EMEU

Let's look at the Log in Our Eye

The Palestinian Christian view on Israel, is it really Christian?

"For behold, in those days and at that time, when I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land." (Joel 3)

On Christ’s Second Coming there will be a judgement of the nations for dispersing the Jews and for dividing Israel. The division is taking place. The judgement is coming. Don’t be found guilty!

From the time of the early church fathers until Messiah’s return, many unbiblical and anti-Semitic ideas will enter the church that seek to deceive Christians from a true view of the Bible and God’s relationship with Israel. The ‘Christ Killer’ label is taking a different shape today in what is promoted as the "Arab Christian" view of circumstances in the Middle East. Close examination however reveals that they are rather speaking from a position of hatred towards Israel based in Islam and in Palestinian politics. Hatred of true Christian believers and Jews has always been promoted by groups who are outwardly Christian. Taking as an example of such groups one called EMEU, a committee claiming to call for peace and Middle East understanding. They and several other Palestinian Christian groups, through books, web sites, and publications like Al-Bushra, bring to the attention of American Christians the different stereotypes and misunderstandings of the Palestinian people. They claim to speak for the Arab Christians on the political and religious situation in Palestine. When one examines their materials, however, one will find that this ‘Arab Christian’ view is no different to the ‘Arab Muslim’ view. Al-Bushra is written by EMEU’s Mr. Labib Qubti, Al-Sabeel, and Abuna Chacour. A quick glance at these materials shows their call for unity with Muslims. The statement of faith posted on one of their web-sites states, "Al-Bushra stands pro-Truth, pro-Justice and pro-Peace and prays God, Allah, Hashem, the Most Holy for Mankind. Al-Bushra is asking you to pray for Peace and Justice in the World. Its purpose is not a political purpose but a prayerful purpose. So please go to your church, synagogue, mosque or temple and say a private prayer on behalf of Peace and Justice. As we believe in ONE GOD, that GOD, ALLAH, ADONAI, HaShem, the Most Holy is One for all of us." (Labib Qubti, Al-Bushra). "Bushra walks the streets of the World with every Human Rights Peacemaker calling for BROTHERHOOD and Love."

Many Christian organizations distort biblical truth for the cause of unity with Islam. They believe that your prayers are answered without the need of Jesus Christ. Ignoring the spiritual need for salvation in an attempt to find unity among religions, these writings would address Allah, the God of Islam, as the same God, Jehovah God of Israel. Allah of Islam is so different from Jehovah. He is deceiving 1 billion Muslims worldwide by denying the trinity. In fact, Allah inspired Muhammad, the prophet of Islam to prophecy the destruction of the Jewish people: "The Last Hour would not come till the Muslims fight against the Jews, and the Muslims will kill them until the Jews hide themselves behind the stones and trees, and the stones and trees would speak up saying: ‘O Muslim! O slave of Allah! There is a Jew hiding behind me; come and kill him.’ The -Ghardaq- tree would speak, for it is the tree of the Jews." (Muhammad the prophet of Islam, narrated by Abu Hurraira)

In contrast, the true God of Israel, Jehovah God, speaks his words of love and promise to his people Israel over and over in the Bible. In Jeremiah 31: 3 God speaks his love to Israel saying, "I have loved you with an everlasting love." The covenant of love and promise he made to Abraham’s descendants is meant to last forever. "He remembers his covenant forever, the word He commanded, for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant…" Psalm 105:8-10

Another glance at EMEU materials uncovers their religion, convictions, and goals. They go as far as to support the Catholic idol worship of Mary. "Eastern Churches were the first to discover the love of Mary. Eastern Marian theology leads us to discover the real face of Mary". (John Samaha, Al-Bushra), "For Christians she is the all-holy Theotokos, the mother of God". (Cardinal William Keeler, Al-Bushra). True Christians however, know that God alone and his Son Jesus are the only ones to be worshiped. Mary was human and sinful like the rest of us.

