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A MAN WITH NO HUMAN SOUL

THE GOLEM MAN MADE OF Clay

In the 4 A.D. Babylonian Talmud

Man created without a living Soul

It’s been said Antichrist is a Golem

At TIMES in Ancient Jewish Writings!

I do not believe Antichrist is a Golem!

But he is a curious ODDITY in Tr

adition,

You might be asked about in the Future!

Years ago, as I was doing research on a different religious subject, I came across a couple of writings which stated the antichrist would be a Golem. So, when I noticed the article on the Golem in Haaretz, I decided to pass on to the readers what I knew about the Golem. I don’t believe the antichrist will be a Golem, but it has crossed my mind that the image created by the second beast in Revelation 13 might fit the characteristics of a Golem who speaks. However, I have long believed it more likely to be a hologram.

August 19, 2009

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

Revelation 13:13-15 – And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, [14] And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. [15] And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

The Tradition of the Golem

A golem, perhaps the best known of the Jewish legends, is an automaton, typically humanoid and typically male, created as the result of an intense, systematic, mystical meditation. The word golem means (or implies) something unformed and imperfect, or a body without a soul.

The word appears once in the Bible, in Psalms 139:15,16. In most golem s tories, the creature, empowered by the Name of God on its person, continues

to grow larger and stronger from day to day, until it is either no longer practical or too dangerous to keep active. In some stories it eventually runs amok. In these cases the ultimate moral is fairly clear: only God should partake in creation of this sort.

Psalm 139:15,16 – My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. [16] Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.

While animated, the golem possesses no spiritual qualities, because, quite simply, it does not have a human soul.

It has been given the ruah, the “breath of bones”, or “animal soul”, the basic life force in all living things, but possesses nothing higher.

It is typically not given a name. It is not considered a human being, nor is anyone in written accounts particularly concerned with its well-being. Nor does anyone ever express any sadness at its deactivation. This isn’t cruelty so much as emotional indifference. The golem is simply an animated thing, like a robot, with no real life or desires of its own.

The Jewish tradition of the Golem is a vast subject, on which entire books have been written.

Only a brief overview is attempted here; the reader is referred to the references cited below for further information. The creation of a golem by Rabbi Abba ben Rav Hamma (“Rava”) is first recorded in the Babylonian Talmud (4th century C.E.).

Rava said: “If the righteous wished, they could create a world, for it is written: ‘Your inequities are a barrier between you and your God.'” For Rava created a man and sent him to R[abbi] Zeira. The rabbi spoke to him [the man] but he did not answer. Then he [Zeira] said: “You are from the pietists. Return to your dust.” (Translation: Moshe Idel.) (Sanhedrin 65b)

The Talmud mentions this episode in passing, during a discussion of other topics. To the Sages of the Talmud, the creation of a Golem was not in and of itself particularly remarkable. Anyone who could cleave to God sufficiently would be able to perform such a feat.

According to Jewish tradition, many other holy Rabbis and Sages also created human and animal Golems, such as Rabbis Channina and Hoshia, Ben Sira, Joseph’s eleven brothers, and the Patriarch Abraham. But by far the most famous Golem is the one created by Rabbi Yehudah Levi ben Betzalel of Prague, known as “the Maharal”.

The statue of the Golem of Prague stands at the entrance to the city’ s Jewi

sh sector.

The Maharal created his Golem, named “Yossele,” to help save the Jews of Prague from the blood libel. (For those of you who do not know, the blood libel was the belief that Jews used

the blood of a Christian child during the Passover Seder. This malicious libel was frequently invoked to explain the disappearance of a child, and it was not uncommon for a dead or murdered Christian child to be planted in a Jewish house, often by a priest who would then “discover” this child and lead the masses on a murderous rampage through the ghetto, during which much Jewish property could be confiscated for the church.) Many stories are told about “The Golem of Prague.”

It is a matter of record that the Maharal enacted a ban on anyone entering the attic of the “Old-New Synagogue” and it is widely believed that the body of Yossele the Golem rests there to this day. The “Old-New Synagogue” miraculously survived the destruction of synagogues by the Nazis, and its attic was not entered even by the Gestapo.

Instructions follow for making a Golem, from the commentary of Rabbi Eliezar Rokeach on the Book of Formation.

How does one actually make a golem? Rashi (10th century) commenting on the Talmudic account cited above explains that Rava made his Golem “by means of the Book of Formation” and all the sources agree that this is how a Golem is made. The procedure is described by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan:

An initiate should not do it alone, but should always be accompanied by one or two colleagues. The Golem must be made of virgin soil, taken from a place where no man has ever dug. The soil must be kneaded with pure spring water, taken directly from the ground. If this water is placed in any kind of vessel, it can no longer be used. The people making the Golem must purify themselves totally before engaging in this activity, both physically and spiritually.

While making the Golem, they must wear clean white vestments… One must not make any mistake or error in the pronunciation… no interruption whatsoever may occur…

There is also evidence that creating a Golem was primarily not a physical procedure, but rather, a highly advanced meditative technique. By chanting the appropriate letter arrays together with the letters of the Tetragrammaton, the initiate could form a very real mental image of a human being, limb by limb… Once the conceptual Golem was completed, this spiritual potential could be transferred to a clay form and actually animate it. This was the process through which a physical Golem would be brought to life.

For example, Eleazar of Worms, in his Commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, wrote (in a somewhat twisted fashion) that after kneading virgin soil from the mountains with pure water, the first stage of creation is to form the “limbs” of the golem (“limb”, in this case, seems to also represent the torso and head) . Each limb has a “corresponding letter mentioned in Sefer Yetzirah”, and this letter is to be combined with every other letter of the Hebrew alphabet to form pairs. Then a more general permutation is done (again for each limb separately) of each letter of the Hebrew alphabet with every other letter into letter pairs, “each limb separately”. This second, basic method of combination is called the “221 gates”. Then you combine each letter of the alphabet with each vowel sound

(apparently for each limb). That concludes the first stage, the formation of the golem’s body. In the second stage you must combine each letter of the alphabet with each letter from the Tetragrammaton (YHVH), and pronounce each of the resulting letter pairs with every possible vowel sound. In this case the use of the Tetragrammaton, even though it is permutated, is the “activation word”.

(For a translation of Eleazar of Worms’ original text with an explanation, see Idel’s Golem: Jewish Magic and Mystical Traditions on the Artificial Anthropoid.

For figures, tables, and a highly detailed explanation of the 221 gates, see Aryeh Kaplan’s translation and commentary on the Sefer Yetzirah.)

The Kabbalist(s) involved in combination techniques were sometimes required to circle the golem, in varying numbers of times, one way to create, the other to destroy, while performing the recitations.

If combined with meditative, paced breathing and pronunciation techniques, some of these methods would have taken the Kabbalist 36 hours or more of uninterrupted meditation to complete!

