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. the horror and destruc­them ...

yet, we are emember that we are not fighbng nesh and blood, but ralhel powers and pnnclpalities in heavenly realms. These Muslims have believed a lie . a lie that will exact their own 6fe and rob them of eternity in the end. They are pawns In the hand of a hateful god. This is the god who seeks to oppose the one trUle God of the universe - the God of Abraham, Isaac (not Ishmael!), and Israel. We have read the book and we know his end is near and that the end for his fol· lowers is terrible bey()nd words. So, we do need to pray for Ihese, our ·enemies~ for now, a people for whom Messiah came and died and for whom He broke the chains of death. May God have mercy. amen.

--Editor

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Volume 37. Number 1

January/February .2003 JEWISH VOICE MINISTRIES INl"ERNATIONAL

aoa JEWISH VOICE TODAY Publisher: Jonathan Bernis

Ed itor & Graphic Des ign: S. Weiner Je\'rsh VOICe Today 16001 North 30ith Street. Phoenix. A:l 85032.

SeM a1 address changes and other oorres;x>nderce 10; p.e Box 30990, Phoenix, Al. 8504G-0991), U.SA

On the web: http://www.jewishvoice.org JEWISH VOICE TODAY BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Rabbi Jonathan Bernis Mrs. Chira Kaplan

Eli,ot Klayman, Esq. Mrs. Madelaine Und1lall

Dr. Jeff Seif Mr. Roger West

Mr. James Mueller

From Jonathan Bernls Dear Jewish Voice Family.

I want to begin by wishing you and yours a very happy New Year. My prayer for each of you is that 2003 will be a year of blessing and frui~ulness , a year of growing closer to the Lord and fulfilling His plan and purposes for your life.

We have devoted this issue to the growing Ihreal of Islam. II is my conviction Ihal no grealer threal exists in Ihe world loday bolh for Israel and Ihe Church. Ihan Ihe growth of fundamenlal· ist. mililani Islam. The fundamenlalisl Muslim agenda is nolhing shorl of absolule world domi· nation and they will not rest until this mission is completed.

Two nations sland in their way however; The Uniled Siaies and Israel. For years. Ihe United Stales has been called ' the Great Satan" and Israel 1he lillie Satan.' In reality. fundamenlalisl Muslims do nol hale Ihe U.S. because we support Israel. They hale us because we are Ihe pn· mary beacon of treedom and democracy in Ihe world and Ihey see Israel as a US salellite in the Middle East. As believers. we must nol tall prey to any anli·lsrael propaganda. We must hold sleadfasllo our policy 10 sland firm wilh Israel.

One would have Ihoughllhallhe hornfic evenls of Seplember 11, 2001 would have awakened Ihe American public 10 the diabolical spinl of fanalicallslam. bulthis unfortunalely was not the case. Our public awareness was short lived and our nation has apparently slumped back into our spirilual blindness. lethargy and indifference.

Israel lives conslanlly with the horrors of Islamic·motivated lerrorism daily. In a recenl poll. 80% of Palestinians said they support suicide attacks upon Israeli civilians. This is a shocking reve­lation Ihal reflecls very negalively on Iheir failh (over 95% are Muslims), even if Iheir griev· ances are widely perceived as justifying "violent resistance" against Israel. These Islamic extremists are madmen who worship Jihad. holy war and have no regard for human life. Nol only do they seek to wipe out the Jewish Community in Israel , they also persecute their Arab brolhers who are Chrislians. Many alrocilies againsl Arab Chrislians are laking place through· oul lhe Muslim World.

It woutd be a profound mistake 10 assume Ihal all Muslims are "bad people" or Ihal all Arabs are Muslims. Just because someone is a Muslim or of Arab decent does not make them a ter­rorist. Many Muslims are sincere. peace·loving people and many Arabs are actually Chnstians. As believers we should not hate anyone. We are, in fact, commanded to love all people, even our enemies. But we are also exhorted to be aware of the tactics of the enemy and there is no grealer salanic danger to Chnslians and Jews alike Ihan Ihe Islamic agenda.

Please read the articles carefully ... as believers we musl be knowledgeable about this growing Ihreal and be failhfully inlerceding againsllhe principalilies and powers conlrolling the hearts and minds of Ihese violenl fanalics.