In their view, since Abraham is the father of all three religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, the main goal should be religious unity and not evangelism. In their writings are things like: "They [the Muslims]adore one God, living and enduring, merciful and all powerful, maker of heaven and earth and speaker to humankind.... They also honor Mary, his virgin mother; at times they call on her too with devotion. What a propitious moment it is, therefore, that finds Christians and Muslims together on a major feast of the Virgin Mary to celebrate the mutual esteem for one another which befits men and women in the faith tradition of Abraham." (Cardinal William Keeler, Al-Bushra). As far as God’s calling to evangelize Muslims, all you see in their literature are spineless compromises, claiming to carry out God’s calling. Mr. Emil Salayta, a speaker at EMEU was asked: "Do you evangelize the Muslims in your school?". He responded with: "No, because evangelizing would not be respecting the convictions of others and creating a problem for the other side.". Knowing God’s command for believers, to go throughout the world and preach the gospel to all nations, the question Christians should ask is "What would Christ say?". If his agenda is not to evangelize Muslims, then what are his religious goals and convictions? In reality, the main goal of EMEU is to support the establishment of a Palestinian state to unite Arabs and divide Israel. They are aiding the Palestinian Authority government to carry out its master plan, to destroy the Jewish people in Israel.

Do Not Be Fooled

While on the one hand EMEU denies that it has any political agenda (saying that it has a prayerful agenda), a glance at the pages of their material reveals a very political agenda. The political agenda matches that of Arab Muslims in regards to Palestine. Their material calls everyone to: "Please, stand with the Right of the Palestinians to have their own independent Country Palestine and their Capital East-Jerusalem." (Al-Bushra, What is the truth). In cooperation with the Palestinian Authority lead by Yasser Arafat, they are engaged in what they call ‘The Phased Plan’, which calls Palestinians to accept any peace proposal in order to gain as much land as possible. In one statement they cry out to Yasser Arafat saying: "WE CALL UPON ARAB GOVERNMENTS AND THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY to unify their positions concerning Jerusalem, a historical trust for the Arabs and all people of faith throughout the world, and to intensify their defense of the Arab character of Jerusalem and its religious pluralism raising it to the stature befitting this blessed city" (Al-Bushra, 7th issue, Aug 1996). This idea is written in the Palestinian Charter and spoken by all Palestinian government officials, who also call for the division of Israel first, and then its destruction.

Clinging to the Palestinian-Arab rights to the land, EMEU deliberately ignores the anti-Semitic history of all the Arabic countries where Jews were a minority. While they cry out for justice and law, they shed no tears for all the Jews who were butchered and abused in Arab countries, causing their extradition in mass out Arab lands. Jews were forced to immigrate to Israel. The EMEU program in America includes conferences for Christians that claim to speak for Arab Christians in Palestine, they claim that Christians in the Holy Land are being persecuted by Jews… The fact of the matter is that Christians in the Holy Land are being persecuted by Muslims, and not by Jews. The Jews of Israel have never persecuted Arab Christians, though it has served Palestinian propaganda purposes to pretend that it has happened. Jews never persecuted Arab Christians for their faith in Christ. What has happened when the Israelis have had to close their borders due to Palestinian terrorism, is that it has affected everyone in the Palestinian territories, Christian and Muslim alike. This security measure should not be confused with a specific targeting of Christians for oppression.

Following are some examples of slander against Israel;

"Israel is distributing food containing cancer-causing material and hormones that harm male virility and other spoiled food products in the Palestinian Authority's territories, in order to poison and harm the Palestinian population. We absolutely feel it is an organized plot and conspiracy under the auspices of the Israel Defense Forces -- this is a planned and initiated war against the Palestinian people." (Muhammad Dahlan, head of Arafat's Preventive Security Service in Gaza, in an interview with the Hamas newspaper Al-Risallah, cited in Ha'aretz, 15 June 1997)

"Israeli authorities...infected by injection 300 Palestinian children with the HIV virus during the years of the Intifada." (Palestinian U.N. representative Nabil Ramlawi at a session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, Jerusalem Post, 17 March 1997).

These kinds of accusations have been going on for centuries in order to condemn the Jews! As a former Palestinian myself, having grown up in Bethlehem, I know that these are lies. Russian Pogroms, Nazi, and Arab propaganda have always used sinister schemes in order to promote hatred of the Jew. These schemes are and always have been expressed in the political, educational, and religious entities in Palestine.

