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NITTEL NACHT (Christmas eve)

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 12:57:32 GMT

It was not that long ago that Jews who lived in Europe dreaded Christmas Eve. "Nittel nacht," traditionally local Christians would attack Jews during that night. As a result, the Chassidic communities of Europe came up with a set of customs for that night, mostly for self-protection.

Many would love to say that is that past. The problem is that antisemitism is still a big problem today.

Think of that as you read this story.
It was written over 100 years ago

Nittel Nacht by Martha Wolfenstein

A dark and biting winter afternoon, and
yet the streets are swarming with people.
Shops are bright with gilded sweets and
holiday wares; from every chimney rises
the sweet smell of holiday dishes;—Christmas,
the great festival of the nations is at
hand, and everywhere there is light and
life and merry, bustling preparation.
Everywhere?—no, not quite everywhere.
There is one street—a narrow, dingy one,
so dark and dull that it would appear as if
all the gloom crowded out of the town by
the holiday spirit had sought and found
shelter there.
Within the tall, crooked houses, the
women go about with troubled faces; the
men are still in the streets hawking their
small wares. Now and then the musical
drone of prayers breaks through the stillness;
all else is silent and gloomy.
From a poor room of one of the houses
comes the sound of weeping. It is Veitel
Packeltrager's home, and within, Veitel
himself,—the patient, the diligent,—is lying
on his bed by day, while Rochel, his
wife, with two children dragging at her
skirts and one at the breast, goes about
complaining

" Who will earn bread for the little ones,
when thou liest there with an injured foot?
How couldst be such a Shlemiel, Veitel !

" God has helped thus far—He will help
further," replies the more optimistic Veitel.
" Do thou but tend to thine own affairs,
and send at last that gift to Herr Biirgermeister."
" Shema !—now he would lay this blame
also on my head," cries Rochel, and falls
to weeping silently.

Alas, the spirit of gloom is lodging
in Veitel Packeltrager's home. The
sources of his troubles are twofold. One
lies in the circumstance which Veitel's
name indicates; namely, that he is a Packeltrager
[pack-carrier], a bearer of burdens,
whose business in life it is to carry
heavy loads from morning till night. On
a recent day, when, as often before, his zeal
outran his strength, he had stumbled, and
dropped one of the iron bars with which
he was laden on his foot, and now he lay a
helpless sufferer, and there' was none to
earn bread.
The source of the other trouble is a
deeper and more permanent one. It lies
in no less a circumstance than this: that
Prodow, the town in which Veitel lives, is
a " Trefa-Mokum " [literally, unclean
place]; in other words, a place forbidden
to Jews.

Sixty-three so-called " tolerated Jews "
are lawful residents therein, much to the indignation
of its pious Gentile burghers; but
since these sixty-three are the fertile source
of the city's funds, their presence must
needs be endured.
Veitel Packeltrager is not of the tolerated.
He is too poor; for " toleration"
is a high-priced privilege. His presence in
the town is a breach of the law; yet he is
there, and like him many others, for in
those places where it is lawful for Jews to
live, the crowding is too dense, the competition
too keen, and only the sharpest wits
can there survive. Veitel, alas, has little
wit; only a pair of strong shoulders. He
asks nothing but to be allowed to make a
beast of burden of himself for a pittance,
to labor in peace; but he may not. Three
times with the others not tolerated has he
been driven out of the town; but the cry of
hungry children was stronger than the arm
of the law, and three times did he come
crawling back.

For the last few years he has had comparative
peace,—if peace it may be called,
to rise at morn in trembling and go to bed
in fear,—yet let none suppose the law had
gone suddenly blind, or that it slept. No,
it was wide awake; its eyes dosed designedly,
but not so tight that they did
not blink with greedy desire at the tribute
of purses of coin and tubs of butter, 0f
casks of wine and fat geese, which the
Jews laid yearly upon the altar of its goodwill.

Veitel Packeltrager's annual offering to
the law, whose tangible form was Herr
Burgermeister, was the product of one fat
goose, his only wealth, which Rochel
tended and fed with pious ardor, for thereby
hung the family weal or woe. Now
Christmas eve, the time of the sacrifice, was
at hand, and Veitel's offering was not yet
placed.
" Now get the Yungel [little boy] ready;
He must carry the gift there at once," Veitel
was crying from his bed.
"Shema," cried his wife, "the child I
should send !

