Clipmarks | invictus's 'israel' clips

Tablet ignites debate on messiah and resurrection

Sun, 06 Jul 2008 22:46:05 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

"This should shake our basic view of Christianity," he [Israel Knohl] said as he sat in his office of the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem where he is a senior fellow in addition to being the Yehezkel Kaufman Professor of Biblical Studies at Hebrew University. "Resurrection after three days becomes a motif developed before Jesus, which runs contrary to nearly all scholarship. What happens in the New Testament was adopted by Jesus and his followers based on an earlier messiah story."

Clip Source: www.iht.com

JERUSALEM: A three-foot-tall tablet with 87 lines of Hebrew that scholars believe dates from the decades just before the birth of Jesus is causing a quiet stir in biblical and archaeological circles, especially because it may speak of a messiah who will rise from the dead after three days.

If such a messianic description really is there, it will contribute to a developing re-evaluation of both popular and scholarly views of Jesus, since it suggests that the story of his death and resurrection was not unique but part of a recognized Jewish tradition at the time.

The tablet, probably found near the Dead Sea in Jordan according to some scholars who have studied it, is a rare example of a stone with ink writings from that era — in essence, a Dead Sea Scroll on stone.

Tags: religion, christianity, messiah, israel, judaism, resurrection, dead sea scrolls

Israel 'has 150 nuclear weapons'

Tue, 27 May 2008 00:24:52 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

Most experts estimate that Israel has between 100 and 200 nuclear warheads, largely based on information leaked to the Sunday Times newspaper in the 1980s by Mordechai Vanunu, a former worker at the country's Dimona nuclear reactor.

The US, a key ally of Israel, has in general followed the country's policy of "nuclear ambiguity", neither confirming or denying the existence of its assumed arsenal.

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Ex-US President Jimmy Carter has said Israel has at least 150 atomic weapons in its arsenal.

The Israelis have never confirmed they have nuclear weapons, but this has been widely assumed since a scientist leaked details in the 1980s.

Mr Carter made his comments on Israel's weapons at a press conference at the annual literary Hay Festival in Wales.

He also described Israeli treatment of Palestinians as "one of the greatest human rights crimes on earth".

Mr Carter gave the figure for the Israeli nuclear arsenal in response to a question on US policy on a possible nuclear-armed Iran, arguing that any country newly armed with atomic weapons faced overwhelming odds.

"The US has more than 12,000 nuclear weapons; the Soviet Union (sic) has about the same; Great Britain and France have several hundred, and Israel has 150 or more," he said.

Tags: israel, nuclear weapons, middle east, jimmy carter

Out of Africa, Not Once But Twice

Sat, 15 Mar 2008 23:36:14 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: dsc.discovery.com

Modern humans are known to have left Africa in a wave of migration around 50,000 years ago, but another, smaller group -- possibly a different subspecies -- left the continent 50,000 years earlier, suggests a new study.

While all humans today are related to the second "out of Africa" group, it's likely that some populations native to Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia retain genetic vestiges of the earlier migrants, according to the paper's author, Michael Schillaci.

Schillaci, an assistant professor in the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Toronto, also found the earlier group of emigrants had some genetic similarity to Neanderthals, a hominid that left Africa much earlier, settling in Europe and parts of western and central Asia.

Tags: anthropology, humans, migration, africa, neanderthal, prehistory, science

"Messiah" of The Washington Times

Sat, 15 Mar 2008 23:20:32 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks: A long but interesting feature, based on John Gorenfeld's book, "Bad Moon Rising: How Reverend Moon Created the Washington Times, Seduced the Religious Right, and Built an American Kingdom."

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

One chilly Tuesday evening, strange things were afoot on Capitol Hill. The U.S. Senate was hosting a ceremony at the request of a wealthy, elderly newspaper publisher who wanted official recognition as a majestic, divine visitor to Washington.

On March 23, 2004, U.S. lawmakers were filmed here in a conference room, paying tribute to the enigmatic Reverend Sun Myung Moon, then eighty-four, and his wife, Hak Ja, sixty-four.

Who was this self-proclaimed monarch?

The King of Peace, the Lord of the Fourth Israel, the Messiah, they called him now -- and the publisher of the Washington Times.

Tags: sun myung moon, washington times, media, religious right

Experts warn major Israel quakes fast approaching

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 20:39:06 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

LOD, Israel (AFP) - As if political instability and rampant insecurity in the Middle East are not worrying enough, Israeli experts are warning that a major earthquake could strike the region at any time.

Three minor quakes over the past month have served as a reminder that Israel and the West Bank sit atop one of the most sensitive fault lines in the world, where earthquakes have a history of causing havoc.

"We can say with certainty that an earthquake of a magnitude of six on the Richter scale could take place in the coming years," said Yefim Gitterman from the seismology department at the geophysical institute of Lod, near Tel Aviv.

"It can happen tomorrow or in years to come," he said. "Statistically, there is a major quake every 80 years."