In another combination method, the mystic was required to combine the 42-letter Name of God and the Tetragrammaton in special ways, then inscribe several Names on the golems forehead to bring it to life.

An even more direct method was to purify oneself, prepare the virgin soil-and-water mixture, and pronounce the ineffable 72-part Name of God over it. However, since the exact pronunciation of this Name was kept very secret due to the extreme powers it wielded, and since a single slip in pronunciation would likely result in the death of the speaker,

it is to be suspected this method went largely unused.

Of all the names of God in the Old Testament, that which occurs most frequently is the Tetragrammaton, appearing 6,823 times according to the Jewishcyclopedia.com (http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=52&letter=N). According to Biblica Hebraica and Biblica Hebraica Stuttgartensia, the original texts of the Hebrew Scriptures, written in both Hebrew and Aramaic, contain the Tetragrammaton 6,828 times. It is evident that the Tetragrammaton was used very extensively in original language, ancient Hebrew and Aramaic texts. This indicates a much more personal reference to the special identity of the Almighty (as opposed to impersonal titles such as “God” or “Lord”), on the part of the Bible writers. Many Bible scholars view this as evidence that the Bible writers (and indeed, likely the ancient Hebrew and Israelite people) viewed the Name represented by the Tetragrammaton as very important, and commonly used it in their everyday speech and prayers. And, for those that believe the Bible was inspired by God, it shows how he felt about his own personal name.

In Judaism, the Tetragrammaton is the ineffable name of God, and is not pronounced. In reading aloud of the scripture or in prayer, it is replaced with “Adonai” (“my Lord”).

One theory regarding the Tetragammaton is that the Jewish taboo on its pronunciation was so strong that the original pronunciation may have been lost somewhere in the first millennium. Since then, many scholars (particularly Christians) have sought to reconstruct its original pronunciation.

By the time we arrive at the stories concerning Rabbi Loew and the golem of Prague, the method of creating the golem is greatly simplified, though perhaps for the sake of storytelling. In these accounts, the soil is prepared, and the Kabbalist(s) circle the golem-body, reciting “secret names”. As they do so the soil body gradually takes on human qualities. When the body is complete, it is activated by means of placing a word or a name on its forehead or forearm, occasionally in its mouth (in one account an amulet bearing a Name of God is hung around the creature’s neck).

Popular “activation” word choices were adam (the first man, created out of the earth) and emet (truth). When it came time to deactivate the golem, the first letter of these words would be erased: without aleph, Adam becomes dam (blood), and without ayin, emet becomes met (dead). When the “live” word became a “dead” word, the golem would shut down. If a Name of God had been written on a parchment placed in the mouth (or occasionally under the skin) to activate the golem, it was simply removed to deactivate it.

Rabbi Loew’s procedure went as follows: After asking a dream question as to how he might protect the Jews of Prague from persecution, Loew is answered in his dream with the alphabetical Hebrew phrase, “Ato Bra Golem Devuk Hachomer V’tigsar Khavel Torfe Yisroel”, which means, “Create a golem out of clay who will destroy all the enemies of Israel.” He told this to his son-in-law, Isaac Ha-Cohen, and his best pupil, Jecob Ha-Levi. He said he needed their help because they were born under the signs of fire and water, respectively, and Rabbi Loew himself under the sign of air; together with the soil, they would have representatives of all the elements needed to create a golem.

The three went out to the river at dawn, and “on a clay bank… measured out a man three cubits long, and…drew his face in the earth, and his arms and legs, the way a man lies on his back.” Loew then instructed his pupils to circle the golem seven times each, while reciting formulas (unspecified in the story) Loew revealed to them. First the figure glowed red hot, then cooled in the image of a formed man. Next, Loew himself circled the golem seven times with a Torah. Finally, the three of them recited the activation words, Genesis 2:7: “The Lord God formed a man from the dust of the earth, and He blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”

Begin Excerpt from Haaretz

Czech Post issues stamp honoring rabbi who made man out of clay

By Yehuda Lahav

August 11, 2009

The Czech post has issued a new stamp to mark 400 years since the death of Rabbi Yehuda Loew ben Bezalel, also known as the Maharal of Prague, who according to legend created a man out of clay.

The Maharal was an important rabbi in Prague in the 16th and early 17th centuries. He best known for the legend of the “Golem,” in which he is said to have created from clay a living being that had superhuman powers and that was used to defend the Jews of the Prague Ghetto.

Still today, many believe that the body of the Golem is trapped in the attic of Prague’s “Alt Noi Shul” synagogue.

It was a difficult time for Jews? shortly after Spanish Inquisition, the Protestant reformation movement and other major social changes.

He is buried in the Jewish cemetery in the Prague old city, and his grave serves as a place of pilgrimage to many Jews every year.

Neighboring Slovakia has also recently paid respect to its Jewish past, having issued a stamp to commemorate Chatam Sofer, a leading rabbi in the capital Bratislava in the first half of the century.

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A Jewish DRY TREE BEGAN IN 70 AD War!

Under the Romans the Jews had Prosperity,

It was the time of a flourishing Green Tree Life,

But it ended 40 years AFTER Messiah’s Crucifixion!

JEWS had no birth pains before Messiah’s 1st Advent,

But Israel will have her birth pains before a 2nd Advent,

Israel MUST TRAVAIL Before She Brings Forth Her Messiah,

And the time of her long awaited travail isn’t a distant Event!

Messiah’s OWN rejected Him when He came on His First Advent,

Israel will be made ready for His Second Advent in the vast Negev!

Israel has suffered by Gentile hands ever since its Temple Destruction,

Soon she will suffer her final travail in birth pangs before his 2nd Advent!

Then the Glory of Israel will be Greater than we can imagine as Jesus Rules!

August 18, 2009

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

The Excerpt from the Jerusalem Post, which follows our heading, reminded me of many of the writings of the great Old and New Testament writers.

ISRAEL DID NOT TRAVAIL IN BIRTH PANGS BEFORE HIS 1ST ADVENT

Luke 23:27-31 – And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him. [28] But Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children. [29] For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck. [30] Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us. [31] For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?

ISRAEL BEGAN TRAVAIL IN AGONY 40 YEARS AFTER HIS CRUCIFIXION AND JERUSALEM WAS TRODDEN DOWN OF THE GENTILES AD 70 TO 1967. SHE HAS BEEN PERSECUTED BY GENTILES THROUGHOUT A LONG PERIOD BEGINNING IN AD 70. HER FINAL BIRTH PANGS WILL BE FELT DURING THE LAST 1260 DAYS BEFORE HER MESSIAH JESUS ARRIVES AS HER FIRSTBORN FROM THE GRAVE TO BRING HER GREAT GLORY.

