Christian & Jewish Relations (7 views)
From:  David (DavidABrown)    7/26/2001 4:41 pm  
To:  ALL    
 
  159.1  
 
The Christian Jewish relationship is very complex.

All too often these complex relations between Christians and Jews manifest in a way that excludes dialogue. This complex relationship is heightened by the dramatic nightly news accounts of the militant and political conditions in Israel. Christians watch and wonder how can we assist a nation that has so greatly assisted the world as a conduit in the services of God?

 

Christians Worship the God of the Jews. We worship the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who are the fathers of the Jewish Nation.

 

As Christians we gratefully walk in the footsteps of the Jews.

 

It is the Jew that God chose to reveal Himself through in the speaking to prophets to write and preserve the Bible. Both the Old and New Testaments are written at the hand of the Jew.

 

The early Christian Church was exclusively Jewish for approximately the first 15 years. It was not until Acts Chapter 10 that gentiles began to become a part of the Christian church.

 

Last and not least Jesus Himself is a Jew. We worship God who was manifested in the flesh of the Jewish nation.

 

Here are some websites that are dealing very well with Christian - Jewish relations.

 

Christian Action for Israel

http://www.cdn-friends-icej.ca/ 

 

Network of Christians for Israel

http://www.nclci.org/ 

 

International Jewish - Christian Organizations

http://www.jcrelations.net/organiz.htm 

 

Israel facts and History

http://www.bridgesforpeace.com/publications/teaching/Article-9.html 

 


Jewish Christian Dialogue & Info


http://members.tripod.com/JCRelations/main.html 

 

Messianic Jewish/Christian Links

http://www.godonthe.net/links/mesianic.htm 

 

Jerusalem Post Newspaper

http://www.jpost.com/ 

 





David A. Brown
Basic Christian: Forum
 
From:  David (DavidABrown)    7/26/2001 4:53 pm  
To:  ALL   (2 of 16)  
 
  159.2 in reply to 159.1  
 
Truncated Links


 

Jewish Christian Dialogue & Info

http://members.tripod.com/JCRelations/main.html 

 

Messianic Jewish/Christian Links

http://www.godonthe.net/links/mesianic.htm 

 


Jerusalem Post Newspaper

http://www.jpost.com/ 





David A. Brown
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  From:  David (DavidABrown)    8/7/2001 4:37 pm  
To:  ALL   (3 of 16)  
 
  159.3 in reply to 159.2  
 
Here is another good web site. This is probably the Leading Link in American Support for Israel.

 

American Israel Public Affairs Committee

http://www.AIPAC.org 





David A. Brown
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  From:  David (DavidABrown)    8/8/2001 2:49 pm  
To:  ALL   (4 of 16)  
 
  159.4 in reply to 159.3  
 
The Jerusalem Post, August 8, 2001
America's Occupied Territories by Michael Freund

Ever since Israel won Judea, Samaria and Gaza in the 1967 Six-Day War, the
United States has insisted on classifying these territories as "occupied".
Ignoring Israel's Biblical, historical and legal rights to the areas, and
overlooking the fact that they were taken in an act of self-defense by a
country threatened with extinction by its neighbors, American presidents
have stubbornly held to the view that Israel should "return" Judea, Samaria
and Gaza and cease settling its citizens there. 

In adopting such a position, America has essentially rejected the principles
of acquiring territory through the use of force and settling citizens in
"foreign" lands. There is, however, something quite ironic about this stance
because it was exactly these two principles that lay behind the successful
expansion of the United States itself. Indeed, were it not for the westward
flow of settlers across the North American continent in the 19th century and
America's subsequent acquisition of territory by force, the world's only
superpower might otherwise have amounted to little more than a small,
backwater nation. 

One of the more conspicuous examples in American history is that of Florida,
a state made famous last year for its pivotal role in President George W.
Bush's election. After Spain regained control of Florida from the British in
1783, a series of boundary disputes erupted between Spain and the United
States about delineating the northern border of the Florida territory. Even
as the two sides bickered, American settlers poured in to Florida, tilting
the demographic balance. 

In 1810, a revolt against Spanish rule in West Florida prompted President
James Madison to dispatch American troops, who occupied the area, which then
became part of the state of Louisiana in 1812 and the Mississippi Territory.
The American settlers, of course, welcomed the move.  

