A Serial Obstructionist

[ensho]

http://zeek.forward.com/articles/116518/


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Shortly after Vice President Joe Biden’s arrival in Israel, Netanyahu and Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat were the headliners at Pastor John Hagee’s two-hour Christians United for Israel (CUFI) extravaganza at the Jerusalem Convention Center. Ambassador Michael Oren and Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon were also in attendance. There was no ambiguity. It was a blatant and unabashed rejection of “dividing the land,” filled with repeated references to Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the Jewish people. The impromptu event had not been listed on CUFI’s calendar, but as soon as Hagee introduced Netanyahu, the political significance was apparent.

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Netanyahu, Falwell, and Hagee, 1998

In January 1998 Netanyahu traveled to Washington to meet with President Bill Clinton, but first detoured to the Mayflower Hotel where hundreds of Christian Zionists had been assembled by Jerry Falwell. In reference to the “land for peace” negotiations, John Hagee led the crowd in yelling, “Not one inch! Not one inch!” When Falwell was later interviewed he stated, “It was all planned by Netanyahu as an affront to Clinton.” After the rally, Netanyahu met with evangelical leaders who promised to organize their churches against the peace efforts.

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In his books and sermons Hagee has promoted a “greater Israel,” that will reclaim all of Israel’s former biblical territory, stating “In modern terms, Israel rightfully owns all of present-day Israel, all of Lebanon, half of Syria, two-thirds of Jordan, all of Iraq, and the northern portion of Saudi Arabia.”

At the Jerusalem CUFI event Hagee described Ahmadinejad as the Hitler of the Middle East who could turn the world upside down in 24 hours, words similar to those he made when lobbying for the attack on Iraq. “Help is not going to come from Washington, it is going to come from God,” stated Hagee. In Hagee’s apocalyptic prophecy media he claims that the rest of the world will turn on Israel in the imminent battles of the end times and that a “remnant “of Jews will only convert after being rescued by Jesus and his armies.

“Lord save your people, the remnant of Israel,” Hagee repeated three times, and asked the audience to join him in supernaturally shouting the phrase.

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Some of Hagee’s CUFI leaders are part of a particularly aggressive Charismatic missionary movement that is led by people who call themselves “apostles” and “prophets.” In their apocalyptic narrative, the prerequisite for the return of Jesus is that Israel must call out to him as messiah, and that worldwide revival will come once Israel is converted. Their goal of eradicating Rabbinic Judaism is artfully camouflaged in terminology and songs that Charismatic leaders openly use in the company of their Jewish hosts. These include “the restoration of the tabernacle of David” and the “priesthood of Melchizedek,” narratives in which Judaism is replaced by worship claimed to be preferred by God. For instance, the tabernacle of David is considered superior to the liturgical worship in the Temple, and the priesthood of Melchizedek superior to the Levitical priesthood. Melchizedek is seen as a reference to the coming kingdom of Jesus or even as an appearance of Jesus to Abraham.

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“Benjamin Netanyahu now has the dubious distinction of being the only Israeli leader to ever salute a man who makes money from biblical prophecies suggesting Israel’s imminent destruction while simultaneously humiliating the leaders of the very country he relies on for its protection.”
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the religiously insane are such fun people

[Scurrilous]

1. CUFI activists e-blast White House on ‘crisis’

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"Pro-Israel U.S. Christians are e-mailing the White House every several seconds urging President Obama to "end the crisis" with Israel.

Christians United for Israel sent an action alert Tuesday to its membership urging them to ask Obama to roll back criticism of Israel after last week's controversy, when Israel announced approval of a plan to build 1,600 apartments in an ultra-Orthodox eastern Jerusalem neighborhood during a visit by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden. U.S. officials condemned the announcement as an "insult" and an "affront."

The CUFI action alert asks the president to "end this unnecessary crisis, return to a more productive approach, and stand with our ally Israel."

As of Tuesday evening, CUFI said more than 11,000 e-mails had been sent -- a rate of one every one or two seconds.

"The strong response of the Christian Zionist community on this issue reflects their steadfast commitment to standing with Israel," Ari Morgenstern, a CUFI spokesman, told JTA. "Christian friends of Israel are capable of distinguishing between temporary disputes between friends and the deeper ties that bind our two countries.”

More than 1,000 CUFI activists attended one of the group's signature "Nights to Honor Israel" in Jerusalem last week that featured an address by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The CUFI leadership also met with other Israeli leaders, including President Shimon Peres and Defense Minister Ehud Barak."

http://www.jta.org/news/article/2010/03/17/1011160/cufi-activists-e-blast-white-house-on-crisis

[Jefferson23]

2. Maybe Obama can email them back with Petraeus's concerns

for U.S. soldiers. I'd love to hear their response.