Luke 21:23,24 – But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in

the land, and wrath upon this people. [24] And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

JERUSALEM WILL AGAIN FALL AND BE TRODDEN DOWN 42 MONTHS

Revelation 11:2 – But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

AND ISRAEL WILL REPENT AND TURN TO HER MESSIAH IN THE NEGEV

Revelation 12:6,17 – And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God,

that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days. [17] And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Zech.ariah 13:9 – And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.

MESSIAH’S FIRST ADVENT

Matthew 23:37-39 – O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye

would not! [38] Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. [39] For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

MESSIAH’S SECOND ADVENT

I Thessalonioans 5:3,4 – For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. [4] But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

Luke 21:25-28 – And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; [26] Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. [27] And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. [28] And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.

ISRAEL WILL BE RESTORED UNDER HER MESSIAH

Isaiah 54:1-17 – Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord. [2] Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; [3] For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited. [4] Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. [5] For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called. [6] For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God. [7] For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. [8] In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer. [9] For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. [10] For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee. [11] O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colors, and lay thy foundations with sapphires. [12] And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones. [13] And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children. [14] In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee. [15] Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake. [16] Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.

[17] No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn.

This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.

ISRAEL WILL FINALLY HAVE HER BIRTH PAINS BEFORE HE COMES

Isaiah 66:5-16 – Hear the word of the Lord, ye that tremble at his word; your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the Lord be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.

[6] A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the Lord that rendereth recompence to his enemies. [7] Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child. [8] Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children. [9] Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the Lord: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God. [10] Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her: [11] That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory. [12] For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees. [13] As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. [14] And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the Lord shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies. [15] For, behold, the Lord will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.

[16] For by fire and by his sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the slain of the Lord shall be many.

Malachi 4:1-3 – For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it

shall leave them neither root nor branch. [2] But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. [3] And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts.

Ezekiel 37:24-28 – And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. [25] And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. [26] Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. [27] My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. [28] And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

SOON ISRAEL, THE BARREN ONE, WILL SING WITH GREAT JOY AFTER A TIME OF GREAT TRAVAIL IN PAINS OF CHILDBIRTH.

Begin Excerpt from Jerusalem Post

Lol Isha: Sing, O barren one

August 13, 2009

RACHEL ADELMAN , THE JERUSALEM POST

The lyrical words: “Sing, O barren one, you who bore no child!” open Isaiah’s prophecy to Zion.

This passage constitutes the fifth of the seven haftarot of consolation following Tisha Be’av (Isa. 54:1-10). Why is Zion (Jerusalem) personified as a barren woman? The midrash Pesikta de-Rav Kahana suggests that there were seven barren ones (akarot) in ancient Jewish history: Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah, Manoah’s wife, Hannah and Zion. That is, the matriarchs of Genesis, Samson’s mother and Samuel’s mother were all initially infertile.

It is surprising that even Leah is counted among the barren matriarchs, when she was the mother to seven of Jacob’s children. Yet the same verse identifying Rachel as barren, suggests that God had a hand in her sister’s fertility as well: “When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened up her womb” – if she had not been barren, there would have been no need for divine intervention – “And Rachel was barren (akara)” (Genesis 29:31).

Why would conception, pregnancy, labor and birth be fraught with travail for so many prominent women in the Bible? Perhaps to emphasize that “God holds the keys to birth” (B. Nidda 2a). How, then, does this divine “locking” and “opening” of the doors carry over into the promises to Zion?

With regard to Jerusalem, the midrash continues: “The words, ‘He gives the barren woman a home,’ (Psalms 113:9) apply to Zion, as it says: ‘Sing, O barren one, you who bore no child!’ (Isa. 54:1); so do the words, ‘making her a joyous mother of children’ (Psalms loc. cit.), You [Zion], will say in your heart: ‘Who has borne me these? I was bereaved and barren, exiled and put away – so who has reared these? I was left all alone – where then have these come from?'” (Pesikta de-Rav Kahana 20:1).

Jerusalem, stirred from her years of weeping alone, lifts her head, and is astounded to see the hordes of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren returning from exile. Just this week the halls of the Hebrew University were thronged with participants in the World Congress of Jewish Studies. The roads were clogged as I drove past the Old City. The Sultan’s Pool was packed every night for the concerts at the Arts Fair. And the bereaved mother shakes her head, “Where have all these people come from?” It is the ingathering of the exiles.

Of all the six barren women in the Bible, Rachel’s life most poignantly mirrors the fate of Zion. Playing on the Hebrew word for barren, akara, the same midrash continues: “R. Abba bar Kahana said: Most of the guests assembled at Boaz’s wedding were descendants of Leah, yet they blessed Ruth by saying, ‘May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your house like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel…’ (Ruth 4:11) [that is they mentioned Rachel before Leah, though she was the younger sister and second wife]. Rachel was held to be first [ikar] among the wives, as is implied by the verse, ‘And Rachel was barren [akara]’ (Gen. 29:31). R. Isaac said that Rachel was first among the wives [reading akara not as ‘barren,’ but as akar, meaning root]. And R. Shimon ben Yohai said: Many important events depended on Rachel, and so the Jewish people are named after her, (A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are gone)” (Jeremiah 31:15). That is all the Israelites who went into exile are called Rachel’s children by the prophet Jeremiah, though the majority are descended from Leah.

The beautiful, beloved wife of Jacob, first of his longing, was not only barren (akara) and favored (akeret habayit), but also uprooted (akura). Her children would become the children of exile – Joseph in Egypt and the descendants of Benjamin, Mordechai

and Esther, in Babylon. Her burial in the hinterland, on the border between exile and the Land of Israel, forms a signpost pointing towards their fate.

Jacob recalled her burial with deep pangs of conscience to his son Joseph (Gen. 48:7). After her tragic death in childbirth, upon their return to Canaan, he hastily buried her “on the way,” not in the Cave of the Patriarchs where Leah would be buried.

He did not even take her to Bethlehem to bring her into the Land (Rashi, loc. cit.). Her burial on the border foreshadows not only the exile, but also intimates the possibility of return.

According to the midrash, as the Babylonian general Nebuzaradan marched the Israelites into exile, they passed by Rachel’s burial site, and she emerged from her tomb, weeping and begging for mercy. And God assured her: “Restrain your voice from weeping, your eyes from shedding tears; for there is a reward for your labor – declares the Lord: They shall return from the enemy’s land” (Jer. 31:16, Lamentations Rabba 24).

Zion, the city once great with people, in Lamentations is described as a widow, desolate, bereft of her children (1:1, 4). But in the prophecy of consolation, she is the barren one, become mother of many, adjured by the prophet to shout with joy and break into song.

“For the children of the desolate woman will be more than the children of her that is married, says the Lord” (Isa. 54:1). She has become the matriarch Rachel, standing over her tomb, watching in amazement the ingathering of exiles.

The writer lectures in Bible and midrash at Matan, the Sadie Rennert Institute for Women’ s Torah Studie

s in Jerusalem, as well as internationally.

