American News Commentary

AN ALMOST IGNORED RESULT OF THE WAR
IN IRAQ – THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY
IS COMING CLOSE TO EXTINCTION

While the media – accurately or inaccurately – focuses the
attention of the American people on the failure of the
government of Prime Minister al-Maliki, or the timing of
withdrawal of American troops, or the involvement of Syria
and Iran in support of the insurgents – an almost totally
ignored destruction of the Iraqi Christian community has
been taking place. Prior to the war, the Christians in
Iraq numbered about 3% of the 26 million population.

Christian leaders in Iraq estimate that as many as
half of the 800,000 Christians in Iraq under Saddam
Hussein have fled to Syria and Jordan. In the capitol city
of Baghdad at least half of the thousands of Christians
have fled or been killed, and they say that the government
has done nothing to protect them. In some areas such as
the district of Dora in the south, that figure is reported to
be as high as 70%. Under threats from al-Qaeda of
"convert or be killed," many have fled to Kurdish
controlled northern Iraq, where the village of Ankawa,
now terribly overcrowded, has become known as the
"city of Christ."

Father Bashar Warda of the St. Peter Seminary in Dora
who has been forced to move to Ankawa explained it this
way: "We are afraid the government of Iraq has a common
understanding with those making the threats that
Christians have no future in this country." Father Raymond
Mousselli,a spokesman for the refugees, said: "We cannot
hold on. The Muslims have issued warnings ‘convert or
you will be killed. People are being killed just for their faith."

A series of church bombings in August and September
sent an additional 30,000 - 40,000 Christians fleeing the
country according to estimates by government and church
officials who admit that hundreds of families leave each week.
Of 4,000 Iraqi families registered as refugees in Damascus,
more than half are Christians. Syrian authorities estimate
that as many as 300,000 Iraqis are living in that country.

This is not a condition limited to Iraq. While it is true
that the problem of religious freedom is extremely serious
in Iraq, it is also a matter of concern in other areas of the
world, including China, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan and
areas of India. The U.S. State Department last week issued
its Annual Report on International Religious Freedom, and
Secretary of State Condolezza Rice emphasized, "Freedom of
religion is integral to efforts to combat the ideology of
hatred and intolerance that fuels global terrorism."

By linking the oppression of religion to world-wide terrorism,
the significance of what is happening in Iraq – and elsewhere –
should begin to register with American Christians, who
should be demanding that our government do something to
protect Christians from the Islamic threats of "convert or be
killed." The problem here at home is that the liberals in the
media and in government keep insisting that Islam is a
religion of peace, despite the fact that Muslims are committing
acts of terrorism all over the world. The prevailing attitude is
more anti-Christian than anti-Muslim. Consider the ACLU
which claims to be defending our constitutional rights – but
is actually much more concerned with banning the singing of
Christmas carols in schools and instigating court action in
behalf of the Muslim woman who insisted her face should be
veiled in her driver license picture.


That government study reported on 198 countries, and found
that Iraq was one of those with the worst record. Concerning
Iraq the report said that all religions are "victims of harassment,
intimidation, kidnaping and killings," adding, "non-Muslims
are especially vulnerable to pressure and violence because of
their minority status."

We have recently observed another "9/11." What took
place on that day should have alerted every American to the
threat to our traditional moral values posed by Islam. Polls
disclose that only about half of our people realize that fact.
Perhaps the underlying problem is that our innate sense of
trust and decency stand in the way of our willingness to
confront and oppose an enemy like Islam, which attacks us
clothed in the guise of a religion "just as good" as ours. We
seem to be content to honor Muslim customs, rather than
defending our traditional Christian beliefs.

A wise word from Winston Churchill: "Never turn your
back on a threatened danger and try to run away from it. If
you do that, you will double the danger. But if you meet it
promptly and without flinching, you will reduce the danger
by half. Never run away from anything. Never!"


Afterthoughts . . .


"It is deja-vu all over again." Famous words from Yogi Berra,
the philosopher of the ball park. But sadly very true in our TV
world of today. After those months in 1995 when we were forced
by the TV programmers to watch the "trial of the century" – the
O.J. Simpson travesty of justice – we are about to be subjected to
more of the same with respect to his Las Vegas night on the town.
But those people who run TV programming feel it is only fair –
they haven’t had such an opportunity since the Scott Peterson
saga in 2004. So be prepared, America . . . O.J. is back! Oh, yes,
there’s another "deja vu" – Hillary has resurrected her failed
health care plan, and will try again to get it accepted.

