from the title of the thesis: “ In the beginning was J ohn the Baptist.” I t also underlines the connectedness of the O ld and N ew T estaments. T obias has done an outstanding job . As an international organisation, we are proud that, once again, someone from our worldwide network has been a war ded a doctorate in theology . T obias, congratulations! W e hope that we will be able to profit a lot from your acquired knowledge. T o b i a s K r ä m e r A w a r d e d a D o c t o r a t e T obias Krämer holding his degree, standing next to his wif e. | Photo: J örn Krebs, STH Basel I S R A E L Celebrating

29. Kameel Ma jda li n Director | T each A l l N a tions Inc. H e was born a J udean but raised a Galilean. The first thirty years of His lif e were spent in an obscure village with less than three hundred inhabitants. Because of Him, His hometown has grown to 78,000 toda y . Regar ding His famous ministr y , it was also Galilean, based by the shore of what is now the most famous body of water in the world , the Sea of Galilee. Y et our King, Sa viour , and Lor d — J esus of N azareth — had an appointment in J erusalem. Indeed , H e had several, but the most important one occurred at the end of His natural lif e. While His visits to J erusalem were occasional, they were also notable. These visits started w hen J esus was eigh t da ys o ld: the time of His cir cumcisi on and then pr esen tati on to the Lor d at the temp l e in J erusal em. A simp l e sacrifi ce was off er ed of a pair of turtl e doves or two y oung pigeons. Whil e the sacrifi cial side of the visit was r outine, some extraor dinar y things happened. A man named S imeon was to ld that he would not di e bef or e seeing the Lor d ’ s Christ with his own ey es. H e pr op hesi ed that the infan t would cause the fall and rising again of man y in Israel ( Luke 2:21-35 ). After S imeon came an old prophetess Anna, daughter of Phanuel, from the obscure tribe of Asher . She pointed to this same infant as the means of redemption in J erusalem — which was accomplished nearly thirty- three years later . J e s u s ’ n e x t r e c o r d e d v i s i t w a s w h e n H e w a s t w e l v e y e a r s o l d . H i s f a m i l y t o o k H i m t o J e r u s a l e m f o r t h e f e a s t o f P a s s o v e r . W h e n t h e y r e t u r n e d t o N a z a r e t h , u n b e k n o w n t o t h e m , H e s t a y e d b e h i n d w i t h t h e t h e o l o g i c a l d o c t o r s , l i s t e n i n g t o t h e m a n d a s k i n g q u e s t i o n s . H e a s t o n i s h e d e v e ry o n e w i t h h i s w o r d s . T h e n t h e c u r t a i n d e s c e n d s b e t w e e n J e s u s a n d J e r u s a l e m , a n d w e h e a r n o t h i n g m o r e f o r e i g h t e e n y e a r s . A t t h e a g e o f t h i r t y , a t t h e J o r d a n R i v e r , t h e T r i u n e G o d — T h e H e a v e n l y F a t h e r , J e s u s , a n d t h e H o l y S p i r i t m a d e t h e i r v i s i b l e p u b l i c e a r t h l y d e b u t a t t h e s i t e o f J o h n t h e B a p t i s t ’ s m i n i s t ry . R emember that much of J esus ’ public ministr y was done along the western, north western, and northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, from Magdala on the mid - western shore to Bethsaida on the N ortheast corner of the lak e. The eastern shore was Gentile countr y; hence, the her ding of swine and the deliverance of the Gadarene demoniac. The southern half of the western shore was the area of T iberias. B uilt by ‘ that f o x’ H erod Antipas on an abandoned cemeter y , good J ews refused to live in T iberias. There is no recor d of J esus visiting the city , despite its pro ximity to His ministr y headquarters. W h e n J e s u s d i d m i r a c l e s i n G a l i l e e , t h e y w e r e u n i v e r s a l l y c e l e b r a t e d a n d a c c l a i m e d . D u p l i c a t e t h e m i r a c l e s i n J e r u s a l e m , a n d t h e L o r d r e c e i v e d, a t b e s t , a m i x e d r e s p o n s e . T h e r e w e r e t h o s e w h o r e a c t e d j u s t l i k e t h e p e o p l e o f G a l i l e e , y e t o t h e r s b e c a m e r e s e n t f u l , h a r d e n e d, a n d h a t e f u l . H i s p o p u l a r i t y i n J e r u s a l e m w a s n o t h e l p e d b y t h e c l e a n s i n g o f t h e t e m p l e a t t h e e a r l y p a r t o f H i s m i n i s t r y ( J o h n 2 : 1 3 - 2 2 ) , w i t h a n o t h e r r o u n d a f t e r H i s P a l m S u n d a y e n t r y i n t o t h e s a c r e d p r e c i n c t s j u s t d a y s b e f o r e H i s c r u c i fi x i o n . A n o t h e r e x a m p l e o f t h e m i x e d r e s p o n s e t o m i r a c l e s o c c u r r e d i n t h e s h e e p m a r k e t a t t h e p o o l o f B e t h e s d a ( J o h n 5 ) , w h e r e a m a n w i t h a n i n fi r m i t y o f t h i r t y - e i g h t y e a r s . J e s u s c a m e t o h i m a n d c o m m a n d e d t h a t h e r i s e , t a k e u p h i s b e d , a n d w a l k . I m m e d i a t e l y , h e w a s h e a l e d a n d w a s a b l e t o c o m p l y . O n l y o n e p r o b l e m : i t w a s t h e S a b b a t h d a y . T h e J e w i s h e l i t e w a s h i g h l y o ff e n d e d , n o t i m p r e s s e d , b y t h i s p o w e r f u l m i r a c l e . T h e y v i e w e d i t a s a v i o l a t i o n o f t h e S a b b a t h . T h e h e a l e d m a n w e n t o u t o f h i s w a y t o t e l l t h e m t h a t h i s h e a l e r w a s J e s u s ; f r o m t h a t p o i n t , t h e y p e r s e c u t e d t h e L o r d u n t i l t h e t i m e o f H i s d e a t h . A s i m i l a r l y m i x e d r e s p o n s e h a p p e n e d w h e n J e s u s h e a l e d t h e b l i n d m a n a t t h e P o o l o f S i l o a m ; t h e w h o l e o f J o h n 9 i s d e v o t e d t o t h i s m i r a c l e a n d t h e c o n t r o v e r s y s u r r o u n d i n g i t . This mix ed response, love- hate, double- minded attitude by J erusalem towar ds J esus was fully manif ested in the last week of His lif e. During the P alm S unda y entr y into the city , the crowd rapturously welcomed him. They called Him the ‘Son of D a vid , ’ which was tantamount to recognising Him as the M essiah — the Anointed One— and coming king. This was a threat to the current ruling J