Mr. Hagee Draws Evangelicals By Arguing Jewish State Fulfills Biblical Prophecy

'End of World as We Know It'

By ANDREW HIGGINS
July 27, 2006; Page A1

WASHINGTON -- After Israel sent warplanes into Iraq in 1981 to bomb a nuclear reactor, Texas televangelist John Hagee sent letters to 150 fellow Christian preachers to rally support for the Jewish state.

He got just one positive response. When Mr. Hagee pressed ahead with plans for a pro-Israel gathering in a San Antonio theater, he says he got a death threat on the phone and someone shot out all the windows of his station wagon parked in his driveway.

Last week, as Israel's armed forces pounded Lebanon and worries of a wider conflagration mounted, Mr. Hagee presided over what he called a "miracle of God": a gathering of 3,500 evangelical Christians packed into a Washington hotel to cheer Israel and its current military campaign.

Standing on a stage bedecked with a huge Israeli flag, Mr. Hagee drew rapturous applause and shouts of "amen" as he hailed Israel for doing God's work in a "war of good versus evil." Calls for Israel to show restraint violate "God's foreign-policy statement" toward Jews, he said, citing a verse from the Old Testament that promises to "bless those who bless you" and curse "the one who curses you."

The gathering was sponsored by Christians United for Israel, a national organization the 66-year-old preacher set up this year. The group lobbies politicians in Washington, rallies grassroots support for Israel and aims to educate Christians on what it calls the "biblical imperative" of supporting the Jewish state.

Mr. Hagee is a leading figure in the so-called Christian-Zionist movement. This evangelical political philosophy is rooted in biblical prophecies and a belief that Israel's struggles signal a prelude to Armageddon. Its followers staunchly support the Bush administration's unequivocal backing of Israel in its current battle with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

President Bush sent a message to the gathering praising Mr. Hagee and his supporters for "spreading the hope of God's love and the universal gift of freedom." The Israeli prime minister also sent words of thanks. Israel's ambassador, its former military chief and a host of U.S. political heavyweights, mostly Republican, attended.

At a time when Islamist groups are displacing secular nationalists as the main vehicle for political revolt across the Middle East, Mr. Hagee and like-minded evangelicals are injecting greater religious fervor into American attitudes and policy toward the region. They see, and even sometimes seem to embrace, the notion of a global conflict between Islam and the Judeo-Christian West, just as do many zealous Muslims.

"This is a religious war that Islam cannot -- and must not -- win," Mr. Hagee wrote in a recent book, "Jerusalem Countdown," which focuses on what he says is a coming nuclear showdown with Iran. "The end of the world as we know it is rapidly approaching.... Rejoice and be exceeding glad -- the best is yet to be." The book has sold nearly 700,000 copies since it was released in January, according to his Florida-based religious publisher, Strang Communications.

Christian Zionism has been around for years but is now gaining greater prominence as it gets turbocharged by the marketing flair of Mr. Hagee and other religious entrepreneurs. Mr. Hagee has deployed massive resources to galvanize support for Israel. He heads a San Antonio megachurch, which claims 19,000 members, runs a television company and has close ties to Republican Party power brokers. His Washington banquet last week cost about $500,000, according to an organizer. A big Christian broadcasting network, Daystar, carried the event live.

The following day, he mobilized evangelicals representing all 50 states in a lobbying blitz through the Capitol. Armed with talking points scripted by Mr. Hagee and his staff, they peppered senators and congressmen with arguments for Israel and against its enemies, particularly Iran.

While Mr. Bush is clearly close to evangelicals, he has never fully embraced their agenda or rhetoric. But their views are generally in sync with the aims of his national-security strategists, who reach similar conclusions through a different logic. They have long blasted what they've termed the "false stability" of a region mostly ruled by autocrats and that has tolerated terrorist organizations committed to Israel's destruction. The influential "neo-conservative" school of foreign-policy advisers has also buttressed this line, arguing that the U.S. must push more aggressively for democracy in the Middle East.

Bedrock for Bush

Christian evangelicals, who first found political traction under President Reagan in the 1980s, now number about 50 million and form a bedrock constituency for President Bush. Best known for their lobbying against abortion, same-sex marriage and on other domestic issues, they have also taken a keen interest in foreign policy, especially since the attacks of 9/11.