On Ihe home fronl. we are gearing up for a frui~ul year of oulreach 10 Ihe Jewish People and Ihe Nations. Our viSion remains "to proclaim Messiah to the world~ and we will not waiver in this call.

Jonalhan Bemis. Presidenl Jewish Voice Ministries International

Most peop(e rea(~e dlot IsCam 15 Olle Of tru~ \Voda's major refi-9ioHS, out very felV Utl0l\ ' lIIudt a60ut it. Since: September 11 it rutS receh'Cti a rot of IfIcfliCl attention, nlu! there has GUll a major c.ampni9n to paint il as a rdi9ion of peace. ru incfivid'uafs, lItalty Musfims lItay 6< peace (m'iIl9 peop(e, 6ut is it tme of tfIe idw(ogy

alld dOctrilles of [s(am itseCf!

(J !O J "" 't ,\ is a religIOn, but the core of Islamic teaching, is thai religion is not a part of life, but life is a part of religion. Thus everything in life is dominated by reli­gion. As such, Islam is a socia-political , socio-religious. socie-economical , educa­tional , legislative, judicial. and militaristic system clothed in religious terminology. Islam grants radical Muslims a mandate to change the existing society into an Islamic dominated society. How is this achieved? History proves it is by violent aggression and severe oppressIon, fueled by religiOUS zeal.

:J(7"'~ - 1[1 < W"l '''' (J1 " '-,, ~(s< The familiar term Jihad - often translated holy war, literally means struggle.

Many Muslims will say that jihad is about struggling aga inst evil and, only if neces­sary, defending one's homeland and religious heritage, Militant Muslims will point to numerous Quramc texts where Muhammad (as AUah's spokesman) commands his followers to fight and subdue af! who resisllslam. What leads young men to volun­teer to die for the privilege of killing others "for the cause of AI/ah ?~ II may have much to do with the fact that Islam offers no certain hope of heaven, with one exception - dying m the cause of jihad. Martyrdom is the only assured path to Paradise and acceptance into the "Gardens of Sensual Delights,~ A person may do many kind deeds dunng his life, he may even scar himself in brutal seff·mutilation ceremonies for Allah, but he may only hope that he will attain heaven. These works don't guarantee success like martyrdom in the 'cause of Allah.'

1[7' ~, .. -'"" b- '7' 1-4"Nt7 The Ouran is the Muslim 'holy book' dating from the 6th century AD, believed

by Muslims to have been given by revelation to Muhammad. "the last propher in the line from Abraham through Ishmael - who is believed to be the true child of promise. The Hadith is the narrative , and record of individual sayings, actions and approvals of Muhammad. taken as Ihe model of behavior by Muslims. Bolh books contain an abundance of accounts and directives of brutality and domination, and a clear call \0 war, Consider a few verses from the Qur'an and Ihe Hadith:

~As for those who are slain in the cause of God.,. He will admit them to the Paradise He has made known to them, ~ (47:8)

-Let those who would exchange the life of this world for the hereafter, fight for the cause of God; whether he dIes or triumphs, we shall n'chly reward him.,. ~ (4:74)

·Slay the idolalers wherever you find lhem ., ,Iie in ambush everywhere for

VOICE TODAY ..JANUARy/ FEBRUARY 2003

them.' (9:5) ~Those that make war against God and His apostle and

spread disorder in the land shall be put /0 death or crucified or have their hands and feet cut off on oppos"e sides .. .'(5:34)

·Fight against such of those to whom the Scrptu,"s were given ... and do not embrace the true Faith, until they pay tribute out of hand and aro utlerty subdued .• (9:29)

From the Had itt1: Ibn Haban in his Sahih, vol. 14, p. 529. narrates: Muhammad said, M/ swear by Him who has my 5001 in his hands, I Vias sent 10 you with nothing but slaughter. ·

8 s/ .~ • .., (/4,.", .. ,:. .;'< H)",·/:. The concept of jihad is rooted in another concept - Shari's

(Islamic law.) More Ihan forty of the world's countries with a majonty of Muslim population, have embraced Shari'a. and those that have not are under relentless pressure to do so. For exam· ple. over lhe past mne years in Algeria , some 100,000 moderate Muslims have been slain by militant Muslims. The reason? The militant MUSlims want political control of the nation. ThiS is a growing trend in the Islamic world,

Islam claims to be a religion that has the answers for society, a religion that offers peace and wholeness. So where should we look for an example of true Islam in practice? Iran? Afghanistan? Pakistan? Libya? Turkey? Egypt? Indonesia? How about Saudi Arabia? While many Muslims may decry the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as corrupt. it is the "keeper of Islam" and the religious cen· ter toward which more than one billion Muslims face five times a day as Ihey repeat their prayers. In Saudi Arabia, freedom of rel i­gion is nonexistent. It IS iUegal to read a Bible or vocalize a non· Muslim prayer in the privacy of one's own horne.