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New Iranian Green Path of Hope Movement

Following a path to regain their Islamic Rights

Along the horizontal green path on Iranian Flag!

THE GREEN STRIP IS A MUSLIM SYMBOL OF ISLAM!

August 18, 2009

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

The flag of Iran consists of three equal sized horizontal stripes – the top stripe is green; the middle one is white; and the bottom stripe is red.

On the edges of the white stripe there are stylized writings.

In the middle of the white stripe and at the flag’s center is the country’s coat of arms consisting of four crescents and a sword.

Iranian Flag Meaning

The green stripe symbolizes Islam and the white represents purity and peace. The red stripe symbolizes blood and valor. The writing is Allah-o Akbar (God is Great) which is written 22 times in stylized Kufi script – this represents February 11, 1979, which was the day of the Iranian Revolution. The coat of arms symbolizes strength and fortitude and the growth of the Muslim faith. The stylized emblem as a whole reads Allah or God.

Iranian Flag History

The Iranian flag was adopted on July 29, 1980. The colors of the Iranian flag are traditional and probably date from at least the 18th century.

A plain horizontal striped tricolor flag of green, white and pink had been in use in Iran since 1905. The pink stripe was officially changed to red in 1933. Iran was a monarchy for nearly 400 years until a republic was declared in 1979, after Muslim clerics and students overthrew the last Shah.

Interesting Iranian Flag Facts:

The Iranian flag’s centerpiece formerly consisted of a lion with a sword standing before a rising sun, with a crown above. But all traditional flags and banners were abolished after the abdication of the shah in 1979.

The new emblem was designed by Hamid Nadimi, and was officially approved by Ayatollah Khomeini on May 9, 1980.

Begin Excerpt from The TimesO

nLine (UK)

TIMESONLINE

August 17, 2009

Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi forms resistance party

Martin Fletcher

Iran’s opposition leader has launched a new grassroots political movement

in an apparent attempt to rally resistance to the regime and fend off pressure for his own arrest.

Mir Hossein Mousavi, the former Prime Minister defeated by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the June presidential election, said that the movement would be called the Green Path of Hope and unite the many disparate groups fighting for democracy and restoration of the rule of law.

He gave few details but said: “The colour green is the symbol of this movement.

Its slogan demands the impeccable implementation of the Constitution, and numerous self-motivated independent societies form the body of this movement . . . The Green Path of Hope is aimed at regaining the rights people have been denied.”

By calling it a movement, not a political party, he sidestepped the need for government permission. His defiant announcement came amid increasing calls for his arrest from the regime’s hardline supporters, and as Mr Ahmadinejad announced that his new Cabinet would include at le

ast three women.

“Mousavi had to do something to show he’s still alive and kicking, with many people still behind him,” an analyst in Tehran told The Times.

The regime put 28 more opposition activists on trial yesterday, bringing the total over the past three weeks to around 140. Two of the defendants, probably speaking under duress, told the Revolutionary Court that they were encouraged to protest by opposition leaders and that those leaders should be the ones on trial. “Mr Mousavi, do you know there are seats here for you and your friends who were the cause of this plot?” said one.
Mr Ahmadinejad must nominate all his new Cabinet ministers this week, and yesterday’s announcements suggest that he plans to fill it with arch loyalists. He named two women — Fatemeh Ajorlou and Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi — as his Social Welfare and Health ministers, replacing two men who opposed his nomination of his son’s father-in-law as his deputy.

Ms Ajorlou, 43, and Ms Dastjerdi, 50, will be the first female ministers in the 30-year history of the Islamic Republic, but both are staunch conservatives who have opposed greater social freedoms for women. He also named Heydar Moslehi, a hardline cleric with links to the Basiji volunteer militia, as his Intelligence Minister.

Begin Excerpt from Las Angeles Times

Course of Mousavi’s Green Path of Hope is unclear

Iran’s opposition leader says he wants the new political movement to be a rallying point but doesn’t spell out a strategy.

By Borzou Daragahi and Ramin Mostaghim

August 16, 2009

Reporting from Tehran and Beirut

A defiant Mir-Hossein Mousavi declared the creation of a grass-roots political movement Saturday, but the Iranian opposition leader failed to spell out a strategy that could invigorate a protest movement that has stalled.

Mousavi, whose loss in the disputed June election to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad set off the largest challenge to the country’s rulers since the Islamic Revolution 30 years ago, said he wanted

the Green Path of Hope to be a rallying point for the opposition.

“Numerous volunteer and independent social networks throughout the society form the body of this movement,” Mousavi told a group of doctors, according to the semiofficial Iranian Labor News Agency.

“The Green Path of Hope is in fact aimed at regaining people’s denied rights.”

Although the move was an attempt to cement the political movement built on his presidential campaign and the outrage that followed the election, Mousavi’s announcement lacked a political agenda.

One analyst said the Green Path could help Mousavi fend off calls for his arrest by hard-liners close to Ahmadinejad and continue his political activities without getting the ministry approval necessary to create a party.

“Forming a political front gives him a shield to survive and defy the arrest,” said Ahmad Bakhshayesh, a political analyst in Tehran. “If he manages to form a loosely organized front, he can defy the government and recruit like-minded people and . . . put pressure on the government.”

But Mohammad Marandi, a political scientist in Tehran, predicted that the front was doomed to fail because the opposition camp isn’t unified. “Their common enemy is Ahmadinejad, and now they sound united because of their common enemy,” he said. “But culturally, economically and politically, the reformists have clashing opinions.”

The absence of major street protests since Ahmadinejad’s inauguration has dispirited some of the movement’s adherents. Calls by some activists to conduct protests at bazaars and Friday prayers last week went unheeded.

But some close to the opposition say the movement is simply settling into a second stage that could last much longer than the initial zeal whipped up on the streets.

Iran’s “green movement” is expanding from the big cities to the smaller towns and making connections abroad while sharpening goals and ideas, said Mohsen Makhmalbaf, an Iranian filmmaker who serves as a spokesman for the Mousavi camp. “It’s not that people pour into the street and the system changes,” he said in an interview from Paris, where he is based. “People pour into the streets, then they create a crisis, and then the system changes.”

Hours after Mousavi’s announcement, the Revolutionary Court, controlled by hard-liners close to Ahmadinejad, announced a third session today of a mass trial against defendants accused of fomenting the unrest that followed the election, state news reports said.

International human rights monitors, foreign leaders and domestic critics have derided the televised proceedings as little more than Stalinist “show trials” that fail to measure up to Iranian legal standards and damage the reputation of Iran’s political and legal system.

The court also announced that seven alleged leaders of the country’s Bahai community will stand trial on charges of spying for Israel, desecrating Islam and spreading propaganda against the system, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency.

Shiite Muslim clerics consider the Bahai religion, born in 19th century Persia, heretical.

Despite concerns about Iran’s justice system, there are few signs that the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has any plans to adjust the country’s course.

