"If I forget you, O Jerusalem, Let my right hand forget its skill! If I do not remember you, Let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth— If I do not exalt Jerusalem Above my chief joy." (Ps 137:5-6)
Articles on current issues in Israel and in the Middle East
When we meet cats who grin, that is, people who are naturally nice and warm, we tend to think that they are good people. A grin of the sort gives itself out as an implicit promise of support in time of need. Somebody whom we identify as empathic will be most likely to help. What is very curious is realizing that certain people's cordial grin amounts to nothing more than a grin – that there is nothing behind it, below it, or after it.
Before the children of Israel entered the Promised Land, God warned them that they might be tempted to forget God if they became complacent in their prosperity (Deut 8:11-20). As a consequence, they would serve new gods, and as a punishment they would be attacked by a people who are not really a people.
On October 28, 2023, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu caused a stir when he quoted a controversial passage from the Bible identifying Hamas with Amalek--Israel's archenemy in the Bible--to justify Israel's ongoing war against the terrorist group.
Read more: Remember Amalek: Israel and Hamas, Divine Mercy and Divine Justice
The Patriarchs and Heads of the Churches in Jerusalem have responded to the October 7 Hamas massacre in Israel and ensuing war in Gaza with posture of moral equivalence, suggesting that both parties in the conflict share equal blame and equivalent moral responsibility for the consequences of their actions. Intellectually, this is an easy path to take. But is it morally right?
Read more: When Neutrality is Immoral: Israel, Hamas, and Christian Moral Equivalence
Catholics for Israel welcomes and applauds the decision of US President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to relocate the American Embassy there.
Br. Tilbert Moser proposes a biblical alternative to the Two-State Solution and Vatican recognition of the Palestinian State. This article is currently available in German only.
Read more: The Biblical Alternative to the Two-State Solution
Perhaps you have seen this map before; it claims to illustrate the "Palestinian loss of land" from 1946 to 2000. The problem is that the map completely misrepresents the recent history of Palestine-Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the 66th session of the General Assembly at United Nations headquarters on September 23, 2011, following Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' speech.
With God on Our Side, a 2010 movie produced by Rooftop Productions, portrays Christian Zionism as a dangerous political movement in the U.S. and a spoiler to the peace process between Israel and its adversaries in the Middle East.
Since there are a number of passages in the Koran stating that God has given the Holy Land to the Sons of Israel, there can be no religious justification for radical Islamic opposition to the Jewish presence in this land.
Read more: The People of Israel, the Holy Land and the Koran
Ulpan programs - the modern Hebrew language schools - are known to be a hub of diversity, predominantly filled with new immigrants, Arab Israelis looking to learn Hebrew and Jewish students spending a semester abroad. But ulpan teachers say that in recent years, they have seen a remarkable influx of priests and priests-in-training being sent to ulpan programs officially by their seminaries.