In Touch Quarter 3 - 2017

More documents

Info

Report CFI Land and Life Jerusalem Jubilee 50 year Anniversary Tour A group of over twenty participants left via EL AL airlines, arriving early evening at Golden Crown Hotel Nazareth, an ideal staging post from where to explore the north of Israel and Galilee. The programme contained some more conventional pilgrim sites, but also focused on the campaigns during the First World War (when the British and Allied forces ended the 400-year Turkish Ottoman occupation in 1917), Israel’s War of Independence in 1948, the Golan campaigns of 1967 and 1973, and 50 th anniversary of the 1967 reunification of Jerusalem, plus some of the contemporary security challenges. the Golan Heights viewing point looked down on the Hula valley where Syria located its military base prior to 1967. Moving down the coast, after Caesarea we visited the Independence Hall in Tel Aviv where the re-born State of Israel was declared by Ben Gurion, then on to Emmanuel House, former home of Baron Ustinov, viewing their Tel Sheva Memorial Hula Valley Nature Reserve Highlights in northern Israel on the first two days included viewing the recently uncovered first century synagogue at Magdala, walking through the Hula Valley Nature Reserve and later the narrow alleys of Safed. On the military side, we viewed Syria from the nearest location to the border and from Caesarea coastline collection of lantern slides showing the history of Old Jaffa, where we later walked. In Jerusalem we stayed at Rimonim Hotel, from where we visited the Allenby Memorial and Commonwealth War cemetery. The next day we went south to Beersheba – and the Tel Sheva memorial – site of a significant battle at the time of the Balfour Declaration. We laid flowers at the Commonwealth war cemetery there, before travelling across to Sderot and a Gaza viewing site. Returning via Latrun, location of a British built police fort which was circumvented Beersheba Cemetary The tour group at Abraham’s Well All photos courtesy of: Christina Hine 8 IN TOUCH • 3 rd Quarter 2017 www.cfi.org.uk
Nabi Samuel viewpoint during the 1948 War of Independence to maintain the supply line to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, we climbed up to Nabi Samuel strategic viewpoint, where historically pilgrims would view Jerusalem from a distance for the first time – such locations at the time known as Mount Joy. Those who stayed for the CFI Jerusalem conference had the enormous privilege of observing great enthusiasm for the re-unification of Jerusalem and access to worship at the Western Wall after nineteen years of Jordanian occupation, as well as excellent Bible teaching and modern political analysis. The tour was timely, educational and spiritually uplifting for all who came. There were on-location talks at the Synagogue of Capernaum and Caesarea, where two gentile Centurions were highly commended for their support of the Jewish people and nation, both great examples for Christian Friends of Israel today; and at the Garden Tomb a talk overviewing the much needed Christian testimony in the days in which we live. All returned with fresh enthusiasm to share what they had learned with fellow Christians and continue their learning and practical outworking back home in the UK. We look forward to meeting up at the CFI UK National Conference in September. Next year there is a CFI Jerusalem conference taking place during the 70 th year of the establishment of the State of Israel, when we hope to arrange a tour in conjunction with the conference – further details will be provided once known. Western Wall Plaza Recently, CFI’s David & Julia Soakell have been touring the UK speaking at various places including several dates in the North of England; three days in Norfolk, and a conference on the Isle of Wight. The main theme of the talks centred on the issue of Jerusalem. As Israel’s Communications Minister, Tzachi Hanegbi, stated in Washington recently, “Moral claims to the land [of Israel] come from the Bible, not Google or Wikipedia.” Tzachi Hanegbi was speaking at an event held in support of placing what are alleged to be ‘West Bank settlements,’ or rather Jewish Communities, within final borders of the Jewish state of Israel. As the nations of the world increase unfair pressure upon Israel, the City of Jerusalem is returning to centre stage in world history. One of the questions David posed in his talks was, “Are we close to the words of Zechariah chapters 12 & 14 coming to pass?” (‘All nations will gather against Jerusalem’ Zechariah 12:3). At the conference on the Isle of Wight, Julia spoke on a ‘Heart for a Generation’ which included updates and answers to prayer. David concentrated his talks on how 2016 had been a year of great uncertainty. He looked at the way in which the Syrian conflict saw the historic city of Aleppo Taking the word around the UK slip further into peril; commented on Brexit, Donald Trump, and challenged the audience regarding the attempts to erase Jewish history in Jerusalem, and other parts of Israel, through the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural agency, UNESCO. David stated, “Throughout 2016, religious and ethnic cleansing continued as it has for many years in the Islamic Middle East in general, and Syria in particular. Islamic group ISIS have killed multitudes of Christian and other minorities; and in Syria, Shia Muslims joined Alawite Muslims to exterminate Sunni Muslims, yet the United Nations have done very little about it. The United Nations not only appeared to ignore the issue with Syria, but focused their condemnation on the world’s only Jewish state, Israel – a country that has nearly 2 million Arabs and the one place in the Middle East where Muslims are safe. All the while, Mahmoud Abbas’ Palestinian Authority demanded the UN acknowledge the Temple Mount and the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City as having no historic ties to Judaism.” David then challenged the Christian audience that if the UN agreed that the Temple Mount and the Western Wall were exclusively Islamic and had nothing to do with Judaism, they were declaring that the Gospel writers were wrong, and by implication all the New Testament is untrue, as Jesus could not have done what the Bible proclaims he did in Jerusalem’s Temple courts. Showing through archaeology, and taking the audience on a pictorial journey through the Western Wall tunnels and the Southern Wall’s ancient steps (that date back to Herod’s Temple and beyond), David enabled the audience to see the importance of the truth, and how we needed to act and pray against these actions by the UN in dismissing Israel’s biblical history All the talks at St Paul’s Church, Newport, Isle of Wight, can be heard on MP3 at http://www.stpaulsbarton. co.uk/ . To watch one of the talks from an earlier event go to https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=z7Bd04Vy1sw facebook.com/cfiuk twitter.com/cfi_uk 3 rd Quarter 2017 • IN TOUCH 9
Page 1 and 2: 3 rd Quarter 2017 • No 192 Christ
Page 3 and 4: Special Report Robin Lane God worke
Page 5 and 6: on bread alone. He ate when others
Page 7: of Atonement (see Leviticus 23:23-4
Page 11 and 12: FEATURE A time for Social Media Eng

In Touch Quarter 3 - 2017

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?