With Friends Like These…
The LA Times offers a thorough examination of eschatological church movements in America, and their designs for world Jewry:
According to various polls, an estimated 40% of Americans believe that a sequence of events presaging the end times is already underway. Among the believers are pastors of some of the largest evangelical churches in America, who converged at Faith Central Bible Church in Inglewood in February to finalize plans to start 5 million new churches worldwide in 10 years.
[…] For Christians, the future of Israel is the key to any end-times scenario, and various groups are reaching out to Jews — or proselytizing among them — to advance the Second Coming.
Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Why should we be afraid? We don’t believe the First Coming happened and we surely don’t believe the Second Coming is ever going to happen. Right? So why fear a group that wants to bring thousands of tourists to Israel on apocalyptic pretexts? Whatever brings in the business — take it. Again, be assured, be very assured, the apocalypse is not now, not ever.
I hate to say, “I told you so,” when it comes to “The Jews are going to Die…” article, so I won’t. But in regards to what was said above, I too am unafraid of Jesus coming back, anymore than I am my Grandfather coming back. As far as I’m concerned, they’re both just dead Jews. What I am afraid of his what his followers may do to hasten his (non)arrival…
Maybe we should be afraid because the odd relationship between fundamentalist Christians and fundamentalist Jews could lead to an end of days scenario where man’s actions are confused for God’s.
Check out:
The End of Days : Fundamentalism and the Struggle for the Temple Mount by Gershom Gorenberg
Messianism, Zionism, and Jewish Religious Radicalism (Chicago Studies in the History of Judaism) by Aviezer Ravitzky, Michael Swirsky, and Jonathan Chipman
This is a very tentative relationship, only 20 years ago the Jews were enemy number 1 for the christian right. So they have changed their language. They are not interested in a Jewish Israel. They are interested in fulfilling their messianic desires and using Jews to do that. The moment they realize we will not be aiding them in their goals, repayment for the money given to support Israel and Aliyah will be collected in blood. Frankly, I do not want to give up a pound of flesh!
People people people, if I were you I would worry more about the islamic version of the end times. It’s amazing that despite everything more Jewish communities want to build bridges with muslims while burning the ones with evangelicals.
Israel is surrounded by muslims, not christians. If you’re worrying about military conflict that’s where you need to look.
G-d, I’m glad none of you is a general in the IDF.
people, people, people, if the Rapture isn’t going to happen fast enough, the acolytes will help “God” by taking matters into their own hands.
did anyone see the lansing tapes? do you think that Americans really love that nosiest 2%? and what if, like in Crown Heights, the public safety officers standy with their hands folded as a mob has its way with the residents of one of Brooklyn’s Jewish quarters? that cost Yankel Rosenbaum his life…and how long did it take to put the perpetrator behind bars? ask his brother norman.
what will prevent such outbreaks acorss the country when people feel economically threatened? do you think they will go after the immigrants or the noisy jews?
you tell me
You and I know who are murdering Jews. And they are not Xtains.
Right on, dirrigible, it’s not Christians who are murdering Jews, especially since their numbers in Europe declined by six million or so 60 years ago. Indeed, if the Islamist homocide rate against Jews continues at its current furious pace, they might catch up with the Christians in a couple of thousand years.
Which historian said we are forever doomed to lose wars because we are always fighting the LAST battle? And btw, identifying today’s enemy doesn’t mean we have forgotten the worst crime in humanity’s history.
“[O]nly 20 years ago the Jews were enemy number 1 for the christian right. So they have changed their language.”
Really? I think the shift took place a while before that. Back in 1981 Jerry Falwell said, “To stand against Israel is to stand against God. We believe that history and scripture prove that God deals with nations in relation to how they deal with Israel.”
I think the biggest contemporary threat to Jews globally is coming from Islamists not Christian fundamentalists.