" Who then? Me, perhaps? No one
will eat him."
" Nay, nay,—rather I will go myself."
" Shah—nonsense ! thou talkest like a
Goyah ," cried Veitel,
and gazed with some alarm at his pretty
wife, whose twenty-five years, in spite of
poverty and care and child-bearing, lay
but lightly on her graceful head.
" Veitel,—hast forgotten—Nittel-Nacht!
Wait—perhaps grandfather will soon be
home from Schul. Thou wouldst not send
the child out alone among them—and just
to-night?
" Grandfather !—Grandfather is himself
a child. Why didst not have our gift ready
in time?" cried Veitel.

" Must I tell thee again? Two hours I
waited in Nossen Schochet's [Nathan the
slaughterer's] house. Nu, certainly;—first
comes Frau Parnassin, then Frau Wool
Merchant—anybody first—Rochel the wife
of a Packeltrager can wait !"

" Dost think I have no heart in my
body? But what's to be done? Hirshl
must go,—have I money for a messenger?
With thy hngering about thou wilt yet
bring us and the whole Kille [community]
to destruction."
Rochel wrung her hands in fear for her
child, but her husband's last argument was
too fully convincing. Did they not exist
at the mere whim and pleasure of the
Biirgermeister? His displeasure might
mean sufifering for the whole community.
With an aching heart she placed the pot
of white goose-oil and the large creamy
liver, wrapped in many cloths, into a basket,
and hung it upon Hirshl's arm, fortifying
him the while with advice and warnings.

" Of all things, Hirshl, my life, do not
pass the church. Thou knowest how they
are. They might think thou wert trying
to peep in, and might, God forbid, do thee
an injury—and if thou meetest anyone,
hide in the shadow, or if they notice thee,
step aside into the gutter, and pull thy cap
politely, and if anyone asks thee what thou
earnest, say they are old shoes from the
cobblers, and if they would molest thee,
—
run, run as fast as thou canst."
Hirshl was a little, thin boy with a soft
child's face, out of which shone strangely
wide, dark, half-shrewd, half-melancholy
eyes. He knew that his errand was not
void of dangers; for Christmas eve,
Nittel-Nacht [St. Nicholas night], as it
was called, had always been a favorite time
for Jew-raids, when the people fresh from
church, where the priests had fired them
with religious zeal, delighted in plundering
and murdering the Jews in the name of
Christ, their Lord.

He knew that his father and the other
men in the Gass always remained awake on
this night, that they might be prepared in
case of danger; but he also knew all the
good hiding-places, all the dark windings
and alley-ways of the town. So, grasping
his basket firmly, he set out on his
errand.
Up to the end of the Jews' street he
walked at ease, but at the corner, where began
the enemy's world, he stopped like a
frightened hare, scenting the hunter's
hounds. The street seemed peaceful and
empty; and swiftly, noiselessly he hurried
on. He passed the cemetery without a
tremor; on that night it was but the living
he feared. The next turning brought him
to the church. He remembered his mother's
warning not to pass it, but just beyond
shone a bake-shop window sparkling with
Christmas splendor. He longed to have
a peep at all that glory. No one was
stirring,—he would risk it.

Just as he came opposite the church
door, it opened, and forth came a group of
laughing men and girls who hurried away,
the last one leaving the door ajar. From
the shadow into which he had crept,
Hirshl could look within, down to the shining
altar, where hung a half-naked, bloodstained
effigy of Jesus of Nazareth.
" It is their God," he thought, and gazed
with fear and loathing at the ghastly figure.
In his mind there loomed mystically,
vaguely but fearfully, the consciousness
that the source of all their troubles lay in
that horrible figure.

