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Donna Wasson: Got Peace?

By STLloyd May 23, 2015 Donna Wasson Jesus peace Rapture Ready

Donna Wasson and I have never met (yet), but we’ve corresponded a few times on each other’s Rapture-Ready contributions, and found we have some things in common.  I call “Dee-Dubya” my brain-twin sister because so often she expresses just so precisely what I’m feeling.  I think most of her fans feel that way.  We have nursing in common, and both have sons we named Benjamin, and we’re about the same age. 

I think that the Lord is doing us a favor in letting us glimpse what is coming over the horizon, and in sending frustrations and obstacles into our way for the express purpose of wringing every last drop of love for this world out of our hearts.  Our Great Physician knows what is in our best interest, and Nurse Donna’s prescription is exactly right.  Prayer and time with Him and in His Word are the medicine we cannot afford to do without in the days left.   

Donna’s articles are on The Article Factory, Faith Writers, E-zine, and lot of other sites, she contributes weekly to RR, and I am one of her biggest fans!  When I saw this one, it was like she wrote straight from my own heart.  So I just wanted to share this one with you all.  –S.T. Lloyd 

♠

Got Peace?

By Donna Wasson

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So tell me, is the chaos getting to you yet? Are you feeling hard pressed from all sides by the rising threats you see and hear in the news? Do you sense the spiritual atmosphere around you crackling with an exponential increase of evil? Can you feel your blood pressure rising? Are you suffering from an increase in headaches or sleeplessness? Do you carry a sense of foreboding; that doom and death is just around the corner, waiting to pounce on you and your family?

If you have no idea what I’m talking about and you’re mindlessly bouncing through each day, under the impression you have the world by the tail on a downhill drag and everything is going your way, well skippy-dee-do-dah for you. You’re completely hopeless and unconscious. At least you’ll die happy. 

The rest of us find ourselves being squeezed by increasing pain and distress. In some ways, that’s a good sign! It means we’re very, very close to the end of this Age of Grace. Almighty God is about to manifest Himself in a most impressive show of power to the inhabitants of this world. Although we who are the Bride of Christ are under great pressure at the moment, we’re not alone. The planet and critters are in distress just as we are.

“For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” Romans 8:19-22 (KJV)

Poor creation. We really made a mess of everything, didn’t we! God put this perfect planet and everything on it under the dominion of Adam and when he and Eve chose to sin, the earth and all the animals on it were cursed as well. How sad for them. They were completely innocent, yet were swept up in the results of stupid humans introducing death into their existence. 

 

I don’t know about you, but I need a vacation. Not just a few days at the beach or some theme park; no, a REAL vacation where I can put down all of my responsibilities, burdens and concerns and just rest. I need to retreat into a place that is cool and quiet and beautiful, where I can sit in silence and be refreshed. 

I’m bone weary mentally, emotionally and physically. Some days I feel about 92 years old, barely able or willing to get out of bed to face another day filled with the endless drudgery of life. I’m tired of hearing the words ‘terrorism’ and ‘ISIS’ every other minute. I’m tired of reading of the outrageous Machiavellian machinations of the luciferians running our government in their rabid quest to destroy this country and the American people. 

I fight the despair brought on by the constant overload of information from smart phones, TV, radio and on-line communications and news feeds. Sometimes I have to ponder whether ignorance really would be bliss, but I have a responsibility from God to shout out warnings of what I see coming on the not-too-distant horizon.

I say despair because I see my beloved homeland wallowing in filth, corruption, lies and evil and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. I’m stuck between wanting to fight what I know is a losing battle, and accepting what’s happening is God’s will, which is moving us closer to home. 

Yes, you can throw in a bag, load the kids in the car and take off for parts unknown, but you’ll still have to return home to the same ‘ol pressures and uncertain future. You might feel a little respite but it won’t really help much. The Bride is tired, and I’m positive our Groom is well aware of that fact.

There’s a sense of battle fatigue with many who are just plain fed up, weary of all the threats, cruelty, disappointments and lies we face every single day. But there’s no place to run…or is there?

Until we get home to heaven where we’ll rest forever, the Lord offers to be our Shepherd; to lead us into a lovely sun-lit valley that is quiet and safe. He wants us to lie down in the lush grass, drink in safety at the cool, clean streams of the River of Life and catch our breath while He watches over us. But how do we get there? How do we tap into that level of serenity amidst the chaos that is spinning around us?

