Christian Fundamentalism and Zionism

August 18, 2009

Dear All,

i have an interest in the topic of Christian fundamentalism and Zionism, as i

was brought up as a fundamentalist Christian with the teaching that Israel was

God's special land and people. Shri Mataji has clarified the fundamental truth

that the people of every race, culture and religion are God's special people and

that Israel is a metaphorical example of that, borne out by what has happened to

Her, historically. Israel shows us that although we have lost our true spiritual

home, our true spiritual heritage, and have been wandering in the barren desert

for many years that if we wish to, we can return to the Holy land that is

flowing with milk and honey. Metaphorically, it means we can come back to the

Zion Within.

A lot of the Jewish religion seems to have been overtaken by Zionism, which is

not the pure religion of their forefathers. As Christian fundamentalists, we

were not aware that Zionism was religion mixed up with politics. If we had been

aware of that, some things would have been different. As it is, Zionism has been

so subtly interwoven into Christian fundamentalism that it is almost

imperceptible. As Mennonites, we were as apolitical as we could be. We did not

even fight as soldiers in a war, being the " conscientious objectors " that we

were. The Ten Commandments stated that it was a sin to kill any man and for us,

war was no exception to that commandment of God. We believed that God would

protect us, and He did, as long as we trusted in Him. We thought Zionism to be

the coming heavenly Kingdom of God, which we also sang about in this hymn,

called " Marching to Zion " :

Marching to Zion

Come, we that love the Lord,

And let our joys be known;

Join in a song with sweet accord,

Join in a song with sweet accord

And thus surround the throne,

And thus surround the throne.

Refrain

We're marching to Zion,

Beautiful, beautiful Zion;

We're marching upward to Zion,

The beautiful city of God.

The sorrows of the mind

Be banished from the place;

Religion never was designed

Religion never was designed,

To make our pleasures less,

To make our pleasures less.

Refrain

Let those refuse to sing,

Who never knew our God;

But favorites of the heavenly King,

But favorites of the heavenly King

May speak their joys abroad,

May speak their joys abroad.

Refrain

The God that rules on high,

And thunders when He please,

Who rides upon the stormy sky,

And manages the seas,

And manages the seas.

Refrain

This awful God is ours,

Our Father and our Love;

He will send down his heav'nly powers,

To carry us above,

To carry us above.

Refrain

There we shall see His face,

And never, never sin!

There, from the rivers of His grace,

Drink endless pleasures in,

Drink endless pleasures in.

Refrain

Yea, and before we rise,

To that immortal state,

The thoughts of such amazing bliss,

Should constant joys create,

Should constant joys create.

Refrain

The men of grace have found,

Glory begun below.

Celestial fruits on earthly ground

From faith and hope may grow,

From faith and hope may grow.

Refrain

The hill of Zion yields

A thousand sacred sweets

Before we reach the heav'nly fields,

Or walk the golden streets,

Or walk the golden streets.

Refrain

Then let our songs abound,

And every tear be dry;

We're marching through Immanuel's ground,

To fairer worlds on high,

To fairer worlds on high.

Refrain

The Zion that we sang about and that was very much in our consciousness had

nothing to do with politics as far as we knew. It was purely about our

relationship with God, the Spirit within us, and about going to our heavenly

home. i thank God that through the Advent of Shri Mataji and Her ability to

awaken the Holy Spirit within us (a.k.a. " Self-realization " , i.e., the

realization that we are the Spirit) - that myself and others have experienced

our heavenly home within, our Zion within, while yet in our physical bodies. We

do not have to longingly sing about a future arrival into the Kingdom of God. It

is about becoming the Spirit, now. Christ said that He would send a Helper to

help the Spirit that is " with us " to awaken " in us " :

" And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that S/He may

be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive

because it does not behold Her or know Her, but you know Her, because S/He

abides with you, and will be in you. " (Jesus Christ - John 14:16-17)

" The Holy Spirit/Shekinah is frequently described as some mysterious, creative

power of God. But when we actually turn to that 'Spirit of God that dwells in

us', She is mysterious no longer, for She is the One that is present within us

to give us that Second Birth " :

http://www.holyspirit-shekinah.org/

But this beautiful Zion of my childhood has gotten mixed up with politics and

the external symbolic Israel/Zion is not yet living up to its heavenly

symbolism, as we Christian fundamentalists were strongly led to believe it was.