How spectral the gloom of those shadowy
naves! What harrowing mysteries
hid behind those dark chancel doors ! Was
it there they kept that awful host, on account
of which the Jews had to stay in their
houses during Passion Week, and which
bled—so the Christians said—when a Jew
looked upon it? Then a chancel door began
slowly and noiselessly to slide ajar,
and Hirshl turned, and fled in terror.
The next turning brought him to the
Rathhaus Square, which he dared not
cross, for it was forbidden to Jews. As he
was about to go another way, his foot-Steps
were arrested by the sound of shouting
voices, crying:
" Jew dog, damned hound !"
He knew these sounds but too well. It
was one of the Gass in trouble. Creeping
swiftly to the comer, he saw a pack of
rowdy boys pursuing an old, feeble man,
who, gasping and trembling, stumbled
painfully along, dodging their missiles, and
looking about with wild, hunted eyes."
Dede [grandfather] !" shrieked Hirshl.
He had recognized his grandfather. With
a bound he was at the old man's side, dragging
him to the corner and into a dark
door-way. The old man was panting hard
and trembling like a leaf. Hirshl, too, was
trembling, but it was with impotent hate
and fear and deep, deep pity. He soothed
the old man's hand lovingly, and his tears
fell hot and fast upon it.
" What art doing out so late alone,
Hirshl Leben?" said his grandfather at
last.
"Did they hurt thee, Dede?" sobbed
Hirshl.
" Nay, nay,—do not weep—'twas only a
little dirt," and patiently and stolidly the
old man wiped the mud off his wrinkled
face and white beard.
" Why, O why didst thou go on the
Rathhaus Square! Dost not know it is
forbidden?" cried Hirshl.
" Why should I not know? But it was
dark, and with all the people and noi^e
my head went like a mill-wheel,—I must
have lost the way."
" Why wast not in Schul?—Where didst
get that basketful of apples?—Why wast
walking in the street? " questioned Hirshl.
" Esoi ! " said the old man, for he could
not tell Hirshl how he had sat behind the
stove, until the thought that his son-in-law
Veitel was lying ill, and there was none to
earn anything, and he himself was ever eating
the bread of idleness, became more
painful than he could endure; and how, in-
Stead of going to Schul, he had bought a
basket of apples, and had gone to peddle
among the school-children.
" Esoi ! " repeated the grandfather, " a
Yungel [little boy] does not need to know
everything," and Hirshl questioned no
more. He knew that his grandfather was
very old, and sometimes childish, when he
did foolish things. He started again on
his errand, but his progress now was slow,
for he had to lead the old man, whose feet
were stiff with cold. At length they arrived
at the Biirgermeister's house. Hirshl
delivered his basket, and received as reward
a gilded cake, but, knowing it to be
Tr@fa [unclean], he dropped it into the
gutter. Then they mended their pace and
arrived at home unmolested.