ewish religious establishment and the R oman occupying authorities. J esus took time from the adulation to view the city of J erusalem and weep , knowing its celebration of Him was brief, its soon -coming rejection of Him deadly , and its own destruction by R ome was a f ew years a wa y . A second cleansing of the temple and strif e- riddled arguments with the scribes and Pharisees, the communal temperature was raised to boiling point. His enemies would not rest until H e was destroyed. Within a f ew short da ys, J esus would be betra yed , arrested , tried , con victed , mock ed , humiliated , then crucified and buried in a new but borrowed tomb . Three da ys later , H e rose from the dead. The city of His crucifixion and ratification of the N ew C ovenant in His blood also became the dissemination centre of the glorious gospel of salvation to the ends of the earth. As it sa ys in Luke 24:47: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at J erusalem. So, from the city where it all began, in the fullness of time, H e will return. T o be continued. 11 Theol ogy B i b l i c a l R o o t s The Cost of Disci pleshi p I n my twenty years of serving the calling of J ewish-Christian r elations and studying the N ew T estament, I ha ve alwa ys been fascinated by M atthew 1 9:16-30, usually entitled “The R ich Y oung M an. ” M y pr ef err ed title f or this episode is “The R ejection to Bec ome J esus ’ D isciple. ” I t is obvious that the rich man believes in eternal lif e, known in H ebr ew as O lam H abah. This is c ontrary to the Sadduc ees, who only believed in the F ive Books of M oses and did not believe in O lam H abah sinc e ther e is no dir ect P entateuchal sour c e f or this c onc ept. A t the time of J esus, the Sadduc ees wer e one of the most influential str eams of J udaism. The anonymity of the rich man ’ s J ewish affiliation is quite shocking in a c orpus usually identifying the questioner . Although ther e is a M ishnah that states, “ All I srael ha ve a shar e to O lam H abah, ” it immediately lists the ex c eptions. These include anyone who does not believe that the r esurr ection of the dead is sour c ed in the T or ah , a person who denies that the T or ah is not divine, a her etic, and anyone who tr eats T or ah scholars with c ontempt. ( M ishnah Sanhedrin 10:1 ). I t is my c ontention that the movements of J udaism, at the time of J esus who believed in O lam H abah, wer e fully a war e of this maxim. Ther ef or e, the issue was never about gaining O lam H abah but losing it. J udaism doesn ’ t believe in the notion that onc e you ha ve O lam H abah, you alwa ys ha ve it. The initial r esponse of J esus to the rich man ma y c ome as a surprise f or some Christians, “K eep the c ommandments. ” Ther e is O lam H abah with living a T or ah lif estyle! H owever , the questions of the rich man after J esus’ s first r esponse finally r eveals how he views O lam H abah —as a get -rich-quick scheme. The rich man is looking f or that small eff ortless investment to gain a permanent guarantee of O lam H abah. The rich man is seeking that one c ommandment that shields his O lam H abah investment f or ever . J esus sees an opportunity to disciple the rich man by helping him understand that O lam H abah should never be viewed as a c ommodity but a r esponsibility . J esus was off ering the rich man discipleship at the highest level to r ealign his O lam H abah attitude. The c ost was f or the rich man to immediately see himself as a vehicle of God’ s material bounty . This is why J esus said to the rich man, “I f you wish to be c ompletely whole ( shalem ), go, sell your possessions, and give to the poor , and so you will ha ve tr easur e in hea ven. Then c ome, f ollow M e ” ( verse 21 ). The rich man had a fragmented appr oach to living an O lam H abah lif estyle, and in the end, he was unable or unwilling to bec ome ‘whole. ’ Ther ef or e, he r ejected J esus’ s off er of discipleship . I t was easier f or him to live in his c ompartmentalised world. The purpose of this lif e is to bring the Kingdom of H ea ven down to earth. O ur daily lives ar e opportunities to bring mor e of H im into this world via H is T or ah. I t is a lif elong journey . H owever , it r equir es paradigm adjustment to see that our lif e not only aff ects this world but also O lam H abah. David N ekrutman is an Orthodo x J ewish theologian involved in the sacred calling of J ewish- Christian relations for over two decades and currently serves as the I sr ael Director for The I saiah P rojects. I n 2018, M r N ekrutman rec eived his master’ s in biblical liter ature from Or al R oberts U niversity . By Dav i d N e k r u t m a n J e s u s ’ J e r u s a l e m T he H istor y of J er usalem — P art 4 The Gar den T omb in J erusalem, Israel. | Photo: Shutterstock A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 I S R A E L Celebrating

4. E d i t o r i a l 2 C o l o p h o n I sr ael & Christians T oday is the premier publication of Christians for I sr ael. M i s s i o n O u r m i s s i o n i s t o b r i n g B i b l i c a l u n d e r s t a n d i n g i n t h e C h u r c h a n d a m o n g t h e n a t i o n s c o n c e r n i n g God’ s purposes f or I srael and to pr omote c o m f o r t o f I s r a e l t h r o u g h p r a y e r a n d a c t i o n . E d i t o r i a l " T e a m Andr ew T uck er I nternational E ditor -in-Chief atuck er@c4isr ael.or g Cathy C oldicutt M anaging E ditor newspaper@c4isr ael.or g M arloes van W esting I nternational C ommunications M anager international@c4isr ael.or g I an W orby , Bryc e T urner , R ita Quartel, M arie-L ouise W eissenböck and M arijk e T erlouw S c r i p t u r e r e f e r e n c e s : T H E H O L Y B I B L E , N E W I N T E R N A T I O N A L V E R S I O N ® , N I V ® C opyright © 1 9 73, 1 9 78, 1 984, 2011 by B iblica, I nc.