"Leave Israel alone. Let them do the job," Mr. Hagee told his supporters last week at the banquet. Israel's enemies, said New York Congressman Eliot Engel, one of the few Democratic speakers, "do the work of Satan."

This melding of realpolitik and religion, say former and current U.S. officials, has produced a potent force. Israel's evangelical supporters "were out there before, but didn't really appear on the radar screen," says Dennis Ross, a Middle East envoy in the administrations of both George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton. "Now they are an important part of the landscape." More than any prior White House, the Bush administration has established formal, regular contacts with American evangelical leaders.

The White House says it isn't overly influenced by any one group. "The president makes decisions about policies for our country based on what is right for our citizens," says Dana Perino, deputy press secretary. "The United States has been an ally of Israel since its founding, and President Bush has worked to strengthen that alliance."

The main vehicle for Mr. Hagee's pro-Israel activities over the years has been San Antonio's Cornerstone Church, which he first joined as pastor back in 1975 when it was called Church of Castle Hill, a moribund parish with only a few dozen worshippers and heavy debts. He had quit his previous church the same year during a messy divorce that was quickly followed by his remarriage to a young churchgoer. Attracted by Mr. Hagee's mix of thundering oratory and folksy humor, the congregation mushroomed.

The son of a puritanical preacher, Mr. Hagee first visited Israel in 1978. He says he went there "as a tourist and came back home a Zionist." While in Israel, Mr. Hagee visited Jerusalem's Western Wall and says he felt a "nearness to God like no other place on Earth." At that moment, he recalls, "The Lord required of me to do everything I could to bring Christians and Jews together."

After returning to Texas, Mr. Hagee says he plunged into a "three-year study binge to discover the Jewish roots of Christianity." This coincided with a surge of contacts between American evangelicals and the then Israeli government of Menachem Begin, a devout biblical scholar and hardline defender of Israel's right to territories won in 1967. Mr. Begin worked hard to cultivate American evangelicals, with whom he shared a belief that Israel's birth in 1948 and subsequent struggles were a fulfillment of biblical prophecy.

Mr. Hagee says he met with Mr. Begin three times.

When Mr. Begin ordered Israel's air force to bomb Saddam Hussein's Osirak nuclear reactor in 1981, Mr. Hagee was horrified by widespread criticism that followed. After reading a San Antonio newspaper that described the attack as an act of "gunboat diplomacy," he decided to organize a pro-Israel gathering.

Local Christians initially showed little enthusiasm for the idea. San Antonio's Jewish community was even more wary. "There was a lot of skepticism," recalls Aryeh Scheinberg, an Orthodox rabbi who took part in meetings among Jewish leaders to decide how to respond to Mr. Hagee's proposal. "Everyone wanted to know: 'What does he really want?' I said, 'Let's give the man a chance and take the risk.' "

The pro-Israel gathering went ahead with both Jews and Christians present. As Mr. Scheinberg mounted the podium to deliver a final prayer, security told Mr. Hagee of a bomb threat. Mr. Hagee, a stocky man who got to college on a football scholarship, says he asked God to make the rabbi pray "not like Moses but like a Presbyterian late for lunch." The threat was a hoax.

The event has been held every year since, though some Jewish leaders refuse to attend and reject any alliance with Mr. Hagee. "Many of his views are hateful," says Barry Block, a prominent reform rabbi in San Antonio, who accuses Mr. Hagee of demonizing Muslims and propounding a divisive right-wing agenda that erodes the barrier between church and state.

When addressing Jewish audiences, Mr. Hagee generally avoids talking about Armageddon. But his books, whose titles include "Beginning of the End" and "From Daniel to Doomsday," are filled with death and mayhem. "The battlefield will cover the nation of Israel!" he writes in "Jerusalem Countdown," his recent work, describing a "sea of human blood drained from the veins of those who have followed Satan."

Some fellow evangelicals accuse Mr. Hagee of ignoring Arab Christians. Donald Wagner of North Park University, an evangelical Christian college in Chicago, first traveled to Israel at around the same time as Mr. Hagee but reached the opposite conclusion. "I was very pro-Israel until I went there," says Mr. Wagner, who heads a research group that challenges the theology of Christian Zionists.