To the American public, Arafat may appear to have made moves toward peace. For example, the Oslo Accords were signed as a peace treaty, however, later Arafat was questioned, "Do you feel sometimes that you made a mistake in agreeing to Oslo?" Arafat’s response: "No... no. Allah's messenger Muhammad accepted the al-Hudaibiya peace treaty and Salah a-Din accepted the peace agreement with Richard the Lion-Hearted." --- Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat in a newspaper interview.

Americans might not realize what was implied in his response, for both of the treaties he mentioned had been broken. What Yasser Arafat was referring to is the permission by Allah to break treaties and agreements made with any enemy since the ten-year pact was broken by Muhammad within two years, when the Islamic forces, having strengthened during the cease-fire, conquered the Koreish. Salah a-Din was a Muslim leader who, after a cease-fire, declared a jihad against the Crusaders and captured Jerusalem. This is the idea and the plan behind the peace accord with Israel the enemy of Allah. It is all a guise.

In reference to the possibility of changing the PLO Covenant, which calls for the total destruction of Israel, Tayseer Qaba responded, "We have no intention of changing or nullifying the Covenant, rather, we will adhere to it until our last breath since it embodies the essence of our demands." (Tayseer Qaba, deputy chairman of the PLO's Palestine National Council, A-Nahar, 19 September 1995, page 16)

"Jerusalem is the capital of the state of Palestine whether someone likes it or not, and whoever does not like it, let him drink from the sea of Gaza." (P.L.O. Chairman Yasser Arafat, in a speech given at a party to celebrate the birth of his daughter, Palestine Broadcasting Corporation, 6 August 1995)

"The Israelis are mistaken if they think we do not have an alternative to negotiations. By Allah I swear they are wrong. The Palestinian people are prepared to sacrifice the last boy and the last girl so that the Palestinian flag will be flown over the walls, the churches and the mosques of Jerusalem." (Yasser Arafat, in a speech given on 6 August 1995 at a party to celebrate the birth of his daughter, Haaretz, 6 September 1995; The Jerusalem Post, 7 September 1995).

"Jenin is the first nail in Israel's coffin. We will agree to leave here only the dead Jews who are buried here. Like all Palestinians, I am happy that Arafat is here today in a liberated Palestinian city. With the help of Allah, all the land of Palestine will be liberated. The Jews must return to where they came from, to their Diaspora.... Abu Ammar [Yasser Arafat] visited us and spoke with us...Abu Ammar also thinks as I do. In the long run - he will get all of Palestine. He will not give up on one inch of Palestinian land... I don't want to continue living in Gaza or Jenin. My place is in Palestinian Beersheba." (Suleiman Adwan, a PLO policeman and member of the "Al Quds" Brigade, which is stationed in Jenin, Davar Rishon, 20 November 1995, page 2)

Referring to the liberation of Palestine, Arafat states, "The struggle will continue until all of Palestine is liberated." (PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat, Voice of Palestine, 11 November 1995)

Labib Qubti, Salayta, Chakour and the others in leadership at EMEU, do not represent any Born Again believer in the Holy Land, but follow the commands of the Pope who is favoring Arafat over Jewish administrators of Israel. In fact, he always has. The Vatican ignores Muslim persecution of Arab Christians in Israel and elsewhere. Instead the Pope kowtows to an Islamic terrorist. He recently publicly told Israel to keep their hands off of Jerusalem. Biblically the Jews are Jesus Christ's own family. The Muslims have no relationship with Him whatever. These key people who speak to you from EMEU are simply a tool in the hands of Arafat and the Vatican. Arafat and his cabinet, pockets 40% of all monies donated by American tax dollars and the United Nations. "Almost all of it is stolen or dribbled away. The Palestinian Authority's own auditors reported last year that nearly 40 percent of the annual budget — $323 million — was wasted, looted, or misused, in President Arafat's regime, bribery is endemic, services are nil, connections are everything, and might is the only right there is". (THE WASHINGTON POST, Wednesday, December 2, 1998).

