Anti-Israel Churches Have A New Favorite Jew: The badly misnamed organization
“Churches for Middle East Peace” said of itself before their seminar in June:
The CMEP held a conference, at a church in Washington DC, to train women how to
harass Israel. The official theme is "And Still We Rise: Transforming USA
Policy Toward a Just Middle East," by which they mean transforming it from
pro-Israel to anti-Israel. Two days of speakers and discussions were followed
by a day in which the delegates lobbied members of Congress to stop being so
sympathetic to Israel.
Two of the
speakers at the Washington conference were women who proclaim that they are
Jews who have embraced Christianity. Unfortunately, according to the seminar
brochure, after the conference, “the Middle East delegates will share about
their peace-building work on speaking tours around the United States.” Conservative
and evangelical churches in the United States remain overwhelmingly pro-Israel.
Still, there is good reason to be concerned that some liberal Christians, such
as those affiliated with Churches for Middle East Peace and the Presbyterian
Church USA, have become among the most vocal denouncers of Israel on today’s
scene. (INN)
Intercede that Christians and Jews participating in anti-Israel activities will be set free from unbalanced information and spiritual deception. Pray that their intents to influence members of Congress and other government official will fall flat. Source: Vision for Israel, PO Box 7265
Jerusalem 9107301, ISRAEL
Israelis
Still Can't Freely Visit Israel's Holiest Site
July
5, 2018 | Israel Today Staff
www.IsraelToday.co.il
Israel
is a country that prides itself on the level of religious freedom enjoyed by
all citizens, regardless of race or creed. Especially given the religious oppression
and suppression prevalent in the nations surrounding her.
But there's still one group in the Jewish
state that suffers under a severe restriction on its religious expression - the
Jewish people. In its exaggerated efforts to be sensitive to the whims of every
other group, Israel still forbids Jews to freely visit their most sacred
site, the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
Editor's Note: The only ones who are allowed to pray on the
Temple Mount are Muslims. Christians and Jews are forbidden to pray on the
Temple Mount, and their visits to the Temple Mount are greatly restricted.
Meanwhile, Islamic sermons at this location - the holiest place in Judaism
where both the First and Second Temples were located - are often highly inflammatory,
falsely accusing Jews of all sorts of crimes, and often calling for jihad
- holy war - against Israel. This is a disgrace that should end soon. Jews who
do dare to go to the Temple Mount are often harassed by Muslims, sometimes even
violently. Islam is NOT a religion of peace, and is certainly not tolerant to
other beliefs.
Israel Provides Tons of Aid to Syrian
Civilians
- In the last week of June, Israel’s
military provided hundreds of tents and tons of food and clothing to displaced
Syrian refugees living in camps inside Syrian territory. Just days later,
Israel’s military increased their number of troops along the Syrian border, as
tensions between Israel, the Syrian regime and its ally Iran stay high. That’s
not a contradiction, but a reality for Israel: They are staring down at war
with the Syrian regime, but not the Syrian people.
Israel Passes Bill Deducting Payments
to Terrorists from PA Aid - 4 July 2018 | The Knesset overwhelmingly passed into
law a bill that allows Israel to deduct the payments the Palestinian Authority
makes to Palestinian terrorists and their families from the taxes Israel collects
and passes on to the PA, The Times of Israel reported
on July 2. The bill, which passed 87–15, aims at ending the Palestinian
Authority’s “Pay-to-Slay” program, which provides salaries to Palestinian
terrorists who attack and murder Jews, as well as additional funds to their
families.
Bridges for
Peace, PO
Box 1093
Jerusalem 91010,
ISRAEL
For First Time, Israeli Expert Selected
to Chair UN Committee on Human Rights - 5 July 2018 | For the first
time, an Israeli expert has been chosen to chair the United Nations Human
Rights Committee, a panel of experts who reviews the adherence of members
states to the organization’s rights charter. The Times
of Israel reported that Yuval Shany, who
is deputy president of the Israel Democracy Institute and a member of the
Hebrew University’s Faculty of Law, was selected on Monday.
In Historic First, IDF Appoints Four Female Tank Commanders
- Friday,
29 June 2018 | In a historic move, four women officially finished tank commanders course and became the IDF’s [Israel Defense
Forces] first female tank commanders after a 16-month grueling pilot program, The
Jerusalem Post reported Thursday. The women will be deployed to the
Egyptian border with Division 80. The pilot program was initiated in 2017
to see whether or not women could make up the four-person crews necessary to
operate a tank in “routine security operations,” within Israel’s borders.