It was the custom of the men to spend
the night in groups, playing cards, that in
case of a raid they might not be taken in
their sleep, and even the most pious did not
condemn a game on this occasion. On ac-
count of Veitel's injured foot, his neighbors
agreed to meet in his room, and soon
after supper they began to arrive.
Rochel had put the younger children to
bed, but fully dressed, that no time might
be lost in case of danger. Hirshl as the
eldest had permission to remain awake.
He now sat at the corner of the table where
the men were playing, watching the game
and listening to their conversation.
They spoke of many things; but through
it all, like the warp of a cloth upon which
the rest is woven, ran the complaining about
the Gentiles; but Joel Wineseller, who
was a great wit, cracked jokes continually.
The grandfather, who had been praying
all the evening, now closed his prayerbook,
and then he rehearsed again the pitiftfl
tale of his street encounter.
" If I were a man, I would kill them,"
cried Hirshl, his eyes flashing rage.
" Still, still," cried the grandfather, " do
not add to thy sins. It is on account of
our iniquities that we are punished and in
Golus [exile]."
Jacob Sofer now began to tell a harrowing
tale of Polish persecutions, when, on a
certain Christmas eve, a whole congregation
had taken refuge in their synagogue;
how there they had fought for their lives,
and how, with their own hands, they had
killed their wives and daughters rather
than let them fall alive into the hands of the
Christians. Others told similar tales, and
Hirshl listened, white with horror.
" Why, O why are the people so
wicked? " he mused. " When I am a man
I will be so good, so pious that the Lord
will let us return to Yerushelaim where
there are no wicked Goyim."
Suddenly he was startled out of his
musings by a cry of alarm.
" A knock," gasped his mother, " did
you not hear a knock? "
The company listened, with white,
strained faces. They started ;—they had
heard it clearly now—it was a knock. Some
one blew out the light; Rochel fled to the
bedside of her children. In Hirshl's short
life there lay the memory of a time of
terror, when, clinging to his father's neck,
they had fled in the night, and hidden in
a cold, black forest. He clutched his
grandfather's arm in agony, and they
waited with bated breath for what would
follow. But all remained still; only the
wind moaned, and the shutters creaked.
Some one took courage to look outside.
The knock came again; then they saw that
it was but a broken latch tapping in the
wind.
They relit their candle, and sat down to
renew their game. Rochel was weeping
softly at her baby's cradle.
" My God," she wailed, " why did we not
remain in Fishow? They have it good—
they live behind strong Ghetto gates."
The men were playing as before, but
they told no more harrowing tales. Joel
Wineseller's jokes fell on deaf ears; his
laughter, too, was hollow. At every sound
they started; they trembled at their own
heart-beats.
The grandfather was busily praying again,
shaking himself with pious ardor, and
when he ceased, it was but to comfort
Hirshl, and tell him of that glorious time
when the Messiah would come; when all
Israel would dwell at peace in Zion, each
man under his own vine and fig-tree, in a
land flowing with milk and honey, as the
Lord has promised.
And the long night dragged wearily on;
the wind sighed and moaned; the feeble
candle blinked and sputtered; and little
Hirshl's soul was heavy with trouble and
weariness. Then slowly and strangely the
room waxed wide and bright, the murmuring
voices came faint and distant, the wall
of the house swelled like a mist, and Hirshl
found himself standing in a large, fine
square, just like the Rathhaus Square. Be-
fore him stood a beautiful building with a
golden dome. The Holy of Holies shone
at the top of a wide stair, and before it
stood grandfather in a white robe as at the
Seder; below were crowds of people all
singing joyfully, and over all shone a bright
golden light.
" It is Jerusalem," cried Hirshl, and
clapped his hands, " and the light that
shines over all, that is the Shechinah."
" Adon olom asher molach," sang the
people, and Hirshl's heart leaped high with
joy. He, too, would sing, " B'terem kol
yezir nibro," and as he opened his lips—he
awoke.

Alas, the glory of Zion was fled,—he was
only at home in the Gass; but it was morning,
and the terrors of the night were past.
How sweet the white light of day ! How
sweet the smell of the simmering soup-pot!
How sweetest of all the strong comfort of
his father's voice chanting the old familiar
morning prayers

Copenhagen Update: Population Control Freaks Hitch Their Wagon to Global Warming

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:45:02 GMT

Read this and then tell me your thoughts

Copenhagen Update: Population Control Freaks Hitch Their Wagon to Global Warming

Written by E. Calvin Beisner, Ph.D.

Wednesday, 16 December 2009 00:00

"Humans are overpopulating the world," wrote Diane Francis in Canada's National Post Tuesday. "A planetary law, such as China's one-child policy, is the only way to reverse the disastrous global birthrate currently, which is one million births every four days."

She's not alone in that opinion. But before I introduce some others who think likewise, let me just expose the folly of her thinking. It doesn't take an expert to do so--just someone willing to do a little back-of-the-envelope math.

A million births every four days sounds like quite a lot. Most people in our innumerate society won't think about it as a proportion of the total human population and whether it means galloping population growth. Being the pest I am, I did.

I calculated how many births that makes every year: 365 / 4 = 91.25, so this birth rate means 91.25 million people are born every year. That sounds like a lot. But a ballpark figure for total human population today is 6.7 billion, which, divided by 91.25 million, yields 73.4.

In other words, at a birth rate of 1 million every 4 days, it would take 73.4 years to replace the world's population. With the world's average life expectancy hovering around 67, that means 1 million births every 4 days is below replacement rate, which would entail that population is shrinking now, not growing.