Under Islamic law, conversion to Christianity by a Saudi citi­zen is punishable by beheading. We have heard it said by Christian leaders in this country that the Muslims are our broth· ers. How can this be when one considers the persecution Christians suffer around the world under Islam?

According to Amnesty International, Ihe persecution of Christians in Saudi Arabia has increased dramatically SInce the Gulf War. More than a thousand cases have been documented in which Christian foreign workers have been arrested, imprisoned and/or beaten for participating in private worship mee6ngs. Islam teaches that Jesus can not be the Messiah because he is of the blood line of Isaac, whereas (Islam teaches) the promses of Abraham flow through Ishmael and onto Muhammad. Written on Ihfl outside of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem are the words: "The God Who Has No Son."

The harsh reality is that in every country where Shari'a IS embraced, non·Muslims face, at best, dISCrimination, sOClal ostracism and harassment, and at worst. prison. torture, and death for their religious beliefs. A horrifying example of Shad'a and Jihad in combination can be seen in Sudan. where since 1983. the MUSlim Arab North has killed an estimated two mil· lion non·Muslim blacks in the South. Another five miUion have been displaced. Slavery, rape, torture, forced Our'anic indoctrina· tion of children, and bombings of churches are regular events. In Indonesia, the laksar Jihad, a weU-organized and wel·armed

IslamiC militia IS waging a war to annihilate the Christian popula­tion. Over lhe past several years, thousands of Indonesian Christians have been butchered for the crime of not convert· ing to Islam. If Islam is for ·peace and harmony." then where is the widespread outrage from Mulsims over these ongoing atroci­ties committed in the name of Allah?

As of October, of 30 wars raging In the world, 28 involved Muslim aggression,

The Our'an teaches that Muslims are nol to initiate war. But Islam has a way around this. For example, Muslims are supposed to offer non·Muslims an 'opportunity' to embrace Islam. If they refuse. Muslim thought is thai they have committed aggression against Allah and Islam. Therefore, the Muslim is allowed to fight these 'aggressors against Allah and Istam· until they become Muslims or are killed. The Our'an also leaches that Muslims do not owe honesty to 'infidels,' therefore even world leaders can lie in high level negotiations without conscience. And their words are often doublespeak. When Arafat says, ~We deplore the killing of innocent peopler He is speaking honest/yo However, according to Quran, only very strict adherents to Islam are ~jnnocenl: Americans, Christians and Jews are not "innocent people- by Muslim standards.

Again we ask: ~is Islam a religion of peace?" Consider this passage from Qur'an 4:89: ~If anyone wants /0 leave Islam he is to be put to death. ~ No, Islam is a religion of fear and oppression, not peace. The Islamic concept of peace is making the whole world Muslim, which is actually a mandate for war.

Islam represents the greatesl spiritual threat the world faces today. Arm yourself with truth and pray according to knowledge.

From information submtt1ed anonymously by former Musfims In-Depih RaSI)<J!f;h 0nNrie: I'/'H'WJllessyjew.orgllsiarnlWar,1tml

PAOE 5 .JEWISH VOICE TODAY JANUARY/FEBR UARY 2003

Israel 2003 Inspirational & Prophetic Teaching Tour of Israel

SPECIAL INTEREST - ARCHAEOLOGY

The Significance of the

By Randall Price

James Ossuar~ T he discovery of the "James Ossuary,· with the earliest

known arcnaeological mention of Jesus, has now been reported by every major news service around the world.

t was privileged to vie~w this new discovery in late November al the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

The James ossuary, so-called because this limestone burial box once held the bones of a Jew named James, was used in the custom of secondary burial that existed only in the late Second Temple period, the time when Jesus carried out His min­istry. Understanding tlhis practice helps us understand the seem­ingly harsh reply of J!~SUS to the objection Of a man who wanted to postpone following Jesus so he could "go and bury his father" (Matt. 8:21-22: lk. 9:!;9·60). Jesus' statement does not address an immediate need for burial , but the traditional secondary burial in the ossuary which 'Would occur a year later. Such a request to perform a non-biblical ri tual a year away was nol worth neglect­ing the immediate call to follow the Savior!