We had been led to believe that not only was there this " sweet accord " in the

spiritual Zion, but that it was also there in the physical Zion, which is why we

sang with even more conviction about Zion, that:

" Come, we that love the Lord,

And let our joys be known;

Join in a song with sweet accord,

Join in a song with sweet accord

And thus surround the throne,

And thus surround the throne. "

We really did not know while we were singing, in Canada, about this " sweet

accord " that it was not literally there in the physical Zion. We had been told

in Sunday School that Israel/Zion was a land flowing with milk and honey. In my

child's imagination i found this assertion fantastically unbelievable, but when

i questioned its literal truth, i was told that, " It says so in the Bible and

therefore it is true! " Children should be told when something is not literally

true, but only allegorically true. However, in this case not even the adults

seemed to distinguish the difference. If they did, which i doubt, they did not

say so. They too had this generational belief passed down to them as children,

and questioning it was discouraged, even forbidden. It was simply a core

understanding of the Christian fundamentalist values - and that was that.

It is a fault of Christian fundamentalism that it takes what is metaphorical,

literally. Christian fundamentalists have this desire, and are also greatly

encouraged to go to the Holy Land sometime in their lifetime, since Jesus Christ

sojourned there. But in the deepest recesses of their heart, mind and soul, they

are also longing for this Land of Milk and Honey they were taught about as

children, which though, can only be found " within " themselves! It can't be found

outside themselves.

For the abovementioned reasons Christian fundamentalists have been at risk of

blindly supporting Zion-ism, as the appended article will show. The " ism "

indicates that Zionism is something other than the pure Zion within - which is

the spiritual reality. Sadly, how many Christians will still in all innocence

and honesty be able to sing, " We're Marching to Zion " - as many more must

realize that the physical counterpart is not living up to its spiritual

namesake, as Christians were led to believe it was. Hopefully one day we will

truly be able to say that, " It is a land of sweet accord, flowing with milk and

honey. "

with Love to all,

violet

WASHINGTON REPORT On Middle East Affairs

Israeli Extremists and Christian Fundamentalists:

The Alliance

By Grace Halsell

December 1988, Page 31

At the time I began my research for my book Prophecy and Politics, I discovered

the average American I met in Washington, DC, and New York was not interested in

TV evangelists and their link to Israel. Neither were book editors. I went to 25

top editors in New York with my book idea on religion and politics. Michael

Korda of Simon and Schuster was typical. " Jerry Falwell? Pat Robertson? Who is

interested in those crazies? "

By the time my book came out those " crazies " were on the front page of every

American newspaper and on every news channel. Of course, I didn't give them this

instant fame, which extended throughout the world. Two of them earned it

themselves by being in the middle of scandals.

The press told us that Jim Bakker had committed adultery and that Jimmy Swaggart

regularly visited a prostitute. A fellow marine said Pat Robertson never had to

dodge bullets in Korea because he had used his father's influence as a senator

to escape front line duty. But almost everyone ignored the biggest scandal of

all: the peculiar mixture of prophecy and politics professed by these and other

Christian Zionists.

The Christian Zionists Message

What is the message of the Christian Zionist? Simply stated it is this: Every

act taken by Israel is orchestrated by God, and should be condoned, supported,

and even praised by the rest of us.

" Never mind what Israel does, " say the Christian Zionists. " God wants this to

happen. " This includes the invasion of Lebanon, which killed or injured an

estimated 100,000 Lebanese and Palestinians, most of them civilians; the bombing

of sovereign nations such as Iraq; the deliberate, methodical brutalizing of the

Palestinians-breaking bones, shooting children, and demolishing homes; and the

expulsion of Palestinian Christians and Muslims from a land they have occupied

for over 2,000 years.

My premise in Prophecy and Politics is that Christian Zionism is a dangerous and

growing segment of Christianity, which was popularized by the 19th-century

American Cyrus Scofield when he wrote into a Bible his interpretation of events

in history. These events all centered around Israel-past, present, and future.

His Scofield Bible is today the most popular of the reference Bibles.

