During the week covered by this review, we received 5 articles on the following subjects:
Arab Believing Community/Political Issues
Judaism
Christian Sites
Art
Miscellaneous
Arab Believing Community/Political Issues
The Jerusalem Post, August 13, 2013
The new Christian Arab party of Israel, also known as Bnei HaBrit [allies of the covenant], headed by Bishara Shlayan, has denounced the EU boycott of Israeli businesses in the West Bank. Says Shlayan: “The boycott is a big mistake – it is the livelihood for many, mainly Arabs in the West Bank . . . The absence of Israeli businesses will create more violence, as more Arabs will be left with no way to put food on their tables.” Shlayan told The Jerusalem Post that he hopes to build his own Christian settlement in the West Bank, one that will be open to all. According to the paper, “the settlement would have factories and would seek funding from the EU, as the plan would promote peace.”
Shlayan says that his party, which is not yet fully formed, has received a lot of positive feedback from across the globe, adding that there are many organizations, both international and Israeli, who are wanting to help him in his endeavors.
Judaism
Gefen, August 2, 2013
This article describes the work of Shavei Yisrael, a nonprofit organization whose mission it is to bring “lost” Jews (i.e. Marrano Jews) back to the faith. Rabbi Refael Weinberg writes about a new Jewish center that has been built in Portugal and named after the 17th century converso Jewish physician and philosopher Isaac Cardozo. The center includes a wall commemorating those Jews who were tortured and killed by the Inquisition when they refused to convert to Catholicism.
Christian Sites
Haaretz, August 15, 2013
In this article, Moshe Gilad tours the city from a musical perspective in anticipation of Jerusalem’s Sacred Music Festival which will be taking place next week. “One doesn’t have to hold to any particular faith to enjoy the singing at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher,” writes Gilad. “There is a very special feeling about this daily ritual which is all bound up with the smell of incense, the monks’ festive gowns, and the look of the believers who have come from all over the world especially for this.” Gilad is fascinated by the city’s ringing bells, its multiple muezzins, and the constant echoes of the Tikvah being sung in the areas surrounding the Kotel. Among other things, the festival will offer tours of the city that include participation in a variety of prayer services at a number of churches and synagogues during all hours of the day and night.
Art
Haaretz, August 15, 2013
Cecilia Gimenez’s failed attempt to restore a fresco of Jesus in the small Spanish village church of Borja has turned out to be a blessing in disguise. When Gemenez painted over the “Ecce Homo” fresco a year ago, she was mocked in the worldwide media for the caricature-like results of her attempt. The accident, however, has turned out to be a profitable one, as the painting has drawn more than 40,000 visitors to the small church in the past year. As a result, the municipality has been able to raise more than 60,000 Euros, donating the money to a local charity.
Miscellaneous
The Jerusalem Post, August 9, 2013
In the “Letters” section of the paper, Lesley Ann Richardson expresses her perplexity over Peggy Cidor’s article, which names the Garden of Gethsemane as the place where Jesus hid before he was arrested. Richardson writes that “the Gospels make quite clear that Jesus knew that this was the night of his betrayal and arrest, that he went forward to meet his captors, and asked also that his disciples be allowed to go free. If he had wanted to ‘hide’ from the Romans, he could undoubtedly have done so. However, he had come to lay down his life willingly – and this is the whole thrust of the New Testament teaching.”