A Turn to Television

Little known outside of Texas when he first embraced Zionism, Mr. Hagee turned to television to promote Jesus, Israel and his own name. His main platform for this was Global Evangelism Television Inc., a nonprofit organization. First set up in 1978, GETV initially relayed the programming of others to local cable operators. In the 1980s it began pumping out its own shows featuring Mr. Hagee for broadcast on national Christian networks. His sermons and chat shows now appear on 120 stations and, he says, reach more than 90 million homes.

By the mid-1980s his flock had outgrown his church in central San Antonio. In 1987, Cornerstone moved to a 35-acre suburban campus with a 5,000-person assembly hall and a new television and radio studio.

As his exposure grew, so did controversy. He ran into flak for inviting former White House aide Oliver North, a pardoned felon, and disgraced televangelist Jimmy Swaggart to speak at Cornerstone. He also feuded with the U.S. Postal Service over nonprofit rates for church mailings that contained ads for his books and videos. (He sued and, he says, got a refund of around $40,000.)

Mr. Hagee also upset black leaders. To help students seeking odd jobs, his church newsletter, The Cluster, advertised a "slave" sale. "Slavery in America is returning to Cornerstone," it said. "Make plans to come and go home with a slave." Mr. Hagee apologized but, in a radio interview, protested about pressure to be "politically correct" and joked that perhaps his pet dog should be called a "canine American."

The quarrels didn't stop the steady growth of his congregation, which is multiracial. His "nights to honor Israel" got bigger, too, as did his clout as a fund-raiser for Israeli causes. He says he has raised over $12 million so far.

Increasingly prominent, the preacher attracted the eye and, initially, the ire of Jerry Falwell, the dean of the Christian right and another enthusiastic supporter of Israel.

In 1994, The National Liberty Journal, a conservative monthly run by Mr. Falwell, labeled Mr. Hagee a "heretic" for championing so-called dual-covenant theory -- a belief that Jews and Christians have separate deals with God that allow each to get into heaven. The traditional Christian view is that Jews and other non-Christians must convert -- or end up on the wrong side of the battle of Armageddon.

Soon after the article appeared, Mr. Falwell arranged to meet the Texan at a Christian pow-wow in Memphis. Mr. Hagee, says Mr. Falwell, convinced him that he didn't believe in the "dual covenant." Mr. Falwell now sits on the board of Christians United for Israel.

Mr. Hagee, citing a New Testament verse, says a "remnant of Jewish people...have favor with God right now" but he is vague on which Jews will get to heaven without conversion, saying that only God knows this. He dismisses the dual-covenant issue as "something to start coffee-table debate."

Closer to Power

Mr. Bush's 2000 election victory and the Republican Party's control of both houses of Congress brought evangelical Christians closer to power than ever before. Mr. Hagee had met Mr. Bush several times while he was Texas governor and solidly supported his push for the White House. Mr. Hagee was closer, though, to another powerful Texan, Congressman Tom DeLay. Soon after becoming majority leader in the House of Representatives, Mr. DeLay gave the keynote speech at Mr. Hagee's 2002 pro-Israel gathering in San Antonio. Mr. DeLay, since embroiled in a corruption scandal, also spoke last week in Washington.

In 2003, The San Antonio Express-News dug into Mr. Hagee's filings with the Internal Revenue Service. The article alleged no wrongdoing, but reported that Mr. Hagee received more than $1.25 million in 2001 for his church and TV work and had a trust that includes a nearly 8,000-acre $2.1 million Texas ranch.

Mr. Hagee says that the bulk of his earnings comes from royalty payments from his 21 books, not from churchgoers' donations. He says he'll earn much the same this year if book sales hold up.

His finances under the spotlight, Mr. Hagee reorganized his holdings in a way that allowed him to avoid having to make public filings. In September 2004, Global Evangelism Television re-registered as a church under the name Grace Church of San Antonio. Churches, unlike religious TV companies and other nonprofit outfits, are exempt from filing detailed returns with the IRS. A further reorganization in recent weeks moved all assets into Cornerstone Church. None of the Church's financial records are publicly available. Mr. Hagee said his lawyers had recommended the changes for "greater clarity."

President Bush abandoned President Clinton's efforts to secure a big-bang peace settlement to the Israel-Palestine conflict but, under prodding from Britain and others, did back a slow-paced plan known as the Roadmap for Peace.