Two words: prayer closet. Unless we discipline ourselves to literally shut ourselves away to spend time alone with the Lord every day, we will not make it. We’re living in the most treacherous times in world history. No other generation has ever faced the constant threat of war, disease, terror attacks, economic failure, FEMA camps, government tyranny, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, droughts, tornadoes, food/water shortages, and even possible asteroid strikes. 

ALL of these things are either happening now, or will happen shortly as Bible prophecy continues to play out. There’s nowhere to run, folks. Nowhere to hide. No shelter to be found, except in the arms of our Heavenly Father.

Spending time alone with Him, pouring out our sorrows, concerns, needs and fears is precisely what He wants us to do. He loves and adores us and remembers that we are just dust with a very limited understanding of His ways and thoughts. Not only is He in sovereign control of every event that’s happening on this earth, He knows each one of us, down to the number of hairs on our head!

He’s well aware of our individual circumstances and has promised to meet our every need. He’ll  give you comfort in these days, as well as a supernatural sense of peace and tranquility that will stand out like a sore thumb to your friends and neighbors when all hell breaks loose around you.

Jesus Himself promised “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27 (KJV)

When you spend time in His presence this peace, HIS peace, will infuse your heart and mind. It won’t matter what’s happening on the news or who is blowing up whom. It won’t matter that natural disasters are exploding all over the earth. Terror attacks, even in this country, will not shake your faith that your Heavenly Daddy has you in the palm of His hand. You’ll be able to face the last seconds of this age with grace and dignity. You’ll even be able to sleep peacefully, knowing angels are watching over you and your family.

The Holy Spirit will open your eyes to discern the difference between truth and lies. He will give you wisdom to know what you need to do and when to do it. You absolutely MUST have this guidance in the days to come! Don’t be like those who ignore the Lord, yet call on His name when some horror hits, expecting Him to come make it all better.

You know what I’m talking about. When disaster strikes you hear people yelling “Oh my God! Oh Lord have mercy! Oh my God!” but they think nothing of blaspheming that same name in their everyday speech. I find it ironic no one ever calls out to allah or buddha or other gods. No, humans instinctively call out to YWHW because they know deep in their heart He’s the only true God capable of saving them. 

These are the days to shore up your strength in the Lord by spending time in His Word and His calming presence. Allow Him to quench your thirst for rest and tranquility. Repent of your sins every day. Just because we’re saved doesn’t mean we don’t still sin; He appreciates when we apologize for our behavior and words that offend Him. Pray to stay covered by blood of Jesus for protection from the enemy. Be obedient to His commandments to love Him first, and others as much as yourself. 

You can sense as well as I can that America is about to suffer judgment. Cuddle close to your Heavenly Father and stay under His wing. He does not punish the righteous with the wicked, but I’m quite sure we’ll see horrible events before we’re snatched home. When we face those things with peace and confidence in front of our friends and neighbors who are freaking out, they’ll run to us looking for answers. 

It’ll be the perfect opportunity to offer them hope; to gather the final harvest of souls before we’re all snatched home. Be ready to work in His fields. Don’t let Him come back and find you lazy and self-absorbed. He’s counting on you to help bring in the lost little sheeple. Prepare now. Spend time alone with Him every day and store up rest, peace and strength while things are relatively quiet.

Terrible events are going to hit the fan very soon and it’s gonna be uglier than you can imagine, but hang in there—it will all be worth it. “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory with shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18 (KJV)

“For since the beginning of the world, men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for Him.” Isaiah 64:4 (KJV)

Whoohoo! Come quickly, Lord Jesus! 

Author: bensmomi99@gmail.com

Dear Church: An open letter from one of those millennials you can’t figure out

Reblogged from www.theologyinworship.com
May 13, 2015

A lot’s been made over the millennial generation and their religious life. Why they go to church. Why they don’t go to church. What they want. What they hate.

I’m going to do something different here. I’m not going to cite Barna. I’m not going to quote Rachel Held Evans. I’m not going to link to any articles or blog posts.

I’m just going to tell you what’s true for me, and what I’ve seen to be true of others like me. I am one of those rascally millennials, by the way. One of those enigmatic, paradoxical, media-dependent, coffee-drinking young people swept together under this millennial umbrella. Except coffee tears up my stomach, so I dropped that stuff.


I was born when a former actor was in the White House. I was crushed the day slap bracelets were banned from my elementary school. I remember hiding in my room with my five-inch TV to watch Friends and Seinfeld and the Simpsons, and all the other shows I wasn’t allowed to see. I don’t remember what it’s like to not have a home computer. I can barely recall a time before cell phones. I’ve never left home without one.