® U sed by permission. All rights r eserved worldwide. C 4 I " O f f i c e s Christians f or I srael I nternational Leon M eijer , Chairman R ev Willem JJ G lashouwer , P resident R ev C ornelis Kant, Ex ecutive D irector PO Bo x 1100 | 3860 BC N ijk erk, The N etherlands | T el: +31 33 422 0405 inf o@c4israel.org | www .c4israel.org The E nglish E dition of I sr ael & Christians T oday is published by the f ollowing E nglish speaking branches: Christians f or I srael - Australia I an W orby , N ational Leader PO Bo x 1508, S pringwood Q ueensland, Australia 4127 T el: +61 7 3088 6900, inf o@c4israel.c om.au www .c4israel.c om.au Christians f or I srael - N ew Z ealand B ryc e T urner , N ational Ex ecutive D irector PO Bo x 12 006, P enr ose, Auckland, N ew Z ealand 1642 T el: +64 9 525 7564, +6421 127 7214 inf o@c4israel.org.nz www .c4israel.org.nz Christians f or I srael - K or ea R ev P aul W onil J ung, D irector S uite 3, 37 Railwa y P arade, Eastwood NSW , Australia 2122 T el: +61 410 430 677 email: c4israelk or ea@gmail.c om www .c4israelk or ea.org Christians f or I srael - USA D a vid S udlow , Chairman PO Bo x 400, F r ont R o yal, V A 22630, USA usa-inf o@c4israel.org www .c4israel.us D I S C L A I M E R - A r t i c l e s p r i n t e d i n Is ra e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y e x p r e s s t h e v i e w s o f t h e i n d i v i d u a l a u t h o r s a n d d o n o t n e c e s s a r i l y r epr esent the views of the E ditors or that of the Boar d of Christians f or I srael. The printing of a r t i c l e s o r a d ve r t i s i n g i n Is ra e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y d o e s n o t n e c e s s a r i l y i m p l y e i t h e r endorsement or agr eement. ©Christians f or I srael I nternational. R epr oduction, or storage in a r etrieval system or in any other f orm, is pr ohibited without p e r m i s s i o n . P l e a s e c o n t a c t t h e M a n a g i n g E d i t o r s h o u l d y o u w i s h t o s y n d i c a t e o r r epublish any articles or materials appearing in I sr ael & Christians T oday . A ndrew Tu ck er n In terna tiona l Editor | Christians for Israel T he current crisis in the ‘ P alestinian territories’ is evidence that things are moving and shaking in the spiritual realms. W e live in a time when good and evil are coming to their fullness and the judgment of the nation ’ s approaches. T h i s w a r i n h e a v e n i s h a v i n g i t s i m p a c t o n e a r t h — i n c l u d i n g i n t h e p o l i t i c a l d o m a i n . S a t a n i s m o b i l i s i n g t h e e n e m i e s o f Z i o n t o o p p o s e H i s p u r p o s e s w i t h I s r a e l a n d t h e C h u r c h . The U nited N ati ons has become a str ongho ld of Babel. The tsunami of an ti - Israel pr opaganda is engulf ing the nati ons. P o liti cal and l egal instituti ons ar e being mobilised to destr oy the J ewish state, th us undermining all that the Lor d has achi eved over the last cen tur y in r estoring His peop l e in accor dance with His wor d. In other wor ds, the world is on a collision course with God. D e c e i v e d b y t h e e n e m y , t h e n a t i o n s o f t h e w o r l d a r e e n c o u r a g i n g t h e h o s t i l e e l e m e n t s i n P a l e s t i n i a n s o c i e t y t o u s e v i o l e n c e t o e x e r c i s e t h e i r ‘ r i g h t o f s e l f - d e t e r m i n a t i o n ’ . B e h i n d t h e s c e n e s , I r a n i s f i n a n c i n g a n d m o b i l i s i n g t h e m t o a d v a n c e t h e r e v o l u t i o n a r y a g e n d a o f t h e r e g i m e i n T e h r a n , w h i c h e s t a b l i s h e d t h e I s l a m i c R e v o l u t i o n a r y G u a r d s C o r p s ( I R G C ) i n 1 9 7 9 t o e n s u r e t h e i n t e g r i t y o f t h e I s l a m i c R e p u b l i c . A m a s s i v e o r g a n i s a t i o n i n v o l v e d i n a l m o s t e v e r y a s p e c t o f l i f e i n I r a n , t h e I R G C i s I r a n ’ s v e h i c l e t o c a r r y o u t i t s i n t e r n a t i o n a l r e v o l u t i o n a r y o p e r a t i o n s . T h e I R G C i s m a n d a t e d b y I r a n ’ s c o n s t i t u t i o n t o p u r s u e “ a n i d e o l o g i c a l m i s s i o n o f j i h a d i n t h e w a y o f A l l a h , t h a t i s , e x t e n d i n g s o v e r e i g n t y o f A l l a h ’ s l a w t h r o u g h o u t t h e w o r l d . ” R ecently , Israel was engaged in a furious f ight in J enin and is still engaged in other hotbeds of P alestinian jihad in or der to confront and eradicate the IR GC - sponsored terrorism. Israel has no choice. I t’ s an existential battle. What ar e we, the ch ur ch of Christ, call ed to do in this situati on? W e ar e not a po liti cal organisati on nor a worldl y instituti on. W e do not f igh t with earthl y weapons. N o, the iden tity and calling of the ch ur ch is hea venl y and spiritual. Essen tiall y , we ar e call ed to f igh t a spiritual war and to be a pr op heti c witness to the nati ons about the r edempti on of the world achi eved thr ough Christ and the hope of the coming Kingdom. In his letter to the E phesians, P aul explains the ‘ m yster y’ of the restored and redeemed relationship between J ews and Gentiles, achieved through J esus Christ: “ C o n s e q u e n t l y , y o u a r e n o l o n g e r f o r e i g n e r s a n d s t r a n g e r s , b u t f e l l o w c i t i z e n s w i t h G o d ’ s p e o p l e a n d a l s o m e m b e r s o f h i s h o u s e h o l d , b u i l t o n t h e f o u n d a t i o n o f t h e a p o s t l e s a n d p r o p h e t s , w i t h C h r i s t J e s u s h i m s e l f a s t h e c h i e f c o r n e r s t o n e . I n H i m , t h e w h o l e b u i l d i n g i s j o i n e d t o g e t h e r a n d r i s e s t o b e c o m e a h o l y t e m p l e i n t h e L o r d . A n d i n H i m , y o u t o o a r e b e i n g b u i l t t o g e t h e r t o b e c o m e a d w e l l i n g i n w h i c h G o d l i v e s b y h i s S p i r i t . ” ( E p h e s i a n s 2 : 1 9 - 2 2 ) “This m yster y is that through the gospel, the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body , and sharers together in the promise in Christ J esus.” ( E phesians 3:6) L a t e r , h e e x p l a i n s , “ t h e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n o f t h i s m y s t e r y , w h i c h f o r a g e s p a s t w a s k e p t h i d d e n i n G o d , w h o c r e a t e d a l l t h i n g s . H i s i n t e n t w a s t h a t n o w , t h r o u g h t h e c h u r c h , t h e m a n i f o l d w i s d o m o f G o d s h o u l d b e m a d e k n o w n t o t h e r u l e r s a n d a u t h o r i t i e s i n t h e h