Getting an earful ... loudspeakers held up near the Nativity Church pump out the noise. Photo: AFP,
Posted on 04/16/2002 1:49:54 PM PDT by history_matters
By Alan Philps in Jerusalem
April 16 2002
Daily Telegraph, London
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Getting an earful ... loudspeakers held up near the Nativity Church pump out the noise. Photo: AFP, |
The Israeli Army is broadcasting ear-splitting screeches and wails at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, traditional site of Jesus' birth, to force out 200 Palestinians besieged there.
Troops brought in a crane to hoist loudspeakers over the ancient basilica, one of the holiest shrines in Christendom, as part of what one person inside called "psycho terror". One of the noises sounds like a car alarm.
Camped outside the church, the army estimates there are about 50 wanted Palestinian militants inside, with clergy and civilians.
The Israeli Government offered a deal on Sunday under which the wanted men would be given a choice between permanent exile and trial before a military court. "If they leave, it's for good but, if they stay, then they will have to stand trial in Israel," said a spokesman for the Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon. The offer was put by the US Secretary of State, Colin Powell, to the Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, during talks on Sunday.
Palestinian negotiators immediately rejected it, saying the men would not accept exile, and if they were to be judged it should be before a Palestinian court. But they would accept any deal that Mr Arafat approved.
In an appeal on Friday the trapped Palestinians called for United Nations intervention to save them from "a slow death".
They have been deprived of food for almost two weeks, and the army has shot at Palestinian youths lobbing bags of bread into the compound.
"We are hearing loud whistles and screeches in the daytime and now at night," said the Governor of Bethlehem, Mahmoud Madani, who is inside the church. "They want to destroy our morale, but the only solution is a negotiated settlement."
The church has responded to the caterwauling by ringing its bells.
In a major blow to the Palestinian resistance, Israel last night arrested Marwan Barghouthi, a leader of Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction in the West Bank and regarded by Israel as the top militant in the area, Israeli security sources said.
Barghouthi, sought by Israel since it launched a West Bank offensive on March 29, was arrested in the city of Ramallah, the sources said.
Lol. First glance shows the photo to reside on "whatreallyhappened.com", which is Michael Rivero's site if I'm not mistaken - a site that nowadays is almost exclusively linked to by neo-nazi and jihadist sites.
If God cared about bricks and morter, he would have built them himself. What has been sanctified and dedicated exclusively to God's service is us. WE are what God cares about, not buildings. We are the ones who need buildings to focus our attention on God. All you have to do to see the cathedrals that God has built is look around you. Look at the Grand Canyon, look at the sunrise, look at a rose. None of these things can be disturbed by noise or guns or foolish people.
We build churches to prove to God how much we charish Him, but he doesn't want or even need the churches. He wants US, and if we need the churches to find him, then that's OK.
Remember, "Where ever there are two or more gathered in My name, there I shall be also".
We should treat churches with reverence, but it's foolish to believe that it matters one whit to God.
I don't think it would be possible for me to disagree with you more strongly. The Lord's teaching regarding the Tabernacle in the wilderness and the building and rebuilding of the Temple shows that he cares a very great deal about the places dedicated to his true worship.
No building, no matter how historical, is worth people sacraficing their life over. The priests should just leave and let the chruch be stormed.
Of course, the truth of the matter is the preists couldn't leave even if they wanted to. They are being held as hostages.
If God cared that much about the Temple it wouldn't need rebuilding. It could never have been destroyed in the first place. These buildings mean something to only to us and they are used by God to communicate with us, nothing more. Christ did most of his teachings outside of the temples, Abraham did not worship in a temple, and Moses never got the chance to see the temple. They are symbols to US because we are small and think we need a bridge to reach God. There is nothing wrong with that, it's even very useful. But to tie your faith to a building, allowing your faith in God to be shaken because someone is playing loud music outside is downright silly.
It's interesting to note that the Palestinians rushed into a Christian church in order to receive sanctuary from the very "infidels" they are so opposed to. The simple fact is, they are children of God also. They do have to pay for the consequences of their actions, but sanctuary is not the action they have to pay for. It's the murder and the hatred and the lack of respect for human life. Human life, THAT is God's cathedral.
Have a look at this link
Invisible Weapon, I take it, would be a Seattle grunge band...
Food, water, and medical help are all within their reach, once they decide to reach for it.
All they have to do is surrender. The Israelis are only interested in those who have committed crimes against humanity.
I have great respect for the priests and the nuns who have remained inside the church, but again, it is their choice (or at least that is what we are being told.)
Great idea - loud, loud ,loud, piglets at market - the old way- tied up and slit with a knife. That would likely unnerve a lot of these "Peaceful", "Humble", A$$hole Cowards hiding in a Church.
Hey- how about just slitting the occaisonal pig and throwing it over the wall?
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