Israel
Was Named 8th Most Powerful Nation in International Survey
by
Joshua Spurlock
Israel
may be small, but thousands of people around the world apparently believe the
State of Israel has a lot of power. The Jewish state been named the 8th most
powerful nation in the world—and the most powerful nation in the Middle East—by
US News and World Report
as part of their 2018 “Best Countries” rankings. The United States and Russia
were the top two, ahead of China and some European nations. Israel followed
right after Japan, placing ahead of Saudi Arabia.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
contrasted his nation’s size with those superpowers ranked right before them.
“Even though we are barely 1% of some of these countries, and have a smaller
population than all of them, we are there thanks to the citizens of Israel,
thanks to the statesmanship,” said Netanyahu.
The rankings by US News and World Report—done in conjunction
with Y&R’s BAV Group and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania—included
a global survey of more than 21,000 people according to the news group’s
website. The “Power” category considered attributes such as alliances, military
strength and political influence. Israel’s top scoring “Power” category was its
military.
Netanyahu highlighted their importance in
the world’s affairs by pointing to his upcoming meeting with Russian President
Vladimir Putin, as well as “close ties” with United States President Donald
Trump and other leaders.
Netanyahu wasn’t the only Israeli promoting
the country’s ranking. Prime Minister’s Office Spokesman Ofir
Gendelman shared his proud moment in a Twitter post.
“Compared to other countries, Israel is the 100th country in size of population
and 152nd by size of land, but it is the 8th most powerful country in the world
due to its military, economic, and diplomatic power. A great achievement for a
great yet small country. So proud,” tweeted Gendelman.
Netanyahu also took time to thank the Israeli
people for meriting the high ranking. Said the Israeli leader, “In the end, the
strength of the State of Israel stems from the talents, commitment, initiatives
and faith of the citizens of Israel. So thank you to
our marvelous people; it is well represented here.”
The Mideast Update originally published
this article on 9 July 2018. Time-related language has been modified.
Reprinted by: Bridges
for Peace
PO Box 1093, Jerusalem
91010, ISRAEL
Editor's Note: The strength of Israel is even more
impressive when you consider that the population of Israel is only one-tenth of
1% of the world's population. RAC
New
World Order with the Pilgrims
As
Europe was perfecting a variety of brewing techniques, beer was a major feature
of American diets, even before the country was a country, beginning the very
first day that settlers set foot in America. Colonists brewed ale from corn at
Jamestown in the 17th century. The Mayflower famously carried 42 tons of beer,
10,000 gallons of wine, and just 14 tons of water. It was a shortage of beer on
the Mayflower that persuaded the colonists to land at Plymouth Rock,
Massachusetts, instead of the more southern destination of Hudson NY, where
they originally meant to settle. Source:
Guide to Beer, p.10.
6600 Rockledge Dr, Bethesda MD 20817
Editor's
Note: I googled this item. Some websites say it is true, and
some say it is not, although it is interesting if true. We recognize that
alcohol abuse is a major problem. However, we also recognize that the Bible
does not forbid consumption of wine in moderation. Wine is healthy in
moderation, but is dangerous - even sinful - in excess. "Libations"
(alcoholic beverages) were among the offerings in the Temple. Psalm 104:15
tells us that God gives "wine that makes glad the heart of man."
Also, the first miracle of Yeshua recorded in Scripture is when he turned the water
into wine (John 2:1-12).
Some Christians insist that this was
"new wine," which they assume to be grape juice. However, we read in
Hosea 4:11, "Harlotry, wine, and new wine take away
understanding." Obviously, even new wine had alcohol, and if abused could
take away understanding. We need to teach our young people to drink
responsibly, although I am unsure about how responsibly the Pilgrims drank if
they carried more booze than water on the Mayflower! Maybe they weren't so dour
after all! Those who are unable to drink responsibly should avoid all alcohol.