Cindy Sheehan gets favorable recognition from Ramadan
Adassi, Chief or the Al Aqsa Martyr’s Brigade terror group. His
accolade to Sheehan: "You give us hope... This sincere woman
says what we have been saying all these last years ... Now
Iraq is being decimated and America is losing... Voices like
Sheehan show things can change." We always felt that her
efforts would be appreciated by someone like that.

Two different relationships with God. (1) The Chairman
of the Nebraska Democrat party, State Senator Ernie Chambers,
has filed in Douglas County Court a lawsuit against God, asking
for "a permanent injunction ordering Defendant to cease certain
harmful activities." Chambers believes this will put a stop to the
natural disasters occurring all over the world. The Clerk of the
Douglas County Court, John Friend, reported that a return filing
from God "miraculously appeared on the counter. It just all of
a sudden was here ... poof!" he said. It would seem to be a bit
dangerous to institute a lawsuit against God. But, of course, the
Plaintiff is after all a State Senator. (2) When entertainer Kathy
Griffin accepted her "EMMY" Award, she said, "A lot of people
come up here and thank Jesus for their award. I want you to
know that no one had less to do with this award than Jesus.
Suck it, Jesus. This is my god now," holding up her award. She
is probably right; Jesus very likely had nothing to do with her
winning the award. But that is an issue to be settled between
Kathy and the Lord when she stands before Him as Judge.

A new tourist attraction in Minneapolis; true – according
to reports, visitors from across America are flocking to the rest
room for men at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport
to see the stall where U.S. Senator Larry Craig was arrested for
his actions with an undercover police officer. Not exactly an
attraction like the Statue of Liberty or the Golden Gate Bridge
or the Grand Canyon, but not everyone has the same sphere
of interest.

Sort of like the fox guarding the chicken coop. As further
evidence that we can not really trust the UN to safeguard our
national interests, Syria has been voted in as co-chairman of the
IAEA – the International Atomic Energy Agency. That is the UN
watchdog agency supposed to prevent rogue nations from getting
nuclear technology. IAEA does the policing of the nuclear actions
of Iran in which Syria can well be described as a "partner in crime."

A word of reassurance for Israel. According to former
president Jimmy Carter, Iran is no threat to Israel. Speaking at
Emory University, Carter said that "Iran is quite distant from
Israel. I think it would be almost inconceivable that Iran would
commit suicide by launching one or two missiles of any kind
against the nation of Israel." However the Iran deputy air force
commander said that Israel is in range of Iran medium-range
missiles and bombers, and that Iran would strike back if Israel
"makes a silly mistake." Given his record of accomplishments
in international affairs, Israel would be well advised not to
take seriously this opinion by Mr. Carter.

October 12 may have dual emphasis this year. The
usual observance on that date is Columbus Day, to commemorate
his arrival in America in 1492. However, according to the Iran
government news agency, Qods Day is observed each year on
the last Friday of Ramadan, and this year it falls on October 12.
Referring to the observance of Qods Day this year, the news
agency spokesman warned: "Supporters of the Zionist regime
will definitely receive the final response for their support on that
day." A specific warning was issued to Washington for "its wrong
policies and arrogant approaches." The modification of "9/11"
into "10/12" may be the progression the Iranians have in mind.
We have a bit more than a week to wait to see how Qods Day will
be observed this year.

A lasting thoughtful comment from Newt Gingrich. In a
discussion of the careers of athletes Brett Favre, outstanding
quarterback of the Green Bay Packers; Tiger Woods, probably
the greatest golfer of all time, and Joe Paterno, legendary football
coach at Penn State University, Newt had this to say about them:
"What Favre, Woods and Paterno have in common is that classic
American ability to dream big, work hard, learn everyday,
enjoy life and be true to themselves... As long as the American
spirit remains this vibrant, we will continue to overcome the
gridlock and frustrations of politics and government through
the energy liberated by individuals, families and businesses
living out the American dream."
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MID SEPTEMBER – A NEW NATIONAL HOLIDAY,

A NEW TIME OF REMEMBRANCE, A NEW

TIME FOR A UNITED AMERICA

Dennis Hastert, the immediate past Republican Speaker of the

House, was skilled in making brief but impressive statements.