I’ve always been in church. I’ve never left, though I’ve come close several times. I would have left in high school if I’d had the option, but in my house, attendance at my cool, hip, contemporary-worshiping, youth-group-glorifying, moralism-preaching, theology-eschewing McCongregation was a non-negotiable.

So I went. Through every repetition of “Shout to the Lord,” every True Love Waits commitment ceremony, every rapture-ready dispensationalist Bible study, every sermon series on how to make myself into a good, moral, well-behaved person so that I wouldn’t tick off God and bring condemnation to America.

But I was always a misfit. Always a skeptic. Always a doubter. Always an outsider.
Today, you’re my livelihood, and putting food on my table overcomes the gravitational pull of my mattress on a cold, rainy Sunday morning. Or a hot, dry one. Or any other one. But that pull is still there. It’s always been there. It’s never left.

The truth is, my relationship with you is still love-hate.
I love the theology, but I hate the expectations of pseudo piety.
Love the gospel, hate the patriotic moralism.
Love the Bible, hate the way it’s used.
Love Jesus, but hate what we’ve done with him.
Love worship, but hate Jesusy entertainment.
And those other kids I went to church with, I’ve come to find that many of them were misfits, skeptics, and doubters, too. Some of them still go, but more of them have left.

Some of them left because they had no desire to conform to an outdated cultural norm that demanded we keep up appearances by parking our butts in our regular Sunday pew.
They didn’t believe, and didn’t believe they needed to pretend that they did.
Others have left because they grew keen to the bait-and-switch tactics. They’ve left because they didn’t fit in, and couldn’t pretend anymore. They left because the Jesus preached from the pulpit didn’t look much like the Jesus of Nazareth. They left because all the bells and whistles and hooks and marketing rang hollow.
They left because they had been constantly catered to, constantly kept busy, but had never been taught how to be a part of the church.

The programs won’t bring them back.
The coffee won’t bring them back.
The show – the lights, fog machine, the contemporary worship that we think is essential –  nope, that won’t do it, either.
But here are a few things that might just work with some of us. They may seem crazy. They may contradict everything you’ve heard. But, as one of these millennials, this is what would work for me, and for a lot of the people I know who have left.

Don’t expect a “worship style” to do your dirty work. Contemporary worship hasn’t worked. The longer we extend the life of this failed experiment, the more we see the results.
In my experience, contemporary worship brings in three groups. Baby boomers who are still stuck in their rebellion against the establishment, parents who mistakenly think that contemporary worship is the only way for their kids to connect to the church, and a small percentage of young adults who’ve never left and who never knew anything other than contemporary worship.

In modeling worship after commercial entertainment, you’ve compromised your identity, and we’re still not coming back.
And even if we did, would there be any church left? Would there be anything beyond the frills, the lights, the performance, the affected vocals? Would we still see a cross? Would we still find our place among the saints who have come before? Would we find reminders of our life-long need of grace?
Or would we have been hooked by something altogether different? Would we merely find your answer key for the great mystery of faith?

Don’t give us entertainment, give us liturgy. We don’t want to be entertained in church, and frankly, the church’s attempt at entertainment is pathetic. Enough with the theatrics. Enough with the lights, the visuals, the booming audio, the fog machine, the giveaway gimmicks, the whole production. Follow that simple yet profound formula that’s worked for the entire history of the church. Entrance, proclamation, thanksgiving, sending out. Gathering, preaching, breaking bread, going forth in service. Give us a script to follow, give us songs to sing, give us the tradition of the church, give us Holy Scripture to read. Give us sacraments, not life groups, to grow and strengthen us.

Week after week, season after season, year after year, let us participate in the drama of the gospel. It’s not supposed to be fun. It’s not supposed to produce intense emotional response. It’s a microcosmic, disciplined, anticipatory remembrance of who we were, who we are, and who we are to be. We need this. We need these heartfelt rituals in our lives to keep us returning to the fount of grace, to mark our way back home.
Be yourself, and you just might shake us out of our technology-induced, entertainment-craving slumber. Keep giving us Jesusy versions of mainstream entertainment, and there’s no hope. You can’t compete. You’ll lose every time.

Don’t target us. In doing so, you’ve marketed and advertised yourself into oblivion. We’re left with homogeneous congregations of approximately the same ages and backgrounds who are just there for what they can get out of the church. No wonder we’ve left. Just be the church. Be yourself. Use your regular old liturgy. Offer your regular old sacraments. Sing your regular old songs. Cast a wide net, and let whosoever will come. Trust me, we’re more likely to show up when we don’t feel like fish snapping up the bait.