Record
Number of Tourists Visit Israel in First Half of 2018: During the
period between January and June 2018, about 2.1 million tourist entries were
recorded, an increase of 19% compared to the same period in 2017 (1.74 million)
and 26% more than in 2016. Between January and June 2018, tourism has injected
more than 12 billion shekels (about 3.5 billion dollars) into the Israeli
economy. Tourism Minister Yariv Levin said, “The marketing efforts and
activities that we are spearheading in the ministry are leading us to new
records, as, for the first time, we have crossed the 2 million threshold for tourist entries over the course of half a
year. I am sure that all tourism-related enterprises will feel these results in
the tourism industry, which contributes tens of billions of dollars every year
to the Israeli economy,” he added. (Arutz-7)
Source: Vision for Israel, PO Box 7265
Jerusalem 9107301, ISRAEL
Haley:
Human Rights Council Is UN’s “Greatest Failure”: USA
Ambassador Nikki Haley defended the Trump administration's 19 June 2018
decision to withdraw from the UN Human Rights Council, saying last week that
the body is the UN's "greatest failure." "More often, the Human
Rights Council has provided cover, not condemnation, for the world's most inhumane
regimes." She spoke of the council's singling out of Israel for criticism
through "Agenda Item 7." "No other country - not Iran, not
Syria, not North Korea - has an agenda item devoted only to it. Agenda Item 7
is not directed at anything Israel does, it is directed at the very existence
of Israel." She said it is a "blazing red siren" signaling the
council's "political corruption and moral bankruptcy." (VOA)
USA Report Finds Only 20,000 Palestinian
Refugees: Sources
who have seen a State Department report compiled during the Obama
administration on Palestinians who became refugees during the 1948 War of Independence
said last week that the report indicates that only 20,000 of the 700,000 Arab
refugees are still alive and displaced from their homes. Members of Congress
are demanding the State Department make the report public.(UNRWA,
the UN agency which provides assistance to Palestinian refugees and their
descendants, asserts that there are 5.1 million Palestinian refugees worldwide.)
Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said that access to the report was necessary for
Congress to provide oversight for American taxpayers. "UNRWA lashes out
against America and engages in anti-Semitic incitement. Hamas terrorists use
UNRWA facilities to target Israeli civilians," Cruz told media sources.
"The American people deserve to see this reported State Department
assessment, so Congress and the administration can have a transparent and
productive debate about America's role in the organization."
Israel has begun to raise the issue in the
international arena and PM Benjamin Netanyahu has said UN funds should be
transferred to Palestinians through the UN refugee agency and UNRWA should be
abolished. Doing so, however, would require the UN General Assembly to pass a
resolution in favor of the move, which is unlikely given the international
forum's anti-Israel bias. (Israel Hayom)
As has been reported a multitude of times over the past
years, Hamas is diverting (hundreds of) millions of dollars of foreign aid to
support terrorist activities against Israel rather than assisting its own
people to become a healthy society. UNRWA is enabling Hamas in this misuse of
funds.
Source: Vision for Israel, PO Box 7265
Jerusalem 9107301, ISRAEL
Why The Concern For
UNRWA? Since UNRWA was established in 1949, the
USA has given nearly $5 billion to the agency tasked with perpetuating refugee
status among descendants of Arabs who left Israel in the 1948-1949 pan-Arab invasion.
UNRWA deliberately perpetuates the misery of innocent people. It indoctrinates
them from the cradle to the grave to support terrorism and genocide against the
Jewish state and its people. It exists as a tool of political warfare in the
never-ending war to annihilate the Jewish state. UNRWA targets its services to
people of Palestinian descent it calls "refugees" for political reasons;
fewer than 1% of the UNRWA refugees would actually meet the Refugee Convention
definition. Over the past 70 years, while the UN High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) has permanently resettled tens of millions of refugees, UNRWA has
resettled no refugees. It is now responsible for the fifth generation of descendants
of the Arabs who left Israel in 1948-49. (J.Post)
Source: Barry & Batya
Segal, news@visionforisrael.com
Pushing The
Palestinian “Right of Return” Doesn’t Help Peace: Tzipi
Livni, Co-leader of Israel's opposition Zionist Union
party, who also served in the past as Israel's foreign minister and chief peace
negotiator with the Palestinians had this to say last week about the so called
“Right of Return”. “In the past few months, I've heard voices in the UK,
including senior members of the Labour shadow
cabinet, calling for the "right of return" of Palestinian refugees to
Israel...