He officially named hard-liner Sadegh Larijani, a member of the powerful and conservative Guardian Council and the brother of the speaker of parliament, to a five-year term as head of the judiciary. Last week, the council elected hard-liner Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, a staunch supporter of Ahmadinejad, as its chairman for the next year.

Most aghim is

a special correspondent. FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted m ateri

al the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law.

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A Sudden Destruction will come after Hudna!

Why I Thessalonians 5:3,4 shall be a Hudna Deal,

Not a negotiated Peace Treaty between Israel & Foes!

The Following Fatah Sixth General Conference Resolutions,

Set Pre-Negotiations which will never be met for a Peace Treaty,

But do leave ample room for a lull in the fighting referred to as Hudna!

A final war of the Age of the Gentiles will begin when Islam breaks a Hudna!

August 17, 2009

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

I Thessalonians 5:3,4 – For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. [4] But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hudna is an Arabic term meaning a temporary “truce” or “armistice” as well as “calm” or “quiet”, coming from a verbal root meaning “calm”. It is sometimes translated as “cease-fire”. In the Lisan al-Arab (Ibn al-Manzur’s definitive dictionary of classical Arabic, dating to the 14th century) it is defined as follows:.”

A particularly famous early hudna was the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah between Muhammad and the Quraysh tribe.

According to Umdat as-Salik, a medieval summary of Shafi’i jurisprudence, hudnas with a non-Muslim enemy should be limited to 10 years: “if Muslims are weak, a truce may be made for ten years if necessary, for the Prophet made a truce with the Quraysh for that long, as is related by Abu Dawud” (‘Umdat as-Salik, o9.16:

The two excerpts which follow, the first from the Jerusalem Post, and the second from MEMRI, make it clear that the Palestinians and the Arab nations have created terms that Israel will never meet to obtain a “comprehensive” peace agreement with Arabs in the Middle East. This leaves another option Israel can choose, a long term hudna. A hudna would at least give the Israeli civilians a period of relative “Peace and safety” to meet the prophetic requirement for fulfillment of the mindset in I Thessalonians 5:3.

If the internal terrorist groups

in southern Lebanon, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip would actually stop all terrorist activities, including rocket launches, for just a few months, it would give Israelis a false sense of “Peace and safety.” This scenario has not occurred since Israel became a nation, such that it would give Israelis the sense of hope it might lead to a lasting peace.

I have never been certain as to precisely HOW this mindset of “Peace and safety” would come to exist in the Jewish population, only that it MUST to fulfill Paul’s prophecy in I Thessalonians 5:3. However, I am still convinced of one aspect as to WHEN the “Peace and safety” attitude will be in place among the “they” found in the Scripture – I believe it will occur as I stated in Archive Prophecy Update 3.

PROPHECY UPDATE NUMBER 3

January, 2001

But there is something far more important in the peace process than who is the leader of Israel, and who is the leader of the Palestinians. I retired from the USAF/National Security Agency as a synoptic analyst. When one analyzes anything, it is imperative to advance from what controls the conclusion of the problem being examined. Some problems do not have a definite controlling factor, and all the factors, both incidental and insignificant, must be given the appropriate weight in making a forecast of the outcome. However, this is not the case in making a determination of when peace will come between Israel and the Palestinians. The controlling factor which determines when a false peace will come to Israel, rests solely with the terrorist groups that plague her. There can never be a period of peace, even false peace, without the approval of all the terrorist groups. Yassar Arafat cannot control the terrorist groups, nor can any other single Arab leader. The terrorist complex of Osama Bin Laden, the Islamic Jihad, Hamas, Hisbullah, and the Fatah are really controlled by leaders in Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Until these leaders finally come to the conclusion that the only way Israel can be driven into the Negev is by being lulled into a false sense of security, the terrorist groups will continue to operate, and the killing will continue. I believe these terrorist groups will soon realize that if they really want to slaughter Jews by the hundreds of thousands, and drive the rest into the Negev, they will have to lull Israel into a brief period of false peace. When this happens, an agreement will be reached between Israel and the Palestinians. So my advice to those who want to get a feel of when the false peace will come is this: WATCH the terrorist groups. When their actions drop to zero, and stay there for a while, you may rest assured it has been as a result of meetings behind closed doors between the leaders of the aforementioned nations, and the leaders of the terrorist groups they sponsor. I don’t pay much attention to any leader of Israel or the Palestinians. The terrorist groups are the key to a false peace in the Mid-East. When they grasp that by appearing to cease their activities they will be able, at a later time, to kill many Jews, and drive the rest into the Negev, they will settle down and wait for the surprise attack against Israel from the north. Ariel Sharon may try to put a “forced peace” on the Palestinians before the terrorist groups shut down. This was one of the options considered by his party in the past. But it will not work. Watch for a cessation of terrorism.

Then, after a brief period of false peace look for a vicious surprise attack from the north out of Syria.

End Archive Prophecy Update Number 3, January 2001

Begin Excerpt from Jerusalem Post

Mubarak: Arabs will normalize ties with Israel only after peace

August 17, 2009

JPost.com Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST

Arab states will recognize Israel and normalize ties with the Jewish state after a just and comprehensive Middle East peace is achieved, but not before, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said Monday.

In an interview with the state-controlled daily Al-Ahram and cited by Reuters, Mubarak, in Washington for talks with top US officials, said the Arab experience with stalled peace talks in the wake of the 1991 Madrid peace conference “did not encourage” taking steps toward normalization with Israel.

Last month, US Middle East envoy George Mitchell called on Arab states to take “meaningful steps towards normalization of relations with Israel.”

“I affirmed to [US] President [Barack] Obama in Cairo that the Arab initiative offers recognition of Israel and normalization with it after, and not before, achieving a just and comprehensive peace,” Mubarak told the paper.

“I told him that some Arab states which had mutual trade representation offices with Israel could consider reopening those offices if Israel commits to stopping settlement [expansion] and resumes final status negotiations with the Palestinian Authority where they left off with Olmert’s government,” Mubarak added.

Asked about possible Egyptian participation in an extended US “defense umbrella” referred to in July by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as a response to a nuclear Iran, Mubarak said Egypt would not be part of it as it would not allow foreign troops or experts on its land.

Earlier, The New York Times reported that Mubarak was expected to tell Obama and other US officials that Arab countries would not make confidence-building gestures towards Israel before the latter takes certain steps, such as a freeze in settlement construction.

Mubarak’s visit to Washington this week is his first in half a decade. He is scheduled to meet with Vice President Joe Biden on Monday, and will meet Obama on Tuesday.

Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki said that Egypt believes the best way to build confidence is to halt building in settlements, take steps to improve the West Bank economy, ease the blockade on the Gaza Strip and agree to negotiate on all issues – including Palestinian refugees and east Jerusalem.