In May 2003, Mr. Hagee and other evangelical leaders sent a letter to President Bush applauding the invasion of Iraq but complaining about the Israel-Palestine peace plan. They said it would be "morally reprehensible" for the U.S. to be "evenhanded" between Israel and "the terrorist-infested Palestinian infrastructure."

Last fall, he took his annual "night to honor Israel," to Israel, holding the event in the hangar of an Israeli air-force base. He spoke at the Israeli Parliament and organized a visit for his U.S. followers to Megiddo, an Israeli hilltop that he believes will be the site of the battle of Armageddon.

Mr. Hagee also started laying plans for Christians United for Israel, hoping to meld a plethora of mostly small pro-Israel Christian groups into a national network. He contacted Mr. Falwell, who says he immediately offered support. He hired David Brog, a lawyer who had worked in both Israel and on Capitol Hill and who is a distant cousin of former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, as the new organization's executive director.

As Mr. Hagee's plans took shape last fall, American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the pro-Israel lobby, set up an "outreach" unit to work with Christians and others. Appointed to head the unit was a San Antonio native who had previously worshipped at the synagogue of Mr. Scheinberg, the Orthodox rabbi who has been one of Mr. Hagee's keenest supporters.

Christians United for Israel held its first meeting in San Antonio in February and immediately began organizing last week's Washington event. To galvanize support and allay suspicions in some quarters of his motives, Mr. Hagee traveled around the country, meeting with Christian and Jewish leaders. Some Jews worry that Christian-Zionists want to convert Jews to Christianity, something Mr. Hagee has always denied.

The current eruption of violence, says Mr. Hagee, shows that Israel should not surrender land in search of peace and that Christians and Jews are on the same side.

"If God opposes giving away the land, if it has never worked, let's come up with another plan," he thundered last week. "Do not give the land away. It belongs to you. It is God's heritage to you."

--Karby Leggett in Jerusalem contributed to this article.

by Norio Hayakawa July 26, 2006

The power of America's so-called "Evangelical community" certainly cannot be underestimated. Its influence seems to be huge, to say the least, especially upon this present U.S. Administration. There is no doubt that America's "Evangelical Christians" (i.e., "Christian Zionists") not only support Israel in its totality, but also even seem to welcome an all-out War in the Middle East to "hasten" (or "accelerate") the climate for the realization of "end-time" events long prophecied.

The main reason for this is quite simple. To them, it all started on May 14, 1948 when the State of Israel became a reality in more than 2000 years. It was a miraculous event to the vast majority of American's Fundamentalist Christians then (particularly to those who adhered to the so-called "dispensationalist" interpretation of the Bible) who rejoiced at that unprecedented event, believing that it was the fulfillment of Biblical Prophecy, the beginning of the "end-time" period.

Fundamentalist Christians (such as Baptists, especially the Southern Baptists, Pentecostalists, such as the Assemeblies of God, Foursquare Churches, Full Gospel Churches, and all other denominations of the so-called "born-again", "Evangelical" beliefs), believed that the generation that would wtiness the re-establishment of Israel would also be the generation that would witness the Second Coming of Jesus and the consequent establishment of His Millenial Reign on earth from Israel.
Thus they are all part of the growing and influential "Christian Zionists", which definitely played a major role in the growth of America's so-called Neo-Conservative ("Neo-Cons") movement of recent years.

Going back to the significance of the establishment of Israel in 1948, quite a number of Fundamentalist Christians came to believe that a Biblical generation was 40 years.

However, when 1988 (i.e., 40 years after 1948) came and went by without a whimper, another theory started to pop up. They found a new significant year in 1967, the year in which Israel (through the Six-days War) occupied the city of Jerusalem for the first time in more than 2000 years. Their belief then was that it was the fulfillment of the prophecy that said that "Jerusalem shall be trodden down by the Gentiles until the time of the Gentiles be fulfilled".

Thus, many of the evangelical Christians today came to believe that 1967 marked the beginning of the end of the Gentile rule. A great number of "Evangelicals" today now seem to believe that it is the generation of 1967 that will see the Second Coming of Jeus Christ.