e a v e n l y r e a l m s , a c c o r d i n g t o H i s e t e r n a l p u r p o s e t h a t h e a c c o m p l i s h e d i n C h r i s t J e s u s o u r L o r d . I n h i m a n d t h r o u g h f a i t h i n h i m w e m a y a p p r o a c h G o d w i t h f r e e d o m a n d c o n f i d e n c e . ” ( E p h e s i a n s 3 : 9 - 1 2 ) So, we ha ve spiritual work to do - to f ight against all principalities and powers and to declare God ’ s will. B ut, of course, this has a practical application. W e must, amongst other things, intercede, support, comf ort and def end the J ewish people as the Lor d plants them in the land. G iven the growing opposition in the world ( and within the church), this work is more important than ever . P r a y e r P o i n t s I s r a e l l T his year marks not only the 75th anniversary of the State of Israel but also of the Israeli army . I t was officially established a f ew da ys after Israel declar ed its independenc e . Give thanks f or all those times when the army has suc c essfully def ended Israel . l In r ec ent times , a number of Israeli citiz ens ha ve been killed in terr or attacks . Many times they lea ve a family behind . Pra y f or c omf ort f or the ber ea ved families in this intense grief . l “ T her e has never been a da y lik e it bef or e or sinc e , a da y when the Lor d listened to a human being . Sur ely the Lor d was fighting f or Israel ! ” ( J oshua 10 : 14 ) . G od listens to J oshua when he asks f or the sun to stand still so that Israel can c ontinue fighting . Give thanks that G od f ought f or Israel then and that H e still does toda y because they ar e His beloved people . l ‘ T he wonderful thing about pra ying is that you lea ve a world of not being able to do something and enter G od ’ s r ealm wher e everything is possible ’ ( Corrie ten B oom ) . T he pra yer f or peac e f or Israel , sometimes seems lik e a pra y er too big to pra y . But with G od , all things ar e possible . Pra y f or peac e between Israel and the Palestinians and pra y f or the peac e of J erusalem . I s r a e l " & " t h e " N a t i o n s l I t is very difficult f or J ews fr om c ertain c ountries to emigrate ( mak e A liyah ) to Israel ; think of c ountries lik e Iran and C hina . Pra y that these J ews will nevertheless manage to move to Israel . l In r ec ent months , antisemitism on T witter has incr eased . It mainly involves tweets with c onspiracy theories about Jews . A ntisemitism is also rif e on other social media . Pra y f or people to stand up to this and f or antisemitic posts to be block ed . C h r i s t i a n s " f o r " I s r a e l l “ T h e u n f o l d i n g o f y o u r w o r d s g i v e s l i g h t ; i t g i v e s u n d e r s t a n d i n g t o t h e s i m p l e ” ( P s a l m 1 1 9 : 1 3 0 ) . P r a y t h a t m o r e a n d m o r e C h r i s t i a n s w i l l u n d e r s t a n d G o d ’ s c o n t i n u e d f a i t h f u l n e s s t o w a r d s I s r a e l a n d t h a t t h e y w i l l s u p p o r t a n d l o v e I s r a e l . G i v e t h a n k s f o r G o d ’ s p r o p h e t i c W o r d . F o r d a i l y P r a y e r P o i n t s, g o t o o u r w e b s i t e w w w .c 4 i s r a e l.c o m.a u T h e B a t t l e f o r J e r u s a l e m i s I n t e n s i f y i n g D ark clouds over J erusalem. | Photo: Shutterstock A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 w w w . f a c e b o o k . c o m / c 4 i s r a e l A U S I S R A E L Celebrating

17. Kingd o m F esti va l E v en t 2023 7 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 K ya l n Cumming Senior P astor of Kingdom Ch urch on the Gold Coast M icah 4:2 ( ESV ) reads: “ And man y nations shall come, and sa y: ‘ C ome, let us go up to the mountain of the Lor d , to the house of the God of J acob , that he ma y teach us his wa ys and that we ma y walk in his paths. ’ F or out of Z ion shall go f orth the la w , and the wor d of the Lor d from J erusalem.” This scripture speaks of a coming time when both J ews and Gentiles will go up together as brothers, united in M essiah, to J erusalem. W e will hear the M essiah and learn from Him about His wa ys ( appointments or f estivals— M oedim), and walk (yâlak, where we get the closely related word, H alakhah, which means ‘the way’ or ‘the walk’), in His paths. The la w ( T orah ) will go out from Z ion and touch each of the nations—bringing healing and blessing to all who hear and submit to the Kingship and governance of M essiah. Abraham f oresa w this time and stepped in by faith. The generations after sa w it also and stepped in by faith. Y et M oses, the great first redeemer of Israel, look ed ahead and sa w a time of darkness and a time of exile f or the J ewish people. Despite the darkness of the future, the prospects of wandering, bitter oppression and persecution, M oses prophesied a da y of great restoration. His prophecy , f ound in Deuteronomy 30, determines that the sun would yet rise again on J acob . H owever , to see the fulfilment of that da y , an active restoration needs to tak e place. B ut a restoration of what? His description of the f ollowing events becomes a roadmap f or those who want to enter by faith and participate in the narrative and adventure of restoration. This roadmap to seeing M essiah come is not one of passive musing but active engagement. The expectation, as has been since M oses’ time f or the J ewish people and those grafted into Israel by faith, is that we expect M essiah toda y and mak e ever y eff ort f or His coming toda y . If it’ s not toda y , then tomorrow will be that toda y . Deuteronomy 30:3-5 ( ESV ): “Then the Lor d your God will restore your f ortunes and ha ve mercy on you, and H e will gather you again from all the peoples where the Lor d your God has scattered 4 you. If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of hea ven, from there the Lor d your God will gather you, and 5 from there H e will tak e you. And the Lor d your God will bring you into the land that your fathers possessed , that you ma y possess it. And H e will mak e you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers ( and then in verses 9b to 10 ) . F or the Lor d will again tak e delight in prospering you, as H e took delight in 10 