Scofield said that Christ cannot return to earth until certain events occur: The

Jews must return to Palestine, gain control of Jerusalem and rebuild a temple,

and then we all must engage in the final, great battle called Armageddon.

Estimates vary, but most students of Armageddon theology agree that as a result

of these relatively recent interpretations of Biblical scripture, 10 to 40

million Americans believe Palestine is God's chosen land for the Jews.

Has the power of the Christian Zionists diminished?

I do not think so. Rather, we are seeing how the Christian Zionists, motivated

by religious beliefs, are working hand in glove with politically motivated,

militant Jewish Zionists around the world. It is the Christian support of

Zionism that emboldens Zionists to believe they can dictate to relatively weak

and dependent countries such as Austria, whom they may choose as their

president.

It is the Christian support of Zionism that allows Manuel Noriega to remain the

strongman in Panama, misusing his power, regardless of what harm he causes to

the United States, his neighbors, and his people.

It is the Christian support of Zionism that enables the militant Israelis to

take over Palestinian homes surrounding the Al-Aqsa mosque in pursuit of their

well-documented plan to destroy Jerusalem's most holy Islamic site, sacred to a

billion Muslims around the world-one-fifth of humanity.

Christian Zionists and the Iran-Contra Scandal

Remarkably, it was this Christian cult of Israel that brought us the Iran contra

scandal, perhaps the most self-destructive act in the history of the United

States. Marine Col. Oliver North, the perpetrator of this misguided series of

actions, is a Christian Zionist. A born-again charismatic figure, he endeared

himself to the militant Israeli Zionists who plotted Iran-contra. " He is more

Israeli, " said one Jewish general, " than we Israelis. " This is often the case.

In his zealotry, the Christian Zionist can become more Zionist, more militant,

than the Jewish Zionist.

In the Iran-contra hearings, Sen. James McClure (R-ID) explained to North that

the US had a stated policy of neutrality in the Iran-Iraq war. That policy

differed radically from Israel's policy of selling arms to Iran. Yes, agreed

North, the two policies were not the same. The question, to which McClure's

efforts yielded no response, then becomes: Why would the US forego its American

policy to pursue Israeli policy?

The answer, unfortunately, lies in the belief system of Christian Zionists: They

believe that what Israel wants is what God wants. Therefore, it is perfectly

acceptable to give the green light to whatever it is Israel wants and then

conceal this from the American people. Anything, including lies, theft, even

murder, is justified as long as Israel wants it.

Another perfect example of a Christian Zionist is Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI).

Throughout the hearings on the Iran-contra scandal, the Hawaiian kept the focus

on the contras and steered determinedly clear of any criticism of Israel. If, in

answer to questions, witnesses sought to explain the seminal and continuing role

of Israel, Inouye abruptly broke off the line of questioning that had led the

hearings to this unwanted destination.

Despite the political problems created by its lay practitioners and the scandals

that rocked some of its TV ministries, this belief system-this cult of

Israel-has not been diminished.

Indeed, I hold that Christian Zionism threatens not just the lives of

Palestinians and other Arabs, but the very existence of the United States.

Because of the cult of Israel, we have become a nation that does not have its

own Middle East policy, but the policy the government of Israel tells us to

have.

Despite the terrifying aspects of the alliance of militant Christians with

militant Jewish Zionists, I find some encouraging developments. In my visits to

colleges, clubs, and churches around the country, I have found strong support

for the message and warning in Prophecy and Politics. It has come not only from

liberal congregations, but from across the whole spectrum of Christianity,

including those Christians who call themselves fundamentalists. These supporters

see Christ as the bearer to humanity of God's message of peace, brotherhood,

love, and reconciliation. These Christians do not endorse either the cult of

Israel or its killings and beatings of Palestinians.

I have found many such Christians in my frequent visits to my home state of

Texas. There and all over this slowly-awakening land of ours, I have found a

small but increasing number of ministers and lay people who are deeply alarmed

by the cult of Israel and willing to stand up and speak out about it.

Grace Halsell's book, Prophecy and Politics. The Secret Alliance Between Israel

and the US Christian Right Is available through the AET Book Club Catalog to

readers of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.

(This article was adapted by author Grace Halsell from her speech at the North

American Regional Non-Governmental Symposium on the Question of Palestine held

in June 1988 at the United Nations headquarters in New York.)