Palestinians are the only group since the
end of the Second World War to have kept their refugee status and to have
passed this status down to over four generations, creating a problem of
millions of "refugees" that are kept as pawns in a political game
instead of solving their humanitarian situation. Attempts to derail the
two-nation-states solution by pushing or supporting the idea of a "right
of return" will only exacerbate the conflict and are the antithesis of
peace.” (Guardian-UK)
While researching material for her 1984 book "From
Time Immemorial," American journalist Joan Peters learned that the UN made
the conscious decision to differentiate Palestinian refugees from all other
refugees. Refugees are generally defined as people who fled a permanent home,
while in the Palestinians' case, someone who lived in Palestine for as little
as two years prior to Israel's establishment in 1948 could be considered a
refugee. In addition, unlike all other refugees, Palestinians refugees pass their
status on to their descendants. As a result, Palestinian refugees are said to
number in the millions.
800
Syrian Rescue Workers Flee Country Via Israel
by Yona Schnitzer/TPS, unitedwithisrael.org
“The transfer of the refugees via Israel was carried out as
an unusual humanitarian gesture, and they were transferred from Israel to a
neighboring country,” the IDF said.
Eight hundred Syrians
affiliated with the White Helmet civil rescue organization entered Israel from
Quneitra in southern Syria Saturday night. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers
met the refugees and transferred them to a secure site in northern Jordan.
The operation was carried out following requests by the United
States as well as several European countries asking Israel to act swiftly to
rescue members of the organization and their families. The international
community feared that the return of the Syrian Army to the region would put
them in immediate danger, as the White Helmets are a rebel organization,
opposed to the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
According to the German tabloid Bild, the operation
commenced at around 9 p.m. on Saturday night, when White Helmet members and
their families arrived at an agreed-upon crossing point adjacent to the Israeli
border. The IDF opened the gates and helped load the fleeing Syrians onto
buses, which then took them to Jordan while also providing medical care and handing
out food and water. By sunrise, all 800 Syrians had been successfully evacuated.
“The transfer of the refugees via Israel was carried out as an unusual
humanitarian gesture, and they were transferred from Israel to a neighboring
country,” the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said in a statement, adding that Israel
“does not intervene with the inner-fighting in Syria and continues to see the
Syrian regime as responsible for all actions within Syria.”
Mohammed al-Kayed, a spokesman for the
Jordanian Foreign Ministry, added that the operation was approved and carried
out due to “purely humanitarian reasons,” adding that the refugees will remain
in a closed camp within Jordan, where they will wait to be relocated to Western
countries. Al-Kayed said that Britain, Germany and
Canada have pledged to resettle the refugees within three months.
The operation followed an IDF announcement last Wednesday
that the IDF’s Bashan division had carried out six special operations over
the past two weeks to transfer food and supplies to makeshift refugee camps
along the Syrian border. Thousands of Syrians began amassing on the border,
with no access to food, water or electricity, following a massive Syrian
military offensive in the Daraa province that began
in early July.
The IDF said it had transferred a total of 72 tons of food,
9,000 liters of fuel, and 70 tents, as well as clothing and medical supplies.
“The IDF will continue to monitor the events in southern Syria,
and is prepared for a wide range of scenarios, including granting the Syrians humanitarian aid,”
an IDF statement read, adding that “the IDF will not allow the entry of Syrians
into Israeli territory and will continue to maintain the security interests of
the State of Israel.”
Paris: Arab Man Beats Elderly Jew Shouting
“Allahu Akbar!” For the third
time this year, French police sent to psychiatric evaluation a man who
displayed violent behavior toward Jews. The latest incident occurred days ago
in Paris, in which a young Arab man hit a 69-year-old Jewish man wearing a
kippah, pushed him to the ground and dragged him by his hair while shouting: “Allahu
akbar (Allah is greater), long live Hitler, death to
the Jews,” according to the National Bureau for Vigilance Against Anti-Semitism.
Police apprehended the assailant, but a police physician recommended
transferring the suspect to a psychiatric institution for observation. The
group said it “again deplores that a violent anti-Semite citing Islamism evades
judicial treatment because he presents himself as having mental problems. This
should not and cannot explain or excuse his actions.” Such treatment is “absurd.”
(Jewish Telegraph Agency)
Pray for justice and stiff penalties to take place against
those who injure and murder Jews.
Recognizing
Israel's Right to Self-Defense - Michael Oren
A U.S. Army colonel fighting Islamic State in Syria said, "When you have an enemy that uses noncombatants as collateral damage, it is difficult to completely avoid any [civilian] casualties." The same could be easily said by the IDF Spokesman justifying Israel's actions against Hamas in Gaza. But while America's explanation is accepted by the world, Israel's is almost universally rejected.