He will probably be remembered as much for those quotes

as for his service as Speaker. One of his finest: "What makes

America great is that we can come together during times of

national tragedy."

Great statement, but the problem with it is that Mr. Hastert

was living – or thinking – in the past. It used to be true. It

was true in the Spring of 1836, when Mexican General

Santa Ana led a Mexican army attack on a small group of

Texas soldiers and a few other volunteers at the Alamo, an

old mission in San Antonio, killing every defender in the

battle; names like Travis, Crocket and Bowie among them,

men who entered the All American Heroes Hall of Fame.

Later that year, united in the slogan: "Remember the Alamo!"

Texans under General Sam Houston defeated Santa Ana at

the Battle of San Jacinto and Texas independence from

Mexico was won.

It was true in December of 1941, when Japanese planes

attacked American military installations in Pearl Harbor,

killing 2,300 and injuring another 1,100, and leaving our

Pacific fleet on fire, sunk and almost totally destroyed.

Within just over 3 years, always spurred on by the slogan

"Remember Pearl Harbor," a united America recovered

and thoroughly defeated Japan and secured our bases

throughout the Pacific.

But now we come to September of 2001. On the 11th

four commercial domestic planes were hijacked by a few

Islamic terrorists, airborne suicide bombers, who flew

the planes into the twin trade towers in New York, then

into the Pentagon in Washington. A fourth plane was

taken over by heroic passengers forcing it to crash before

it could reach its intended target. In all more than 3,000

were killed directly, really inestimable costs of property

damage were incurred, and the financial center of this

nation and the Western world was forced out of action.

It was an attack somewhat similar but more devastating

in effect than the one at Pearl Harbor.

But the results were worlds apart. For a few days, a few

months, actually, the nation was shocked and mourned

the losses. But grief was not replaced with anger. This

time there was no enemy nation to react against. This

time the attackers represented what was essentially a

Muslim religious cult called Al Qaeda, led by a wealthy

Arab named Osama bin Laden, operating from hidden

caves in Afghanistan with supporters throughout the

neighboring Muslim nations in the Middle East.

After the United Nations failed in effecting diplomatic

restraints on the leader of a terrorist regime in Iraq,

aided by a small group of supporting nations, America

went to war against Saddam Hussein.

But this time there was no rallying slogan

"Remember 9/11." This time there was no united

America determined to bring the existing and potential

world-wide reign of terrorism to an end. This time a

shattered and divided America had to wage war with

as many enemies here at home as in the Muslim world.

The attacks of 9/11 were clearly a declaration of war

and the forces which instigated it have not disappeared

and given up. The ultimate goal of the Muslim attackers

is the destruction and take-over of America and Western

civilization. They are united. America is not.

There is an effort to preserve the memory of the

atrocity which was 9/11. On October 25, 2001 the U.S.

Congress unanimously passed a Resolution requesting

the president to designate September 11 as "Patriot Day."

President Bush signed the Resolution into law, making

September 11 a discretionary day of remembrance. Then

on September 4, 2002 the president used that authority

to proclaim September 11 as "Patriot Day," and has done

so each year since, and has directed that on that day the

U.S. flag be flown at half-staff.

Thus there is at the national government level an

effort to remember with sorrow, but hopefully also with

anger, the tragedy of 9/11. Unfortunately, on a purely

partisan political level there is a strong anti-war, anti-

military, anti-America viewpoint, voiced not only by

left wing political organizations like Moveon.org, whose

ad insulting General Petraeus has caused such a back

lash on the Democrat Liberals, but also is most

unfortunately voiced by some members of our

government (see the first "Afterthought" below).

Very simply: "Remember 9/11" should take its place in

American history alongside "Remember the Alamo" and

"Remember Pearl Harbor." Those two older slogans did

not conceive of, or lead to, surrender and defeat. Let us

pray for a United America where that is true once again.

An 18^th Century Quote for the Day: "How could a

readiness for war in time of peace be safely prohibited,

unless we could prohibit, in like manner also, the

preparations and establishments of every hostile nation."