Mosl ossuaries have inscriptions recording the identity of the remains in the form of the name of the deceased plus his paternal relation. The James ossuary bears a typical Aramaic inscription, however, it is unique in that it also includes the addi­tional relation of a brother. It read: "James, the son of Joseph, brother of Jesus .• The combination of these three famous names suggests that this per­son was the James of the New Testament who was called '"the Lord's brolhe( (Mallhew 13:55). II was this James who witnessed Jesus' resurrec­tion (1 Cor. 15:7), and who as the leader of the Jerusale~m church was martyred in AD 62 (Acts 15: 12: Josephus Flavius, Antiquities of the

the manufacture of chip--carved Jewish ossuaries (such as this one) which ceased around AD 70.

However, an epitaph bearing such important New Testament names has also made some scholars skeptical of the genuine­ness of the inscription. Historian Robert Eisenman, who has made a career seeking to identify James as Ihe leader of the Qumran Community. has slaled that the inscription is "100 per­fect.· implying that it may be a forgery or at best altered to include the name of Jesus.

Most of Ihese doubts were laid to rest by tests conducted by the Geological Survey of Israel that have revealed the inscription was made at the same time as the ossuary which can be traced to a first-century quarry and workshop in Jerusalem. Moreover, an unfortunate crack directly through the name ·Yeshua" on the ossuary thai occurred while transporting it for exhibition in Canada has made it possible to examine this proposed addition

Jews 20.197·203). This date would fit Y a' akov bar within the upper limit established for

PAGE 8 JEWISH VOICE TODAY JANUARy/ FEBRUARY 2003

in croSS-seclIon, further confirming it as an original part of the inscription. Furthennore, the Aramaic spelling of "brother,· although rare, has been confirmed from one of the oldest of the Dead Sea Scrolls known as the Genesis Apocryphon and from one other first-century Jerusalem ossuary (see below).

These facts argue strongly for the authenticity of the inscription on the James ossualY, howe .... er it does not prove it actually refers to New Testament figures. French scholar Andre Lemaire, who first published the inscription in the Biblical Archaeological Review (NovlDec 2002: 24,33). has been reucenllo make such a claim. He has calculated that lhese popular names could have been found in this relationship in Jerusalem two generations before AD 70 in as many as 20 different people. Is there any evidence that could narrow the identification and make more probable identification with the James of the New Testament? I believe there is.

Even though it is plausible that 20 people could have pos­sessed this exact combination of names, it is improbable that all would have been buried In ossuaries, and even more improbable that any lNOuld have had their ossuaries inscribed with the addi· tion of the brother's name. In fact, aCCOfding to the Catalogue of Jewish Ossuaries in the Co1lections of the State of Israel, the most extensive listin!~ of known ossuaries, there is only one other Jewish ossuary that mentions relation to a brother. The only rea­son for such an addition would be that the brother was responsi­ble for the burial or was especially well known and the deceased had a special relalionship wilh him. By the lime 01 James' dealh Jesus' Messianic claim and career were well known (see Josephus, Antiquities 18. 548), and James' reputation was well established as His half-brother and leader of His church in Jerusalem. YeL another piece of evidence coming from the early Messianic community itself helps to strengthen this conclusion.

In the fi rst-century, the believing Jewish community buried their dead in the Mount of OliveslMount Scopus range. Hundreds of ossuaries of Jewish believers have been discovered in this area and a number are on display al Dominus Flevit, the traditional site where Jesus wept, located on the northeastern slope of the Mount of Olives. Soi l sample tests on the ossuary revealed that it indeed had been buried in this area and the ossuary's owner has staled it was found among the ancient tombs. In light of the fame attacl1ed to the name Yeshua (Jesus), ilthis was the ossuary of a Jewish believer who regarded Jesus as his "lord,' it is unthink­able that he, or a farnily member responsible for his burial, would have risked irreverence by using this now holy name in so com. man a manner. No one except the ooe who could legitimately claim such a relationship would do so, and this would limit us to only one candidate, the New Testament James. Therefore, the evidence is sufficient to conclude that with the discovery of this ossuary we have the first archaeological evidence of James, the leader of the Jerusalem church and the earliest inscription yet discovered 10 record the name of Yeshua (Jesus), the Messiah.