There is no difference between the so-called Arab Christian point of view and the Arab Muslim point of view. Both Muslims and so-called Christians alike in Palestine are called to fight against the main enemy, the Jew. They are willing to set aside their differences to achieve victory against the enemy. Mr. Emil Salayta, a speaker at EMEU, a Parish priest of Bir-Zeit Palestine, and the General Director of the Latin Patriarchal Schools for all of Palestine was asked, "Do you face persecution as a Christian here in a Muslim context?

Mr. Salayta responded, "I think what the West thinks is part of a Western propaganda against Islam. We've lived with Islam for centuries and centuries." (Interview with Emil Salayta, April 9, 1997) Mr. Salayta avoids ‘rocking the boat’ of peace. He also felt fully free to condemn Benjamin Netenyahu, calling him a "liar", and accusing Israel of suppressing the freedom of speech. If Mr. Salayta had expressed such an opinion openly in any Arab country the way he does in ‘oppressive’ Israel, he would possibly be condemned to death for calling any Arab leader a "liar".

Mr. Salayta does not share the true history of persecution committed by Islam, instead he lifts up Islam, he intentionally forgets that Islam declared, "The necks of thimmis(Jew and Christians) are to be sealed when collecting the Jezzieh(tax imposed on Jews and Christians). The method of sealing is to bind the necks of the person with a collar, in it is a piece of lead, stamped on it the amount of his payment, the collar is not to be broken until the payment is completed. This is in accordance to the Quranic verse 'Until they pay the Jezzieh by an upper hand, may they be subjugated (humiliated)'... And if the person was a Jew, he must wear on his shoulder a red or yellow banner, so he is recognized as a Jew. And if the person is a Christian, he needs to wear harsh clothes, with a large pocket in the chest area like women. As for Christian women, they must wear shoes with different colors, one black and the other white. And if a Jew or a Christian goes into a public bath, he must wear an iron, copper, or lead made collar around his neck so he can be identified from Muslims. Never a Jew nor a Christian can build a house higher than a Muslim. They are not to crowd public roads but need to use narrow alleyways, and small streets. They are not to be saluted, nor their graves can be extended beyond the surface of the ground". (Omar bin Al-Khattab, Islam’s second Chalif after Muhammad the prophet of Islam, reference Faqeeh Al-Muluk, volume 2, pages 124-136, The Omar covenant).

This covenant was literally carried out by Islam from time immemorial. Yet Mr. Salayta deliberately ignores this, claiming that for "centuries and centuries" Christians lived in peace and harmony with Muslims. He ignores the one million Armenians butchered by Muslims in Fez, Turkey where blood flowed throughout the streets. Instead of concentrating on the 1.5 million Sudanese Christians who have been tortured and annihilated in the past few years by Muslims, or those killed in Bosnia, or the persecution of millions of Christians around the world, EMEU and the Arab Christian leaders expect that we should drop everything and be in an uproar when Jews build 6,500 houses in Jerusalem.

Do not be fooled

Besides their political outcry for an Arab nation to replace Israel, these groups go as far as changing history to support their claims. EMEU teaches Christians in America to abandon their interpretation of Bible Prophecy concerning the Jews, since supporting Israel is offensive to the original church, the 2% Arab-Christians in Palestine. They hold to extreme Replacement and Liberal theology.

The majority of Palestinians cling to the idea that their origins are from the Canaanites and Jebusites. The Arab Christian view also interprets God’s promise to Abraham concerning the land of Israel as for all the children of Abraham including the Arabs. They say that Israel was inhabited by Arabs for thousands of years before Israel’s recent establishment. To them any Christian who uses Bible Prophecy to support Israel is considered a Christian Zionist liar. Labib Qubti writes, "The Christian Zionists are not truthful about the Holy Land or Jerusalem. A simple reading of history shows their claims are not well founded." (Labib Qubti, Al-Bushra).

We ask, are these accusations and claims valid? Are the Palestinians who they claim to be? Are they Canaanites, are they the original church? Is Israel the monster they try to draw? Are we liars and they the truthful? Let us examine these issues in light of the Bible and History.

In Exodus 33:1-3 it reads;

"Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of Egypt, and go up to the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, I will give it to your descendants".