Local Indians, fearing for their future, stepped up attacks on white
settlers in East Florida, and did not hesitate to cross the contested border
and attack American communities. After Indians ambushed a ship carrying U.S.
troops and their families and brutally massacred most of them on November
30, 1817, President James Monroe, Madison's successor, sent in General
Andrew Jackson, who subdued the Indians, overwhelmed the Spanish garrisons
and returned home a national hero.

Faced with the inevitable loss of its territory, Spain agreed to sign the
Adams-Onis Treaty of February 22, 1819, in which it sold Florida to the
United States for five million dollars. But the sale essentially formalized
what had actually been achieved through force of arms. In modern parlance,
then, Florida might very well be considered American-occupied territory. 

American history is rife with other such examples. As a former Governor of
Texas, President Bush is no doubt aware the state was previously Mexican
territory. Though Mexico invited Americans to settle the area in the 1820's,
by 1830 the settlers outnumbered Mexicans in Texas by three to one, leading
Mexico to clamp down for fear of losing control of the territory. In 1835,
American settlers rebelled and launched the Texas Revolution, routing the
Mexican army and declaring independence in 1836. 

The breakaway state of Texas then sought American annexation, greatly
angering the Mexican government. After the U.S. Congress passed a resolution
offering it entry to the Union, Texas accepted American control in July
1845, which promptly led to the outbreak of the Mexican-American War. When
the war ended in 1848, a defeated Mexico handed over vast swaths of
territory to the United States, which later became California, Nevada,
Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. And, of course, Texas. 

Indeed, throughout the 19th century, the dispatch of American settlers
beyond the borders of the United States played a central role in expanding
the country's boundaries. States such as Oregon and Wyoming (U.S. Vice
President Dick Cheney's home), were both settled by large numbers of
Americans, usually against the wishes of local Indian tribes and European
rulers. The growing presence of the American settlers inevitably changed the
status quo, and ultimately led such states out of European and Indian hands
and into American arms. 

As historians have noted, much of this expansionism was propelled by a
popular belief in "Manifest Destiny", the sense that America had a Divine
right to occupy the North American continent from the Atlantic to the
Pacific. Unlike Israel, however, America had no historic or Biblical ties to
the land that might have justified its policy. But that did not stop America
from pressing forward and building a great nation. 

So before the United States decides to preach to Israel about the wisdom of
building Jewish settlements or holding onto Judea, Samaria and Gaza, it
might do well to take a look back at its own past. For if one were to take
the American government's stance vis--vis Israel's territories and
retroactively apply it to America's own acquisition of land throughout
history, there would be plenty to keep the United Nations Security Council
busy for quite some time. 

Once America decides to return Florida to Spain or California to Mexico, it
can then feel free to offer advice to Israel. After all, why should America
view its own "occupied" territories any differently than those of Israel? 

----------------

The writer served as Deputy Director of Communications and Policy Planning
in the Prime Minister's Office from 1996 to 1999.






David A. Brown
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  From:  8320JOHN   8/22/2001 5:37 pm  
To:  David (DavidABrown)    (5 of 16)  
 
  159.5 in reply to 159.1  
 
>>We worship the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who are the fathers of the Jewish Nation. As Christians we gratefully walk in the footsteps of the Jews.<< 
As Christians we gratefully walk in the footsteps of the Hebrew apostles/prophets. The Jews are mostly secular or Zionistic or both. Walking in their footsteps is like walking in the footsteps of Judas. The blinded nation can offer nothing in the way of salvic comfort at this point in time. The Messiah has been seen alive and ascended, He shall return in the time appointed. 

Blessings, 




Regards, 

John
 
  
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  From:  David (DavidABrown)    8/22/2001 6:25 pm  
To:  8320JOHN   (6 of 16)  
 
  159.6 in reply to 159.5  
 
Hi,

 

We walk in the footsteps of the Jew meaning that the Jews have had a Relationship with God long before the Church.

 

The Church only has a 2,000 year relationship with God, and Likewise the Jews have also Experienced Thousands of Years of Persecution before the Church would begin to experience it.

 

According to the Book of Romans the Gentiles obtained Mercy while in their unbelief and now it is time for the Jews to obtain Mercy during their unbelief in Jesus. It is now the Opportunity and Obligation for the Church to show Mercy to the Jew.