Tags: earthquake, israel, middle east

Stop Arming Israel and Saudi Arabia

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 21:34:46 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: mrzine.monthlyreview.org

Bush's renewed arming of Saudi Arabia and Israel forces the issue. But we can turn his scheme against him and the Democrats, equally guilty of such outrages. The old saying is "a mountain only stands out because of the flatness of the surrounding ground." They have gotten away with their crimes because no movement focused on confronting our educated with the complete range of their international religious demagoguery. They built European Christian Democratic parties against Stalinism, patronized the creation of an Orthodox Jewish state, organized an Islamic front on the Soviet Union's borders, culminating with the arming of such terrorists against the pro-Soviet regime in Afghanistan.

If we resolutely challenge Bush now, we can generate enough discussion of the potentially disastrous consequences of the deal that, even if we can't stop Congress from funding it, we can continue, confident that we will convince enough people in reasonable time.

Tags: united states, bush administration, israel, saudi arabia, hypocrisy

Archaeology vs Religion in Ancient Israel History

Fri, 23 Nov 2007 11:42:26 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks: A review of famous Israeli archaeologist Ze'ev Herzog's article on Biblical accounts not conforming archaeological and historical facts.

Clip Source: www.prometheus.demon.co.uk

According to the Bible the history of Israel began when Abraham was called by Yahweh to leave his family and his home and settle in Canaan. His son Isaac, and his grandson, Jacob, lived there until Jacob was forced by famine to flee to Egypt with his remaining sons, where one of them, Joseph, already held a position of prominence. The descendants of Jacob were enslaved in Egypt. Yahweh charged Moses with the deliverance of his people from bondage.

None of the details of this account can be verified by other sources as the distinguished Israeli archaeologist Ze'ev Herzog argues in his article 'Deconstructing the Walls of Jericho: Biblical Myth and Archaeological Reality.'

most 'Israelis (as well as Jews in the Diaspora) would still be shocked to read such conclusions as these: that the People of Israel did not sojourn in Egypt, did not wander in the wilderness, did not conquer the land of Canaan in a military campaign, and did not pass it on as inheritance to the Twelve Tribes of Israel.

Tags: archaeology, israel, bible, history, pentateuch, religion, science

Biblical Bad Girl Had Power

Fri, 09 Nov 2007 18:51:07 GMT

clipped by: neochonetes

Clip Source: www.livescience.com

Jezebel, the queen whose name became synonymous with all things lewd and wicked, probably wielded a fair bit of power in ancient Israel, suggests a stone document seal newly traced to the Biblical "bad girl."

An ancient seal discovered in Isreal suggests that Queen Jezebel maintained a powerful stature during her reign. Credit: Israel Museum, Jerusalem

With her own seal, Queen Jezebel was able to exert a powerful influence upon people around her, much like the Egyptian queens, Korpel said.

Unlike Egypt, however, Biblical Israel did not look favorably upon powerful women. Jezebel was ultimately perceived as a threat and foreign idol worshipper, accused of prostitution, murder and sorcery, and tossed from her window to be ravaged by dogs.

Multiple icons on the seal, as well as its above-average size, indicate that it belonged to a queen, the recent investigations concluded.

upper edge that had broken off likely contained the two missing letters that would have correctly spelled Jezebel's nam

Tags: jezebel, queen, biblical israel, ahab, king, document seal

U.S. Set to Offer Huge Arms Deal to Saudi Arabia

Sat, 28 Jul 2007 12:53:56 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

U.S. Set to Offer Huge Arms Deal to Saudi Arabia

WASHINGTON, July 27 — The Bush administration is preparing to ask Congress to approve an arms sale package for Saudi Arabia and its neighbors that is expected to eventually total $20 billion at a time when some United States officials contend that the Saudis are playing a counterproductive role in Iraq.

The proposed package of advanced weaponry for Saudi Arabia, which includes advanced satellite-guided bombs, upgrades to its fighters and new naval vessels, has made Israel and some of its supporters in Congress nervous. Senior officials who described the package on Friday said they believed that the administration had resolved those concerns, in part by promising Israel $30.4 billion in military aid over the next decade, a significant increase over what Israel has received in the past 10 years.

Tags: united states, saudi arabia, arms deal, middle east, weapons

Moshe Dayan's antiquities on sale

Tue, 29 May 2007 19:22:30 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

Dayan, whose interest in archaeology stemmed from the bond he felt to the Bible, as was reflected in the title of his book "Living with the Bible," began collecting antiquities in the 1950s. Over 30 years he collected some 1,000 artifacts and placed them in the yard of his home, one of the largest private antiquities collections in the country.

In 1968, Dayan was seriously injured during an excavation he was conducting at Yazur near Ramle. But he continued his efforts and did not shrink from taking advantage of his position to further his collection. During his terms as general, chief of staff and defense minister, he often used those under his command to collect artifacts.

Clip Source: www.haaretz.com

Moshe Dayan's antiquities to be sold at bargain prices in U.S. auction

A total of 165 archaeological artifacts collected by Moshe Dayan will be auctioned off Sunday morning at a small auction house in the U.S., but prices are being kept down in part because the former general and chief of staff may not have excavated them legally.