Be inclusive. Tear down silos. Save us from ourselves. We don’t need more youth group lock-ins, more Sunday School options for each age group, more senior adult outings on beekeeping and genealogy. We need more of each other. We need to look into the faces of old and young, rich and poor, of different colors, races, and ethnic backgrounds, so we can learn to see Jesus in faces that don’t look like us. So we can remember that the kingdom is bigger than our safe, suburban bubble. That’s right, we need community, not bound together by age or economic status or skin color, but wrought with the hammering of nails on a wooden cross.

Our internet connectivity is just fine. The rest of our lives is a different story. We are hopelessly disconnected. Church, you can be a powerful remedy if you stop posing as a Fortune 500 company scheming to sell a product.

Welcome the toughest, deepest, grittiest, most desperate, most shocking questions.  We have lots of questions. More and more, what we see in the world doesn’t jive with what we grew up hearing from the pulpit. You have done more damage by requiring politeness, by refusing to engage, by brusquely rebuking honesty and vulnerability. You’re better than that, church. At least you should be. You should be a safe place for struggling, grappling, doubting.

Allow us to be real with each other, to avoid the temptation to gloss over the crap going on around us with easy, tidy, Jesusy clichés‘. You’ve always taught us how the world is black and white, just like The Andy Griffith Show and I Love Lucy. But, and excuse us for noticing, the world is mostly gray, gray like Ricky Ricardo’s dinner jacket and Barney Fife’s nightstick. Let’s embrace that grayness together.

So no more three points and a take home. No more self-help. No more marriage and parenting advice. No more anger management pointers. We don’t need you to be our therapist, we need you to be our church. We need you to grapple with us, to push back. We need you to show us how to be the hands and feet of Christ, to struggle with us in making it more on earth as it is in heaven.

 
It’s not too late, church, but your tactics aren’t working.
It’s time for a new strategy.
It’s time to be uncool. To be radical. To be different.
It’s time to be yourself.
Your Friend,
Jonathan

Hearing the voice of the Lord

Q.  In your recent post “Hearing The Voice Of The Lord”, you referenced Elijah in 1 Kings 19:11-13, but Elijah was a prophet who heard regularly from God.  I am not sure that would apply to believers in general.  As far as you know, are there any instructions or similar examples for us in the New Testament about God speaking to a believer’s heart, other than to apostles, prophets, etc?  And if so, how would we know if an inner voice telling us something (like buy a new house, confront this person, look for a new job, etc) is actually coming from God, or merely us just having an idea and thinking about it?


A.  You don’t need to search the Scriptures for examples of God talking to ordinary people. When you were born again, He put His Spirit in your heart (2 Cor. 1:21-22). One of the Holy Spirit’s functions is to be your teacher and counselor. Therefore He has to speak to you.

The reason I used Elijah as an example was to show how even he had to learn to listen for the still small voice of the Lord.  It’s the same for everyone. You learn to hear His voice by learning to listen for it. The way you know if an inner voice is the Lord telling you something is through practice. 

If you think you hear God telling you something, do what He says. He won’t tell you to do anything that’s contrary to His word so there’s really no risk.  He will also begin with small things that are easy for you to do.  As you do them, He will reward your faithfulness with bigger things. Soon you’ll have an ongoing conversation just like you do with your other friends.