your fathers, when you obey the voice of the Lor d your God , to k eep His commandments and His statutes that are written in this Book of the La w , when you turn to the Lor d your God with all your heart and with all your soul. M oses’ Prophecy S peaks of: Ÿ The people of Israel ( their f ortune and blessing); Ÿ The land of Israel and the return of the J ewish people; Ÿ O bedience and honour of the T orah; Ÿ His wa ys (M oedim) or H oly f estivals— Sabbath, P assover , F east of U nlea vened B read , F irst F ruits, P entecost, F east of T rumpets, D a y of Atonement, F east of T abernacles, and The E ighth D a y C elebration. T oda y , we are witnessing the unra velling of the prophetic future that Abraham, Isaac, J acob , and M oses had imagined , hoped , and longed f or . In the latter half of the nineteenth centur y , the J ewish people were mobilised to en vision an independent homeland , and by the mid - twentieth centur y , the ph ysical and sovereign bor ders of the H oly Land were etched onto world maps. The prophecy is being fulfilled. Although ‘ replacement theology’ has been the prevalent and mainstream teaching across Christian churches (which has unf ortunately shaped and influenced how Christians ha ve treated the J ewish people ), we are witnessing the commencement of a shift towar ds understanding the inherent and eternal purposes of the J ewish people and the land of Israel in God ’ s ultimate plan f or humanity . W e are also a wak ening to the T orah and understanding it as the constitution of the Kingdom of God. P eople across the world are increasingly engaging with the T orah and returning to walking in His paths and rediscovering the joys of honouring the appointments of God. So the Question R emains, H ow Do W e Become I n vol ved in the Grea t R estora tions? If we are interested in being in volved in what must be restored bef ore Y eshua ( J esus ) returns, then I would ask , has the restoration first occurred in you? Are you willing to participate actively in this transf ormative narrative? Do not merely be a bystander , an onlook er , or a passive obser ver . This is an in vitation to be an engaged participant, a catalyst f or change, as we anticipate the return of Y eshua. Are Y ou Li ving E very Da y as a Disci ple of J esus? In J eremiah 6:16 ( ESV ), it is written, “S tand by the roads, and look , and ask f or the ancient paths— the T orah, the path of righteousness— where the good wa y lies; walk in it, and find rest f or your souls.” This verse emphasises that embracing the T orah is not a bur densome journey but a destined path f or all, encompassing both J ews and Gentiles alik e. M oreover , its teachings are equally applicable to individuals in various roles, be it men, women, kings, priests, and others, each finding prof ound relevance in their unique wa ys. Y eshua expands on this with His disciples that restoring the T orah ( God ’ s instructions ) to one’s own lif e and exploring its application to your calling ‘J ew or Gentile’ is not bur densome. M atthew 11:29 ( ESV ) sa ys, “T ak e m y yok e upon you, and learn from me, f or I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest f or your souls.” God ’ s instructions are simple, but it tak es adjusting. Imagine a child taking tentative steps in their initial attempts at walking. This experience evolves into one of growing familiarity , eventually integrating seamlessly into the rh ythm of daily existence. Lik ewise, one ma y initially embrace God’s commandments with hesitancy but gradually progress until they become an inseparable and indispensable aspect of one’s ver y being. The yok e of M essiah is not bur densome—it brings restoration and abundant blessing. As you prepare to align yourself with His Y ok e ( T orah ), you pa ve the wa y f or the advent of M essiah. W alking as a disciple means f ollowing our Rabbi’s instructions, and H e never dispelled or contradicted the T orah ( that would disqualify H im as the M essiah according to Deuteronom y ), but when ask ed what the most important commandment was, in M ark 12:28, H e quotes Deuteronomy 6:4-5 ( ESV ), the Shema : “H ear , O Israel: The Lor d our God , the Lor d is one. Y ou shall love the Lor d your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” The logical question is then: How do I love God with all m y heart, soul, mind , and strength? Y eshua answers that in J ohn 14:15 ( ESV ), “ If you love me, you will k eep m y commandments.” As disciples of Y eshua, we aim to be active participants in the prophecy of restoration: Ÿ W e are to support, financially contribute and facilitate the return of the J ewish people to their ancestral homeland; Ÿ W e are to also honour the authority of the T orah — God ’ s instructions—in our communities ( meaning as is applicable to each call—i.e., Gentiles not taking on J ewish identity but remaining Gentiles, and J ewish people not forsaking T orah ); Ÿ W e are to continue to spread the knowledge of God throughout the Earth, and; Ÿ W e are to put God ’ s appointments back on our calendars. H e wants us there. H e wants us prepared. B ut are we willing to mak e sacrifices to be there? If you would lik e to learn how to be in volved in the restoration of all things and preparing the world f or the coming of M essiah, then I would love to extend an in vitation to join us f or Kingdom F estival (Australia and Oceania ’ s F east of T abernacles event on the Gold C oast). W e will learn together , celebrate together , worship together and experience God together as we prepare ourselves and get in the habit of participating in the F east of T abernacles. W e would love to see you there! H o w C a n I H a s t e n J e s u s ’ R e t u r n ? At the previous F east of T abernacles event, the Kingdom W orship T eam delighted the audience with their latest song titled I n Y our N ame, J esus. I t has become a tradition f or the team to unveil a new song during the f estivals each year . In anticipation of this year’ s event, they have ex citing news: the Kingdom T eam will be launching a brand new album named Rest. The album ’ s central theme revolves around the peace and rest that comes through honouring and remembering the Sabbath.