 

Romans 11:30,31 For as ye (gentiles) in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained Mercy through their unbelief: Even so have these (Jews) also now not believed, that through your Mercy they also may obtain Mercy.

 

Thanks for your post.

Im wondering do you think Christians should help, support, and pray for Israel?

 

God Bless You,

David





David A. Brown
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  From:  Al Kupone (Kupone)   8/23/2001 1:04 am  
To:  8320JOHN   (7 of 16)  
 
  159.7 in reply to 159.5  
 
As Christians we gratefully walk in the footsteps of the Hebrew apostles/prophets. The Jews are mostly secular or Zionistic or both. Walking in their footsteps is like walking in the footsteps of Judas. The blinded nation can offer nothing in the way of salvic comfort at this point in time. The Messiah has been seen alive and ascended, He shall return in the time appointed. 
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 

Normally this is the kind of post that would get me to go off on a rant about small minded and clarifying that you obviously have no idea about what it is like to be a 'Christian' (Which means a person trying to emulate Christ in all reality). Instead I will simply say this, do you enjoy watching the persecution that those who are Jewish? Do you enjoy the anti-semetic remarks made, quite often by 'Christian people'? Have you ever helped to clean the graffiti off of a Jewish Synagogue? Have you taken the quips of 'You killed Jesus' or are you more happy to simply sit in a throne of pride and say that the Jewish People are inferior for believing that Jesus was a man or a phophet who had a good idea and not the Son of God or that they are like Judas without even knowing them? 

And at this point, I'm sure you are thinking, 'Al Kupone must be a Jew, he must hate Christians...' well guess what, I'm a Lutheran. I just believe in trying to emulate the reality of Christ, not sit on a high throne and claim to be a devoted follower of God. I've sat on this board and allowed for the fact that I have a Jewish parent slip a bit to allow those of you who aren't quite so open minded slip and I have also not openly told of my religious choice (And yes, it's a choice not a requirement, do you really think God is so arrogant as to punish someone for not having the rearing or experience to know him? Is anyone here so arrogant as to truly say they know what God is thinking? If so I have a ' Light Bringer' for you to meet in the future.) 

In effect I'm stepping out of the closet and saying that having watched this board I have not seen many here who are willing to think on thier beliefs, just state that they follow them. I do not plan to return to this board either as a Christian who is afraid of the words of people who don't agree with him is not one who is secure in the love of he who has saved the whole world with his sacrifice. 

No quip, no nasty feelings, I will pray that you might see that which Jesus has tried to teach you all. 

Al Kupone 



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edited 8/23/2001 4:13:18 AM ET by KUPONE 
  
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  From:  Dr_Shock   8/26/2001 2:14 pm  
To:  kreskas   (11 of 16)  
 
  159.11 in reply to 159.10  
 
First of all, I suggest you invest in a spell checker for both your posts and your web site. The spelling mistakes aren't on purpose? Considreing you can't even post on Delphi in a reasonable manner I'll assume you really are that stupid since your grammar also lacks the understanding of a gradeschooler. The concepts on your web page only reinforce that conclusion, as well. Honestly, I don't even think you know English. 
Apparantly, you don't know that much about the Hebrew language. Perhaps you should read the Book of Enoch or some other real Hebrew text. 

An excerpt from your site: 
"TO ALL Y THE JEWS GO 
FIND SOMEONE TO LENA 
A NEAH 
I CANCELLED YOR RILIGION IN 3 MONTHS OF WORK 
AND WITH ITS OWN WORDS WITHOUT, 
WITHOUT CHANGING NADA 
ONLY READING A GAIN THE WORDS IN A 
WAY 
U ARSE OWEL SS WILL NEVER THINK ABOUT 
COUSE ITS REALY SIMPLE 
I CANT BELIVE 4974 YEARS U BELIVE IN A LIE 
U WERE THE WHITE DONKYS OF CEATION 
SHE IS BACK--THE MOTHER OF THE EARTH." 

Another snippit: 
"TO MY EX I PAYED SOME PEOPLE TO LOVE U 4 EVER" 

Kid, have you taken your Thorazine today? 

Oh... And by the way... You code like crap. 