The Mystery of Pentecost

Read more of this article

 Reblogged from https://prophecywatchers.com

by: Gary Stearman on May 21, 2015

This month the Jewish observance of Shavuot – Pentecost – falls on Sunday, May 24^th. In the Jewish calendar, this date corresponds to the 6^th of Sivan of the year 5775, marking the first of two days of celebration. Since the Second Century A.D., this commemoration has been given two days, accommodating the natural fluidity of the calendar which, when counted from the lunar cycle, has no fixed date. In fact, Jews refer to its commemoration as “the festival without a date,” giving it an aura of deep mystery.
About this time every year, we are reminded afresh of Pentecost’s enormous significance in the panorama of biblical prophecy. Almost three decades ago, we first brought you its amazing prophetic truths. Better than any other ancient Jewish festival, it embodies the elements that we associate with the catching-away, or rapture, of the church. We repeat them here to refresh your memory concerning the joys of this season and to remind you that the Lord is near, even at the door.
As we move toward the halfway point of 2015, we find ourselves experiencing another wave of renewed excitement about the near possibility of the rapture of the church. With Russia on the move in Ukraine, and nuclear weapons being brandished by Iran and Saudi Arabia, the Middle-East war threat rises to the highest probability we’ve ever seen. Syria and Yemen are collapsing; Lebanon is falling as ISIS rises. A century after the fall of the Ottoman Caliphate, these groups (along with the Turks) hope to create a new one. As a result, interest in the prophesied culmination of the church age has risen to almost unprecedented anticipation.
We have demonstrated numerous remarkable connections between Pentecost and the prophetic conclusion of the church age. It is the fourth and central feast among the seven Feasts of Israel: Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, Pentecost, Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur and Tabernacles. The first three are spring festivals, representing the blood sacrifice and resurrection. The last three come in the fall, calling forth judgment and the establishment of the Kingdom. At the center – in the early summer – is Pentecost. In the Bible, it is represented by two loaves of leavened bread, held aloft by the High Priest. Today’s Jews celebrate it annually, in a ceremony called, “decorating the bride.” This reminds us of the church, the “bride of Christ.”
Pentecost is a harvest festival that marks the passage of seven weeks after Firstfruits:
“9 Seven weeks shalt thou number unto thee: begin to number the seven weeks from such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle into the corn. 10 And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the Lord thy God with a tribute of a freewill offering of thine hand, which thou shalt give unto the Lord thy God, according as the Lord thy God hath blessed thee” (Deuteronomy 16:9 – 10).
Over the years we have repeatedly stressed that Pentecost is the most mysterious of all the Jewish festivals. Called by the Jews, the “Feast of Weeks” [“weeks,” or in Hebrew “Shavuot”], it is the festival of the early summer harvest. But its associated symbols and metaphors invoke meanings far beyond the mere harvesting of grain.
Among the Jews, this is the festival that celebrates the giving of the Torah, or Law. Shavuot (Pentecost) was the time, they say, when the Twelve Tribes gathered at the foot of Mount Sinai. There, they heard the actual voice of God, as He spoke the commandments. The Bible does not seem, at first glance, to make a clear connection between Sinai and Pentecost. Nevertheless, the link is there, if we take the time to look.
Furthermore, this festival presents the ceremony of the marriage between God and Israel. In this context, Passover (which precedes Pentecost by seven weeks) becomes the period of God’s courtship of His wife. Read more of this article, click  on https://prophecywatchers.com/the-mystery-of-pentecost 

Gary Stearman commentary on the Age of Grace

Israel Targeted for International Isolation by the EU, Vatican and FIFA

Wednesday, 20 May 2015 08:32 By: Jewish Voice Staff 

 

As Israel continues to find herself under unyielding existential siege by her immediate Arab neighbors and the ever present threat to annihilate the Jewish state by Iran gains traction with each passing day, it now appears that influential international organizations have escalated their concerted efforts to isolate Israel in the world community.

According to a recent report in the Guardian of London, a cadre of high profile former European political leaders and diplomats have issued demands that the European Union (EU) urgently reassess its policy on announcing its formal recognition of a Palestinian state and have insisted that Israel be held accountable for its “actions” in the so-called occupied territories.

The Guardian reported that the signatories on the letter included Hubert Védrine and Roland Dumas, former foreign ministers of France, Andreas van Agt, former prime minister of the Netherlands, John Bruton, a former prime minister of Ireland, Michel Rocard, former prime minister of France, Javier Solana, former NATO secretary general and Sir Jeremy Greenstock, former UK ambassador to the UN. The group is known as the European Eminent Persons Group.

 

The leaders charge that the financial and political aid that the EU has given to the troubled region has only exacerbated the “preservation of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and imprisonment of Gaza”.

Reports indicate that the timing of the letter by the European leaders comes on the heels of the recent electoral victory of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his success in cobbling together a right-wing coalition.

These leaders and others in senior European political circles have often criticized Netanyahu for what they perceive as his efforts to intentionally place obstacles in the path of US initiated peace negotiations as well as stalling direct talks with the Palestinian Authority.

The letter clearly expresses increased frustration over the moribund peace process and continued illegal Israeli settlement building in the West Bank, according to the Guardian report.

In a scathing critique of EU policy, the letter says: “Europe has yet to find an effective way of holding Israel to account for the way it maintains the occupation. It is time now to demonstrate to both parties how seriously European public opinion takes contraventions of international law, the perpetration of atrocities and the denial of established rights.”