¢¢¢¢¢

• • 1. ','." ~ . , IfI.

~

Dr. Randall Prica holds a Ph.D. in Middle Eastern Studies 'rom the University of TeKas and has done graduate work at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He is President of World of the Bible Ministries, Inc., has

several books on 8rchaeology and is currently Director of at /he Qumran Plateau. Israel.

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JEWISH VOICE TODAY JANUARy/ FEBRUARY 2003

CORRESPONDENCE

Dear Mr. BemiS and Jewish Voice,

I am cun'ous about something I hope you can help me understand, The Bib'e says thaI in Antioch /he believers were first called Christians. I'm not sayin.g that Messianic

Jews HAVE to ""lllhemselves Chrislians, bul why do they (and you) choose not to? , suppose it has some­thmg 10 do wilh changin9 lhe name to Yeshua also so that it S()unds more JeWish?

Thank you in advance for your answer. KT, Houston, TX (J (11) (11) (J *

Dear KT, Thank you for writing. Yours is a question often

asked. Ads 11 :26 does say that the fol lowers of Yeshua (Jesus) 'were 'rsl called Christians in the dly of Antioch.' And hislory has shown Ihal as the church became more and more non-Jewish over the cen· turles. Jesus CMst became the accepted name of Yeshua, our Messiah.

However, there is no command in the Bible that He must be called Jesus Christ - il is merely pari of our culture and tra­dition. The only true commandment fe9a~ding His Name is found in Malthew 1:21: 'And she shall bnng forlh a son, and you shall ""II his name YESHUA: lor he shall save his people from their sins .• The Angel of the Lord would not have spoken to Joseph, a Hebrew man, in Greek. The Name that was com­manded from the messenger of God was "Yeshua" which means "salvalion.M Yeshua was the name His family called him. The name Jesus has no inherent meaning, whereas Biblical Hebrew names have meanings. revealing the nature of the person upon whom it is bestowed. It was very imPO':'3nt to a Hebrew spea~ng people thai Ihe Messiah be named In such an identifiable way.

Now this is not to say that it is wrong to use the name. Jesus Christ. The whole wortd knows who you are speaking of and God knows as well. Howe\ler, the name evokes a very negative connotation to Jewish people. It evokes centuries of hatred violence bloodshed and attempts of annihilation under the sig'n of the c~oss, by ~ple and ~ations claiming~ to b,e Christians. It evokes memones of being accused as Christ·

.. In' •• r Jewish Voice: I just wanted to let you know that your show blesses me TREMENDOUSLY!!I The show

airs here In Dallas on Dayslar. After last week's show. I found myself praying. "Lord, teach me more about your heri~e ; about

the people you were born into.- Continue to share your \visdom with us. I pray that God

will continue to empower you to prosper and succeed. Thank you! LSH, Dallas, TX

00*1)0(11)

kil1ers!~ (As believers we know Ina! a true Christian means a follower of Jesus, who was Jewish. and preached love of the Jewish peo­ple. but the Jewish people have no way to make that dIStinction.) So for those of us who have commit­ted our lives to reaching our Jewish brethren with the good news that the promised Messiah of Israel has come, we try 10 rommu· nieate in terminology thai presents Yeshua within the Jewish context in which He came to His own, rather than identifying with cen­turies of anti-Semitic persecution.

The Bible lells us thai salvation went to the Gentiles so thai they could in turn bring it back to the

Jewish people· make them jealous for their own God. How can that be accomplished jf He is pre­sented completely unrecognizable as the God of Israel? Throughout the centuries and thro~~hout the Old Te~lament the Jewish people were always waiting for the MeSSiah - the deliverer. They weren't waiting for ~the Christ" - that is a very foreign word. In fact, many Jewish people think that Jesus Christ IS "the god of the Gentiles" - a foreign god. like the gods of the pagans. For 2000 years GOO punished ~e Jewish peo­ple fOf going after foreign gods by the loss thelf Land. In all the Hebrew prayer books, the Jewish people are always crying out for the Messiah and looking for God's "salvallon' · 'YESHUA.' II would have been a very powerful thing il His Name had nol been changed and every Jewish person would have 10 face thai as they go through their prayers and pray for Yeshua, that lhe Gentiles are already worshiping Him!