-The Mad Dr. Shock
 
  
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  From:  David (DavidABrown)    8/27/2001 9:04 pm  
To:  ALL   (13 of 16)  
 
  159.13 in reply to 159.1  
 
Informational Web E-Zine

http://www.JewishWorldReview.com 






David A. Brown
Basic Christian: Forum
 
  
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  From:  David (DavidABrown)    8/27/2001 9:31 pm  
To:  ALL   (14 of 16)  
 
  159.14 in reply to 159.13  
 
Source:
http://www.jewishworldreview.com/michael/ledeen.html
  
Jewish World Review August 22, 2001 / 3 Elul, 5761 
Michael Ledeen 

How Israel will win this war 

THE chatterers have taken to their favorite pastime, telling elected officials what they should do. Most of the chatterers have never actually designed or conducted a policy, which of course makes it much easier for them to give advice (as it will make it easier still to criticize leaders who listen to that advice). 


It's especially entertaining of late to listen to them giving military advice to Ariel Sharon, who knows a thing or two about waging war. And it's a bothersome symptom of our collective lack of understanding that the latest crowd of what Scoop Jackson used to call "born again hawks" talks as if all Israel has to do is smash the Palestinians, and then build a strong wall to keep them out. 


This easy counsel flies in the face of George Patton's reflection that defensive fortifications are a monument to human stupidity, as centuries of shattered barricades, trenches, moats, and walls testify. As Israeli leaders contemplate their plight, they surely know that such a strategy will only postpone a serious reckoning, and pass the initiative back to their enemies. The Israelis should not launch a violent attack until and unless they can see a chance for a decisive outcome, and that requires more than a purely military strategy. 


I think the key to a winning strategy has been presented by Natan Sharansky, who survived years in the Soviet gulag and now sits in Sharon's Cabinet. Sharansky has been at great pains to point out that the problem with the Oslo Accords --- and thereafter with the suicidal diplomacy conducted by a series of Israeli governments, and fully endorsed by most American diplomats and intellectuals -- is that they assumed peace was possible with corrupt tyrants, when it should have been clear that peace could only be achieved with virtuous democrats. 


The real problem with Arafat is not what he "wants," but with what he is, and what he has created. There is no hope of a durable peace with a tyrannical and corrupt Palestine. Arafat and his cronies are as corrupt and autocratic as any of the Middle East nasties, which is one reason they like him and support him. 


No amount of Israeli power can transform the Palestinian Authority into a tolerant, pluralistic society, yet that must be the goal of Israeli policy (as it should have been the goal of "Western" policy from the outset). And since this sort of transformation will not take place under Arafat, it follows that Israel must work for his downfall, and must support any and all Palestinians who offer the hope of a democratic Palestine. 


In short, Israel needs not only military tactics to destroy the terror network, but also political weapons to begin the destruction of the Arafat-led tyranny. It is folly to limit negotiations to the Palestinian "leaders," because Israel's ultimate allies in this struggle should be the Palestinian people themselves. Israel needs to appeal to them directly, just as we appealed to the peoples of the Soviet Empire. Israel needs to start broadcasting to them, along these lines: 


Palestinians! We could be dropping bombs on you, but instead we are sending words. We have no hatred of you, indeed we wish to embrace you. Your leaders have stolen your money, sent your children to die in senseless agony, deprived you of your freedom, and distorted your faith. Our fight is with them, not with you. Indeed, we fight for you, for your eventual freedom, for your ability to live and pray in peace, for your ability to create wealth for yourselves and your children, for a chance to develop our joint resources in ways none of us can today imagine. 

In this way, and many other similar ways, Israel can take the real fight to Arafat and his henchmen, and simultaneously lay the basis for the kind of Middle East that fools like Shimon Peres thought they could create by negotiating with the leaders of the PLO, as if signatures on a piece of paper could undo decades of evildoing. 


Democratic societies, especially in Europe and the United States, have an unfortunate ability to forget that freedom is the most lethal weapon in the endless struggle against tyranny. An entire generation of Americans forgot it, and was shocked to see its awesome power when Ronald Reagan aimed it at Moscow. A generation of Israelis forgot it, and need to remind themselves of it as they grapple with their life-threatening crisis. 


Yes, Israel must respond, but the response must aim at a total transformation of the current situation. In waging war in full against Arafat's PLO, Israel must make it clear - to the world at large, to the Palestinian people, and, perhaps most importantly, to themselves - that the key issue is political. The key issue is freedom. 