Actually, all of these figures are questionable, since population-watching bureaucrats and non-governmental organizations have vested interests in fudging figures upward to heighten the appearance of poverty (and hence the amount of foreign aid likely to flow, most of which ends up in the bureaucrats' pockets or the Swiss bank accounts of the countries' corrupt rulers) or the appearance of explosive population growth (and hence the amount of money donated to the agency promising to fight it). It's likely that the world's population is still growing now, though slowly. It's also likely to peak around 2030 to 2050 and then begin declining, with some demographers seriously suggesting that it could fall to as little as 300 million (less than America's today) within a few centuries.

There's more that's wrong with Ms. Francis's statement, too. She tells us a one-child policy "is the only way to reverse the disastrous global birthrate." We've already seen that the global birthrate isn't disastrous. But even if it were, a one-child policy obviously wouldn't be the only way to reverse it.

All the wealthy nations of the world, except the U.S., have gone from high birth rates and rapid population growth to low birth rates and stable or declining populations over the last few decades. Even in the U.S., the birth rate only hovers around replacement; population continues to grow primarily because of immigration--and the higher birth rates of immigrants. Europe loses about 900,000 people a year, and Russia about 1 million.

Yet not one of those nations ever had a one-child policy, or any kind of legal limit on family size. Ms. Francis, therefore, is either ignorant or lying.

But she's not alone in her views. Zhao Baige, a Chinese delegate to the UN climate talks here in Copenhagen and vice minister of China's National Population and Family Planning Commission, says, "Dealing with climate change is not simply an issue of CO2 emission reduction but a comprehensive challenge involving political, economic, social, cultural and ecological issues, and the population concern fits right into the picture."

Well, China should have population concerns, but they shouldn't be about having too many people. They should be about the prospect of having nearly a third of its population above age 60 by 2050 and more and more younger people facing the challenge of providing, all alone, for two parents and four grandparents--because they have no siblings. It also faces the challenge, since Chinese parents faced with the one-child limit frequently decide to kill their girl babies before they're born, of having 124 boys up to age 4 for every 100 girls, which means an awful lot of young men are going to find it awfully difficult to find a wife. And, marriage being the civilizing force it is for men, a huge and growing population of unmarried men will spell trouble.

Nonetheless, China is calling for strict population control worldwide as part of a climate deal, and wants credit for reducing its carbon dioxide emissions by 18 million tons by preventing 400 million births since it instituted its one-child policy--many of those through forced abortion or forced sterilization.

And United Nations Fund for Population Activities Executive Director Thoraya Obaid sings the same song: "Rapid population growth and industrialization have led to a rapid rise in greenhouse gas emissions. We have now reached a point where humanity is approaching the brink of disaster."

Other proponents of global warming alarmism also push it as a justification for population control. Recently the journal Global Environmental Change published an article by two Oregon State University statisticians titled "Reproduction and the carbon legacies of individuals" that argued that offspring should be counted as part of our carbon footprint--and limited to prevent global warming, prompting the grim prospect of cap and trade for babies.

American billionaires Bill Gates, David Rockefeller Jr., Warren Buffett, George Soros, Michael Bloomberg, Ted Turner (who says, "We're too many people, that's why we have global warming"), and Oprah Winfrey all favor reducing human population, in part to forestall global warming. President Obama's science advisor John Holdren has advocated abortion and other involuntary measures to fight population growth.

Even evangelical Christians, who ought to know better (Genesis 1:28; Genesis 9:1; Psalm 127:3-5; Psalm 128:3), aren't immune to this twisted thinking. Former National Association of Evangelicals Vice President for Government Affairs Rich Cizik (now a Fellow and grantee of the Open Society Institute , part of the Soros Foundations Network), told the World Bank in a speech in May 2006, "I'd like to take on the population issue, but in my community global warming is the third rail issue. I've touched the third rail . . but still have a job. And I'll still have a job after my talk here today. But population is a much more dangerous issue to touch . . . . We need to confront population control and we can--we're not Roman Catholics after all--but it's too hot to handle now."

It's encouraging, then, to see some people pushing back, like former Ohio secretary of state and columnist Ken Blackwell and Concerned Women for America, which has issued the following letter to President Obama on the eve of his trip to Copenhagen:

As you engage this week in international discussions at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, we strongly urge you to publicly denounce the "solution" proposed by a delegate that parents should be forcibly limited in the number of children they may have.