“If they do this and engage immediately in negotiations with [Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud] Abbas, this is a recipe for openness and the Arabs will make the gestures needed,” Zaki said. “But they don’t want to make this first step. They are demanding the Arabs make the first step. The Arabs should not make the first step. They (Israel) are the occupying power. The occupation

must end.”

Zaki said the Egyptian position was unshakable. “We think this huge gap of confidence requires movement from the Israelis first.

Then the Arabs are willing to make gestures.

This is the way Arabs see it,” he said.

The spokesman said that Mubarak would also discuss with Obama such issues as the Iranian nuclear program, Muslim extremism and developments in Sudan.

Mubarak has a meeting scheduled with Jewish leaders Monday, where he is slated to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and the Iranian threat.

The Obama administration has already indicated it is seeking to reinvigorate the relationship with Egypt, as Obama chose Cairo as the destination for his long-anticipated address to the Arab world in June and met with Mubarak there.

Moreover the Egyptians have been eager to take advantage of a new face in the White House to reengage with Washington, indicating that they have turned over a new page.

Al-Ahram reported this week that “a press statement issued this week by the Foreign Ministry squarely blamed the tensions that have marred recent relations between Cairo and Washington on the policies of the Bush administration. Egyptian officials now hope that the worst is over, and bilateral ties can be placed on a new footing.”

The US is also eager to count Egypt as an ally in shaping its Middle East agenda, as it has a peace treaty with Israel and shares strategic concerns about the role of Iran and its proxies.

Hilary Leila Krieger contributed to this report.

Begin Excerpt from Middle East Media Review Institute (MEMRI)

Inquiry and Analysis – No. 541

August 16, 2009

Fatah Sixth General Conference Resolutions: Pursuing Peace Option Without Relinquishing Resistance or Right to Armed Struggle

By: C. Jacob *

On August 13, 2009, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud ‘Abbas declared the end of the Fatah Sixth General Conference, during which the movement’

s amended political plan was ratified.(1)

This report will examine three aspects of the results of the conference: what, if any, changes were made in Fatah’s charter; the stance taken by ‘Abbas in his opening speech, which he stated should be viewed as expressing Fatah’s political plan; and Fatah’s updated official political plan.

No Change to Fatah Charter Calling for Elimination of Israel

Fatah’s internal charter, which was posted on the website of the Sixth Fatah General Conference, was not discussed at the conference; in any event, no changes were made to it, and it still includes the following:

* Section 17: “Popular armed revolution is the imperative and only way to liberate Palestine.”

* Section 19: “Armed struggle is a strategy, not a tactic. The armed revolution of the Arab Palestinian people is a crucial element in the battle for liberation and for the elimination of the Zionist presence. This struggle will not stop until the Zionist entity is eliminated and Palestine is liberated.”(2)

The political plan that was ratified at the conference refers to the charter as follows: “The goals,

principles, and methods, as they are written in Chapter One of the charter, are the basic point of departure for our movement, and are part of the ideological and political identity of our people. They are also the identity of the movement and its fundamental charter, since they were the basis for the beginning of the Palestinian revolution of our time and for liberation from the imperialist and racist yoke…”(3)

Fatah’s Political Plan

The plan ratified by the Fatah conference adopts peace as a strategic option, but states that pursuing the armed struggle against the occupation is a legitimate right.(4) Among the other types of resistance, the movement calls for adopting the model of resistance to the separation fence as conducted in the West Bank villages of Bil’in and Nil’in. The plan also calls to bequeath the legacy of the armed struggle to the Palestinian people.

The plan sets terms for renewing negotiations, first among them a halt to the settlements and also to any changes that Israel is making in Jerusalem. It opposes the idea of recognizing Israel as a Jewish state, and includes a demand for the right of return, and restitution, for Palestinian refugees.

Following are the main points of the plan:

The Peace Option Must Be Adhered to – But Armed Struggle Is a Legitimate Right.
“Fatah launched the armed struggle for liberating the homeland. This method, and other methods of legitimate resistance [< ,i>muqawama], are the right of the Palestinian people, recognized by international law, as long as our land is under occupation.

The movement adopts a just and comprehensive peace as a strategic option, with various means of obtaining it; however, it will not accept stasis. It espouses various means of armed struggle in order to restore our inalienable rights…

“The struggle emanates from the right of the Palestinian people to resist the occupation and the settlements, expulsion and racist discrimination; and this right is guaranteed by international law. Our revolutionary struggle began with the armed struggle against the armed robbery of our lands, but it has never been limited to armed struggle alone. Rather, it [has included] diverse means and methods – among these [also] peaceful means of struggle such as intifada, demonstrations, strikes, civil uprising, clashes with settler gangs, political, media, judicial, and diplomatic struggle, and negotiating with the occupation authorities.

“Thus, the Palestinian people’s right to carry out armed struggle against the armed occupation will remain an inalienable right confirmed by international law. The method, timing, and place of struggle are determined based on the capability of the individual and of the public, on external and internal circumstances, on balance of power, on the need to defend the movement, and on the people’s ability to carry out revolution, to stand fast, and to continue the struggle.

“In Fatah’s judgment, the end does not justify the means. Some means contradict the movement’s overall long-term goals – particularly when the movement has from the outset proposed humane solutions ensuring future coexistence among Muslims, Christians and Jews in a single democratic state.

Since its founding, the Fatah movement has opposed harming civilians, whoever they are, just as it opposed transferring the battle arena abroad. Likewise, it has opposed the weapons anarchy, the chaos, and the use of weapons for negative [purposes]…”

Types of Resistance

“The Fatah movement clings to the Palestinian people’s right to resist the occupation by all legitimate means, including the right to implement the armed struggle, as guaranteed by international law as long as the occupation and the settlements continue and as long as the Palestinian people is stripped of its inalienable rights. [Following] are the types of struggle in the current phase:

“Fatah espouses all types of legitimate struggle, and clings to the peace option without limiting [the means for attaining it] to negotiations [only]. Among the types of struggle that can be successfully carried out in the current situation [in order to] support and activate negotiations, or as an alternative to negotiations if its aims are not accomplished, are the following:

* “Stimulating the popular struggle against the settlements, following the current successful paradigm – the ongoing confrontation in Bil’in and Nil’ in aga

inst the settlements and the fence,

and for the rescue of Jerusalem and against its Judaization. Our mission is to recruit all residents to join [this confrontation] activity and to gain popular participation of Arabs and foreigners, and to offer all help from the Palestinian Authority apparatuses in order to bring about its success. The most important activities must be headed by the movement’s leaders from the Palestinian Authority and from the public [institutions].

* “Devising new forms of struggle and resistance by means of popular initiative and initiatives

by leaders on the ground, and by means of the determination of our people to stand fast and to resist, as guaranteed by international law.

* “Boycotting Israeli products here and abroad, by means of popular activity, particularly consumables for which there are local alternatives, and implementing new forms of civil uprising against the occupation. [Also, implementing] activities for escalating the international campaign for boycotting Israel, its products, and its institutions, utilizing the experience of South Africa.