The promises are clearly to Isaac via Abraham, not to Ishmael.

"Then the Lord said, ‘I will send an angel before you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites."

Clearly, no Canaanaites or Jebusites will remain.

Again in Numbers 21:2-3 it says;

"Then Israel made this vow to the LORD, ‘If you will deliver these people into our hands, we will totally destroy their cities.’ The LORD listened to Israel's plea and gave the Canaanites over to them. They completely destroyed them and their towns; so the place was named Hormah."

Clearly, Palestinians are not the descendants of Canaanites or Jebusites.

Despite what God said, the goal of these groups is still to change the world’s perspective on biblical and historic truths in order to link the land with anything other than its Jewish roots. This is done to support their political agenda implemented by the Palestinian Authority. In an interview between Zola Levitt, an American messianic Jew, and Mr. Husseni, a right hand man to Yasser Arafat, Mr. Husseni bluntly claimed that the Palestinians originated from the Jebusites before Abraham moved to Israel. Similar to the Arab Christian view, he clearly changed the historic fact to an American audience who lacks knowledge of Eastern History. Actually today's Palestinians are recent immigrants of many nations. It’s like saying that all of today’s Americans are the original Native American Indians.

The Arab Christian point of view disconnects the Jews from the land of Israel, when in fact history shows that the opposite is true. There is little connection between the roots of today’s Palestinians with the land. Today’s Palestinians are an interesting blend and mix of nations and peoples: "Balkans, Greeks, Syrians, Latinos, Egyptians, Turks, Armenians, Italians, Persians, Kurds, Germans, Afghans, Circassians, Bosnians, Sudanese, Samaritans, Algerians, Motawila, Tartars, Hungarians, Scots, Navarese, Bretons, English, Franks, Ruthenians, Bohemians, Bulgarians, Georgians, Syrians, Persian Nestorians, Indians, Copts, Maronites, and many others" (DeHass, History p. 258. John of Wuzburg list from Reinhold Rohricht edition, pp. 41, 69).

Jesus himself prophesied that Jerusalem would be destroyed and left desolate. After the time of Jesus, the Jews were dispersed from Israel. Known as "The Diaspora", this left Israel a land of desolation. This prophecy proved to be true and was confirmed by history. Besides small spots of population by the above groups, Palestine was mostly empty. Historians agree to a major fact that the Bible had already predicted long ago; that the land of Israel would be in desolation.

De Hass writes, "The real source of the interest in the problem was the condition of Palestine; empty, silent, waste, ruin between 1840 and 1880" (De Haas, History, p. 407).

Carl Herman Voss writes, "In the twelve and a half centuries between the Arab conquest in the seventh centuries and the beginning of the Jewish return in the 1880’s, Palestine was laid waste. Its ancient canal and irrigation system were destroyed and the wondrous fertility of which the Bible spoke vanished into desert and desolation... Under the Ottoman Empire of the Turks, the policy of defoliation continued; the hillsides were denuded of trees and the valleys robbed of their topsoil." (The Palestine Problem Today, Israel and It’s Neighbors, Boston, 1953, p. 13) There were no Cannanites or Jebusites, only parasites.

In his book, Ernst Frankenstine states, "It was in 1878, harsh conditions forced many groups to immigrate to Palestine; Circassian, Algerians, Egyptians, Druses, Turks, Kurds, Bosnians, and others. 141,000 settled Muslims living in all of Palestine (all areas) in 1882, at least 25% of those 141,000 were new comers who arrived after 1831 from the Egyptian conquest."(Ernst Frankenstine, Justice for my people, London, Nicholson and Watson, 1943 p. 127)

Even the American author Mark Twain recorded, "Palestine sits in sackcloth and ashes.... desolate and unlovely...it is a dreamland." (Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad, pp. 349)

In a Jerusalem Commerce report it states, "1840, Jerusalem's population of 15,000 of whom 8,000 Jews, 4,500 Muslims, and the rest Christians." (No. 238, report of Commerce of Jerusalem during the year 1863, F.O. 195/808, May 1864). Please note, that the population of Jerusalem was always majority Jews.