Beyond killing Israelis, Hamas rockets are designed to get Israel condemned for killing Palestinians. For the same reason, Hamas sends children to break through the border fence and even pays them for every gunshot wound. Each one is a new rocket - cheaper and immensely damaging to our legitimacy. That damage is cumulative. Today, Israel's fundamental right to defend itself is dismissed out of hand. The writer, a former Israeli ambassador to the U.S., is a deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Office. (Jerusalem Post) Source: www.dailyalert.org
Haley: "If We Extend a Hand in Friendship to
Palestinians, We Do Not Expect Our Hand to Be Bitten" U.S.
Ambassador Nikki Haley told the UN Security Council on Tuesday: "In the
last three months, the terrorist flaming swastika kites that have crossed over
from Gaza into Israel have damaged or destroyed 7,500 acres of land. Now Israel
is a small country. The equivalent proportion of land in the United States
would be the size of the entire state of Connecticut. In France, the equivalent
would be 10 times the entire land area of the city of Paris.... While the
international media pays very careful attention to every step Israel takes in
self-defense, we must not lose sight of the very real damage that is being done
to Israel from terrorist attacks coming from Gaza."
"Last year, Iran's contribution to UNRWA was zero. Algeria's contribution
to UNRWA was zero. Tunisia's contribution to UNRWA was zero.... China provided
$350,000 to UNRWA. Russia provided $2 million to UNRWA. The U.S. gave $364
million.... And that's on top of what the American people give annually to the
Palestinians in bilateral assistance. That is another $300 million just last
year.... Since 1993...the United States has provided over $6 billion...in
bilateral assistance to Palestinians.... Americans are very generous people....
But we are not fools. If we extend a hand in
friendship and generosity, we do not expect our hand to be bitten."
"If [the Arab countries] really cared about the Palestinian
people...they would condemn extremism and they would put forth serious ideas
for compromises that could end this struggle and lead to a better life for the
Palestinian people. They would tell the Palestinian leadership how foolish they
look for condemning a peace proposal they haven't even seen yet. The
Palestinian leadership has been allowed to live a false reality for too long because
Arab leaders are afraid to tell them the truth. The United States is telling
the truth because we do care about the Palestinian people." (U.S.
Mission to the UN)
Palestinians to
Lead Bloc of Developing Nations at UN
- Rick Gladstone
The Group of 77, the bloc of developing countries at the UN, has chosen
the observer state of Palestine as its next leader starting in January, Palestinian
UN ambassador Riyad Mansour said Tuesday. The bloc, first formed in 1964, now
numbers 135 countries and represents 80% of the world's population.
Israel and the U.S. have argued that the status of the Palestinians at the UN
does not mean that there is an independent state of Palestine, and that only
direct negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians can achieve such an
outcome. Both countries opposed the Palestinian mission's elevation in 2012
from an entity to an observer state, and opposed the decision in 2015 granting
the Palestinians the right to fly their flag at UN headquarters.
Israel's UN ambassador Danny Danon said, "The
goal of the Group of 77 originally was to facilitate the economic advancement
of underdeveloped nations. It is unfortunate that it will now become a platform
for spreading lies and incitement. This will not promote the G-77's goals, and
encourages the Palestinians to not engage in negotiations for
peace." (New York Times) Source: www.dailyalert.org
Palestinian
Arson Attacks Leave
Israeli
Farmers Coping with Ecological Disaster - Yardena Schwartz
Dani Rahamim, 64, has lived half a mile from
Gaza for more than 40 years. This summer he lost 320 acres of wheat to fires
sparked by flaming kites and balloons launched into Israel from Gaza, and he
worries his sunflower fields will be next. The fires have burned nearly 8,000
acres of agricultural fields and nature reserves, killing thousands of animals
as well. Almost half of Israel's land along the Gaza border has been affected
by the fires. Ecologists predict a full recovery could take years.
The
wheat from Rahamim's fields could have fed people in
Gaza. Indeed, much of the flour Israel delivers to Gaza in the form of daily humanitarian
aid comes from the wheat fields in these border communities, says Alon Eviatar, a Gaza security expert. (USA Today)
by Fred Maroon
The new Basic Law "Israel as the Nation State of the
Jewish People" was passed by the Israeli Knesset, and like much of what
Israel does, it is controversial.
