During the week covered by this review, we received 3 articles on the following subjects:
Christian Zionism
Archaeology
Jerusalem
Christian Zionism
Maariv, September 8, 2019
This was an opinion piece, where the author noted that there is a growing number of Christians in the United States who choose to observe the Jewish day of mourning for the destruction of the Temple (“Tisha B’Av”). The day is set aside for mourning and for repentance of “past evils”, and Christians who participate do so to remember and repent of the historic persecution of the Jews at the hands of Christians. In addition, Christians annually come to Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles in order to support the State of Israel and the IDF. The author brought this up to contrast the behavior of Christians with certain Jews, who now identify as anti-Zionistic. In Australia, for example, some Jews have started to learn Yiddish (instead of Hebrew) as a way of protesting the State of Israel. One Australian, after making a trip to Israel, said: “I discovered that the combination of humanism and Zionism is impossible.” That Evangelical Christians are leading the way in their Zionism and love of Israel is disorienting for Jews, who are confounded by this new reality of being loved, argued the author.
Archaeology
Hadash Ba’Emek, September 6, 2019
This was another piece about the so-called “Church of the Apostles”, uncovered in a dig in Beit HaBek, north of the Sea of Galilee. Archaeologists have dug up an ornate mosaic floor, indicating a once impressive church. The discovery strengthens the link between Beit HaBek and the New Testament town of Bethsaida, where some of Jesus’ disciples were born (namely Peter and Andrew). The church was likely built in their honor during the Byzantine period.
Jerusalem
Haaretz, September 11, 2019
The Notre Dame Hotel in Jerusalem, which is owned by the Vatican, had submitted a request four years ago to expand the hotel with a new wing of 145 rooms. The expansion has been halted because a representative of the Likud Party, Elisha Peleg, has argued that the management of the hotel is anti-Semitic, refusing to fly the Israeli flag and to host Jews. The newspaper noted, however, that Jews stay at the Notre Dame Hotel regularly.