Once again, if they consider a Biblical generation to be 40 years, then the year 2007 to them will be significant for obvious reasons.
(Some of them even say that our present calendar system is off by about 5 years, that the birth of Jesus Christ most likely took place around 5 B.C., which means that instead of 2006, we are now in 2011, and that next year, 2007, will actually be 2012).

In the midst of these speculations by the "Evangelicals" comes the event that is occurring at this very minute.
In this present, escalating Middle East crisis, it is apparent that the vast majority of America's "Evangelicals" not only support Israel's present actions but even seem to support an all-out War in the Middle East, in order to "hasten" (or "accelerate") the climate for the Second Coming of Jesus.

As I mentioned a while ago, America's Neo-Conservative movement (the "Neo-Cons") is based upon the Evangelicals' "undying" support of Israel through their belief that Israel is the fulfillment of Biblical prophecies and that the U.S. must continue to support Israel, no matter what.

Thus the "Evangelicals" and Neo-Cons seem to be pushing for an all-out attack on such as Iran and Syria. Meanwhile, the Israelis seem to be comforted and encouraged by the constant support given to them by America's "Evangelicals". This is indeed a strange alliance. (Some say, however, that the Israelils are simply taking advantage of the "blind support" given to them by America's "Evangelical Christian community").

In order to understand the mind-set of these Fundamentalist, "Evangelical" Christians, I think it is quite important to summarize their beliefs, especially their beliefs regarding the "end-times" prophetic scenarios they envision and expect to happen.
Here are some of the strange "end-times" beliefs of Fundamentalist, "Evangelical" Christians:

STRANGE "END-TIMES" BELIEFS OF FUNDAMENTALIST, "EVANGELICAL" CHRISTIANS

As I mentioned a while ago, one of the main characteristics of America's "Neo-Cons", with the backing of Fundamentalist Christians and "Evangelicals", is their total support of Israel through their belief that contemporary Israel is the fulfillment of Biblical prophecies and the the U.S. must continue to support the State of Israel, no matter what.
A large number of America's Fundamentalist Christians and "Evangelicals", therefore,
seem to believe that we are living in the "end-time" period of God prophetic calendar. I think that it is important to point out some of the "end-time" scenarios as envisioned by these groups.

Here is the typical order of prophetic events to come, as outlined by many Fundamentalist Christians and "Evangelicals" who hold on to the so-called Pre-Millenial, Dispensationalist, Pre-Tribulation viewpoints:

1) THE EZEKIEL 38 SCENARIO

They seem to believe that this could easily begin with the escalation of the Middle East conflict, involving Israel.
The Ezekiel 38 scenario includes the attempted invasion into Israel by all Islamic forces (led and orchestrated by the northern-most power, i.e., Russia) and will conclude with a miraculous Israeli victory.
They believe that it is suggested in the Bible that it will take 7 years to bury the dead from this unprecedented conflagration. (The U.S. could be involved, directly or indirectly in this conflagration, they explain).

2) THE APPEARANCE OF THE ANTI-CHRIST

According to their belief, the Ezekiel 38 scenario will conclude with the appearance of the Anti-Christ who will create a Peace Treaty between Israel and the Palestinians (and all Islamic confederation).
(They say that, for example, Iran's Ahmadinejad believes that he could be the one that could be welcoming the coming, long-awaited Islamic prophet, "Imam" - i.e., the "Anti-Christ", to the Fundamentalist Christians)