34. F r o m Our Pr o jects L e t t e r f r o m N a i m a n d E l v i r a K h o u ry 16 A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 W e r e c e n t l y r e c e i v e d a l e t t e r f r o m R e v . Na i m K h o u r y a n d h i s w i f e , E l v i r a , f r o m B e t h l e h e m , w h o h a v e a r e m a r k a b l e a t e s t i m o n y o f G o d ’ s p r o v i s i o n f o r t h e i r m i n i s t r y , s u r r o u n d e d a s t h e y a r e w i t h e x t r e m e p o v e r t y . T h e p a s t o r c o u p l e w o u l d v e r y m u c h l i k e t o o ff e r t o m e m b e r s o f t h e i r c o n g r e g a t i o n a f e w d a y s o f r e l a x a t i o n a n d f o r b u i l d i n g u p t h e i r f a i t h . T h e y a r e a s k i n g f o r h e l p t o c o v e r s o m e o f t h e c o s t s o f t h o s e w h o c a n n o t a ff o r d t o a t t e n d t h e c a m p . S a l e e m S h a l a s h f r o m Na z a r e t h a l s o h o p e s t o o ff e r a c t i v i t i e s t h i s s u m m e r t o t h o s e w h o c a n n o t a ff o r d i t t h e m s e l v e s . R e a d t h e l e t t e r f r o m t h e K h o u r y ’ s b e l o w . Will y ou help R ev Khoury and R ev S halash? Y ou can donate by c ompleting the c oupon below selecting ‘ Arab Christians’ . Thank y ou on behalf of them! Dear friends, We hope and pray that you are doing well. We would like to tell you more about our summer family camp. The families will go away for a three-day period. We hope it will be a time of ‘recharging’, a time away from home and away from all the pressures. How relaxing that will be! And what a spiritual strengthening that will be, where we may grow in the Lord, find peace of mind and rest physically. The assistance is for those families who cannot afford to pay for this outing themselves. It includes food, accommodation, an edifying programme and children’s activities. What a blessing this will be for all. With enough finances, we can organize a wonderful time for all. Last year (see photo), you helped the Arab Christians in Bethlehem too. With His help, we will make it happen. In His service, our King, the Messiah, Elvira and Naim Khoury Rev Shalash with children of the congregations. | Photo: Church of Rev Shalash in N azareth Bethlehem summer camp. Y E S , I W O U L D L I K E T O M A K E A T A X - D E D U C T I B L E D O N A T I O N T O W A R D S . . . C4I Ministr y 1 T eac hing Resour ces Q uantit y Price inc GST SUB T O T AL $ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ MY T O T AL $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ General donation (inc c osts f or I sr ael & Christian ’ s T oday ) t h i n c . ( c o u n t e r i n g a n t i I s r a e l “ l a w f a r e ” ) $ 3 0 - $ 5 0 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ $ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ The E nd Times Thr ough J ewish E yes ( D VD ) by P s E noch La vender Why I srael? $15 ( BOOK) $30 ( D VD ) $35 ( D VD + S tudy G uide ) $5 (S tudy G uide ) $36 each $5 ( F acilitators G uide ) by Willem G lashouwer _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Behold H e C omes ( BOOK: 800 pages ) by Willem G lashouwer Living A Lif e I n Victory ( BOOK) by Willem G lashouwer $20 each _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ $20 each _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ U ntil... ( BOOK) by Willem G lashouwer $25 each R ebuilding the T emple—P s E noch La vender $20 each _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ C H E Q U E " O R " M O N E Y " O R D E R S : " Please make out to: Christians " for " Israel " A ustralia " Founda tion " L td. " ( d o n ’ t u s e s t a p l e s ) I N T E R N E T " B A N K I N G : " B S B : ANZ BANK — 014- 279 A c c o u n t " N o : 433641954 R e f : Y our name & gift purpose Please confirm by emailing inf o@c4israel.com.au M Y " D E T A I L S : N ame: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Christians for Isr ael Austr alia F oundation Ltd . ABN: 58 655 970 086 IC T0823 4 3 S ocial W elf ar e Pr ojects Ali y ah—Bring the Jews H ome 2 *NO TE: C ertificates f or individuals and families fr om U kraine only . M E M B E R I D ( I F K N O W N) : C4IA + while stocks last P L E A S E " C O M P L E T E " T H I S " F O R M " A N D " R E T U R N " T O : C h r i s t i a n s f o r I s r a e l A u s t r a l i a , P O B o x 1 5 0 8 , S p r i n g w o o d , Q L D , 4 1 2 7 o r d o n a t e s e c u r e l y o n l i n e c 4 i s r a e l . c o m . au / d o n at e F o r e n q u i r e s : 0 7 " 3 0 8 8 " 6 9 0 0 I F YO U D O N ’ T K N O W O R H AV E YO U R M E M B E R I D P L E A S E I N C L U D E : Addr ess: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ P hone: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ E mail: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ H ineni soup kitchen J erusalem ($10 per c ook ed meal) $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ H olocaust S urvivor C omf ort U kraine ($50 or best gift ) $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ M eals on Wheels U kraine ($15 per c ook ed meal) $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ H elp E thiopian J ews mak e Aliyah ($875 per person ) $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ First H ome in the H omeland in I srael ($675 per person ) $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ F o o d P a r c e l s U k r a i n e : $ 2 5 p e r p a r c e l f o r 1 m o n t h / p p $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Arab Christians ($10, $20 or your best gift ) $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ CFOIC ( J udea and Samaria ) H eartland ($30 or your best gift ) $350 O ne P erson fr om U kraine $6250 O ne Busload fr om U kraine ( 25 persons ) $1460 B nei M enashe—Asian exiles ( 1 person ) $1250 O ne F amily fr om U kraine (5 persons ) SUB T O T AL $_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ I S R A E L Celebrating