* “Raising proposals and discussing strategic Palestinian alternatives in the event that the current negotiations fail to make progress – among them raising the idea of a united democratic state opposed to racism and to the hegemony of the occupation, and the development of the struggle against apartheid and Israeli racism, or a return to the idea of establishing a state within the 1967 borders and other strategic alternatives.

* “Pursuing continuous activity to free the prisoners and detainees, to end the external siege, and [to remove] the internal roadblocks.

* “Appealing to the U.N. and the Security Council to [discharge their] responsibility of ending the conflict and the occupation, and causing the Security Council to pass binding resolutions based on Chapter Seven of [the U.N.] charter.

* “Renewing direct and close contacts with the Israeli peace camp and renewing its activity for a just peace without linking this with normalization – which is a policy that must be resisted as long as the occupation continues…”

Educating for the Armed Struggle and Sacrifice

“There must be continued commitment to educating [the people] for the struggle, for constant readiness to join the resistance against the occupation, and for sacrifice for the sake of the homeland. Field leaders must be trained by means of regular movement meetings, courses, and distribution of flyers by the movement. Field leaders and movement activists must be continuously taught about the heritage of the armed Palestinian struggle; and ceremonies must be held to celebrate battles and commemorate the history of the struggle, with constant readiness for sacrifice…”

Terms for Negotiation

“Continuing negotiations without achieving real progress within a specific time [frame] constitutes a threat to our rights, and will become a futile [activity] that Israel can exploit as a cover for continuing [the building of] settlements and deepening the occupation. In order for the negotiations not to become pointless, we must verify that the PLO will be committed to the following rules when the time comes for negotiating:

* “A link must be created between the negotiations and actual progress on the ground, [to be measured by] clear signs, the most important of which is insistence on a complete halt to the settlements, particularly in Jerusalem, and also a complete halt to changes in the characteristics of Jerusalem, and to its Judaization. These are two conditions that must be met, and if they are not, negotiations must not be renewed. Likewise, it must be verified that (Israel) stops the incursions [into PA territory], the arrests, and the assassinations; that it lifts the siege from our people in Gaza and the roadblocks in the West Bank; that it withdraws to the lines of September 28, 2000 as a first step towards [withdrawal to] the June 4, 1967 lines – [all this] as clear signs of progress on the ground and of creating a link between [this progress] and progress in the negotiations.

* “Negotiations must be based on the main U.N. resolutions (181, 194, 242, and 338), and will be in the framework of the Arab peace initiative, as long as this leads to attainment of our strategic and interim goals.

* “There must be a continuation of activity to convene a new international peace conference that will confirm our rights, and that will move in the direction of rapid negotiations leading to a peace agreement that actualizes our goals.

* “There must be insistence on the setting of a clear and binding timetable and a deadline for [concluding] the negotiations.

* “There must be opposition to postponing negotiations on Jerusalem and the refugee problem, or any other issue of the final settlement.

* “There must be opposition to the idea of a state with temporary borders.

* “There must be absolute opposition, from which there will be no withdrawal, to recognizing Israel as a ‘Jewish state,’ in order to protect the refugees’ rights and the rights of our people on the other side of the Green Line [i.e. Israeli Arabs].

* “There must be insistence on involving international elements in the negotiations, and on an arbitration mechanism for [resolving] disputes that may arise over the implementation of the agreements in a way that will be binding for both sides.

* “There must be insistence on international oversight and on a mechanism for international peacekeeping in order to ensure implementation of the agreements.

* “Success in obtaining our goals by means of negotiations requires the establishment of a professional national committee that is capable of conducting negotiations. Such a committee will continue to be subordinate to the PLO, and will be overseen by a supreme committee, which will include Palestinian factions and individuals. [There will also be] an additional [Fatah] movement committee, to monitor the negotiations and to submit a report to [Fatah’s] central committee and revolutionary council.

* “A referendum must be held to approve the peace agreement that will be obtained via the negotiations over the final settlement…

* “There must be intensive activity to free the prisoners. We will not sign a final agreement unless this is done…

* “Efforts must be made to implement the right of return and restitution for refugees, and they are entitled to have their property restored. Likewise, the refugee problem should [be handled] uniformly, with no differentiation based on the refugees’ location – including the refugees in the 1948 territories. Likewise, Fatah considers it essential to preserve the refugee camps until the [refugee] problem is resolved, so that they will serve as fundamental political evidence for the refugees who have been deprived of the right to return to their homes. It is essential that UNRWA be retained as the international address and that [the existence of] the refugee problem be recognized until they return to their homes and their cities. At the same time, it is necessary to act to improve the situation of the refugees and of the refugee camps, and to stress that the PLO is the source of political authority of the Palestinian refugees…

* “There must be an emphasis on opposition to the idea of forced resettlement of the Palestinian refugees or to a call for an alternative homeland. There will be no resettlement in Lebanon nor an alternative homeland in Jordan…”

* “Fatah opposes the call to declare Israel a Jewish state, and it adopts the demand of our people in the 1948 territories [i.e. the Israeli Arabs] that Israel recognize them as citizens with full rights.”

No Peace Without Jerusalem as the Capital of the Palestinian State

“There will be no peace if Jerusalem is not restored as the eternal capital of the Palestinian state. Fatah considers all Israeli decisions to annex Jerusalem, to build settlements in it, to expel its residents, and to change its characteristics to be null and void, and the results [of such decisions] must be removed. There must be action to implement U.N. resolutions condemning all attempts to Judaize Jerusalem, which

“The realization of [the vision of] holy Jerusalem as the eternal spiritual capital of Palestine, of the Arab homeland, and of the Muslim and Christian world… Jerusalem must be provided with all types of support in order to defend it and resist its Judaization, the construction of settlements in it, and its isolation from the rest of the Palestinian territories…”(5)

Fatah Sets Five Contingency Options in Case Dialogue with Hamas Fails

“The continuation of the state of schism between the two parts of the homeland threatens the future of the national cause of the Palestinian people, and Hamas will bear the responsibility for the continuation of this schism. We must move ahead in order to succeed in the general national dialogue, headed by the dialogue with Hamas [aimed at] ending the schism in Gaza and establishing a national unity government that will hold simultaneous elections for the presidency and for the Legislative Council. [The dialogue is also aimed at] unifying the security apparatuses so that they will protect the security of the homeland and the people, dealing with the results of the coup and the schism, achieving national reconciliation, and freeing all the prisoners. Failure of the dialogue due to Hamas obstinacy will not change its [top]-priority [status], and will not detract from our determination to continue the dialogue. However, it will oblige Fatah to adopt alternatives:

* “Rebuilding the Fatah movement in Gaza in accordance with the requirements of the existing situation, and giving full help to our organization [the Tanzim] so that they will be able to deal with the [current] schism.

