Riots

So the situation is developing like this - Obama wants Israel to stop the Jewish settlements in Palestine; Israel says no way as it was agreed with Bush that they don't have to stop settlements; Clinton says no such agreement exists; israel now fighting back. http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1244035012765&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Meantime Jerusalem was besieged by ultra-Orthodox Jews who want to impose strict Jewish laws on everyone - not good for us!!!! Riots - big time - yesterday!!!! It took place just in front of our New Gate next to St Saviour's monastery. http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1244035010988&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

voicelessly caught inbetween

A scramble of reactions to Obama's speech in Cairo. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090534.html Rightist-Zionist continue to defy the stoppage of settlements while the leftist condemn it. http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1244035003067&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull ; http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090366.html and http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090527.html. And we the little people? We get caught in between - with no voice and no rights.

It's going to be a tough summer.

And ...... David Carradine ("Grasshopper") is dead. Anyone remembers "Kung Fu"? Time for nostalgia

Obamarama

More revenge on palestinians by the jewish zionists because Obama wants them to stop their occupation of palestinian land and the building of jewish houses. Move? Strip israeli arabs off citizenship. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090173.html And no one - absolutely no one can go against the wishes of Israel, because you're anti-semitic if you do. Even Obama! http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090166.html

Holyland?

Now the settlers are taking revenge by attacking Palestinians and burning their property because America is demanding Israel to remove these illegal settling in occupied land. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090110.html Apparently the Israeli govt. is abiding by US calls to stop the settlements http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090066.html but I'm not too confident. After a couple of months, things will go back to what was initiated in the past, no one will talk about it again, and settlements will continue to expand. Nothing has stopped Israel before; so what does Obama think he is?

And wow - read this! Israel is the 4th most dangerous place to live on earth!!!! It's behind Somalia, Afghanistan and Iraq. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090160.html SO you still think it's fun living here?????? And it's supposed to be the "Holy" Land!

Wonder

So read this bit of news and think about this: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1090005.html If the shooter was an arab, he would have been shot dead on the spot, no questions asked. But in this case, the perpetrator is declared mentally troubled and put in an insitution for observation. By the way, this isn't the first time this "psychosis" reason was used - lilke when an israeli soldier burned and bombed our two churches (Gethsemani and Tel AViv) in 1997 or 1999 (can't remember), he never went to jail. Or the Israeli who bombed the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth a few years ago, same thing - "psychosis" .... I wonder why these israeli perpetrators are never ever shot on the spot when they bomb and destroy others, but perpetrators of other races get shot on the spot. Hmmmmmmmmmm

Ordinary time

Obama sounds pretty tough about stopping Jewish settlements in Palestinian land; and that includes the expansion of already existing settlements - a plan that our PM wants to go ahead. He explains that the Jewish populaiton is growing so rapidly it needs more space - meaning take away the Palestinian land. But HaAretz (newspaper) says it's a lie - the "natural growth" theory doesn't add up to the number of land being taken, nor the number of Jews being born in Israel. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1089778.html Well let's see if Obama has the polititcal teeth to bite into this one, or is he just polishing up on his political rhetoric.

Meanwhile summer is hitting us big time - very hot days and increasingly warm nights. Yesterday began our liturgical Ordinary Time when we use green as the liturgical colour and the readings go back to the two year cycle. Going anywhere this summer?

Sad Pentecost

Yesterday we celebrated Pentecost - the coming of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the Church here in Jerusalem. But the mother Church is dying - we make up only 2% of the population when once we were 6%. The Jerusalem Post carries this report today, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1243346516438&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull What can you do to help this situation? Come to the Holyland, every visit makes a difference to the Christian community here. Do your part to support the mother Church!