3) THE RAPTURE

They say that the Ezekiel 38 scenario could also conclude with the simultaneous disappearance of millions of people from this earth, which will result in total chaos, confusion and fear among the global populace. This, they say, is the "Rapture". It will be a mysterious, mass "evacuation" of the believers to meet the Lord in "mid-air". (The physical bodies will be mysteriously and instantaneously converted to celestial bodies). In other words, "born-again" believers will be translated from one side to the other side, i.e., from the earthly plane to the heavenly dimension and will meet Jesus in "mid-air".
The "Rapture" (from "raptare", to "snatch" away, as in the eagle "snatching" away her baby when danger comes and taking it away to a safer location, etc.), is a supernatural event clearly suggested in the Bible that has not happened yet in the history of mankind, but will be certain to happen, according to most of these pre-tribulationist/dispensationalist believers.
It will be an inexplicable, instantaneous disintegration of all atomic particles of each of our cells of our tissues, i.e., the instant conversion of our physical body into a spiritual, celestial "body" which will be swooshed up into "mid-air". In other words, they believe that "in the twinkling of an eye", our physical bodies will go through a mysterious sudden transmogrification (a favorite word used by John Keel) and will be lifted up to meet the Lord in "mid-air". Our entire physical bodies (the tissues, the cells will go through a sudden, inexplicable atomic fission-type transformation, they say.
They believe that the "Rapture" is a conduit prepared by God for us to escape the coming global wrath know as the Tribulation (comparable to the days of Noah, when God safely placed a few faithful believers in the ark first and then caused the rain to downpour thereafter).
Pre-tribulationist/dispensationalists believe that this unprecedented event will take place simultaneously with the appearance (the revealing) of the Anti-Christ. The Anti-Christ will not be able to come to power until the "body of believers" (together with the presence of the Holy Spirit) is removed from this earth. Only then, at that moment, can the Anti-Christ come into power.
The "Rapture" will literally be a celestial wedding, the union of the bride (the "church" or the "body of believers") and the Groom (Jesus Christ). This "wedding" celebration in the air will last for 7 days, which could be equivalent to 7 earthly years.

4) THE ANTI-CHRIST SUCCEEDS IN CALMING DOWN THE STUNNED, CONFUSED AND FEAR-FILLED POPULACE

When the Anti-Christ appears on global emergency TV news conference, many of these Fundamentalist Christians say that he could calm down the frightened people of the earth with his ingenious, well-calculated explanation regarding the sudden disappearance of millions of people from the earth; this could be when "UFOs" are brought up; the Anti-Christ could use some type of "extraterrestrial" intervention explanation.

(I would venture to say that in the United States, the majority of the so-called Fundamentalist, Evangelical Christians hold on to the viewpoint that somehow the "UFO" phenomenon is "Satanic" or "diabolical". These groups seem to believe that "UFOs" will play a major role in these future biblical prophecies.

Some theorists even believe that if a global government of some sort is to be set up intentionally (by force) in the future, there are several ways to accomplish it. Creating wars is one example, they say. Creating other series of "crises" is another, such as taking advantages of natural global catastrophes, or even creating artificial ones. We all heard of the "ORDO AB CHAOS" theory.

They also point out that Henry Kissinger at one time suggested (in a statement he allegedly made in 1992 in Evians, France) that should the world suddenly face an external threat (i.e., from "outer space") whether REAL or PROMULGATED, it would accelerate a cry for a global unified government. They say that Ronald Reagan and Gorbachev also had allegedly made such similar remarks, that if the world is faced with such an extraterrestrial threat, we will all forget our differences and be united as one to defend this earth from such threats.

Can the "world government" stage a deceptive, "alien-contact-landing" scenario?
If the secret government were to stage such a fake, "extraterrestrial" type of event, it would definitely be beneficial to them if there remains an adamant element of society who have always believed in "UFOs" and "aliens".)

In any case, Fundamentalist "Evangelical" Christians seem to believe that somehow the Anti-Christ will come up with a brilliant, convincing explanation for the "Rapture" event and that somehow, (supernaturally) the world will have a sigh of relief by his explanation.

5) THE BEGINNING OF THE 7-YEAR TRIBULATION PERIOD

That will be the beginning of the 7-year Tribulation Period (i.e., the "New World Order" of the Anti-Christ, the first half of which will be relatively peaceful, and the second half of which will be an iron-fisted rule of the Anti-Christ, who will declare himself to be God at mid-point).

6) THE BATTLE OF ARMAGGEDON:

Towards the end of the 7th year, nations such as Red China (and the rest of the "Kings of the East") will challenge the dictatorship of Anti-Christ's Europe-based New World Order and will begin to cross the Euphrates and make a move towards the valley of Meggido.
This battle, the battle of Armaggedon, will be the final global battle.
During the climax of this battle, celestial forces led by Jesus Christ (and accompanied by those who had been "raptured") will descend and will destroy all earthly forces.

7) A THOUSAND YEAR REIGN OF JESUS CHRIST FROM ISRAEL

Jesus Christ will rule from Israel for a 1000 years. This is the Millenial Kingdom.