The issue of recognition of a Palestinian state is expected to be presented before the UN security council in the coming months, according to the Guradian report.  It will likely be in the shape of a new draft resolution currently being examined by France. The leaders say::“If this means recognition of a Palestine government-in-waiting for the territories within the pre-1967 borders, or the setting of a deadline for the negotiation of a two-state solution, the EU should be united in support.”

Moreover, the leaders have asked the EU to make their relations with Palestinians and Israelis conditional on the “parties attitude to progress towards a two-state solution”.

In a recent interview with the London-based Arabic newspaper Asharq al-Awsat, President Obama said that he had not given up hope for a two-state solution but tensions in the region and “serious questions about overall commitment” have made progress difficult, according to the Guardian report.

“It’s no secret that we now have a very difficult path forward,” Obama said in the interview. “We look to the new Israeli government and the Palestinians to demonstrate - through policies and actions - a genuine commitment to a two-state solution.”

The European leaders’ letter follows an April report sent to the EU foreign policy chief about a potential boycott of products manufactured in the disputed territories. The report called for the “correct labelling of settlement products.”

As such, the letter asked for “tougher measures to contain [Israeli] settlement expansion and steps to operationalize the EU’s policy of non-recognition of Israeli sovereignty beyond the 1967 borders across the full range of EU-Israeli relations”.

Condemning what they perceive as Netanyahu’s intransigence as it pertains to implementing practical steps to furthering the peace process, the letter stated their belief that the Israeli Prime Minister has “little intention of negotiating seriously for a two-state solution within the term of this incoming Israeli government.” They also came down hard on the role of the Obama administration by writing: “We also have low confidence that the US government will be in a position to take a lead on fresh negotiations with the vigor and the impartiality that a two-state outcome demands.”

On the flip side of this ongoing debacle, while the EU has played a significant role in pressuring successive Israeli governments regarding peace negotiations with the Palestinians, they have consistently funded NGOs that work to delegitimize Israel through campaigns of Boycotts, Divestments, and Sanctions (BDS).

According to acclaimed author Joseph Puder, in an article appearing on the Front Page Mag web site, he writes: An “industry of lies” manufactured by the Palestinians have been accepted by the EU’s media and academia, who have turned them into accepted “truths” and disseminated them widely among those in the European “street.”  BDS is quite simply a form of political warfare that exploits the language of human rights and international law to promote the destruction of Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people.”

He adds that, “The EU’s unquestionable support of radical Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and of the Palestinian Authority (PA) encourages Palestinian refusal to arrive at a reasonable and peaceful settlement with Israel. “

FIFA and the Proposed Suspension of Israel

In other related matters, efforts are underway in the realm of professional sports to undercut Israeli influence in the lucrative world of international football or soccer. Recently, the Palestinian Football Association had called for Israel’s suspension from FIFA, (Federation Internationale de Football Association) which is world soccer’s governing body.

On Tuesday, May 20, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to meet FIFA President Sepp Blatter in Jerusalem to see if measures can be taken to convince the Palestinians to withdraw their proposal for the suspension of Israel, which is on the agenda in FIFA's annual Congress in Zurich on May 29.

According to a Jerusalem Post report, Blatter is traveling to the region in the hope of finding a diplomatic solution to the campaign to isolate Israel.

The report indicated that the chances of a scenario unfolding in which Israel would be jettisoned from participation in FIFA are slim to none; nonetheless, Israel is taking the Palestinian bid quite seriously.

In the last few weeks Israel has lobbied many of the 209 countries of FIFA against the proposal. It takes a 75 percent majority – or 157 countries that would have to vote to support the move.

Israel argues that the proposal would adversely politicize the sport, and assert that the Palestinians are only using this international platform to further their political agenda of internationally ostracizing Israel.

Reports have noted that restrictions have been placed on some Palestinian football players because of their involvement in terrorist organizations.

The JPost reported that Israel Football Association chairman Ofer Eini and CEO Rotem Kemer will participate in Netanyahu's meeting with Blatter. They went to Zurich last week to discuss the matter with FIFA chiefs at the organization's headquarters.

Is Abbas an “Angel of Peace?”

During a meeting on Saturday, May 16, at the Vatican, widespread reports emanating from the AFP and AP news services indicated that Pope Francis I called Palestininan Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas an “Angel of Peace.”

INN reported that the purported comments were received as something of a coup by PA officials and their supporters - but it appears they were the result of a mistranslation.

Francis's original remarks appeared in the Italian-language newspaper La Stampa, which the English-language outlets in question translated as the pontiff calling Abbas outright an "angel of peace."