The most controversial aspect of the subject of climate change is the policies that are promoted by global warming activists and politicians. No proposal is more despicable and, if followed, would constitute a violation of basic human rights than the suggestion that governments should emulate China's coercive family planning program.

Over our thirty years, Concerned Women for America (CWA) has drawn attention to the numerous human rights violations China has committed through its one-child policy, including the forced abortion and sterilization of Chinese women and men.

In a move that should cause climate change advocates to blush, China characterized its oppressive, inhumane "one-child" policy as a legitimate, successful way to combat global warming.

The state-run China Daily reported on December 10, 2009 that Zhao Baige, Vice-Minister of China's National Population and Family Planning Commission, stated that as a result of the family planning policy, China has seen 400 million fewer births, which has resulted in 18 million fewer tons of CO2 emissions a year. Zhao made the comments in Copenhagen as one of Beijing's delegates to the United Nations climate conference.

It is instructive that she chose to say "fewer births." As documented by the U.S. Congress and State Department, China relies on forcibly aborting women and employs gruesome methods to reduce the number of babies who survive birth.

The United States cannot remain silent at a conference while another country advocates forced abortions as a legitimate means of caring for the environment. The Chinese representative not only bragged about their inhumane "family planning" practice, but also suggested other countries should follow in their footsteps, claiming that studies have shown that family planning programs are more efficient in helping cut emissions than other measures like alternative fuels.

On November 10, 2009, the United States Congress held a hearing on 30 years of China's one-child policy. The witnesses consisted of Chinese citizens and human rights activists who gave first-hand accounts of the human rights abuses committed by the Chinese government.

One story was particularly heart breaking, although not uncommon. In 2004, Wujian was delighted to discover that she was pregnant with her first baby. However, she did not have a permit from the Chinese government to have a child. Wujian tried to hide from government officials who enforce China's strict one-child policy, but eventually officials were informed of her pregnancy. Because they were not able to locate Wujian, they arrested and tortured her father. She testified, "My heart was broken into pieces as I faced this terrifying dilemma: either my father or my baby, one of them had to die, and I had to make the decision."

Wujian was discovered and dragged away, along with other "illegally pregnant" women, and their babies were forcibly aborted.

President Obama, in your memorable speech accepting the Nobel Peace Prize Award you highlighted the importance of protecting human rights around the world. "[I]f human rights are not protected, peace is a hollow promise."

We respectfully ask that you not ignore the cry of the many women who have suffered numerous human rights abuses at the hands of the Chinese government as a result of their oppressive "family planning" policy.

We ask that you clearly denounce this audacious attempt by a Chinese official to justify their inhumane practices in the guise of reducing global warming. The purposeful violation of human rights is never justified even in the pursuit of protecting the environment.

The anti-human animus of environmentalism is coming increasingly to the fore. If you don't want a global one-child policy, it's time to let your leaders know.

HAMAS REMOVES CHRISTIANS FROM THEIR GRAVES IN GAZA

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:36:00 GMT

HAMAS REMOVES CHRISTIANS FROM THEIR GRAVES IN GAZA: Every three minutes a Christian is being tortured in the Muslim world, and in 2009 more than 165,000 Christians will have been killed because of their faith, most of them in Muslim countries, according to a human rights organization that is visiting Israel this week. "Hamas digs up the bodies of Christians from Christian burial sites in the Gaza Strip claiming they pollute the earth," said Reverend Majed El Shafie, President of One Free World International (OFWI). El Shafie heads the delegation of human rights activists, members of parliament from Canada and religious personalities now visiting Israel. El Shafie also confirmed that between 200-300 million Christians are being persecuted in the world, 80% of whom lived in Muslim countries. (J.Post) "Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering." Heb 13:3

ISRAEL EASES RESTRICTIONS OF PALESTINIANS FOR CHRISTMAS

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 10:35:06 GMT

ISRAEL EASES RESTRICTIONS OF PALESTINIANS FOR CHRISTMAS: Israeli military officials are easing restrictions on the movement of Palestinian Christians in the West Bank for the holiday season. Thousands of Christians will be issued month-long permits to visit Jerusalem's holy sites. Normally, only small numbers of West Bank Palestinians can enter Israel, mostly for pressing needs. (AP) This is due to high incidences of terrorists who attempt to pass through border crossings to carry out murderous attacks against Israel. “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love you.” Ps. 122.6

GREAT NEWS from Pakistan

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:23:30 GMT

GREAT NEWS from Pakistan: Sandul Bibi and her father, Gulsher Masih, have been found INNOCENT by the court, and released from prison. Praise the Lord!