Most of Palestine was desolate for almost 2000 years as the Bible predicted. All of the current Palestinian people came no less than 150 years ago and were not even Arabs. Even the Arab immigrant clans like Al-Nashasheebi, Al-Khalidi, and Al-Husseini settled in Palestine in this same period. Yet they were given the status of "Efendi," which made them an upper class. They took over the lands while the rest of the lower class, "Falaheen," were exploited. These families like "Al-Husseni" produced individuals like Haj Al-Ameen Al-Husseni, the religious leader Mufti of Jerusalem. He was a staunch friend of Hitler who coordinated with Hitler the "final solution" to the "Jewish Problem." He was with Hitler at the eve of the "Final Solution" November 21, 1941. A letter by Al-Husseni stopping the immigration of Hungarian Jews was honored. 500,000 Jews from Hungary were sent to their deaths during the Holocaust.

EMEU and groups like them usually emphasize what was done to Palestinians by Israel during the Intifada. They never mention what Palestinians do to the Jewish people. They also ignore the numbers of Palestinians killed by Palestinians during the Intifada, which happens to be is more than all Palestinians killed during all the Palestinian-Israeli conflicts. Clinging to the Palestinian-Arab rights to the land and pointing to the disbursed Palestinians, they deliberately ignore the anti-Semitic history in all the Arab countries. While they cry out for justice and law for displaced Palestinians, they shed no tears for all the Jews who were butchered, abused, and extradited in mass out of all Arab lands, forcing them to immigrate to Israel.

The so-called Palestinian Christian point of view, filled with fractions of truths mixed with pure propaganda, argues that Israel kicked out 4 million Palestinians, that Israel tortures Palestinians, and prohibits education. Instead of looking for the spec in the Jewish eye, it is time for EMEU to remove the scales from their own eyes. The fact is that Israel was created due to Arab bursts of brutality, and mass extradition of the Jews from all the Arab lands. The Nazi Arab hate, the Russian Pogroms, along with the Holocaust, were the main causes of the creation of modern Israel. In the Arab World, "Of more than 850,000 Jews in Arab lands fewer than 29,000 remained forced to leave to Israel" (American Jewish Yearbook, 1983, George Gruen, editor, New York).

History records the manifestation of evil that took place all over the Arab world. In Yemen, the Jews who lived there for thousands of years fell under the previously mentioned ‘Omar Charter’ which called for the severe fanatical edicts of the most intolerant Islamic sects. In Adan, the Arab riots and pogroms erupted in 1947, killing Jews, ransacking houses, and robbing every single Jewish store, burning every Jewish synagogue and home in the country. The only Jews who were spared were at an area called "Steamer Point". They were all forced to leave in 1958. In Iraq, all the Jews were forced to leave between 1948 and 1952 and to leave everything behind. Jews were publicly hanged in the center of Baghdad with enthusiastic mobs as audiences. In Egypt Jamal Abdunnaser stated: "Our sympathy was with the Germans".. During the 6 day war the Jews of Egypt were rounded up and thrown into concentration camps. Egypt had no place for Jews.

It was pure hate fed through schools and Arab media that caused severe persecution of Jews in the Arab world. The prominent Egyptian, Anis Mansour who is well respected by the Palestinian Christians once wrote: "People all over the world come to realize that Hitler was right, since Jews are bloodsuckers." (Anis Mansour ,1973).

President Nasser of Egypt declared, "Our basic goal is the destruction of Israel". (Laqueur, op. cit., pp. 175-185) In Morocco, nothing was worse than the slaughter of 120,000 Jews in 1146 in Fez. In 1948 mob violence and hostilities forced the Jews to leave to Israel.

In Algeria, Jews were accused of sorcery. They were slaughtered and plundered continually. The Algerians were inflamed with Nazi influence. Jewish diplomats were kidnapped and killed. The Jewish population in 1948, diminished in a few months, was forced to leave to Israel. In Tunisia, the Jews had the title of detested "Dhimmi." Having to pay heavy taxation, and forced to wear separate clothing different than the Moors, they had to wrap yellow banners around their necks, and the women could never wear shoes. Daring to change these rules would result in public stoning. Forbidden to carry arms or repair their synagogues, they were subjected to mass extortion, rape, mass murders and extreme Arabization. This forced 50% of the Jews to flee to Israel. The other 50% left to France.