Se!ti~ the issue of Jewish ministry aside, the title of Christian lust doesn't say much anymore. It has been so deval­ued by people who claim to be Christians, but bear little Of no resemblance to Yeshua or His first followers, that it has become almost meaningless. Therefore, above all, let our lives, more than our words speak for us, - Sarah

me grandson, I aillhe time,

• • •

express the depth 01 sorrow losses­senseless murders." day after day, We are

e ... er thankful for ihose who stand wlIh Israel. Never cease pra~~ng for the peace· the well· being - of Jerusalem. SG, Jerusalem, Israel

"****** Answered Prayerl

I Dear Friends in Amer;ca:

This morning my husband and I left Ihe house together to wait In our usual spot for our bus, out it was not a usual morning: The e)(il 10 the neighborhood was blocked With TV cameras, ambulances and police cars. plus hundreds of people looking at Ihe bombed out bus and · prolesting against the Arabs.

back the tears as we drove by and thanked G-d thai He had spared our II\les today, Of

cours9this bombing wasn't the first time that I was spared and probably won', be Ihe last.

I .Faye . Her husband called in becaus~ she had a lung infection, possibly pneumorua, He calJed back the next day 10 say that she was completely healed of the infectionl 2. Tim . HIS lather called in for his son as (TIm) had just been let go al his employment. His son got an even better job the very next day!

This could have been our bus. but we chose not 10 leave early today, When our bus came along, I was glad to see that our driver's li fe

but when it happens so close. It's very traumatic.

So. tonight we walked over 10 the site of the bombing to pay our respects and light some candles Lois of young kids saymg prayers. Lots of candles and fimvers. Lots of tears.

The dealh notices were posted. The one thai

3. A mother called for her son who was ill and out of wori<:. Several people owed him money but weren't paying. He was in danger 0.1 los· ing his home. That same week he received Ihe money owed to him and was able to pay his bills! (J: (:1'1:) (U): (I: (I:

I

"]11C tcnihlc thil1~ ahuut tcm:nisl1l b that ultimately it dcstrm'S those \\ho practise il. Slowly hut slln:I~. :l'" tilt.":, tr) h) c.xtingui ... h life ill others. the li~lu "ithin them dk':"O. t, Terry Waite Bn/ish RelIJlOUs Advisor. hostage rn Lebanon

.JANUARy/FEBRUARY 2003 .JEWISH VOICE TODAY PAGE I I

PROPHETIC VIEWS BEHIND THE NEWS By Jan Markell

((1 do understand that not every Muslim is radical or a ten-orist. "

A Message to American Muslims I do understand that not every Muslim Is radical or a ter·

(orist. The number of radicals among the 1.3 billion Muslims in the world is estimated at somewhere between 4% and 15%. We may never know the accuracy of those figures. since many live under repressive governments that don't let you speak anything but the government-sanctioned rhelonc

But I truly want to understand you , and the God within me wants me to love you. I keep hearing thai you are a "religion of peaceM

, yet around the world my Christian brothers and sisters are being slaugh tered in heinous ways based on some writings in the Koran. It troubles me that we are ·jnfide l s~ in the eyes of

some of your clergy. when as Christians we are taught to love every­one, even non-believ­ers. II you are a religion of peace,

then....my do so many of your brothers dance in the streets for joy when America and Israel are targeted for terror?

I musl know which among you repre­sents ·peace Q

• I dearly can'l make that distinction or decision. so it is up to you to determine it for me. We have wel­comed many of you to our great nation. Our constitution pro­lects you and allows you many righls. So. do you love AmericB and pledge allegiance to our flag? Do you pray Ihat Allah will bless and protect Ollf

nation? Do you appreciate the liberty and freedom you have here, as opposed 10 the tyranny in some at the nations you have lefl? Or do you speak behind the walls of your mosques that America really is the "Greal Satan~? If you are doing this, I will still try to love you because my Bible tells me to love my enemies. But that doesn't mean I will trust you.

