Dark Clouds Rising in the Middle East

{image_1}Traditionally, storm clouds visit Israel only in the winter months. But this year, storm clouds of war, conflict, and threats are brewing—and they may reach Israel and the region anytime. In some cases, rain drops are already falling and raising concerns of hurricanes to come. Iran’s nuclear program continues to be at the forefront of Israel’s concerns, but a host of other dangers are making for a very dark horizon.

Menorah “Bread Stamp” Found

{image_1}A 1,500-year-old ceramic stamp bearing an image of the seven-branched Temple menorah was discovered near the city of Akko at Horbat Uza. The Byzantine Period (sixth century AD) item was discovered in excavations prior to the construction of a railroad track. It belongs to a group of stamps called “bread stamps” because they were usually used to stamp baked goods.

Ancient Seal Confirms Temple Practices

{image_1}Newspapers around the world reported in December the discovery of a tiny object of fired clay, about the size of a button, stamped with an inscription in Hebrew: deka leyah, meaning “pure for God.” The object was discovered in excavations organized by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) beneath Robinson’s Arch on the Temple Mount’s western wall. According to the archaeologists in charge of the excavation, the object was used to mark things brought to the Temple as ritually pure.

Islam’s Genocidal War on the People of God

First the Saturday people…

{image_1}A recent article in Israel National News stated it is a “truism” that anti-Semitism is an extremely prevalent phenomenon in the Muslim world today. The author went on to make a strong case for the origins of that anti-Jewish prejudice in Islamic theology.

Mount Zion’s “Snookery”: Chocolate Almond Velvet Ice Cream

{image_1} “Snook” was the wife of BFP’s founder, Dr. G. Douglas Young. Though she wasn’t a teacher, writer, or speaker like her husband, Georgina Young was as involved in the work of the Institute of Holy Land Studies—the school Dr. Young founded in Jerusalem—as he was, just in different roles: decorator, homemaker, hostess, cook, and “mom” to students far from home and war-weary Israeli soldiers.

Growing Forests in the Desert

{image_1} Leave it to Israeli scientists to figure out a way of growing trees in the barren sands of the Aravah Desert. The trees aren't just meant to look pretty. This pollution-reducing forest planted over the summer is soaking up harmful excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and releasing beneficial oxygen. Another “green” bonus is that the trees are nurtured with recycled sewage water and saltwater. The project is a research collaboration between Tel Aviv University's Porter School of Environmental Science, the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and the University of Tuscia in Viterbo, Italy.

Ethiopian Orphan Saved by Israeli Doctors Returns

{image_1} Yared Worde from Ethiopia visited Israel in November to see for himself the hospital where his life was saved after major heart surgery in 1999. Yared, now 27 years old, was an orphan who lived on the streets of Addis Abba scrounging for food and a basic existence. When he was 12, he was diagnosed as having rheumatic heart disease and was referred to the Save a Child's Heart (SACH) program at the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon.

Conditions for Peace Deadlocked

Over Israel’s Right to Exist

{image_1} “The demands of this enemy [Israel] are strange and amazing demands, unique in the history of conflicts…They [Israelis] are not satisfied with Palestinian recognition that is a function of their state and its existence, but want recognition of the eternal right of Israel to exist. Possibly their nature will bring them to ask for compensation for the years that have passed without their state's existence, during the time it had the right to exist upon our skulls…

The Iranian Threat Expands

To Turkey

{image_1} “If any threat is staged against Iran, we will target NATO’s missile shield in Turkey and will then attack other targets…The Turkish people are aware [of everything]…We are sure that the Muslim people of Turkey will promptly cut these systems into pieces under threatening conditions.”

—Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Aerospace Commander Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh

Israel’s Legal Right to Exist

The saga of Israel’s standing under international law began long before the United Nations was a player on the global scene. As early as the turn of the 20th century, a number of Bible-believing statesmen and politicians, many of them British, were adamant in their support of the return of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland in fulfillment of Bible prophecy.

The Whole Word of God

{image_1} Often in my travels, I encounter churches and Christians who talk about being “New Testament” believers. At first this sounds wonderful, but upon further reflection, this phrase can be a repudiation of the Hebrew Scriptures, which Christians call the Old Testament and Jews call the Tanach. Many who view the Hebrew Scriptures as no longer valid use allegory to explain Scriptures, ascribing a meaning other than the plain one. As you can imagine, this can significantly change the interpretation.

Getting to the Bottom of the Middle East Conflict

{image_2} On September 21, 2011, US President Obama proclaimed at the UN General Assembly, “There is one issue that stands as…a test for American foreign policy, and that is the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians.” President Obama assumes that the Palestinian issue is a root cause of Middle Eastern turbulence, the crown jewel of Arab policy-making, and the crux of the Arab–Israeli conflict. Is it?