A Pennsylvania potato farmer and his Jerusalem ambulance

Sun, 13 Dec 2009 13:53:01 GMT

A Pennsylvania potato farmer and his Jerusalem ambulance

After one of the family farms fell victim to eminent domain in January 2006, Naaman King made a pledge.

"You don't haggle with G-d, but I promised if anything good ever happens, I'd do something for Israel," King recalls. Then lo and behold, King came home to a letter saying the government was willing to hold negotiations over the property.

"The next letter I opened was from Magen David Adom," King said. "My wife looked at me and said, 'Well, you know what you promised.' So the next week I went to New York to check out the organization, and then I bought an ambulance."

It was as simple as that, explained Sharon Schmidt, the Greater Philadelphia Area director of American Friends of Magen David Adom.

"We were not only surprised and delighted by the enormity of Naaman King's generosity, but elated to learn of his love for our beloved Israel."

"Mr. King is delightful to work with," she continued. "He's completely humble and a true gentleman… At the ambulance dedication, which was a Mennonite covered-dish dinner attended by over 100 people from his Pennsylvania community, I thanked Mr. King for his generosity. His response was, 'Don't thank me, it was all G-d's doing.'"

Before King knew it, he and his family were flying to Israel in November 2006 to greet an ambulance with his name on it.

"I couldn't believe that I did it. I was impressed to see that I could help someone else. It gave me a good feeling," King said. "In our part of the world, we aren't living in fear all the time. We have problems too, but I was really glad to be able to help someone else."

King's family was equally excited when they saw the ambulance for the first time in Israel, King recalled.

"They were all happy about it. It says on the door, 'Donated by Naaman King and Family.'" Three years later the ambulance and King's connection to Israel remain as strong as ever.

King and his grandson traveled the country this past week, from Sderot to Kibbutz Lavi and Kibbutz Deganya in the North.

What King has most enjoyed during this visit, he said, is catching up with his friends.

"This is my 10th time in Israel. My wife and I used to conduct tours over here," King explains. "We've seen all the holy sites, but I wanted a closer relationship with the Israelis, and that is exactly what I got with the ambulance and meeting people like Jonathan Feldstein."

Feldstein, the Israeli representative of American Friends of Magen David Adom, says that King's donation has impacted countless Israelis.

"As I was explaining to people we met with, he's a Christian potato farmer who wanted to do something good for Israel. A lot of Israelis were really astonished and genuinely inspired by his love of Israel," Feldstein explained.

King has met many new friends on this trip, from farmers like himself at kibbutzim, to children squealing with delight after receiving Hanukka gifts King brought from the US.

Before King flies back to the US on Sunday, his grandson, an EMT in the US, will be working on their "baby," MDA ambulance #42 in Jerusalem.

"I'm glad the ambulance is in operation," King says. "It's important to save lives, and that's exactly what it does."

DAY 308: GAO ZHISHENG TORTURED, FAMILY REPRESSED!

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:06:58 GMT

I received this from ChinaAid via email. Please help spread the word. This man has been tortured for almost a year now... 308 days.

ChinaAid recently received another report from inside sources in China that Gao Zhisheng has been severely beaten by authorities. The report stated his current living condition is worse than death and that Gao is crying daily in pain and desperation.

The Chinese government has responded to the increased worldwide pressure for Gao Zhisheng's release by cutting off communication with two of Gao's siblings living in China and placing them under police surveillance.

In a November 26th interview with Radio Free Asia, Gao's brother, Gao Zhiyi, stated, "For every question, there are three unknowns. No one knows anything. They won't talk to us and they won't meet with us... Even if Gao Zhisheng had committed a terrible crime, his family would still have the right to know what had happened to him!"