The items are part of 200 glass and pottery vessels from the collection of Irving Bernstein, a United Jewish Appeal leader who was close to Dayan before he died in 1981.

According to Bernstein's heirs, who initiated the auction, Dayan sold or gave Bernstein the items.

An archaeologist, Professor Amos Kloner, told Haaretz that he did not think there was much public interest in items coming from the Dayan collection. "To the best of my knowledge, no artifact in the collection came from a legal excavation, which to my mind considerably reduces their value."

Tags: archaeology, israel, moshe dayan

Wooden Anchor Could Be Oldest Found

Thu, 17 May 2007 23:46:21 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: dsc.discovery.com

The world's oldest wooden anchor lies at the bottom of an ancient harbor in Turkey off the Aegean Sea, according to a team of Israeli and Turkish archaeologists.

Dating to the end of the 7th century B.C., the anchor was found in the Turkish port city of Urla, where the ancient site of Liman Tepe is located.

The anchor was recovered wedged into the ground about 5 feet below the surface.

"It is still there, we have not removed it from its position. It was covered with 7th century B.C. ceramics. The anchor is preserved in the ceramic layer, clearly dating from the same period," study leader Michal Artzy, of the University of Haifa's Institute for Maritime Studies in Israel, told Discovery News.

Tags: archaeology, turkey, izmir

King Herod's tomb unearthed?

Tue, 08 May 2007 03:12:03 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

JERUSALEM (AP) -- An Israeli archaeologist has found the tomb of King Herod, the legendary builder of ancient Jerusalem and the Holy Land, Hebrew University said late Monday.

The tomb is at a site called Herodium, a flattened hilltop in the Judean Desert, clearly visible from southern Jerusalem. Herod built a palace on the hill, and researchers discovered his burial site there, the university said.

Tags: israel, hebrew, jewish, archaeology, tomb, king herod

Gaza's ancient treasures revealed

Sun, 29 Apr 2007 00:07:35 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

A new exhibition showing off the archaeological riches of the Gaza Strip has just opened in the Swiss city of Geneva.

The exhibition, called "Gaza at the Crossroads of Civilisations", contains more than 500 artefacts dating back more than 5,000 years.

They reflect the diverse civilisations which at one time or another all spent time in Gaza.

Curators at Geneva's museum of art and history, which organised the exhibition, say Gaza's modern problems have so overshadowed its rich past that most people today are completely unaware that Gaza has any archaeological treasures at all.

A 48cm marble statue of Aphrodite, the Greek love goddess, is on show

This silver coin showing a human head is from the 4th Century BC

Tags: israel, archaeology, discovery

The War on Terror Is the Leading Cause of Terrorism

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 18:39:28 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

It's official: A new report shows that the U.S. has made the world more dangerous -- not just for Americans, but for everyone.

By Kim Sengupta and Patrick Cockburn, from The Independent

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

Innocent people across the world are now paying the price of the "Iraq effect," with the loss of hundreds of lives directly linked to the invasion and occupation by American and British forces.

An authoritative U.S. study of terrorist attacks after the invasion in 2003 contradicts the repeated denials of George Bush and Tony Blair that the war is not to blame for an upsurge in fundamentalist violence worldwide. The research is said to be the first to attempt to measure the "Iraq effect" on global terrorism.

It found that the number killed in jihadist attacks around the world has risen dramatically since the Iraq war began in March 2003. The study compared the period between 11 September 2001 and the invasion of Iraq with the period since the invasion. The count -- excluding the Arab-Israel conflict -- shows the number of deaths due to terrorism rose from 729 to 5,420. As well as strikes in Europe, attacks have also increased in Chechnya and Kashmir since the invasion.

Tags: war on terror, iraq war, jihad, terror, bush administration

Bush's Iraq Plan: Goading Iran Into War

Sat, 13 Jan 2007 14:47:48 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

Still, the European Union understands that the tidal waves of a regional war in the Middle East will reach Europe much sooner than they reach U.S. shores. Whether Europe will stand up for its own values and security and against Bush's war plans, however, remains to be seen. Here, Tehran's offers are likely not inconsequential.

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

Bush's Iraq Plan: Goading Iran Into War

President George W. Bush's address on Iraq Wednesday night was less about Iraq than about its eastern neighbor, Iran. There was little new about the U.S. strategy in Iraq, but on Iran, the president spelled out a plan that appears to be aimed at goading Iran into war with the United States.

While Washington speculated whether the president would accept or reject the Iraq Study Group's recommendations, few predicted that he would do the opposite of what James Baker and Lee Hamilton advised. Rather than withdrawing troops from Iraq, Bush ordered an augmentation of troop levels. Rather than talking to Iran and Syria, Bush virtually declared war on these states. And rather than pressuring Israel to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the administration is fueling the factional war in Gaza by arming and training Fatah against Hamas.

Several recent developments and statements indicate that the administration is ever more seriously eyeing war with Iran. On Wednesday, Bush made the starkest accusations yet against the rulers in Tehran, alleging that the clerics were "providing material support for attacks on American troops."

Tags: iraq war, bush administration, iran, middle east