* “Directing the movement’s energy to reinforcing the popular activity and motivating the Palestinian people to deal with the schism and the dictatorship.

* “Denouncing acts by Hamas that deviate from [our] norms and from the Palestinian leaders’ traditional [ways], and [denouncing] the crimes that it is carrying out towards the Palestinian people.

* “Demanding Arab security assistance for the interim.

* “Reinforcing media activity in the Arab and Islamic street, to expose the truth about Hamas’s policy and deeds.”

‘Abbas’ Speech

In his speech opening the Fatah conference, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud ‘Abbas said: “The popular resistance being carried out by our people against the settlements, the separation fence, and the destruction and expropriation of homes is an example of our people’s ability to devise various forms of struggle that can penetrate the conscience of the world and mobilize the support of the peoples.

“I salute and express my esteem for our people in Jerusalem, in Bil’in, in Ni’lin, in Ma’sra, and in all the places where defenseless demonstrators armed only with hope, determination, and belief in victory [hold] demonstrations that express their opposition to the deeds of the occupation…

“While we stress that we espouse the option of peace and negotiations based on the U.N. resolutions, we retain our fundamental right to legitimate resistance guaranteed by international law. This right is also linked to our perception and to the national consensus, which is what must determine the appropriate forms of the struggle and the proper timing for [each] – while learning lessons from the past and making sure that we are not dragged into places where the steadfastness of our people and our adherence to our moral superiority and to the principles of our struggle might be harmed.”(6)

* C. Jacob is a Research Fellow at MEMRI

Endnotes:

(1) www.fatehconf.ps, August 13, 2009.

(2) www.e-fateh.org.

(3) www.fatehconf.ps, August 13, 2009.

(4) Fatah political bureau chairman Nabil Sha’th declared at the conference that the plan sets out the forms and methods of the struggle, and that it stresses the Palestinian people’s right to armed struggle as guaranteed by international law, and also that diverse types of struggle devised during the Intifada of the Stones (1987-1991), including methods of struggle such as those used in Bil’in and Nil’in, and various types of political and diplomatic struggle and negotiations. Al-Ayyam (Palestinian Authority), August 10, 2009.

(5) Al-Ayyam (Palestinian Authority), August 10, 2009.

(6) Al-Ayyam (Palestinian Authority), August 5, 2009.

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OPPS! There Goes Another U.S. Rubber TREE Plant!

The JIHAD JINNI is turning Iraq into an ugly l itt

le Toe,

Which will be ONE of TEN that Gives Israel Great Woe!

Iranian Troops will flow via Iraq to Syria to Attack Israel,

Probably occurring at a point in time twixt 2010 and 2015.

An Attack is Unlikely until All the U.S. Forces Pull Out of Iraq!

Making the most likely time for Middle East War 2012 to 2015!

August 17, 2009

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

The Jinn, Jinni, or Genie is believed to be real in Islamic mythology, having less magical power than angels and demons

Begin Excerpt from Khaleej Times via World News

Iraqi PM to visit Syria for security talks

(AP)

13 August 2009

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi government insisted that it’s not up to the United States to negotiate over Iraq’s security with Syria as a delegation from the Obama administration arrived Wednesday in Damascus.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki will make his own trip to Syria next week

to discuss security, the government said, calling the issue an internal Iraqi affair.

U.S. and Iraqi officials have long been concerned about the infiltration of foreign fighters across the Syrian border.

“It is not the duty of the American delegation to negotiate on behalf of Iraq,” spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh told The Associated Press.

“It is the Iraqi government that will directly negotiate on security with Syria.”

The remarks underscored emerging strains in the relationship between the Iraqis and the Americans as the balance of power shifts with the impending withdrawal of U.S. forces by the end of 2011. U.S. combat forces already turned over urban security to Iraqi forces on June 30, focusing their efforts on the borders and rural areas.

U.S. officials dismissed concerns about a rift over this week’s talks in Damascus, which also were expected to deal with prospects for Mideast peacemaking.

“One of the issues that we continue to discuss with Syria is its efforts in terms of taking care of border issues on the Syrian side of the border,” State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said. “We have had concerns, going back a number of years, regarding the infiltration of foreign influences from the region through Syria into Iraq.”

And, Crowley said, Iraq benefits from the effort to deal with the problem.

The mostly military delegation includes Frederic Hof, an assistant to George Mitchell, a former Senate Democratic leader who oversees U.S. Mideast peacemaking efforts.

An earlier round of talks was held in June. Hof has been rumored to be in line for nomination as U.S. ambassador to Damascus. The post has been vacant for four years.

The talks are part of an acceleration of U.S. engagement with the Arab world and U.S. hopes that Syria can play a constructive role.

But Crowley said Tuesday that the infiltration of foreign fighters from Syria into Iraq would be “a significant topic of discussion.”

U.S. and Iraqi officials have sought to shut down Sunni extremist networks that smuggle weapons and fighters through Iraq’s northern desert to Mosul, where al-Qaida and other Sunni insurgents remain active.

American special forces staged a cross-border raid in October that Washington said killed the al-Qaida-linked head of a Syrian network that smuggled fighters, weapons and cash into Iraq.

The operation outraged Syria, which claimed only civilians were killed.

The some 130,000 remaining U.S. troops face new limits on their actions in Iraq under a security pact that took effect on Jan. 1, and the Iraqi government has increasingly been asserting its sovereignty and reaching out to neighboring countries.

Al-Maliki’s trip comes as violence has risen over the past week with a series of devastating bombings that have killed more than 120 people.

Gunmen also assassinated a senior Iraqi police officer late Tuesday as he was leaving a funeral in his hometown near Mosul, authorities said.

Brig. Gen. Abdul-Hamid Khalaf, a 55-year-old father of three, was an army officer under Saddam Hussein’s regime but joined the police force amid efforts to rebuild the Iraqi security forces following the 2003 U.S. invasion.

He was a provincial police spokesman from 2005 to 2007, when he was promoted to be the deputy head of emergency b att

alions, and had survived at least one other attempt on his life.

The officer was killed by a gunman while walking home from a funeral service for a fellow officer who had died of natural causes in Zawiya, a mainly Sunni village and former al-Qaida in Iraq stronghold 45 miles (70 kilometers) south of Mosul, according to the area’s police chief, Brig.

Gen. Khalil al-Jubouri.

Elsewhere in northern Iraq, a roadside bomb killed a policeman and wounded five people Wednesday in the disputed oil-rich city of Kirkuk, police said. Three other policemen were later killed while dismantling a parked car bomb in the northern city.

A bomb attached to the car of an employee of a cell phone employee also exploded, killing him and seriously wounding a colleague in Mosul, according to the provincial police.

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http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml.

You may use material originated by this site.

However, if you wish to use any quoted copyrighted material from this site, which did not originate at this site, for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner from which we extracted it.