If they can pull it off, it will save more than Israel. It might even have an effect on the Department of State.  

JWR contributor Michael Ledeen is a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and author of Tocqueville on American Character . Comment by clicking here. 

08/15/01: Bracing for war 
08/09/01: More Dithering Democrats
08/02/01: Delirious Dems
07/31/01: Consulting a legendary counterspy about Chandra and Condit, cont'd
07/19/01: Be careful what you wish for 
07/17/01: Consulting a legendary counterspy about Chandra and Condit 
07/05/01: Let Slobo Go 
05/30/01: Anybody out there afraid of the Republicans?
05/09/01: The bad guys to the rescue 
05/07/01: Bye-bye, Blumenthal 
04/20/01: Handling China
04/11/01: EXAM TIME!
04/05/01: Chinese over-water torture
03/27/01: Fighting AIDS in Africa is a losing proposition
03/14/01: Big Bird, Oscar, and other threats
03/09/01: Time for a good, old-fashioned purge
03/06/01: Powells great (mis)adventure
02/26/01: The Clinton Sopranos
02/20/01: Unity Schmoonity: Sharon is defying the will of the people
01/30/01: The Rest of the Rich Story
01/22/01: Ashcroft the Jew
01/11/01: A fitting close to the Clinton years
12/26/00: Continuing Clinton's shameful legacy
12/21/00: Clintons gift for Bush

 2001, Michael Ledeen 






David A. Brown
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  From:  David (DavidABrown)    9/9/2001 6:37 pm  
To:  ALL   (15 of 16)  
 
  159.15 in reply to 159.14  
 
Prayer of the Jewish Soldier
Source: http://www.cardozoschool.org/thoughts63.htm

Prayer of the Jewish Soldier 

Lord of the Universe
We, the soldiers of the people of Israel 
Come to You in humility 
And pray for your help 


Once more, we are asked to defend our 
People and 
The Holy Land against our enemies


We ask You to have mercy on us and 
Help us watch over our people 
With clean hands
And with a heart filled with mercy


Let our people have the strength to
Stay in good spirits
And live in unity and
Walk in Your ways
The ways of Justice and Truth 


Let us not make mistakes
And hurt those who are not guilty 
Who do not understand
And have no part in this conflict


Please, 
Let our bullets not hurt those children of our enemies
Whose parents place them deliberately in dangerous spots,
Fire on us 
And then shield themselves 
Behind their own offspring against 
Our forces so as to fault us when their children 
Get hurt or even killed


Remove the evil spirit of these parents
And make them realize the wickedness of their actions
Stop their teachers from manipulating their students 
With hate for us in their schoolbooks
On the radio, television and 
Internet 

O God, 
You know what one of our Prime Ministers once said: 
"We may forgive our enemies one day 
For hurting and killing our children
But
We cannot forgive them for having made our children 
Into those who needed to kill"
We beg You, do not let our Jewish souls have to undergo 
This ordeal which we cannot bear


We are the children of Avraham, your servant, who
Prayed for the evil people of Sedom with the hope that 
They should repent and live a decent life 


So, we beg you
Make our enemies repent
Force them to understand that
We are good people
Who wish to live in peace with 
All our neighbors

O Lord,
Remove from their thoughts atrocities such as those
In which they dip their hands
In our blood 
As Jews, we 
Cannot fathom
Doing this even against our worst enemies


You commanded us to live in a country which 
Is little more 
Than a tiny island
Our population is smaller than that of
Many single cities


You asked us to live there so as to send 
Your holy Word to all the corners of the world
But 
We are surrounded by many nations who 
Embody more than a hundred million people
They inhabit one of the largest regions of the world
But deny us the right to live in even the smallest corner of the world
They do not want to listen
And only wish our death 


Give the Arab nations 
Leaders 
Who are men of justice and who really
Care for their people
And do not wish to bring their own brothers to despair
And unbearable pain
With the intention 
To accuse us
Of grave injustice


Now, 
After thousands of years of our dwelling
On this globe and after many exiles, tortures, pogroms,
Expulsions and Holocausts
We finally found our way back to our
Small homeland
Which You promised to our forefathers