21. T eaching fr o m the T o rah 11 (A USTRALIA) A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 G r e g C u m m i n g n The T orah P ortion | www .thetorah portion.org Y ou ma y ha ve seen a J ewish man wearing a little black leather bo x strapped to his f orehead and his arm. These little hollow bo x es are known in H ebrew as tefillin — a wor d closely related to the H ebrew wor d f or pra yer — tefillah. The little bo x es contain several scroll parchments with scripture verses written upon them — specifically the f our passages which explicitly mention wearing the tefillin. The commandment to wear the tefillin containing the commandments, comes directly from the pra yer called ‘ the Shema ’ from the T orah. “ Y o u s h a l l b i n d t h e m a s a s i g n o n y o u r h a n d , a n d t h e y s h a l l b e a s f r o n t l e t s b e t w e e n y o u r e y e s ” . ( D e u t e r o n o m y 6 : 8 ) The H ebrew wor d f or ‘hand ’ applies to the entire arm. O bser vant J ewish men obser ve this commandment by literally binding the T orah on the arm and the f orehead ever y da y bef ore pra ying the morning pra yers. The R igh t Hand and F orehead The orthodo x pra yer book teaches that the tefillin should be positioned on the right arm and the f orehead. “ ... H e commanded us to p lace them on the arm opposite the heart, and on the head opposite the brain, so that we should submit the soul w hi ch is in the brain, as well as the desir es and though ts of our hearts, to His ser vi ce...” ( S iddur H aRav ) The N ame of God The H ebrew letter shin — ש is car ved on the outside of the tefillin bo x es. The shin acts as an abbreviation f or El Shaddai —‘God Almighty’. In some traditions, even the leather strapping around the hand f orms the letter shin on a person’s hand. And so the name of God is bound upon a person ’ s hand and f orehead. J esus W ore T efi l l i n J esus and his disciples, who were all J ewish, wore tefillin on their right hands and f oreheads during times of pra yer , just as they wore tzitzit ( tassels ) on the corners of their garments. The wearing of tefillin might be lik ened in some wa y to a wedding ring worn by a husband and wif e, symbolically representing their faithfulness to the covenant they made with each other . A J ewish person strapping the name and commandments of God to his arm and f orehead , illustrates commitment to Israel ’ s national covenant relationship with God. God W ears T efi l l i n The T almud sa ys that God also wears tefillin which contains a parchment with the scriptures most reminding Him of His special people—Israel. What is written in the tefillin of the Lor d of the U niverse? “And who is lik e your people Israel, one nation in the earth”. ( Deuteronomy 33:29 ) ( T almud Berachot 6a ) So we see that Israel’s tefillin represents the nation’s covenant devotion to God. God’s tefillin represents His covenant devotion to Israel. The Large vs Smal l T efi l l i n J esus exposed Pharisees who boasted about their pra yer lif e by wearing large tefillin bo x es and long tzitzit ( tassels ) on the corners of their garments... “B ut all their works they do to be seen by men. They mak e their ph ylacteries ( tefillin) broad and enlarge the bor ders of their garments ( tzitzit)”. ( M atthew 23:5 ) J esus however did NOT condemn their use, as H e, lik e most first-centur y J ewish men wore them too, but chose instead the smaller more discreet tefillin bo x measuring 12mm x 20mm, along with the normal length tzitzit. God’ s Commandmen ts The tefillin represent God ’ s commandments, which do us no harm, but only good—k eeping us on ‘ the narrow path ’ which leads to lif e. So too J esus bound Himself to God ’ s commandments daily with the bonds of love. In the da ys of E mperor Hadrian, the wearing of tefillin was outla wed. “Man y J ews risk ed their lives in or der to wear tefillin.” ( T almud Shabbat 130a ) The Mar k of the Beast The commandment of tefillin has special relevance in regar ds to what the Book of R evelation calls ‘ the mark of the beast’ . The book of R evelation predicts that in the future, a satanic world leader , ref erred to as ‘ the beast’, with power over all nations will arise and speak blasphem y against God and the T emple and mak e war upon the people of God while the unbelieving nations worship him as a god. ( R evelation 13:4, 7 ) Accor ding to the prophecy , this world leader will require all mankind to receive a mark representing his name in their right hand or on their f orehead as a mark of allegiance. Sound familiar ? “Without this mark , it is f orbidden to buy or sell.” ( R evelation 13:16) F irst-centur y J ewish and Gentile believers in J esus understood receiving this mark as a direct ref erence to tefillin, symbolising a covenant union between the nations and Satan—and they will worship him as God. The 144,000 This contrasts the one hundred f orty- f our thousand J ewish men who bear the name of God on their f oreheads—ref erring to the tefillin. “Then I look ed , and behold , the Lamb was standing on M ount Z ion, and with Him one hundred and f orty- f our thousand , ha ving His name and the name of His F ather written on their f oreheads.” ( R evelation 14:1 ) Concl usion H ow can you and I as believers in J esus obey this command? If you are J ewish: That is easy as nowada ys tefillin are readily a vailable to purchase f or your use at all times— specifically at times of pra yer . I f yo u a re n o n- J e w i s h : T h e p o i nt o f t e fi l l i n i s a b o u t b e i n g a p e r s o n wh o b e a r s t h e N a m e o f t h e L o rd a n d i s o b e d ie nt t o H i s c o m m a n d m e nt s . S o yo u c a n p r a c t ic a l ly : Ÿ “C ommit your mind to the Lor d and guar d what goes into it—what you watch and listen to—f eeding it with daily portions of scripture.” ( Phil 4:8) Ÿ Be careful about what you sa y and do—perhaps reflecting “W ould J esus do what I am about to do?” P aul called this “being a T emple of the H oly S pirit.” ( 1 C or inthians 6:1 9,20 ) Ha ve fun as you walk out your lif e IN HIS NAME . J ewish men praying wearing tefillin . | Photos: Shutterstock The wearing of tefi l l i n mi g h t be likened in some wa y to a wedding ring w orn b y a h usband and wife, symbolica l l y represen ting their fai thfu lness to the co venan t they made wi th each other.

