Featured Stories

Reacting to Chemicals: The Other Weapons of Mass Destruction

{image_1}They have already been the impetus for a war in the Middle East. They have been sought by ruthless regimes. And, they have caused serious and real concern across the world. But they aren’t nuclear in nature. No, these are other weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), and they have already been unleashed on the Middle East region.

Rock of Ages

{image_1}One of the hymns sung by Christians that has been dearly loved for over 200 years is “Rock of Ages cleft for me, let me hide myself in Thee…” What most Christians don’t know is that Judaism also has a song called “Rock of Ages.” In Hebrew, it is Ma’oz Tzur (literally, “mighty stronghold”), thought to be composed by a man named Mordechai in Europe in the 13th century during the Crusades because the first letters of the first five stanzas form an acrostic spelling his name.

Remembering God’s Faithfulness

{image_1}In his book Mein Kampf, Adolph Hitler claimed that he would be doing the work of the Lord by ridding the world of the Jewish people. Only a few short years later, he was ruling Germany with an iron fist, conquering Europe, and attempting to make good on his threat to make the world judenrein. And he was only one of many leaders throughout history who unwittingly went to battle with the God of the Universe by attempting to destroy His chosen people.

The Levy Report: Settlements Are Legal

{image_1}A special commission named this year by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has submitted some clear-cut conclusions regarding the legality of the so-called “Israeli settlements”. The three-member committee, informally known as the Levy Commission—headed by former Supreme Court Justice Edmond Levy, along with former Foreign Ministry Legal Advisor Alan Baker, and former Deputy President of the Tel-Aviv District Court Tehiya Shapira—determined that these settlements are perfectly legal within the standards of international law.

Fears Arise over Syrian Conflict

{image_3}With Syria overcome by violence, Jordanian King Abdullah has expressed the fear that sectarianism in Syria could lead to a fragmentation of the country. And that’s not the only regional fear. A sizable Syrian stockpile of chemical weapons also looms as a very real threat—both within the nation and out of it.

Other Security Fences…besides Israel’s!

{image_1}If we were to review a list of Israel’s actions that have incurred the wrath of the nations, it would actually be hard to decide which should be ranked at the top. Certainly in the running would be the decision, over a decade ago, to build a security fence, the largest infrastructure project in Israel’s history. Developed specifically to protect citizens from the infiltration of suicide bombers after years of intifada (Arab uprisings)—which left 1,226 Israelis dead and 8,341 maimed— the cost was nearly US $2 billion.

Young Adults Discovering Their Roots

{image_1}Two names, two programs, one Jewish, the other Christian, but there are more similarities than differences between them. While Taglit-Birthright is aimed at helping young Jewish adults of the Diaspora [the Jewish population outside Israel] reconnect with their Jewish roots, Zealous8:2 seeks to connect Christian young adults to the Hebraic roots of their faith. Both are using tours to draw young people around the world to Israel. The curious bystander in Israel who observes the endless lines of excited, English-speaking Jewish youth on Taglit tours must wonder how this program began.

Christian Exodus from the Holy Land

Is Israel the oppressor or protector?

{image_1}Throughout their history, regardless of where they have lived, the Jewish people have been blamed for everything from the plague to the high cost of automobile insurance. They have been accused of poisoning wells, intentionally spreading the HIV virus, killing Christian children to use their blood to make Passover matzah (unleavened bread), and attempting to take over the world through their alleged control of its finances. No matter how ludicrous some of these may sound, there have always been anti-Semites at hand ready to believe the current rhetoric and incite the local populations to hatred, violence, and even murder.

IDF Celebrates 64 Years of Defending the State of Israel

{image_1}Facts about the Israel Defense Forces [IDF] you have never heard before:

—When the IDF was formed on May 26, 1948, its structure was based on that of its predecessor, the Haganah.

Pirkei Avot: A Banquet of Wisdom

{image_1}”Moses received the Instructions of the Lord from Sinai and passed it on to Joshua, and Joshua to the Elders, and the Elders to the Prophets.” This encapsulation of the beginning of the transmission of the Torah (God's teachings) has been a fundamental truth for the Jewish people for thousands of years.