August 20, 2009

Thank you Violet, it is very moving and very deep

With Love

nicole--- On Tue, 18/8/09, Violet <violetubb wrote:

Violet <violetubb Christian Fundamentalism and Zionism Date: Tuesday, 18 August, 2009, 8:20 AM

Dear All,i have an interest in the topic of Christian fundamentalism and Zionism, as i was brought up as a fundamentalist Christian with the teaching that Israel was God's special land and people. Shri Mataji has clarified the fundamental truth that the people of every race, culture and religion are God's special people and that Israel is a metaphorical example of that, borne out by what has happened to Her, historically. Israel shows us that although we have lost our true spiritual home, our true spiritual heritage, and have been wandering in the barren desert for many years that if we wish to, we can return to the Holy land that is flowing with milk and honey. Metaphorically, it means we can come back to the Zion Within.A lot of the Jewish religion seems to have been overtaken by Zionism, which is not the pure religion of their forefathers. As Christian fundamentalists, we were not aware that Zionism was religion mixed up with

politics. If we had been aware of that, some things would have been different. As it is, Zionism has been so subtly interwoven into Christian fundamentalism that it is almost imperceptible. As Mennonites, we were as apolitical as we could be. We did not even fight as soldiers in a war, being the "conscientious objectors" that we were. The Ten Commandments stated that it was a sin to kill any man and for us, war was no exception to that commandment of God. We believed that God would protect us, and He did, as long as we trusted in Him. We thought Zionism to be the coming heavenly Kingdom of God, which we also sang about in this hymn, called "Marching to Zion":Marching to ZionCome, we that love the Lord,And let our joys be known;Join in a song with sweet accord,Join in a song with sweet accordAnd thus surround the throne,And thus surround the throne.RefrainWe're marching to Zion,Beautiful, beautiful

Zion;We're marching upward to Zion,The beautiful city of God.The sorrows of the mindBe banished from the place;Religion never was designedReligion never was designed,To make our pleasures less,To make our pleasures less.RefrainLet those refuse to sing,Who never knew our God;But favorites of the heavenly King,But favorites of the heavenly KingMay speak their joys abroad,May speak their joys abroad.RefrainThe God that rules on high,And thunders when He please,Who rides upon the stormy sky,Who rides upon the stormy sky,And manages the seas,And manages the seas.RefrainThis awful God is ours,Our Father and our Love;He will send down his heav'nly powers,He will send down his heav'nly powers,To carry us above,To carry us above.RefrainThere we shall see His face,And never, never sin!There, from

the rivers of His grace,There, from the rivers of His grace,Drink endless pleasures in,Drink endless pleasures in.RefrainYea, and before we rise,To that immortal state,The thoughts of such amazing bliss,The thoughts of such amazing bliss,Should constant joys create,Should constant joys create.RefrainThe men of grace have found,Glory begun below.Celestial fruits on earthly groundCelestial fruits on earthly groundFrom faith and hope may grow,From faith and hope may grow.RefrainThe hill of Zion yieldsA thousand sacred sweetsBefore we reach the heav'nly fields,Before we reach the heav'nly fields,Or walk the golden streets,Or walk the golden streets.RefrainThen let our songs abound,And every tear be dry;We're marching through Immanuel's ground,We're marching through Immanuel's ground,To fairer worlds on

high,To fairer worlds on high.RefrainThe Zion that we sang about and that was very much in our consciousness had nothing to do with politics as far as we knew. It was purely about our relationship with God, the Spirit within us, and about going to our heavenly home. i thank God that through the Advent of Shri Mataji and Her ability to awaken the Holy Spirit within us (a.k.a. "Self-realization" , i.e., the realization that we are the Spirit) - that myself and others have experienced our heavenly home within, our Zion within, while yet in our physical bodies. We do not have to longingly sing about a future arrival into the Kingdom of God. It is about becoming the Spirit, now. Christ said that He would send a Helper to help the Spirit that is "with us" to awaken "in us":"And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that S/He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive

because it does not behold Her or know Her, but you know Her, because S/He abides with you, and will be in you." (Jesus Christ - John 14:16-17)"The Holy Spirit/Shekinah is frequently described as some mysterious, creative power of God. But when we actually turn to that 'Spirit of God that dwells in us', She is mysterious no longer, for She is the One that is present within us to give us that Second Birth":http://www.holyspir it-shekinah. org/But this beautiful Zion of my childhood has gotten mixed up with politics and the external symbolic Israel/Zion is not yet living up to its heavenly symbolism, as we Christian fundamentalists were strongly led to believe it was. We had been led to believe that not only was there this "sweet accord" in the spiritual Zion, but that it was also there in the physical Zion, which is why we sang with even more conviction

about Zion, that:"Come, we that love the Lord,And let our joys be known;Join in a song with sweet accord,Join in a song with sweet accordAnd thus surround the throne,And thus surround the throne."We really did not know while we were singing, in Canada, about this "sweet accord" that it was not literally there in the physical Zion. We had been told in Sunday School that Israel/Zion was a land flowing with milk and honey. In my child's imagination i found this assertion fantastically unbelievable, but when i questioned its literal truth, i was told that, "It says so in the Bible and therefore it is true!" Children should be told when something is not literally true, but only allegorically true. However, in this case not even the adults seemed to distinguish the difference. If they did, which i doubt, they did not say so. They too had this generational belief passed down to them as children, and questioning it was

discouraged, even forbidden. It was simply a core understanding of the Christian fundamentalist values - and that was that.It is a fault of Christian fundamentalism that it takes what is metaphorical, literally. Christian fundamentalists have this desire, and are also greatly encouraged to go to the Holy Land sometime in their lifetime, since Jesus Christ sojourned there. But in the deepest recesses of their heart, mind and soul, they are also longing for this Land of Milk and Honey they were taught about as children, which though, can only be found "within" themselves! It can't be found outside themselves.For the abovementioned reasons Christian fundamentalists have been at risk of blindly supporting Zion-ism, as the appended article will show. The "ism" indicates that Zionism is something other than the pure Zion within - which is the spiritual reality. Sadly, how many Christians will still in all innocence and honesty be able to sing,

"We're Marching to Zion" - as many more must realize that the physical counterpart is not living up to its spiritual namesake, as Christians were led to believe it was. Hopefully one day we will truly be able to say that, "It is a land of sweet accord, flowing with milk and honey."with Love to all,violetWASHINGTON REPORT On Middle East AffairsIsraeli Extremists and Christian Fundamentalists:The AllianceBy Grace HalsellDecember 1988, Page 31At the time I began my research for my book Prophecy and Politics, I discovered the average American I met in Washington, DC, and New York was not interested in TV evangelists and their link to Israel. Neither were book editors. I went to 25 top editors in New York with my book idea on religion and politics. Michael Korda of Simon and Schuster was typical. "Jerry Falwell? Pat Robertson? Who is interested in those crazies?"By the time my book came

out those "crazies" were on the front page of every American newspaper and on every news channel. Of course, I didn't give them this instant fame, which extended throughout the world. Two of them earned it themselves by being in the middle of scandals.The press told us that Jim Bakker had committed adultery and that Jimmy Swaggart regularly visited a prostitute. A fellow marine said Pat Robertson never had to dodge bullets in Korea because he had used his father's influence as a senator to escape front line duty. But almost everyone ignored the biggest scandal of all: the peculiar mixture of prophecy and politics professed by these and other Christian Zionists.The Christian Zionists MessageWhat is the message of the Christian Zionist? Simply stated it is this: Every act taken by Israel is orchestrated by God, and should be condoned, supported, and even praised by the rest of us."Never mind what Israel does," say the

Christian Zionists. "God wants this to happen." This includes the invasion of Lebanon, which killed or injured an estimated 100,000 Lebanese and Palestinians, most of them civilians; the bombing of sovereign nations such as Iraq; the deliberate, methodical brutalizing of the Palestinians- breaking bones, shooting children, and demolishing homes; and the expulsion of Palestinian Christians and Muslims from a land they have occupied for over 2,000 years.My premise in Prophecy and Politics is that Christian Zionism is a dangerous and growing segment of Christianity, which was popularized by the 19th-century American Cyrus Scofield when he wrote into a Bible his interpretation of events in history. These events all centered around Israel-past, present, and future. His Scofield Bible is today the most popular of the reference Bibles.Scofield said that Christ cannot return to earth until certain events occur: The Jews must return to Palestine,