In Syria, the status of "Dhimmi" gave the Jew no rights at all, only the right not to defend himself. During 1944 - 1945 intensified persecution of the Jews took place forcing the Jews to flee to Israel. The same status was for the Jews in Lebanon and Lybia.

Along with what was foretold of the diaspora, persecution and regathering of the Jews of Israel, history as well confirmed it. Should there be any question or doubt that the Bible always agrees with history?

Christians should wonder why EMEU and other groups never mention any of the atrocities in their supposed peace and reconciliation seminars? Where are the ‘centuries and centuries’ of peace Mr. Salayta is speaking of? Could it be that they want you to listen to one side of the story? A good judge must always hear the "other" party.

The idea that the Jews forced the Palestinians out is from a well known lie and perversion of history past down by the Arabs who were defeated in 1948 and 1967. It is called "The political influence of tradition", when all the people who fled away and ran across the Jordan River. They left out of fear imposed by the Arab media themselves, who told the Palestinians to leave because the Jews would slaughter them. It was pure Arab propaganda against Israel, which made the Palestinians leave out of fear. One should wonder why EMEU would never blame anything on the Arabs themselves?

The Arab leaders promised the Palestinians that they would soon be able to return following Israel’s destruction. In some cases the Jews, including Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, urged the Arabs to remain, promising that they would not be harmed, (Irving Howe and Carl Gershman, Israel, the Arabs and the Middle East, New York: Bantam, 1972, p. 168) Those who remained became full and equal citizens of Israel, while those who chose to leave went to neighboring Arab states. Instead of welcoming their Arab brothers, and integrating them into the mainstream of their societies, the Arab states kept them in squalid refugee camps. They used these Palestinian refugees as political pawns in their fight against Israel. (See, for instance, The Economist, Oct. 2, 1948, for a description of Jewish efforts in Haifa to persuade the Arabs to stay)

Israel is also blamed for creating the Refugee problem in Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. The problem however, was created by the Arabs who insisted on keeping the camps; using the Palestinians for political exploitation. In 1982, 65,425 Palestinian refugees were put in camps in Syria, 123,442 in Lebanon, and 192,392 in Jordan. This was reported by UNRWA, while the Arabic propaganda lied and inflated the number to 4,000,000. ALL of them had fled of their own will and without any force.

In contrast, the Jews were forced to leave Arab lands and arrived destitute in Israel. But they were absorbed into the society and became an integral part of the state. In effect, then, a veritable exchange of populations took place between Arab and Jewish refugees. Thus the Jewish refugees became full Israeli citizens, while the Arab refugees in Arab lands remained "refugees" according to the wishes of the Arab leaders.

The Arabs not only rejected partition, but attacked Israel from all sides. On the day that Israel declared its independence, the Arab League Secretary, General Azzam Pasha declared "Jihad", a holy war. He said, "This will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre which will be spoken of like the Mongolian massacres and the Crusades." (Howard M Sachar, A History of Israel New York: Knopf, 1979, p. 333. 1)

The Mufti of Jerusalem, friend of Adolf Hitler, Haj Amin Al Husseini stated, "I declare a holy war, my Muslim brothers! Murder the Jews! Murder them all!" (Leonard J. Davis and M. Decter. Myths and facts 1982; a Concise Record of the Arab-Israeli Conflict, Washington DC: Near East Report, 1982, p. 199) The armies of Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Iraq invaded the tiny new country with the intent of destroying it.

Unlike the call of Arab leaders to kill every Jew, Jews showed respect towards Arabs during the 6 Day War. There were no civilian Arabs attacked by the Israelis, no stores robbed, no homes looted, and no women raped. The Israeli’s announced to everyone that if they put a white flag on their gates no one would be harmed.