You know some of the terrorists among us. Couldn't you turn some of them over to our authorities? I see you as a closed.

almost secretive society. and your silence is deafening. I have not heard more than a couple of your leaders in this country speak remorse for some of the Islamic terror anY'>'Vhere in the world , but particulany in America or Israel. I implore you to make sincere public statements, such as, ·Please forgive those of our faith for what they have done 10 innocent people everywhere. They are an utter embarrassment to Islam:

And when Will you denounce the fanatics among Islam world­wide, such as Hussein, bin l aden, Farrakhan, Aratat, Islamic Jihad, Hamas, and the mu!iahs who end their Friday prayers with "death to America" and VItriolic hale spewed against Israel? When will you denounce in black and white terms-not shades of gray- all among you who espouse violence and fanaticism?

You cannot be ambivalent in my eyes anymore. Until you con­vince me that you are with us and not with the terrorists, I will remain cautious about you and I will worry about you. I probably won't totally trust many of you. I wish it could be different. However, the God 01 Israel I serve will never let me hate you. Perhaps that is the greatest difference in our two faiths.

(t (u) (t (t (t (t

PAGE 12 JEWISH VOICE TODAY .JANUARy/ FEBRUARY 2003

i us some of his televised Hebrew Word of the Day teachings from 2002.

Let's see how weU you paid attention!

Yeshua; Salvation .c,~t7 Boker tov; Good morning •..• ..• .. ~ ~ Shalom; peace,HeIlO,GOOd-bye .... ~,.;1IIIj1 --q 1_; Beit; House i00i111 I I ,.,.

Lo; No ~,~ i'': Melon; Hotel ~,~ ~.,V

Ken; Yes ~,~ :'l~~' B'seder: In order, Alright . "" :'l t7 i'~':

.. "" n,~", Baruch Ha'Shem; Bles~):!is'Na,!,e y

Lila tov; Good night .···· ~ "'':

Ruach Hakodesh; Holy Spirit

B'vakashah; Please

Erev tov; Good evening

. i"C C"'i':"1 n,-,

.,'0': Stumped? Check. our website for the answers! YrWW.jewishvoice.org

,JANUARy/ FEBRUARY 2003 ,JEWISH VOICE. TODAY

IS FANATI C ISLAM

A GLOB..tL rHRKA"

PAGE 13

Jewish Voice Ministries' half·hour television special, "Blow the Trumpet in Zion" is being well received aU across Ihe country. Since October it has aired on selected stahons and networks including World Harvest and the Inspiration

Network. We have seen response from over one-hundred-fifly cities nationwide. !I is also being aired on the Jewish Voice Today network of stations on a monthly basts.

Almost one·thousand new viewers have responded to the pro­gram. All of them have received special gifts from Jewish Voice of authentic Shofars and videos of our overseas fes:ival out­reaches.

This special "Blow the Trumpet in Zion" program focuses on Jewish Voice's over· seas evangelism outreach to the Jewish people andthe~"'L

UARTE"S "EPO~T ... HQ The outreach festivals that began in 1993 have seen over five­

hundred-thousand attend, including JeWish people. Millions more have viewed them on television in their respective countries. Two-hundred-fifty-lhousand people have responded to the invita­tion to receive Yeshua-Jesus. Half of that number have been Jewish people.

Jewilh Voice Today Beginllool With New and Return 6uelll

The January-February program schedule lor our hall-hour weekly Jewish Voice Today telecast features a new guest beginning January 5th with Sandra Teplinsky. the Director of Light of Zion, an internalionalleaching and prayer ministry. Sandra is also the author of 1:\\'0 books, "The Blessing of Israef and ·Out of Darkness. · Jonathan Bernis. Executive Director of Jewish Voice will be exploring the tOPIC of Sandra's latest book, ~The BleSSing of Israel, · which explains the relationship and shared destiny of Christians and tlle Jewish oeople.

Our return guest, the weeks of January 26th and February 2nd, is a popular one, Dr. Larry Bates, the publisher and editor of ~Monetary and Economic Review· and the autllor of the book, "The New Economic Disorder. WI1I You Survive?" He will be talking about what he believes is the coming collapse of the American economy.

Another

very popular past guest

be Marvin Byers. author book, "Yasser Arafat. An

a;;::J.::;;:I~~~ Character? - He believes Vasser Ararat lfil the I In Daniel of the prophetic Character. Ihe

"Iiltle horn: Marvin Byers IS a Jewish believer in Yeshua, a for­mer resident of Israel, international evangelist and pastor.