gain control of Jerusalem and rebuild a temple, and then we all must engage in the final, great battle called Armageddon. Estimates vary, but most students of Armageddon theology agree that as a result of these relatively recent interpretations of Biblical scripture, 10 to 40 million Americans believe Palestine is God's chosen land for the Jews.Has the power of the Christian Zionists diminished?I do not think so. Rather, we are seeing how the Christian Zionists, motivated by religious beliefs, are working hand in glove with politically motivated, militant Jewish Zionists around the world. It is the Christian support of Zionism that emboldens Zionists to believe they can dictate to relatively weak and dependent countries such as Austria, whom they may choose as their president.It is the Christian support of Zionism that allows Manuel Noriega to remain the strongman in Panama, misusing his power, regardless of what harm he causes

to the United States, his neighbors, and his people.It is the Christian support of Zionism that enables the militant Israelis to take over Palestinian homes surrounding the Al-Aqsa mosque in pursuit of their well-documented plan to destroy Jerusalem's most holy Islamic site, sacred to a billion Muslims around the world-one-fifth of humanity.Christian Zionists and the Iran-Contra ScandalRemarkably, it was this Christian cult of Israel that brought us the Iran contra scandal, perhaps the most self-destructive act in the history of the United States. Marine Col. Oliver North, the perpetrator of this misguided series of actions, is a Christian Zionist. A born-again charismatic figure, he endeared himself to the militant Israeli Zionists who plotted Iran-contra. "He is more Israeli," said one Jewish general, "than we Israelis." This is often the case. In his zealotry, the Christian Zionist can become more Zionist, more militant, than

the Jewish Zionist.In the Iran-contra hearings, Sen. James McClure (R-ID) explained to North that the US had a stated policy of neutrality in the Iran-Iraq war. That policy differed radically from Israel's policy of selling arms to Iran. Yes, agreed North, the two policies were not the same.. The question, to which McClure's efforts yielded no response, then becomes: Why would the US forego its American policy to pursue Israeli policy?The answer, unfortunately, lies in the belief system of Christian Zionists: They believe that what Israel wants is what God wants. Therefore, it is perfectly acceptable to give the green light to whatever it is Israel wants and then conceal this from the American people. Anything, including lies, theft, even murder, is justified as long as Israel wants it.Another perfect example of a Christian Zionist is Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI). Throughout the hearings on the Iran-contra scandal, the Hawaiian kept

the focus on the contras and steered determinedly clear of any criticism of Israel. If, in answer to questions, witnesses sought to explain the seminal and continuing role of Israel, Inouye abruptly broke off the line of questioning that had led the hearings to this unwanted destination.Despite the political problems created by its lay practitioners and the scandals that rocked some of its TV ministries, this belief system-this cult of Israel-has not been diminished.Indeed, I hold that Christian Zionism threatens not just the lives of Palestinians and other Arabs, but the very existence of the United States. Because of the cult of Israel, we have become a nation that does not have its own Middle East policy, but the policy the government of Israel tells us to have.Despite the terrifying aspects of the alliance of militant Christians with militant Jewish Zionists, I find some encouraging developments. In my visits to colleges,

clubs, and churches around the country, I have found strong support for the message and warning in Prophecy and Politics. It has come not only from liberal congregations, but from across the whole spectrum of Christianity, including those Christians who call themselves fundamentalists. These supporters see Christ as the bearer to humanity of God's message of peace, brotherhood, love, and reconciliation. These Christians do not endorse either the cult of Israel or its killings and beatings of Palestinians.I have found many such Christians in my frequent visits to my home state of Texas.. There and all over this slowly-awakening land of ours, I have found a small but increasing number of ministers and lay people who are deeply alarmed by the cult of Israel and willing to stand up and speak out about it.Grace Halsell's book, Prophecy and Politics. The Secret Alliance Between Israel and the US Christian Right Is available through the AET Book

Club Catalog to readers of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.(This article was adapted by author Grace Halsell from her speech at the North American Regional Non-Governmental Symposium on the Question of Palestine held in June 1988 at the United Nations headquarters in New York.)

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