But for once, Mr. Raimondo did have something to contribute to FreeRepublic. Namely, he linked his rant to the Rod Drehar article in NationalReviewOnline that apparently sparked his interest in the subject...
And that article has some fascinating insights and information... Pardon me for not having paid attention, but I'd never really had a clue why the Muslims had gotten so bent out of shape when Sharon went up to the Dome of the Rock.
The following makes it all clear. It was worth slogging through Justin's column to get to. Of course, Justin doesn't bother to mention that there is also a Muslim eschatology at work here, an "end days" O.K. Corral scenario that neatly corresponds to and transposes everything referred to in the New and Old Testament sources... Muslims, too, share the sacred belief that the Messiah/Jesus will return... to the Dome of the Rock ...as a "Muslim prophet"... And all the Jews will be killed, as the 'very stones cry out', 'there is a jew behind me, kill him'... And all 3 religions have their eyes square on the same couple of acres of real estate...
...This past weekend I watched a Sunday morning news interview with a young Palestinian woman who'd been captured by the Israelis before she could detonate herself. She's got a 7 year old daughter but didn't seem to be second-guessing herself in the least. It was just a way to 'make everything right with God, wipe the slate clean for all the mistakes in her life', the ultimate, best sacrifice... to kill some infidels, the more the better....
The 9/11 suicide bombers took out the most lives, so no doubt the most merciful Allah loves them best of all...
Anyway, this is what I found so interesting in Rod Drehar's article, that Justin linked to:
"...To Jews who adhere to ancient tradition, whose number includes religious Israeli nationalists, the long-awaited Messiah will return to become the king of Israel and high priest of a rebuilt Temple, which can only be on Temple Mount. For Christian fundamentalists, Jesus Christ's return at the height of the battle of Armageddon, in which forces of the Antichrist clash in Israel with a 200 million-man army from the East, will require a Third Temple from which the Lord will begin a millennial reign. And for Muslims, an Antichrist figure called the Dajal will be a Jew who will lead an all-encompassing war against Islam, which will culminate in the return of Jesus (as a Muslim prophet), the Kaaba, or Sacred Rock in Mecca, transporting itself to Jerusalem, and final judgment in the valley just below the Noble Sanctuary.
"What happens at that one spot, more than anywhere else, quickens expectations of the End in three religions. And at that spot, the danger of provoking catastrophe is greatest," writes Israeli journalist Gershom Gorenberg in "The End of Days", his 2000 book about the apocalyptic struggle over the Temple Mount...
...The unshakable belief in particular prophetic visions — Jewish, Christian, or Islamic — makes the art of political compromise impossible when it comes to Jerusalem. Says Weber: "There's no way to negotiate these ideas. If you believe that this is in the prophetic cards, that this is history before it happens, that this is how God is going to manipulate events to bring about the final phase of human history, then you cannot negotiate land for peace, or anything else."
Put another way: You don't have to believe that a rust-colored calf could bring about the end of the world — or that 72 black-eyed virgins await the pious Islamic suicide bomber in paradise — but there are many people who do, and are prepared to act on that belief. This is a stubborn reality that eludes many of us in the modern, secular West, particularly those who work in the media, and who are therefore responsible for reporting and explaining the world to the masses.
Thank you, Justin, for linking to someone who's capable of discussing these subjects so plainly and even-handedly, without the least excess of undue rancor or bile.
The complete R. Drehar article:
So wonder why the Muslims sealed the Golden Gate in Jerusalem and put a cemetary in front of it to try to prevent the Jewish Messiah/Jesus from entering as prophesied?