But doubts were first cast on the accuracy of the translation by the Israellycool blog, which pointed out that the Italian was written in the exhortative (using the word "sia").

Several Italian-language experts have confirmed that to Arutz Sheva, saying that Francis actually told Abbas that he "may" or "could" be an "angel of peace," in an attempt to persuade him to return to peace talks with Israel.

As leader of the Catholic world, the Pope's stance on the Arab-Israeli conflict is closely scrutinized, leading to several high-profile controversies.

Just last week Pope Francis declared he would recognize "Palestine," sparking an uproar - just days after he declared that the Vatican would canonize "Palestinian saints."

In May 2014, while on an official visit to Israel, the Pope called the Palestinian Authority (PA) the "state of Palestine," and made an unexpected stop at the security barrier between Jerusalem and Bethlehem in Judea to pray at a section with "Pope we need to see someone to speak about justice. Bethlehem look (sic) like Warsaw ghetto. Free Palestine" spray-painted on it.

Abbas was in Rome at the invitation of the Pope for the canonization Sunday of two 19th-century nuns from what was then Ottoman-ruled Palestine. The new saints, Mariam Bawardy and Marie Alphonsine Ghattas, are the first from the region to be canonized since the early days of Christianity.

Joining Abbas were over 2000 Palestinians who waved flags in Vatican square during the ceremony.

Church officials have said that the canonization of the new saints is a sign of hope and encouragement for Christians in the Middle East at a time when violent persecution from Islamic extremists has driven many Christians from the region of Christ's birth, according to published reports.

In a statement Saturday, Abbas praised the two new saints as inspirational models for today's Palestinians and urged Christians like them to remain in the region.

"We call on Palestinian Christians to stay with us and enjoy the rights of full and equal citizenship, and bear with us the difficulties of life until we achieve liberty, sovereignty and human dignity," he said.

Giulio Meotti, a Vatican scholar and expert on the history of anti-Semitism in the Catholic Church, recently offered quite a different analysis of the Church’s position on Israel. He called the Pope’s recognition of a Palestinian state. The Pope’s decision he said is “nothing new.”   He added that, “Despite the fact that there are many Catholics around the world who share a pro-Israel attitude, the Catholic Church has always been at war with the Jewish State and did everything in its power to prevent its establishment and then to derail it.” 

A controversy is currently swirling around a widely reported remark made by Pope Francis I to Palestinian Chairman Mahmoud Abbas when they met at the Vatican on Saturday. He allegedly referred to the terrorist leader as an “angel of peace” after a canonization ceremony of two 18th century nuns from Ottoman controlled Palestine. (Photo Credit: Conservativebyte.com)

 In a strongly worded letter to Federica Mogherini (pictured above) the EU’s foreign policy chief, the group of former European leaders expressed their serious misgivings concerning the role that the US can play in leading substantive negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians in terms of a two-state solution.

Pilgrims wave Palestinian flags before a holy mass at St. Peters Square in Rome as the Pope canonized two 18th century nuns from the Ottoman controlled known as Palestine

Fatah's Armed Militias Warn Israelis: "You Must Leave!"

by Khaled Abu Toameh
May 20, 2015 at 5:00 am

http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/5785/fatah-militias

• The international community and the media often ignore the fact that Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah has a number of armed groups. Their fight is to destroy Israel, eliminate the "Zionist entity" and achieve the "right of return" for millions of descendants of refugees.
• The Palestinian Authority leadership has never distanced itself from the rhetoric and actions of these groups. Fatah's militias will be the first to reject any peace agreement that includes the slightest concession to Israel.
• Several Fatah leaders, in fact, often speak in English about the need for reviving the peace process, while in Arabic they praise and endorse the Fatah gunmen.

Many in the international community often refer to the Palestinian Fatah faction, which is headed by Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, as a "moderate" group that believes in Israel's right to exist and the two-state solution.

What these people do not know is that Fatah, the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), consists of several groups that hold different views than those expressed by Abbas and other English-speaking Fatah officials.
Some of these Fatah groups do not believe in Israel's right to exist and continue to talk about the "armed struggle" as the only way to "liberate Palestine and restore Palestinian national rights."

One of these groups is called The Aqsa Martyrs Brigade - El Amoudi Brigade.
The Aqsa Martyrs Brigades is Fatah's armed wing, established shortly after the beginning of the second intifada in September 2000. Although the Palestinian Authority leadership maintains that the group has been dissolved and its members recruited into its security forces, scores of gunmen continue to operate freely in Palestinian villages and refugee camps in the West Bank.

