Eretz Israel is our unforgettable historic homeland...The Jews who will it shall achieve their State...And whatever we attempt there for our own benefit will redound mightily and beneficially to the good of all mankind. (Theodor Herzl, DerJudenstaat, 1896)

We offer peace and amity to all the neighbouring states and their peoples, and invite them to cooperate with the independent Jewish nation for the common good of all. The State of Israel is ready to contribute its full share to the peaceful progress and development of the Middle East.
(From Proclamation of the State of Israel, 5 Iyar 5708; 14 May 1948)

With a liberal democratic political system operating under the rule of law, a flourishing market economy producing technological innovation to the benefit of the wider world, and a population as educated and cultured as anywhere in Europe or North America, Israel is a normal Western country with a right to be treated as such in the community of nations.... For the global jihad, Israel may be the first objective. But it will not be the last. (Friends of Israel Initiative)

Wednesday 25 July 2012

No Imperilled Gaza Christians Please, We're Methodists

For recommending a (pro-Israel) Christian website that has highlighted the plight of Christians in Gaza I've been rapped over the knuckles, so to speak, by one of the Methodist ministers who blog not infrequently about the supposed crimes and shortcomings of Israel.  It happened like this.

On a post of the minister's that links to this article on The Electronic Intifada by anti-Israel crusader Ben White about "critic of Islam" Dr Patrick Sookhdeo,  I commented:


A quite reasonable suggestion, I thought.  After all, the blog in question often, with alacrity, indeed with an apparent relish, draws attention to the plight, real and imagined, of Palestinian Arabs under Israeli rule.  Surely it would wish to highlight the plight of Palestinian Arabs under the jackboot of Hamas.  Especially when those Palestinian Arabs are suffering because they are Christians.

I thought wrong.



I responded:


Added the erudite Anglo-Jew whom I mentioned en passant in a previous post:


But to no avail. The Christian site's post that "rather smacks of Islamophobia" was decidedly unwelcome.  Khaled Abu Toameh's article, also about the persecuted Christians of Gaza, was ignored.

However, despite the demonstrated dark side of Mondoweiss, that site by, contrast, is not off-limits:


The entire thread can be seen here

24 comments:

  1. I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone or something when I read exchanges like the above. Truly unbelievable...

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    1. Me too, Jay!
      (Say "hello" to Swarthmore for me, if you ever pass through. I was an exchange student there, a long time ago.)

      Delete
    2. Sure thing! Swarthmore's one of the towns I hop the train out to on weekends whenever I want to get out of the city for a few hours...

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    3. I have very happy memories of that beautiful campus, with the magnificent avenue of trees leading to the Parrish building.

      Delete
  2. Fo Richard

    Richard if you have no issue with Mondoweiss then you 'old son' have issues

    It is the most 'Jew hatred site' I have ever come across. It is vile.

    For a so-called man G-d not to have a problem with the site in itself is rather troublesome

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  3. A few changes in the world of anti-Semitic bile sites:

    Salon.com to Team with Anti-Israel, 'Antisemitic' News Service
    "It has been noted that Salon.com has been treading an increasingly anti-Israeli path and its recent announcement of a partnership with the controversial news site Mondoweiss.net seems another step down that road."
    http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Journalism/2012/07/24/Salon-com-to-Team-With-Anti-Semitic-News-Service

    Salon is broke btw and are now openly chasing the anti-Semitic dollar.

    Also Glenn Greenwald is leaving Salon for The Guardian.
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/jul/19/glenn-greenwald-guardian-us-salon

    On a happier note
    Mayor of Tel-Aviv-Yafo: Jerusalem is the capital of Israel
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1wJHaI56Vw

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  4. Everything in the garden's lovely, apparently.

    http://theconnexion.net/wp/?p=12781#axzz21dZlSy2Y

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    Replies
    1. I have drawn the minister's attention to this, for starters:
      http://www.limitstogrowth.org/articles/2012/07/21/hearing-is-held-on-egyptian-muslims-kidnapping-christian-women/

      Delete
  5. Richard need to check things out before he casts them aside like the Elim Pentecostal church.

    I appears to be extremely popular in the good old 'mother country' and expanding rapidly

    Richard shame on you

    "Elim comprises over 550 churches in the UK and Ireland, but we are also linked to over 9,000 Elim churches in other countries. Elim is also in co-operative fellowship with thousands of Pentecostal churches around the world, and has missions work in over 40 countries."

    Looks as if they can boot the racist Methodists out

    http://www.elim.org.uk/Groups/101757/Elim.aspx

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  6. I'm about 90% on the side of 'who cares, let them rape, slaughter and eat each other to the last one standing'.

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  7. Richard does not debate in good faith. He repeatedly censored several of my posts, even though I was not being abusive or using foul language. He simply did not like being asked why he was boycotting the Jews of Judea and Samaria, and not Hamas. Even though I posed the question several times, he refused to reply. He manipulates the conversation to his own advantage, and consequently serious engagement is impossible.

    There comes a point when you have to question the motives of those with whom you disagree. He seems in thrall of Ben "I understand why some people are antisemtic" White, quotes from virulently hateful websites,and has no answer to the blatant hypocrisy and moral degradation of his church.

    And as for Kim, his cheerleader - she really does seem full of hatred...

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    Replies
    1. I really am at a loss to understand their double standards, Adam.
      It is quite bewildering.
      Kim's no lady, btw! I'm sure he won't mind me saying so.

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  8. They are up to their old tricks here.

    http://theconnexion.net/wp/?p=12781&cpage=1#comment-478690

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  9. Daphne, the double standards, which Richard cannot explain, can only have one explanation.

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  10. And that explanation is...?

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  11. Take a wild guess why someone would hold a group of people to a different standard to others, without explanation.

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  12. I have found Richard's "explanation" - apparently he boycotts Jewish people who live in Judea and Samaria simply because other Christains support them. I replied thus (which will probably be censored):

    Richard, I have found your explanation for your boycott choice; it was hard to spot, being so brief.

    I would like to thank you for it , as it has been very illuminating. I am glad to learn that your choice of boycott has nothing to do with human rights, and everything to do with an inter church squabble. Your choice is not due to human rights violations per se, or their severity or scope; rather, because you disagree with other Christians about the Jewish state, you choose to boycott these Jews in order to make your point to your fellow religionists. Your choice is a result of what others think - not what is actually happening in this world.

    So your "double standard" is nothing of the sort, as you aren't judging these Jews by any impartial look at human rights - it simply means you have no standards.

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    Replies
    1. Incidentally here are some disturbing reports:

      http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-18892693
      http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-18909933

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  13. Ellie Crabtree28 July 2012 at 21:27

    Daphne, the dialogue reflects so badly on the church - it started going downhill under Donald Soper in my father's time and is worse now, it makes me so frustrated and ashamed - the church's boycott reminds me of a hymn "Where every prospect pleases and only man is vile" only substitute "and only Israel's vile" (in their blinkered eyes) - hang on in there and keep up the good work.

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