8) FINAL, MINOR REBELLION

At the end of the 1000 years, there will be a minor rebellion by the descendants of those who may have survived the Armaggedon and continued to procreate, thus having physical bodies. That minor rebellion will be crushed by God.

9) THE FINAL JUDGMENT

This is the gist of the events to occur in the near future, according to many of the so-called Fundamentalist, Dispensationalist, Evangelical, Pre-Millenial and Pre-Tribulational Christians.
Is this all wild, "science fiction"?
Maybe. But again, no one knows.
Does it hurt to believe in this "unbelievable" scenario?
These "Evangelical" Christians seem to say that it won't hurt at all to believe that such scenarios could come true.
They say that they have nothing to lose by believing in it even if it doesn't come true, but everything to gain if it indeed takes place, if one is a believer.

Norio Hayakawa

In a characteristic op-ed, titled "Arithmetic of Pain", that would surprise neither his supporters nor his critics, published by the Wall Street Journal on 19 July 2006, Alan Dershowitz sinks to new lows of depravity and inhumanity in his long-standing hate-mongering and truth-twisting anti-Arab, pro-Israel crusade.

One need not go beyond the first paragraph to be hit by a dose of Dershowitz's typically one-sided, see-no-evil/hear-no-evil attitude when he tackles Israel-related subjects and issues. This eternally unbalanced pro-Israel disposition on his part does Israel no good, for it shows him to be a fundamentalist who has no time for truth and facts. His extremism therefore diminishes greatly the value of any "support" he may providing to Israel.

Dershowitz's first sentence gives his game away: "There is no democracy in the world that should tolerate missiles being fired at its cities without taking every reasonable step to stop the attacks." Anyone remotely familiar with Dershowitz's writings would know that he considers only Israel to be a Middle-Eastern democracy. This erroneous view is shared and perpetrated by most of the corporate Western media, and a distressingly large percentage of the American public. However, Lebanon also, is a Middle-Eastern democracy, and an older one than Israel at that. And since Dershowitz's statements must apply to all democracies for them to have any useful validity, the Lebanese would be, should be, and are indeed equally justified when they decide to no longer "tolerate (Israeli) missiles fired at" their country.

Likewise, Palestine is another Middle-Eastern democracy, certified as such by no less than former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, whose authority on these matters, through his work at the Carter Center, which certifies dozens of international elections, is well established. Aren't Palestinians therefore equally justified in "taking every reasonable step to stop (Israeli) attacks against their cities"?

Alan Dershowitz, intelligent though he may be otherwise, is incapable of entertaining such logical thoughts. It is said that the mark of a civilized mind consists in its ability to entertain two opposing ideas simultaneously. When it comes to Israel, Dershowitz is incapable of entertaining two supporting ideas simultaneously, if such a consideration would make them equally valid for both Israel and its Arab neighbors.

Being a good propagandist, Dershowitz sets the stage early in favor of Israel by defining its actions, and its actions alone, a priori as "reasonable." Thus, you already know that the rest of his piece will be dedicated to reinforcing that assertion: only Israel is reasonable; the Palestinians and Lebanese never are.

Dershowitz writes therefore: "The big question raised by Israel's military actions in Lebanon is what is 'reasonable.' The answer, according to the laws of war, is that it is reasonable to attack military targets, so long as every effort is made to reduce civilian casualties. If the objectives cannot be achieved without some civilian casualties, these must be "proportional" to the civilian casualties that would be prevented by the military action."

Thus, Dershowitz implies that Israel's assault on Lebanon, which has killed close to 500 innocent civilians, compared with 18 Israeli civilians killed by Hizbollah's response, is not only "reasonable", but "proportional." This is a typical racist argument, which states that when you kill one of ours, and we kill 20 of yours, our action is by definition reasonable and proportional. In other words, racists do not assign equal value to the lives of "others" compared to theirs. The U.S., of course, is equally steeped in this racist mind-set, with many Americans continuing to perpetrate Jimmy Carter's assertion that there was "equal and mutual destruction" between American and Vietnam. The numbers involved speak to the racism and inhumanity that such a statement represents: Americans killed: 52,000; Vietnamese killed: over 2.5 million! "Equal and mutual" in Jimmy Carter's racist vocabulary become "Reasonable and Proportional" when Dershowitz applies the terms to Israel's actions.

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