30. K ees de V reu gd n Theologian | Christians for Israel In terna tiona l & Editor | Israel & the Ch urch The f estival of R osh H ashanah — the name means ‘ H ead of the Y ear’ — is obser ved f or two da ys beginning on 1 Tishrei, the first da y of the J ewish year . I t is the anniversar y of the creation of Adam and E ve, the first man and woman, and their first actions towar d the realisation of mankind ’ s role in God ’ s world. Ann ual Decree R o s h H a s h a n a h t h u s e m p h a s i s e s t h e s p e c i a l r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n G o d a n d h u m a n i t y : w e a r e d e p e n d e n t u p o n G o d a s o u r c r e a t o r a n d s u s t a i n e r , b u t G o d w a n t s u s t o m a k e H i s p r e s e n c e k n o w n a n d f e l t i n H i s w o r l d . E a c h y e a r o n R o s h H a s h a n a h , “ A l l i n h a b i t a n t s o f t h e w o r l d p a s s b e f o r e G o d l i k e a fl o c k o f s h e e p , ” a n d i t i s d e c r e e d i n t h e h e a v e n l y c o u r t , “ W h o s h a l l l i v e , a n d w h o s h a l l d i e . . . w h o s h a l l b e i m p o v e r i s h e d , a n d w h o s h a l l b e e n r i c h e d ; w h o s h a l l f a l l a n d w h o s h a l l r i s e . ” B u t t h i s i s a l s o t h e d a y G o d i s p r o c l a i m e d a s K i n g o f t h e U n i v e r s e . J e w i s h m y s t i c i s m t e a c h e s t h a t t h e c o n t i n u e d e x i s t e n c e o f t h e u n i v e r s e i s d e p e n d e n t u p o n t h e r e n e w a l o f t h e d i v i n e d e s i r e f o r a w o r l d w h e n w e a c c e p t G o d ’ s k i n g s h i p e a c h y e a r o n R o s h H a s h a n a h . Sho fa r The central obser vance of R osh H ashana h is the sounding of the shofar , the ram ’ s horn, which also represents the trumpet blast of a people ’ s coronation of their king. The cr y of the shofar is also a call to repentance, f or R osh H ashanah is also the anniversar y of man ’ s first sin and his repentance thereof and ser ves as the first of the ‘T en D a ys of R epentance ’ which culminate in Y om K ippur , the D a y of Atonement. Another significance of the shofar is to recall the B inding of Isaac ( Genesis 22 ), which also occurred on R osh H ashanah, in which a ram took Isaac ’ s place as an off ering to God; Abraham ’ s readiness to sacrifice his son is evok ed , as a plea that the merit of his deed should stand by Israel as we pra y f or a year of lif e, health and prosperity . Altogether , faithful J ews listen to one hundred shofar blasts over the course of the R osh H ashanah ser vices. A Piece of A pple A d d i t i o n a l R o s h H a s h a n a h o b s e rv a n c e s i n c l u d e : a ) E a t i n g a p i e c e o f a p p l e d i p p e d i n h o n e y t o s y m b o l i s e o u r d e s i r e f o r a s w e e t y e a r a n d o t h e r s p e c i a l f o o d s s y m b o l i c o f t h e n e w y e a r ’ s b l e s s i n g s . b ) B l e s s i n g o n e a n o t h e r w i t h t h e w o r d s “ L e s h a n a h t o v a h t i k a t e i v v e t e i c h a t e i m , ” “ M a y y o u b e i n s c r i b e d a n d s e a l e d f o r a g o o d y e a r . ” c ) T a s h l i c h , a s p e c i a l p r a y e r s a i d n e a r a b o d y o f w a t e r ( a n o c e a n , r i v e r , p o n d , e t c . ) , i n e v o c a t i o n o f t h e v e r s e , “ A n d Y o u s h a l l c a s t t h e i r s i n s i n t o t h e d e p t h s o f t h e s e a ” ( M i c a h 7 : 1 9 ) . A n d a s w i t h e v e ry m a j o r J e w i s h h o l i d a y , a f t e r c a n d l e l i g h t i n g a n d p r a y e r s K i d d u s h i s r e c i t e d a n d a b l e s s i n g m a d e o n t h e c h a l l a h . Y om Ki ppur Y om Kippur is the holiest da y of the year — the da y on which J ews f eel closest to God. I t is the D a y of Atonement—“ F or on this da y , H e will f orgive you, to purify you, that you be cleansed from all your sins bef ore God ” ( Leviticus 16:30 ). F or nearly twenty-six hours— from several minutes bef ore sunset on 9 Tishrei to after nightfall on 10 Tishrei — faithful J ews ‘ afflict their souls ’: they abstain from f ood and drink , do not wash or anoint their bodies, do not wear leather f ootwear , and abstain from marital relations. B e f o r e Y o m K i p p u r , t h e K a p a r o t a t o n e m e n t s e r v i c e i s p e r f o r m e d ; e v e r y o n e r e q u e s t s a n d r e c e i v e s h o n e y c a k e i n a c k n o w l e d g e m e n t t h a t w e a r e a l l r e c i p i e n t s i n G o d ’ s w o r l d a n d i n p r a y e r f u l h o p e f o r a s w e e t a n d a b u n d a n t y e a r ; e a t s a f e s t i v e m e a l ; i m m e r s e s i n a m i k v a h ; a n d g i v e s e x t r a c h a r i t y . I n t h e l a t e a f t e r n o o n , t h e p r e - f a s t m e a l i s e a t e n , f o l l o w i n g w h i c h t h e c h i l d r e n a r e b l e s s e d, a m e m o r i a l c a n d l e i s l i t , a s w e l l a s t h e h o l i d a y c a n d l e s . T h e n i t i s t i m e t o g o t o t h e s y n a g o g u e f o r t h e K o l N i d r e i s e r v i c e . In the course of Y om K ippur , five pra yer ser vices are held: M aar iv , with its solemn K ol N idrei ser vice, on the eve of Y om K ippur; Shachar it — the morning pra yer , which includes a reading from Leviticus f ollowed by the Y izkor memorial ser vice; M usaf, which includes a detailed account of the Y om K ippur T emple ser vice; M inchah, which includes the reading of the Book of J onah; and N e ’ilah, the ‘ closing of the gates ’ ser vice at sunset. The conf ession of sins ( H ebrew: Al Chet ) is said eight times in the course of Y om K ippur , and P salms are recited at ever y a vailable moment. The da y is the most solemn of the year , yet an undertone of joy suffuses it: a joy that revels in the spirituality of the da y and expresses the confidence that God will accept our repentance, f orgive our sins, and seal our ver dict f or a year of lif e, health and happiness. The closing N e ’ilah ser vice climax es in the resounding cries of “ H ear O Israel... God is one.” Then joy erupts in song and dance, f ollowed by a single blast of the shofar , f ollowed by the proclamation, “ N ext year in J erusalem.” Then ever ybody partak es in a f estive after - fast meal, making the evening after Y om K ippur a Y om tov (f estival) in its own right. Adapted fr om www .chabad.org. 12 B ibli ca l R eflecti o n F r o m R o s h H a s h a n a h t o Y o m K i p p u r A u g u s t 2 0 2 3 | I s r a e l & C h r i s t i a n s T o d a y A v — T i s h r e i 5 7 8 4 A J ewish man blowing the Shofar , which is used to blow sounds on Rosh H ashanah and Y om K ippur . | Photo: Lightstock The cen tra l observance of R osh H asha nah is the sounding of the sho fa r , the ram ’ s horn, w hich a lso represen ts the trum pet blast of a peo ple’ s corona tion of their king. F acts S peak C HR IS TIANS F OR IS R AEL VIDEO ON DEMAND Our new digital catalogue of premium teaching resources will help inform and inspire you, wherever you are. The Gaza Strip has a 12-kilometr e-long border with Egypt. Just 48 kilometr es fr om this border lies the Egyptian city of El Arish. The city has a port and an international airport. It should be possible for e v er ything Gaza needs to find its wa y to and fr om Gaza via El Arish, including the flo w of people coming and going. Ho w e v er , Egypt k eeps the border with Gaza closed nearly 100 per cent of the time . www .c4israe l.org/vide o- on- de mand I S R A E L Celebrating