But once more our dreams of peace
Have gone up in smoke
While we were trying, at the risk of our own lives,
To find a way to 
Allow our Palestinian neighbors to 
Live their own lives
While we were prepared to make sacrifices
For the welfare of these people
As no other people ever did
While we offered them land, peace, finances
And even firearms so as to defend themselves
We once more pay the price for being a people
Who believe in the honesty of another nation and its leaders
And once more we feel misled


Oh Lord, remove the evil intentions of the 
Security Council which distorts the truth
Remove the deliberate lies
From the hearts of those who head the
Media


Why do they want to portray us 
As an evil people? 
They do so 
To deny Your existence and Your moral 
Demands
They hide behind their own wickedness
And cover up theirs and their fathers'
Immoral acts which they brought on us 
And our forefathers for thousands
Of years 


O, God You know 
That
No army in world history has used so much restraint 
As ours.
No army is so careful not to hurt or kill 
As ours
But what shall we do when they are not even prepared
To give us the option
To prove this to the world? 

Please God,
Bring peace into the hearts and minds
Of our enemies
Let them be uplifted with a spirit of righteousness
Stop them from hating us because we are Your people
Let us sanctify Your name as this is our
Mission and our dream
Give us the possibility once more to teach
Your ways to the peoples
Of the world
And make them hear and
Understand


We hate war as nobody else does,
We abhor the need to wear weapons
We cannot stand the sound of our own artillery 
And our tanks 

We are the people of the Book
The Book which demands holiness,
Kindness
And integrity
Our heroes are not the generals or the marshals
But our prophets and our sages
Men of righteousness


So, deliver us from this anguish
Bring peace to the nations
Let us not be forced to use our strength against them
For they will have no escape
But
Let the blessing which you gave to Avraham come true, 
"And through you all the families of the earth will be blessed"
For this is our hope


Nathan Lopes Cardozo 

Reproduction is permitted when printed in full. 
 






David A. Brown
Basic Christian: Forum
 
 
From:  David (DavidABrown)    10/18/2001 11:41 am  
To:  ALL    
 
    
 
Source: www.Jpost.com

by Etgar Lefkovits

JERUSALEM (October 18) - Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze'evi was gunned down outside his Jerusalem hotel room yesterday, in the first Arab assassination of an Israeli cabinet minister. 

The radical Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine claimed the murder, saying it was in retaliation for Israel's killing of PFLP leader Mustafa Zibri (Abu Ali Mustafa) in his Ramallah office on August 27. Mustafa had been behind a series of terrorist bombings. 

"[Prime Minister] Ariel Sharon has to know that Palestinian blood is not cheap and that those who target the leaders of the Palestinian people are not safe from being targeted and assassinated themselves," read a PFLP statement sent to news agencies. 

The Palestinian Authority condemned the murder, but called on Israel to halt its policy of killing terrorists. "We reject all forms of political assassinations," Palestin-ian cabinet minister Yasser Abed Rabbo said. 

Last night, the PA arrested the PFLP spokesman. 

Ze'evi, whose resignation as minister to protest an IDF withdrawal from two Hebron neighborhoods was due to have gone into effect yesterday afternoon, was head of National Union-Yisrael Beiteinu. 

A retired major-general, Ze'evi was shot three times on the eighth floor of the Hyatt Hotel on Mount Scopus, his lodgings while in Jerusalem for parliamentary business. Apparently ambushed by two assailants just after 7 a.m., as he was about to enter his room, Ze'evi was hit in the head and neck. 

After being discovered by his wife, Yael, Ze'evi was rushed at 7:35 to Hadassah-University Hospital in Ein Kerem, where the surgery, trauma, neurosurgery, anesthesiology, and other experts labored to save his life. One bullet entered his right eye, penetrated the lower brain (which controls vital involuntary body functioning) and stopped at the skull, rendering Ze'evi clinically dead. All resuscitation efforts failed, and Ze'evi was declared dead by deputy hospital director Dr. Shmuel Shapira at 10 a.m. 

Ze'evi is survived by his wife, Yael, five children, some 20 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. 

He will be buried this afternoon at 4 in a full military ceremony at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl Military Cemetery. 