-- James Madison, 1788.

When reading polls, don’t ignore the favorable ones.

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After reviewing the most recent resignations in

Washington, are there lessons to be learned?

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The Iranian Pesident Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has never in

the slightest way retracted his remarks that Israel should be

wiped off the map, and has actually enlarged upon them by

saying that although Israel remains as a constant threat it

was on the verge of being eliminated. Although he is the

most outspoken, those views are very much reflective of the

attitudes of the Muslim nations toward Israel. A major

underlying problem with the Iranian position is the ongoing

threat of their program of developing nuclear weapons of

mass destruction.

A somewhat more subtle but devastating attack on Israel is

the report concerning recent negotiations between Israel’s

Prime Minister Ehud Ohmert and the Palestinian Authority

Chairman, Mahmoud Abbas. The report, now being both

strongly denied and affirmed, is that Israel is willing to cede

control of the Temple Mount to the joint control of Egypt,

Jordan and the Palestinian Authority.

This is not an insignificant proposal involving a minor

piece of property in Jerusalem. The Temple Mount contains

some of Judaism’s holiest sites. Abraham named the place

Jehovah Jireh, the Mount of the Lord, when he was told by

the Angel to build an altar to sacrifice a ram rather than Isaac.

It was here that Solomon built the first temple in the 10^th

century BC, and which was destroyed by the Babylonians

in 586. Upon that site King Herod built the second temple

in 516, to be destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD, leaving

only the Western wall, now known as the Wailing Wall. And

it is to be the site of the third and final temple to be built

upon the coming of the Jewish Messiah.

The Temple Mount is also the location of one of Islam’s

holiest sites – the Dome of the Rock, built in the seventh

century to enclose the rock from which their prophet

Muhammad ascended to heaven to meet with Allah, and

then return to Mecca through Jerusalem.

The report involves the assertion of the Palestinians that

they will accept no final deal for peace with Israel that does

not include Israel’s giving up control of the Temple Mount.

Whether the contemporary opposition to Israel involves the

elimination threats of Ahmadinejad or the loss of control

demands of the Palestinians, there are promises and

covenants (pacts) with Israel, predating the present

attacks by thousands of years, which cannot be forgotten

or ignored.

They are made, of course, by the eternal, unchangeable God

of the universe and transcend any of the temporal, earthly

problems which Israel has faced through the years, or may

face in the days yet to come. They are so complex and involve

so much, that it is difficult to examine them even briefly.

"Now the Lord said unto Abraham ... I will make of thee

a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name

great, and thou shalt be a blessing." (Genesis 12:1-2)

"And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto

him, saying, Thus shall thou say to the house of Jacob, and

tell the children of Israel, ye have seen how I bare you on

eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore,

if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then

ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people; for

all the earth is mine. And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of

priests, and a holy nation. These are the words which thou

shalt speak unto the children of Israel." (Exodus 19: 3-6)

And concerning the land which He guaranteed unto Israel,

God was very specific: "In the same day the Lord made a

covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given

this land, from the river of Egypt, unto the great river, the

river Euphrates....And the Lord gave unto Israel all the land

which he sware to give unto their fathers, and they possessed

it and dwelt therein." (Genesis 15:18; Joshua 21:43)

As if to emphasize the nature of His covenant with the nation

Israel, God made this unequivocal statement in Genesis 12:3,

"I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curseth

thee, and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."

And how has the nation Israel developed in current

years? It will be remembered that God promised to give them

a land . . . to make them a great nation . . . and to provide for

them blessing and redemption.

Consider that as the 100^th smallest country in the world,

with less than 1% of the world’s population, Israel’s $100 billion

economy is larger than all of its immediate neighboring nations

combined. Israel has the highest percentage of home computers

in the world on a per capita basis. Their ratio of university degrees

to population is the highest in the world. 24% of the work force

hold university degrees, ranking third in the industrialized world

after only the US and Holland. Israel leads the world in the actual

number of scientists and technicians in the work force at 145 per

10,000 as compared with 85 in the US, 70 in Japan and less than

60 in Germany. The Israeli average living standard is the highest

in the Middle East, with an average per capita income above

$17,500, by comparison exceeding that of Great Britain. Their

accomplishments in life saving and diagnostic medical devices is

unparalleled. Relative to its population Israel is today the largest

immigrant absorbing nation on earth. In the field of agriculture,

throughout the Middle East date palm trees produce an average

of 38 pounds per year. In Israel the production averages 400

pounds per tree annually. And beyond all of these achievements

is an absolute position of world leadership in the development

of computer and related internet technology.