On Saturday, December 5th, Gao's older brother (Zhiyi) and sister lost all communication contact when their phone lines were disabled, following the release of the RFA interview.

Now more than ever, Gao Zhisheng needs our help!

In a recent visit to Washington, D.C., ChinaAid met with several leading congressmen who have been moved by their constituents (those like you) telling Gao's story - and they have proposed a Congressional Resolution on Gao Zhisheng's behalf. Our American leaders have begun to listen, and with more voices, we can make that resolution a reality!

So far, 5,284 people have contacted their local U.S. Representative to speak out on behalf of Gao Zhisheng. Continue to add your voice! We have to keep the momentum going on behalf of this innocent man who himself was a defender of the persecuted.

Please take action now.

1) Encourage others to Sign the Petition to Free Gao Zhisheng. You can forward this email to all your friends.

2) Email your U.S. Representative. Even if you have already done this, you can do it again with the updated information. Encourage your friends to do likewise. Learn more about contacting your U.S. Representative

3) Join ChinaAid in fighting for prisoners of conscience like Gao Zhisheng throughout China with your financial support. Make a monthly or one time contribution now.

We thank you for your support of ChinaAid, and urge you to continue spreading the word. Gao's story is gathering force in Washington, DC. With your help, our leaders will know that we concerned American citizens will not rest until Gao Zhisheng and his family are free to enjoy their fundamental human rights.

For more ways to take action, visit www.FreeGao.com.

For more information on other cases of religious persecution, visit www.ChinaAid.org

Judge overturns hate speech ruling against Canadian pastor

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 19:05:35 GMT

On December 3, a Court of Queen's Bench judge overturned a December 2007 ruling by the Alberta Human Rights Commission (AHRC) that a letter written by Stephen Boissoin published in a local newspaper broke provincial law against spreading hatred (click here for more details). Justice E.C. Wilson ruled that the AHRC panel chair Lori Andreachuk had made many errors in her ruling. The judge ruled that Andreachuk's order that Boissoin pay $5,000 and refrain from making "disparaging remarks" about homosexuals could not be enforced, as it was "unlawful or unconstitutional."

The judge said that while Boissoin's remarks were "jarring, offensive, bewildering, puerile, nonsensical and insulting," they were not hateful or extreme and that there was nothing in the letter to suggest it was exhorting Albertans to discriminate against homosexuals in areas which fall under provincial jurisdiction. At last report, Darren Lund, who launched the complaint against Boissoin, has not decided whether he will appeal this ruling.

In another religious freedom case in Canada, Christian Horizons, a Christian organization that assists individuals with developmental disabilities, will be appealing a May 2008 ruling by the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal (OHRT) on December 15-17. The OHRT ruled that Christian Horizons violated the rights of a former worker, Connie Heintz, by terminating her employment when she revealed that she was a lesbian (click here for more information). The ruling ordered Christian Horizons to compensate Heintz $23,000 in lost wages and to stop requiring its staff to sign an explicitly Christian morality code.

BRITISH JEW HATRED

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 15:43:00 GMT

A powerful eye opener to the growing viciousness of antisemitism in Britain. The piece explores what some folks consider Christian values, and how they use that term to make a distinction between themselves and the Jews, whom they view as inherently evil. It provides a window into how and why increasing numbers of British subjects align with Muslim fundamentalists and jihadists. It is plain and simple hatred of the Jewish people and Israel.

AUSTRALIAN POLICE QUELL VIOLENT ANTI-ISRAEL RIOTS

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 13:41:00 GMT

AUSTRALIAN POLICE QUELL VIOLENT ANTI-ISRAEL RIOTS: Guests at an event that featured the two second-highest officials in Australia and Israel as keynote speakers were forced to use a side entrance to attend the gathering due to a pro-Palestinian Authority riot blocking the main entrance at the venue in Melbourne on Sunday. The gathering highlighted speeches by Deputy Prime Minister Silvan Shalom and Australian Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard. The affair became the scene of a violent demonstration during which police were forced to spray a mob of screaming rioters at the front of the hotel with pepper spray in order to push them back.