Minutes before his murder, over breakfast, Ze'evi reportedly told his wife that he noticed a man of Arab appearance staring at him, and for reasons not clear the minister headed to their room alone. Despite increased threats to the lives of cabinet members in recent months, he had no bodyguard, apparently by choice. Ze'evi usually carried a pistol wherever he went. 

The General Security Service, still smarting from its failure adequately to protect the late prime minister Yitzhak Rabin six years ago, announced it would set up an internal investigation of the Ze'evi murder. A separate Jerusalem police probe is also under way. 

Police said the assailants likely used a silenced gun, as no shots were heard where the attack took place, on the eighth floor of the hotel. 

"I heard something that sounded like a fall in the next room," recounted David Hocking, an American tourist from Orange County, California, who was staying in a room down the hall. He said what alerted him was the shouting of a woman, who turned out to be Ze'evi's wife. 

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, Internal Security Minister Uzi Landau, Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Shaul Mofaz, and President Moshe Katsav rushed to the hospital to be with Ze'evi and comfort his wife and children. On Israel Radio, Chief Rabbi Yisrael Lau called for prayers and psalms to be recited. 

Back at the Hyatt, police had cordoned off the hotel in the minutes after the attack, detaining all guests and workers for questioning. The hotel has some 100 Arab employees, and the possibility of them having tipped off the assailants as to Ze'evi's movements was being examined. 

Ze'evi, who lived in Ramat Hasharon, had often used the prominent hotel when the Knesset was in session and was known to have favored the same room, 816. 

Security sources said last night that the assassination was clearly well-planned and prepared way in advance, likely by a three-member cell. 

They noted that the hotel, located near Jerusalem's northern rim, provide the attackers with the option of quick escape to the nearby Arab communities of Issawiya or Shuafat, and from there to Palestinian Authority-ruled Ramallah. 

Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert suggested that the easing of security restrictions in northern Jerusalem earlier this week may have facilitated the attack. 

Israel Police Insp.-Gen. Shlomo Aharonishsky and Jerusalem police chief Cmdr. Mickey Levy repeatedly stressed yesterday that responsibility for Ze'evi's protection, as with all political VIPs, lies with the GSS. One report said the GSS lacked the budget to fund bodyguards for the unprecedentedly large coalition cabinet. 

Levy said he had not received specific forewarning of plans against a government minister, but noted the PA's publication in August of a list of "wanted men" whom it said should be arrested by Israel or face assassination. The list included Mofaz and far-right politicians. 

On Monday, Ze'evi and fellow faction leader Avigdor Lieberman announced their resignation, in protest of the decision to pull the IDF out from two Arab neighborhoods in Hebron. Their resignation was to go into effect yesterday at 1:30 p.m. 

Following the assassination, the National Union-Yisrael Beiteinu said that they would freeze their resignations during the seven-day morning period for Ze'evi and await the government's actions. 

An ardent Zionist, who was described by political friends and foes alike as a gentleman and a modest man of his word, Ze'evi was considered one of a handful of remaining symbols of his generation. 

A sixth-generation Jerusalemite born in 1926, Ze'evi had an illustrious military career, which started as a youth in the pre-state Palmah and later in the IDF . He fought in the 1948, 1956, and 1967 wars, and after graduating from the Command and General Staff College of the US Army, served as a career officer in the IDF, reaching the rank of major-general as head of Central Command. 

Long considered a member of the old school of Israeli politicians, Ze'evi served as an adviser to Rabin on anti-terror matters and intelligence between 1974-77. Though he was retired from the army, Ze'evi was often consulted through the years for his viewpoint in the war against terrorism. 

His love for and great knowledge of the land led him to be appointed chairman of the board of Tel Aviv's Eretz Yisrael Museum, a position he held for 18 years. 

Ze'evi entered politics in 1988, as the head of the far-right Moledet Party, which advocated the transfer of Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza. He would serve for the next 13 years in the Knesset. 

Though ultranationalist in his political views, Ze'evi, or Gandhi as he was referred because his youthful thinness reminded people of the pacifist Indian independence leader, was respected by allies and opponents across the political spectrum alike as a skilled, dedicated, and courtly politician, as an officer and a gentleman. Despite his gentlemanly demeanor, which placed him in the old school of Israeli politicians, he was not one to mince words. 

He called Arafat a "murderer," a "man of blood," and a "wicked liar."

 





David A. Brown
Basic Christian: Forum
 