Based in the Gaza Strip, the El Amoudi Brigade, which consists of dozens of Fatah gunmen, is named after Nidal El Amoudi, a top Fatah operative killed by the Israel Defense Forces on January 13, 2008, after he carried out a series of armed attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers during the second intifada.

During the last war in the Gaza Strip between Israel and Hamas ("Operation Protective Edge"), the El Amoudi Brigade claimed responsibility for firing dozens of rockets at Israeli cities and IDF soldiers.

Sources in the Gaza Strip claim that many of the group's members are former security officers, still on the payroll of the PA. Other sources claim that the group is funded by ousted Fatah official Mohamed Dahlan, who is currently based in the United Arab Emirates, and the Lebanese Shiite terror group Hezbollah.
It is worth noting that the Palestinian Authority leadership has never distanced itself from the El Amoudi Brigade's rhetoric and actions.
In addition to an official website, Fatah's El Amoudi Brigade regularly issues threats to pursue the armed struggle against, and destroy, Israel. Last week, the group posted a video with a message to the "Israeli enemy" on the 67^th anniversary of the creation of Israel -- which Palestinians refer to as "Nakba Day" (Day of Catastrophe).

Entitled, "A Message to the Israeli People" and accompanied by Hebrew subtitles, the video declares that the "battle for the liberation (of Palestine) was closer than ever," and warns Israelis: "Our Nakba (catastrophe) is unforgettable; soon you will have to leave because you have no other choice."
The Fatah video shows the group's members during military training in the Gaza Strip, in preparation for the next battle against Israel. "We have prepared the best soldiers," says the song in the background.

In a separate statement on the same occasion, the Fatah group emphasizes that the "armed struggle" against Israel "is the only means to liberate Palestine." It also stresses that the "right of return" for Palestinian refugees to their former homes inside Israel cannot be compromised and is non-negotiable. "Our people reject all alternative options to the right of return," the statement read, repeatedly referring to Israel as the "Zionist enemy."
Elsewhere, the Fatah group boasts that its men have been able to manufacture a new 12-kilometer range rocket called 107 that was used against IDF tanks and soldiers during the last war in the Gaza Strip.

The El Amoudi Brigade is not the only armed Fatah militia operating in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Another significant group in the Gaza Strip, which also participated in the last war against Israel, is called the Martyr Abdel Qader Hossaini Brigade. Like its sister group, El Amoudi Brigade, the Martyr Abdel Qader Hossaini militia also supports the armed struggle against the "Zionist enemy."

A third major Fatah terror group is called the Abu al-Rish Brigades, which has been responsible for many terrorist attacks against Israel and the kidnapping of foreigners in the Gaza Strip. The gang, which describes itself as the "military wing of Fatah," also refers to Israel as the "Zionist enemy" and claims to have participated alongside Hamas in the last war in the Gaza Strip.

Gunmen from Fatah's Abu al-Rish Brigades, which describes itself as the "military wing of Fatah," appear in a September 2014 propaganda video.

The international community and the media often ignore the fact that Fatah has a number of armed groups that are still openly dedicated to the "armed struggle" and terrorism as a way of "liberating Palestine." They also ignore that "moderate" Fatah leaders who speak in favor of peace and the two-state solution do not distance themselves from these groups. Several Fatah leaders, in fact, often speak in English about the need for reviving the peace process, while in Arabic they praise and endorse the Fatah gunmen.

The presence of armed Fatah gangs in the West Bank and Gaza Strip is a sign of the huge challenges that any Palestinian leader would face if and when the Palestinians and Israel reach a peace agreement. Obviously, these Fatah groups will be the first to reject any peace agreement that includes the slightest concession to Israel. Some of these groups are opposed in principle to peace with Israel because they simply do not recognize Israel's right to exist.

This is something that the international community -- first and foremost the U.S. -- needs to take into consideration when dealing with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Decision-makers need to know that opposition to peace with Israel will come not only from Hamas, but also from many groups within Fatah. As the armed groups themselves indicate, their fight is to eliminate "Zionist enemy" and achieve the "right of return" for millions of descendants of refugees to their former homes inside Israel.

Meanwhile, Abbas and other Fatah leaders, who are fully aware of the actions and threats of their loyalists, are doing their utmost to stop the world from hearing what the Fatah gunmen have to say about peace and the two-state solution. The question remains: Until when will the international community continue to bury its head in the sand and pretend that Fatah is a unified, moderate and pragmatic group that seeks peace and coexistence with Israel on behalf of all Palestinians?