As Eugene Kontorovich
wrote in the Wall Street Journal, "It
has attracted a barrage of criticism from the U.S. and Europe..." But as Kontorovich added, "Israel's Basic Law would not be
out of place among the liberal democratic constitutions of Europe—which
include similar provisions that have not aroused controversy."
Many Jews, however, felt compelled to speak
against the new law. The board of deputies of British Jews said, "The lesson of Jewish history is that societies are
stronger when minorities are affirmed, and they decay when minorities are
degraded," but did not explain how the Israeli minorities are "degraded"
by the new Basic Law. In fact, that they are not degraded or affected
negatively in any way. Recognizing Jewish rights should not be interpreted as
automatically degrading non-Jews.
Some of my Israeli Jewish friends are great
supporters of Israeli Arabs, and I am grateful for that. They unselfishly
defend the rights of Israeli Arabs, and they promote programs that assist them
economically. But the odd thing is that when there is a change that is meant to
recognize Jews and their rights, such as the new Basic Law, these same Israeli
Jews do not expect Israeli Arabs to unselfishly support the change...
I would like Jews in the Diaspora and my Israeli
Jewish friends to understand that Israeli Arabs do not need to be patronized
and should not be patronized.
Many - if not most - Israeli Arabs are
opposed to the very concept of Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people
simply because they are anti-Zionist, and they make that fact very clear by the
politicians that they elect. Many other Israeli Arabs do not care much about
Zionism, and they are just grateful to live in a country that offers good
economic opportunities, freedom of religion, and freedom of speech. A small minority
is openly proud to live in the Jewish State because they see Jews as their brothers
and sisters and are happy for them; they do not feel threatened by Jews or by
their success.
None of these three groups of Israeli Arabs
is affected negatively by the new law. The first group is seething mad, but
only because they see the new law as contrary to their dream of transforming
Israel into an Arab state. Well, too bad for them. They are already lucky that
despite their hatred of the Jewish state, they have full rights as citizens of
the only genuine democracy in the Middle East. They are lucky especially considering
that Jews have no rights and are practically inexistent in the Arab world.
Instead of trying to appease anti-Israel
Israeli Arabs, Jews should praise the attitude of the third group and should
expect nothing less than the attitude of the second group.
As the new Basic Law states, "The
State of Israel is the national home of the Jewish people." This reaffirms
a simple and existing reality, but it affirms it in the face of never-ending attacks
on that reality from Arabs and from the international community.
The new law even states, "This clause
does not harm the status given to the Arabic language before this law came into
effect." It does not give Arabs anything new either, but strengthening the
Jews' status in Israel strengthens all of Israel and consequently its Arab
citizens.
For Arabs who are determined to see the
Jews as their enemy, the new Basic Law is indeed a loss, but those Arabs should
not be anybody's barometer of morality. They are in fact an embarrassment.
Fred Maroun
is a Canadian of Arab origin who lived in Lebanon until 1984, including during
10 years of civil war. Fred supports Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state,
and he supports a liberal and democratic Middle East where all religions and nationalities,
including Palestinians, can co-exist in peace with each other and with Israel,
and where human rights are respected. Fred is an atheist, a social liberal, and
an advocate of equal rights for LGBT people everywhere.
Torah - Not To'evah
- Shall Come Forth From Israel
The mayor of Tel Aviv has been promotes Tel Aviv as the capital of the LGBT movement. Bibi
Netanyahu also brags about the freedoms in Israel, including all the rights of
the LGBT community in Israel which are denied in Arab countries.
At
the end of June 2018, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations - Danny Danon - marched in the New York City Gay Pride Parade in
his official capacity.
However,
the Torah refers to homosexual acts as to'evah (abomination). Leviticus 20:13 prescribes the death
penalty for such acts. Leviticus 18:27-28 tells us that such behaviors led to
the Canaanites being cast out of the Land. Yes, there are also heterosexual
sins. However, most heterosexual sins are not considered as to'evah.
According
to Midrash (Vayikra Rabba), the cause of the Great
Flood was legalizing homosexual marriage. The rainbow was given as a sign that
God would never again destroy the world with a flood. Curiously, the LGBT
people have adopted the rainbow as the symbol of their movement. We reject
using the rainbow as a symbol of perversion.