Israel has achieved this level of accomplishments – of

which only a relative few have been mentioned here – while

engaged in ongoing conflicts with enemies whose often stated

intention is to remove Israel from the face of the earth. This

aspect of their life means that Israel has to pay more per capita

for their own protection than any other country in the world.

Without exception, God fulfilled His promises to Israel.

His covenant, His guarantee to give them a land, to make them a

great nation, to provide them with blessing and redemption, have

been fulfilled. President Ahmadinejad and the Muslim neighbors

Palestine, Egypt, Jordan and others, would be well advised to

note what God has done, and what He has yet promised to do, and

to remember God’s pledge: "I will bless them that bless thee, and

curse him that curseth thee." The vengeance of God is a sure

and awesome thing, spoken of in Deuteronomy 32:35, "To me

belongeth vengeance and recompense ..." and is repeated in

Romans 12:19, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord."

An everlasting command and promise: "Pray for the peace

of Jerusalem; they shall prosper that love thee." (Psalm 122:6)

We will probably see this as a copy-cat crime by some of

our American actors. In New Zealand, British actor Ian McKellan

confirmed in a TV interview last week that he has in fact been

ripping anti-gay pages out of Bibles in hotel rooms where he has

stayed. "Yes, it’s true," he said, it’s Leviticus 18 22 that I object to,

or is it 22:18." The actor said he considers God’s condemnation

of homosexuality as being obscene and pornographic, and says he

removes it because it shouldn’t be there. Ian may not agree, but it

is absolutely certain that his opinion and childish pranks will not

change God’s views.

The Vatican’s new tourism venture began a couple of weeks

ago by offering low-cost, charter flight service to transport Roman

Catholic pilgrims to various holy sites. The first flight from Rome

to France used a small charter airline operated by the Italian Post

Office. An estimated 150,000 pilgrims will use the flights in the
first year of operation. Catholic sites in France, Poland Spain and
the Middle East are planned, with Mexico also on the future schedule.

Plans for a better public image of Islam. Leaders of Muslim

business and political life assembled in Kuala Lumpur last week

to study ways to change the public perception of Islam from one

of violence, poverty and ignorance to one of peace, prosperity
and recognized achievements. Susilo Yudhoyono, President of
Indonesia, the largest Muslim nation, set the tone of the con -
ference, "We must change their attitudes toward us from
something negative or indifferent – if not hostile – to some -
thing positive or enthusiastic."

This effort at the highest level is indicative of the determination
of Muslims to improve their international image and thus enhance

their goal of taking over more of the world’s nations.

Determination of this nature should not be ignored. We do so at
our own peril.

Can Christian believers practice homosexuality? This
has been an ongoing question for a long time and the debate is
not going to end in the immediate future. But Dr. Michael
Brown, a pastor in North Carolina is planning to hold a public
discussion on the subject later this month. His motivating
factor: he learned that some of the participants in a "gay
pride" parade in Charlotte professed to be Christian.

Pastor Brown’s position is that either his viewpoint or

their viewpoint may be wrong. His aim is to find which
is true.

We have lost another strong Conservative voice. Just a few

months ago, in mid-May, the Rev. Jerry Falwell died, and thus
was silenced the primary spokesperson for the Conservative
Evangelical position. His creation of the Moral Majority was
a decisive factor in strengthening the moral values of America.
Now the official retirement of Dr. D. James Kennedy has been
announced. Actually Dr. Kennedy preached his last sermon at
Christmas time last year.

His TV voice, his writings, his conferences on moral issues have
been teamed with Dr. Falwell for years. There are others who
will step forward to fill the shoes of these long time leaders, but
Falwell and Kennedy will be missed.

An everlasting command and promise: "Pray for the peace
of Jerusalem; they shall prosper that love thee." (Psalm 122:6)

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