In response to the fact that Israel has extradited some individuals to Jordan and Lebanon, we must first study what these individuals did to the Jews in Israel. Most of them were terrorists who committed crimes against Israel in the name of independence from Israel. In fact one of these terrorists, the well known father Elarion Cappucci, a Catholic Arch-Bishop of Palestine, was caught smuggling hundreds of kilos of explosives aimed to kill Jews. He was a terrorist who was supported by all Palestinian Christians and who holds the Arab Christian view on Israel.

Replacement Theology

Replacement Theology which EMEU advocates and promotes is a misguided systematic approach to the Bible that has not only led millions of Christians astray over the years but it has in addition birthed evil of the most horrific proportions. Replacement Theology played a role in the persecution of Jews by the church through the centuries, including the Holocaust.

Replacement theology is the ‘opinion' that Israel, having failed God, has been replaced by the Church. The Church is now seen as spiritual Israel and spiritual Jerusalem. This theology claims that all the promises and blessings, in fact Israel's entire inheritance, now belongs to the Church. Israel, however, gets to keep the curses. Replacement Theology was first established at the Council of Nicea in 325 AD, but the idea was preached as early as the late first century AD by some of the ‘Church Fathers'. During the last 1600 years, reformations and revivals have come and gone, new denominations have sprung up, but this root of Replacement Theology which continues to produce its anti-Semitic fruit, has not been cut off. This is a great stumbling block to the Jews as it prevents them from recognizing their own Messiah, Yeshua. As the prophet Isaiah says, "Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people." Isaiah 57:14b

Christians need to sever themselves from this lie and be grafted into God's true Olive Tree; a tree which is deeply rooted in the unconditional Covenants of God to Israel. Replacement Theology robs us from understanding the heart of God. It robs us from the security of truly trusting in His faithfulness. By understanding God's everlasting commitment towards Israel, we understand something of who God is. Gentile believers in Christ are not supposed to be an entity outside of, or instead of Israel, but are to become part of the Commonwealth of Israel. God does not have two frameworks. He has only one; Israel - His everlasting possession. He has given His Name to no other. This is the 'Framework of the Bible', in which Christ was born and in which the early believers operated. The true Bible observant Christian Community is within the Household of Israel.

To believe in Replacement Theology is to sever oneself from the root and to become part of another framework instituted originally by Rome. This is a false institution, founded on anti-biblical doctrines. God has in no way either rejected or replaced Israel and the Jewish people. His covenant with them is unconditional and non-transferable. God's covenants and promises were never based on Israel's good behavior, but were based on God's faithfulness toward His people. Although the Jewish people have suffered the consequences of breaking God's Laws, just as all do, they have not been replaced or rejected. They remain forever the only witness to the one true God. The scriptures make that quite clear.

"But you, O Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend, I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, ‘You are my servant; I have chosen you and have not rejected you." Isaiah 41:8,9 Jacob was chosen, not Ishmael or the Arabs.

"Thus saith the Lord, who giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, who divideth the sea when its waves roar; The Lord of hosts is His name: If those ordinances depart from before Me, saith the Lord, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before Me forever. Thus saith the Lord, If heaven above can be measured, and foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the Lord". Jeremiah 31:35,36

"How can I give you up Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? For I am God and not man." Hosea 11:8,9.

"I have loved you with an everlasting love…" Jeremiah 31:3.

"O descendants of Israel his servant, O sons of Jacob, his chosen ones. He is the LORD our G-d; his judgments are in all the earth. He remembers his covenant for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham; the oath he swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant..." 1Chronicles 16:13-17.

"For the LORD's portion is his people, Jacob his allotted inheritance." Deuteronomy 32:9

"He remembers his covenant forever, the word he commanded, for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant..." Psalm 105:8-10

"He has revealed his word to Jacob, his laws and decrees to Israel. He has done this for no other nation." Psalm 147:19,20

"The LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance." Psalm 94:14

"I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means!" Romans 11:1

"Remember that at one time you were separated from Messiah, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise... Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow-citizens with God's people and members of God's household…" Ephesians 2:12 &19

"The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise." Galatians 3:17,18

EMEU, and organizations like it, fully support the division of Israel and the creation of a Palestinian state. They should fear for their evil plan angers God. He said…

"For behold, in those days and at that time, when I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land." (Joel 3)

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