The staff of Jewish Voice would like 10 Wish each and every one of you abundant blessings in the coming year· health. peace and prospenty In Ihe Messiahl -V~ PhilUp".

PACE. 14 ,JEWISH VOICE TODAY ,JANUARy/ FEBRUARY 2003

ill I stared in puzzled horror at the parade of lilJing skeletons -all

with such terribly hollow cheeks and enormous eyes - the subjects of grotesque, macabre-like Nazi "medica'" experi­

ments. Moments later, corpses - countless numbers of them -were bulldozed and discarded into a mass pil like trash heaped on a garbage dump.

Then the film stopped. The rabbi fumbted for a moment with the projector, an old reel·lo-reel, and switched on the lights. He turned to address our Shaooaf (Sabbath) youth gathering.

-This is what Christians Will do to you, if you tellhem. You must never let them; never again!"

"No, never again!" I vowed silenUy. I was five. The youth gathering consisted of us kindergartners, plus the older kids in primary grades.

It was a good vow I felt, because where I grew up. I had to learn 10 fight. No matter thai I was a girl ; I was a Jew, and thai was reason enough in my neIghborhood for a beating - even in America , even for a baby-boomer. After all, I had killed Christ (whoever he was), and for this he apparently hated me and wanted me dead. His people kept tell ing me so.

I believed in God and wanted to be a good Jew. I went to synagogue faithfully with my family, and obseNed the commands and traditions. Each day for years I recited the lengthy Hebrew liturgy, including our cornerstone proclamation, the Shema: ~Hear o (srael, the Lord your God, the Lord is One, ... You shall fave the Lord your God with al/ your heart, a/l your soul, and afl your might. - (Deut. 6) Judaism to me was very personat and important.

Yet a nagging realization that cl)'stallized over the years began to haunt me: I did nollove God. Worse yet, I couldn't think of anyone in the synagogue who did. In fact. nobody I knew had a relationship with Him anything like Abraham, Isaac Jacob or Moses had. Why?

Years later, my question unanswered, I left for co'lege. There I encountered a whole new form of anti-Semitism: it was called ·evangelism . ~ Evangelism, I fel t sure, was a nonviolent but ill-dis­guised plot to destroy the Jews. I remembered my vow: Never again! So I devised a plan. I purchased a New Testament to read. From it I would compile arguments to refute the missionar­ies and disprove the gospel - virgin birth, resurrection, and all!

By the second page of Matthew, however, I was dumbfound· ed. The very words of the book were charged with power and, of all things, love! Plus, they made sense. I knew enough of the Hebrew Scriptures to cross-reference prophecies and connect them to Jesus. To my shock, this Jesus (Yeshua) of the New Testament was obviously thoroughly Jewish: in fact, the entire New Testament was so very - Jewish! II was a diuying revela· tlon. t kept reading - and believing.

Convinced after months of study that Yeshua was the Messiah, I knew there was only one thing to do: give my heart and life to Him. Certainly t stood to lose falllily and friends (which I did), as well as ties to the mainstream Jewish community

(whoever that was)

(which happened). But when I repented of my sin, trusted in Yeshua's atonement, and embraced Him as Lord and Messiah, I got something far greater than anything I'd 1051 - peace with God. Now 1 could have a relationship with the Creator like those in the Bible! t knew He loved me, and I loved Him. At last I knew how that great command could ever be fulfilled - to love the Lord with all your heart. mind and strength.

The day soon came when Yeshua challenged me to forgive, even as I'd been forgiven. It was time to give up my vow. my hurt, and my bitterness against the church. There was another way: to bless those who'd cursed; to cover a multitude of sins with the same love I'd freely received; and to weep intercessory tears on behalf of my brothers and sisters, Ihe people of God.

I've since witnessed thousands of Jewish people profess faith in Messiah, and perhaps as many Christians profess love and blessing toward Israel. I love the ministry of mediating God's kingdom on earth. But my greatesl treasure is intimate relation­ship with the Holy One of Israel, the lover of our souls, the God of Glory who miraculously graces us to love Him with all of our heart, mind and strength.

For this, I praise and thank Him forever. ¢¢¢¢

,JANUARV/ F'EBRUARV 2003 ..JeWISH VOICE TODAY PAGE 15